Football is obviously the dominant subject in American sports right now. It's the last week of the NFL season so there are a few important games left to determine who's in and who's out of the playoffs, plus some games that matter for seeding. There will also be some games with teams playing out the string with nothing on the line other than draft position for next year. This is the unique time of year when fans actually get mad at their teams for winning. lol
There's also the college football National Championship Game tomorrow night featuring TCU, a true Cinderella, vs Georgia, a powerhouse trying to repeat as national champions.
In the NFL, there's basically only one win-and-you're-in scenario. The Green Bay Packers, after having been left for dead a few weeks ago at 4-8, are now looking for their 5th consecutive win at home tonight against the Detroit Lions. Detroit beat them earlier in the year 15-9 so this should be a very competitive game. Detroit also has a lot to play for as if they win they jump the Packers for the last spot. BUT, due to the tie-breaker rules in the NFL, they also need the Seattle Seahawks to lose. Seattle is at home against the Los Angelas Rams. That game is earlier so Detroit should know whether they can win and be in or only be playing to knock their rivals out of the playoffs.
Other games of note are the Eagles at home vs the Giants. The Eagles need to win to lock up the top seed in the NFC. The Giants, however, have nothing to play for as they are already set as the 6th seed. I expect the Eagles to win handily after dropping their last two games while the Giants rest some starters.
The only other games that really matter are the AFC East games: New York Jets at Miami and New England Patriots at Buffalo. Because of the horrific incident last Monday in the Cincinnati/Buffalo game, that game was never finished. The NFL has decided that since Buffalo and Kansas City could have finished with the same record, the AFC Championship game will be played at a neutral site should the two teams meet in that game. So, Buffalo has something to play for.
In the other game, the Jets are eliminated but Miami can still make the playoffs if they win and Buffalo beats the Patriots. If Miami and the Patriots both lose or if New England beats Buffalo, then they keep the final spot.
Should be a fun day of football.
Tomorrow night, on the other hand, is all about the pageantry. After all the regular season games, conference championships, and dozens of bowl games, it all comes down to one night with the lights of the football world on one stadium in California. TCU is a decided underdog with only 17 "blue-chip" recruits on their roster. Georgia has four times as many. TCU was predicted to finish 7th in their conference. Georgia has been favored to win their 2nd straight national title all season. It's a story about a team that shouldn't win yet keeps winning vs a team that should win and does it over and over again. That's why the play the game. You just never know. Should be fun to watch.
