Playoffs? Well Let's Hope So

      By Phillip Stats Rodney 

           The playoffs have started and the buzz and excitement  that was Saturday morning began to rise slowly. However as soon as the excitement came, it left for many fans. This wildcard weekend possibly was the worst I've ever seen. Most of the games lacked any form of excitement. We saw a lot of bad quarterback play, and a lot of conservative play calling. So let's quickly review wildcard weekend and discuss my observations, then move on to the real playoffs or "Big Boy Football" as my SEC fans like to say.

          Andy "Red Rocket" Dalton played like, well.... Andy Dalton. A second year player with room to grow. There are times when Dalton shows flashes of being a stellar QB but he seems to fade as the season goes along and at times lack confidence so he hesitates and settles for the check down way too often. Dalton also seems to lack pocket presence in crucial situations, I find myself screaming for Dalton to step up in the pocket to not  have the ball swiped out his hand from behind way too often. The Bengals will need another wide out beside AJ Green to upgrade this team for next year.  The next on my list will be the Vikings and Joe Webb and how he was just down right awful, but then again he hasn't played all year. The Minnesota Vikings really were out of this game once Ponder was listed as inactive which I cant believe I'm saying. The Vikings will need a true elite wide receiver to help this team take the next step.

         Time to talk about the snooze-fest that was Sunday's Wildcard games . The crowd in Baltimore was electric, as the players started to come out  and the lights flashed as we waited for one of the all time greats to come out. I found myself glued to the T.V because we all wanted to see Ray-Ray do his intro one last time and he didn't disappoint setting the tone from the gate. The Colts were a great story for the season but this game was full of conservative play calling  and unfortunately the Colts lack of talent finally caught up to them. The Colts will need to fix that line-backing core, and safety position to help further this teams development.  

         Now wrapping up the week of dreadful games we had, the Redskins vs Seahawks. the game started out like a bat out of hell, with the Redskins moving the ball at will, and scoring two touchdowns. Seattle showed resilience and battled back but the game was really over after halftime, once we realized RG3 was immobile the Seahawks did too and the punt fest began. As RG3 earned his Philip Rivers play with no leg Pokemon badge or achievement, the rest of the Redskins offense was terrible and wont be praised. Most of the blame goes on coaching using ineffective formations, and not putting the team in a position to win, why use the pistol if the quarterback is not a threat to run. Washington still needs upgrades on defense to take the next step  such as defensive-backs, safety or another pass rusher.

      This wildcard weekend  reminded me of a song with too many features, when the song starts off and the beat drops you are hype. But the more you listen, or watch, the more it becomes just a drag and you cant wait to skip to the next track or week: inserts A$AP Rocky 1 train: so lets skip to the next week and what's shaping up to be ratings heaven for the NFL.

Your Uncle Phil's predictions its like I'm giving out free money, the Vegas lines will be provided in the link below.    

NFL Lines

Stats  Preview and Picks 

Ravens at Broncos (W)

Peyton Manning and his offense will be too much for the ravens, like last time they played this one might get ugly but we have seen Peyton Manning teams come out flat many seasons so you never know, however who you going to trust Joe Flacco and Tory Smith or Peyton Manning and the goonsquad.

Final score-  28-21

(Broncos)

Seattle at Falcons (W)

I'm going Dirty Birds(Falcons) because that dome will be rocking. If I told you Matt Ryan has a better home winning percentage at home than Tom Brady, you wouldn't believe me right? Well he does and after no MVP love or league respect, look for him and his crew Julio and Roddy White to ball out against a rusty Browner and an overhyped Sherman.

Final score - 30-21

(Falcons)

 (W) Green Bay at 49ers

This one is a tough one most likely game of the weekend, but when in doubt got to go with the best QB in the league. Even though the 49ers defense rank among the best, they are running into a red hot Packers team, and not having a healthy Justin Smith has swayed my vote to the Packers. This is strictly just a upset-special call, also knowing that the 49ers passed up a chance to draft Mr. Rodgers he will try to put on a show. This game will be decided by the kickers also who both have been horrible all season.

Final score  - 27-24

(Packers)

Texans at Patriots (W)

Let's get straight to the point people have already looked past the Texans giving them no shot to beat Brady's Bunch. The Texans have an elite wide receiver, elite running back and, what was once a top three defense, however injuries have slowed this team down. The Patriots will still win the game, but I believe a team playing inspired will come out to play and the game will be a lot closer than many think. However I'm riding with the G.O.A.T Tom Brady.

Final Score - 24-21

(Patriots- aka Tom Brady & them)