The best seat in the house is the view from the couch

How is it possible that in the dead of December, with almost three feet of snow on the ground in the greater Boston Area, when every god-fearing sports fan should be focusing on the AFC East Champion (yes, that's right) Patriots, how is it possible that the Red Sox dominate almost every single local sports report?

Oh, that's right. We're all nuts.

Well, maybe nuts isn't the word I want here. Psychopathic, insane, obsessed, take your pick.

Of course, I'm doing exactly the same thing that everyone else is doing, leading off a column with a baseball note. But I struggeld with the choice of topics for this weeks column. I had the choice of baseball's hot stove, football's hot teams, or the bevy of firings across sports yesterday (NFL - Falcons, NBA - Suns, NHL - Capitals). I chose the NFL, but not without a quick note on baseball.

I don't want to comment on the Kevin Brown trade just yet, since it is not final and I'm still rather angry that George Steinbrenner has once again shown that "Whatever King George wants, King George gets." Instead, I've chosen to touch on the move that lead to that trade...

Andy Pettite, a lifelong Yankee, today chose to leave the only franchise he's ever known in order to return home to Houston and pitch for the hometown team. All kidding aside, and all bias' aside, I say good for him. In a sports age where professionals routinely choose dollars over dreams, Pettite took far less money than he was offered from the Yankees and even the Red Sox in order to fulfill a dream of pitching for his hometown. He gave up the chance to go into history as the winningest Yankee pitcher ever and he gave up the almost certain trip to the postseason every year, but what he got in return is worth far more.

One of my mottos in life has always been "If you don't enjoy what you're doing, then what's the point?" Although Pettite could have stayed in New York and pitched under the microscope in a greatly reduced rotation, and made almost $10 million more over the life of the contract, he chose to move back home and spearhead a young, but extremely talented rotation including Roy Oswalt and Wade Miller. He chose to take the leadership role that was passed down to him from friend, mentor, and former teammate Roger Clemens. Andy Pettite has taken the opportunity to teach this young rotation and possibly lead the Astros deep into the postseason. Just as Curt Schilling will be remembered a hero if he leads the Red Sox to a World Series, Pettite will be a hero if he simply leads the Astros to their first postseason series win.

And for that, I commend him.

Onto this weeks actual topic, the hottest teams in the NFL.

No, it's not the Chiefs. No, it's not the Rams. It's not the Colts, Titans, Dolphins, Broncos, Seahawks, Panthers, Cowboys, Packers, Vikings, or Bengals. It's the Patriots, Eagles, and Ravens.

Although the Chiefs are 11-2, and the Rams are making their bi-annual odd-year playoff run, the Patriots, Eagles, and Ravens are simply playing inspired ball. these are three teams that had no business being in the position they are in based on early season returns.

The Patriots and Eagles both got shut out in Week 1. Baltimore lost to Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh?) by 19. The Ravens rebounded by stomping the hapless Browns by 20 in Week 2, as they should. The Pats showed glimmers of what could be with a 31-10 win over, you guessed it, the Eagles. Then Philly got healthy on their bye week (3) and the NFC East leading Eagles have lost only one game since, 27-25 to the Cowboys in their first meeting.

The Patriots won two straight after opening day, and should be on a 12-game streak right now, if not for an ill-advised 4th-down attempt against the Redskins when a FG would have tied the game and sent it to overtime. This wouldn't even be a discussion if the ball doesn't slip out of Tom Brady's hand on that pass and into the hands of the defender waiting downfield.

The Ravens, however, have done it differently. For starters, they are only 8-5 right now, whereas the Eagles are 10-3 and the Pats are 11-2. Baltimore has won 3 straight after an ugly 9-6 OT loss to the Dolphins in Week 11. But they are doing it with smoke and mirrors. Oh, and the best running back in the league.

Yep. Jamal Lewis is the best RB in the NFL. He has 159 more yards rushing (1622) than Ahman Green (1463), who is #1 in the NFC. But is the fear he inspires in others that has allowed his team to prosper. This is a team that is on QB #3 for the season, Anthony Wright (who?). Wright used to be a backup QB for the Cowboys, and now is leading the Ravens ever closer to the AFC North title.

The Ravens are a team NO ONE wants to play right now, let alone in the playoffs. The same can be said for the Eagles, who have a serious 2003 Coach of the Year candidate in Andy Reid. But the Patriots are the team that strikes fear into the heart of offensive coordinators leaguewide, and they have the 2003 Coach of the Year winner in Bill Belichick.

Last week's game against the Dolphins was absolutely a defensive masterpiece. We all knew that Miami had absolutely no chance of winning a December game in Foxboro, and once the storm had cleared and there was three feet of snow on the ground, there was really no reason to even play the game.

I don't think I have ever seen a coach and a defensive coordinator combine to shut down teams the way that Belichick and Romeo Crennel are shutting down everyone they play this year. The Indy game was an abbirration; The Pats have not allowed a TD at home in over 60 defensive series. They beat the Giants 17-6 in Foxboro, Cleveland 9-3, and Dallas and Miami 12-0 each. So in their last four home games, they've allowed 9 points. Compare that to 93 points in their last four road games (13 at Miami, 26 at Denver, 20 at Houston, and 34 at Indy). The Pats are 6-0 at home, 5-2 on the road. Now do we see why home field is so important?

Luckily, the Pats have three straight winnable games to end the season, (Jax, @NYJ, Buf), and they currently have the #1 seed in the AFC. Home-field, here we come!

Onto this week's picks. Last week I went 7-9 (Damned Michael Vick) to bring me to 45-43-3 on the year. I also made some comments that turned out to be pretty stupid. I guess the air in Mile High really does make a difference. And I'll eventually learn not to bet against Brett Favre in Lambeau in December. This week's picks are going to be kind of short, simply because I wrote a lot more above than I had planned to, and I'm trying to keep my columns under 3000 words so you, my loyal readers (both of you) don't get bored. Here goes:

Vikings (-1.5) over BEARS: OK, so I may have been wrong about the Vikings. Culpepper to Moss is getting nicer and nicer to watch each week though. It's really becoming a thing of beauty.

Lions (+14.5) over CHIEFS: C'Mon, 14.5?? This is the NFL, not college (No, I'm not getting into the BCS right now... absolute debaucle). You remember my 5.5 point rule? Well, this more than doubles it.

Buffalo (+6.5) over TENNESSEE: Tennessee has one of the worst passing defenses in the league, and providing Drew Bledsoe can see straight after his post-concussion syndrome (oh, I'm sorry, it was just an unrelated dizzy spell. Yeah, right.), then he should be able to torch the Titans' secondary.

RAMS (-6.5) over Seahawks: The Seahawks can't win on the road. It's as simple as that. They're 1-5 on the road, and that win was against San Diego. They will probably end up 8-0 at home, and still not make the playoffs. Sad.

BUCS (-7.5) over Texans: Once again, no David Carr, and a gimpy Domanick Davis will lead the Texans down the road to another loss. Are the Bucs eliminated yet? I'm getting tired of writing that they're not going to make it.

Cowboys (-1.5) over REDSKINS: There's not much to say about the game, so let me congratulate Bruce Smith for finally getting the career sacks record. I was a big Bills fan in the early 90's, and he was great to watch then, and now.

PATRIOTS (-7.5) over Jaguars: Considering that the Jags have a pretty good defense, I normally wouldn't give up 7.5 points. But then I heard that there was going to be another snowstorm in Foxboro when a Florida team was visiting, and I couldn't resist.

JETS (-3.5) over Steelers: Eventually, I'm going to be able to call a game correctly for the teams I hate, the Jets and Raiders. Maybe this will be the week. A steady diet of Curtis martin and Pennington to Moss should keep the Jets ahead in this one, and technicaly still barely breathing in the wildcard race. Don't get your hopes up.

COLTS (-7.5) over Falcons: Michael Vick killed me last week with his legs. Luckily, Peyton Manning is facing the Falcons secondary this week, so he can kill them with his cannon-arm. And I'll be starting him in one league, Marvin Harrison in another. Heh heh heh...

BENGALS (-2.5) over 49ers: Boy it felt good to be the only person to pick Cincy to lose last week's game outright. But don't look for them to roll over and die just because they got embarrased by a far superior team. They are a good football team. They will make the playoffs. Just not this year.

Ravens (-5.5) over RAIDERS: The Raiders cost me last week. Now I get to bash them. YOU SUCK!! YOU SUCK YOU SUCK YOU SUCK YOU SUCK... And the Ravens are really good (see above).

Packers (-4.5) over CHARGERS: The Chargers have one of the most fun RB's in the league to watch, but that won't save them. Ahman Green is the #1 RB in the NFC for a reason, look for him to come up big as the Packers struggle for the final NFC wildcard spot.

BRONCOS (-8.5) over Browns: Remember, the mile-high air DOES make a difference. Oh, now I get it. That, plus the Browns are horriffic. The Broncos currently hold the final AFC wildcard spot after the Dolphins we shutout last week, and they will solidify their standing this week with a win at home over Cleveland.

Panthers (-5.5) over CARDINALS: Only 5.5? Did the oddsmakers actually watch the Cardinals last week? I think the Niners are still scoring on them. THEY GAVE UP 50 POINTS!

SAINTS (-7.5) over Giants: Like the Bucs, the Saints aren't quite out of it, but they're close. The Giants are just playing because it's their job. They're not going to win much, except maybe a little respect. Jim Fassel has very little chance of saving his job, even if he goes 3-0 to end the year. It's all over in Giants-land.

Eagles (+1.5) over DOLPHINS: See, in this matchup, the Eagles would have a weather-relates home field advantage. The Dolphins don't. You see folks, Florida teams in the frigid cold are at a distinct disadvantage. Northern teams playing down south generally should perform better, right? Plus, the Eagles are going to the Super Bowl.

To face the Pats. Oh yea baby.

This week, Mixed Singles, mostly Rock. Not in an album mood tonight, plus it's 1AM, so loud music is kinda a bad idea.

Until next time...

posted by Big D @ 12:00 AM