Category Archives: Football

Here’s a little stat for you: the New England Patriots are at the bottom of the AFC East for the first time since the Big Bang. Tell me you predicted this, I dare you.

Meanwhile, Tony Romo and Alex Smith were giving out footballs to the opposing team as if they were kids on Halloween seeking candy. They looked bad. We’re talking Phantom Menace bad. Jar Jar could’ve been the offensive coordinator for either Dallas or Kansas City and there might not have been a difference.

On the brighter side, both Cleveland and Jacksonville look like gamers, despite the losses. That’s no guarantee they’ll suddenly win games, but it makes for better viewing than late-season episodes of The X-Files. And hey, I was exceptionally wrong about Minnesota being boring. I can own that.

In fact, I had an 8-8 week in predictions, so I was wrong about half the time. That’ll teach you to put any stock into my prognostications. But hey, why not – here’s some more:  Continue reading →

Welcome to the second annual series of football picks on this blog, now conveniently and oh-so-creatively filed under the new name GeekPicks. Yes, I am a football fan. And I’m a geek. Plus, I have a platform and – stand back! – I’m not afraid to use it! So I’m doing it again this year.

What you’ll get here is a weekly win-or-lose pick on each NFL game, accompanied by geeky pop-culture commentary. No, I don’t pick against the spread. No, you really shouldn’t use my picks as the basis for any wagering, because that just weirds me out and you will lose money. I don’t need that kind of pressure.This is for fun, y’all.

So what can we expect this season? Continue reading →

I work in New York City, and let me tell you, folks are very excited about the city hosting Super Bowl XLVIII. And by excited, I mean completely blase about it. Because, darn it, we’re New Yorkers. Even if we haven’t been-there-done-that, we sure act like it. And besides, it’s not like Peyton Manning or Richard Sherman are walking down Broadway posing for pictures every day. We have bad knock-off Elmos and Statues of Liberty for that.

Besides, technically New Jersey is hosting the game. New York is just the window dressing. As it should be — nothing can distract from the fact that, whatever the venue and the weather, this is going to be one heck of a game.

The Denver Broncos have a record-setting offense with a future Hall of Famer at quarterback, and they’ll be going up against the league’s top-rated defense. That right there is pretty cool. On the flip side, the Seattle Seahawks have themselves a pretty good offense too, and they’ll face Denver’s pretty good defense.

I admit, my loyalties are torn on this one. Peyton Manning is just fantastic. Plus, he’s an upstanding guy who works his butt off to be as excellent as he is. Seeing him win a second Super Bowl just cements his legacy as one of the best — if not the best — quarterback to ever play the game. Plus, I don’t want to see this face, because it scares me:

Seriously. I’m weighed down by crushing ennui and heartbreak just looking at him. (And let’s just take a moment to recognize that it took three years for me to post my first .gif on this blog.)

On the other hand, I used to live in Seattle once upon a time, when I was with AP covering Microsoft and Amazon. I even interviewed Lou Pinella once as a fill-in for a vacationing sports writer. It’s a great sports town, and they deserve to win the big one. Plus, if that defense can actually stifle Manning, then they seriously have a shot.

If I were voting with my heart, I’d pick Seattle. Manning still has another season to pick up that trophy and ride off into the sunset, whereas Seattle hasn’t proven it’s consistent enough to return to the playoffs over and over again. I want them to seize the moment, run with it, and have an awesome parade through downtown Seattle, right past Pike Place Market and the hammer guy in front of the art museum. I want Pearl Jam and The Presidents of the United States of America (interviewed them once, too!) playing at the CLink for the celebration. I want the Spoonman himself keeping time and Paul Allen doing a happy dance.

But stopping Manning is a tall order, and he has been en fuego all season. I mean, seriously, he broke all the single-season records this year. At age 37. Plus, if any of his teammates let him down at any point in the game, he will show that face and drive laser-eyes through their hearts.

So if my heart’s with Seattle, my head says: Broncos. Either way, I’m making pulled pork with homemade BBQ sauce and I’ll probably crack open a Westmalle dubbel to go with it. So it’s all good.

The big prize this weekend: A ticket to the Garden State!

Oh, and the Super Bowl. Honestly, I don’t think the players, or the fans, really care where the big game is held, so long as their team gets to go. It could be held on Alderaan for all they care, so long as the game ends and the trophy is hoisted before the Death Star arrives.

I think the playoffs did their job, winnowing down the field to the four best teams in football. I can’t argue against any of these teams being worthy of the big show. And the games themselves — like most of the playoff games this season — promise to be as exciting as the Doctor Who Christmas special. Maybe even more.

On with the picks!

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That was some weekend, huh? Three games that could’ve gone either way, with thrilling endings…and the fourth proving that the Bengals remain the Bengals, much in the way you could count on an Imperial Stormtrooper to consistently miss his target.

The weekend also proved that, despite a pretty good regular season record, my NFL picks remain highly fallible. If you were foolish enough to place any credence in these, well…my 1-3 record serves you right. I’m an author, not a bookie, Jim. (Though, really, my faith in the Bengals getting over the hump was the only true whiff last week.)

So what do we have now? Another great weekend of football with good teams and excellent matchups. This means, of course, that like a Stormtrooper, I’ll miss more than I hit. But then, it’s not like I’m putting money down on these.

On with the picks!

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As if we needed another reason to celebrate between Christmas and New Year’s (besides the final Doctor Who with Matt Smith), we have some excellent, meaningful football games to watch this Sunday. And not just meaningful as in playoffs, but also meaningful as to whether some coaches and/or players will be retained by their respective teams for next season.

Let’s start with the playoffs, first. Green Bay will visit Chicago with the NFC North on the line, while Philadelphia goes to Dallas for the NFC East title. In these two games, it’s win-and-you’re-in. Lose, and no playoffs this year. Also, you have the New Orleans Saints up against Tampa Bay at home. If the Saints win, they’re in as a wild-card, and the get the NFC South if the Panthers somehow fall to the Falcons. Meanwhile, Arizona could make it by winning against San Francisco but only if the Saints lose.

The AFC’s a bit easier to manage, with New England, Indy, Denver and Seattle winning their divisions and Kansas City taking the first wild-card. Miami, Baltimore and San Diego are all sitting at 8-7, and the permutations of how it’ll all work out are kind of tough to explain here. As reflected by my picks below, I’m calling Ravens on this one.

Then there’s the coaching hot seats. If the media reports are to be believed, Washington owner Dan Synder is already setting up Mike Shanahan’s Red Wedding. The coaches of Tennessee, the Jets, Detroit, Minnesota, Oakland, Tampa Bay and Dallas are allegedly in danger of being laid off, to varying degrees. (So is Giants coach Tom Coughlin, so they say, but with the injuries Big Blue had this year, letting a two-time Super Bowl winner go like that is just bad form.)

In addition to the usual round of picks below, complete with snarky/geeky comments, I’m making the games with a (P) for playoffs and (C) for coach-under-fire. Hope that helps you manage your NFL Sunday Ticket choices well! (Winning picks are in italics.)

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It’s kind of cool that, with just two weeks to go, only four teams — Seattle, Indianapolis, Denver and Kansas City — are assured of making the playoffs. There’s a total Death Star-sized dogfight for the last wild-card slot in the AFC, and even a chance that Miami wins the AFC East. The NFC East (or Least) is up for grabs, as is the NFC North.

Even the best teams in the league — Seattle, Denver, Kansas City, New Orleans and Carolina — are still vying for division titles and home-field advantage for the playoffs. Nobody’s going to sit back and relax this week, which means we ought to have a bunch of games with serious intensity. I like it.

Without further ado, bring on the picks! (Winners in italics.)

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For the most part, the NFL postseason is shaping up nicely. Yes, there are the shoe-ins. Expect the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks to nab the top seeds in their divisions. The New England Patriots will limp into the playoffs with injuries, but they’ll be a tough out. Both the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers will be in there, with the only question being who’s the division champ and who’s the wild card.

Chances are, the Colts and Bengals will represent their divisions as well, and Kansas City has a lock on the top wild card in the AFC. And that leaves a lot of has-beens and would-bes vying for that last AFC seed. Baltimore has the best shot, followed by Miami, with San Diego and the maddeningly inconsistent Jets still toying with somewhat-reasonable hopes.

In the NFC, I can’t see Dallas topping the Eagles for the NFC East title, but I could see Chicago or even Green Bay making a run at Detroit for their division. The 49ers are probably the other wild card, unless they mess it up. Arizona could be the source of that mess-up, which I admit would be interesting to see.

And if you’re a fan of just about anyone else…there’s always next year.

On with the picks! (Winners in italics)

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I feel for teams like Atlanta, Houston and Washington this time of year. They’re not going to the playoffs, which means their only motivation is to play for their jobs next year. And meanwhile, their general managers are secretly wishing they’d tank so they could stockpile high draft picks.

So much for the fun and romance of professional sports.

Thus, while you’re salivating over the Seattle-San Francisco and Carolina-New Orleans games, spare a moment for the guys playing out the string and hoping they’re doing enough to keep their jobs. Because that’s not a great place to be.

On the bright side, an enterprising ESPN blogger discovered that, yes, the heretofore hapless Jacksonville Jaguars could actually make the playoffs. Of course, a lot of things have to go right, and not just the Jags winning all their remaining games. More than a few teams have to pull out upsets this month, and there may be something involving the One Ring and a space-time anomaly. But it could happen. So go Jags!

And on that happy note, on with the picks. (Winners in italics.)

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I think last week’s picks were a perfect illustration of why you shouldn’t rely on my prognostication for anything worthwhile.

I mean, who thought San Diego would beat Kansas City, or that Houston was woeful enough to lose to the Jags? Tampa Bay beat Detroit? St. Louis beat Chicago? I think the Doctor had some bets going in Vegas, and used the TARDIS to fix a few games. Sonic screwdrivers don’t come cheap, after all.

In other news, it’s Thanksgiving! May you enjoy a peaceful and prosperous holiday, and remember to take time away from the games to, you know, talk to your loved ones and such.

Now, for what it’s worth, on with the picks! (Winners in italics)

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