Rajon the Great

Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo's game is spectacular to watch.  When you hear people talk about players that you really need to see play in order to appreciate their abilities, they are talking about players like Rondo.  Whether he's making one of his dazzling passes or making defenders look foolish on his drives to the hoop, every game he seems to have at least one moment that will leave your jaw hanging.

His recent eye popping triple-double (12 point, 10 rebounds, 22 assists), against the team with the NBA's best record no less, is just another example of his all around dominance.  He carved up the Spurs defense from the start, tallying 8 of his assists in the first quarter alone.  When the team needed him to score in the final minutes of a close game, Rondo fearlessly drained a couple of mid-range jumpers that defenders dared him to shoot.  His team leading 10 rebounds were capped off by the one he swooped in to grab after Manu Ginobili's shot was blocked, sealing the narrow victory for the Celtics.  He also added 6 steals, making his impact felt on both ends of the court.  This was Rondo's second triple-double of the season, his first being the equally impressive 10 point, 10 rebound, 24 assist gem against the Knicks.  His ability to fill up the box score in a variety of ways shows his incredible all around game and value to the team.

While Rondo is capable of contributing in many aspects of the game, the one that stands out the most is his assists.  He currently leads the league by a comfortable margin at 14 assists per game (his next closest competitor is Steve Nash at 10.5 per game).  If he can sustain his current pace he could challenge John Stockton's NBA record 14.5 assist per game set back in the 1989-90 season.  Given some of the games we've already seen from him this year, Scott Skiles record of 30 assists in one game may not be out of reach either.

Give some credit to his teammates.  After all, you can't record an assist unless your teammate makes the shot.  Luckily for Rondo, his teammates do that quite well.  The Celtics rank just outside the top 10 in offensive efficiency, but also rank first in the league in Field Goal Percentage and True Shooting Percentage.  They are having a near historical season in terms of 2 point field goal percentage.  Some of this can be attributed to a supporting cast of veterans that have always shot for high percentages (the addition of Shaq this season is a big help there since he never shoots more than a few feet away from the basket), but a lot of it has to do with Rondo creating on offense and setting his teammates up for easy looks.

The biggest knock against Rondo in his career has been his shooting.  His free throw shooting in particular has been atrocious.  For his career he's only hit 62% of his shots from the charity stripe.  This season he's been a disaster with only 41%.  That's a lot worse than Shaq, and easily the worst in the league for point guards.  The impact is lessened due to the fact that he averages less than 2 attempts per game, but if he had more confidence in his free throw shooting then he'd be more inclined to drive to the basket and draw contact for a foul.  Often times he won't do that because he doesn't want to get fouled.  He's capable of making the shot, so his issues are mostly mental.  He'll have to overcome them in order to take his game to another level.

Some signs of improved shooting have already been seen this season in his mid-range Field Goal Percentage.  Defenders have often backed off of Rondo to prevent him from driving to the basket and help take away passing lanes because he's not considered a threat from the perimeter.  This season he's starting to make them pay by increasing his Field Goal Percentage on shots from the 16-23 foot range.  He's shooting over 44% from that range this season, up from only 33 percent last season.  His teammates and coaches have seen him hit those shots in practice for a while now, but he's starting to transfer that confidence into game situations.  Rondo may never be known as a deadly marksman, but if he can continue to build on his improving range with more consistency then the expansion of his arsenal will make him nearly unstoppable.

Rondo shows many comparisons to a young Jason Kidd.  In his prime, Kidd was a nightly threat for a triple-double, much like Rondo.  They both rebound the ball extremely well for a point guard and can score just enough to compliment their lofty assist totals.  Early in his career, Kidd piled up assists in bunches, but lacked the shooting touch to make him a consistent scorer.  As he got older he eventually developed an outside shot, to where he has now become a threat from three point range.  If Rondo's career follows a similar path then he may eventually see similar improvement with this shot.  Perhaps he won't develop into a three point shooter, but a consistent mid-range shot is all he needs.

So where does Rondo fit in alongside the other elite point guards in the game?  As we've already covered, his comfortable lead in the assists category puts him near the top as far as distributors go.  He's also a very tough defender, trailing only Chris Paul for the league lead in steals.  However, he doesn't score as much as some of the other top players at the position.  Chris Paul has to be considered at the top of the list.  He leads all players in the league in Player Efficiency Rating with a PER of 27.09, with Steve Nash (24.0) and Deron Williams trailing not far behind (23.63).  Rondo is hurt in many of the advanced metric statistics due to his poor outside and free throw shooting as well as his usage rate, which is lower than other elite point guards.  It doesn't help that the Celtics play at one of the league's slowest pace and take the least amount of shots as any team in the league, in part due to a high number of turnovers and a lack of offensive rebounds (the Celtics gameplan is to emphasize getting back on defense to prevent transition baskets rather than crash the boards, limiting offensive rebound opportunities).  In a more up-tempo system Rondo's stats might be off the charts, particularly if he continues to improve his shooting.  This has to be accounted for when comparing him to other players in other systems.

Rondo's shooting woes are what keep him outside of the top tier of point guards behind Paul and Williams.  Then there are the older veterans like Nash and Kidd that continue to defy the odds of aging by playing at a high level, but are certain to decline in the next couple of years.  The NBA is flush with an embarrassment of riches at the point guard position.  Rondo fits at the top of the list of the next generation of up and coming elite point guards, which also includes stars like Derrick Rose, Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook, Tony Parker and John Wall.  The NBA may have more depth at the position then we've ever seen before.

Rondo's game is different than that of many of the other top players at the position, but that doesn't make it less effective.  It's hard to compare his role with the team with other players, considering most other point guards aren't playing with 4 future Hall of Famers around them.  In the not too distant future the era of the Big Three in Boston will come to an end and the torch will officially be passed on to Rondo.  We've already seen signs of this transition already happening, but once the old veterans retire to their rocking chairs the team will be re-built around Rondo.  It will become his team.  By then he'll be ready to take that next step in his career to join the top of the list of elite point guards in the league.  Rajon is great, and his future looks great too.

NFL Week 17 Review

It's the last week of the regular season, meaning many of the games on this week's slate are irrelevant.  A few teams had already locked in their playoff spots, while a good chunk of teams were already eliminated.  How excited could you get about an Arizona/San Francisco game knowing neither team has a shot at the playoffs?  Those teams aren't that interesting even if they did have a shot.

On the bright side, it's refreshing that there were some teams with something left to play for this week.  In several recent seasons we've had teams lock up the top seeds with several weeks to play, so we're fortunate not to be in that position this year.

Here's some things that I noticed this week, at least from games that actually mattered.

• The Patriots, having already clinched the AFC's top seed, rested some key starters but still managed to blow out the Dolphins.  Brady played a bit longer than any paranoid Pats fan would have liked, but given the off week before their first playoff game the team felt he needed some time in order to stay in rhythm.
• Ben Jarvis Green-Ellis went over the 1,000 yard mark for the season.  He's the first Patriot RB to reach that mark since Corey Dillon in 2004.
• The Patriots set an NFL record with just 10 team turnovers for the season.
• They had one this week, a fumble by Danny Woodhead.  He can be forgiven considering he left the game after the play with a head injury.  You can't scold a guy for dropping the ball if he got a concussion.  Hopefully he'll be back in time for the playoffs.
• The Falcons wrapped up the top seed in the NFC with an easy win against Carolina.
• John Fox will mercifully be let go as coach of the Panthers.  He's a good coach that should catch on with another team with a better chance of getting back to the playoffs in the not too distant future.  Carolina looks nowhere close, but at least they will get the numbe 1 pick in the draft.
• The Steelers are another team that clinched a first round bye with a convincing win against a bad team.  Apparently these teams wanted to send a message as they enter the playoffs.  Either that or they wanted to score plenty of points this week to make up for not scoring any next week when they won't have to play.
• The Brows fired coach Eric Mangini after the game.  Given the bad blood between him and the Pats... I can't feel sorry for him, but it's worth pointing out that 5 wins might be overachieving for that team.
• Brett Favre sat out again, in what will likely hopefully be the last game of his legendary career.  His absence the last three weeks adds to speculation that he was actually suspended during that time as punishment for the Jenn Sterger controversy.  He just had to pay a $50K "fine" for "not cooperating" to keep it a secret by masking it as an injury instead.
• The Chiefs blew a chance to get the #3 seed by failing to show up for their game against Oakland.  The Raiders pass rush had Matt Cassel off his game, sacking him 5 times.  Not a good way to head into the playoffs.  Hard to see them making it out of the first round, despite playing at home.
• Oakland finishes the season at 8-8, ruining my dream of the Patriots getting a top 10 draft pick from them.  Despite the mediocre finish, the Raiders did somehow manage to sweep the division, finishing 6-0 against other AFC West teams.
• The Bucs beat the Saints in a game that could have been meaningful, but wasn't.  Huh?  Well, had the Saints won they would have had a chance at the division, but since Atlanta ended up winning their game that took away that chance.  A Bucs victory kept them in contention for a Wild Card spot, but since the Packers won their game they got the spot instead.
• The Jets rested most of their starters in a meaningless game, but still blew out the Bills, who hoped to remain close to the top of the draft order.
• Since the Steelers won their game, the Ravens win was irrelevant.  Just like the team they beat... the Bengals.
• A Chargers win didn't get them in the playoffs, but it did keep them ahead of Oakland for 2nd place in the division.  So, umm... that's something, right?
• San Diego finishes the season ranked first in the league in total offense and total defense, but somehow manages to miss the playoffs.
• The Packers earned a Wild Card spot with a win in Chicago.  The game didn't matter for the Bears, but they still played tough by limiting the Packers to only 10 points (only 3 points until the 4th quarter).
• The Colts won the AFC South and moved up to the 3 seed by beating the Titans.  Not bad for a team that looked like they could miss the playoffs a few weeks ago.
• The Colts are ranked 25th in the league in rush defense.  Chris Johnson led the league in rushing last year.  So of course he goes for a miserable 39 yards on 20 carries against them. 
• Tennessee finishes in last place in the NFC South, but has a +17 in point differential.
• The Eagles were stuck with the 3 seed in the NFC, so they had no incentive in this game.  They rested Michael Vick, giving Kevin Kolb the chance to further diminish his trade value with another poor outing (162 yards, 1 TD, 3 Ints) in the loss to the Cowboys.
• The Jags playoff hopes slipped away with the Colts victory anyway, but it didn't help that they were crushed in a must win game against the Texans.  Granted they were without their starting QB and star RB, but it's a tough ending for a team that was leading their division two weeks ago.
• The Seahawks won a "win and get in" game against the Rams to steal the NFC West.  That's right, a 7-9 team not only will make the playoffs, but will get to host an opening round game.  I'm going to go throw up now.
• Seattle had a -97 point differential, 5th worst in the NFL.
• Only one of Seattle's wins this year came against a playoff team (Chicago).
• The playoff seedings are now set:
• AFC:
• Patriots
• Steelers
• Colts
• Chiefs
• Ravens
• Jets
• NFC
• Falcons
• Bears
• Eagles
• Seahawks
• Saints
• Packers
• The official NFL awards voting hasn't been conducted yet, but here are my opinions for this season's awards races.
• MVP: Tom Brady (that's not a homer pick, anyone that doesn't pick Brady is crazy)
• Offensive Player of the Year:  Arian Foster
• Defensive Player of the Year: Clay Matthews
• Offensive Rookie of the Year: Sam Bradford
• Defensive Rookie of the Year: Ndamukong Suh (apologies to Devin McCourty)
• Comeback Player of the Year: Michael Vick (coming back from prision is impressive enough, but a former star being stuck behind McNabb and Kolb on the depth chart, only to climb his way back to the top... that's even  more impressive). 
• Coach of the Year: Bill Belichick
• League Leaders:
• QB Rating: Tom Brady (111.0)
• Passing Yards: Philip Rivers (4710)
• Passing TDs: Tom Brady (36)
• Intereceptions (most): Eli Manning (25)
• Rushing Yards: Arian Foster (1616)
• Rushing TDs: Arian Foster (16)
• Receiving Yards: Brandon Lloyd (1448)
• Receiving TDs: Dwayne Bowe (15)
• Tackles: Jerod Mayo (175)
• Sacks: DeMarcus Ware (15.5)
• Interceptions: Ed Reed (8)
• Forced Fumbles: Osi Umenyiora (10)
• Biggest breakout seasons:
• Michael Vick, Arian Foster, Payton Hillis, Brandon Lloyd
• Biggest busts of the season (non-injury related):
• Donovan McNabb, Albert Haynsworth, Randy Moss, Brett Favre
• It's been an exciting NFL season, but for some teams it's time to pack up and head home.  For the rest of us, it's time for the playoffs!

2010: A Boston Sports Year Review

It's been another exciting year in sports, proving there is never a dull moment in Boston.  As the 2010 year comes to a close, let's look back at the best and worst moments for Boston sports teams in the calender year.

January

• The Bruins open the year by playing an outdoor game at Fenway Park, defeating Philadelphia 2-1 in overtime.  It helps get fans excited about hockey again.  Ok, so some of the people in the crowd showed up thinking the Red Sox were playing, but it was still a packed house nonetheless.
• Tom Brady completes a successful return from knee surgery to lead the Patriots back to the playoffs, only to be blown out on their own home field in the first round against the Ravens.  A playoff loss at home once seemed unfathomable for this team.  The devastating loss was the first of many factors that led to massive changes the following season.
• After starting the season on a spectacular 23-5 streak culminating with a statement win against Orlando on Christmas Day, the Celtics got off to a rough start to the new year.  Paul Pierce entered the month banged up, and Kevin Garnett hyper-extended his surgically repaired knee, costing him 10 games.  The injuries kept piling up and the Celtics hobbled to a 27-27 record in their remaining games, falling to 4th in the Eastern Conference.

February

• Fans in New England don't get to see their wishes come true of the Patriots playing in the Super Bowl, but get to see the next best thing - watching Payton Manning lose.  The Saints surprising season ends with the franchise's first Super Bowl victory.

March

• Spring training begins, giving Boston fans something to get excited about to distract them from the bitter taste left by the Patriots playoff letdown and the frustration of the mediocre play of a hobbled Celtics squad.

April

• Baseball season begins!  The Red Sox come into the season praising the importance of pitching and defense, having added Adrian Beltre and Mike Cameron to their starting line-up as well as John Lackey to their rotation.  Many media outlets rank the Red Sox as the best team in baseball and are projecting them to finish with the most wins in the league.  Well, we know how that turned out...
• David Ortiz gets off to another frustratingly slow start, prompting Red Sox Nation to demand that the team bench or release the fading star.  Or at least get him to take steroids again (kidding!).
• Jacoby Ellsbury injures his ribs in a collision with Adrian Beltre.  The injury is initially misdiagnosed, leading to Ellsbury missing the majority of the season.  A failed come back return mid-season didn't last long after team doctors discovered more broken ribs that never fully healed, which ended up putting a riff between Ellsbury and the team.  This in turn leads many fans to complain about his lack of toughness (sure, you try swinging a bat with broken ribs!) and wish for him to be traded.

May

• The Celtics flip the switch once the playoffs start and catch fire at just the right time.  Putting themselves on cruise control for the final few months of the regular season appears to have paid off, as the team looks healthy and hungry.
• Rajon Rondo plays out of his mind in the post-season, highlighted by an eye-popping triple-double in the second round series against Cleveland - 29 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists.  I was actually at that game, and as far as I could tell, I'm the one that started the MVP chants for Rondo that were later heard throughout the TD Garden.  He put the team on his back and helped carry them through the first few rounds of the playoffs, in which he nearly averaged a triple double.
• The Bruins suffer an epic post-season collapse.  Leading the Philadelphia Flyers 3 games to none, the B's went on to drop the next three to even the series.  They led 3-0 early on in Game 7, but ended up blowing the lead, and the series.  Now Boston fans know how the Yankees felt in 2004.

June

• The Celtics return to the NBA Finals for a re-match against the Lakers.  The teams appear evenly matched throughout the grueling 7 game series.  The turning point came in Game 6 when Kendrick Perkins crumpled to the floor after battling Andrew Bynum for a rebound in the first quarter.  A torn ACL would sideline him for the rest of the series (as well as at least half of this season), tipping the scale in favor of the Lakers.  Without Perk's size and defensive presence, the Celtics get killed in the paint and on the glass.  In a series in which each game was won by the team that won the rebounding battle, the trio of Gasol, Bynum and Odom was too much for the undersized Celtics to handle without Perkins. 
• While the outcome of the series may have been depressing, there were still plenty of bright spots, including a coming out party for the bench players - most notably, Glen Davis and Nate Robinson, who coined themselves new nicknames of Shrek and Donkey.
• The Red Sox season begins to unravel due to an endless amount of injuries.  It began earlier in the season with Ellsbury, but the injury bug went on to catch Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis, among others.  In one three game series in San Francisco the Sox lost Pedroia, Victor Martinez and Clay Buchholz to injury.  19 players combined for 24 seperate DL stints during this season, with 6 of those players coming from the opening day starting line-up.  No team can overcome that many injuries.
• The string of injuries opens up opportunities for other players to step in and perform on the big stage.  While none of them could make up for the loss of the key players that were stuck on the DL, some of these unknown replacement players shined in big moments.  The best example being Daniel Nava, who hit a grand slam on the first pitch he saw in his major league career.
• The Bruins have something to be excited about again when they select Tyler Seguin with the second overall pick in the draft, which they obtained from Toronto for Phil Kessell.  Seguin should be a star in the near future, while Kessell hasn't done anything to make Toronto any better.  Considering they still owe Boston another (likely) high draft pick, I think it's safe to say we won that trade.

July

• David Ortiz continues to prove that his career isn't over yet by making the All-Star team and winning the Home Run derby. 

August

• The dog days of summer are at times difficult to watch as the Red Sox send out a AAA line-up and fall further back in the AL East.  Meanwhile the Yankees and Rays are still going strong and looking like locks for playoff teams.
• The Celtics sign Shaq!  The Big Shamrock comes to Boston for the veteran's minimum, claiming he's ready to accept being a role player on a team filled with veteran stars.  Maybe he likes hanging out with other old guys (which the Celtics have plenty of) or maybe he just really wants a chance at another ring (mostly to shut Kobe up). 
• The C's wrapped up a busy off-season.  Doc Rivers' decision to return to coach at least one more year was the spark needed to get the ball rolling.  Pierce re-signed a team friendly 4 year deal to ensure he'd retire a Celtic, followed by Ray Allen spurning bigger offers to return on a 2 year deal that lines up well with Boston's plan to rebuild in 2 years when the Big Three era will likely come to an end.  They also bulked up the bench with several short term options.  In addition to Shaq, the C's also brought in Jermaine O'Neal and Delonte West.

September

• Football season starts up again as the Patriots are ready to redeem themselves after last season's upsetting ending.  Most of the early season talk revolves around Wes Welker's remarkable recovery from knee surgery as well as a group of exciting young rookies that the team expects to rely heavily on, including: Devin McCourty, Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski.
• The early season excitement takes a step back after a week 2 loss to the Jets.  The team fell apart in the second half thanks to an offense that couldn't move the ball as Brady tried to force the ball repeatedly to Randy Moss without success.

October

• The Patriots shock the football world by trading Randy Moss to the Vikings.  Rumors had swirled for weeks about Moss' attitude, which had led to run ins with coaches and teammates.  One unconfirmed story even claimed he got into a fight with Tom Brady over their hairstyles.  The trade was met with a lot of criticism by people who thought the Patriots offense could not thrive without Moss, but as it turned out it was the best thing for them.  Belichick sensed a storm brewing with Moss and did what he had to do to remove a potential headache that threatened to drag down the team.  They made a separate trade to bring back Deion Branch, who has gotten back much of his old form from his previous tenure with the Pats after wasting away for a few years in Seattle.  Without Moss the Patriots have gone on to become the league's best team with the league's highest scoring offense.
• With the Sox missing the playoffs, Red Sox Nation must settle for watching the Yankees fail to make the World Series.

November

• After last season's crushing defeat in the NBA Finals, the Celtics are back.  Their hot start to the season has put them at the top of the Eastern Conference, despite a rash of early season injuries.
• Rajon Rondo puts on a show in the early going by dishing out 50 assists through the first three games and breaking John Stockon's record for assists to open the season.  In a game against the Knicks he had an unbelievable triple-double that included 24 assists, good for the second best mark in team history.
• Paul Pierce scored the 20,000th point of his career, joining the exclusive company of 36 players to reach that plateau in NBA history.  Only two other players have reached that mark in a Celtic uniform (Bird and Havlicek).
• The Patriots are humbled by a humiliating defeat to the underdog Browns.  The silver lining that came from the loss is that it tought the team that they can't afford to be overconfident and must play their game for 60 minutes every week.  They haven't lost a game since, including big wins against the Steelers, Colts and Jets.
• After losing the starting job late last season and having off-season hip surgery, not many expected big things from Tim Thomas.  Yet the veteran goalie has taken the league by storm, re-capturing the form that made him the Vezina award winner two years ago.  By leading the league in Goals Against Average and Save Percentage through the early going, Thomas has sent the message to the team that he's not ready to give up the job to youngster Tukka Rask just yet.

December

• The Red Sox steal the show in the off-season by making two blockbuster moves.  First they traded prospects to San Diego for Adrian Gonzalez and then signed the best free agent hitter on the market, Carl Crawford.  They join an already formidable line-up to create what should be the best offense in the league.  Well, at least if everyone can stay healthy this time.  Knock on wood!
• Nearly as important to the Red Sox off-season was the lack of impact made by the rival Yankees.  The team that typically throws out big money to lure in the top free agents was devastated when Cliff Lee chose Philadelphia over them.  The Yankees are left to beg Andy Pettite not to retire to prevent their pitching rotation from being dangerously thin on the back end.  With all the potential big name free agent targets off the board it looks like it will be a quiet off-season in the Bronx.  The Tampa Bay Rays lost Crawford, as well as half their roster, to free agency.  While the Red Sox substantially improved, the Yankees and Rays got worse.
• The Patriots continue to roll, winning all of their games this month and clinching the top seed in the AFC.  Tom Brady set a record for consecutive pass attempts without an interception and the team hasn't turned the ball over at all in over a month.  Brady appears to be a lock for the MVP award and the Pats have a clear path to the Super Bowl that will go through Foxborough.
• The Celtics remain in first in the East, but are starting to show signs of breaking down under the strain of an increasing number of injuries.  Sound familiar?  They've been without Perkins all season, but have also have dealt with large chunks of games without Shaq, Jermaine O'Neal, Delonte and Rondo.  Worst of all, the Celtics stagger towards the end of the calender year by losing defensive anchor and MVP candidate Kevin Garnett.  The extent of the injury is still unknown, but losing KG for any significant period of time would be a huge loss for this team.  If the Celtics ever gets healthy then they may very well be the best team in the NBA, but will they ever come close to being even reasonably healthy?  We'll have to wait to find out in 2011...

NFL Week 16 Review

It's the last week of games before the New Year, which has some teams looking back at the success of this season, while others can't wait to flip the calendar to 2011.  Some teams are looking to bring in the new year by celebrating a spot in the playoffs, while others are apparently too focused on how they will be celebrating New Year's Eve later this week.

This article is a little delayed this week due to the snowstorm in Philadelphia that postponed their Sunday night game against the Vikings until Tuesday.  It also made my Sunday night pretty boring.  Seriously, I didn't know what to do.

Here are some things I noticed this week:

• How did Steelers-Panthers get to be the Thursday night game of the week?  Thanks NFL Network!  Pittsburgh got one step closer to locking up the division and only needs to win next week against Cleveland to claim the #2 seed in the AFC.
• Jon Kitna put his team in an early hole by throwing two interceptions in the first quarter that were each returned for TDs.  He would later leave the game with a hip injury, but you can argue he should have been benched anyway.
• When Stephan McGee replaced Kitna for the Cowboys it became a match-up with John Skelton for the battle of 3rd string QBs.  When's the last time we saw two 3rd stringers going up against each other in the regular season in a game that didn't involve at least one team that had locked in their playoff spot?  This could partly explain why neither of these teams will be in the playoffs.
• McGee nearly led the Cowboys to a comeback win when he threw a 37 yard TD pass to Miles Austin to take the lead with under two minutes to go.  Unfortunately, their kicker missed the extra point (how does that happen indoors?).  Arizona drove quickly down the field to kick a field goal in the final seconds of the game, giving them the 1 point victory.
• The Patriots locked up the top seed in the AFC with a win in Buffalo, ensuring the path to the Super Bowl goes through Foxborough.  
• Tom Brady set the record for consecutive pass attempts without an interception.  Last week he had set the single season record, but this week he passed Bernie Kosar's record of 308 pass attempts, which spanned across two seasons (1990-91).
• During New England's 7 game win streak they have scored at least 30 points in each game and have not turned the ball over.
• Once again the Jets manage to back their way into the playoffs.  Despite another late season loss, the Jets clinch a Wild Card spot due to losses by the other teams competing for that spot.
• After another loss, the Jets once again suffer the Agony of De-Feet.  Ok, so I may have stolen that line from the New York Post, in reference to the bizarre story involving Rex Ryan and his wife's foot fetish video, but it was too good not to re-feet, ummm... I mean repeat.
• The Bears have already won their division, and thanks to the Eagles loss they can now be assured of a top 2 seed and a first round playoff bye.
• The Ravens may be a long shot for the division regardless of what they do next week (they need the Steelers to lose to the Browns in addition to winning their own game) but they did at least clinch a playoff spot and kept themselves alive with a chance at the division and #2 seed.
• The Chiefs skill position stars - Cassel, Bowe and Charles combined for great games to blow out the Titans and clinch the AFC West.  They will likely open up the playoffs at home against one of the Wild Card teams (probably the Jets).  They will probably look over-matched on paper, but they play well at home, so that advantage may be enough to get them out of the first round, but I don't see them winning on the road in the next round.
• Chris Johnson had another dud performance.  The man who predicted another 2,000 yard season for himself this season currently sits at 1325 for the season.  Only 675 yards in next week's game to get to his goal!
• St. Louis beat the San Fransisco awful-Niners to put themselves alone at the top of the AFC West. They still need to win next week in Seattle to win the division.  The Seahawks would win the tie-breaker and play better at home (hey, a 4-3 record for them is better), so they have the edge.  It's essentially a playoff game to determine who gets to be the team to host an opening round playoff game that they will inevitably lose.
• I hope the Rams win, if only because at least they would make the playoffs as an 8-8 team.  The thought of Seattle getting a playoff spot with a 7-9 record just made me throw up in my mouth.
• The 49ers fired coach Mike Singletary on Monday.  Seems long overdue, but what's the point of doing it with only one game left?  Is one game enough of a sample size to judge a potential replacement?
• After setting a league record for road futility, the Lions have now won 2 straight road games!  They stunned the Dolphins by scoring 17 points in the final 5 minutes, including an interception that was returned for a TD to give them the victory.
• Miami actually has a shot to finish their season at 8-8 if they can win next week against a Patriots team that has already clinched the top seed and can rest their starters.  Yet they will finish the season only 1-7 at home.  How can a team have such a drastic home-road split, with the home record being the losing side?  Can they petition the league to play all their games on the road next year?
• The Jaguars blew their opportunity to keep up in the AFC South by losing to the disaster that is the Washington Redskins.  They are now a long shot to surpass the Colts, who can win the division next week with a home win against the struggling Titans.
• Not having Maurice Jones-Drew was certainly a big factor in their loss.  This game is an example of why MoJo deserves to at least be in the MVP discussion, but he won't win it by sitting on the sidelines to end the season, and the Jags aren't likely to be in the playoff discussion much longer.
• This isn't how the script was supposed to go.  The Chargers always get off to slow starts, but build momentum at the end of he season, never losing in December, and charge into the playoffs on a roll. So much for that.  After losing for the second time in December (and only the second December loss in Philip Rivers' career) the Chargers have already been knocked out of the playoff picture.  The can't blame a tough schedule either, as both December losses have come against non-playoff teams (Raiders, Bengals).
• Caron Palmer finally figured out how to throw TDs to his own team instead of his opponents.  4 TDs and 0 interceptions this week!  Too little, too late.
• Tim Tebow got his first win as a starting QB in the NFL by leading a comeback victory against the Texans.  He threw a TD pass and ran another in himself in the 4th quarter.
• Andre Johnson was a late scratch from this game, but it wasn't the passing game that let the team down.  The Texans offense can be as explosive as any, but they won't be contenders until they can stop the other team from scoring.
• The Colts kept themselves in the drivers seat for the AFC South division with a win in Oakland.  
• Payton Manning threw 3 TD passes, but the Colts have to be concerned that he continues to throw interceptions.  With 2 more this week he's now up to 17 on the season.  It's the most he's had in a season since 2002 (19), and with another game remaining there's a chance he could equal or even surpass that amount.  His QB rating will also be his lowest since that same 2002 season.
• If last week's meltdown for the Giants was heart-breaking, then getting blown out in Green Bay must be just embarrassing.  A win would have clinched a playoff spot, but they will need to get back on track to win next week as well as hope some other contending teams lose in order to sneak in.
• Green Bay would have been eliminated with a loss, but they now have put themselves in a position where a win next week gets them a Wild Card spot.  
• Which QB helped carry Fantasy Football teams to championship victory?  Would you believe... Josh Freeman?  Ok, so most playoff teams weren't starting him, but I did in one of my leagues where I'm in the finals, and I'm sure glad I did!  5 TD passes was easily his best performance of the season.
• Tampa is an even bigger long shot for the playoffs, but they aren't eliminated yet.  They would need to win next week and also have the Packers and Giants both lose.  If that were to happen then the NFC South could end up having 3 playoff teams.
• Seattle apparently decided to use this week as their bye week to rest for the playoffs.  They knew going in that regardless of the outcome they would still have the chance to play for the division title next week against the Rams.  That didn't leave them with much incentive to put up much of a fight this week.
• For the past several weeks I've been praising the Falcons for their perception of invincibility at home.  They seemed to have a certain mystique about them when playing in the Georgia Dome.  QB Matt Ryan had only lost one home game in his 3 year career.  So of course they blow all that by losing to the rival Saints at home on Monday night.  As good as they have looked this year, this letdown on a big stage is not a good sign heading into the playoffs.  They've shown that they are vulnerable and may have lost some of their swagger.  With an easy home win next week against the lowly Panthers they can still lock up the division and the top seed in the NFC, so the loss doesn't have a major impact on their playoff spot, but it does have a major impact on their confidence.
• Michael Turner had not fumbled the ball all year.  The Saints had a streak of giving up points every time the opponent reached their 1 yard line that dated back several years.  So of course Turner fumbles the ball at the 1 yard line.  Huge momentum change for the Saints.
• The Saints offense is rolling now that the have Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas back to complement the passing game.  It's not just what they provide in the running game, but both are threats as a receiver out of the backfield as well.  Now if only Brees would stop throwing interceptions, then they'd be a real powerhouse offense.
• Brees is up to 21 interceptions on the season after throwing 2 more this week (one of which was returned for a TD).  He trails only Eli Manning (24) in interceptions.  He's also 2nd in TDs (Brady) and 2nd in passing yards (Payton Manning).  So the season Brees is having can be summed up by saying he's playing like #2. 
• So much for the argument that Michael Vick could challenge Brady for the MVP award.  He turned the ball over enough times this week (3) to get halfway to Brady's season total (6). 
• Apparently the snow delay, which pushed the Sunday night game back to Tuesday, threw off the Eagles.  They did not look prepared for this game, losing at home to the underdog Vikings that were down to their third string QB and missing out on a chance at the #2 seed in the NFC and a first round bye.  They are now locked in at the #3 seed (no NFC West team can catch them), which would have been considered a let down as recently as last week, but they now must be thankful that they can't fall any further considering they will be operating on a short week for their final game.
• Brett Favre couldn't resist keeping his name in the spotlight, speculating that the extra two days off might give him a chance to play this week.  Of course he didn't, as he shouldn't have given the concussion he suffered the previous week.  Maybe the hit to the head knocked some sense into him.
• Joe Webb turned out to be a sneaky play for Fantasy Football owners brave enough to start him in the playoffs.  While his stat line (195 passing yards, 31 rushing yards, 1 rushing TD) may not be all that impressive for a QB, Webb is actually eligible as a WR in some leagues because he started the season as a WR on the Vikings depth chart.  A mediocre day for a QB was still worth 16 points in standard leagues, which is a pretty good day for a WR.
• The playoff teams in the NFC are almost set.  Next week's games will determine if the final Wild Card spot goes to the Giants, Bucs or Packers (the other will go to the Saints unless they somehow pass the Falcons in the NFC South).  The Seahawks and Rams game is essentially a playoff game, as the winner takes the division and the loser goes home.
• Things are even more clear in the AFC, where the South division is the only one left undecided.  The Colts should be able to wrap that up fairly easily.  The only other division that is undecided is the North, where the Ravens have a chance to come out on top if they win their final game and the Steelers lose theirs, but that's unlikely.  Both teams will make the playoffs either way.
• San Diego is first in the league in total defense and second in the league in total offense... yet they've been knocked out of the playoff picture.
• The Patriots have a turnover differential of +27, which is by far the best in the NFL.  They have only turned the ball over 9 times all season.  The record for the least amount of turnovers for an offense in a 16 game season is 13 (Dolphins and Giants in 2008).  They should easily be able to break that record.
• If the Lions can somehow manage to beat the Vikings next week by at least 15 points then they will finish the season with a positive point differential, despite a 6-10 record.  Hey, that's progress!
• St. Louis needs to beat Seattle by at least 30 points next week to finish with a positive point differential - and they'd be a division winner!
• The Patriots have the best point differential at +174.  The Panthers have the worst at -174.
• Pro Bowl votes are in, for whatever those are worth.  Much like in other sports' All-Star games, the Pro Bowl is a bit of a joke.  It's being played again before the Super Bowl, so the best players on the two best teams in the league can't play.  Not to mention that a lot of veteran players that have been before try to use various injuries as an excuse not to go.  Or that many of the voters just vote for the guy they voted for last year.
• Vick and Brady were named as the starting QBs.  Both are clearly deserving, but there's a good chance at least one of them doesn't play in the game.
• The Patriots had a league high 6 players voted in: Brady, McCourty, Mankins, Mayo, Wilfork, Merriweather.  3 of those guys were locks to make the team.  I'm surprised McCourty made it due to the fact that he's a rookie and the league typically takes at least a year to catch on to how good the player is, but he's certainly deserving.  Mankins should not have been selected, despite that he's probably the best guard in the league, due to his lengthy hold out.  I like Merriweather, but having watched him play all year it's a big surprise that he made the team.
• Buffalo, Tampa, Cincinnati, and Seattle are the only teams not represented in the Pro Bowl.
• Only one week left in the regular season!  Then we get to say good-bye to the pretenders and let the contenders fight it out in the playoffs.

NFL Week 15 Review

'Twas the Sunday before Christmas, when all through the NFL, playoff hopes were stirring, except for those teams as weak as a mouse.  The points were rung up on the scoreboards with cheers, in hopes that a Super Bowl soon would be here.

The teams on Santa's nice list are preparing for their spot in the playoffs, while teams on the naughty list are preparing their vacation plans for January.

Here's a look at which teams were naughty and nice this week:

• Welcome back Vincent Jackson!  The talented diva receiver finally decided that he wanted to play this week, after a long hold out and questionable injury delayed his return.  With 112 yards and 3 TDs this week it's safe to say Jackson is ready to play.  Sadly, if he puts up big numbers and helps the Chargers to the playoffs then some poor sap will hand him a giant contract this off-season, ignoring the emptiness that was the majority of his season.
• Even sadder, at 5-9 the 49ers are still in the playoff hunt because they are only 1 game back of the division leaders of the NFC West.  All I'm asking Santa for this year is that he make it so none of the NFC West teams get to take a playoff spot!
• The Bengals were a playoff team last year and added Terrell Owens to make the offense even more explosive this year.  Instead, they've been one of the most disappointing teams in the league.  They finally broke a 10 game losing streak this week to get only their 3rd win of the season.  T.O. left the game early with an injury (torn meniscus - out for the year).  Coincidence?
• Cleveland continues to play down to their competition by losing to bad teams and only playing well against good ones.  They should petition for a harder schedule next year so they might have a chance at the playoffs.
• It appears that the Donovan McNabb era has come to an end in Washington, just weeks after agreeing to a 5 year extension.  The extension seemed crazy at the time, considering the previous week they had benched McNabb at the end of the game.  It's still unclear why they bothered to do it, considering he's no longer the future of their franchise.  At least they were creative with the contract, guaranteeing only a $3.5 million signing bonus for this year.  If they cut him before the start of next season then they don't owe him anything else.  McNabb has apparently been benched for the rest of this season, so it's hard to envision anything but a mutual parting at the end of this season.
• McNabb is having one of the worst seasons of his career statically, but he still deserves better than to be benched like this.  The Redskins traded away 2nd and 4th round draft picks to get him from the Eagles and paid him a lot of money.  They aren't making the playoffs, but they don't have a young QB on the roster to groom for the future.  No offense to Rex Grossman, who actually put up some good numbers in this week's loss, but he's not the future of the franchise.  Starting him is just another way to further embarrass McNabb, and that's not right.  This whole experiment in Washington has been another disaster to add to the list of bad decisions by their owner, "Chainsaw" Dan Snyder.
• It's been a lost season for the Cowboys, but at least they got a win over one of their most hated rivals and have a chance to pass them in the standings to avoid finishing in last in the NFC East.
• Andre Johnson didn't get a chance to punch Cortland Finnegan this time, but he did get the better of him for a TD catch in the second half.  It was the Titans that got the better of the Texans on the scoreboard though in a game that was never even close.
• A team finally managed to stop Arian Foster (league leading 1345 rushing yards this season).  Sure he only got 11 carries due to the lopsided score and his early exit with an ankle injury, but he did nothing with them, totalling only 15 yards.  He still has a slight lead for the league rushing title, but Maurice Jones-Drew (1324) is closing in fast.
• Speaking of MoJo, the reason he wasn't able to take advantage of the sub-par day by Foster to take away the league lead in rushing is because he had a poor day of his own against a terrible Colts rush defense.  MoJo typically runs wild over the division rival Colts, but was held this week to only 46 yards in the loss.  The Jaguars passing attack isn't nearly formidable enough to keep up with Manning and the Colts, so when MoJo doesn't have it going they have no chance.
• Manning's day wasn't all that spectacular, but he did manage to connect twice with Austin Collie for TDs to help get his team back at the top of the division.  So much for our hopes that the Colts might miss the playoffs.
• Collie had another excellent day before leaving with another concussion - his third of the season.  There's no way they should let him play again this year.
• The Jags had a chance to make a comeback when they scored in the final two minutes to pull within 3.  They needed an on side kick to pull off the improbable win, but it didn't go according to plan. In fact, it couldn't have gone much worse, as not only did they not recover, but the Colts returned the kick 41 yards for a TD to put the game out of reach.
• Matt Cassell made a surprisingly early return from his recovery from an appendectomy to get his Chiefs one step closer to the AFC West title.
• The Bills have won 4 of their last 6 games after winning in Miami this week.  Maybe the coaching staff is hoping a strong finish will save their jobs, but it's hurting their chances for a top draft pick.
• At 7-7 the Dolphins playoff hopes are now over.  By week 17 the Patriots may have locked up the top seed already, so they probably won't even get a chance to play the spoiler role.
• The Giants 4th quarter meltdown, being called the Miracle at the Meadowlands, may cost them a shot at the division.  They played great through 3 and a half quarters, coming in with a great defensive scheme to keep Michael Vick off balance.  Leading 31-10 halfway through the 4th quarter it appeared they had the game wrapped up.  Not so fast!
• Vick got things started on a drive that only needed two plays, ending with a 65 yard TD pass to a wide open Brent Celek.  It's ok Giants defense, still a big lead, so you can still relax.
• The Giants coaching staff fails to be prepared for an on side kick.  They later claimed they warned the team about it, but they still didn't put in their hands team, which specializes in these situations.  Tom Coughlin also seemed shocked that the Eagles would try that with so much time remaining, despite the large lead.  Eagles recover, leading to another quick scoring drive that was made primarily by Vick running all over the place.  93 of his 130 rushing yards came in the 4th quarter.  The Giants couldn't stop him even when they knew it was coming, like on the TD run to end that drive.
• Eli Manning forces the Eagles to use all three of their time outs to preserve time during the Giants next drive, but it ends with a punt.  Eagles are still alive!
• Vick leads another masterful drive, mostly with his legs again, to tie the game with under two minutes to go!
• Eli and the Giants go three and out and are forced to punt with 14 seconds left.  If they punt the ball out of bounds the Eagles will probably only have time for one play to try to get into FG range to win.  Instead they inexplicably punt the ball down the middle of the field to DeSean Jackson - only the most dangerous player on the field.  Despite muffing the catch on the punt, Jackson manages to recover and dart his way down the field through a sea of helpless defenders on his way to the game winning TD.  How do you even let Jackson have a chance to touch the ball?!  Tom Coughlin ripped into his punter for the mistake, but the Giants had a long list of mistakes that led to this disaster ending.  There's plenty of blame to go around, and it starts with the coach.
• On a related note, one of his Eagle's teammates is going to kill DeSean Jackson one of these days.  Despite making another amazing play, he ended it with another bone-head decision by running along the goal line for several steps before finally crossing over into the endzone for the game winning score.  It looked like he was trying to run more time off the clock.  The problem is... time had already expired!  So what was he trying to do?  It didn't cost them because he still scored, but his foolishness is going to cost them one of these days.
• Devastating loss for the Giants.  Not sure what was more pathetic to watch, the 4th quarter meltdown, or Eli's post game press conference.
• The Lions finally snapped a 26 game road losing streak by winning a game in Tampa.  Remember back when Raheem Morris claimed his Bucs were the NFC's best team?  Yeah... the Bucs can now shamefully excuse themselves from the playoff race.
• The Panthers managed to fend off a late Cardinals rally to win the battle of terrible QBs.  Is there a more motivated player in the league to save his job than Jimmy Clausen?  He was drafted this year to be the new franchise QB but has performed terribly.  He has to win at least a couple games to avoid his team finishing with the league's worst record, in which case the Panthers will undoubtedly select a QB with the first overall pick.  Good Luck with that. 
• The Ravens stayed alive in the AFC North race with a big win over the Saints thanks to a monster performance by Ray Rice (153 rushing yards, 80 receiving yards and 2 TDs).
• The Saints need to win in Atlanta to have a chance at the NFC South division.  Too bad Atlanta never loses at home (Matt Ryan has only lost 1 home game in his 3 year career).  They need to win at least 1 of their remaining 2 games to ensure a playoff spot.
• Meanwhile, the Falcons gave themselves a nice 2 game cushion for the division lead.  Even if they lose to the Saints next week, it should be relatively easy for them to clinch the division in week 17 against the lowly Panthers.
• The Seahawks missed a chance to capitalize on the earlier Rams loss to take control of the division.  All of the NFC West teams lost, so the standings within the division don't change.  It's now not possible for any team in the division to finish at better than 8-8, and most likely the division winner will have no more than 7 wins.
• Seahawks fans were treated to an appearance by Charlie Whitehurst, who took over for the ineffective Matt Hasselbeck.  Pretty sad when fans chant for and get excited over a guy like Whitehurst, as if he's a huge upgrade.
• Tim Tebow made his long awaited debut as a starting QB.  While he isn't likely to put up the kind of passing yards that Orton did, his throwing mechanics weren't quite as terrible as advertised.  He didn't throw much, but he did manage a few pretty good throws.  He also displayed the ability to make plays with his feet, rushing for a team high 78 yards and a TD.  He's no Mike Vick, but the kid can be a playmaker, as he showed on his impressive TD run.  It didn't translate to a win, but maybe the Denver fans can have something to be excited about.
• It didn't matter that Jason Campbell was bad because the Broncos could not stop Oakland's rushing attack.
• Oakland has very little chance at a playoff spot, and their remaining games against the Colts and Chiefs mean that they will likely finish with only 7 wins, 8 at the most.  That's still a lot better than what many people expected from them, especially the Patriots, who thought that first round pick would be better than top 15-20 when they gave up Richard Seymour.
• The Jets got back on track with a win in Pittsburgh in the battle of struggling offenses.  Marc Sanchez was still a little shaky, but his 7 yard bootleg run off a fake was a beautiful play that was a big factor in their win.  Even the cameramen were fooled on that play.  It was the first offensive TD the Jets had scored this month.  Sanchez promised his team he wouldn't lose this game and he came through.
• Despite another tough home loss, the Steelers still managed to clinch a playoff spot due to a series of tie-breakers with competing teams that also lost this week.  They also hold a tie-breaker over the Ravens, so if they can win their last two games against Carolina and Cleveland then they will still win the AFC North.
• The Packers were reeling and without QB Aaron Rodgers, who was forced to sit out with a concussion.  The Patriots were on a roll and are unbeatable at home, so they should have been able to coast to an easy victory, right?  Not exactly.  While they did get the victory in the end, it was anything but easy. 
• The Packers set the tone early by starting out the game with an on side kick, which they recovered to start a drive ending with a field goal for the early lead.
• Rookie QB Matt Flynn (251 yards, 3 TDs) outperformed Tom Brady (163 yards, 2 TDs).
• Flynn had the look of a reliable veteran up until the very end.  With time running out and no time outs remaining, Flynn had to move fast to set up a play.  He looked confused and started to panic as he hurried his team to the line.  Even as the ball was snapped it was unclear if Flynn even knew what the play was (he later said he wasn't sure if they got the 1st down or not), but there was no more time to waste.  The game ended moments later with a sack and a fumble.  You have to think that a veteran the caliber of Rodgers would have showed better late game management than the rookie did, which cost them the game.
• Tom Brady set a single season NFL record for most consecutive passes (292) without an interception.  There were several throws in this game that came close to ending that streak, as a couple of tipped passes and passes dropped by defenders could have easily resulted in a turnover.  It's only fitting that the pass that broke the record was one of those tipped passes that was a finger tip away from being intercepted.
• The Patriots played poorly on both sides of the ball.  They pressured Flynn early on, keeping him rattled, but ended up making too many mistakes which helped build his confidence.
• The big turning point was the 66 yard TD throw to James Jones.  Brandon Merriweather took a bad angle on the play, getting there late, and bowling over his own teammate.  Devin McCourty likely would have made the tackle to save the TD if the collision hadn't taken him out of the play.
• The play of the game may have been Dan Connolly's 71 yard kick-off return - the longest return by an offensive lineman in NFL history.  The play was equal parts surprising, exciting and hilarious.
• I don't typically like to complain about the refs (except during the game when I'm yelling at my TV) but it seemed like they were awfully trigger happy with the flags in this game knowing Commissioner Roger Goodell was in attendance.
• McCourty was flagged for unnecessary roughness for a helmet to helmet hit that seemed very boarderline.  I'm all in favor of protecting the players, especially when it comes to head injuries, but there was nothing vicious about this hit.  Yes, the helmets did touch, but McCourty didn't lead with his helmet and the initial contact came with his shoulder.  The receiver tucked his head on contact causing unintentional contact with their helmets.  The rule is in place to prevent players from using their helmet as a weapon or from launching themselves like a missile at a defenseless receiver.  Neither of those things happened on this play.  I'm not sure how else McCourty could have made that tackle, as he seemed to do everything fundamentally right.  If Goodell wasn't watching they probably don't throw a flag there.
• Vince Wilfork was called for a costly facemak penalty that helped extend a drive that ended in a TD.  While he did clearly grab the runners facemask, it was only because he was blatantly being held.  Wilfork tried to plead this case to the refs, who claimed they didn't see that part.  Yet the announcers saw it happen and on replay it was pretty clear, so I'm not sure how they  missed it.
• An interception late in the game that would have pretty much clinched the victory for the Pats was overturned due to an illegal hands to the face penalty.  Once again, they were right to call the penalty, as Tully Banta-Cain got his hand up under the player's facemask and drove him back, which is illegal.  However, they failed to notice that the player also had a firm grasp on Banta-Cain's facemask, which should have resulted in off-setting penalties. 
•  The Chicago Bears became the first team in the league to clinch their division this season after blowing out the Vikings on Monday night.  Who outside of Chicago would have picked that to happen before the season started?
• Adrian Peterson was a surprise late scratch from the game with a knee injury.  I'm not sure how much he would have helped the Vikings anyway, but there are a lot of angry Fantasy Football owners out there this morning.
• One week after seeing his vaunted consecutive games streak snapped, Brett Favre rose from the grave to start the game for the Vikings.  He didn't last long before leaving with another injury, this time a concussion. 
• Here's a question - why even bother to let him play?  Granted the Vikings are short on options at QB, but last week should have been an end to a career that's already gone on too long.  Why let him play hurt when your team is already eliminated from playoff contention?  Now with a head injury involved there is no way they should let him play next week.  There is also no way that he will be ruled out until just before kick-off, so we'll have to suffer through a week of
  will-he-or-won't-he play drama.... again.
• Conspiracy Theory: The NFL is still investigating claims that Favre sent some racy cell phone pictures to Jenn Sterger.  The issue is still pending a decision from the Commissioner as to whether to punish Favre for violating the league's personal conduct policy, which he says should come before the end of the season.  Well Mr. Goodell, the season is almost over.  If Favre retires after the season then there's really nothing you can do to punish him.  But wait... what if the punishment has already been dealt?  What if Goodell suspended Favre, but in order to save him the embarrassment of the whole situation by making it public, he instead kept the information a secret.  Favre's punishment is to have his streak snapped, but he was allowed to blame it on his various injuries rather than to call it a suspension.  Kind of like when David Stern asked Michael Jordon to go play baseball for a little while.  That's not to downplay the severity of his injuries, but Favre has played through worse before.  If it was up to him, and his ego, he'd want to play to keep his streak intact.  So maybe it wasn't up to him.  Just a theory.
• Is it a coincidence that Jenn Sterger's last name spelled backwards is REGRETS? 
• The playoff picture is starting to take shape, but it's far from complete.  Only one team (Bears) has clinched their division and only 3 other teams (Pats, Falcons, Steelers) have clinched a playoff spot.  Several divisions will likely come down to the final week before settling on division winners and wild cards.
• Merry Christmas!