Scott Norwood

Scott Norwood
Wide Right started it all.

Saturday, January 29, 2022

Conf. Finals '22

I wasn't aware of Jay's health problems when the two Sunday games ended with me taking Ls. I wondered why Jay had not changed his picks like he did Saturday, going with Green Bay in an effort to catch me in our handicapping contest, but it turned out that he had good reason to neglect to change picks: He had the goop, and so did his family. It's not the way I wanted to clinch the contest; in fact I was nauseous upon finding out. But that's how it went down. We were free to make our picks for Championship Sunday without having to worry about how many points separated us. We came up with the same picks, but neither of us would be totally shocked if SF or Cin pulled the upset. Surprised, but not shocked. Here are our Conference Finals picks for the record:




All of our thoughts and observations can be heard here:

Friday, January 21, 2022

Conf. Semis '22

Once again I went too long in my analysis of these games and left my partner Jason almost no time at the end of the show. I'm lucky that he's patient and also used to me sucking all the oxygen. We're both very excited for the slate of Divisional Round games. There are no spreads that are touchdowns or larger, so the oddsmakers think the matchups are rather even, and so do we, for the most part. Jay does fear that the Titans will smash the Bengals, but that just plays into Cincy's hands. "No one gave us a chance! NO ONE!!" I can hear them now. Here are our picks, and since that Cin-Tenn game is our only battle, if I win, the points chase is all over:


 



All of our thoughts and observations can be heard here:


NFL Conf. Semis 2022: Buffalo Levels Up

Friday, January 14, 2022

Wild Card '22

I was a little too fired up for playoff football, and I got way too deep into statistics getting ready for our podcast. So we got all our picks in, but most of my analysis was lost because it would have pushed the show into marathon territory, even more than it already is. I'll curtail my research for the next show. Jay and I see two Wild Card games differently, which would bring him within shouting distance in our playoff scoring system. It would really put me in the driver's seat if I can take those games from him. Here are our predictions for the NFL's super mega playoff wknd, yay sports:



All (or most) of our thoughts and observations can be heard here:


NFL Wild Card 2022: Big Ben's Bon Voyage (Unless...)


Monday, January 10, 2022

2021 What I Learned About Each Team In One Sentence

Cowboys--Dan Quinn's gambling D is a perfect complement for Mike McCarthy's exciting but flawed coaching.
Giants--Some of the worst offensive concepts imaginable highlight how awful the franchise is.
Eagles--They can be a pain when the top-ranked running attack is humming and not so much when Jalen Hurts is forced to throw.
Skins--The organizational culture continues to be an abortion, which is easier to see when the defense isn't leading them to on-field glory.
Bears--Justin Fields has a chance with new management and coaching and added weapons, and that's a long list of "with"s.
Lions--There's no denying that they fought and played hard for Dan Campbell, but they're still a joke.
Packers--The steady consistency and greatness is impressive, and with home field in the playoffs, they can beat anybody.
Vikings--Always seemed like they were missing something that could propel them to serious contention, which may be coaching, quarterback, defense, or all of it.
Falcons--The slow demise of franchise QB Matt Ryan should signal a drafting of new blood.
Panthers--They had three seasons in one, starting hot, falling off, bowing up on D and falling back, and the ups and downs may be a sign of lack of leadership.
Saints--There's a solid foundation in place that allowed them to weather many QB calamities and still almost make the postseason.
Buccaneers--Will try to make another great playoff run behind the ageless Tom Brady, but one too many injuries to their core will doom them.
Cardinals--A fierce offensive fuselage for most of the year, they are capable of outshooting anyone anytime, though they will sorely miss Nuk Hopkins in the postseason.
Rams--Kudos for making the Matt Stafford trade and going for it, though his mistakes sure seem like they will torpedo the squad ultimately.
49ers--A risky proposition trying to cater to their starting QB while grooming his heir, San Fran and Kyle Shanahan navigated and finessed things deftly.
Seahawks--Run, run, Russbomb was Pete Carroll's mantra yet again, and it wasn't enough yet again.
Bills--Odd schedule full of cupcakes resulted in Buffalo struggling to stay hungry and consistent which sets them up for more playoff disappointment.
Dolphins--Not nearly enough signs from Tua that he's the explosive franchise athlete that he was drafted to be, they only heated up when the sked let up.
Patriots--Predictably, their D benefited from returning vets and their rookie QB got better with experience, and they won't be beaten easily in the postseason.
Jets--Robert Saleh's defense was light and laughable, Zach Wilson was at times terrible, and he didn't have a lot of weapons to help him.
Ravens--Lamar Jackson found downfield big-play ability for a month but lost it, and combined with catastrophic defensive injuries, it was a lost season for Baltimore.
Bengals--The scariest offense in the playoffs, they were uber-impressive in building off the electric Burrow-Chase tag team and creating a well-rounded crew.
Browns--Another season of trying to win with a deeply flawed signal caller, they may have ruined their chances by sticking with Baker Mayfield after he got hurt.
Steelers--Their QB looked old and washed most of the year, but TJ Watt led a furious pass rush that kept Pittsburgh in every game.
Texans--They looked as bad as they should digging out from the personnel mess left by the previous regime, but they may have found a nugget in QB Davis Mills.
Colts--Jonathan Taylor's breakout at RB will get lost in the dizzy play of Carson Wentz which ultimately cost them the playoffs.
Jaguars--The Khlowns of the NFL, they proved that character issues can kill a team when it comes from the supposed leader, the head coach.
Titans--No team loves being doubted more than Tennessee, and they didn't let Derrick Henry's injury derail their strategy or energy.
Broncos--It has to be tiring as a Denver fan to keep getting good defensive efforts and mid QBs.
Chiefs--It shows how high their expectations are that they kept looking like they were turning in troubling offensive outputs and still finished 4th in scoring.
Raiders--A season that will have books written about it, they weathered more drama than a midday soap and came out (barely) with a playoff slot.
Chargers--The developing Justin Herbert was fun to watch, and so was the ultimate let-it-ride coach Brandon Staley, whose gambling might have cost them everything.

Sunday, January 9, 2022

2021 Week #18

I feel like we all won a marathon in making it to Week 18 in the NFL. They kept drilling home that it was the longest season ever, and it felt like it. Jay said that it has felt more like work this year to stay prepared and make informed picks than ever before. He's right, and I should thank him for doing the show every week (except one) and juggling this silliness with his family and job. We do it for the love of football, and because it's fun. But it tests the love of all fans when it seems like work keeping up with your sport. I guess they know what they're doing, but there's been rumors of expanding the season for years and I've always looked forward to it, and now that it's here, I'm...not as excited as I thought I would be. I'm tired. Hell, I'm rambling now because I'm tired. Here's our Week 18 picks, where Jason and I differ on six games (plus the Cowboys-Eagles game), joined by the coin flip for the Sunday games, since the last week is always a coin flip anyway:


 



All of our thoughts and observations can be heard here:


NFL 2021 Week #18: And If You Don't Like The Extra Week, You Can Strip And Leave

Saturday, January 1, 2022

2021 Week #17

Jay and I differ on seven games this week, which is a lot less than I thought because we started off against each other on the first three picks. But we got in lock step for the most part from there. I just hope we can keep up our Lock streak, since I'm ahead of him by one. I had to change my Chiefs pick from Week 16 though. I said on the podcast that I would take the Steelers over the Chiefs if either Tyreek Hill or Travis Kelce were to miss the game. But then I forgot that I said that when I wrote my contingency on the blog, and I wrote that I would only take the Steelers if both Kelce and Hill were ruled out. I left it to Jay to decide what should happen to the pick, and he said because I broadcast that I got Pittsburgh while making our picks, that should stand. So it will. Here are our Week 17 picks, free of contingencies:




All of our thoughts and observations can be heard here:


NFL 2021 Week #17: New Year, Old Pandemic