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Wednesday TIME: US | UK WEATHER: US | UK HOME THE NEIGHBORHOOD "Life in the UK" American Groups Essential Contacts Money Education Driving WHAT'S ON US Group Events Diary Dates Music Live FEATURES Politics blog SPORTS Features Sideline blog NFL Draft THE AMERICAN MAGAZINE ONLINE |
SIDELINE ARCHIVE Santa's Sackings January 01, 2009 Ready for the Turkey November 27, 2008 Making it to the Big Dance November 26, 2008 Brighter Days Ahead for Chargers? November 5, 2008 Unnecessary Hits To The Pocket / Upset: BYU October 17, 2008 Romo's Pause / Seattle Seahawks October 15, 2008 Weekend Prep: Red River and More October 10, 2008 College Football's 'Crossroads' Weekend October 9, 2008 Gramatical Error October 7, 2008 Turning The Page September 30, 2008 So Cal 'Quizzed — But Who Will Answer? September 26, 2008 3rd Tuesday Panic Button / Forté Yard Dash September 23, 2008 Two and Oh; Oh and Two September 22, 2008 No More NCAAffeine September 11, 2008 Week 1 College Football September 6, 2008 How To Spell Heisman / Chad Ocho Cinco September 1, 2008 Why the Favre story STILL won't go away August 18, 2008 Olympic Notes / Ricky's Still Relevant August 14, 2008 Committee Meetings August 9, 2008 Let the QB Battles Begin August 8, 2008 Slinging The Slinger — More Favre August 6, 2008 Welcome to the 2008 season July 28, 2008 Plus One May 27, 2008 Draft: The Morning After April 28, 2008 Draft: Thinking the Unthinkable April 25, 2008 Draft: Ready For The Long Haul April 23, 2008 Sofa–bound Sport April 16, 2008 Post–Winter Wonderland April 11, 2008 Six Impossible Things February 4, 2008 Brady's Misdirection Play February 3, 2008 Colorful Language January 23, 2008 Let the Romo–bashing begin: Dallas lost January 14, 2008 Bowl Bites: The Wrap January 10, 2008 All About The Coaches January 1, 2008 Bowl Bites 3 and A Communication Breakdown December 29, 2007 Bowl Bites 2 December 27, 2007 Bowl Bites 1 December 23, 2007 The Empty Chair - Coach Situations Vacant December 22, 2007 For Some, The Playoffs Are Now December 15, 2007 A Certain Lack Of Welcome December 13, 2007 Unrelated Notes November 29, 2007 Two Thanksgiving thoughts November 22, 2007 Halftime: NFC November 9, 2007 Halftime: AFC November 8, 2007 London, Part 2 / A Tale of Two Chads / A Game of Intimidation November 4, 2007 Damp Squib / Other London Notes October 29, 2007 Rock 'Em, Sock 'Em / Dolphins – The Aftermath October 23, 2007 The Dolphins Did What? October 18, 2007 Notes on the Defenses October 13, 2007 Habits to be Broken October 12, 2007 Overtime October 13, 2007 This Week's Starters October 6, 2007: USF: Covering The Spread / Fantastic Football September 27, 2007: Grossman: The Final Act? / McNabb, the Epilogue September 24, 2007: Eagles QB in Slight Controversy September 21, 2007: Leftwich's Parting Gift to Jacksonville? / Boos cruise September 18, 2007: Notre Dame M.I.A. September 16, 2007: Looking Beyond NFL Wk. 1 September 12, 2007: Best Hope For Heisman September 10, 2007: Coaching Hot Seats / AP Poll Feeling ’Appy September 7, 2007: The NFL’s Prime Cuts September 5, 2007: Michigan Falls to Killer Apps September 3, 2007: Look Out Couch / The Taint's On You, Bud September 1, 2007: |
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SPORTS SIDELINE 
Observations, Opinion & Occasional Silliness by Richard L Gale For Some, The Playoffs Are Now Even with the occasional football column to write, watching every game to make it to British screens requires some justification. On the face of it, Thursday's Broncos–Texans game was a case in point. Two teams with losing records, one of which is bottom of its division. Statistically, both teams entered the game still in the hunt, but realistically, the underlying concerns might be the value of Jay Cutler, Selvin Young and Javon Walker in next season's fantasy leagues. But come the unsociable hour, there was I upon the coach, and there was Mrs Football. And at this point, I should clarify my wife's alias: she earns the title not for her dedication to the sport, but instead for the fact that, for the most part, she has surrendered to being married to it. As our second date was to Lincoln Financial Field, I like to think she was sufficiently forewarned. All the same, her presence on the couch has more to do with a disturbed sleep pattern (courtesy of the little Football due around draft time) than with the first match–up of Mike Shanahan and his former offensive coordinator. Mrs Football usually feigns indifference to my obsession until the playoffs. Then, with the stakes raised, her attention peaks. As she puts it, 'You have the best teams and every game is the end for somebody'. Succinctly put, even if the NFC Wildcard teams sometimes fall a little short on the first qualifier. Still, that perspective got me thinking. I've always resisted including game previews in the online version of Sideline, because that's just not what this column is about (incidentally, if anybody does discover what it's about, drop a line to the editor – he's been asking for months). It seems to me that week 15 is a good time to start talking playoffs, not least because for fantasy football fans, it does represent the start of the playoffs. For both realities, it is a time for the teams on the edge of qualification and disaster to decide who they want to be, to search their inner souls for the desire to win ...and either produce a marquee performance or fold and vanish from the playoff picture. In other words, from week 15 to week 17, there will be some games that ARE playoff games. Win, and take a step closer, lose and perish. Now THOSE are stakes worth writing about. And perhaps even worth pressing the red button and settling down for. I'll check with Mrs Football and let you know. The Game: Buffalo Bills at Cleveland Browns The Stakes: Win, and the Bills are in the thick of the wildcard hunt. Lose, and they're 2 games and a tie–breaker behind the Steelers, Browns and Jaguars. And that means out. The Story: Both of these teams have outperformed expectations, Derek Anderson a revelation at QB for the Browns, and the Bills battling on despite a huge rash of injuries. This game could produce some monster numbers on the ground, considering these teams represent two of the top three worst–rated defenses in the NFL. My Pick: Browns, confidently. Fantasy Ponderings: Jamal Lewis could be rumbling again. Marshawn Lynch is harder to call: if he doesn't explode early, he could vanish late. The Game: Arizona Cardinals at New Orleans Saints The Stakes: Nobody ever seems to get eliminated in the NFC, but 6–8 would be curtains for the Saints, as the Cards would then take their one game and their tie–breaker, and head into a final two games hosting the Falcons and Rams. The Story: The Saints may ride third–string runner Aaron Stecker again, if they want to keep the Cardinals offense off the field. Then again, injuries at the receiver position might do that for them. My Pick: Despite everything I said about this being akin to a playoff game, the Cardinals may still be alive after the Saints beat them... by 1. Fantasy Ponderings: If Larry Fitzgerald can go, he will go. Warner could be a yardage stud again. The Game: Detroit Lions at San Diego Chargers The Stakes: Momentum. It's time for the Chargers to prove they belong as divisional champs in a weak division. The Lions may have looked good against the Cowboys, but a loss is a loss and five game slide must be stopped now or this year is over. The Story: Jon Kitna said the Lions should get 10 wins. He never actually guaranteed they would, and the best they can do now is 9. If they play the way they did against Dallas, Philip Rivers is no Tony Romo. But when it comes down to it, the Chargers have more weapons than the Lions defense can quiet. My Pick: Chargers by 10, but not confidently. Fantasy Ponderings: Anybody facing LaDainian Tomlinson can start wincing now. The Game: Chicago Bears at Minnesota Vikings The Stakes: I'm sure there's a scenario where the Bears are still in the hunt. This should end the math. The Story: Adrian Peterson had a bad time last week, with 3 yards from 14 carries as he came back from injury (arguably too early), but the Vikings will still be favored to log their fifth win in a row. The Bears will start Kyle Orton at QB, as they did two years ago, when his season finished right there in Minnesota, 34–10. My Pick: Vikings by a fieldgoal in a low–scorer. Fantasy Ponderings: The meeting of two Adrian Petersons. The Vikes' rookie phenom ripped the Bears last time, but I'm not convinced he's fit. Don't be surprised if the Bears' version edges him for yards. |
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