Month: January 2006 (Page 6 of 14)

I’ve got to say, I’m stunned. When we put the poll up asking who the best remaining quarterback in the playoffs was, I assumed Jake Plummer would get the fewest votes. I just didn’t know how few he’d get.

One? Wow. In no way am I a big Plummer fan (I voted for Hasselbeck), but he’s coming off easily his best season, tallying a 90.2 QB rating (seventh in the NFL) while throwing just seven interceptions. Granted, he also threw just 18 touchdowns, and Roethlisberger and Hasselbeck each had higher QB ratings, but as crazy as it sounds, Jake Plummer was one of the most effective quarterbacks in football this year. And yet, no love.

Meanwhile, roughly half of the votes have gone to Roethlisberger, who threw two more interceptions than Plummer in four fewer games. Which suggests two things: 1. A lot of Steelers fans frequent our blog (check out last week’s smack thread for proof, as well as this Joey Porter post), and 2. Only one Broncos fan has visited the site since the poll went up. Either that, or not even Denver fans believe in Plummer.

Incidentally, ESPN does a pretty nice write-up of the four quarterbacks’ lack of star appeal. Worth the read.

The AFC Championship features another great matchup. The Broncos had to be happy to learn that they’d be hosting the title game instead of traveling to Indiana, but they can’t be happy about playing a Pittsburgh team that is on fire right now. Will Ferrell-er-Ben Roethlisberger is throwing the ball like a champ, but he did appear to have difficulty with his accuracy after taking a big hit in the second half of the Colts game.

The Broncos have a big advantage playing at home and if (which is a BIG if) they can get their running game going they should be able to control the game. I’m holding off making my pick for this game until later in the week – who do you think will win?

This should be a great game. The two hottest teams in the NFC squaring off for the right to represent the conference in the Super Bowl. Carolina is playing good defense and no one seems to be able to stop (or even contain) Steve Smith, who has established himself as one of the best – if not the best – WRs in the league.

Shaun Alexander missed most of the game against the Redskins with a concussion, but Seattle expects him to play. Julius Peppers plans to play through his shoulder injury, but the real question is how effective can he be? Carolina had a tough time pressuring Rex Grossman when Peppers was out of the lineup, and I don’t expect it to be any easier against the Seahawks.

I’m holding off until later in the week to make my pick. So who do you think is going to win?

In a surprisingly potent offensive battle, the Panthers went into Soldier Field and beat the Bears, 29-21. Carolina got off to a great start when Jake Delhomme found Steve Smith for a 58-yard touchdown on the second play of the game. Delhomme and Smith hooked up twelve times for 218 yards and two scores. Delhomme finished with 319 yards passing and three touchdowns, slicing and dicing a Bears defense that only allowed 180 passing yards per game during the regular season.

Bears QB Rex Grossman played pretty well in the loss, throwing for 192 yards with one touchdown and one interception. The Panthers got the win despite losing both DeShaun Foster and Julius Peppers to injuries. Nick Goings filled in admirably for Foster, rushing for 34 yards on ten carries while catching one pass for 14 yards. If Foster is unable to play next week, keep in mind that Goings is a very capable rusher. Filling in for Stephen Davis and DeShaun Foster last season, he rushed for 691 yards and scored six touchdowns over the last seven games in 2004.

Carolina is playing great football right now and they are definitely one of the top two teams in the NFC. They should give Seattle all they can handle next week and they have a great shot at upsetting the Seahawks on their home field.

Be sure to hit up our SMACK TALK thread and sound off about the game. Or click below and post your thoughts on this thread.