Now we move on to the Divisional Round. These games feature all rematches, which makes for high drama. Let's look at each game:

Baltimore Ravens at Tennessee Titans- This game features two great rushing attacks and two outstanding defenses. The Ravens bring Willis McGahee and LeRon McClain against a Titans defense that may be without Albert Haynesworth and Kyle Vanden Bosch. If these two don't play, that could spell trouble for the Titans, as these two backs have been running wild of late.

The Titans counter with Chris Johnson and LenDale White, aka Thunder & Lightning. Johnson is the speed guy, capable of breaking a long run at any time, while White is the muscle, usually used at the goal line, but also has the speed to break one every now and then. They face a Ravens defense that is #2 in the NFL, and is reminding some of the championship defense of 2000. Ed Reed has been a ball hawk, with three straight two-interception games, and eight interceptions in his last five games. Then of course, there is the constant imposing presence of Ray Lewis, who seems to be ageless. The Ravens D will pose a lot of problems for 36 year old Kerry Collins, who is not playing as well as he did in the early part of the season when he took over for Vince Young.

I think the Ravens are playing too well right now for the Titans to handle. Joe Flacco is looking to be the first rookie QB to win two playoff games, and with the help of his running game and the defense, I think he gets it done. Ravens-24 Titans-10.

Arizona Cardinals at Carolina Panthers- I may have been wrong about the Cardinals last week, but not this week. The Panthers have a much better defense than the Falcons, and the Cardinals can't win on the East Coast. Anquan Boldin is hurt (he'll play, but not at 100%), the Cards have no real running game, and Jake Delhomme, Steve Smith and Muhsin Muhammed will simply be too much for the Cardinals defense. Panthers-31 Cardinals-17

Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants- This one should be a great game, and since it's the playoffs, it can't possibly end in a tie (right, Donovan?). The Eagles are riding some momentum after last weeks close call against the Vikings, but they go up against the defending world champions. The Eagles D played well last week against Adrian Peterson (as well as anyone can play against that kid), holding him to just 14 yards in the second half. However, the Giants have too many weapons at the running back position, all with different gifts.

I don't think the Eagles will be able to stop Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw, and with the Giants playing without Plaxico Burress, there will be a heavy dose of all three. The Giants defense is still formidable even without the retired Michael Strahan and the injured Osi Umenyiora. They should create problems for McNabb and Westbrook. Giants-20 Eagles-14

San Diego Chargers at Pittsburgh Steelers- Fact. LT is hurting. So much so, they he may not play this week. Darren Sproles has proven to be a capable backup, but the Steelers defense is not the Colts defense. The Steelers bring the #1 defense in the NFL, including the defensive player of the year in James Harrison. The Chargers do have several weapons, but they were pretty much ineffective the first time these two teams met.

It looks like Ben Roethlisberger will play, albeit behind a suspect offensive line. If Willie Parker can get going, that will allow Big Ben to hit his big play receivers down the field against a very porous Chargers secondary. Steelers-13 Chargers-10

There you have it. My picks for this week. Hopefully, I will do better than .500 this time. I'm looking forward to the conference championships.

See you next week.

D

Atlanta Falcons At Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta is hot this year. they have my pick. I think that rookie QB Matt Ryan is to good of a leader to lose his debut playoff match. I think they have the more flexible offense with star RB Micheal Turner as well as their strong passing game. Dont get me wrong, Fitzy and Boldin can run up the score, i just think Atlanta has the stronger team at the moment.

Indianapolis Colts at San Diego Chargers

Lets face it, San Diego has the colts number. at least Peyton Manning's. Last year manning threw six picks to the Chargers. But what happened this year? San Diego has barely made 8-8 while the Colts are 12-4, rebounding from their early losing streak. Colts want it more, and are more prepared. Colts take the win in this one.

Baltimore Ravens at Miami Dolphins

At the beginning of the season no one thought either of these teams would even be able to compete for a playoff spot. Why Miami even made the biggest single season recovery of all time, 10 wins. Certainly a defensive game. Each team has their offensive threats though. Pennington, an ever so accurate passer, should be challenged by the ravens defense. Miami Wins by 5 or less points.

Philadelphia Eagles at Minnesota Vikings

Am old fasion running game is what we will see here folks. no way around it. Westbrook vs. Peterson. whichever one has a bigger game will win the game. both defenses are very solid, although the vikings main focus needs to be to contain Mcnabb and Westbrook. if they can do this, they will definetly win! Over all though, I think that philly has to many weapons and will walk away with the win.

Divisional Leaders

Tennessee Titans 10-1 (ACS) (Browns, Texans, Steelers, Colts)
Pittsburgh Steelers 8-3 (ACN) (Cowboys, Ravens, Titians, Browns)
New York Jets 8-3 (ACE) (49ers, Bills, Seahawks, Dolphins)
Denver Broncos 6-5 (ACW) (Chiefs, Panthers, Bills, Chargers)

Wild Card

Indianapolis Colts 7-4 (Bengals, Lions, Jaguars, Titans)
Baltimore Ravens 7-4 (Redskins, Steelers, Cowboys, Jaguars)

Outside looking In

New England Patriots 7-4 (Seahawks, Raiders, Cardinals, Bills)
Miami Dolphins 6-5 (Bills, 49ers, chiefs, Jets)
Buffalo Bills 6-5 (Dolphins, Jets, Broncos, Patriots)
San Diego Chargers 4-7 (Raiders, Chiefs, Buccaneers, Broncos)

Looking above there is opportunity for big changes in the AFC, I would say the team with the hardest schedule in the last four weeks of the regular season would be the Pittsburgh Steelers next I would have to say the Baltimore Ravens. The team with probably the easiest schedule would be the Indianapolis Colts despite the Titans in week 17 there are no competitors. The second easiest would have to go to the San Diego Chargers.

Change to come in the AFW

When you look at the schedule of the Denver Broncos and the Schedule of the San Diego Chargers it is almost impossible not to grit your teeth at the thought of one of the biggest finishes to come from this division. Though both teams don't have stand out records they both have stand out offenses and everyone should be familiar with the saying good offense beats good defense so if one of these teams go which one of them will have to they have a shot just like everyone else. I believe that LaDainian Tomlinson is getting hot and going up against two teams like the Chiefs and the Raiders will only make him hotter. Now I believe that the Broncos will beat Kansas City however I don't see them beating the Panthers or the Bills putting them all tied up going into week 17. I just feel there is no way the Chargers loose to the raiders or the chiefs now they would have to pull an upset against the Tampa Buccaneers however a lot of their games have come down to the final seconds, games in which they were leading and suddenly something happens and then they're down. So the thought of the Chargers pulling this victory out shouldn't shock many. I believe the Chargers will win their last four games to get the divisional title and move on to the playoffs.

AFC East Up Rise

Last year there was only one team to even mention going to the playoffs, it was the New England Patriots this year they are still in the talks but the other three teams have joined them in what is now a group chat. I don't believe that more than one Wild Card team will make it out of this division with the Colts sure to wrap up one of the spots. The Bills and Dolphins face each other in Week 14 the first week of the last quarter of the season, someone has to lose and move out of the playoff talks not going into who I believe that team will be because it's unneeded. The Bills see the Jets Week 15 and is in the best opportunity to take things over playing all three teams that are ahead of them in the last four weeks, I just don't see it happening. The Bills play the Patriots come Week 17 and the Dolphins face off with the Jets so in belief that if they aren't out of playoff talks by then Week 17 will certainly make things more of a Private chat between the Jets and Patriots. As far as who will win the division I will say this first, the winner of the AFC East will indeed get the second available bye for playoffs looking at the AFC north and the schedules are a bit too hard to stick it out in my opinion as far as who will win, The New England Patriots has the easiest schedule out of the two and I believe will go undefeated during that four week span, thus taking the lead in the Division.

AFC Final Wrap Up

AFC South Winner - Titians 13-3, AFC East Winner Patriots 12-4, AFC North Winner Steelers 11-5, AFC West Winner San Diego Chargers 9-7, Wild Card 1 11-5 Jets, Wild Card 2 11-5 Colts.

Looking in from the outside 10-6 Ravens, and 8-8 Broncos.

Currently for the NFC you have the standings in the order below with the teams next to them the remaining schedule for that team.

Divisional Leaders

New York Giants 10-1 (NCE) (Eagles, Cowboys, Panthers, Vikings)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 8-3 (NCS) (Panthers, Falcons, Chargers, and Raiders)
Arizona Cardinals 7-4 (NCW) (Rams, Vikings, Patriots, Seahawks)
Chicago Bears 6-5 (NCN) (Jaguars, Saints, Packers, Texans)

Wild Card

Carolina Panthers 8-3 (Buccaneers, Broncos, Giants, Saints)
Washington Redskins 7-4 (Ravens, Bengals, Eagles, 49ers)

Outside looking In

Atlanta Falcons 7-4 (Saints, Buccaneers, Vikings, Rams)
Dallas Cowboys 7-4 (Steelers, Giants, Ravens, Eagles)
Minnesota Vikings 6-5 (Lions, Cardinals, Falcons, Giants)
New Orleans Saints 6-5 (Falcons, Bears, Lions, Panthers)
Philadelphia Eagles 5-5-1 (Giants, Browns, Redskins, Cowboys)
Green bay Packers 5-6 (Texans, Jaguars, Bears, Lions)

NFC North, South and East Shakedown

During the last four weeks all three divisions NFC North, South and East will go to battle and attempt to make their playoff hopes a reality. All except for two teams Packers, and Redskins play at least two teams out of the north, south or east divisions. With Five different teams actually playing three teams the last four weeks Falcons, saints, Eagles, Panthers, and Giants. And while the Cowboys only play two teams in the NFC playoff race they themselves face off with playoff hopeful Ravens and the Steelers, and as mentioned before the Redskins only play one team in the NFC race but they to face off with the Ravens. It is shaping up to be a heck of a final quarter in the NFL and hopefully you got your hard hat for the big hits to come big winter coat for tail gating, Umbrella for the tears that seem to pour down at the end of any NFL season with this many teams still going at it, anyone team is still in it until the final week. Both the NFC South and East have all four teams within the division in contention for the playoffs. Last year the NFC East claimed both wild card spots but this year there may only be room for one if that. Though the NFC North only brings three teams to the last quarter war everyone of them are right where they need to be and it only takes one win/ one week at a time to move up. So who gets it done? The hardest Schedule for the last four weeks has to be the Dallas Cowboys facing off four teams eyeing the playoffs with all four of the teams being sack happy top notch defenses. The second hardest I would have to say is the Atlanta Falcons facing the Saints who can pass on anybody right now then the Buccaneers, and then the Vikings at the Metrodome. The easiest Schedule by far is the Green Bay Packers besides the Bears they really aren't tested.

NFC Final Wrap up

NFC East winner Giants 13-3, NFC North Winner 11-5 Vikings, NFC South Winner Panthers 11-5, NFC West Cardinals 10-6, Wild Card 1 Redskins 11-5 Wild Card 2 Falcons 10-6

Outside looking in

Chicago Bears 10-6 lost to the falcons in which will break the tie

Dallas Cowboys 9-7 I really believe the Cowboys lost some games they now need facing the Steelers, Giants, and Ravens in back to back week's will put an end to the playoff hopes especially because they face the Steelers first after teams have faced the Steelers win or lose thus teams are only 6-25 because the Steelers punish teams. So does the Giants as well as the Ravens. I just believe the schedule is way too tough for them to get out of it.
Saints 9-7 - though Drew Brees is having one heck of a season I believe they will come up short in the last four weeks.

Packers 9-7- I don't see the Packers beating the bears a second time especially in Solider field I believe the Bears get the revenge putting the Packers at 7 losses.
Where did Tampa Bay Go? Straight to the bottom of the pack going off my week 13 pick I believe the Saints beat them, and then the Buccaneers face Panthers and Falcons in which I believe Tampa goes 0-3 in that span then they see the Chargers who will need the victory to get to the playoffs putting them at 0-4 adding to their current 3 losses makes 7. Tampa Bay has been a tough team all year but there is at least one team that does every year right about this time and I believe the Buccaneers to be that team.

And dared they did to the tune of 207 yards rushing. For the third week in a row the Giants ground game absolutely shredded another team. Except this time it wasn't some low ranked defense, it was the best the NFL had to offer.

How demoralizing must it be to other NFL teams knowing that even if you have the best run defense in the NFL they are still going to run the ball on you? How demoralizing must it be that knowing how good you may think you are, you can't stop the Giants' ground game? And how demoralizing must it be that even if you keep it close, as we saw when the Giants played Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, that even if you are close, that Mr. Clutch Eli Manning is going to drive the length of the field and score a TD to win the game?

That is what the NY Giants have become. They score at will. They run at will. They pass at will and they shut your team's offense down at will. With all that said did I also say that they are the defending Superbowl champions? Scary isn't it!

Atlanta Falcons Vs Carolina Panthers

Certainly the Falcons will stick to what's winning for them which is the running game Turner leads the league in rushing while the Panthers defense will likely slow him up he will probably have another 100 yard performance the question is how well will Matt Ryan play in divisional play. I believe he will play decent however with Steve Smith returning last week to the Panthers and them loosing I expect him to show up big in this game. They were undefeated without him and they are a better team with him so he hits the field with something to prove so start him if you're in fantasy football.

Cleveland Browns Vs Cinnanati Bengals

Both defenses' here have their problems however the offensive side of the ball you have two teams capable of putting up a lot of points and fast expect a high scoring game and in the end the Browns will remain winless 35-28 Bengals.

Houston Texans Vs Jacksonville Jaguars

Though the Texans have beaten the Jaguars three of the last four meetings and have an overall series lead of 7 games to 5 the Texans haven't been the up and coming team they seemed to be last year. Their running defense is horrible while the Jaguars have a dynamic duo on the ground with Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew. The Jaguars ran the ball on the colts last week 48 times for a total of 236 yards. This week should be no different as the Jaguars look to move to .500. 28-12 Jaguars.

Denver Broncos Vs Kansas City Chiefs

The Broncos have their offense rolling on all cylinders while the Chiefs have virtually struggled on both sides of the ball. This one should be a no brainer while anything can happen come Sunday, this Sunday shouldn't be no different than the Broncos last three as well as the Chiefs last three. Broncos will remain unbeaten and Chiefs will remain winless. 50-10 Broncos.

San Francisco 49ers Vs New Orleans Saints

The Saints have won the last four games and this game shouldn't be any different however the Saints also have one of the leagues worse rush defenses which could get them into trouble with Frank Gore coming to town. The Saints will also be missing Tight End Jeremy Shockey and Wide out Marcus Colston. This I believe may be the difference; however the 49ers have just as bad of a run defense as the Saints. The edge goes to the 49ers slightly due to having a better passing defense and the Saints missing two of their big play makers. 27-14 49ers

Arizona Cardinals Vs New York Jets

I said it at the beginning of the season one player doesn't change your team chances you need everyone to step it up. The New York Brett's are certainly in trouble as the face another high powered offense. The question has to be asked does Farve have any magic left. He certainly can play the game however making the change from packer to jet means he now has to win as a Jet what he did in the past doesn't count for anything in New York and if he doesn't get his act together soon he will hear the Jets boo him. Because I believe Farve has some fight in him I will say he won't throw an interception this week. While I can't say the same for Kurt Warner which I believe will be the difference in the game 17-13 Jets.

Green Bay Vs Tampa Bay

This should be a pretty close game and I believe that the NFC North Will be all tied up after this week. With Tampa Bay's Graham with a avg of 6.0 yards a carry and Dunn with a avg of 5.2 I expect the Buccaneers to go into this week running more than usual as they face the Packers who are ranked 26th in rush defense. It will also be interesting to see how First year Starter Aaron Rodgers will react after last week's lost Vs Dallas. 27-17 Tampa Bay.

Minnesota Vikings Vs Tennessee Titians

This should be a very nice game one of the better games to watch this week as two teams that are very similar to each other match up. The Titians and Vikings have very nice defense and as well have nice rushing attacks. The difference in the game will be the performance of the quarterbacks and receivers if some plays can be made through the air they will be able keep their offense balanced thus improving the ground attack. The Titians have a nice duo in LenDale White and Chris Johnson however I like and believe Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor is a better duo (more of a two headed monster). As well I believe Minnesota's Receivers are better than the Titians and while Tennessee has only allowed two sacks so far this year I expect that number to go up a few this week as the Vikings blitz package I believe is also better. Another fact to point out is the Vikings have shut out the last two teams either in the first half or the second and in their first game the first quarter I believe that this game will be no different as the defense of the Vikings have showed up in a major way this year. 34-0 Vikings.

San Diego Chargers Oakland Raiders

This should be an exciting game to watch with LaDainian Tomlinson and Darren McFadden in the game potentially taking big runs to the house. Due to the high powered offense of Chargers though I believe it won't be to exciting unless McFadden has a 200 yard rushing day. The Chargers certainly have the edge with the better defense overall and other big play makers on the offense. Jarmcus Russell is still coming along but not fast enough to sling it out with Philip Rivers who is having a terrific season slinging the pig skin. Should be another big day for the Chargers offense 40+ points. 48-17 Chargers

Buffalo Bills Vs St Louis Rams

This is another no brainer as the Rams look horrible the only team they could possibly beat is the Chiefs but even with that said it would probably be an overtime game, in which the Rams and Chiefs don't play each other this year. The Bills should cruise to 4-0 this week and the only upside for the St. Louis Rams is the fact they have a bye week following this should be blow out. 31-6 Bills.

Washington Redskins Vs Dallas Cowboys

This will be another great game should be exciting and full of scores some interesting stats to point out Redskins QB Jason Campbell has 4 TDs and is 61 of 93 While Tony Romo has 5 TDs and is 62 of 92 in passing completions. Both having a hot year as well Jason Witten has 20 receptions for 273 yards and Terrell Owens has 10 for 193 3 TDs, While Santana Moss is 19 276 with 3 TDs and Chris Cooley is 13 for 151 very similar stats the difference would be while Clinton Portis is 65 for 248, Ladell Betts is only 11 for 48 yards while on the Cowboys side Marion Barber is 62 for 285 and rookie Felix Jones is 18 for 148. The Cowboys have been sensational this year however I believe that the Redskins may pull off the upset though the Cowboys to me is the better team the NFC East is just a hard conference and there is no way Dallas will be able to pull off all the victories after the Eagles and Packers games I believe the Cowboys will realize how hard it will be to win their division. 41-38 Redskins.

Philadelphia Eagles Vs Chicago Bears

The bears have allowed six sacks and also didn't get a sack out of 67 attempts last week and now face the best team they have played so far this year. The Eagles are coming off a 8 sack week however I don't believe the Eagles will be able to handle the defense of the Bears just to many tough defenses back to back 21-12 Bears. (Another upset pick however after blowing two games Lovie will straighten his team out this week)

Baltimore Ravens Vs Pittsburg Steelers

This should be a very nice game as both the Ravens and the Steelers have very nice defenses as they seem to have each and every year. However the difference of the game will be in the Quarterback position with Ben Roethlisberger banged up and being sacked 8 times in the last game I believe this is a game in favor of the Ravens. Not to mention Willie Parker is banged up as well. This should be a close one as both teams rely on their running game to get it done so this Monday night game should be a low scoring game different from all of the previous Monday night games. 17-9 Ravens.

Baltimore Ravens: Rookie Joe Flacco gets the start, rookie RB ray Rice will start as well
Series is 13-11 Ravens leading however the Bengals have beaten the ravens 6 of the last 7 games

Advantages/Disadvantages: The Advantages of the Bengals is that they can score more points than the ravens. However the advantage of the Ravens is that they play better defense than the Bengals as the Cinnanati is known for high scoring games.

Game Plan

The Game plan is simple for the Ravens the offense can't put the defense in bad situations if they protect the football as an offense the defense will back them up. Expect the Ravens to run the ball a lot in the final preseason game Flacco looked comfortable however didn't play four quarters of football while Ray Rice had 146 yards on 26 carries in his four preseason starts. The ravens have to give their defense rest and control the game tempo. There won't be too much passing from Flacco I expect no more than 17-20 pass attempts. The Bengals Leon Hall tied for first among NFL rookies in Interceptions last season with a total of 5 expect him to up that number this year with a year's experience down his belt. The Bengals won't be running on full gear with Chad Johnson a little banged up though expected to start the wide outs in Cinnanati might not be well in sink in the beginning of the game due to so many injuries during the off season and preseason. However expect them to adjust in Half time and make the necessary changes to pull the game off.

Outcome

Ray Rice has the opportunity to earn his teams respect in this one and I believe he will record his first 100 yard game on Sunday, however expect T.J. Houshmandzadeh to have at least two touchdowns. I believe he is out to prove he can carry the load while his receiver's buddies heal up. He has a touchdown in four of the last five games played. This game is a tossup it could really go either way. I expect this to be one of the more exciting games this weekend because opposites attracts you have a stout defense going up against a stout offense. As well both teams trying to prove that they can play the other side of ball after off season adjustments. I expect the Bengals to pull out this close game.

Nonetheless at least everybody took the time to read it and gave me your feedback and that is truly appreciated.

Today I wanted to touch upon the ten best receivers in the game. I have taken a more statistical approach to this position based on numbers from last season. No post season stats influenced my list by any means, so if you see some surprises in here I am sure you will let me know about it. Also my statistical calculations are top secret kind of like the QB rating, only mine makes more sense.

The first surprise you will see, as I was¸is that Torry Holt is not in the top 10 he is actually #11 based on the stats I used to calculate the grading. A lot of that I am sure has to do with the Rams being a terrible team, but that factors in. Enjoy the list and as always let me know what you think.

Wes Welker - New England Patriots

Last season he was Tom Brady's safety valve, and his numbers show. He ranked 2nd in the NFL in receptions and 11th in yards. He scored a 11.250 in our ranking system a full 2 points better than Torry Holt who finished 11th.

Brandon Marshall - Denver Broncos

I will be the first to admit I never heard of this guy until I started doing my research, but apparently this guy had an awesome season. He ranked in the top 10 in the NFL in receptions, yards and yards per game. He scored a 10.000 in our ranking system. His only flaw was scoring TDs where he ranked 22nd in the NFL.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh - Cincinnati Bengals

Carson Palmer is a lucky man he has two wide receivers in this poll and here is the first of those two. TJ ranked #1 overall in receptions in the NFL last season and 5th in TDs.

Chad Johnson - Cincinnati Bengals

Referred to as Ocho Cinco or #85 in your program, Chad Johnson is a heck of a receiver ranking 3rd in the NFL in yards and 6th in yards per game. He scored a 9.750 in our ranking system making him the 7th best receiver in the game

Braylon Edwards - Cleveland Browns

It is hard to believe that the Cleveland Browns have a top player in anything judging by the way that franchise has been over the past 5 years, but their receiver out Michigan is as solid as they come. He ranked #2 in the NFL in TDs only behind Randy Moss. In our ranking system Edwards scored a 9.500.

Marques Colston - New Orleans Saints

He was the late, late, late pick in the draft and in one season his stock skyrocketed. Many thought he would have a down year in his second season but Colston proved everybody wrong. Of course it helps when you have Drew Brees throwing to you but this receiver holds his own at #5 by ranking in the top 10 in every category that we used for our ranking system.

Terrell Owens - Dallas Cowboys

Get your popcorn ready, or maybe a few tissues for the tears but there is no mistaking that Owens is a hell of a receiver. He ranks in the top 5 in yards, yards per game and TDs where he was 3rd in the NFL. His downside is receptions where he ranked 20th but everyone knows he drops too many passes. If he were to hold onto a few of them, he could easily be #1 or #2 in every category.

Larry Fitzgerald - Arizona Cardinals

The national media thought Dennis Green was crazy when he drafted Fitzgerald because they already had Boldin (who is not on the list by the way). Yet this kid is nothing more than the third best receiver in the league ranking 6th in receptions, 4th in yards and 9th in TDs. What makes it more impressive is that he is on the Cardinals and we still don't know who the QB is there.

Reggie Wayne - Indianapolis Colts

When you have Peyton Manning throwing to you and you are the #1 option in the offense chances are you will make this list and be ranked really high. Reggie Wayne was 3rd in receptions, 1st in yards, 3rd in yards per game and 10th in TDs. In our ranking system he scored a 4.250 putting him 2nd on our list.

Randy Moss - New England Patriots

He is the ultimate fantasy wide receiver then again when you have the best QB in the game you probably should be. He was left for dead in Oakland until a 4th round pick resurrected his career in New England. Now Moss has set an NFL record for TDs, he ranks 2nd in yards and 3rd in receptions. He scored a 4.000 in our ranking system which puts him at the top of our list.

So there you have it the top 10 receivers in football as based on their stats from a year ago. Many notable names are missing, but don't blame me, it is there fault they aren't here. They need to put the numbers up there to prove. As a Giants fan I was surprised to see Burress not on the list, but his numbers put him 14th overall, which isn't too bad given that Eli Manning had an up and down year as a QB during the regular season.

With the NFL season looming, many questions now begin to open up as to who is the team to beat this upcoming season? Can the New York Giants repeat as champions, will that loss in the Superbowl crush the New England Patriots and send them spiraling downward like the Steelers post steel curtain, the 49ers after their incredible run or the Dallas Cowboys of the 1990s.

Can San Diego make that leap above the Patriots this year, or will Peyton Manning go for his second ring with the Indianapolis Colts. Those are the many questions that will be answered this year, and I know I can answer some questions and state some facts.

The facts are the Dolphins, Radiers, Rams, Lions and Ravens have absolutely no shot at a Superbowl title, so mark that down. Of course this is not any groundbreaking news that anyone could have said themselves, but I am sure there are about ten fans in each of these preformentioned (is that a word?) cities that truly think they can at least make the playoffs. And of course each one of them will say, “if the Giants can win the Superbowl at 10 - 6 and the Steelers a couple years before that, then why not us?” Why not you? Because your teams stink, that is why not you!

So get the NFL Direct TV package ready, fire up the grills, get that room you have set aside, just for yourself during football season so the wife and kids leave you alone, ready because the NFL season is almost here.

Baseball season will wind down as it usually does with little fan fair until the playoffs begin, and the NFL is right there for all of us to get to excited about, because it is a time when you know if your team is even the least bit talented you have a shot. Throw in some suicide pools and the twenty-five fantasy football leagues you belong to and chances are that game between the Miami Dolphins and the Cincinnati Bengals sometime in December now becomes relevant.