The 2009-2010 NFL playoffs are about to kick off and amazingly enough, three of the four matchups are repeats from the final week of the season. The only game that is not a repeat is the Ravens-Patriots game that is being played on Sunday. However, while most of these games are week 17 repeats, it is unlikely that we are going to see the same results on the scoreboard.

Saturday Games:

New York Jets @ Cincinnati Bengals
Week 17 had the Jets blowing the Bengals out, but this was much ado about nothing. The Bengals had many of their starters either riding the bench or being pulled early in game. Lewis definitely did not show his hand and treated the game more like a scrimmage. The Jets had to win this game in order to make the playoffs and the Bengals already knew that if they lost this game to the Jets, they were going to see them again in the first round. It was the perfect opportunity to pick their opponent. While you have to respect the Jets defense, the rookie Sanchez will probably be in for a long afternoon. Expect the Bengals to win big here.

Philadelphia Eagles @ Dallas Cowboys
While some of the analysts tried to play the Eagles loss down, week 17 provided an old fashioned whuppin’. Dallas is now 2-0 against the Eagles this season and will have to go 3-0 in order to win their first playoff game since 1996. While the media hype would have you think this is a difficult task, 2-0 teams are 12-7 in the playoffs when trying to sweep the season. Dallas can expect to see a lot more blitzes early in the game and while this game will be close, Dallas may just have Philadelphia’s number this season. If they manage to get by the Eagles, Dallas could be the team to beat.

Sundays Games:

Baltimore Ravens @ New England Patriots
The Patriots were flat out beat in week 17 and lost one of their premiere players, Wes Welker. Their defense has been suspect all season and Baltimore does not fear the road. This could be Flacco’s coming out party and the points in this one are just a bonus. Expect the Baltimore D to be in Brady’s face all day and this could very well be an outright win by the Ravens on Sunday afternoon.

Green Bay Packers @ Arizona Cardinals
This is the final game of the weekend and the third repeat from week 17 of the regular season. Again, we have a game where the studio morons were blowing the Arizona loss out of proportion. Arizona sat their starters and did nothing more than let their players get healthy. While we don’t feel that Arizona will get deep into the playoffs this season, they take this game in what should be a shootout.

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There is a word for the way things are going for a few of the premier NFL teams thus far this year. I believe the season can be summed up with a profound Wow. The New Orleans Saints have defied the past statistics and a broken the 7-0 mark for the first time since the early 1980’s. Now standing at 8-0 and having taken last week’s game with a great burst of gusto, this is certainly a team that will continue to intimidate and shake up its completion for the remainder of the season. Can’t wait to see how this plays out.

We have just one other undefeated team standing in the NFL this season, that being the Indianapolis Colts. Between these two, a great many predictions and comparisons can be made, but the proof will certainly be in the pudding by the time week 16 rolls around. Of course, there is still plenty of room for both of these teams to be taken over at the top, but wouldn’t it be something to watch them continue on undefeated until they meet head to head? We can only hope at this point.

The Minnesota Vikings stand currently at 7-1 on the season, placing them in second place for the league and keeping them well in the running should either of our perfect teams take a tumble in the coming weeks. With things as capable of shuffling and shifting as they are, each and every game is anyone’s until the final snap.

New England Patriots, Cincinnati  Bengals, Denver Broncos, and Dallas Cowboys are all tied at 6-2 for the season thus far, with a great many predictions pointing the Dallas Cowboys out of the running within the next few weeks. For up to date information, news, NFL Tickets and secure online bookings to all of your favorite events, stay with StubPass.com.

The Big Ten are in for yet another enormously important November. As with each and every season that has come to pass, the games played during this month are pivotal, difficult, gut-wrenching, and they tend to determine who is destined for greatness. Division champions will be decided, with conference play turning things up to a whole other degree or fierce. By the time the Rose Bowl rolls around, anything and everything could change.

We’ve got a Penn State team this year who is currently at an 8-1 record, but there seems to be some questions as to whether they have even been challenged properly thus far. One loss after 9 games is usually considered a pretty great start, but critics and experts seem to be under the impression that Penn State may crumble under the pressure and weight of a real challenge. We shall see soon enough, as the Ohio State Buckeyes take them on for game ten next week.

Can anybody say Duke? Well, you might want to get used to that name, and seeing these guys for a while, because they have become the ACC Coastal team to beat this season thus far, showing complete control and an utter drive which guarantees them a running toward conference finals. Georgia Tech is also pretty pumped up and raring to go this year, with one more game standing between them and Duke. Funny world.

The Iowa Hawkeyes made a huge impression on everybody Halloween day, as they were pummeled up until the end of the third quarter and looked to be falling quickly from grace. Enter: Ricky Stanzi. Never during this generation has a fourth quarter been so exhilarating, so dynamic, so inspirational, and so victorious as the one that these guys rallied for. Here’s to hoping for a little bit more of that heart and determination in the coming month.

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If absolution is what teams and fans are looking for during the heady pairings week 9 has in store, disappointment is sure to prevail. There are some amazing things going on in the NFL right now, a few undefeated teams fighting to keep it that way, and it seems that a few of our professional franchises haven’t even found a rhythm or stride yet. The latter is a mistake of gargantuan proportions, as it will take an enormous string of misfortunes and pandemonium at the top in order for the stragglers catch up now.

Starting with the New Orleans Saints, we can begin to see what an earth shattering season this is turning out to be, the Saints setting out to defend their 7-0 record this week, going against, of all teams, the Carolina Panthers. Now, this might not seem like such a tough endeavor, as the Panthers are 3-4 currently and have lost to teams that the Saints have completely dominated. But there’s just something about this team lead by John Fox that tends to knock the Saints for a loop. Six out of seven consecutive games against the Panthers have found the Saints on the losing end.

Aside from this exciting face-off, we also get to see the Dallas Cowboys take on the Eagles, and it is rather surprising that the Eagles are favored to win this one. The New York Giants are vying for a win over the Chargers this Sunday as well, and are favored to take it with little hassle. Maybe you’re more interested in watching the Buccaneers square off against Green Bay in a game that they are expected to lose. Monday night football heads the Broncos against the Steelers, so keep your schedule wide open for that one. StubPass.com offers the best NFL Football Tickets!

Patience is a virtue, as I’m sure you know, but this old adage or pep talk lingo never goes very far with players, with press, and most especially not with fans. Two major play makers on the Pittsburgh Steelers’ roster have been out for two and four games, so enough is enough already with the injury talk! Unfortunately for us, football players do need their toes, as well as their knee ligaments, so I guess we’re trumped on that argument. The good news is that both Willie Parker and Troy Polamalu returned to full practice gear and intensity on Wednesday with the rest of their teammates.

Of course, this is by no means an all lights are a go, but it certainly brings a ray of hope to the Pittsburgh Steelers bench, as well as to the team’s fan base. The Steelers did just fine against the Detroit Lions last Sunday without the two powerhouse players, but also sustained yet another injury during that game to defensive end Aaron Smith. The shoulder injury has been quoted as being “significant”, giving even more urgency to the call for Polamalu and Parker.

Willie Parker sustained a turf toe injury which has placed him out of commission for the past two games, while the left knee ligament tear sustained by Polamalu happened during the season opener and has taken far more time to heal. Both players were said to be exercising fully during Wednesday’s practice, in a sort of sink or swim type of test.

Plans to return both players back to the game this coming week have been in talks for some days now, though the actual call has yet to be made regarding the two. It will be interesting to see who makes it back to the field of play come Sunday.

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Steelers Update: Record (3-2)

Last game: Oct 11, Pittsburgh Steelers 28 – Detroit Lions 20
Next game: vs. Cleveland Browns, Oct 18 1:00pm ET

College football, even more so than any of the other college sports, and probably any American sport played in the public eye, is famous for its rivalries. There are two things that make the ideal rivalry come to light, the first of which is the acknowledgement of both parties. One team can fear, respect, detest, or wish to gain revenge against another, but if the feeling is not mutual, there is no rivalry, merely a one sided battle to prove moxie. The true rivalry is born of a solid, mutual tradition of head-butting, tooth-grinding, sod-chewing, sweat-inducing, painstaking Competition. Yeah, that’s what we love.

The next determining factor in the true college football rivalry has to do with past situations, events, catastrophic miracles, and, of course, myths and superstitions. Any or all of these factors spark a certain long-lived and increasingly heated battle cry from one party to the next, only to be returned just as fiercely by the intended opponent. We really love this, too. One with something to prove, one with something to protect, no matter the current record, standings, stats, or odds. This is truly something to see.

In these ways, rivalry games tend to have little or nothing to do with how well a team is playing during that, or any season. An 0-6 team who never fills one side of their home stadium can easily pack the stands when game 7 is against the detested rival. Some of the famous rivalry games yet to play out this season in college football include:

Texas vs Oklahoma
Michigan vs Ohio State
Florida vs Georgia
Texas vs Texas A&M
USC vs Notre Dame
LSU vs Florida
Oklahoma vs OK State
UCLA vs USC
Alabama vs Auburn
Oklahoma vs Nebraska

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We have officially captured 4 regular season games per team in the NFL, and there are certainly a few standouts who deserve an honorable mention. As they say with all things, it ain’t over til the play clock on the Superbowl board runs out. Well, maybe they don’t say it exactly that way, but for the true football fan, that’s exactly the way it feels. Let’s start with the very best of the best, those who have gone 4-0 for the season.

The New York Giants top the NFC East, while the Minnesota Vikings have the NFC North. The New Orleans Saints are rocking it our for the NFC South, and the Indianapolis Colts have control over the AFC South. Our final 4-0 team for this week in NFL history would be the Denver Broncos, showing the way home for the AFC West. The score leaders for the remaining divisions are not with a perfect record, those being NFC West San Francisco,  AFC East Buffalo, and AFC North Baltimore.

We’ve got five goose egg teams thus far this season, or in other words, teams who have not yet managed to squeeze out a victory. These include the NFC South Carolina Panthers, NFC West St. Louis, AFC North Cleveland, AFC South Tennessee, and AFC West Kansas City. All of the middlemen in the league, realizing that they have already blown the chance for top honors, are just hoping to stay within that quiet in-between until they figure out what the problem is and how to fix it.

This is where everything starts to pull into shape across the league. Those whose teams were at 0-3 last week were still able to draw a breath of hope, but once week 4 has come and gone, ¼ of the season tallied and gone, fans start to really understand where their favorite teams measured up in the pack. For some, that really hurts.

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The knock out combo for the New England Patriots was set up systematically by three of the teams’ more prominent players, namely Tom Brady, Randy Moss, and Fred Taylor. For the veteran running back Fred Taylor, the game was about momentum and vision, both of which need to be realized even if they cannot be planned for. Though Randy Moss wasn’t able to rack any points onto his impressive record, his efforts and successful plays were key to the Pats’ 26-10 victory last Sunday.

The only scoring tacked on by the Atlanta Falcons happened during the first half of the game, after which point they were found out and held to a standstill by an impressive Patriots defense. It was certainly not a full-out, runaway win for New England, but they are responsible for reading, breaking up, and squashing key plays which could have kept Atlanta in the game.

According to  a statement by New England safety Brandon McGowan, the Pats did fail at one of their predetermined goals for Sunday’s game. They were to stop Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez of the Falcons from making any catches at all. Grinning, McGowan joked that the plan was indeed a failure, as Gonzalez was afforded one catch during the game. Here’s to thinking that they may not want to beat up on themselves too badly over this one.

The running game for New England caught fire Sunday, with 115 yards rushing coming from Fred Taylor alone, who turned his momentum into a touchdown run. Brady connected with Randy Moss 10 times for a total of 116 yards, and the Pats’ defense held the Falcons at bay for the entirety of the second half. For more up to the minute updates, and for secure ticket sales, visit StubPass.com.

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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers just couldn’t hold it together on Sunday against Eli Manning and his New York Giants. And talk about unraveling lawn chairs, this team wasn’t able to rally for more than 5 first downs throughout the entire time of play. While the passing and running games dug in and took control of the field in the Giants direction, the Buccaneers struggled with some of even the most basic fundamentals of football. With the Bucs head coach, Raheem Morris, quipping the game and his teams’ effort as “completely disastrous”, one wonders what went on in that post-game locker room.

The Buccaneers did set a new record for their team franchise this past week, that of the fewest first downs ever created during a regulation game. As the Giants prepare for their next bidding against the Kansas City Chiefs, they will be spit-polishing the shine from this momentous game and applying to their daily preparations.

The Buccaneers, however, will be back to the drawing board, starting fresh, and trying to figure out what went wrong before they head off into combat against the Washington Redskins. Let us hope that they are armed this time. Perhaps on the plus side for the Bucs, the Redskins are also coming off of a defeat, though not nearly as harsh or disheartening as their own.

Eli Manning passed for 161 yards and threw two touchdown passes to the lock the game down at 24-0 Giants. With a little help from his running back friends, the Manning-led offense managed to carry 40 times against the Bucs’ struggling defense. Giants coach Tom Coughlin is impressed with his teams’ turn about last Sunday, stating that many of the things they had struggled with had been addressed and were now ticking more smoothly on the field of play.

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The final ticks in this game were absolutely thrilling, as once again Brett Favre proved that he is one of the most valuable football players under pressure that the sport has ever seen. It’s almost as if something clicks in him when his team is down by double digits, and you can see him churning into action right before your very eyes. Some might call it a hero complex, but by anyone’s standards, Favre has the market cornered on dramatic, victorious finishes.

Favre’s final play found Greg Lewis at the very back tip of the end zone, touching two toes in for a 31 yard touchdown pass at the final breathe of the game. The final score was 27-24 Vikings, making this final stand one of the most meaningful thus far this season. This game started off with two teams who had yet to be defeated, adding even more of a thrill to the overall importance of this victory.

Favre completed 24 of 46 passes for a total of 301 yards on the day. Chester Taylor caught 7 of those passes for a total of 70 yards, while San Diego had quite a bit of action and success on their end of the football. Shaun Hill was good for 15 of 25 completed passes for 195 yards on the day, but also tossed an interception. Vernon Davis grabbed 7 passes for San Diego for a total of 96 yards on the day.

The running game for Favre’s Vikings was also productive, with Adrian Peterson gaining 19 carries for 85 yards on the ground. What a game. For up to date information, statistics, news, and for secure online purchase of tickets for all of your favorite shows and events, please visit StubPass.com often.

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