Week 17 quickhits

Week 17 is complete and now we are onto the playoffs. The NFL season always seems to fly. We are now down to 12 teams as 20 go home and prepare for the offseason. Lets look at the week 17 games and then we will talk about the playoffs and offseason for the 20 teams that are home.

-The Bills beat the Colts in a snowstorm in Buffalo. The Bills played a good game against the Colts back ups. Not much to say in this one. We will see the Colts in a few weeks and we will see if sitting the last two weeks will payoff for them.

-The Panthers beat the Saints. Many teams in the NFC are happy not to see the Panthers in the playoffs. The Panthers have played well the last few weeks running the ball and Matt Moore looks like he may be a decent starter next year. The Saints did not play Brees or Sharper so not much to say about them but we will see if the three game losing streak will affect them in the playoffs.

-The Browns may have saved Eric Mangini’s job. The team played great down the stretch and played spoiler for the Jaguars. The Jags made a late run but fell short. Kind of like the season was for them. I have mentioned before to watch the Jack Del Rio situation in Jacksonville. He is a good coach but has never gotten over the hurdle. It would be interesting to see with the financial situation in Jacksonville if they will fire him. Also do not be surprised to start hearing about the Jaguars looking to move to San Antonio or Los Angeles.

-The Cowboys proved that their December/January woes are behind them. They played a great offensive and defensive game and shut down the home run hitting Eagles. I expect the Eagles to play better in the rematch this weekend.
-The Bears beat the Lions in a closer game than the score shows. Jay Cutler played very well (what the Bears thought they were getting). Both teams close out the season with many questions this offseason. Do the Bears bring Lovie back? Does Ron Turner (offensive coordinator return)? For the Lions where else do they go in their rebuilding? The first year was a success now they need to build off of it.

-In a wild and crazy game the Texans beat the Patriots. The Texans needed help to get into the playoffs but did not get it. Gary Kubiak does keep his job and the Texans extended Matt Schaub through 2013. The Texans are a good team looking to get over the hurdle. If they do not next year Kubiak will be on the unemployment line. The offense is not the problem with this team. The Texans need to focus on the defense this offseason. As for the Patriots they go into the playoffs banged up. The broken finger and ribs that Brady may have and you add in the big loss of Wes Welker. Welker is a huge loss for the Patriots and it is such a shame to see a great player who gives it his all to get injured. I hope him a speedy recovery. The Patriots will miss Welker but Julian Edelman will fill in nicely.

-In a battle of survival the Steelers help on to beat the Dolphins. The Steelers needed help after their win and they did not get it. They played well but the five game losing streak in the middle of the year killed the Steelers. I expect the Steelers to get some help along the offensive line and other areas and be ready to make another Super Bowl run next year. As for the Dolphins giving up big leads caught up with them the past two weeks. They have found a qb of the future with Henne. I hope he recovers from his eye injury and Pat White recovers from his concussion. It was a scary hit that White took but many reports said he will be fine which was great to hear.

-The Vikings got a huge win and help from the Cowboys to clinch the number two seed. The Giants got blown out for a second week in a row. The Giants will look to improve the defense in the offseason and it has already happened with the firing of defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan. Tom Coughlin better correct the defensive situation or he too maybe looking for a job. People are questioning if the players have given up on Coughlin. It will be interesting to see what happens with the Giants.

-The Falcons closed out its first back to back winning seasons in 43 years. They have built a foundation and have a qb of the future. If they can get some help defensively I believe they may be looking at three winning seasons in a row. As for the Buccaneers. We will see this week what happens with Raheem Morris. This team has played better the last few weeks and Morris seemed to get better as the year went on. Bill Cowher’s name has been mentioned with the Bucs so it could get interesting. Either way Josh Freeman showed flashes this year but this team needs help everywhere.

-The 9ers closed out the season with a nice win against the Rams. It was close for three quarters before the 9ers took advantage. The 9ers had a good year and are building a foundation with Mike Singletary. I expect them to look to secure the qb situation this offseason. As for the Rams the rebuilding continues. This team needs a lot. With the number one pick Ndamukong Suh should be the pick. Building the lines and finding a qb should be this teams goals.

-The Packers crushed the Cardinals in a game Kurt Warner only played a quarter. I do not look too much into this game. The only concern I do take from this are the injuries to Charles Woodson and Anquan Boldin. The rematch should be a good one on Saturday with a slight edge to the Packers because of the way they have played the last few weeks.

-The Ravens beat the Raiders in a game Baltimore needed to clinch a playoff spot. The offense scored enough and the defense clamped the Raiders when Jamarcus Russell came in. Had Charlie Frye been able to finish this game the Raiders might have had a chance. It will be interesting to see what the Raiders do this offseason. John Madden has told Al Davis to hire a GM. If that happens look for them to hire a new Head Coach too. Also the team needs to make a decision on Russell and the qb for next year.

-The Chiefs beat the Broncos in a game the Broncos should have had. The Chiefs played well down the stretch and have a franchise qb and rb. The offensive line need helps as well as the wr position. The defense has not played well and needs players. If the rumors are true of the of Romeo Crennell as defensive coordinator it will help this team improve. As for the Broncos McDaniels proved he can coach in this league and has shown he can control his players. It will be interesting to see what happens with the Brandon Marshall situation as well as what they do with Kyle Orton.

-The Redskins played tough against the Chargers who rested their starters. The Chargers are playing well and are a favorite for the Super Bowl. The Redskins have already fired Jim Zorn and head into the offseason with questions at qb and rb. It will be interesting to see what this team does. Does Shannahan come and what does he do?

-The Titans got Chris Johnson to 2,000 yards and they beat the Seahawks. The Titans played great down the stretch and is one of those teams many are happy not to see in the playoffs. They will look for help at the receiver position and depth on the defense. As for the Seahawks it is time to rebuild. Time to find a qb, rb, and help everywhere else. The first question going into the offseason for them do you keep Jim Mora?

-Now onto the shocker of the day/evening. Many Jet fans expected the Same Ol Jets to show up and find a way to lose the win and in situation they found themselves in. In frigid temperatures the Jets not only beat the Bengals the Bengals did nothing on offense. They had a total of 72 yards. Now you add in Cedric Benson did not play and the Bengals had a vanilla offense knowing they would play the Jets in Wildcard Weekend. As for the Jets they ran the ball all over the Bengals and Marc Sanchez was efficient. The defense was swarming to the ball and they never took the foot off the pedal. I expect a much closer game this Saturday.