The Road Virus heads inward

What was is no more. Tired from the journey, he sat by the side of the road and reflected on his travels. Much he had seen. Many he had encountered he would never see again. Except in his thoughts. Mingling with demons and ghosts in the haunted house of his mind. While sitting and thinking, the sky opened above him and began to pour rain. He chuckled to himself as he thought of the opening to the generic ghost story... "it was a dark and stormy night." His journey was not over, perhaps not even by half. Like Shang Tzung he absorbed the spirits of vanquished foes and they made him stronger. Well, maybe not vanquished, but left behind. And yet he still trudged ahead. Towards the spectre of his future.

There's no place like home

Seattle and Denver will cover. That is all.

MLK tribute

I have a dream that one day this nation will live out the true meaning of its creed: "Ain't nothing finer in the land than a drunk obnoxious Georgia fan." I have a dream that one day on the downtown of Athens the sons and daughters of Georgia will exchange body shots and drunken chants and will pass out together in their beds. I have a dream that in the state of Florida, a barren land, reeking in the stench of the gayturds, will become a state of sorrow where tears plummet from mulleted heads. I have a dream that my children will one day live in a nation where they can wear their red and black and can call themselves national champions. I have a dream today.

Round Two Predictions

Washington at Seattle: Washington will keep it close early but they will be worn down by the powerful running game and efficient passing of Seattle. Brunell isn't good enough nor does he have the weapons to come back. Seattle wins going away. Prediction: Seattle 34 Washington 13

New England at Denver: New England's defense has played much better towards the end of the year. Of course, their schedule was very easy down the stretch as well. Their secondary is pathetic, and Denver's running game is relentless. Plummer will silence alot of his critics by playing a more efficient game than Brady who will throw 2-3 interceptions. Prediction: Denver 27 New England 21

Carolina at Chicago: I have wavered on this game. At first I was backing Carolina because of their impressive performance last week, their playoff experience, and their proficiency playing on the road. After further thought though, I think Grossman will have a career game (which isn't saying that much), and Carolina will follow up a great performance with a terrible one as they have all year. Prediction: Chicago 24 Carolina 10

Pitt at Indy: The Steelers were blown out by the Colts in the regular season. This game will be closer, but I still see the Colts prevailing at the end (but not covering). Prediction: Colts 34 Steelers 26

Playoff predictions

Later I will dissect my hits and misses for the season, but for today, its time for a quick synopsis of how I feel the playoffs will shake out.

Washington at Tampa Bay: Tampa starts Chris Simms. Washington starts Mark Brunell. Brunell has playoff experience. Simms does not. Washington will bring some funky blitz schemes at Simms and Simms' 2-3 turnovers will be the difference. Washington wins outright behind Portis' 125-150 yard game. Prediction: Washington 24 Tampa Bay 17

Carolina at New York: This is a tough game to call. I significantly underestimated Tiki Barber this season and the Giants have had a good season. Carolina has had an up and down season with some games where they appeared to be Super Bowl contenders and others where they played like shit. The forecast is for a rainy day in New York, and for some reason, I see Eli's inexperience and inaccuracy catching up with him. Oh yeah, the New York secondary sucks and Steve Smith had played like an animal all season. Prediction: Carolina 27 New York 21

Steelers at Bengals: This is the most exciting game in my opinion. The Bengals have a high-powered offense but have some defensive issues although they did lead the league in forced turnovers. The Steelers are going to try to pound the ball against the Bengals and mix it up with some passes to Hines Ward. For some reason, I just think the Steelers will take this one. Prediction: Steelers 34 Bengals 31

Jaguars at Patriots: The Jaguars are probably the most disrespected 11-5 team of all time. No one is giving them a chance to beat the Patriots in frosty New England. I don't either. Prediction: Patriots 27 Jaguars 10