Leave it to the low class Lions to deliver a cheap shot even AFTER the season ended. Safety Aaron Berry, a little sore in the rear end both from the whoopin Drew Brees put on the Lion secondary and the fan reaction in the social media, responded with a scathing attack on Lions fans, calling them "broke and miserable." This is right out of the LeBron James playbook, telling us all to get back to our sorry lives now that we can't kick around millionaire pro athletes anymore. It was a move that lacked any class at all, but when it came to the undisciplined Lions, would you have it any other way?
- Texans (-4) 31, Bengals 10 - Dre winner, Jason loser - After looking impressive on their opening drive, the Bengals couldn't muster much offense the rest of the afternoon. The Texans played to their strengths, namely their defense and running attack, and capitalized on three Andy Dalton picks to run away and hide in the second half. Dalton looked very much like a rookie on the afternoon, and the Bengals looked every bit like a team that limped through the back door into the playoffs. Houston will need more from T.J. Yates this weekend as they head to Baltimore.
- Saints (-10½) 45, Lions 28 - Jason winner, Dre loser - The Saints lived up to all their press, relentlessly piling up yards and points on the sorry Lion D. The Lions were one dimensional from the start, and therein lie the difference between the Saints and Lions: New Orleans three headed rushing attack complements their passing game so well that their offense looks unstoppable. The Lions leaned heavily on Calvin Johnson, and against many other teams, that should have been enough. The Lions have a bright future, but they need to grow up and find some defense before they can ascend to contender status.
- Giants (-3) 24, Falcons 2 - Jason winner, Dre loser - Atlanta played one of the worst playoff games I've ever seen any team play. Especially for a team that "built" itself for this moment, to outscore other teams come January. The Giants got lucky late in the season, and then hot the last few weeks, and that can be a very dangerous combination. Matt Ryan is starting to look like a liability more than an asset. He might be a nice game manager, but he seems to rattle under pressure and doesn't have the big arm necessary to push the ball down the field. Ryan has underwhelmed in all three of his playoff losses, and hurt his team here by missing opportunities early while the Falcon D was holding the Giants down. Also to blame here was Mike Smith, who needs to stop with the going for it on 4th and one. Bravado turned to stubborness turned to stupidity before our eyes, and the Giants took advantage of every mistake.
- Broncos (+9) 29, Steelers 23 (OT) - Both winners - I found myself rooting for the Broncos as the game kept going. A nice cover was turning into an upset, and I'm a sucker for a nice underdog story. Even after the Steelers benefited from a horrendous call on a backward pass to eventually tie the game, the Broncos didn't seem shaken. Their D held Roethlisberger late, thanks to Ben holding onto the ball too long AGAIN, and won the coin toss to start the first ever overtime with the new rules. Referee Ron Winter butchered the explanation of the OT rules, but all we needed was one play: a perfectly thrown strike to Demayrius Thomas on a pitch and catch that netted Denver 80 yards, a touchdown, and the win. Thomas did his best Donovan McNabb impersonation, saying he didn't know his TD won the game, but after Winter's explanation, I can't blame him. Tebow took what the Steelers gave him, which amounted to 316 yards passing on TEN completions. That's a 31.6 yards per completion average, which is insane. You deserved to lose, Pittsburgh.
No comments:
Post a Comment