Pick Six: AFC Championship posted by Randolph Charlotin

1. DT Vince Wilfork was in beast mode all afternoon. Six tackles and a sack doesn’t begin to explain his influence on the game. Wilfork had at three tackles for a loss and his share of pressure on QB Joe Flacco. It was a dominant performance by a team leader showing what it takes to get to a Super Bowl. It was arguably Wilfork’s best game in the biggest game of the year.

2. The other hero on the afternoon was CB Sterling Moore. He practically saved the game with the two passes defended at the end of the game. Moore first knocked a sure touchdown reception by WR Lee Evans out of the receiver’s hands just before Evans’ second foot hit the ground. The other was swatting away a pass to TE Dennis Pitta. That would had put the Ravens inside the five yard line with a fresh set of downs. As badly as K Billy Cundiff hooked the 32-yard field goal, if the ball was spotted about 10 yards closer, Cundiff doesn’t miss.

3. Even though his play sucked by his admission, QB Tom Brady still was credited with the win. It was Brady’s 16th career playoff win, tying the NFL record owned by Brady’s boyhood idol, Joe Montana. Brady didn’t throw a touchdown, but he did cross the goal line on a QB dive in the fourth quarter for the deciding points. Brady was hit in the lower back by Ravens LB Ray Lewis as Brady went heels over head. High price to pay, but Brady would give up the body again in a heartbeat.

4. RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis scored New England’s first touchdown on a seven yard run. After the score Green-Ellis pointed to the MHK patch on the jersey, a tribute to Myra H. Kraft, the wife of owner Bob Kraft who died last year after a battle with cancer. The season was dedicated to her soon after she passed away. Kraft did a similar salute to his late wife after he received the Lamar Hunt Trophy, blowing a kiss to heaven after touching his MHK pin.

The Final Drive: 2012 Conference Championship Sunday posted by Joe Anello

How many of you had to get an oxygen tank at some point today? These playoffs are been thrilling down to the wire in almost every game, and Conference Championship Sunday lived up to expectations. Both games went down to the wire and left us with two worthy Super Bowl contestants. Let’s break them down in The Final Drive!

They may have had their issues, but the New England Patriots are back in the Super Bowl after the dramatic finish at the end of regulation. In the first half the Patriots traded scores with their opponents, as Baltimore matched them point for point thanks to early mistakes. Brady led his unit down for a 29 yard Gostkowski field goal so Flacco came back to set up a 20 yarder for Billy Cundiff. BenJarvus Green-Ellis punched it in from seven yards out, so Flacco tosses it six yards to Dennis Pitta. At 10-10, the Patriots broke the pattern by kicking a field goal late in the second and keeping the Ravens off the board before they got the ball to start the second half.

On their opening drive in the third quarter, one of Brady’s trademark QB sneaks (off the tackle no less) ended in a first down and some trash-talking from Brady to Ray Lewis. This was easily my favorite moment of the day, I don’t care if it was a 2-yard run. Lewis looked awful in coverage today against Hernandez and I'm glad someone gave him a taste of his own BS.

The Opening Drive: 2012 AFC Championship posted by Joe Anello

It’s time to decide the Super Bowl contestants! With four teams left in the tournament, the Conference Championships take center stage on the best Sunday of football all year. Up first, the AFC title game!

Who loves a rematch? This guy. After getting unceremoniously escorted out of the postseason in 2009 by these Ravens, the Patriots get a second home-stand to redeem their loss and get to Tom Brady’s fifth Super Bowl. To accomplish this, New England’s defense must step up to the plate and at least hit a double. They don’t need to shut out the Ravens, but holding them to no more than 20 points would be a nice buffer for Brady and the offense. Baltimore’s offense line will have the advantage over New England’s front three, so Ray Rice figures to have holes to run through. It’ll be the second and third levels of the Patriot defense that figures heavily in the final score. Jerod Mayo and Rob Ninkovich are playmakers at the linebacker position, but they’ll need to keep tight ends Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta in their peripherals. (Not that Flacco really gets it to his tight ends enough.) Baltimore’s offense doesn’t have a ton of wrinkles to it, as was exposed last week against the Texans. Anquan Boldin doesn’t get nearly enough targets, but he’s never deep. Torrey Smith only runs a go-route, so as long as Kyle Arrington or Devin McCourty don’t get beat off the block and the safeties Chung and Ihedigbo stay deep, the Patriots shouldn’t have an issue keeping the Ravens off the scoreboard. With all the pressure on Joe Flacco, you’d think it would be the time for him to rise to the occasion. I’m not buying it. He’s slow in the pocket and doesn’t get the ball out quickly. That means the Patriots could get a few good hits on Joe. If you see Flacco struggling on third down and the kicking unit coming on the field early, the Ravens will be in trouble.

Hours Before Kickoff: AFC Championship posted by Randolph Charlotin

After a playoff win over San Diego, several Patriots mocked then-Chargers LB Shawn Merriman’s “Lights Out” sack celebration right on the Chargers logo at midfield.

In a thorough dismantling of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship played in Pittsburgh, WR Deion Branch was caught on camera asking the fans, “Where’s your towels? Where’s your towels?”

In the third Super Bowl win over Philadelphia, WR David Givens caught a touchdown pass and celebrated by flapping his arms like wings, then shook his head no, sending the message this won’t be the Eagles’ night.

Disrespectful? Depends upon who you ask. Victims don’t like attitude to salt the wound.

New England didn’t make friends during their dynasty days. They just put the boots to almost any team that stood in their path. Sometimes they reminded their foes after demolition.

It got worse in 2007 after everyone and their mother claimed the Patriots’ dynasty was owed to what the Spygate controversy revealed. New England delivered a message to the league weekly, letting the final score speak on their behalf.

New England has won plenty of regular season games since their last Super Bowl trip (48 to be exact). Playoff success has been a different story, as they lost three in a row before the Denver win. Hard to talk when you’ve accomplished nothing.

The current team plays in the shadow of the Patriots dynasty. They understand the standard set in New England is they must win a Super Bowl before running their mouth.

NFL Championship Chop-Up posted by Amari Harris

It's hard to believe that the NFL season is already coming to an end.  It comes and goes so quickly that sometimes we forget to stop and smell the turf.  This season has been another exciting one  (despite the persistent failures of my Cowboys)  where teams that didn't have high expectations made a playoff run (49ers, Broncos, Bengals) and teams that were expected to contend fell flat on their faces (Eagles, Jets, Colts).  It was also a season in which a 27 year old passing record fell twice and a third QB threw for 5,000 yards for the first time in history. 

Sadly, the running game seems to have become an afterthought for most NFL offenses but a couple of teams (Ravens and 49ers) have shown that defense and ball control can still be a championship formula.  And that brings us to this weekend.  Two of those three 5,000 yard passers will be on display in this weeks championship games against tenacious defenses and persistent run games.  It's the old NFL versus the new NFL and this weekend could determine the trajectory of the league for years to come.  Will teams finally realize that the NFL rules are two conducive to passing the ball and there is no way a team can expect to win a championship with defense and a good run game?  Or will the football traditionalists be vindicated by the phrase "Defense Wins Championships" (just to have the NFL change another rule)? One or both of these questions could be answered in the next 36 hours and potentially change the way several teams go about their business.

Pick Six: Divisionals posted by Randolph Charlotin

1. Regular season or post season. It doesn’t matter. The Patriots keep on breaking records. QB Tom Brady became the first player to throw five touchdown passes in one half of playoff football. He also tied a post-season record with six touchdown passes in a game. Brady did this while throwing for 300 yards in a playoff game for the first time. To top it off, Brady executed a well placed 48-yard quick kick to Denver’s 10-yard line.

2. With the win, Brady and head coach Bill Belichick became the winningest head coach-quarterback combo in NFL playoff history. They surpassed Pittsburgh coach Chuck Noll and QB Terry Bradshaw. Not that the record matters to Belichick and Brady. They are still behind the Steelers tandem in Super Bowl wins, four to three. Brady and Belichick still have work to do to be most successful tandem.

3. WR Deion Branch did not play against Denver in the regular season, but he certainly made up for it. He finished with three receptions for 85 yards, including a huge 61-yard TD as Denver was thinking the Patriots were going to run their 2-minute offense. New England started the drive with 2:27 left in the second quarter. An 11-yard Woodhead run followed by the TD pass equaled a 30-second scoring drive. The defense forced a Denver three-and-out and the offense scored again in five plays, and the game was over with the second half still to play.

4. Talking about the defense, they turned in a dominant performance. When they first faced Denver, they allowed 252 rushing yards. On Saturday, they gave up 252 total yards. They forced 14 negative plays and sacked Denver QB Tim Tebow five times. It was easily the best game the defense played all year long.

The Final Drive: 2012 Divisional Round posted by Joe Anello

I have to say, I was skeptical that these four games could live up to the hype, especially after last weekend. But I’m happy to say I wasn’t disappointed in the slightest. I even gave myself a cushy lead for later poor postseason predictions. But I’ll tell you about that later. Right now it’s time for The Final Drive of the Divisional Round!

I’m not sure I can put into words how freaking EPIC this game was. It was such a fantastic start to the weekend’s action. The Saints came out embarrassingly flat, with three turnovers early, including a horrendous pick over the middle from Drew Brees, who never saw the safety coming. The Niners turned those possessions into points, notching 17 with not even a minute gone by into the second quarter. Brees fought back as you knew he would, finding his big targets Jimmy Graham and Marques Colston on consecutive drives to pull within three at the break. It was hard to say the Niners had the momentum though. I mean, when the other team turns it over four times in a half and you’re only up a field goal? That’s a problem. San Fran’s special teams even got another turnover from Darren Sproles early in the third, but they could only manage to put up a field goal. Eventually that was going to come back to bite them. San Francisco wasn’t even trying to run the ball for the first three quarters, an offensive plan that befuddled me, to say the least. Alex Smith was getting all sorts of pressure from the Saints, who were simply sending more rushers than the Niners had blockers. (Just math, really.)

The Opening Drive: 2012 Divisional Saturday posted by Joe Anello

After six long days of waiting, the NFL playoffs are back today with a great match-up in the NFC and a highly publicized showdown between Jesus and Satan in the AFC. It’s a great day for some football. That means it’s a great day for The Opening Drive!

(13-4) New Orleans Saints at
(13-3) San Francisco 49ers
4:30 PM ET, FOX

Off for a week, it’s easy to have forgotten about the Niners and their tremendous regular season which earned them that rest. Alex Smith had a solid year (finally), but he hasn’t been all that impressive to me when I’ve gotten the chance to see him. He has a few decent weapons, but the Saints’ focus should be on running back Frank Gore and tight end Vernon Davis, Smith’s main outlets. ‘Frisco’s offensive line is underrated and should have the clear advantage in the running game, but how are they going to put up points? Michael Crabtree is (sorta) good, but he’s not dangerous enough to put up a monster game and abuse the Saints secondary all day. If they’re going to win, Jim Harbaugh’s defense will have to contain this next man.

Drew Brees is pretty freaking good. However, he still has the ability to toss an interception or two while trying to get the big play deep. If he can avoid those turnovers against the Niners, he’ll keep his Saints on top. He’ll have a lot of resistance on the front though, as San Fran can get up the field and rush the passer. Definitely keep your eyes on the two Smith’s, Justin and Aldon, who can both get pressure on the outside where the Saints’ line is weakest. Where the Niners are going to have issues defensively is in the secondary, Carlos Rogers has had a great year, but he doesn’t have as much support at corner. That’s not a recipe for success against Brees, who has Robert Meachem, Marques Colston and Devery Henderson. Still, that’s not even the Niners’ biggest problem. They like to keep linebackers Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman in the game as much as possible, which is going to create ugly match-ups with Jimmy Graham and Darren Sproles. I think the Saints win those battles more often than not.

Hours Before Kickoff: Divisionals posted by Randolph Charlotin

Bill Belichick doesn’t do reunions. The Patriots head coach is not the sentimental type. Only if he feels someone can make the team better, then Belichick will welcome a familiar face back.

Josh McDaniels, formerly the Pats’ offensive coordinator from 2006-2008, is back after a failed head coaching stint in Denver and escapes St. Louis before probably getting fired by new head coach Jeff Fisher. McDaniels will be an offensive assistant to outgoing OC Bill O’Brien, who’s leaving New England for the Penn State head coach job after the playoffs.

It’s unknown what McDaniels will do as offensive assistant, but he won’t be positioned to step on O’Brien’s toes, that’s for sure. But looking at what they did in their separate terms as New England’s offensive coordinator, the offense can be more consistent with McDaniels around.

Comparing their total bodies of work is like apples and oranges. To simplify, we’ll focus on their best statistical seasons, McDaniels’ 2007 and O’Brien’s 2011.

This is a fair comparison because both offenses were record-breaking in their own rights: ’07 for Brady’s 50 touchdown passes and WR Randy Moss’ 23 TD receptions, and 2011 because Brady eclipsed Dan Marino’s 27-year-old passing yards record and Rob Gronkowski shattered tight end records for receiving yards and touchdowns in a season.

In just two categories is there a big difference between seasons. Total points are 589 in 2007 to 513 in 2011. That is due to the TD passes being 50 to 39, respectively. Rushing TDs was almost identical, as the present day squad edged 2007, 18 to 17.

Pick Six: Week 17 posted by Randolph Charlotin

1. Want more records? On TE Rob Gronkowski’s 16th TD reception, QB Tom Brady surpassed Dan Marino for second on the single season passing yards record. New Orleans’ Drew Brees broke the Marino’s record last week and put it out of Brady’s reach with 389 yards on Sunday. Gronkowski, though, set the record for single season receiving yards by a tight end with 1,327 yards. It was a tug of war between Gronk and the Saints’ Jimmy Graham all afternoon, but a late 22-yard reception by Gronkowski, after New Orleans’ game was over, was the difference. Gronkowski also extended the touchdown receptions by a tight end record, raising the bar to 17. Not to be left out is Bill Belichick with his fifth season with 13 or more wins.

2. Good to see safety Patrick Chung and LB Brandon Spikes back in action. They last played November sixth against the New York Giants. With the defense having the problems they’ve had all year, the return of these two veterans for the playoffs should be huge.

3. DE Mark Anderson picked up his 10th sack of the season, the second 10-plus sack season of his career. With Anderson reaching double digits, he became the second Pat with 10 sacks, joining Andre Carter. It is the first time the Patriots had two players with at least 10 sacks in a season since Andre Tippett (16.5) and Garin Veris (10) turned the trick in 1985.

4. Players should be allowed to celebrate, but within reason. Two bothered me. TE Aaron Hernandez high-stepped into the endzone on his 39-yard touchdown reception. Save it for after you score, please. Even dumber was Buffalo WR Stevie Johnson showing a “Happy New Year” message on a T-shirt under his jersey. That drew a 15-yard penalty and the ire of Bills coach Chan Gailey. Earlier this season Johnson mocked New York Jets receivers Santonio Holmes and Plaxico Burress in separate TD celebrations. One of those celebrations drew a penalty that contributed to the Jets’ come from behind victory over the Bills. Gailey warned his players he would bench anyone else who drew a celebration penalty. Gailey kept his word, as Johnson was held out for the rest of the game.

UPDATE: Cundiff jersey ‘offer’ in no way affiliated with Baltimore Ravens (Yahoo

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