A dark, ravenous Super Bowl

ESPN is featuring Michael Jordan highlights in it's sportscenters to commemorate his 50-Th birthday.  That's when you know the Super Bowl is over and we are in one of those sports dead-zones on the calendar. ESPN always goes to MJ for help during these challenging times. It was a great Super Bowl to wrap up the football season. Some things in the Super Bowl worked out as expected - the game was close and Beyonce was hot. There were a few surprises - a long power outage and the niners lost. I wanted and expected the niners to win. The interesting thing was, the niners were down but never out. Joe Flacco was on point in the first half and threw for 3 TDs. The vaunted niners defense looked toothless and fell behind 21-6 when Beyonce started dancing at halftime. The niners had made a habit of coming back from large deficits with Kaepernick at the helm and with the Ravens defense being good but not great, everybody assumed it was only a matter of time before the niners made a comeback in the second half. But Jacoby Jones retuned the second half kickoff back for a TD to put the Ravens up 28-6. The niner faithful was worried, but still hopeful. That's when the power went out.

It was ironic that the niners, who suffered through an embarrassing blackout one Monday night last season on national TV against the Steelers at their home at candlestick, were now experiencing a blackout in the middle of the Super Bowl. NFL was caught unawares at the biggest event in all of sports. The delay was more than 30 minutes and something happened to both the teams during that break. The niners started coming back furiously when the game resumed and by the time the 4-Th quarter rolled around, we all had a tight game on our hands. Kap was playing a perfect second half and the Ravens looked lost and confused. If the niners had won the game, the NFL would have been in trouble because the power outage would have been the focus as far as why the ravens lost. Luckily for the NFL, the niners came back but not all the way back. They had a shot at the end to win and it would have been an all-time classic if they had sealed the deal. It was still a great super bowl, but the comeback story fell short. The niners had multiple shots at the goal line at the end, but a ravens blitz on 4-Th down stopped Kap from throwing the go ahead TD. Harbaugh wanted a holding call, but Michael Crabtree didn't get it.

Lot of the niner fans are still upset at that non-call and some others are more bothered by the missed penalty on the kickoff return by Jacoby Jones. Whatever it was, it's nothing more than water under the bridge now and only Flacco and the Ravens are still smiling. There is some talk about Jim Harbaugh's lack of composure during the game. I wonder what the media would have said if he had won. Even the niner fans are now questioning his demeanor. In reality, that was and will continue to be a non-issue. Both Jim and the niners should be good for a few years. It's a young team with a younger QB who looks like a superstar in the making. The real concern is, their defense has been giving up tonnes of points every game since the last couple of games of the regular season. Their secondary is week and the league seems to have figured them out. This league is a copycat league and every team is now ripping them apart. It is now on Trent Baalke and Jim Harbaugh to make some adjustments with free agency and all their draft picks. Flacco had no issues against this defense and earned himself a well-deserved MVP trophy. I have always been a Flacco fan. He is sometimes elite, often unreliable, mostly understated, sporadically arrogant, and definitely clutch. The ravens have to pay him through the nose now that he is a super bowl champion and a free agent. At least they don't have to pay Ray Lewis anymore. The Ray Lewis era is officially over with him going out on top. We can only hope Ray stays retired and doesn't pull a MJ on us.

Who's got it better than the fans of the HarBowl? Nobody!

HarBowl is for real and almost here. I love everything about this Super Bowl, which is now less than 2 days away. Some people in the media were put off by the very thought of the harbowl from day 1, even before any of the expected overexposure started. Super Bowl stories tend to run it's course in a couple of days and bore us for 10 more days as the non-stop hype machine bombards us for 2 straight weeks. But I was happy to hear the harbowl stories of brotherly love on ESPN instead of it being Ray Lewis's retirement channel, 24 X 7. Both are strong story-lines, but brothers coaching against each other in a Super Bowl is beyond fascinating and may never happen again. Only thing better could be the Manning boys playing each other in the big game and time is running out on that ever happening, though we have 2 years of clock left on it. I also like it because these 2 guys are great coaches, and I don't usually throw around the word "great" without meaning it. Jim Harbaugh is flat out a witch and his head coaching record in both the college and the pros speak for themselves. 

John Harbaugh is even more fascinating. I have always been intrigued by his success given that he started of as a lowly special teams coach in the NFL. For him to go into that Ravens locker room with strong personalities like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed and earn their respect and build an identity for himself takes some serious leadership and people skills. It's not surprising anymore given that he has been successful and nothing builds credibility in sports quite like winning, but coaches like him rarely survive the first 2 or 3 years. I knew he was a stud when he established himself in that town beyond those first couple of years and of course, he will become a legend if he wins the Super Bowl on Sunday. I can't even imagine the mindset of his parents during this Super Bowl. I am glad they got a news conference too during the hype week. They deserve it and their mindset as they watch their 2 sons compete is as good a side-story to follow as anything else. As for the sons, John is a lot more level-headed and normal while Jim is a football psycho. That almost makes me want to pick the older and saner John to win, but Jim is a better coach. Plus he has the better roster. So advantage Jimmy boy.

Speaking of the rosters, the game itself is going to be very interesting and tight. I am expecting a high-scoring game and mistakes will decide it. Turnovers are a story in any football game, but it's going to be even more of a factor in this one as I expect it to be close and swing back and forth. Kaepernick seems to be everybody's favorite QB all of a sudden and Joe Flacco has been playing great in these playoffs too. The Ravens defense has improved over the course of this season, but I don't think they are still good enough to stop what Kaep and Harbaugh will throw at them. The niners do have a far superior defense, but at a neutral venue, against a good offense, I expect them to be good, but not great. Plus Flacco plays well ONLY in big games and all he needs to do is connect on a couple of long bombs to put the Ravens in a good spot. I expect him to do that and I expect Kap to keep up with him and the guy throwing a bad pick or 2 wil decide this game. Or may be a fumble. The running backs in the game are worthy of a lot of attention too, but Frank Gore and Ray Rice have not gotten much airtime due to the other stories in play. Late in the season, their backups LeMichael James and Brandon Pierce have become effective X-factors too. There is enough talent on the field on both sides of the ball to make this Super Bowl a classic. I expect a TD win for the niners. 31-24, San Francisco 49'ers.

In Harbaugh I trust. I meant Jim Harbaugh, but I would neither be surprised nor too disappointed if it ends up being John Harbaugh.

Where has all the parity gone?

Parity. This has been one of NFL's selling point for over a decade now. Parity means every team has a shot at a great season every year. Teams go from top to bottom and bottom to top in no time and there is no stability in the NFL power structure from year to year. But surprisingly, this years conference championship games will feature 3 of the 4 teams from last year's games. This is a rarity in the NFL. In the NFC, no team has been been able to get to the championship game in back to back years since the Philadelphia Eagles in 2005. But the San Francisco 49'ers are back and ready to roll, albeit with a different quarterback this year. In the AFC, both the Patriots and the Ravens are back. That has not happened in a long time. Where did the parity go this year? I am surprised, but I am not complaining because we have 2 great games waiting for us this weekend. A re-run of championship games only adds to the intrigue and the rivalry.

The Ravens almost beat the Patriots last year - if only Lee Evans had squeezed that TD pass. But "almost" is nowhere near the promised land. They want to go further this year, but the problem is, they are on the road again and the Ravens have been a little worse this season overall than last. They didn't earn a bye week like last year and had to win a close one at Denver to get here.  But they are motivated to extend Ray Lewis's career - who he is retiring after this season, and they always seem to play well against the Patriots. Flacco doesn't inspire a lot of confidence on Sundays, unless he is playing against the Patriots in the playoffs. The Ravens need him tomorrow more than ever because Brady will get his scores one way or the other against a shaky Ravens defense. The Patriots defense is not much better, but they do stop the run and that means Flacco and the receivers better show up and chuck the ball all over the yard. I expect a tight, high-scoring game. I think the Ravens will win this one. I don't want to see Brady and Belichick in the Super Bowl again, though I wouldn't be surprised if it happens.

Just like the Patriots, it's no surprise the niners are in the championship game, though they got there behind Colin Kaepernick after benching Alex Smith for no good reason except Kaep is better. The niners brought back the same team this year - especially on defense, and their only challenge was supposed to be a tougher schedule and possible injuries. They had to face a little bit of both and the schedule especially made sure they didn't end up at the top of the NFC standings again. So they have to now go to Atlanta unlike last year when they hosted the NY Giants. The Giants showed them that a road team can win and the niners hope to do the same this year. In fact, everybody seem to expect that and the niners are a 4 point favorite on the road. Nobody seems to respect the Falcons and after the near loss last weekend against the Seahawks, they expect the falcons to crash and burn against a slightly better opponent. As good as Russell Wilson was, Kaep is a better physical talent though not as poised and mature as Wilson - no young QB has ever been that poised. But Keep's stock is high right now and that combined with the niners defense gives them the edge.

I expect a close game here as well. As good as the niners defense is and even if they stop the run, which they probably will, Matt Ryan and those talented receivers will not go away without making some noise. Kaep has to stay on top of his game and not not get flustered or intimidated. It will be a test, but he has shown he is capable of passing such tests. The real problem for Atlanta is that they are too happy just to be here. They feel like a huge monkey was removed off of their shoulders with that playoff win last weekend. The niners are way more focussed and motivated to do bigger and better things. If Kaep plays a good game, the niners should win this one. I pick the niners to win and the underdog Ravens to show Vegas that the 7.5 point spread is uncalled for. A Har-bowl would be great for the media except for the Harbaughs themselves. Their parents would obviously be conflicted and confused, but I am sure Jim Harbaugh would hate all the attention. I don't know much about John Harbaugh. He looks a little more normal and less psycho than Jim, but it will be tough on him too. I say bring on the Har-Bowl. I want it and expect it. It's both my preference and prognostication.

Pissed off for greatness

Ray Lewis is still balling. His career is alive and kicking for at least one more week after the Ravens beat the Broncos and Peyton Manning today. He is not the same player he used to be even 5 years back, but I am happy that his 17-year career is continuing for now. Ray Lewis is an amazing story of redemption, especially from my perspective. We live in a culture that loves winners and we forgive any kind of sin as soon as the accused athlete wins the Super Bowl or the World Series or the NBA championship. Nothing makes us fans forget a murder or a rape faster than a championship ring and MVP honors. But I am personally pretty unforgiving when it comes to these athletes with a sketchy past. I sometimes think I need to be a little more willing to give people a second chance - everybody needs one at some point. For some reason, Ray Lewis is one athlete who has come full-circle in my book from the bad guy who was accused of murder to an interesting, talented, and almost an inspirational figure I have learned to like. And it has very little to do with the fact that he was a Super Bowl MVP the season after he got into legal trouble.

I am a Ray Lewis fan for many reasons. He has kept his nose clean since the incident. He invokes the name of God, which many guys do especially after running into legal issues. They either truly find God during their troubled times or their agent tells them to become more godly to fix their public image. But Ray sounds genuine when he talks about God or anything in general - not that his godliness is relevant or important to me. His genuine passion about life and football is endearing and he has been consistent with that passion for more than a decade now. His teammates seem to love him too and his talent on the field of course speaks for itself. Guys who are such high-level performers definitely work hard and have a level of drive and love for the game that is hard to dislike. On top of that, Ray gets high marks for his leadership skills from everybody around him. Last, but not the least, I have become a big fan of his inspirational speeches. The man can talk. Both his style of delivery and the content of his words make for some great sound bites. If you have not seen the video below of Ray talking to the Stanford basketball team before a game last season, I would strongly recommend it.

"Pissed off for Greatness" and "effort is between you and you" may end up being 2 of the classic quotes ever. Ray is nowhere near greatness at his age right now, but Joe Flacco might be considered great as of today. This guy is the most inconsistent quarterback in the league and today, he beat Peyton Manning - on the road, in cold weather, under hostile conditions, with impressive numbers, and long touchdown passes. Flacco might be a better quarterback in the playoffs than the regular season. That definitely seems to be the case with road games as he goes AWOL on the road during the regular season. But the guys just wins playoff games and every time we say he is not elite, he looks super elite. He has won playoff games in every year he has been in league and thats a pretty impressive stat for any young quarterback. He may be the only elite, inconsistent, playoff tested, and unreliable winner in the NFL.  He is going back to the conference championship game and so are the Harbaugh brothers. They are both in the championship round just like last year and the talk of Har-Bowl shall begin in right earnest.

Colin Kapernick was brilliant today in a game that presented a weird vibe for the Niner fans going in. They felt very diffident with some injury concerns and with an unproven, young QB at the helm. While Kaep had shown some promise, he had also shown his inexperience and made some "rookie" mistakes.  It was only to be expected that he would face his toughest challenge under the glare of the playoff lights against a MVP caliber QB in Aaron Rodgers. Sure enough, he came out and threw a pick-6 and I bet most Niner fans imagined the worst from Kaep and the niners the rest of the way. But he shrugged it off and was just unstoppable the rest of the way. He is just unbelievably FAST! One expert called him "Cam Newton with a brain" a few months back and he looked every bit like that today. The Packers had no answer to his legs as he out-rushed Michael Vick and every other quarterback in the history of the game with 181 rushing yards. He showed why Harbaugh and some fans are excited about him. While his inexperience is what made Harbaugh's mid-season QB switch scary and confusing, his innate talent and abilities were never in question and it was all showcased in full tonight. His legs were awesome, but he also made some throws that Alex Smith can never make. In fact, very few QBs in the league can make those bullet passes with accuracy. Good day for him and the Niners and a bad day for the Packers. Their defense was bad and their offense and special teams had one crucial turnover each that donated points to the Niners in the first half. Now we get to see Kaep in the NFC championship game next week. Good for the kid. He better be "pissed off for greatness" next week.