The Diary of a Fantasy Virgin - Week 19 Jan 13, 2009 | More

The playoffs arrived, and with playoff weekend comes the outcome of your bets. I was 2-2 again, and for the first time in six years, I did not pick the participants in the final game of the year with eight teams remaining. Oh well. All good things must really come to an end, right? Speaking of ends, let me spend some time wrapping up the week that was.

Tell Me Why I Don’t Like … Saturdays!

In all respect to Sir Bob Geldof, who sang a song about not liking Mondays as a member of the Boomtown Rats, I seem to not like Saturdays. I am 0-4 on Saturdays and 4-0 on Sundays this playoff year. It is a topsy-turvy time in the National Football League, my friends. The games are amazing theatre. They seem to be the original reality programming. Maybe that is what draws us to professional sports: the reality of it all.

It started off with the Baltimore Ravens going in to visit the No. 1 seeded Tennessee Titans. The Titans dominated every statistic. When they got close, they fumbled the ball. Baltimore’s defense bent but never broke, and Joe Flacco became the first rookie ever to win two playoff games in the history of the NFL. The Titans are a great example of having all of the talent but none of the execution. One less turnover or even a touchdown instead of a field goal at the end of the game and Baltimore goes home. Oh well.

Then the Arizona Cardinals took advantage of six turnovers to win. Yes, I was correct. That would be five interceptions and one fumble. Need I say more? How did Arizona not win 50-13 with six turnovers? Oh yeah, they are the Cardinals!

The next game was very entertaining. We visited Linda who invited us over to her house. Linda is a stalwart NY Giant fan. It really is fun being with a passionate fan of a team in the playoffs. Linda jumps. Linda shouts. Linda makes fun of people via text messaging. Oh. And then the Giants stink up the joint and Linda screams. But it was a lot of fun and the food was excellent. The Eagles really took it to the Giants and the team seemed really lethargic. It does make you appreciate teams that win it all the year before and still perform in the playoffs. Another No. 1 seed gone.

The last game saw the Steelers dominate the second half unlike any team I have recently seen. The Steelers took advantage of two turnovers in the third quarter to have the time of possession be 14:43 out of 15:00. That is crazy talk. That is ludicrous. That is brilliant football and a little bit of luck. The San Diego Charges could have easily won this game but they never really had the ball enough in the second half. With the snow coming down in Pittsburgh, it made for a real visual experience.

And then there were four!

Sunday’s Games

First up on Sunday is the Philadelphia Eagles at the Arizona Cardinals. How did the Cardinals get this back home? With a lot of help because the No. 1 and No. 2 seed lost last week. What will happen when the Eagles hit those Cardinals hard? Will they bend and not break? Or will they break like a toothpick? This is a rematch of Turkey hangover evening. An evening that saw the Eagles put up 48 points and Arizona revealed a swiss cheese defense. Common sense says that the Cardinals win this no problem. But common sense has gotten me to a 4-4 record so I will abandon it. In a story reminiscent of Boston, Philadelphia gets another professional sports franchise to the championship game.

The second game is a bending but not yet broken Baltimore Ravens team visiting the Pittsburgh Steelers. Pittsburgh’s defense was No. 1 in the league in passing yards and points. They were only second in the league against the rush. Baltimore’s defensive resume is second only to the Steelers. They are second in passing yards and third in rushing and points. But the team that I saw playing against the Titans did not really seem like the smothering Baltimore defense of only a week earlier. So, the only way they can win is if Baltimore gambles early defensively and Joe Flacco stays cool. I say Baltimore gambles and goes down in flames. The Steelers win it with another monster defensive effort.

Master D.

Tim can now be reached at tdavoll@fantasysharks.com and welcomes your opinions on the Diary of a Fantasy Virgin Articles.