In this episode we take a look at perhaps the strongest division in football, the AFC South.  While we all agree that the Jaguars and Colts are the clear cut favorites in this division, the entire Sportable staff seems to be real high on the Houston Texas, and their chances for a good year.

Hosts: Kevin, Rich, Ryan, Sonny

 

 AFC South [34:52m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The Colts were supposed to blow this one wide open by the third quarter. They were supposed to send the RCA Dome out in style. Instead, the defending Super Bowl Champions got served a batch of humble pie by back-up quarterback Billy Volek when he snuck in the go-ahead touchdown with a little over four minutes remaining in the game. It assuredly wasn’t how Peyton Manning had envisioned the game going. It assuredly wasn’t how Norv Turner had envisioned the game going especially after losing LaDainian Tomlinson and Philip Rivers to injuries. In the end, however, it was that jumbled mess from San Diego who began packing their bags for New England, not the reigning Super Bowl Champs.

Give both teams some credit. Five lead changes in a game that was one of the finest I’ve watched all season. We had Marvin fumbling, Dallas stumbling, Rivers mumbo-jumbo-ing, and LT left wondering. Where was Bob Sanders? The Defensive Player of the Year was invisible on the field for most of the game with the exception of the injury he sustained. Where was Joseph Addai? 13 rushes for just 43 yards isn’t the kind of balance we are used to seeing from this Colts offense.

Don’t bother giving any credit to the referees. One of the more lopsided games I’ve ever seen called included a phantom holding penalty that negated an interception return for a touchdown and a pass interference call that wasn’t much beyond a tap of the receiver.  There was a point in this game where it appeared as if Norv Turner’s head might explode from screaming so much.

If yesterday’s game is any indication of how gritty this San Diego team will play next week versus the New England Undefeateds, then I think we are in for a good one. Even with the prospect of Rivers or LT not playing, this Chargers team looks like it has no fear. I’m not going to call them the Super Bolts just yet but maybe, just maybe, this team got it’s 2006 swagger back

Now that the playoff seeds are set in stone for the AFC, lets take a look at all the teams and see what’s in store for us as the 2007 NFL playoffs are set to kick off.

New England Patriots: The NFL’s first 16-0 team is riding high, having not lost since about this time last year. They’ll be staying put at Gillette throughout the playoffs and will undoubtedly be tough to beat. If the weather starts to turn frightful in New England, however, look for other teams to have a considerable advantage. The Patriots won’t throw the ball 50 times in sleet and snow, so it’ll turn out to be a battle of running games. The AFC has plenty of fine running backs (Fred Taylor, Joseph Addai, LT, Maurice Jones-Drew) that are all considerably better than Laurence Maroney.

Indianapolis Colts: My oh my, look who has returned. The World Champions from a year ago have returned as the number two seed yet again and, unlike last year, have gotten absolutely no hype whatsoever due in part to the whole “Patriots not losing a game” thing. The Colts have been riddled with injuries all year, having to resort to guys like Crasphonso Thorpe (I know, who?) to play wide receiver and guys who I’ve never heard of on their defensive line. The good news is that they’ll be fully healthy (with the exception of Dwight Freeney) come two weeks from now when they host their playoff game in the sterile environment of the RCA Dome. Nobody’s talking about them but look out for Indy. With Bob Sanders back and the always dangerous Peyton Manning the Colts might quietly put the rest of the AFC to shame.

San Diego Chargers: The first seed from last year returns as the number three seed in a season that was riddled with inconsistency and confusion. How good is this team? Nobody really knows. They still have the best running back in the game (sorry Adrian Peterson) and their defense is one of the best in the NFL. In the playoffs it comes down to a team’s ability to establish the run and stop the run; both things the Chargers do well. Thus the pressure will be on second year starter Philip Rivers who hasn’t had a great season but has come on strong as of late. People talk about teams they do and don’t want to play; can we consider the Chargers one of those teams? They’ve won 10 of their last 12 games. Read the rest of this entry »

The hype was unmistakable. It was dubbed Super Bowl XLI.5 and “The Biggest Regular Season Game Ever.” But as we sat down and watched yesterday’s Pats-Colts clash, we couldn’t help but say it ourselves: This feels like an AFC Championship game. The intensity was there. The rivalry was there. And in the end, Tom Brady’s heroics were there.

Before a packed RCA Dome, complete with real (and pumped) crowd noise, the best two teams in the league played out on the best games of the year, just as they should have. Part of me expected this one to be a letdown but after yesterday’s 24-20 win by New England, I can’t help but cross my fingers for a rematch. Unfortunately, Super Bowl XLI.75 will probably be in the less friendly confines of Gillette Stadium.

At least Pats haters were able to leave with one fact: The Patriots aren’t unbeatable. Are they damn close to it? Yes. But the Colts, much like the Cowboys, had the Pats on their heels for most of the game. If Reggie Wayne doesn’t have Bart Simpson Syndrome, we don’t ever see Brady’s heroics. But boy, didn’t yesterday’s game play out all too familiar? Manning makes the mistake, Brady leads the drive with perfect precision, and the Pats win.

The highest-rated Sunday afternoon game in 20 years is finally in the books. New England goes into their bye week at 9-0, the Colts pick up the pieces and travel to San Diego with a 7-1 record. Let’s not kid ourselves here. The Bolts are too busy being Norved to factor in the AFC race and the Steelers can’t win on the road. The Patriots and Colts are still the two best teams in the NFL. Nothing occurred on Sunday that changed that.

Thanks to our wonderful friends at media-superpower ESPN, we’ve been flooded with hype regarding this Sunday’s match up between the Colts and Patriots. Nobody can deny that this game is one of the biggest regular season games in recent memory and, at around 4:00 pm pacific time on Sunday, one of these two teams will no longer be undefeated. And while this game begs comparison, might we be taking it too far?

Who’s better; Tom Brady or Peyton Manning? Which wide receiver group is better; Donte Stallworth, Randy Moss and crew or Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison, and Dallas Clark? These are all grenades that ESPN has lobbed at us this week looking for a convincing answer. They won’t get one. Brady has the rings (and this year the numbers) and Manning has every statistical record that matters to a quarterback (and now a ring to boot). Randy Moss has freakish talent and Marvin Harrison has already started writing his Hall of Fame speech. So how can you compare them?

It doesn’t really matter who wins this game on Sunday because it won’t even come close to settling the argument about who’s better. As far as I’m concerned, these teams are ranked 1A and 1B, and whoever wins Sunday will only determine who gets the A ranking and who gets the B. If these teams played ten times, it’d be a pretty safe bet that they would split it right down the middle at 5 wins a piece. So instead of trying to make comparisons about who’s better, let’s just enjoy this match-up for once. We’ll see it again in the playoffs, I can guarantee that. Lets save the comparisons for then and just enjoy the super duel that is Indy vs New England now.

Hosts: Sonny, Ryan, and Rich.

In this episode, we discussed the AFC South. Can Matt Schaub change the fortunes of the Houston Texans around? Or will a piss-poor offensive line doom him? Can Vince Young avoid the Madden Curse? Because this is our last NFL divisional preview, we also give a brief rundown on our playoff and Super Bowl predictions.

You can find Episode 35 here. (Download mp3)