Championship Sunday Reaction

Super Bowl XLV is set. The Steelers and Packers will square off in Dallas in two weeks in what should be a very competitive and entertaining Super Bowl. Two of the best, respected and traditional franchises meet in what will be a very exciting game to analyze and pick apart. Two great fanbases will descend in Texas and it will be a very fun two weeks leading up to this terrific matchup. I will have plenty of time to dissect the game, but today is a time to look back on a very interesting and at times bizarre Championship Sunday. Here are my thoughts on both games........







NFC Championship: Green Bay-21 Chicago-14



1) What a great drive by Aaron Rodgers and the Packers on the first series of the game. Rodgers looked terrific as he picked apart the Bears defense. He capped it off with one of my favorite plays-the naked bootleg- to send a message and give the Packers an early 7-0 lead.



2) Green Bay really ran well early in the game. James Starks touchdown run in the second quarter to make it 14-0 was a big score and it capped off a drive in which he really carved up the Bears run defense. The Packers offense looked great early in the first half.



3) At 14-0 you knew the Bears were in trouble, but give credit to their defense. Their defense kept them in this game after the Packers took the two score lead. The Bears defense is legit, and they proved it again on Sunday.



4) Jay Cutler just looked bad early and often. He was high on many throws, took some sacks, and threw a bad pick down the sideline at the end of the half. His numbers show how bad he was: 6-14, 80 yards and an interception.



5) Speaking of Cutler, everyone will remember this game for the injury that kept Cutler out for the second half. Cutler injured his knee late in the first half. He went into the locker room early, came out and started the second half, ran three plays and looked like he was favoring his knee and was limping. Cutler met with the trainers and that was it- HE WAS DONE!!! If was one of the most bizarre sequences I had seen in a long time. Many people began to question his will and toughness. I'm sure if Cutler could have continued playing, he would have played, but the way he handled himself on the sideline made it look like he just gave up and took himself out. He made no attempt to help the other QBs in the game, he looked disinterested, and made no effort to work on the knee on the bike or any other way. It was just weird. Cutler is quirky and unpopular and this is going to add fuel to his negative fire. I just kept thinking back to when Phillip Rivers played the 2007 AFC Championship on a torn ACL. Cutler will get an MRI on Monday, but it will be interesting to see the extent of his injury. It is a shame, but that will be the lasting memory of this game.



6) Give the Bears and 3rd string QB Caleb Hanie credit, they fought back to get back into this game. Todd Collins was awful in replacing Cutler, so in comes Hanie and he drives the Bears right down the field early in the fourth quarter to make it a 14-7 game. Pretty remarkable stuff and very gutsy effort by Hanie.



7) At 14-7, you figured the Packers would just need one break to put the game away. B.J Raji's pick six of Hanie with about 5 minutes to go in the game seemed to be the dagger. At 21-7, the Packers had that two score lead they needed, but Hanie and the Bears fought back, and Earl Bennett scored a touchdown very quickly to make it 21-14 and put pressure back on Green Bay's offense.



8) Green Bay has an elite QB in Rodgers and they got very conservative with their offense late in this game. The Packers ran it three plays and the Bears were ready for it and forced a punt. Not a good job by the Packers offense in the second half, and not a good job by them trying to close out this game.



9) Hanie's drive late in the game was like a script in a cheesy Disney movie. As Hanie is moving the chains, you start thinking "Could this really happen?" "Could Caleb Hanie pull this off?" "If Hanie pulls this out, will he start the Super Bowl?"It was to no avail though as Sam Shields picked off Hanie deep in Packer territory to seal the win and help the Packers advance to the Super Bowl.



10) I'm happy for the Packers organization. They had the guts to divorce themselves from the Brett Favre drama and they were committed to moving on with Aaron Rodgers. They went 6-10 in 2008, watched Favre go to the rival Vikings in 2009, went 11-5 last year, lost a brutal 51-45 playoff game at Arizona in Overtime, watched Favre lead Minnesota to the a 13-3 record-burying them twice in the regular season and make their way to the NFC Championship Game. They stuck to their guns and now Favre has retired and left Minnesota in a state of flux, and the Packers are headed to their fifth Super Bowl appearance.







AFC Championship: Pittsburgh-24 New York Jets-19



1) The Steelers came up and ran the ball down the Jets throats. Rashard Mendanhall was great in the first half. He had 95 yards rushing alone in the first half. The Steelers were able to move the ball at will on the Jets and their opening drive touchdown score-which took up about half of the first quarter- really set the tone for the day.


2) Once again the Jets offense started out slow. Mark Sanchez had some passes batted down early, some receivers dropped passes, and the running game was completely shut down. The Jet offense couldn't answer any of the Steeler drives and put themselves in a bind.


3) Ben Roethlisberger was sensational in the first half. He kept drives alive throughout the first half and made some big throws out of the pocket. His short touchdown run to make it 17-0 capped an almost perfect first half for Pittsburgh.


4) Down 17, the Jets needed to get points before the half. The following sequence occurred on the next three plays: Sack, incomplete almost intercepted, forced fumble sack and touchdown return. 24-0 Steelers at that point. The Steelers defense could smell the blood in the water and they attacked and forced the big turnover they needed with under two minutes to go in the half. That really was the game right there.


5) Give the Jets credit because they were able to get a drive and kick a field goal to make it 24-3 at the half. It looked like the Steelers defense got a little complacent and let up a little, and Sanchez was able to move them down the field and get the all important three points. The Jets were getting the ball back to start the second half, so that field goal was huge.


6) Sanchez was great in the second half. He comes right out and hits Santonio Holmes on a big 45 yard touchdown pass and now the Jets are within 24-10 with about 12 minutes to go in the third quarter. It reminded me of how the Alabama-Auburn game was played in November. All of sudden it was like "Here come the Jets."


7) I felt like the Steelers played tight and made some errors in the second half. None bigger was the interception by Big Ben to Brodney Pool in Jet territory. Pittsburgh was moving the ball, and all they needed was to get a field goal, and that would have probably put the game away. They just couldn't put the nail in the coffin at that point.


8) The Jets play calling and execution at 24-10 in the fourth quarter will haunt Jet fans all offseason. They took too much time off the clock as they were driving down the field. First, they were in hurry up mode. Then, they were huddling. Next thing you know they are inside the five in a goal to go situation. On the first play the Jets run it up the middle. I'm fine with that call. There was some confusion on the sideline and they had to hurry up for the second play, which was a play-action pass to Dustin Keller. It was as low throw, but it still hit his hands and fell incomplete. I'm fine with the play call there. On third down from inside the two, they throw a one-step slant to Holmes, which is batted down at the line of scrimmage. I didn't like that play at all. That play is better suited for the 10 or 15 yard line, not inside the two. On fourth down, the Jets really only had so many plays to call. They went with a Tomlinson run up the middle which was stuffed badly by the Steelers. I would have given Shonn Greene the ball on that play, but in any event the Jets get no points on that drive. Of course, they got the safety the ensuing play, but the Jets needed a touchdown there and they didn't get one.

9) After Sanchez hits Jerricho Cotchery for a short touchdown on the drive after the safety, the Jets are down 24-19 with 3:06 remaining. Here is where you give the Steelers a tremendous amount of credit. After a good kickoff return by Antonio Brown, the Steelers got the ball at about their 40 yard line. That changed the playcalling. On first down, they run the ball. On second down, a great call by the Steelers with a play fake and Big Ben hits Heath Miller for a first down. Great call and great execution. After two runs, and forcing the Jets to use timeouts, we hit the two minute warning and a 3rd and 6 for the Steelers. Run the ball and the Jets are probably going to stop it and get the ball back with over a minute and a half and no timeouts and they will have to drive at least 85 yards and the game winner. If the Steelers throw the ball and it is incomplete, then they have given the Jets even more time to score. If they throw and get a first down, then the game is over. Give Mike Tomlin credit for having the guts to throw the ball and end the game. Big Ben rolls right and finds Antonio Brown over the middle for a first down and ices the game. Great guts and decision by Tomlin and the coaching staff, and great play by Big Ben and Brown. The way the Jets were moving the ball, it would have been interesting to see what would have happened if they got the ball back, but the Steelers removed that option and won the game themselves.

10) The loss is the second consectutive loss in the AFC Championship for the Jets and their starved fanbase. In my opinion, this was the best chance to date for the Jets to get to the Super Bowl. All week I really felt that the Jets were going to win this game, but once again they come up short. This Jets team was a tough out, and really they could make a claim that they could have won this year's Super Bowl. Rex Ryan said it was "Super Bowl or Bust" this season. The Jets had the target on their chest all year long and everything was about getting to the Super Bowl. The bottom line is that they did not deliver, and they failed to get to the Super Bowl; therefore, this season is considered a disappointment in my eyes. For a franchise that hasn't been to a Super Bowl since January of 1969, and a team that was picked by many to get to the Super Bowl, then back to back AFC Championship Game appearances is simply not enough. They have had a nice two year run, but the Jets still didn't deliver on their promise. As far as the future goes, no one knows what to expect in the offseason for the Jets. With the potential lockout and no CBA, we have no idea what the system will look like or how much it is going to change. The Jets have a lot of top free agents (Santonio Holmes, Braylon Edwards, Shaun Ellis, David Harris, Antonio Cromartie, and Brad Smith to name a few) that they have to make decisions on. It will be hard to keep a majority of them, and they must be smart and shrewd with their distribution of the pieces of the pie. The team will definitely be different next year. The questions are these in Jetland: Is the beginning of a real championship run, or is this team going to take a step backwards? Those answr