Saturday, December 09, 2017

Playoff Winds

Playoff winds are blowing, not just in your fantasy leagues, but in the NFL too. It's pretty messy in the middle, unless you are taking about the AFC West, in which case it' messy even at the top. The Pats and Steelers are looking good in the AFC. Whats new? Absolutely nothing. In the NFC, things are a little fresh. Eagles and the Vikings are looking good. It's pretty interesting beyond those 2. Even the upstart Rams at 9-3 do lead their division, but the Seahawks are right on their tail. The way Russell Wilson is playing,  Rams can't even wink in this race. The Rams are going in to Seattle next week and that game may very well decide the division. Rams may regret losing their earlier contest in LA. The Saints let a golden opportunity slip through their hands on Thursday. They could have wrested control of the division and also put Falcons in their place. Instead, Brees put the ball in place between the numbers of the defender while driving to save the game and ended the Saints hope with a killer interception. That result made it hard for teams like the Packers, Lions, and even the Cowboys as those NFC teams have to look at the wild card as the only route available and the wild card standing is stacked with NFC south teams like the Falcons. Big win for the Falcons, who are not out of the division race either.

There are way too many 6-6 teams in the league and they are all in play for the playoffs. Reminds me of the NBA where more than half the league make the playoffs and usually, there are a couple of mediocre teams fighting for the 7th and 8th spot towards the end of the seasons as if it means something. There are 3 teams at 6-6 just in the AFC West and the once formidable Chiefs are in big trouble. The Chargers may be the best team in that division and the Raiders have to play much better to stay in contention. Hope they are not feeling too good about themselves based on their recent wins against bad teams. Their remaining schedule is brutal and road-heavy starting with their trip to Kansas City this weekend. 8-8 might end up winning that division when it's all said and done. There is so much mediocrity in the AFC right now, even teams like Dolphins at 5-7 can pretend to be in playoff contention. We might as well send the Hoodie and Brady to Minnesota for the Super Bowl today. I don't see any legitimate threat to them in the AFC. Sorry, Pittsburgh. Among the 6-6 teams, I do hope the Packers sneak in somehow in the NFC since Aaron Rodgers will be back soon and they can be formidable regardless of what their record says. The next month in the NFL will be crazy interesting. Happy holidays!

In baseball, the Marlins are spicing up the hot-stove by trading Giancarlo Stanton. Of course, he lands up with the Yankees. The Yanks have been a little quite lately by their standards when it comes to big money deals and off-season moves. This puts them firmly back in the headline. It's amazing to even imagine Aaron Judge and Stanton in the middle of a lineup. Initially, it seemed like the Giants and the Cardinals were in the mix for Stanton and I was all for it, though not a big fan of either of those teams. But now, it's the good old Yankees scoring the hot date again. They get Stanton for the next 10 years with his 295 million price tag. There are a lot of similarities between this and their A-Rod acquisition back in 2004. That didn't work great for the Yanks, but this might. Stanton is only 28 years old and doesn't seem to have the baggage A-Rod acquired along the way. These Yankees do need more pitching, but they should be real good next year. It's not bad to have them be good to root against I guess for fans like me. At least the Yanks didn't get Shohei Otani, the Japanese Babe Ruth, who can supposedly throw 100 MPH fastballs and hit 500-yard homers. Good for the Angels to add some help around Mike Trout, the best player in all of baseball. In other news, Baker Mayfield won the Heisman trophy today. Congrats to him on the hardware and more importantly, for not grabbing his crotch and mouthing obnoxious expletives like he is known for.

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