UNITED STATES─I totally understand why people can become so frustrated while watching sports, particularly football. Why? The final week of NFL was perhaps some of the best football that I have witnessed in years. I mean there were some very fun football to watch, some games mattered more than others, but the one thing that became so evident to me was the officiating.
Last year was a major uproar when the New Orleans Saints (who has one of the best teams in the league right now), missed an opportunity to go to the Super Bowl because of a bad call made by referees while playing against the Los Angeles Rams.
Now the Saints finished the season with a 13-3 record and they will take on the Minnesota Vikings on January 4. Yes, that will be an interesting matchup between Kirk Cousins and Drew Brees. Not to mention the matchup between the Houston Texans and Buffalo Bills in the AFC Wild Card game on January 4. Like who knew Buffalo had such a strong team in 2019?
However, the biggest headscratcher for me is the matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Seattle Seahawks. I’ll get to the battle between Seattle and the San Francisco 49ers in a minute, but how in the hell is Philadelphia with a record of 9-7 hosting a playoff game against Seattle who has a record of 11-5? Somebody please explain that to me because it makes absolutely no damn sense.
Yes, I get that Philadelphia won their division by a very slim margin against the New York Giants, but this is unfathomable! Seattle is the better team and they have the better record, they should have home field advantage, it’s that plain and simple people. I guess I will never understand it, but I’m rooting hard for Seattle to dominate the Eagles and make their way to the NFC Championship game where (wouldn’t it be fun) if the Seahawks had to do battle against the 49ers?
I mean that game between Seattle and San Francisco was so damn good. It felt like the 49ers dominated, but Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch and the rest of the Seahawks rallied hard to the point where they were literally less than a freaking inch from a touchdown that would have given them the game. I felt Hollister’s elbow touched the white line, but the refs said otherwise. I was screaming at the TV screen and just livid; only in football can a game be that close and you not get the result you wanted. It was touted as the must-see game of the day and it totally delivered on multiple fronts.
For the AFC, hands down the Baltimore Ravens is the best team in the league right now and with a record of 14-2 it proves it. I just want to see them dominate that division and earn their ticket to the Super Bowl because it’s rightfully there time. Now who would I like to see them go toe-to-toe with. I like Seattle, I like the 49ers, I like the Saints. So if I’m being totally honest, I want to see a Super Bowl match between the Ravens and the Saints. I wouldn’t be made if it was the Ravens and the Seahawks, but my gut says its New Orleans year to prove their prowess yet again.
There will be some interesting games this coming weekend, but the Saints vs. Vikings and the Eagles vs. Seahawks, might have me glued to the TV screen more than the AFC matchups (Patriots vs. Titans and Houston vs. Buffalo), but who knows maybe I’ll be surprised this week. Only the NFL can deliver surprises that leave you frustrated, angry, happy, sad and excited all at the same time.
