They Had a Dream! Happy Birthdays!

Hello and Happy Sunday from warm and sunny North Texas.

Suffice to say it was quite a fun chore to get my fill of local sports whilst keeping a keen eye on the nearby television sets to stay abreast on what was happening on the gridiron.

Suffice to say the San Francisco 49ers has a defense that is fun to watch. When you can create 5 turnovers on a scoring machine like the Saints you truly increase your opportunities to advance to the next level. Alex Smith was a true imitation of Jekyll and Hyde. I did not agree with some of the play-calling made by Jim Harbaugh in the early part of the second half. 

Much like 'The Catch' in 1982 and 'The Second Catch' in 1998, Alex Smith picked the right time to get hot. On the rollout for a score with 2:11 left I thought maybe he scored too quickly. Sure enough. Drew Brees and a bomb to Jimmy Graham made for a dramatic finish to be sure.

The moment Vernon Davis made the game winning catch (now dubbed 'The Grab' by many in the Bay area) I had 2 thoughts. Thought #1 was the similarity to a reception Terrell Owens made in 1998 when defeating Green Bay. T.O. came to the sidelines in tears like Davis...

I also thought back to an incident in 2008 when Vernon Davis got a tongue-lashing from Mike Singletary and was told to go the locker room. Vernon Davis I dare say exercised some demons from games past! One of the more entertaining wins in a playoff that come to memory. Raider fans might argue that the 12/21/74 win over Miami was more dramatic. Giants fans will bemoan a few non-calls in that 2003 playoff game when losing a 24 point lead at Candlestick.

Like him or not, Jim Harbaugh has a collective team of achievers who have bought in to what he's selling. When it works, man is it fun to watch! Drew Brees looked uncomfortable all game. I'm sure it helped to get coached by two intense leaders like Bo Schembechler and Mike Ditka. The Niners have a week to configure the winner of the Giants-Packers game.

NOBODY was saying much about Tom Brady this past week it seemed. Sometimes silence speaks volumes when you have two able targets like Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski to throw to.

In having fun with numbers we could say (to appease to fans of Tim Tebow) how Tom Brady became the 3rd quarterback to have 1 game in a playoff with 6 touchdown passes...as in 3-1-6 :) Or better yet in being the 3rd person (alongside Daryle Lamonica and Steve Young) to throw for 6...6-6-6. Yes, an attempt to garner a chuckle in the name of spiritual awareness. For the record the 3-1-6 numbers are okay by me as it happens to be my date of birth...

Big kudos to the defense of the Patriots for proving me wrong. Vince Woolfork and company came to play. I love it when I am proven wrong on occasion. A very complete victory for New England and no I do not believe Josh McDaniels being in the coaches box played any part whatsoever. This will be a sidestory as the playoffs continue. Rest assured that Bill Belichick and Tom Brady had this one well handled.

Today I expect the Packers to try to tire out New York with alot of no-huddle play calling. Eli Manning will need to be spot on with his passing and Ahmad Bradshaw needs to run for at least 75-100 yards for the Giants to have any chance at all to win in Titletown. In the event the Giants replicate 2007, and I think they can, next week's matchup will be in San Francisco. Should be a barnburner just like back on December 4th.

This Ravens team reminds me alot of the 2000 team defensively. I expect turnovers, good special teams, and just maybe a good game from Joe Flacco. A rare home playoff game for Baltimore should bode well with 70,000 rabid fans. Nine points is the spread on both of today's games. Take the Giants and Ravens, plain and simple...

The Super Bowl birthed this day in 1967. Simulcast on NBC and CBS. 15,000 tickets went unsold. That never happened again. Martin Luther King born this day 1929. Of course Cowboys fans remember this day very well in 1978. A 27-10 thrashing of the Broncos in New Orleans. That circus catch by Butch Johnson late in the game still resonates in my mind.

Mixed results for the Stars and Mavericks. Take away an 0-3 start Rick Carlisle's squad have won 8 of 10 albeit against some subpar competition. Great playing time for Delonte West, Vince Carter, Roddy B, and Yi Jianlian. Nearing March and April I foresee a very deep bench for the playoff run.

It figures an ex-Duck would do Dallas in. Playing more like Jean Sebastian Giguere in the 2003 playoffs, the Avalanche would escape the AAC with a thrilling 2-1 victory. Stars continue to dance around the #9 seed for the playoffs which means they are on the outside looking in. Beset by injuries for now it looks like this current hockey squad is still on the outside looking in. Please prove me wrong!

Sunny and breezy and comfortable here in North Texas. We'll top 72 before another cold front shoots on through Tuesday morning. Great walking/jogging weather for this time of year. I'm on it.

Make it a great day!

Over and out in Big D.

Mr. Will