The 11 Best Super Bowls of All Time…That Never Happened

Brett Favre's Last Throw As A Packer 2007 NFC Championship

We are less than a week out from Super Bowl XLVI, but we’ve technically already seen this game before, so what’s the fun in talking about it?

Instead, let’s talk about the best Super Bowls that never happened. [Read more...]

NFC North Report: Wild Card Playoff Edition

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Tonight, the Wild Card Playoff edition of the NFC North Report will take place, hosted as always by MSF’s fun, football-loving quartet of Amanda Lawson, Drew Lange, Chris Callaway, and Tyler Juranovich.

If you haven’t been listening to their weekly breakdown of all things Packers, Bears, Lions, and Vikings, you really should start.

Why not tonight?

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Where Will Free Agent Matt Flynn End Up In 2012?

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It was absolutely sick what Matt Flynn did to the Detroit Lions in the snow globe conditions at Lambeau Field Sunday. In fact, it was sick what both Flynn and Matthew Stafford did in snowy, windswept Lambeau Field.

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NFC North Report: Week 17 Edition

suh-rodgers detroit-green bay preview prediction point spread thanksgiving

Tonight, the Week 17 edition of the NFC North Report will take place, hosted as always by MSF’s fun, football-loving quartet of Amanda Lawson, Drew Lange, Chris Callaway, and Tyler Juranovich.

It’s a special Thursday night edition of the podcast, previewing an interesting pre-playoff matchup between the Lions and Packers, in addition to taking a look at the Bears-Vikings game this weekend. Both games within the division should equal some quality entertainment and debate on the podcast.

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Kurt’s Angle: Does Indianapolis still have ‘Luck’ on its side?

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With one final game remaining, the Indianapolis Colts still control their own destiny in the Andrew Luck Derby.

Problem is, this team is peaking at absolutely the wrong time.

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NFC North Report: Week 16 Edition

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Tonight, the Week 16 edition of the NFC North Report will take place, hosted as always by MSF’s fun, football-loving quartet of Amanda Lawson, Drew Lange, Chris Callaway, and Tyler Juranovich. If you haven’t been listening to their weekly breakdown of all things Packers, Bears, Lions, and Vikings, you really should start.

Why not tonight?

[Read more...]

Joe Webb Is NOT A Starting Quarterback

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Joe Webb is not a starting quarterback in the NFL. It is that simple.

Some people may disagree with that statement, especially those that watched him this past Sunday against the Lions or saw him lead the Vikings to an improbable Monday night win over the Philadelphia Eagles last year.

Joe Webb is a fantastic athlete. A former quarterback at UAB, Webb was originally drafted by the Vikings as a wide receiver. He jumps really high. He runs really fast.

But he is not a starting quarterback.

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NFL Suck For Luck Power Rankings Week 14: Rams Suck Edition

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Andrew Luck didn’t play this past weekend, as his Stanford Cardinal did not make the Pac-12 championship game. Oregon did. And so did UCLA, which really made the game less “championship game” and more “meaningless exhibition between a good team and a crappy team whose coach has already been fired.”

Anyway, there isn’t much to say about Luck for this week in looking back; but we can look forward.

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Wondering why the Denver-Minnesota game on Fox? Here is your answer

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Earlier today I broke down the Week 13 TV schedule for the NFL, but a most unusual occurrence completely went over my head: Denver, an AFC team, is playing on the road against Minnesota, an NFC team…on FOX.

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Fantasy Football Week 13 Waiver Wire Advice and Pickups

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With the fantasy playoffs just around the corner, every week is critical.

Unfortunately, at this point in the season there aren’t too many gems left out on the waiver wire with the exception of those who gain value because of injury.

Still, there are a handful of players out there who just might put you over the top based on their recent play, favorable matchups, or both.

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NFL Suck For Luck Power Rankings: Week 13

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Expected #1 draft pick Andrew Luck capped off a terrific regular season Saturday night by leading his Stanford Cardinal to a victory over the hated Notre Dame Fighting Irish. In the process, Luck went 20-30 for 233 yards and 4 TDs. He did toss one pick, but overall it was a solid, steady performance from the man who just may end up being Peyton Manning’s replacement in Indianapolis.

But today, the phrase “suck for Luck” has nothing to do with a certain NFL team losing game after game and positioning themselves for the #1 pick. Rather, it has to do with the Nike Pro Combat unis that Stanford wore Saturday night.

Which sucked.

stanford-nike-pro-combat-uniforms-andrew-luckPhoto credit: AP Photo/Paul Sakuma via ESPN.com

I’ve seen some bad version of the Nike Pro Combat unis (Georgia’s immediately come to mind), but these may the worst. Black helmets? Black numbers? For Stanford? I suppose the jersey itself isn’t bad, but nothing about it says Stanford. And, um, isn’t that what jerseys are supposed to do?

I have a solution.

We need to get this guy on the case:

1800-tequila-suck-for-luck

Seriously, can you imagine the indignation if this bro had seen that Stanford-Notre Dame game? He’d have downed the entire bottle of 1800 by halftime because of those uniforms.

Whatever happened to men, Michael Imperibroli? Nike. And it’s Pro Combat Uniforms. That’s what.

Now drink up while I break down the NFL’s top/bottom 10 in the race to draft Matt Barkley or Robert Griffin (if they go pro) since the race to draft Luck is pretty much done.

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NFL Suck For Luck Power Rankings: Week 13

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1. Indianapolis Colts (0-11)

Breaking news: the Colts lost again.

Here is their remaining schedule. You tell me where a win might come from: at New England, at Baltimore, vs Tennessee, vs Houston, at Jacksonville.

  • They sure as hell aren’t beating New England or Baltimore. In fact, they might lose by a combined 100 points.
  • I suppose they could beat Tennessee, but the Titans should still be alive in AFC South race then.
  • Houston at home is a possibility depending on their QB situation, and if they have the AFC South clinched, but I think the Texans could win just direct snapping it to Arian Foster.
  • Week 17 at Jacksonville is a possibility because any team quarterbacked by Blaine Gabbert could lose to any team quarterbacked by anyone else – even you, dear reader.

So, with nothing else really to say about this sorry sack of a Manning-less team, here is a picture of Curtis Painter doing one of the few things he does better than Peyton Manning: carrying laundry.

curtis-painter-sucksPhoto credit: USA Today

2. St. Louis Rams (2-9)

That’s it. I’m done with the Rams. And they still have to play San Francisco twice! If you own Steven Jackson in fantasy, trade him. Trade him now.

3. San Diego Chargers (4-7)

A bunch of the other craptastic teams won this weekend, so we’ll bump the sorry Chargers all the way up to #3. When you start out 4-1 then lose six straight games, each in excruciating fashion, you get rewards like this.

It’s safe to say that the Norv Turner Era will soon be ending in San Diego, and all 16 of their die-hard fans must be thrilled with that news.

In honor of the Chargers’ rapid ascent up these Suck For Luck Power Rankings, here is the most disturbing image of Philip Rivers on the first page of a Google Image search for his name:

philip-rivers-mouthface1-suck-for-luck-power-rankingsImage source: Pyromaniac

Ah, what the hell. Here’s another one:

philip-rivers-mouthface2-suck-for-luck-power-rankingsImage source: Pyromaniac

My apologies in advance for any nightmares you have tonight.

4. Carolina Panthers (3-8)

Let’s not carried away with excitement here. You beat Indianapolis, and you allowed them to score 19 points. And congrats on running all over them, but everyone does that.

5. Cleveland Browns (4-7)

The Browns jumped out to an early lead over the Bengals, only to give it away to the clear #1 football team in the state of Ohio (since Ohio State is down this year).

But hey, at least Peyton Hillis was back! Maybe now he can start to recapture the magic of 2010. Assuming, of course, that he doesn’t get anymore sore throats or have any more shotgun weddings.

6. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-7)

The Bucs have now lost five in a row, and they actually make the Colts looks suffocating against the run. Chris Johnson hasn’t been able to juke a brown paper sack this year, yet he racked up 190 yards against the Bucs on Sunday.

The only question for this team now, with the playoffs clearly out of the question, is does Raheem Morris make it to next year? If the Bucs want to have any hope of not squandering the talent they’ve accumulated, I say the answer is no. We’ll see.

7. Philadelphia Eagles (4-7)

Yes, I think the Vikings and Dolphins, among others, would beat the Eagles right now. That is how bad this team is playing. Their coaches are yelling at eachother on the sidelines, Desean Jackson isn’t blatantly short-arming catch attempts, and good players are getting injured one right after another.

Side note: when Andy Reid gets his walking papers at the end of the year, and it’s becoming likely that he will, some team looking for a head coach (hello Dolphins!) better snatch him up quickly. I’ll agree that perhaps it’s time for a parting of the ways in Philly. Sometimes that happens, even to good coaches. Sometimes change is needed. But it doesn’t mean Reid is no longer a good, perhaps even great, NFL coach. I don’t think he’d stay unemployed for long.

Now, apropos of absolutely nothing, here is a video of a hippo releasing a little pressure after a second helping of Thanksgiving dinner.

8. Minnesota Vikings (2-9)

Yes, the Vikings have now replaced the Rams as the team I irrationally support despite their record. But seriously, the Vikings have played decent football in hanging tough at Atlanta without Adrian Peterson and almost coming back to beat Oakland. Can you honestly tell me you don’t think Minnesota could beat the seven teams above them on this list?

9. Seattle Seahawks (4-7)

You lose at home to Rex Grossman and the Redskins, you make this list. It’s as simple as that.

10. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-8)

Frankly, I kind of forgot about the Jaguars. Had I remembered them, I probably would have placed them in the 4-6 range because Blaine Gabbert sucks so much. But out of deference to the great Maurice Jones-Drew, who continues to play hard and churn out tons of yards in losing efforts, I’m going to keep the Jags here.

Seriously though, watch Gabbert in the pocket anytime anyone gets near him. He freezes up and braces for contact instead of standing in there like a man and delivering a throw (which I obviously would do if I were a professional football player). I wonder what Michael Imperioli would have to say about that after a few shots of 1800 tequila.

Honorable mention: Kansas City Chiefs (4-7), Washington Redskins (4-7), Arizona Cardinals (4-7), Buffalo Bills (5-6).

Honestly, all four of those teams deserved mention. There is a pretty clear line between the top 18 teams in the NFL and the bottom 14. So congrats to everyone who made this list! You officially suck.

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NFL Suck For Luck Power Rankings Week 12: Stiffen For Griffin Edition

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For once, Andrew Luck is not the toast of the college quarterback world.

Combine Stanford’s loss to Oregon two weekend ago with Luck’s pedestrian numbers against Cal on Saturday (20-30, 257 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT in a 31-28 win), and then mix in superlative performances by Baylor’s Robert Griffin III and USC’s Matt Barkley this past Saturday, and Luck doesn’t seem luck such a clear-cut #1 prospect any more, now does he?

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Dear Little Crying Vikings Girl, It doesn’t get any better…

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Dear Little Crying Vikings Girl,

I know how you feel.

Every Vikings loss, especially to the Packers, makes me want to cry and wonder what went wrong in my life that I cheer for that team.

I wish I could tell you that it gets better as a Vikings fan, but it really doesn’t.

Don’t worry Little Crying Vikings Girl, we have all had our own “crying girl” moment, except most of us were fortunate enough to not have one of our parents film it and put it on the internet. But you’ll have plenty of time in your life to get your mom back. You’re a girl. You’ll think of something.

My own “crying girl” moment came back in 1998, but not for the reason most people think.

I didn’t actually cry after the Vikings lost in the NFC Championship to the Falcons. That afternoon I just sat in my chair staring at the screen, not moving or saying anything, while my dad and his friend laughed at me and told me to get used to it.

No, my “crying girl” moment was when the Vikings lost to the Buccaneers and ended their run at a perfect season.

1998 was my first year as a diehard Vikings fan and I watched every game and expected them to win them all. They actually did win all the games I watched that year, but I wasn’t able to watch the end of the Buccaneers game because my mom wouldn’t leave me home alone and made me come to town with her so my sister could go to her skating lesson. We listened to the game on the radio in the car, but it wasn’t the same.

I cried. The whole time.

The Vikings had lost, and it was my mom’s fault because she wouldn’t let me watch the end of the game. I could have done something! They wouldn’t have lost!

Little Crying Vikings Girl I leave you with this:

The Vikings are going to break your heart more times than any boy (or girl, or dog, or cat, or fish) ever will. It is an incomparable number. But don’t give up on them. No one like fans of teams that win all the time. Patriots and Packers and Cowboys fans are the worst. So whatever you do, definitely don’t be one of them.

No, keep cheering for the Vikings, and don’t give up. For all we know, you are our saving grace.

That’s right. You can’t give up on the Vikings, Little Crying Vikings Girl. You may be our only hope.

little-crying-vikings-girl

Yours in eternal pain and frustration,

Drew Lange
Crying Vikings Fan Since 1998

Packers-Vikings Preview: Point Spread, Prediction, and Analysis by Drew & Amanda

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As they did last time the Packers and Vikings played, Amanda Lawson and Drew Lange decided to do their game preview in the form of an entertaining, candid email exchange

Here it is.

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NFL Power Rankings Week 9: The Midseason Motown Edition – One Classic “Hitsville, U.S.A.” Track For All 32 Teams

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Week 8 is now in the books after Philip Rivers fumbled away a road win in Kansas City, which means we are right around the midway point of the 2011 season. Most teams have played 8 games, a few have played 7, and we can finally start to state with some level of certainty who is good, who is not, and who is too enigmatic to declare.

Without question, the story of the first half of the season (other than this) has been the ascent of the Detroit Lions.

They went 0-16 three years ago, then 2-14 in Jim Schwartz’s first year, then 6-10 last year; and now halfway through their 2011 slate Detroit, sitting at 6-2, is a bona fide contender in the NFC. And the Lions aren’t just an empty record either. They have the skill, attitude, reputation, and right now the health (knock on wood) to suggest that they aren’t going away.

So in honor of the Motor City Mufasas, and their roaring wreakers of wreckage Ndamukong Suh and Calvin Johnson, I give to you my Midseason NFL Power Rankings, with each team presented alongside a Motown classic that sums up the first half of its season.
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