Though it means nothing, I am required by football law to point out I was 7-0 in my Opening Drive predictions for week 17. Woot. Multiple teams lost because they did not keep their starters in while one NFC East leader got railed on. Now, onto the last week of the regular season with this edition of the Final Drive!
(12-4) Minnesota Vikings 44
(8-8) New York Giants 7
Way to not show up for the last two weeks of the season G-men. You're ensured some massive roster changes with your less-than stellar effort. Meanwhile, the Vikings jumped back into the two seed with the Eagles' loss, giving old man Favre a week off before mounting a Super Bowl run. There's cause for concern in Minnesota after the Vikings have failed to get Adrian Peterson going heading into the playoffs. We'll see how that plays out in two weeks.
(9-7) Houston Texans 34
(10-6) New England Patriots 27
The biggest injury of the weekend is clearly the loss of Wes Welker for the Pats. For those of you screaming that Belichick shouldn't have been playing his starters, Welker was injured on the first drive of the game without being contacted. It could have happened warming up. His loss will leave QB Tom Brady without his favorite receiver and plenty of double coverage for Randy Moss. For the Texans, congratulations are due for the first winning season in franchise history, but they couldn't sneak into the playoffs. Regardless, QB Matt Schaub, who led the league in passing yards, gives them hope for the immediate future.
(9-7) Baltimore Ravens 21
(5-11) Oakland Raiders 13
The Ravens make it into the postseason by beating the Raiders. Charlie Frye started the game for Oakland but eventually gave way to JaMarcus Russell who was equally as inept. Give credit to the Ravens for taking advantage of a lackluster Raider offense and making it into the playoffs for the second straight year.
(11-5) Green Bay Packers 33
(10-6) Arizona Cardinals 7
By the time the game started, Arizona had nothing left to play for. Kurt Warner didn't go further than the first quarter, allowing Matt Leinart to get owned by a ball-hawking Packer defensive unit. The Packers played like the better team behind another Aaron Rodgers air show, but things will be much different in their rematch in the wildcard round. Still, I'm sure the confidence gained from pummeling their playoff opponent won't hurt Green Bay.
(11-5) Dallas Cowboys 24
(11-5) Philadelphia Eagles 0
Even though I thought the Cowboys would win, there was no one who could have seen this coming. With the number two seed and a bye to play for, the Eagles came out and were dominated by a vicious Cowboys defense and a hard-nosed running game. The worry for Philly fans comes from the Eagles' complete inability to generate offense without hitting a big play. They have problems sustaining drives and running the ball, which are paramount in the playoffs. This win may have saved Wade Philips' job but Jerry Jones doesn't want them to stop here. A win over the Eagles this weekend would give them the hat-trick over their division rivals, something of which Jones can be proud.
(4-12) Kansas City Chiefs 44
(8-8) Denver Broncos 24
If you had told me the Broncos would go 8-8 at the beginning of the year, I would have said that would be a successful season. After starting 6-0? Not so much. Kyle Orton proved he will never be more than a slightly above average quarterback, throwing two cost pick-sixes to Chiefs LB Derrick Johnson. Even without those scores, the Bronco defense gave up 30 points, providing evidence that not all is solved on that front. Josh McDaniels's decision to bench Brandon Marshall and Tony Scheffler may have cost his team a trip to the postseason, whether his other players agree with it or not.
(9-7) New York Jets 37
(10-6) Cincinnati Bengals 0
So the Bengals quit halfway through this game. Let's just get that out of the way. However, they quit after being blown up by the Jets defense. Carson Palmer made solid throws, but his receivers did nothing to help with their numerous drops. Mark Sanchez wasn't asked to do much as the Jets ran the ball 57 times for over 250 yards. Next week (in another wildcard round rematch), the Bengals won't be sitting Cedric Benson and will be throwing everything at the rookie Sanchez.
Quick Snaps:
-New Orleans and Indianapolis are ending the season with 5 combined losses after starting with 27 combined wins. Lame. Jim Caldwell didn't care about 16-0, but he did care about getting Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark 100 catches. Go figure.
-Tennessee's Chris Johnson eclipsed the 2000 yards plateau in a win over the Seahawks. Congrats.
-Cleveland ended its season with a fourth consecutive victory, giving Mike Holmgren reason to ponder keeping Eric Mangini on as head coach.
Check back later in the week for my NFL Wildcard round preview!
Keywords: Aaron Rodgers, Adrian Peterson, Arizona Cardinals, Baltimore Ravens, Brett Favre, Carson Palmer, Chris Johnson, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, JaMarcus Russell, Joe Anello, Josh McDaniels, Kansas City Chiefs, Kyle Orton, Mark Sanchez, Matt Leinart, Matt Schaub, Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints, New York Giants, New York Jets, NFL, Philadelphia Eagles, Tom Brady, Wade Philips, Wes Welker
