I’m just saying…

- Christina Aguilera had at least two weeks to prepare for the National Anthem and she still managed to change a word and skip an entire verse. Did someone forget to rub her the right way before she went out to midfield? Because you know you have to do that with her, right?

- What a game by Jordy Nelson: Nine catches, 140 yards receiving and one touchdown. Now imagine how good his numbers would have been had he not dropped two first down passes right in his hands.

- Speaking of drops…James Jones is lucky the Packers held on to the win because his drop in the third quarter was setting up to be the turning point in the game. Nobody can make a potential touchdown disappear faster than James Deandre Jones.

- I want to commend Bruce Arians for his decision to be aggressive when the Steelers were backed up to their own 7-yard line late in the first quarter. Rashard Mendenhall had just ripped the Packers for 24 yards on two carries in the previous series, so naturally Arians wanted to prove how smart he was by taking a shot downfield. Nick Collins and the Packers want to thank you for the gift, Bruce.

- Speaking of horrible ideas by Pittsburgh coaches: What was Mike Tomlin thinking attempting a 52-yard field goal with Shaun Suisham in the third quarter? Did Tomlin know that Suisham was only 5-for-10 kicking in the playoffs or did he think that the front office traded for Adam Vinatieri before the game?

- While we’re beating up the Steelers’ coaching staff: Is it just me or was Pittsburgh’s defense not prepared for Green Bay’s spread formations at the beginning of the game? Granted, the Steelers adjusted nicely throughout, but you’re telling me that Dick LeBeau didn’t think that the Packers would try to spread his defense out from the get-go? What, did he think GB would come out pounding the rock with James Starks against the No. 1 run defense in the league?

- I don’t know much about music but I know crappy live music when I hear it and I heard it Sunday night. The Black Eyed Peas should change their name to something more simple. Like “Studio Magic.”

- Due to an assortment of injuries to his defensive backfield, Dom Capers struggled to find the right coverages in the second quarter and Big Ben took advantage. In that quarter, he completed nine of 13 passes for 123 yards with a touchdown and an interception. But thanks to a 28 minute halftime (usually halftimes are 12 minutes), Capers had time to make adjustments and somewhat contain Roethlisberger in the second half (12 of 19 for 120 yards). So the crowd wasn’t the only thing Fergie and Co. killed last night.

- Did B.J. Raji ever make it to the stadium? I swear he wasn’t on the field.

- Maybe Raji knows where Troy Polamalu is because he never showed up either.

- This is how bad things were for the Steelers last night: Needing just a touchdown and an extra point to win the game, they were forced to start on their own 13-yard line instead of the 26-yard line because their special teams captain committed the dumbest penalty of the season…on special teams, no less. Penalties killed the Steelers all season so Keyaron Fox must have figured, “Hey, what’s one more?”

- I guess Jay Cutler should have broke his knee cap or worn a knee brace on the sidelines during the NFC title game because I haven’t seen any snide remarks from former and current players on Twitter about how Charles Woodson and Donald Driver didn’t finish the Super Bowl.

- Before the 2009 NFL Draft I wrote that Clay Matthews was nothing more than a bodybuilder posing as a football player. Upon further review, I’m nothing more than an ass-hat posing as a blogger.

As we approach kickoff for Sunday’s NFC Championship Game, here are two factors (one for each team) that could potentially keep the Packers or Bears from reaching the Super Bowl.

Green Bay Packers: Special Teams
Against the Falcons last week, the Packers dominated two of the three main phases of the game (offense and defense) but lost the third (special teams). After tying the score 7-7 early in the second quarter, Eric Weems returned a 102-yard kickoff for a touchdown against Green Bay’s shaky kickoff coverage. In Week 12, it was Weems’ 40-yard kickoff return and subsequent facemask penalty on Matt Willhelm that helped put the Falcons in position to kick a game-winning field goal in the final seconds.

In the Bears’ Week 3 win over the Pack, Devin Hester returned a punt 62 yards for a fourth-quarter touchdown, which gave Chicago a 14-10 lead with 14 minutes to play. If there’s one area of concern for the Packers heading into this weekend, it has to be their special teams. They’re allowing 38.9 yards per punt attempt this season, which ranks them 26th in the league in that category. Granted, they rank first in kickoff touchback percentage (4.23%), but Weems proved last week that their coverage unit is liable to give up a big play at any time. Hester is a game-changer; the Packers better be prepared.

Chicago Bears: The Mad Scientist
The Bears have a couple of concerns this weekend, which includes figuring out a way to defense a red-hot Aaron Rodgers and having a solid backup plan in case stout rookie J’Marcus Webb can’t stop the relentless Clay Matthews. But at least we know Chicago’s defense will be up to the task of slowing Rodgers and Webb has been one of the more pleasant surprises this year on the Bears’ O-line (and therefore might match up well with Matthews). It’s Mike Martz and his unpredictability that Chicago should be most concerned about.

Martz is one of the main reasons that the Bears have gotten this far. He’s remained more balanced this season than in years past and he’s playing to his personnel’s strengths. He knows that Jay Cutler has more success throwing short-to-intermediate passes than he does vertically, so he calls plays that suit his quarterback’s strengths. Sure, he still allows Cutler to take cracks downfield, but only when the time is right and the defense is vulnerable. Martz called a great game last Sunday against the Seahawks, but he also drew up a halfback pass with Matt Forte in the middle of the second half when all his team needed to do was run some clock. Forte threw an interception and for the first time all game, Seattle had life. That’s the kind of unnecessary risk-taking that has gotten Martz into trouble before and if he’s not careful, it could cost him this weekend against a better defensive mind like Dom Capers.

Well, I’m pretty sure the announcement for NFL MVP comes down this weekend, so let me begin by saying that I was not influenced by anything that I read when making these picks…..

1. Tom Brady, New England Patriots—Brady, who is going to run away with this award, played about half a game last Sunday, and still threw for 199 yards with 2 TDs and 0 picks. He hasn’t thrown an interception since like early October.

2. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles—Vick did Brady a favor by not being in the lineup against Dallas in Week 17, but he and his coach know what’s more important, and that is for him and some nagging injuries, resting up for the Packers.

3. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints—He wound up third in yards (4620) and tied for second in TDs (33) but uncharacteristically threw for 22 interceptions.

4. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—4700 yards, 33 TDs, 17 picks. But most impressive is the way Peyton led his team to the postseason when things looked bleak.

5. Matt Cassel/Jamaal Charles/Dwayne Bowe, Kansas City Chiefs—Cassel had a dreadful game in Week 17, but we stand by the fact that this was a trio that helped a young KC team win their division and a 4-seed.

6. Arian Foster, Houston Texans—Not only did he lead the league in rushing (1616 yards), but Foster added a whopping 66 receptions for 604 more yards—giving him 2220 yards from scrimmage and 18 TDs.

7. Matt Ryan/Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons—Well, at 13-3, someone had to be good for them to get there, especially with all of those come from behind wins.

8. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers—Finished with 3922/28/11 in 15 games, but what counts is leading his team to the postseason berth they deserve.

9. Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers—If they could do last year’s draft over again, do you think Matthews would still be picked at #26?

10. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers—You know, he led the NFL in passing yards (4710) and had 30 TDs with 13 interceptions. He didn’t have Antonio Gates for a while, and he had Vincent Jackson for maybe two games. That’s why we can’t discount Rivers’ numbers.

11. Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Bucs—We had to add one more. This kid is going to be a star. Oh wait, he already is. Freeman started every game and wound up with 3451 passing yards with 25 touchdown passes and just 6 interceptions. By comparison, Eli Manning had more than FOUR times as many picks.

Three weeks ago the football world was buzzing about the electrifying Eagles, who are led by their electrifying quarterback, who pumps more electricity into a stadium than an electric generator.

But lately the high-flying Eagles have been grounded. After scoring 28 points in 7:28 to shock the Giants in Week 15, they’ve managed just 27 points in the past eight quarters against doormats like the Vikings and Cowboys.

Suddenly, Andy Reid’s squad looks rather vulnerable.

What happened? For starters, Michael Vick traded in his Superman cape for one of Batman’s yellow Speedos. (What?) After not throwing an interception in over 200 attempts, he’s thrown at least one pick in his last five starts and six in total. Granted, the Eagles still went 3-2 over that span and he has thrown 10 touchdowns to go along with those six picks, but he clearly isn’t the same invincible player he was earlier this season.

And really, that was to be expected. Nobody outside of Tom Brady could sustain the numbers that Vick was putting up earlier in the year. The law of averages were bound to catch up with him, which they eventually did. The bigger problem is that he’s taking too many hits and he’s failing to diagnose where opponents are blitzing.

That’s a huge issue with Clay Matthews and the Packers’ stout defense coming to town this weekend. Green Bay is Philadelphia’s polar opposite at the moment. Instead of losing their last two games like the Eagles have, the Packers enter the playoffs on a two-game win streak. After suffering a concussion against the Lions in Week 14, their quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, has thrown 16 touchdown passes to just two interceptions in his last seven games.

While the Eagles have a major advantage playing at home, the Packers have a ton of momentum right now and if the quad injury Vick suffered in the Minnesota game last week is still bothering him, Philadelphia could be in serious trouble. Vick ran all over Green Bay in the first meeting between these two teams, but the Packers hadn’t prepared for him either. (That was back when the Eagles still thought Kevin Kolb was good.) It stands to reason that Vick and the Eagles will see a more-prepared Green Bay defense this weekend, which is scary considering the Packers managed to win the first meeting (27-20 in Week 1).

Three weeks ago, nobody wanted to play this Philadelphia team. Now it looks like they’re primed for the taking.

So Michael Vick slipped a little on Tuesday night, which makes us feel better about keeping Tommy Brady (as Charlie Weis calls him) in the top spot.

1. Tom Brady, New England Patriots—Amazingly, Brady has thrown for an NFL record 319 pass attempts without an interception, going back to Week 6. So let’s review—3701 yards, 34 TDs (NFL high) and just 4 picks, and his team is 13-2 and in the fast lane in the AFC. Damn.

2. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles—Look, we can’t disregard what Vick has done this season, because it’s phenomenal. But he looked mortal against the Vikings, and also for 52 minutes against the Giants before that.

3. Matt Cassel/Jamaal Charles/Dwayne Bowe, Kansas City Chiefs—This trio has led the Chiefs to the AFC West crown. Cassel has 27 TDs to 5 picks/Jamaal has 1835 all-purpose yards and Bowe leads all NFL receivers with 15 TDs. The league won’t view this as one person, but that doesn’t mean we can’t.

4. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints—What, did you think the Saints were just going to go away? Not with this guy leading the team. But the 21 picks may hurt him in the voting.

5. Arian Foster, Houston Texans—This kid is just a beast week-in and week-out.

6. Matt Ryan/Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons—Sure, the Falcons are impressive, especially some of the late-game heroics, but losing at home to Saints hurt.

7. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers—Rodgers admitted that sitting out with a concussion allowed him to come back fresh in Week 16—to the tune of 404 yards and 4 TDs.

8. Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers—Do you get the feeling you have to account for this dude as if he were Lawrence Taylor?

9. Donte Whitner, Buffalo Bills—136 total tackles (92 solo) with a sack, an interception, a forced fumble and 7 passes defensed. I know the Bills suck, but Whitner is a one-man wrecking crew.

10. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—Look who’s back, and he even showed he can run—in slow motion, but he can run.

Now we’re into December, the month that separates the contenders from the also-rans—for both the playoff hunt and the race for NFL MVP.

1. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles—Where do you think the Eagles would be if Kevin Kolb had been the starter all year? Not 8-4 and on top of the NFC East. Hence we give to you your projected MVP.

2. Tom Brady, New England Patriots—Of course, you can surely make a fine argument for this guy too.

3. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers—Sometimes you have to know when to just hand the ball off and manage the game, and Rivers proved last Sunday he can do that, too, and win. His team is just slightly on fire.

4. Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons—On pace for 122 catches, 1550 yards and 10 scores. The receptions alone would put White in the company of folks like Marvin Harrison, Herman Moore, Cris Carter and Jerry Rice.

5. Arian Foster, Houston Texans—Just continues to flat out dominate the ground—including this past Thursday’s game—on pace for 2278 total yards and 20 total TDs. That’s LT in his prime-esque.

6. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons—Falcons are on fire and Matty Ice hasn’t thrown a pick since Week 7.

7. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints—He’s right up there in yards (3321), TDs (23) and team wins (8).

8. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers—Cooled off just a bit since the start of the season, but defense has made that possible for this total pro.

9. Matt Cassel, Kansas City Chiefs—2307 yards, 22 TDs, 4 picks…..and his team is in first place in the AFC West.

10. Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers—Still averaging better than a sack a game.

Let’s face it, it’s hard not to include Thanksgiving Day games in this, so we will. And again, things change from week to week; and some things do not. Eli Manning fumbled himself off this list, and Philip Rivers continues to amaze on a consistent basis.

1. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles—Not as dominating against tough Giants’ D (though two of his receivers dropped passes in the end zone), but led his team to what counts—a W.

2. Tom Brady, New England Patriots—His team is 9-2, and to show he’s made it all the way back from 2008 knee surgery, Brady needs a big game against the Jets a week from Monday.

3. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers—On pace for 5083 yards, 37 TDs and 14 picks, without Vincent Jackson (who comes back today) and with a gimpy Gates.

4. Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons—Not reaching 100 yards against the Rams will ding you a couple spots here.

5. Arian Foster, Houston Texans—Regardless of what his team does, Foster keeps putting up numbers.

6. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons—253 and 2 TDs against Rams, which isn’t huge, but the fact that Falcons only have two losses so far is.

7. Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers—On pace for 21 sacks, but he’ll have to get to the guy right above him on this list today if he wants to remain here.

8. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints—Don’t look now, here come the defending champs led by #9.

9. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers—Putting up 301/4/0 in Minnesota against his former mentor Brett Favre was a thing of beauty. And in case anyone hasn’t noticed, the Packers have three losses, all by 3 points and two in OT. Look out.

10. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—Put up almost 400 yards against New England last week with 4 TDs, but the three picks, including one at the end of the game, are hard to ignore.