A Disparaging Wild-Card Weekend

In the world of sports, 2016 will be one of the more profound and tumultuous years in recent memory. Let's begin with the good: Villanova’s buzzer beater, the LeBron block and Cleveland’s championship, the Rio Olympics overcoming the Zika virus, an uninhabitable Olympic Village and numerous other safety and sanitary issues to bring us Simone Biles, Katie Ladecky, and Michael Phelps swansong, and of course the Cubs World Series title. The bad started with the passing of Muhammed Ali and continued with Gordie Howe, Pat Summit, Jose Fernandez, Arnold Palmer, Craig Sager and the Chapecoense plane crash. Then there’s always the bizarre and indifferent, which a majority of sports stories tend to fall under. This could include the retirement of Peyton Manning, Kobe Bryant and David Ortiz, the Rams move to L.A., Adam LaRoche’s sudden retirement, Laremy Tunsil’s draft day, Dustin Johnson’s controversial first major, Kevin Durant signing with Golden State, Ryan Lochte, and Vin Scully’s rendition of “Wind Beneath My Wings” and eventual send off.

The NFL, as always, had its own share of issues. The television ratings took a dip due to a combination of poor matchups, bad coaching, questionable officiating, a polarizing presidential election, a distasteful commissioner, the crackdown on daily fantasy, too many commercial breaks, oversaturation, and the fact there are too many outlets and options to watch quality television these days. Colin Kaepernick didn’t help matters by staging his ill-informed national anthem protest, but the league bounced back by shoving the Dallas Cowboys down our throats with four straight primetime games after they ruled Thanksgiving afternoon. There was also Deflategate 2, which after a 544 day, $22-million-dollar witch-hunt against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots that was all about protecting the integrity of the game because of the original Deflategate, received the following response from the commissioner’s office:

There were some good things that did happen on the field that will carry over into the post-season. The rookie combination of Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliot have Cowboys fans reminiscing of Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith after Dallas won the NFC East and Elliot taking the rushing title. After a several year hiatus, the Atlanta Falcons, Oakland Raiders and Miami Dolphins are back in the playoffs, and gone are the recent mainstays Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos and Cincinnati Bengals. This will actually be the first time since 2003 that the two teams that made the Super Bowl the previous year failed to make the post-season, so a new champion will be crowned in a few short weeks. Will quarterbacks Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Eli Manning, Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson add another championship to their mantle, or can Matt Ryan, Matthew Stafford or even Prescott experience their first taste of glory? We’ll know a little more after a pu pu platter of mediocrity that is this year’s Wild-Card weekend.

HOME TEAM IN CAPS

HOUSTON TEXANS (-4) over Oakland Raiders

What a big, steaming mess this matchup turned out to be. A couple of weeks ago Oakland would have been a touchdown favorite going to this game and I would have picked them without even batting an eye. Derek Carr’s broken leg changed all of that really quick. The third year quarterback was having an MVP caliber season leading the high-octane Raider offense. Carr’s backups Matt McGloin and Connor Cook could only manage six points against the Denver Broncos in Week 17, causing Oakland to lose its first-round bye and shaking up the entire AFC. Now McGloin’s status is doubtful with a shoulder injury and fourth-round rookie Cook will make his FIRST EVER START in a playoff game. Can Latavius Murray carry the ball 40 times and lead Oakland to a win? Not likely. Houston's quarterback situation is also in disarray, and it looks like the $72-million-dollar thief Brock Osweiler is going to start after being benched for Tom Savage in Week 15 against Jacksonville. With Savage still in the concussion protocol, Houston will turn to Branden Weeden to back up Osweiler. Good grief. The good thing for Houston is that their defense is a little more competent than Oakland’s, and that could make the difference with this cringe worthy quarterback matchup. If Cook can’t get receivers Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper involved, Oakland’s bounce back season will be all for nothing.

Houston 21, Oakland 14

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS (-8) over Detroit Lions

Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is having a terrific season, setting an NFL record with eight fourth-quarter comebacks. Those comebacks were against Indianapolis, Philly, L.A., Washington, Minnesota, Jacksonville, Minnesota again, and Chicago. Only Washington has a winning record (8-7-1), and all of them will be watching the playoffs from home. Their ninth win came against New Orleans, another sub-.500 team. Not exactly the most stellar competition. Detroit is also riding a three game losing streak, which usually doesn’t bode well heading into the post-season. Seattle hasn’t looked like the dominant team of the past, but their defense is still their strong suit, ranking third in the league allowing 18.3 points per game. Their offensive line hasn’t been able to block all season, but quarterback Russell Wilson is one of the best at making plays while on the run. Neither team has an effective running game, so the offenses will rest squarely on the shoulders of both viable quarterbacks. Seattle however is quietly 7-1 at home, with an average margin of victory of roughly 11 points per game. Detroit has won only three games away from Ford Field, and with the crowd noise and Stafford’s finger injury seeming to affect his play, it’s going to be a tough road challenge for the Lions. As good as Stafford has been this season, he will still be seeking his first playoff win when this game is over.

Seattle 28, Detroit 17

Miami Dolphins (+10.5) over PITTSBURGH STEELERS

Does anyone else think this line is a taaaad bit high? Miami is not great by any means and is planning to start backup quarterback Matt Moore, which is a much better option than a hobbling Ryan Tannehill. Their running attack will be key with Jay Ajayi, who smoked the Steelers defense for 204 yards when these teams met in Week 6. The also have quality skill players in receivers Jarvis Landry, DeVante Parker and Kenny Stills. If Moore doesn’t make mistakes and manages the offense the Dolphins should be able to move the ball and put points on the board. The same should go for Pittsburgh. The good news for the Steelers is that the offense is healthy, and when quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has all of his weapons they’re tough to stop, especially at home. There also isn’t a team playing this weekend that’s hotter than Pittsburgh, winners of their last seven. The Steelers will take care of business, but Miami will be able to hang in a game where defense will not be on display.

Pittsburgh 35, Miami 28

New York Giants (+5) over GREEN BAY PACKERS

Have we seen this Giants team before (say in the 2008 and 2012 playoffs) that’s built on a solid defense and an offense that pulls one miraculous play out of thin air and finds a way to win? Quarterback Eli Manning is a model of inconsistency during the regular season that it’s hard to believe he has two Super Bowl titles. However his 8-3 playoff record is nothing to shake a stick at, and he has won two playoff games at Lambeau Field in his career. The Eli that shows up on Sunday could determine the Giants fate. The Packers looked all but done after Week 11, where they were riding a four game losing streak that included a blowout loss in Tennessee and a home loss to Indianapolis. Since then they ran the table to win the NFC North. During their six game win streak Aaron Rodgers has been flawless, throwing 15 touchdowns and no interceptions. The Giants defense has the capability to pressure Rodgers, but the Packers quarterback is tough to beat when he’s playing this well. Green Bay will continue to their hot streak, but the Giants defense keeps it close at a frozen Lambeau in the weekend’s most intriguing matchup.

Green Bay 20, NY Giants 17

Along with the first weekend of playoff football we are also lucky enough that award season is finally upon us. The Golden Globes are Sunday evening, and it wouldn’t be a predictions column without some ‘La La Land’ Hollyweed picks.

Movies:

Best Motion Picture, Drama – Manchester by the Sea

Best Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical – La La Land

Best Actress, Drama – Natalie Portman, Jackie

Best Actor, Drama – Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea

Best Actress, Comedy or Musical – Emma Stone, La La Land

Best Actor, Comedy or Musical – Ryan Gosling, La La Land

Best Supporting Actress – Viola Davis, Fences

Best Supporting Actor – Mahershala Ali, Moonlight

Best Director – Damien Chazelle, La La Land

Television:

Best Series, Drama – Game of Thrones

Best Series, Comedy or Musical – Atlanta

Best Actress, Drama – Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld

Best Actor, Drama – Rami Malek, Mr. Robot

Best Actress, Comedy or Musical – Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep

Best Actor, Comedy or Musical – Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent

Best Supporting Actress – Thandie Newton, Westworld

Best Supporting Actor – John Lithgow, The Crown