The Green Bay Packers are in the position to win the Super Bowl because of a couple of factors.  One is there extraordinary defense.  The other would be Aaron Rodgers, who broke out in a major way this postseason and is now a household name.  Though he was already considered one of the better signal callers in the league prior to the year, it took a Super Bowl run to finally bring him into the mainstream spotlight.  Now the secret is out.  But his success isn’t just his own as it gives a blueprint to the rest of the league how to win.

Read More

Despite being the overall stronger conference, the AFC didn’t prove it on the field yesterday during the annual Pro Bowl.  Without a chance to practice much with their teammates, neither side looked particularly sharp and the AFC ended up dropping the game 55-41.  The game started with the AFC getting off to a brutal start.  Replacing Tom Brady, Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers was the starting signal caller for the AFC, though he threw two interceptions, one of which was taken back the other way for six.  Rivers looked out of sync, as did both Peyton Manning and Matt Cassel, who also threw interceptions in the first half.

Read More

With the Super Bowl still a ways a way due to the extra week off, fans and players have had plenty of time to sit and contemplate the conclusion of the season. The Chargers certainly had dreams of playing for the title in Dallas, but, as it turns out, they’ll have to watch along with the rest of the world as the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers square off in the new, monstrous field in Jerry Jones’ backyard. The Packers and Steelers figure to be very close in terms of the betting line once kickoff time comes around and early lines had the Packers favored by three points.

Read More

With James Harrison preparing for another Super Bowl, the star linebacker won’t be participating this weekend in the Pro Bowl. Instead, Chargers linebacker Shaun Phillips will take up the spot in his stead after a very good season, one in which Phillips was the top sack guy on the squad with 11 in total. While the Chargers largely struggled to get consistent pressure on the opposing quarterback, Phillips was a bright spot, and a main reason that the Chargers finished as the number one rated passing defense.

Read More

When LaDainian Tomlinson was growing up, he dreamed of one day being on the Dallas Cowboys, just like everyone else he grew up with in Waco, Texas.  Well, he hasn’t exactly ended up with Big D, but that doesn’t mean he won’t have a chance to play for a championship in the city he idolized.  With the Super Bowl being played in Dallas this season, Tomlinson is just one game away from playing in Dallas for a chance to win a Super Bowl, something he says he has been thinking about since he was six years old.

Read More

After a great season with Kansas City, Matt Cassel is now headed to the Pro Bowl, where he will replace Tom Brady.  Brady recently had a minor foot surgery following the season, though he’s expected to be ready for training camp for the start of next year.  Cassel had easily his best year as a pro, helping guide the Chiefs to a 10-6 record and having one of the highest QB ratings in the league in the process.  After being fairly mediocre in Kansas City in his first season with the team (2009), Cassel ended up with a 27:7 touchdown to interception ratio.

Read More

With only three games left this season in the NFL, the year is starting to come to a close.  This weekend, the AFC playoff picture will come down to a physical game between two of the better defenses in the league.  The Jets and the Steelers both play a ball control style of offense and are backed by strong defenses.  In the Steelers’ case, they had a historically good rush defense this year, which will make it difficult on LaDainian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene to move the ball.  The Jets have mainly been getting by with strong secondary play and getting pressure on the quarterback.

Read More

No matter how brilliant LaDainian Tomlinson’s career was in San Diego, the Chargers were never able to put it together and make a real run at a title.  In his first year in New York with the Jets, LT is doing exactly that and heads into a big weekend in the NFL.  In the AFC Championship game, Tomlinson will be joined by former Charger Antonio Cromartie, who comes off of a big game last weekend against the New England Patriots.  While Cromartie was able to back up his trash talking and help shut down the Pats passing attack last week, Tomlinson had his first career playoff receiving TD and continues to be a vital part of the Jets offense.

Read More

It looked like the Steelers and Patriots were destined to clash in the AFC Championship game heading into the weekend.  After the Steelers held up their end of the bargain, holding off the Ravens 31-24, the Patriots fell flat against the New York Jets and ended up losing 28-21 in the surprise of the weekend.  In the game, second-year starter Mark Sanchez outplayed likely MVP Tom Brady and the Pats offense looked stagnant for most of the game.  Sitting at home, the Chargers were able to see the type of resolve necessary to overcome a tremendous favorite like the Patriots in a game that almost nobody – outside of the Rex Ryan and the Jets locker room – believed the Jets could actually win.  While the Jets dropped back in coverage, Brady couldn’t find anyone down the field and they weren’t able to overcome the Jets with their usual underneath passes to Wes Welker and Danny Woodhead.

Read More

What is clear about the AFC looking at the teams currently still alive in the playoffs is that they are all mentally tough, cold weather football teams.  While the Chargers have been an explosive team for a while, it hasn’t translated into a lot of playoff success while New England, Pittsburgh, Baltimore and New York have all seen plenty of postseason winning in recent years.  Though the Chargers should throw the ball, mainly due to the incredible talent of Philip Rivers, they need to find a way to toughen up their roster so that they can compete with teams better prepared for a postseason run.

Read More