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I'm On a Partial Roll

Having 1-0-and 1 timorous weasel in yesterday's NFL playoff choices, I am obligated by the logic of fools to keep going.

My old pal Charles P. Pierce, whose Globe blog is excellent but causes me much peer pressure (it's not so bad being friends with a talented writer, but it's hell when he or she is a naturally prolific one and you're not) has opined this morning that Brett Favre is destined to do something Favreish to sink the Vikings against the Cowboys. Certainly history is on Charlie's side, but I am not sure I agree.

I am, in fact, very skeptical of the emerging consensus that Dallas has ended its years of season-ending failures through the exorcism ritual of beating the bejabbers out of the Eagles at home on back to back weeks. The Eagles injured offensive line and smallish defensive front were about the best matchup Dallas could've wished for in a must-win situation. The Vikings, at least on the defensive front, pose a more severe test of manliness.

On December 1, it was my opinion that Minnesota was the class of the NFC, and possibly the entire NFL. I will let that opinion ride today, holding my breath each time Favre lets one go.

The Jets-Chargers game is less of a riddle. Much less. Every year, some team makes the playoffs with the Jets' formula of strong defense-run the ball-make sure the quarterback doesn't fuck up. These teams NEVER win the Super Bowl, and almost never win road playoff games. To win in championship competition, a team needs its quarterback to help win games, not merely avoid contributing negative plays. That means letting the quarterback take a certain amount of risk, like it or not.

In other words, I can very easily see Mark Sanchez having the sort of game my friend Chas and about 50 million other people expect Favre to suffer in the early game.

posted by Michael Gee @ 8:43 AM