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Two things that I’ve always really enjoyed in my academic life were theories – specifically predictions and report cards. Just over a month ago, I made some bold predictions regarding the NFC and AFC playoff races and playoff results, and today I will look back at those predictions to grade myself. In the interest of time, I am going to ignore my playoff seeds and just stick to the actual playoff games and results:
AFC Playoffs
Indianapolis – Super Bowl Champs
Yet to be determined, but a pretty good prediction so far. Indy will obviously have their hands full with the Chicago defense, something I’m sure Peyton Manning can pull off, if anyone can do it. I really can’t imagine Rex Grossman doing anything really dumb at this point, other than getting on a plane with Tank Johnson, but hey, we all get weapons charges from time to time.
New England – AFC Championship Loss to Indianapolis
Nailed this one, and what a game it was. Nothing more needs to be said of this one – instant classic.
San Diego – First Round Loss to Cincinnati
Technically San Diego did lose their first playoff game, so I wasn’t all that wrong. Tomlinson certainly lived up to his hype, and the Chargers should be contenders for another few years at least.
Baltimore – Second Round Loss to Indianapolis
Right on the money for this one; too bad it was such a dull game to watch. Well, offensively it was dull. I suppose it may have been interesting for defensive enthusiasts. Baltimore, however, still proved they were an elite team all year. Steve McNair showed well for himself, proving great defenses with average quarterbacks can be very successful.
Kansas City – First Round Loss to Baltimore
Mostly correct. When KC drew Indy in the first round, I’m sure Larry Johnson started to lick his lips. Needless to say, it wasn’t a career day for L.J., rushing for 32 total yards, or the Chiefs’ entire offensive unit, which was awful.
Cincinnati – Second Round Loss to New England
If somebody told me that two teams would ultimately be eliminated from the playoffs – Dallas – or playoff contention – Cincinnati – because of point-after’s, I would have been thoroughly disappointed.
NFC Playoffs
Chicago – Conference Championship Loss to New Orleans
Almost . they certainly took care of business against the Saints, who by the third quarter actually looked more like what people thought the Rex Grossman offense would look like. Either way, a classic Super Bowl matchup of power offense versus power defense is in the making, and I couldn’t be happier.
Dallas – Second Round Loss to New Orleans
The Cowboys managed to turn it off at the end of the year, ultimately losing on a pathetic failed field goal attempt, while Martin Grammatica earned “block of the year.”
New Orleans – Super Bowl Loss to Indianapolis
I feel like I’m getting a lot of “pretty close’s” and the Saints are no different. They showed very well against Philadelphia and ran into some serious trouble against Chicago, but I expect that next year should be a good one for the Saints. Not that I’m really going out on a limb by saying that.
Seattle – First Round Loss to Atlanta
They didn’t technically lose in the first round, but they might as well have. Seattle’s first-rround game versus Dallas was fairly unimpressive, yet when they traveled to Soldier Field to play a rested Bears team, they suddenly turned back into a contender.
Atlanta – Second Round Loss to New Orleans
I’m officially off the Falcons bandwagon. Not that I was ever really on it per se -I don’t have a Vick jersey or anything – but I’m beginning to think that these run-first, pass-second, overly-athletic, kinda-quarterback systems might not be such a great idea in the NFL. Even compared to another run heavy quarterback, Vince Young, Michael Vick still ran 6 percent more often than Young, and often played run-first, which may or may not have something to do with Atlanta’s inconsistency.
New York Giants – First Round Loss to New Orleans
Again, I was pretty close with this one. The Giants almost looked like they were happy for the 2006-2007 season to be over. It was probably a miserable ride, but hopefully it wasn’t too bad, as it marked Tiki Barber’s final season; who we will no doubt be regarded as an ambassador of the game for years to come.
When all is said and done, my predictions were actually a lot closer than I’d have figured, judging by my success in NCAA March Madness outcomes lately. Also worth mentioning, I made these picks in early December, with at least 3 weeks left in the regular season. Although my sample size is relatively small, this year’s playoffs seem to show that your success in the final few weeks of the season might not correlate with post-season success.
Bangor Daily News