Super Bowl 54 Preview

It has finally arrived. This Sunday, Super Bowl 54 takes center stage. We started this football journey back in September. Thirty two teams started the year, all with the same goal in mind. Play for the Vince Lombardi Trophy. The entire football world will descend on Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, to watch the two best teams in the NFL this season go head to head to determine a World Champion.

Kickoff is set for 6:30 PM between the NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers and the AFC Champion Kansas City Chiefs. San Francisco won the NFC West with a 13-3 record, the best in the NFC. It was good enough to get them a bye in the first round of the playoffs. San Francisco opened up the divisional round with a 27-10 win over the Minnesota Vikings. They followed it up with a 37-20 win in the NFC Championship game over the Green Bay Packers. This marks the 49ers' seventh Super Bowl appearance, and their first since Super Bowl XLVII. That year, they lost to the Baltimore Ravens 34–31. The 49ers are 5–1 record in their previous six appearances. A sixth Super Bowl title in team history will tie the New England Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers with the most Super Bowl championships in the league.

Kansas City Won the AFC West for the 4th straight year, this time with a 12-4 record. It marked the sixth playoff appearance in seven seasons under Andy Reid. Kansas City also received a first round bye. Their playoffs started in the divisional round with a 51-31 win over the Houston Texans. Kansas City moved on to the AFC Championship game, dispatching the Tennessee Titans with a 35-24 victory. In both games, the Chiefs came back from big deficits. This marks the Chiefs' third Super Bowl appearance and their first since the AFL–NFL merger in 1970. Kansas City is 1–1 in their two prior Super Bowls. They lost Super Bowl I to the Green Bay Packers, 35–10, and won Super Bowl IV, defeating the Minnesota Vikings, 23–7. The Super Bowl is also Andy Reid's second Super Bowl appearance as a head coach, his last coming in Super Bowl XXXIX in 2004 when he was the Philadelphia Eagles head coach.

The betting line for this game is Kansas City at -1.

If your the Chiefs, this is one game where getting behind early could be very detrimental to your chances of winning. It happened in their first two playoff games, against Houston and Tennessee, but its going to be different against the Niners. To be fair, this is a high powered Kansas City offense, that put up 51 points against the Texans and another 35 against the Titans. They know how to score. Patrick Mahomes and his weapons have been able to do more than enough to score in this year's playoffs. Mahomes has been en fuego the second half of the year. After returning from his injury, Mahomes has thrown 19 touchdowns and just four interceptions. And that's including the playoffs, in which he's thrown eight TDs and zero picks. Kansas City has been good in close games. The Chiefs have never lost a game by more than seven points with Mahomes as their starter, which is something that you need to keep an eye on in this ball game.

Meanwhile the 49ers can and have excelled in both close and blowout conditions throughout 2019. The 49ers are just as adapt as passing the ball as they are at running it. Look at the run game in the playoffs. San Francisco led all playoff teams in rushing yards after ranking among the NFL's top running teams in the regular season. One player to focus on for the Niners is Raheem Mostert, who exploded for 220 yards and four touchdowns against the Packers. Mostert's yardage and TD totals nearly broke all-time postseason records. It may have been a flash in the pan, but he's also been a model of consistency in running the football this year with this 49ewrs team. But what Kansas City has shown that they can do is shut the run game down. Look at what they did to the Titans last weekend. Can you trust Jimmy Garoppolo throwing the ball? He threw it for under 100 yards two weeks ago.

This is where things get interesting, it looks like it could be a pretty even attack between the two teams. The Chiefs can't get too far behind this 49ers team, because if they do, its going to be a tough hill to try and overcome. Sure, the 49ers defense is good, and they have an even balance between that and their offense. But the Chiefs have the more high powered offense, and once they get going, they're going to be hard to stop.

PREDICTION: Chiefs 31, 49ers 27

Kobe Bryant Legacy

Every so often, a person comes along that transcends their field and touches lives across the board. Elvis is a good example of this. Michael Jackson was a good example of this. From the sports world, there's a few names that comes to mind. Babe Ruth, Roberto Clemente and Thurman Munson come to mind right away. In modern times, Kobe Bryant fits that bill. He was one of the greatest players to ever step foot on a basketball court. His humanitarian effort off the court was the same way. The world lost Kobe on Sunday, who passed away, along with eight other people, in a helicopter accident. He was 41 years old.

Kobe's career on the court speaks for itself. Drafted in 1996 right out of high school, he spent his entire 20 year career with the Lakers. He won five NBA titles, and was MVP of two of those finals and was a 14 time all star. Don't need to get into any more of it because, well, its been well documented. Kobe is considered, and rightfully so, to be one of the top five, if not top three, players that have ever played in the NBA.

Kobe was known as the Black Mamba. Thanks to CBS Sports, it became clear as to why Kobe chose that nickname:

In a 2018 interview with Kent Babb of The Washington Post, Bryant revealed that the movie "Kill Bill" was the primary motivation for the "Black Mamba" nickname. In the film, an assassin uses a black mamba snake to kill another character. "The length, the snake, the bite, the strike, the temperament," Bryant said during the interview. "'Let me look this s--- up.' I looked it up — yeah, that's me. That's me!'" The purpose of becoming the "Black Mamba" was for Bryant to have an alter ego. It was a chance for Bryant to become an assassin on the court. (CBS Sports)

Kober did whatever he had to do to try and win at basketball games and help his teammates get better. There was more to Kobe Bryant than that. There was the man away from the floor. Bryant was the official ambassador for After-School All-Stars (ASAS), an American non-profit organization that provides comprehensive after-school programs to children in thirteen US cities. Bryant also started the Kobe Bryant China Fund which partnered with the Soong Ching Ling Foundation, a charity backed by the Chinese government.

After the story broke yesterday, you could see the outporing of love from players and fans of not only the NBA, but sports fans and people in general, spoke volumes for who Kobe was and the impact he had on this planet. Some questioned the decision to have the games played yesterday. You could see it on the players faces that a lot were uncomfortable trying to play. Canceling games would have been a bad idea, but postponing them might not have been such a bad idea. It would have given people more time to collect themselves and to grieve.

I've seen friends of mine take to social media yesterday and expressed their emotions over this. They said that Kobe was the reason they not only started watching basketball, but the reason they started playing as well. It wasn't just his style of his play, it was his bulldog attitude. That's what drew people to him, he had this confidence about him that was almost magnetic. His playing ability, his personality, the total package. Kobe was it. It's almost hard to put into words what Kobe had, as far as drawing power goes. You couldn't see it, but you knew it was there, you could feel it.

It sucks that Kobe Bryant went the way that he did. But his legacy will live on stronger than ever. Kobe, you had such a great impact on all the lives that you touched and you will be missed

Thanks Eli

Sixteen years is a long time to be doing something. In the sports world, that;'s a very distinguished career. Such is the case for former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning. I say former because as of Friday afternoon, Eli Manning has called it a career. Sixteen years and two super bowls later, Eli has retired from the NFL. What made this sweeter was that Eli wet out his way, as a member of the New York Giants.

Eli's had himself a pretty good career. Two Super Bowl titles, beating Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in both of them. Eli finished his career with a 117-117 regular season record, with his best year being in 2008 going 12-4. During his career, Manning threw for 57,023 yards, 366 touchdowns and 244 picks. Those touchdowns and passing yard numbers are both franchise records for the Giants. He was just as good in the playoffs. In 12 career post season games, Eli started 12 games, going 8-4. He threw for 2,815 yards, with 18 touchdowns and nine picks. In both of the Giants Super Bowl wins, Eli was named MVP in both games. In doing so, Eli became one of five players to have multiple Super Bowl MVP awards, joining Bart Starr and Terry Bradshaw, who also have two, Joe Montana, who's got three, and Tom Brady who has four.

Part of what made Eli so awesome and somebody to admire as a quarterback was his durability. From November 21st of 2004 through November 23rd of 2017, Manning started 210 straight games. At the time, it was the second-longest streak by a quarterback in NFL history (to Brett Favre's 297). After sitting out one game, he started the next 22 in a row, giving him 232 starts in 233 games – plus 12 postseason games. It's truly amazing that Manning never missed a game because of injury. It was announced at the press conference today that not only will Eli get inducted into the Giants ring of honor, but his number 10 will never be worn by another Giants player again.

Now there's two questions that stand out here for Eli announcing his retirement. Where does he rank among the greatest Giants Quarterbacks? And is he a lock to get into Canton?

When you think about some of the guys that have played Quarterback for the Giants, Eli has to be up in that argument. You have guys like Y.A. Tittle, Phil Simms, Fran Tarkenton, Kerry Collins, Jeff Hostetler. As good as those guys were, they couldn't do what Eli managed to do in a Giants uniform. He's going to go down in the books as the greatest quarterback to ever play for the New York Giants. The numbers speak for themselves, but they only tell part of the story. He lead on the field by letting his play do the talking. He had a quiet confidence about him that rubbed off on his teammates. he was also very giving, having his hand in many charitable causes. he could do a lot and wasn't bragging about it, coming across as a very humble guy from start to finish during his career.

As far as his place in Canton is concerned, I think that's pretty much a lock at this point. He may not have put up as flashy numbers as big brother Peyton, but he was still a steady QB and I think he was good enough to be able to get into the hall. It won't be a first year on the ballot lock, but Eli will get in when his time does come.

Thanks for everything Eli. You did a hell of a lot for New York Football and we all had the pleasure of watching you play.

Baseball Hall Makes Call

Every summer, fans from all over gather on a small town in upstate New York to honor the very best in the game of baseball. July 26th is the date and, at the home of baseball, Cooperstown New York is the site. In total, there have been 328 people who have been inducted into the Hall, as being considered the very best that have ever played this game of baseball. This year, the number will grow by four. Marvin Miller, former executive and former catcher Ted Simmons are going in as selected by the veterans committee. Going in this year, as selected by the Baseball Writers Association of America are right fielder Larry Walker and shortstop Derek Jeter.

Larry Walker got into the Hall on his tenth year on the ballot, earning 76.6% of the votes, good enough for induction. Walker spent 17 years playing in the Majors, having played for the Montreal Expos from 1989 to 1994, the the Colorado Rockies from 1994 to 2004 and finally with the St Louis Cardinals from 2004 to 2005. During that 17 year career, Walker was a .313 lifetime hitter, having collected 2,160 hits. He smashed 383 home runs and drove in 1,311 runs. Walker was the 1997 National League MVP and lead the NL in home runs that year with 49 of them. Walker was a five time All-Star (1992, 1997–1999, 2001), a seven time winner of the Gold Glove Award (1992, 1993, 1997–1999, 2001, 2002), was a three time Silver Slugger (1992, 1997, 1999) and a three time MLB batting champion (1998, 1999, 2001).

In short, he could do a little bit of everything. He was known for excelling at all aspects of the game. He had a unique ability to hit for both average and power, and having good plate discipline, speed, defense, as well as throwing strength and accuracy. What makes Walker's induction into the Hall more amazing is he only began playing organized baseball after graduating high school and never went to college. He was also a pretty decent hockey player but managed to give the game up to chase a baseball career.

Then there's Derek Jeter. He received 99.7% of the votes for induction into the Hall. Jeter spent his entire 20 year career with the Yankees, playing in 2,747 games. He collected 3,456 hits, which was good for a .310 lifetime average. He clubbed 260 home runs and drove in 1,311 runs, while scoring 1,923 runs.  Jeter won AL Rookie oof the year in 1996 and a was five time World Series champion, winning in 1996, 1998-2000 and 2009, winning MVP of the 2000 Series. Jeter played in the all star game 14 times in his career (1998–2002, 2004, 2006–2012, 2014), was a five time Gold Glove Award (2004–2006, 2009–2010), a five time Sliver Slugger Award winner (2006–2009, 2012) a two time AL Hank Aaron Award (2006, 2009) and a Roberto Clemente Award winner (2009).

One of the big things that stuck out about Jeter was how consistent he was. He played fewer than 145 games a season only three times in his career: when he dislocated his left shoulder on Opening Day 2003 (119 games), when he injured his calf in 2011 (131 games), and in 2013 when he struggled with a myriad of injuries (17 games). For his career, he averaged 204 hits, 113 runs scored and 21 stolen bases over the course of an average of 162 games. If you think that was good, his playoff numbers are just as impressive. He holds MLB postseason records for games played (158), plate appearances (734), at-bats (650), hits (200), singles (143), doubles (32), triples (5), runs scored (111), total bases (302) and strikeouts (135). Jeter is also third in home runs (20), fourth in runs batted in (61), fifth in base on balls (66) and sixth in stolen bases (18).

He was one of the best defensive shortsopts in the game and made famous "jump-throw", by which he leapt and threw to first base while moving towards third base. He could do a little bit of everything and do it well. It wasn't one aspect of his game that jumped out at you, meaning his power wasn't exceptional, he was just consistent and that's what really stuck out to baseball fans.

Both guys are very deserving of going into the hall. It's interesting to note that four other players cleared 50% of the votes. Former Phillies, Diamondbacks and Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling earned 70% of the votes, Roger Clemens earned 61% of votes, earning one more vote than Barry Bonds. Omar Vizquel finished with 52.6%.

So lets hear from you, did baseball get it right as to who's going in and who's on the outside looking in?

Patrick Kane Joins Elite Company

Collecting points in the game of hockey. Its a tough thing to do. You get them by either scoring a goal or picking up an assist. Doing it just once is tough. Doing it a thousand times is even tougher. Being able to do it a thousand times and do it in the best league in the world is saying a lot. Patrick Kane just hit that mark, picking up his 1,000th point on Sunday. In doing so, he became the 10th American born player to hit the magic milestone.

He's been one of the top players in the game since he stepped into the league. Kane was the first overall pick in 2007 and has spent his entire career in Chicago. He, along with team captain Jonathan Towes, have not only been the faces of the franchise but helped lead the club to its three most recent Stanley Cups.

Reaching 1,000 career points is pretty elite company. Hitting the mark makes Kane the 90th player in NHL history to record 1,00 points. He's the 4th player to ever do it while playing for the Blackhawks, joining Stan Mikita, Bobby Hull and Denis Savard. He's also the seventh active player, and the lone American, to hit the mark, joining San Jose's Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau, Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, Washington's Alex Ovechkin and Carolina's Eric Staal. As far as American skaters go, Kane is the 10th to join the 1,000 point club joining the likes of Brett Hull (Canadian born but played for the US on international ice), Mike Modano, Phil Housley, Jeremy Roenick, Keith Tkachuk, Joe Mullen, Doug Weight, Brian leetch and Pat Lafontaine.

Now for the million dollar question. Where does this milestone put him among the games greats?

There's no argument that Kane is the best right wing of this generation and will go down as one of the top ten to ever play the position. Great plaaymaker with an equally as killer shot, Kane can do it all on an offensive rush up the ice. He's got good speed and incredible hands. There's no doubt in anybody's mind, when his playing career does come to an end, that he will be enshrined in the Hockey Hall Of Fame in Toronto

Championship Weekend Preview

And then there were four teams left. Championship Sunday is here. We have four teams that have all played in at least one Superbowl, with three of the four left standing having won at least one title. Its one team that nobody really saw being here, two that were expected and one that played above expectations. Lets not wait anymore. Here's how Championship Sunday goes down.

First up, with a 3:05 kickoff ts the AFC Championship game between the Tennessee Titans taking on the Kansas City Chiefs. Tennessee is in the AFC title game after beating the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens to reach the title game. It marks the fifth time ever for Tennessee in the AFC title game, last winning it in 1999. The Titans are now 17-20 lifetime in the playoffs. As for Kansas City, they got by the Texans to reach the AFC title game, the fifth time in team history they have done that. Kansas City is trying to erase last years memory of falling to New England in overtime. KC is now 11-19 in the playoffs. The Titans and Chiefs franchises last faced each other for a title in the 1962 American Football Legue Championship Game, played in Houston, Texas. The Chiefs, then known as the Dallas Texans, defeated the Titans, then known as the Houston Oilers, 20–17 in double overtime. Tennessee won the regular-season meeting in Week 10, 35–32.

This is going to be an interesting game. First off, you have the Titans who have been hotter than a wild fire the last few weeks. A lot of that had to do with the strength of Derek Henry, who's rushed for 182 and 195 yards respectively in each of the Titans wins in this year's playoff games. What's even more amazing is the fact that Ryan Tannehill has had low numbers. By that I mean, he has failed to throw for 100 or more yards in either playoff game. It's because Henry has been as good as he has, Tannehill hasn't had to throw all that much. When you got a run game that's working as well as the Titans use, then the pass game is not really needed. On the other side of the ball, the Titans defense has been good, but will need to improve this week. They have had trouble playing tight coverage against opposing receivers.

That's going to be a problem against this well balanced receiving core that Kansas City has.Patrick Mahomes has no problem getting the ball to the likes oif Tyreek Hill and Travice Kelce. Both guys have been so effective in this playoffs. Combine Mahomes running ability, which was on display against Houston last week, along with Damien Williams, and Kansas City has a balanced attack. The defense was able to step their game up after getting trounced early against Houston. The defense is going to have to be on its game if they want to stand even a remote chance of stopping Derek Henry.

There's no denying that Derek Henry is going to be good again this week. But he can't do it all and Tannehill won't be able to keep up with Mahomes and company. Give the Titans all the credit for getting this far and giving KC a fight, but at the end of the day, the better team will come out on top and reach the big game for the first time since the days of Hank Stram.

Prediction: Chiefs 30, Titans 21

Finally, with a 6:40 kickoff, its the NFC Championship game between the Green Bay Packers taking on the San Francisco 49ers. San Francisco got here by beating the Vikings in the divisional round, making this their 16th appearance in the NFC title game. The 49ers are looking for their first trip to the Super Bowl since 2012. San Francisco is now 31-21 lifetime in the playoffs. As for the Packers, they got here by beating the Seattle Seahawks. This marks Green Bay's 12th NFC title game appearance. Green Bay is looking for it's first Super Bowl appearance since 2010. Green Bay is 35-22 lifetime in the playoffs. The 49ers blew out the Packers the regular season week 12 meeting 37–8.

For some reason, I had felt going into the playoffs, that the Packers had been an average 13-3 team this year. That was until last week, when Rogers threw for 243 yards and Devante Adams went off for 160 yards in the receiving game. Oh and to prove how big Adams was last week, consider this. Adams had 10 cathes for 160 yards, while all other pass-catchers caught eight passes for 83 yards combined. That's how big he was against the Seahawks. They built a 21-3 lead on Seattle, before having to hold on. That's what might worry me this week. The defense leaked a little in the 2nd half against a good Seahawks team.

We know Rogers has been able to handle pressure in this type of game. Jimmy Garoppolo hasn't just yet. But with the type of year he's had, teaming up with George Kittle, they've been really good this year. They have a balanced attack which could cause problems for that Packers defense. As for their own defense, Nick Bosa has been leading the charge and have been known to put a lot of pressure on the opposing QB's.

This game is going to be a nail bitter and coming down to whoever gets the ball last. Its going to be a slugferst of a game and never count Aaron Rogers out, he''s that good. At the end of the day I feel the Niners are the better all around team.

Prediction: 49ers 30, Packers 27

Houston We Have A Problem

There had been rumblings of this for most of last season. In their 2017 World Series year, the Houston Astros had been accused of stealing signs. Well, it's no longer an accusation, it was sign stealing. Houston got caught and are now going to pay for it. And pay in a big way they will. Before we look at the punishment, here's a quick reminder of the backstory of what exactly happened.

Go back to the 2017 season. The Houston Astros won 101 regular season games, and the American League West title. They finished with the 2nd best record in the AL, behind only the Cleveland Indians. Houston went on to beat Boston in the Divisional Round and then the New York Yankees in the League Championship series, before winning their first ever World Series title. They beat the Dodgers in the Series in seven games to capture the crown.

The Dodgers had said after that series that they had suspected the Astros of doing something, but it wasn't quite proven yet, just speculation. Then, in early 2019, Mike Fiers, a member of the Oakland A's pitching staff, who played for the Astros in 2017, told journalists Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drelich of The Athletic, the Astros used a video camera in center field to steal opposing teams' signs and that he had warned his then-teammates with the Detroit Tigers about it. Fiers said that the Astros would then relay the signs through whistling and banging on garbage cans. In a subsequent report from The Athletic, it was reported that an Astros executive asked scouts for help stealing signs and suggested using cameras.

After this news came out, Major League Baseball had issued a statement on its findings. Baseball had confirming that the Astros had illegally used a video camera system to steal signs in the 2017 regular season and postseason, and in parts of the 2018 regular season. Commissioner Rob Manfred disciplined the Astros with a $5 million fine—the maximum amount allowed by major league rules—and forfeiture of their first- and second-round draft picks in 2020 and 2021. The league also suspended General Manager Jeff Luhnow and manager A. J. Hinch for the entire 2020 season, including the playoffs and World Series. It was also announced that, if Luhnow and Hinch commit further "material violations" of baseball rules, they will be permanently banned from baseball.

To the credit of the Astros organization, they wasted no time in dealing with this situation. Astros owner Jim Crane fired Hinch and Luhnow, saying, "Neither one of them started this but neither one of them did anything about it." Crane said he was going beyond MLB's sanctions because he had "higher standards for the city and the franchise".

I give baseball full marks for taking the steps that it did, as well as handing out the punishment it did. Punishment fit the crime. Hats off to the sport who, unlike the NFL, actually knows how to properly hand out punishment for something that goes against the principals of its sport. Good on Major League Baseball for the suspensions and good on the Houston Astros for taking the action that they did.

Since the news has broken, some are contending, and have a legitimate argument, that the Astros should be stripped of their World Series Championship. It was cheating to gain an advantage, but baseball isn't stripping them of the title. At the other side of the coin, it falls on management and not the players. The guys out on the field still had to go out and play. Yes, they may have had an advantage to know what was coming, but at the same time the players still had to hit the ball and go out and make the plays. I'm glad baseball didn't take action against the players because they still went out and did their jobs.

At the end of the day, the Astros did cheat and the title should be taken away. Don't give it to the Dodgers or anybody else. The title was stripped and there was no World Champion in 2017.

They got caught with the hand in the cookie jar.

Changes Continue In Jersey

There had been some level of expectation in Jersey this season. High draft picks the last couple of years. It looked like things were on pace for the Devils to really make some noise in the East this year. Turns out that wasn't even close to being the case. Somebody had to take the blame for what's been wrong with the Devils this year, who sit last in the Metro division. First, John Hynes was shown the door on December 3rd, replaced by Alain Nasreddine. Now, it's general manager Ray Shero who was just shown the door, being replaced by Tom Fitzgerald.

Lets back track for one second. There had been a lot of promise for the Devils coming into this season. They had the first overall pick in the June draft, using it to select Jack Hughes. Him and Nico Hischier are the two guys the Devils have taken at #1 overall in the draft in the last three years (as a matter of fact the only two times in franchise history that they've had the first overall pick). To go along with that, the team still had Taylor Hall, who won MVP and helped the Devils reach the playoffs in 2017. Jersey wanted to build on it and did so. P.K. Subban, and Wayne Simmonds were signed to free agent contracts over the summer. Then the team went out and acquired former KHL scoring champ Nikita Gusev from the Vegas Golden Knights.

It looked like the Devils were poised to get back on track and start heading back in the right direction again. That never materialized. In fact the wheels fell off. Jersey has the worst record in the Metro division at 17-21-7, for 41 points. This coming off a 3-1 win over the Lightning last night, hours after Shero was let go as GM. The only team in the Eastern Conference that has a worse record then the Devils and that's the Detroit Red Wings. Somebody has had to take the fall for this and it cost both john Hynes and ray Shero their jobs.

Lets face it, the team was hoping to capitalize of Taylor Hall's big year two years ago, and by bringing in all this talent to surround him, it was in the hope that he would sign a long term deal and stay put in New Jersey. Didn't happen and they dealt him to Arizona for, what I feel, was a little less than what he was worth. Nobody is clicking on offense. Three guys have double digits in goals right now. Kyle Palmieri leads the way with 16 goals and 31 points. Blake Coleman is second on the team with 15 goals and Nico Hischier has 12. That's it for double digit goal scorers for the Devils.

There's no consistency on this team. There had been solid expectations for this team to start trending upward, but it has fallen way short of that. They failed to try and impress Hall enough to keep him around, although there still a chance he could sign back in Jersey once free agency opens up next summer. Its been rough going for the boys in Jersey, trying to put together a winning formula. Ray Shero had a little over four years to try and put this thing together, but it didn't really work out. That's why he was shown the door. Maybe interim General Manager Tom Fitzgerald and Martin Brodeur, who became an advisor to and on hockey operations after Shero was let go.

It's kind of sad to see how far the Devils had fallen, considering there had, at one time, been stability in the positions of General Manager and coach. now it's a bit up in the air. One thing is for sure, the team is trying to get it back on track. Shero did an OK job, but it wasn't up to expectations and somebody had to take the fall for this season going the way it has.

NFL Divisional Round Preview

Divisional Round weekend is here. We got our eight teams left standing after what was a crazy wild card weekend. Las Year's Super Bowl champions are out after a big upset. We had a pair of overtime games last weekend that set up for what is sure to be a fun one in the divisional round. Seven of the eight teams left standing have won at least one Super Bowl and every team left has played in at least one big game. So lets not waste more time. Here's how the Divisional Round breaks down.

First up, Saturday at 4:25 we got the Wild Card winning Minnesota Vikings taking on the NFC West Champion San Francisco 49ers. Minnesota is coming off a thrilling overtime win over the Saints last weekend in the Wild Card game. It puts them in the divisional round for the 2nd time in three years. The Vikings are looking to get back to the NFC title game for the first time since 2017. Minnesota is now 21-29 lifetime in the playoffs. As for the 49ers, they finished the regular season 13-3 winning the West for the first time since 2012. This also marks the 49ers first playoff appearance since 2013 when they lost in the NFC title game. San Francisco is 31-21 lifetime in the playoffs. This marks the 6th all time meeting between the teams, with the 49ers winning four of the previous five games.

This should be a tough defensive game, between two teams who finished tied for 54th in sacks during the regular season. This will be a good test for Jimmy Garoppolo, who's really getting his first taste of playoff football as a starter. He's had a mixed bag as far as his play has gone over the last month. He came up big against the Seahawks at the end of the season to clinch the division, but your unsure which Jimmy G your going to get. It looks like a pretty even matchup between the teams, so if the Niners want a chance, they need the Jimmy G they got the last day of the season.

Minnesota needs the same kind of performance out of Dalvin Cook that they got out of him against the Saints last week. If the Vikings want to have a chance against this San Francisco pass rush, they need Cook to be playing at the top of his game. If he's even close, then Kirk Cousins will be able to use the play action pass to great advantage and exploit the 49ers for what they have behind their front seven.

This game is going to be a very close game, just like what the Vikings just went through last week. This time, it won't end the same. The saying that defense wins championships. Well the 49ers had the 2nd best defense overall and the top pass defense in the entire league during the regular season. They get to show that skillset off against the Vikings. Minnesota keeps it close but the Niners get the nod.

Prediction: 49ers 30, Vikings 17

Next up, Saturday at 8:15 PM we have the Wild Card winning Tennessee Titans taking on the AFC North Champion Baltimore Ravens. Tennessee is coming off the upset win last weekend over New England, making this the 2nd time in three years that the Titans have won on Wild Card weekend. The Titans will try and reach the AFC Championship game for the first time since 2002. Tennessee now sits at 16-20 lifetime in the playoffs. As for the Ravens, they finished the season at 14-2 and won the North for the 2nd year in a row. Baltimore hasn't gotten to an AFC title game since their Super Bowl win in 2012. Baltimore is 15-9 lifetime in the playoffs. This marks the forth meeting between the teams in the post season, with the Ravens having won two of the first three meetings.

Talk about mounting pressure. The Titans had to go into New England last week to play maybe one of the greatest dynasty ever assembled in football. They beat them. Now they got to try and pull it off again this week. Since benching Marcus Mariota for Ryan Tanahill, the Tennessee offense seemed to have changed their point of view. They've had a little more luck with the passing game. Of course, a lot of that has to do with the strong running attack of the NFL's leading rusher this season, Derek Henry. He's been a beast all year long and had a monster game again last week against New England. For the Titans to even stand a chance, they need him to be like that.

Lets not forget, the Ravens have their own weapon in Lamar Jackson. There little doubt in anybody's mind that by the end of the year, Jackson was a serious threat to be MVP of the entire league. He's a duel threat as both a passer and a runner, he can beat you both ways. He can do it all on offense. The Ravens defense is no slouch either, they've been good from start to finish this season.

Bottom line here is that Baltimore was the top team in the AFC all year long and they are going to prove it again against Tennessee here. Look there no denying what the Titans did against the Patriots was great, they had a game plan stuck with it and it worked out. But its a different animal when your playing the Ravens. Baltimore shows why here.

Prediction: Ravens 35, Titans 14

Now on to Sunday's action. First up at 3:05 we have the AFC South Champion Houston Texans taking on the AFC West Champion Kansas City Chiefs. Houston pulled out a thrilling comeback win in overtime against Buffalo in the wild card round. This marks the 4th time in team history that the Texans have reached the divisional round of the playoffs. Houston is looking to advance to its first ever AFC Championship game. The Texans are 4-5 lifetime in the playoffs. As for the Chiefs, they won the AFC West for the 4th year in a row, finishing the season at 12-4. KC is looking to make it back to back appearance in the AFC title game. The Chiefs are 10-19 lifetime in the playoffs. This marks the 2nd ever meeting between the teams, with Kansas City getting the win in the wild card round in 2015.

This could be a fun one this weekend. It took the Texans a little while to get going last week against the Bills and they had to go to overtime to get the win. Now Houston already beat the Chiefs once this year, a 31-24 win in week six. For Houston to be able to pull something like this off again this week, they need Deshaun Watson and DeAndre Hopkins to recapture that second half magic from last week and keep it for an entire football game. They also need the defense to step its game up, who is a solid unit, but they're going up against a tough test with Kansas City.

Over the final seven games of the season, Kansas City had been the best defense in the league. Kansas City has no trouble applying pressure to the opposition, with Frank Clark and Terrell Suggs, while the back end is led by Tyrann Mathieu. On offense, Patrick Mahomes has found his stride and has the offensive clicking. Travice Kelce has been Mahomes biggest weapon and Tyreek Hill can still be a big threat. They can still have a solid run game, but it's going to rely on Mahomes arm to do the bulk of the work if the run game isn't there.

Watson and company are coming in with a little bit of momentum after the OT win against the Bills last week. But they are going up against a well rested and very dangerous Kansas City squad who's looking for payback from the loss earlier this year. Watson may show some flashes in this game, but it's Holmes time to shine.

Prediction: Chiefs 30, Texans 14

Last up, with a 6:40 kickoff, we have the Wild Card winning Seattle Seahawks taking on the NFC North Champion Green Bay Packers. Seattle is coming off a wild card weekend win over the Philadelphia Eagles. This marks the Seahakws fifth divisional round game in their last six trips to the playoffs. Seattle is looking to get back to the NFC title game for the first time since 2014. Seattle is 17-16 lifetime in the playoffs. As for Green Bay, they finished the year at 13-3 winning the North for the 2nd time in the last three seasons. Green Bay is looking to make the NFC title game for the first time since 2016. Green Bay is 34-22 lifetime in the playoffs. This marks the 4th meeting between the teams in the playoffs, with Green Bay having won two of the previous three meetings.

A matchup of teams with similar styles, this one should be good. It's also going to be Aaron Rogers first test as a playoff quarterback without Mike McCarthy as his head coach. Still Rogers has had a good enough year to help put the Packers as the 2nd seed in the NFC and get at least one home game. And Rogers is still capable of delivering magic this season. just look at the games against the Raiders, Chiefs and Giants this season. He also has Aaron Jones who has started to emerge as a major threat at the running back position. They've got a good offense and happen to be facing a batter and banged up Seattle defense.

Lets not put the Seahawks out to pasture just yet. Bobby Wagner is still the leader of a group that still out to try and prove something. They won't go away quietly. As for the Seattle offense, Russel Wilson has been having one of those Magical years, a year in which some players only really dream of having. Anything is possible with him getting the ball in his hands. I mean he did throw for 325 yards last week in the win over the Eagles.And not to take anything away from the run game, which finished 4th in the NFL during the regular season.

All in all, this maybe the closest matchup of the entire weekend. Playing in Green Bay, in the winter, is a very tough thing to be able to do. Wilson is good enough where the offense can keep them in the game. But going up against a guy like Rogers, with a defense as banged up as the one Seattle has, it going to be hard to fight.

Prediction: Packers 27, Seahawks 10

Can The Islanders Hold On?

Last season, the New York Islanders proved a lot to a lot of people. They not only made the playoffs last year, but managed at sweep the Penguins in the opening round before getting swept by Carolina. This year, there was a level of expectation that had to be met. Not only get back to the post season, but go on a deeper run. There wasn't much retooling done to this club after last year, as most of the core group is still in tact. Can they do it again?

There are a few question marks after the first 42 games. We'll start in goal and work our way out.

Thomas Greiss hasn't been quite as good this year. He's given up 15 goals in his last five starts, including three against Jersey two nights ago. It had been a pretty even split between him and Semyon Varlamov until recently. Varlamov has the lower goals against and the higher save percentage. He's also started 23 games, compared to the 19 starts for Greiss. Varlamov has been a solid replacement for what Robin Lehner did last year. It's just Greiss hasn't quite matched the level he had a season ago.

On the blue line, losing Adam Pelech is tough, as he's out for the year with the Achilles injury. Noah Dobson has taken his spot in the lineup, but he hasn't looked really comfortable at times. Part of that may have to do with the fact that he's been a healthy scratch, so he hasn't really been able to find his game and steady himself at this level. Once he gets a steady diet of playing time in the NHL, he should be able to firmly establish himself. The resat of the blueline seems to be holding up fine, but if somebody else goes down with an injury or even misses significant amounts of time, then we could be changing our tune as fans.

The scoring, on the other hand, already has me singing a different tune. And it's not a good one. Sure, you got your big three forwards in Mathew Barzal, Brock Nelson and Anders Lee. All of whom, while not putting up super elite numbers, have at least been consistent this year. The rest of the team, not so much in the scoring department. Case in point, the Killer B's. Josh Bailey, Anthony Beauvillier, and Derek Brassard have all started to go cold. Those three guys had been hot and really stepping it up six weeks ago. Now, they're almost invisible at times. There's no consistent support in the scoring department for the big three. And even that leaves something to be desired.

I felt, going into this season, scoring depth was going to be a problem. Not that the Isles weren't deep enough, because there has been depth. Its just, I don't feel we have a game breaker. Barzal has the potential as a playmaker, but not a game breaking goal scorer. Something might have to be done to make a change to get the scoring up to snuff in my mind. No consistency from the middle two lines in the Islanders lineup for my liking.

Look the Isles are in 2nd place in the Metro, tied with the Penguins at 57 points. They trail the Capitals who have 65 points just past the halfway point of the season. They got off to a slow start, had the 17 game point streak in the early part and have been up and down since then. Next up for the Islanders is Saturday night at the Barclays Center against Boston, who's going to be a challenge. If they can get a solid neffort and get the scoring to show up, it could lead to something. They desire is there, the results just need to start paying off more.

Meet The New Blue Man

Coaching changes. They happen all the time in football, and sports in general. The New York Giants are not immune to such things. They've had success with some coaches in the past, while others haven't lasted very long. The last couple of coaches haven't worked out. Case in point, let Pat Shurmur go after just two seasons. The last head coach to have a long run with this team was Tom Coughlin. Now, with Shurmur gone, Joe Judge will take over as the 19th head coach in franchise history.

Who is Joe Judge?

He's a 38 year old first time head coach from Philadelphia. He's been a coach in the game of football since starting as a graduate assistant at Mississippi State in 2005. He then went on to be linebackers coach at Birmingham–Southern for the 2008 season. He then moved on to Alabama as a special teams assistant from 2009-2011. Joe finally jumped to the NFL with the New England Patriots. He joined the team as a special teams assistant until 2014. Then, in 2015, he became special teams coordinator and wide receivers coach through till last season. Now he takes over as head man for the New York Giants.

From an outsiders perspective, it seems liked the Giants made a rush, irrational decision as to who became head coach. I say this because, their first choice, Matt Rhule, signed with the Carolina Panthers. Part of the reason I think there was the attraction there was because he's coming out from under the Bill Belichick coaching tree. It seemed like Matt Rhule was high on the list, and so was Mike McCarthy, both of whom got lured away to other teams.

The Giants had hope that Joe can get the team back on the right track. Its not all on him. The coach can only do so much with the talent he's given. Some of this responsibility does fall on the shoulders of Dave Gettleman. Him, as well as ownership, need to get on the same page as to what the Giants want to be as a team, and they need to get the right personnel in here to make that team work. Easier said than done, I realize that, but hopefully, they can find out quickly what style Joe Judge has and what he can be able to do with this team. Once he gets himself established, the Giants can figure things out.

I hope for the sake of the franchise, Joe Judge does work out. For a long time it seemed like a stable position, being head coach of the New York Giants. It was one of those jobs in the New York Market, that had been a stable job. This might explain why the Giants have had only 19 head coaches in the history of the franchise, one which has been around since 1925. The Jets, who've been around since 1960, have had 21 head coaches. It's been an interesting last few days for the Giants, but they now appear they have the guy they want in Joe Judge. Just seems they kind of settled for him.

Wild Card Weekend Preview

Oh it truly is a beautiful time of the year. Great way to kickstart the new year. We started this journey four months ago with 32 teams all fighting for the same thing, a shot at the Lombardi trophy. Now we're down to twelve teams left standing. It all gets going right here today, with Wild Card Weekend. Lets not waste anymore time and lets get right into it. Here's how the games go down this weekend.

First kickoff is Saturday at 4:35 between the Wild Card winning Buffalo Bills and the AFC South Champion Houston Texans. This marks the 2nd time in three years, and the 19th time in franchise history, that the Buffalo Bills are in the playoffs. They enter as a wild card team, going 10-6 during the regular season. Its the first time the Bills have won 10 games in a season since 1999. Buffalo is looking for its first playoff win since 1995. Buffalo is 14-16 lifetime in the playoffs. As for Houston, this is the 4th time in the last five years they have won the AFC South, finishing the season with an 11-5 record. This also marks the 6th division title for the Texans. Houston is looking for a playoff win for the first time since 2016. The Texans are 3-5 lifetime in the playoffs. This is the first ever playoff meeting between the teams.

This is a battle of two teams that have struggled in the playoffs in the past. It's been a long time coming for a really good team in Buffalo. They've got a pretty good defense to help lead the charge. Its been the pass defense in Buffalo that's been a strong point for this team, finishing 3rd overall in defense and 5th in pass defense. It's going to be a key focal point considering how good the Texans offense has been. What has me a tad worried in this game is going to be for Buffalo. Josh Allen has been good this year, and Cole Beasley has been a reliable target for him. They've had a solid running attack with Frank Gore and Devin Singletary. Only thing to keep an eye on is the propensity for turning the ball over that the Bills have had this season.

Houston has been the top of the South division for a reason. They've had outstanding play from DeSaun Watson this year, and DeAndre Hopkins has been good but not great. Its going up against a tough Bills defense, but Houston can hang on that side of the ball as well. JJ Watt can still be an intimidating to deal with. There is a lot of pressure on Houston this year, because it has been the 4th time in five years in the playoffs, but they can't seem to get the job done.

At least Houston has been here before. So has Buffalo, but its only been once in the last twenty years. Buffalo could be good, but I'm worried about the turnovers and the defense not being able to bail them out all day. Going to be a tight game, but at the end of the day, Houston is just better.

Prediction: Houston 21, Buffalo 17

Next up, with kickoff set for 8:15 its the Wild Card winning Tennessee Titans taking on the AFC East Champion New England Patriots. Tennessee finished the year as a wild card team, going 9-7 during the regular season. Its the 2nd time in three years that the Titans are a playoff team. Last time the Titans made the playoffs was also the last time the Titans won a playoff game, that coming in 2017. Tennessee is 15-20 lifetime in the playoffs. For the 11th year in a row and the 14th time in the last 16 years the New England Patriots won the AFC East, finishing with a 12-4 record. New England has played in the last three Super Bowls and looks to get back there again, but this is the first time they've played in Wild Card Weekend since 2009. The Patriots are 37-20 all time in the playoffs. This is the 4th ever meeting between the teams in the playoffs, with New England winning two of the previous three.

This has to be a weird feeling for the Patriots, who haven't lost on Wild Card weekend in ten years.They also haven't lost in their first playoff game since the Ravens beat them in their first game in 2012. New England had the best defense in the game this year and the 2nd best pass defense in football. That's been their strength again. The offense, despite not having Gronk this year, keeps right on moving along. The only thing that would worry me would be Brady's health. He is in his mid 40s and not having this week off on the bye could be hazardous for him late in the playoffs.

New England is going to have a test ahead of it, dealing with the Titans running game. Derrick Henry has been a beast all year this year, finishing as the leading rusher in the entire league this season. He's really been the only bright spot all year for the Titans. Sure, they have played better under Ryan Tanahill. This game is almost too easy to pick. The Jets fan in me is hoping like hell for a huge upset but I can't see that happening. The Patriots are too good.

Prediction: Patriots 30 Titans 21

Now onto Sunday, where first up, at 1:05 is the Wild Card winning Minnesota Vikings taking on the NFC South Champion New Orleans Saints. Minnesota made the playoffs as a wild card team, going 10-6 on the year, making it the 2nd time in three years as a playoff and double digit win team. Minnesota is looking for a win for the first time in the playoffs since beating the Saints two years ago. Minnesota is 20-29 in the playoffs lifetime. This marks the 3rd year in a row that the Saints have won the NFC South, finishing 13-3 this season. New Orleans is looking to get back to the NFC title game for the 2nd year in a row. New Orleans is 9-11 lifetime in the Playoffs. This marks the 5th ever meeting between the teams in the playoffs, with the Vikings having won three of the last four.

Rematch from the Minnesota Miracle two years ago. Vikings have a different look under center with Cousins leading a pass attack that finished 23rd in the NFL this year. Its still a decent mix of the pass and run in Minnesota but there isn't one thing that the Vikings really stand out with in their game, at least on offense. Minnesota can put on the pressure with the front pressure, but with the way things look for who they're playing, the Vikings need to step the pressure up to have a chance.

New Orleans managed to win the division at 13-3 and do so with Drew Brees missing over a month with a hand injury. Alvin Kamara has been good all year long, and he's been a good compliment the brilliance of Michael Thomas this season. They too, like the Vikings, have managed to get a balanced attack this year. On defense the Saints should be able to hang with the Vikings.

Just want to send a reminder to fans that the Saints hung 46 points on the 49ers, who are a better defensive team than what you get in Minnesota. New Orleans wants to get the sting of last years playoffs shook off and they get it off to a good start in this year's playoffs.

Prediction: Saints 31, Vikings 20

Last but not least, the 4:40 Kickoff will have the Wild Card winning Seattle Seahawks taking on the NFC East Champion Philadelphia Eagles. Seattle got in as a wild card team, for the 2nd year in a row, finishing with a 11-5 record. Seattle is looking for its first playoff win since 2016. Seattle is now 16-16 lifetime in the playoffs. As for the Eagles, they went 9-7 for the 2nd year in a row. This year, it lead to an NFC East title, their 2nd in three years. Philly is looking for a playoff win for the first time since winning the Super Bowl tow years ago. The Eagles are 23-22 lifetime in the playoffs.

Of your Seattle, this could be a better matchup then having to go to  New Orleans. Seattle is still powered by Russel Wilson, who is and was playing at an MVP kind of level this year. He's been keeping the Seahawks in the race against the 49ers in the West. I say this because the defense in Seattle, which at one time was considered to be a tough thing to play against, has been hampered by injuries this year.

And with the injury storyline, how about Carson Wentz? This is the first time he's really getting a taste of the playoffs. He's missed it the last two years due to injury and doesn't have Nick Foles to back him up. He's got a lot of pressure on him and can he pull it off. Against Minnesota, maybe, but not against this team. Even with all the injuries to the defense, Seattle is still too good a team.

Prediction: Seattle 30, Philadelphia 10