The parallels continue. The Giants go into Green Bay and beat the No. 1 seed. They win the NFC championship game in overtime by a Lawrence Tynes field goal. They advance to the Super Bowl to face a dominant offensive juggernaut from Foxboro. It's deja vu all over again. Or so it seems. Unlike the Patriots of 2007, this year's version does not have the downfield threat known as Randy Moss. Instead, they throw slants and out patterns with a quick wide receiver stolen from the Dolphins and... Read More >>

As Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers prepares to make his sixth postseason start Sunday against the New York Giants, it will be the first chance for the Lambeau Field crowd to see the quarterback in a playoff game. "We're hoping for a great crowd and a loud, raucous environment," Rodgers said Wednesday in the locker room. Rodgers will probably have a hand in determining how loud and raucous Lambeau Field will be Sunday. When the postseason starts, Rodgers plays his best. His... Read More >>

Dissecting some of Bucs' coaching candidates ... Mike Sherman The leading candidate in the Bucs' head coaching search, he interviewed with the front office last week. As former head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the height of the Bucs- Packers NFC Central rivalry, Sherman is best known for leading Brett Favre and a prolific offense, along with an infamous altercation with Warren Sapp. In 2001, his role with the Packers expanded to general manager, making him the only... Read More >>

The Titans were still alive in the playoff picture when they left the field in Houston with a 23-22 win over the Texans. Later developments and tiebreakers knocked them out despite a 9-7 record. Stars of the Game Offense: Donnie Avery The seldom used speedster had a big day. His first catch as a Titan was a touchdown, and he added two more catches for a total for 45 yards. Defense: Jurrell Casey The defensive tackle had two sacks, two tackles for loss and 2 QB hurries. ... Read More >>

If Saturday's 27-0 domination of the St. Louis Rams is the last time Hines Ward suits up for the Steelers in Heinz Field, he will go out on top -- of the Steelers' record books. The 35-year-old Steelers receiver is the franchise's all-time leader in yards, receptions and receiving touchdowns. He is only five catches away from 1,000. If Ward makes it, he will become just the third player in NFL history with 1,000 catches and multiple Super Bowl wins. Jerry Rice and Art Monk are the others.... Read More >>

Wow, this one got ugly in a hurry. Not the offense. The offense actually improved significantly as the game progressed. Not the defense. The defense played a more competitive game than they did perhaps all of last season in any contest. Special teams and yellow laundry can be thanked for this loss. We could go on analyzing every block on the Ted Ginn returns, and pick apart the performance of the coverage teams, but fans should really spend more time appreciating some of the pleasant... Read More >>

Things could have gotten worse for the Niners this weekend: The latest loss could actually have counted in the standings. But it doesn’t, so the horrible, stinking, filthy, impossible to watch mess that the Niners were on Saturday is already old news. Don’t get me wrong, the images of Alex Smith’s 2.8 quarterback rating (I still don’t really understand a lot about quarterback ratings, but I know 2.8 is brutal), the Niners' 105 total yards, Kaepernick's 52 yards passing yards, another... Read More >>

Sometimes I like to pretend that the NFL lockout did not end. I also like to pretend I am closer to 20 than I am to 40 and that I will one day write the great American novel. It's called living in denial and going into the upcoming football season I want to pretend the team I will be rooting for does not have the roster of the 2011 Miami Dolphins. Our off-season began with owner Stephen Ross chasing after Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh to be the new Dolphins headman. Harbaugh declined and... Read More >>

While the city of New Orleans had been hyperventilating at the thought of the return of professional football, most of Friday night's preseason opener against the San Francisco 49ers was about as anticlimactic as "Watch the Throne." Sloppy play by both offenses early on appeared to drive a significant portion of the Superdome crowd to the French Quarter before halftime. There were, however, a few under-the-radar Saints whose play went a long way toward strengthening their claim on New... Read More >>

1. Dan Bailey has a good shot to be the next kicker. His kickoffs were fine. In fact, I might prefer the depth on his kicks to David Buehler's booming them through the end zone. I would have liked to see the rookie attempt a FG. I'm not big on first-year kickers, but if the knock on this guy is his kickoffs, I didn't see a problem in this game. 2. Rookie fourth-round pick Dan Arkin played pretty well. He seemed technically sound but was overmatched by Kevin Vickerson a few times. Arkin... Read More >>

As Leslie Frazier’s Vikings took the practice field in Mankato in pads for the first time Thursday, fan expectation for 2011 has likely lessened from a year ago -- but not by much. After an incredible 2009 campaign led them to an NFC championship appearance, Brett Favre's magic ended with a thud after an injury-riddled, 6-10 record last season. But just when you thought it was Minnesota’s time to enter the proverbial "rebuilding stage" after selecting Florida State quarterback... Read More >>

The arrival of Tyler Thigpen and even Brad Smith should be a welcome addition to Ryan Fitzpatrick, as it will give him another player to share the reps with, so he gets a break more often. Levi Brown, on the other hand, may not be smiling, as now he will have to look over his shoulder. Smith is listed as a quarterback but can play a bunch of other positions. With the new NFL rules, the Bills will probably look to keep him on as the third QB and then insert him into the game at different... Read More >>

In recent years training camp at Redskins Park resembled center stage at a Ringling Brothers circus. With Albert Haynesworth and Donovan McNabb sent packing, there are no superstars on the 2011 Redskins team. The focus of the media along with the dwindling camp crowds is on the weather and the economy, not the antics of a select few. Frankly, Redskins training camp has been very boring and the players like it that way. "I'm OK with camp being a little boring," third-year... Read More >>

There is absolutely nothing that Bill Belichick and the Patriots could do that would surprise me. Nothing. It wasn't always this way. I remember being shocked when they cut Lawyer Milloy, baffled when they traded Richard Seymour, and bewildered when they went for the infamous 4th & 2 against the Colts. After that, my tolerance for Belichick's power moves grew to the point that last year's Randy Moss trade wasn't all that surprising. I've learned not to question the man who has... Read More >>

The Panthers were one of the most active teams in the free agency market Wednesday. Just a day after inking breakout defensive end Charles Johnson to a six-year, $78 million contract, the Panthers locked up running back DeAngelo Williams for five years with a $43 million deal, $21 million of which is guaranteed. But they didn’t stop there. Carolina continued signing current Panthers by agreeing to five-year deals with linebackers James Anderson and Thomas Davis. Anderson is coming off... Read More >>

I have pretty good season tickets but, as a lark, I recently called the Jets to see what was still available. In particular, I inquired about the upper level because, as you likely know, this level has no Personal Seat License (PSL). Surprisingly, the Jets still have pretty good seats available. They had two in section 340, rows 16 and 17, allowing for a family of four to sit together at the 40-yard line. Section 340 is just off the prime upper level section and rows 16 and 17 are only... Read More >>