It's The Most Wonderful Time of The Year

If there was one weekend this year where you could order in, drink beer, and kick back in your cozy living room and enjoy sports all day all weekend, this is the weekend to do it. Locally, the Canucks host the Flames in one of many Hockey Day in Canada events around our Great Country. First round of NFL playoffs begin. Let's roll...

Couch Potato Weekend


It's time to kickoff the "official" season, 4 months in the waiting from when the NFL season began. On the eve of the Wildcard Weekend, I'll preview the four great matchups that await us, here are my picks.

Washington at Tampa Bay (-2.5)

Take Washington in this one. The Redskins are red hot winning 5 straight heading into the playoffs with wins over the Cowboys and Giants. Reports indicate that Redskins QB Mark Brunell will start, regardless, I think Patrick Ramsey is just as good. RB Clinton Portis has been running circles around his opponents especially recently and WR Sanata Moss is the X-factor. The only thing going against the Redskins is that they did lose to the Bucs 36-35 in Week 10.

Jacksonville at New England (-7.5)

I think the Patriots win this game but I wouldn't take the points here. Playing at home will be a big advantage for the Patriots. Jacksonville beat bad teams the last 10 weeks to get into the playoffs. In contrast, the Patriots have been rolling lately and look every bit the team that won the Super Bowl last year. Patriots QB Tom Brady is playing his best football of his career. Jags QB Byron Leftwitch is reportedly going to start after missing 6+ starts, will be a tough place to get back on the field. Bottom line, the Patriots simply have too much Playoff experience to let this one slip by.

Carolina at New York (-2.5)

Pick the Panthers to win outright in this one. The Panthers offense, highly under-rated with QB Jake Delhomme and WR Steve Smith leading a lethal passing game. Smith is the best wideout in the League, bar none. And the Giants don't have anyone to cover him. If the Panthers go up big early, than the Giants will have to abandon their best weapon in RB Tiki Barber and go to the air. Other big factor here is the playoff experience by this Panther group. Remember, the Panthers barely missed last year's playoffs and went to the Super Bowl a year prior. The Giants are rising up the NFL ranks, but this simply isn't their year.

Pittsburgh (-3) at Cincinnati

Take the Steelers and the points. The playoff experience differential between these 2 teams alone give the Steelers a 1 TD edge. The Steelers defense hasn't been as good as year's past but the Bengals defense has been awful. In a big playoff game like this, the Bengals do not have the defense to stop a Ben Roethlisberger. The year that the Bengals have had has been impressive, but Marvin Lewis needs to add a defense to this team to make them a contender. Steelers will win this one in a rout.

Hockey Day in Vancouver

The Canucks host the Flames tomorrow night in Hockey Day in Canada festivities that CBC will be showing across the country. Fresh off a road-trip saving win in Chicago on Thu, the Canucks look to start a new streak, a winning one this time around. If you look at the matchup, the Canucks do not matchup well. The Flames work you hard, typical Sutter style hockey. The Canucks (especially lately) are the anti-thesis of hustle. And of course the X-factor is Miikka Kiprusoff. Coming off another impressive shutout win tonight vs the Leafs, the Flames have the gamebreaker that the Canucks cannot match. I say the Flames win this one 2-1. On the Hockey Day in Canada concept, I think it's fantastic. A way for us to feature and showcase our passion for Hockey from coast to coast. Hockey is truly a Canadian game, a game that truly defines us as Canadians.

Marcus Vick, "Steps" His Way to NFL

Michael's baby brother, now the former QB for Virginia Tech, declares his eligibility for the NFL Draft in April. This after Virginia Tech University President Charles Steger dismissed the pivot for "numerous legal transgressions and his unsportsmanlike conduct in the Toyota Gator Bowl". The "unsportsmanlike conduct" that Steger was referring to happened when Vick stepped on the leg of a Louisville Cardinal lineman after the play was over. I can't believe the nerve of this kid. I hope that teams pass on him through the first round, gets drafted in the second round, gets on a team, but has a lineman sit on him for a whole day. Take that you little punk!!!

What's on TV
NFL, Washington vs Tampa Bay, 1:30pm PST on ABC
NFL, Jacksonville vs New England, 5:00pm PST on ABC
NHL, Ottawa vs Montreal, 11:00am PST on CBC
NHL, Toronto vs Edmonton, 4:00pm PST on CBC
NHL, Calgary vs Vancouver, 7:00pm PST on CBC

Picks of the Day
Memphis Grizzlies -2 over Chicago Bulls
Colorado Avalanche -1.5 (-130) over Columbus Blue Jackets
Record YTD (9-13, -573)