Don't want to step on any toes by starting the week 17 thread, but I just got 2 tickets for the Pats-Giants game!!! Normally I have no interest in going to a game at Giants Stadium in the last week of December but being able to go to this game is a whole different story! I hear some Giants season ticket holders are selling their tickets for over $1500 so to score these for nothing is pretty great.

And then of course there are the Vikings slim plauoff chances. When Peterson got hurt I was kind of torn between hoping they'd shut him down and try for a better draft pick and hoping they'd find a way to right the ship and make a playoff push. But to come so close and end up not making it will really suck. They could end up with the worst possible draft position without making the postseason. I just can't see the Redskins losing to Dallas.

So you're not going to sell the tickets then, George?

I've decided that whatever happens on the NFL Network doesn't actually count since most people can't get it. So the Patriots actually won't be 16-0. Sorry!

Well I got them for free from one of my vendors so I can't justify selling them despite the fact that I could make a good bit of money!

Oh and Joe it looks like you will have to accept it happening. The game will be broadcast on network TV after all!

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3169075

Those bastards! (The networks, not your vendor.)

Hey Guys, Nice to see you are still around! Hey George don't give up on those VIKING'S!!! We will survive!

Love this from the Giants' Osi Umenyiora, when asked about his team's playoff chances: "We match up well with anybody, and we have a strong defense and a strong running game."

(But our quarterback sucks!!)

George, can ya run onto the field and tell Mike Vrabel that he is the hottest piece o' A on the Pats?

Most of the games this weekend are meaningless, at least as far as getting into the playoffs are concerned. San Diego and Pittsburgh may flip-flop for 3rd and 4th in the AFC. Other than that, all the teams are locked in.

The one game that really matters in the AFC is Titans-Colts. Even the Cleveland game isn't that important because if the Titans lose Sunday night, the Browns are in no matter what.

In the NFC, if Washington beats Dallas they're in. If not, it opens the door for Minnesota if the Vikings can win at Denver. If the Saints beat the Bears in a 1pm ET game they can sit and watch the other two games (4:15 starts) and hope both of them lose. If that happens there could even be a six-way tie at 8-8 for the final slot, if the Eagles, Lions and Cardinals all win, but those other 3 are already out of it based on tiebreakers. A 6-way tie seems fitting in the Parity Era, doesn't it?

Thank you Peyton Manning! Apparently he told his brother that "The Patriots are beatable," their defense is easy to read. Still disrespecting. Thank you Peyton!!!!!

Kenny C's FB is just pissed that his record is going to be broken tonight.

If you think the Super Bowl pre-game shows are long, apparently NFL Network started their pre-game coverage of tonight's game SIX HOURS before game time.

The game at the Linc tommorow is absolutely GI-NORMOUS!!!!

Absolutely! Draft positions are at stake!

By the way, what's the deal with your sig now? Don't you have any hope that the Bills might make it a close game?

Hmmm......

Buffalo 42, Temple 7 this season.

Sabres win home and home against Flyers this month.

This trend should continue, right?

Uh... it's the SAME show? Or at least the same "preview"? The networks don't get to put their own spin on it...? Oh, wait, the actual show is starting... So was that intro NFL Network produced?

GROAN. It's all NFL Network. I foolishly didn't get it... Of course, the NFL Network would force the networks to carry their broadcast. Genius - NFL Network will get mentioned 100 times, and Sears has to be licking its chops as well. Sigh.

Hmmm, the Pats are able to stop Brandon Jacobs, but haven't kept Burress in ...oh, waitaminute: short pass to Jacobs, for a TD.

Wow, this is actually a game...

And the Giants are choking it away. Way to go Lil' Manning.

Bryant Gumbel is such a tool.

Gumbel-bashing is tired and lame. He's stoned up much more than anyone could have ever imagined. Is he pimping his network hard, yeah, sure he is... But, seriously, Gumbel doesn't deserve half the criticism he gets.

As for the game, well, congrats to the Pats. An impressive performance tonight, and not just Brady and Moss, who were indeed incredible, but also Kevin Faulk, even Wes Welker, and others...

Good performance too from the Giants, I thought. Losing 35 to 38 wasn't what most people predicted. The Giants defense was still pressing - even got a sack - in the second half. A pretty good game, overall.

And I think Matt Light is really hot.

I'm not sure CBS and NBC were forced to carry it. Anything they would normally have shown tonight would have gotten a much smaller audience, so they're happy to show the game even without their own announcers. And since the NFL Network had the rights to the game, if it's shown over the regular airwaves (just like local over-the-air telecasts of ESPN games) it's going to be a simulcast. (Does anyone know what happened in that first Super Bowl that was carried on two networks? Was there just one broadcast team like tonight or did both networks have their own announcers?)

I just wonder -- was Fox offered the game? If so, did they decline to show it? I can understand ESPN not getting it because they're a cable outlet, thus a more direct competitor to NFL Network, plus ESPN had a bowl game to show. But why not Fox?

As for the game itself, the Giants looked good for 2 1/2 quarters. Then the Patriots turned up the pressure and Eli reverted to form. Again.

So it's up to one of the playoff teams to put an end to this nonsense. I can't root for Dungy's Colts, I'm sure the overrated Chargers will fold again, the Steelers don't seem to have it, and forget about whichever other team gets the final spot. So as of now Jacksonville is my team. Go Jaguars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes he does. His play by play calling is, IMHO, atrocious. He should stick to hosting a show and leave the play by play to others.

New England. Just when you think they are done, Kablam..they are up by 10. I think only Indy or maybe Jax on a good day has a chance of derailing them.

Oh. Well if that's what you mean, then call Gumbel a bad play-caller. Tool connotes something very different.

IIRC, NBC had primetime rights to be involved with the game, and CBS did cause the road team (NE) was from the AFC.

EDIT: from PFT

Randy Moss in the post-game press conference:

"We is all grown mans"

LOL

Emmitt musta gotten a hold of him.

One Jerry Rice record that is probably still safe: Most touchdown pass receptions in a season WITHOUT AN EGOTISTICAL DANCE IN THE ENDZONE".

If he stays healthy Marvin Harrison might surpass the lifetime record.

Well I am so glad I resisited the temptation to sell the tickets. Not only was it historical, it was also a great game, high quality throughout. Kudos to Tom Coughlin and the Giants for going all out to win that game. It was amazing to see the Patriots come back. They never looked stressed one iota.

I have to say the media really blew the whole Giants Fans Selling Their Tickets story way out of proportion. their were definitely more fans of the visiting team than usual, but some in the media were making it sound like it was going to be a virtual home game for the Patriots. It surely was not.

Pretty cool that the Patriots broke the season scoring mark on the same play that Brady and Moss tied the single season TD passes/receptions. And then for Moss to break the mark (albeit in more games than it took Jerry Rice) after dropping the previous ball was pretty cool.

And all this talk about what a steal Moss was leaves out what a steal Wes Welker was! The dude is amazing.

I agree! I just want to get a pair of his cleats, bronze them and hang them from my rearview mirror.

I kinda thought a Freaky Friday thing had happened and Peyton and Eli had switched bodies. Eli looked the best I have seen him. Too bad it wasn't enough.

Congrats to the Pats! A great run and well deserved kodos.

Andre Davis has returned 2 kickoffs for TD's for the Texans - one after Jacksonville had tied it up, and the other to start the 2nd half.

Look out! Chris Redman just helped Atlanta beat Seattle 44-41! Looks like Joey H.'s job is in jeopardy again!

If the trend of playoff teams losing to non-playoff teams holds (with the exception of Green Bay), the Redskins and Titans will be in.

Poor blueraider...didn't get his guaranteed rout. Poor me...no Kevin Kolb sighting at QB.

Well Congrats to Cyd and his Pats.

I can only hope the Giants play this well against TB.

I find these remarks offensive and racial.

Randy Moss is an incredible athlete and is part of an institution that brought the NFL to new heights. It's really a pity that all some folks can do is make slurs that are inappropriate to what has just been achieved.

Can't we find something to criticize about his performance on the field? His talents? His football?

Well, that was interesting. The Colts didn't bother to call their final timeout to get the ball back with a couple of seconds left to try for a miracle, thus keeping the Browns out of the playoffs.

This wasn't exactly a dramatic day. Dallas was pitiful even with Romo and other starters in the game. Give Washington credit. After the death of Sean Taylor followed by that horrible loss to Buffalo, I didn't think they could come back. Then again, it's the NFC.

I don't find the remarks racial at all because I could easily say THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES got a hold of him. I'm sure we all remember the infamous "CHILDRENS DO LEARN" comment from our Commander In Chief earlier this year. Both could use some grammar lessons but I'd expect to hear that more from an NFL player than the damn President of the United States.

As for today's games...I was browsing around on the ESPN board and hearing a bunch of Browns fans WHINE ad nauseum about Dungy not playing Manning and the starters more. Ummmm...why do people whine about this every year as if this is the first time an NFL team does this. Indianapolis did not have a playoff spot on the line. They had the #2 seed and first round bye locked up. Why are they going to risk injuring their starters? Perhaps if the Browns had oh I don't know....beaten the Bengals last week or won a few of those games in which they were in position earlier this season, they wouldn't have needed Tennessee to lose in order to BACKDOOR their way into the playoffs. That whining kills me every year! SAVE IT!!

Last comment will be on my Philadelphia Eagles. I was listening to a commentator today make a good point that often there is not much that separates a 12-4 team from an 8-8 team. Yeah I know shoulda, woulda, coulda but I think the Eagles finished the year on a good note. They finished at .500, ended with a 3 game losing streak, and I think people need to shut it up, zip it, and throw it away on the getting rid of McNabb right now. Who the hell else are they going to get? If Philadelphia fans think AJ Feeley or Kolb is going to be better than McNabb they are sorely mistaken. I go back to the beginning of the season with that Green Bay game, a game that the Eagles should have won (lost by 3). Then there was allowing the Bears to march down the field with about a minute left in week 7 to lose by 3. Then there was the almost win over the Patriots (another loss by 3 with a costly late interception by Feeley in week 12), a 4 point loss with Seattle that was lost with a costly interception by Feeley when they were in the redzone late in the game in week 13, and a 3 point loss to the Giants in week 14. Again...shoulda, woulda, coulda. When you are inconsistent you can't win these games. And its not all Donovan. But, those five games (Green Bay, Chicago, New England, Seattle, and the Giants) were all games in which the Eagles were in winning positions. Can't let that many close games slip and expect to be in the playoffs. So a season that could've been 13-3 ends up being 8-8 with no playoffs. Other teams were in similar positions as well but thats the way the game goes. Bottom line is that you have to close games out Philly. But, I feel good about the off season. A few tweaks and Donovan's knee being fully recovered next year could mean good things. NFL is very unpredicable though. Who would've thought 2006 13-3 Baltimore would've gone 5-11 this year and that Cincinnati, the Saints, and Bears would all crumble?

The Eagles need more than tweaks. They still need playmakers overall. No matter how much they say they don't, they need at least one more wide receiver -- one with the speed and ability to be a deep threat to open things up underneath. They need at least one tight end (assuming LJ Smith signs elsewhere). The offensive line wasn't as good as in prior years -- are the old guys (Runyan, Thomas) fading and the young guys (Winston Justice) even capable? The jury is out. They're going to need some defensive linemen -- some of the young guys are working out, but surely Kearse, Howard, and one or two others are outta here. Between injuries and age, the secondary is becoming questionable. They need to improve overall depth and fix the special teams. They need a threat to return kicks. If Reno Mahe is back there next year I will vomit.

If they don't do all of that, they're doomed to mediocrity again. And if they don't make the offensive moves, they might as well trade McNabb. At this point I'd trade him only if a team offers an overwhelming deal.

Good points Joe...they do need to address all those areas that you mentioned but I still think they can have a decent season with just a few changes. Definitely need receivers who know how to break away from their damn defenders. The offensive line surely should be addressed. That Giants game made me vomit McNabb getting sacked all those times. And yes...Mahe can never break out for a decent kick return. My money says McNabb returns but I wouldn't be surprised if Chicago does offer something.

Maybe the Eagles, and the rest of the NFL should learn from success. What did the Pats do to build a better TEAM (emphasing that the word still has no "I" in it).

Belichick keeps a tight lid on the public utterances of players and, until Moss recently made himself valuable enough to start breaking that "code of conduct", Belichick had not only built a better team, he kept players' egos in line.

Perhaps the biggest threat to the Pats running the rack right now is not Moss' ineloquence so much as his egotism. Some of his comments before the Giants game made me think they might finally be losing that TEAM spirit.

We shall see.

They've had enough decent seasons. It's time they tried going all-out to win a Super Bowl. They've done that once -- 2004. Look where they ended up? In the Super Bowl.