Maybe jumping the gun a bit on the Indians earlier this season, the Cleveland Indians are now in a battle for the AL Central crown after it seemed like they were going to run away with the division earlier this season. After that 23-11 start to the season, the Indians are 30-40 since, fading to 2 games behind the Detroit Tigers for first place in the AL Central. Perhaps it was youth that caught up with them, or just the fact that the Indians might have remembered that they’re a Cleveland sports team, with Cleveland’s recent history (be it basketball, baseball, or football).

Justin Masterson (8-7, 2.56 ERA) and Josh Tomlin (11-5, 4.01 ERA) have been the bright spots for the Indians rotation, with Masterson showing that he is getting ready to be the ace of the staff, and Tomlin basically being ready to be a “1A” type of pitcher, meaning that he could just as easily be the number one in the rotation for this team. Along with the acquisition of Ubaldo Jimenez (6-9, 4.46 ERA), the Indians are looking to have a solid 3-man setup at the top of the rotation, as well as a great 3-man rotation for a playoff push, if the Indians make it to the playoffs.

The problem facing the Indians, however, is the offense. After the early surge that the Indians had, the Indians are batting .245 as a team (22nd in the MLB), as well as Striking out 778 times. Not enough clutch hits, too many strikeouts. With the addition of Kosuke Fukudome, as well as the potential acquisition of Ryan Ludwick from the San Diego Padres (who played with the Indians from 2003-05), hope to add some pop to the lineup that the Indians are sorely missing with both Grady Sizemore and Shin-Soo Choo on the Disabled List with injuries.

There’s still a long way left in this season, and hopefully these deals that the Indians have made will get them back into the playoffs this season.

In case you haven’t been paying attention to what’s been happening in the MLB season, with the Phillies losing to the Marlins yesterday, the Cleveland Indians (23-11) currently have the best record in the MLB by a half game over the Phillies (23-12). The question is, is it time for fans to start believing in Cleveland again, or is at all too good to be true this early in the season?

With the return of Grady Sizemore from his knee injury earlier this season, the Indians have gained the power bat in the lineup that they were missing most of last season while Sizemore was injured. In only 18 games this season, Sizemore leads the team in Home Runs with 6. Sizemore, however, was not in the lineup today due to having a precautionary MRI on his knee (not the surgically repaired one) earlier today after aggravating it sliding into second base yesterday. Not only has Sizemore’s return been a great addition for the Tribe, Travis Hafner has seen something of a resurgence himself after a down season last year, leading the team with a .337 batting average.

Not only between those two, but Adam Everett and Lou Marson, both in limited playing time this season, are both batting over .300 for the team (Everett is batting .333 on the season with 24 at bats and Marson is batting .303 on the season with 33 at bats).

Not only has the offense been impressive for the Indians at the start of the season, the pitching has drastically improved as well. Justin Masterson, coming into his start today, is 5-0 with a 2.11 ERA. A major improvement over last year, when Masterson was still settling into his new role in the starting rotation. Fausto Carmona, who had a rocky first start of the season against the White Sox, is starting to settle into the role as the ace of the rotation that he was expected to be at the start of the season. The emergence of Josh Tomlin (4-1, 2.70 ERA) as a quality starter has also been a genuine surprise to many people watching the Indians this season, for sure. And with solid set up men in Tony Sipp, Chad Durbin, and Rafael Perez, getting to Chris Perez to close the game has been much easier for the Indians this season after the uncertainty in the bullpen last season.

Although the season is still too early on to make any good estimates on the team, it’s time for people to start paying attention to the Indians. This team is a great team that is getting no attention in the major media markets, and it’s time they start getting all that hype back again.

20 Seasons as an NBA Head Coach. 20 seasons in the NBA Playoffs. 11 NBA Championships. These are just a few of the numbers that you might hear when people talk about Phil Jackson in the near future as quite possibly the best NBA coach in history. Not only that, but you may also hear about some of the great teams that Phil Jackson has also had during his great career, and the way that he took all of those egos on one team and made them work so well together for so many years.

Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman. Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Ron Artest. Among many others that aren’t mentioned here. Not only was Phil Jackson able to lead these teams to great success, he led them to great success for many years consecutively. Winning many of his NBA Championships consecutively (‘90-‘93 with Chicago, ‘95-‘98 with Chicago, ‘99-‘02 with the Lakers, then again from ‘08-‘10 with the Lakers). Not only did Phil Jackson win 11 NBA championships in his career, he led his teams to 13 NBA Championships in his 20 years of coaching. That’s 65% of the time a Phil Jackson team has made it to the NBA Championship. Pretty impressive, if you ask me.

If Phil Jackson does retire, he will retire from coaching as, quite possibly, the best coach in NBA history. With all the accolades he has received in his NBA coaching history (Jackson was inducted in the NBA Hall of Fame in 2007 as a Coach), as well as all the great players that he has coached in his NBA coaching career, there is no reason not to think that he is up there in terms of the great coaches of the game, along with Red Auerbach.

It’s been a good run, Phil. If it was your last game, maybe people will remember you for all the great numbers that you put up in your NBA coaching career, instead of all the bad conflicts you’ve had during the years.

1987. For those of your who aren’t familiar with what’s been going on in the NFL, this is the last time the NFL had a work stoppage and actually lost games because of it. Now, let’s flash forward to the year 2011. Labor talks have begun anew again, but before the two CBA extensions were agreed on last week, neither side even wanted to sit in the same room together as both sides were so far apart on any of the new bargains that the owners wanted.

The current CBA was supposed to expire Thursday, March 3rd, at 11:59 PM. however, both sides agreed to a 24 hour extension to the talks. Then, the next day, both sides agreed to extend the agreement until this upcoming Friday, March 11th, at 11:59 PM. What this means is, any time after the deadline, if no CBA has been agreed upon, the Owners can lock out the players until one is reached, thus stopping any games from being played. However, if the NFLPA decertifies itself before the end of the work day on the day the CBA expires, they can then turn around and file a lawsuit against the NFL, attempting to prevent the lockout.

There are two big issues that are keeping the players and the owners so far apart on a new CBA, along with the usual disagreements on revenue sharing. I’ll cover them in detail a little bit now.

Extending the Regular Season from 16 games to 18 games. I’ll agree with any other person in saying that the Preseason being 4 games is way too long. However, in this attempt to extend the Regular Season by 2 more games, this is just the NFL Owners saying “We’re not making enough money, let’s extend the season by two games and risk all of our star players getting hurt!”. Money, of course, is not a big issue for those teams that are making the playoffs and playing multiple games, however, teams that have continuously bad years and start losing fans are the ones that suffer the most from this, and they’re probably the ones amongst the owners that want this the most. That being said, if I’m a player in the NFL, I’m not liking this one bit, simply because it’s 2 more weeks of me running the risk of having a career ending injury, especially with the major attention to detail being had with concussions in the past few years. I’d agree to having less preseason games, but not the extension of the regular season to 18 games.

Rookie Salary Scaling. This, to me, is not quite as major an issue as revenue sharing or the regular season extension is, however, this is still pretty important. There is no way that a player, whether he was great in college or not, is worth more money before he’s even played a down in the NFL than a Tom Brady or a Peyton Manning. This is DEFINATELY something that should be looked into simply because the agents for these players that are just coming into the NFL are basically asking all of these ridiculous prices for players that are just coming out of college on the assumption that they’ll be just as good in college as they were in the NFL. How many players can you say have actually transitioned into the NFL (in recent years) and actually been as successful in the NFL as they were in college (I’m looking at YOU, Tim Couch)?

Eventually, I think the NFLPA and the owners association will be able to get a deal done before the expiration of the current CBA. However, it will probably come down to the final few hours of bargaining, and it will take some drastic change in the stance one side has about one of the issues that are on the table for the new CBA. All in all, expect there to be football this season.

I’m sure many of you have been paying attention to all of the media blitz coverage this week already, and the big drama around Roethlisberger and his team being out at a bar near their hotel and drinking a few days before the game, so I’m sure I don’t need to go into any detail about what each team should expect heading into tonight’s game in Dallas. So, instead of writing up a long, drawn out, detailed strategy for what each team should do, since I’m sure many of you know what’s going to happen tonight already (ESPN media coverage, anyone?), I’ll throw you a quick prediction for the game and be on my way.

  34 – 27

I’m not a big fan of either team heading into this game, really, but I just want to see the Packers win this game, being from Ohio and being a Cleveland fan and all. Also I don’t want to hear any stories about “Pittsburgh Dynasty” for the next 10 years if the Steelers do end up winning this game. If the Steelers do win this game, however, it will be their third Super Bowl victory in the last 6 season, and we will have to start talking about “Dynasty” with them.

Injuries. Lack of experience. No team chemistry. Terrible team defense. You could use any of these reasons to try to explain the ongoing record setting streak of 24 straight losses that the Cleveland Cavaliers are on right now. However, one thing that you cannot doubt them for, is their desire to ditch their losing ways sometime in the near future.

Since the Cavaliers beat the Knicks back on December 18th, 109-102, the Cavs have not won a single game since. In fact, in the months of December through February combined, the Cleveland Cavaliers are 1-34. Overall, the Cavaliers sit at a record of 8-43. One thing that the Cavs have to look forward to, however, is that they only have to win 2 games out of the next 31 to make sure they are not known as the worst NBA basketball team (record wise) in the history of the NBA. That prestigious title belongs to the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers, who finished the season 9-73.

The main problem with the Cavaliers, looking at this from the perspective of a fan watching the games at home, is their lack of defensive prowess, and the killer instinct that teams need to finish off a victory at the end. The Cavs have neither of these, although for the first 46 minutes of the game the Cavs seem to be able to battle point for point with any team in the NBA currently.

Poor Byron Scott. Little did he know what he was getting himself into in Cleveland when LeBron James left for Miami. Last year, with James, the Cavs were the first team in the NBA to reach 40 wins. This year, without James, they are the first team to reach 40 losses on the season. You can’t say this is all because of James, however, as one player does not a team make. However, sadly, from the outside, this is probably what it feels like to many a fan in the seats, or at home watching them.

Injuries have plagued the Cavs. Anderson Varejao is out with an ankle injury, and Mo Williams is out with a Hip Flexor injury. Daniel Gibson is back in the lineup after missing a few games with a quad injury, and Leon Powe is out with a torn knee meniscus. Varejao, being the only real big man the Cavs had, has left a huge hole in the offense for them. Perhaps, before the trade deadline, it might be a good time to try and trade for an actual big man. JJ Hickson is good on the inside, but he’s not really ready to be called a perennial big man yet.

Is it time to start looking forward to the NBA Draft this offseason for the Cavaliers? Probably. Is there hope for the Cavs to turn their season around and get out of this 34 losses in the last 35 games streak? Absolutely. It all comes down to the drive the players have, and how well coach Byron Scott can keep them motivated heading into the home stretch of the NBA Season. Time will tell with this team, that’s for sure. Maybe not this year, but in the future, this team has a lot of young talent on it.

A quick rundown of the NFL Championship weekend for you guys, about an hour before kickoff of the NFC Championship game.

3:00 PM: Chicago Bears vs. Green Bay Packers

This is the 182nd matchup of these two teams in their prestigious history, but only the 2nd to come in the playoffs. The last time they met in the Playoffs was way back on December 14th, 1941. This game saw the Bears beating the Packers, 33-14.

In their two matchups this season, the series was split. The Bears beat the Packers 20-17 in September, capitalizing on the Packers’ team record 18 penalties. In the final week of the season, which was a win and in for the Packers, the Packers beat the Bears, 10-3. Jay Cutler looked like the Jay Cutler of early season in that game, making many of the same mistakes he was earlier in the year.

Two fierce rivals head into today’s game, both with one goal in mind: Making it to the Super Bowl. As much as people want to think that this game is about the 2 defenses on the field today, it’s more about the performance of the two young quarterbacks in this game, Aaron Rodgers and Jay Cutler. Whichever one makes fewer mistakes will probably be leading his team to victory. I expect Rodgers to lead the Packers into the Super Bowl.

  31 – 17

6:30 PM: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. New York Jets

The New York Jets must feel untouchable heading into tonight’s game against the Steelers. The Jets, under head coach Rex Ryan, have beaten two of the most dominant quarterbacks in the NFL leading up to this game in Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. Now, they get their shot at another high profile quarterback this week: Ben Roethlisberger.

The silence heading into this game after all the trash talk the Jets have been talking the last few weeks is astounding. However, it is to be expected, because this upcoming game is for a trip to the Super Bowl, and the Jets did not want to give the Steelers any bulletin board material heading into tonight’s game.

This could be huge for coach Mike Tomlin. He could be heading to the Super Bowl again in his short coaching career with the Steelers, and if he makes it and wins, he will have more Super Bowl wins than Bill Cowher in a much shorter amount of time. The surprising thing is, Cowher picked the Jets to beat the Steelers tonight! Although the Jets didn’t give any bulletin board material to the Steelers, I think Bill Cowher did.

  27 – 14

Last week was a week of surprise in the NFC playoffs. The Seattle Seahawks, the first division winner to make the playoffs with a losing record (7-9), defeated the defending champion New Orleans Saints 41-36. Now, the Seahawks get to take their show on the road.

Chicago Bears vs. Seattle Seahawks

• An interesting matchup for a few reasons. First of all, I’m not sure how many people actually expected the Seahawks to win last week (even the people that are fans of the Seahawks, for that matter), and another being that the last time these two teams met (the game was in Chicago), the Seahawks beat the Bears, 23-20. Riding high off the win last weekend, expect the Seahawks to come in and possibly pull out another win in the playoffs. However, they might not find it as easy as they think. Linebacker Lofa Tatupu suffered a concussion in last week’s game, and has been unable to practice for the last few days. That, coupled with the fact that the Bears will probably do a much better job of protecting quarterback Jay Cutler this time around (he was sacked 6 times in the loss to the Seahawks back in Week 6). The Bears come into the playoffs following their bye last week, hoping that they can ride the great defense that Chicago has come to be known to have to another Super Bowl this season. However, don’t just think it’s the defense that is going to be performing well this week. Under the coordination of Mike Martz, the Bears offense is a force to be reckoned with now that they know what protecting the QB actually is.
• Last meeting: Week 6, Seattle beat Chicago, 23-20. Game was in Chicago.

Atlanta Falcons vs. Green Bay Packers

• If you’re looking for a great way to spend a Saturday evening in January, for a football fanatic, this is probably the day for you. Not only do you have the Ravens and Steelers playing in the first game of the day, but you follow that up with the night cap of Falcons and Packers. Coming off of their 21-16 victory over the Eagles last week, the Packers come into this game which will pit two of the better up and coming quarterbacks in the NFL against each other, Matt Ryan vs. Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers threw three touchdown passes last week to lead the Packers to victory. The offense in Green Bay has become more balanced, with the young rookie James Starks surging onto the scene last weekend, rushing for 123 yards. Can the Packers keep that balance on offense against the Falcons defense this week? Or will Matt Ryan lead the Falcons to another home win with him as the starting QB? In case you were wondering, Matt Ryan as a starter at home is 20-2.
• Last meeting: Week 12, Atlanta beat Green Bay, 20-17. Game was in Atlanta.

Saturday is going to be a great day for football. Time to clean out some room on the schedule to watch both games.

Predictions:

  17 – 13

   24 – 14

It’s almost time for the Divisional playoffs to get underway, and that means it’s time for a preview of this weekend’s action. We’ll start off with the AFC

New England Patriots vs. New York Jets

• Last week, we saw the Jets go into Indianapolis and win a close game on the road, 17-16. In the game against the Colts, it was all about Rex Ryan vs. Peyton Manning. This week? It’s all about Rex Ryan vs. Bill Belicheck. For the Patriots, it was another season of business as usual for them, going about what they needed to do to be the number 1 seed in the AFC again. And of course, for the Jets, it’s all about running their mouths and anything they can say that might spark a reaction. I don’t mind it, because this is what the Jets are known for off the field, and I don’t see any reason for them to stop as long as they keep winning. The problem for the Jets this week? Simple. Don’t get run out of New England (again) in the embarrassing way they did back during the regular season, losing to the Pats 45-3 back in Week 13 of the season. If the Jets defense can back up their talk off the field with their play on the field, the Jets might have a shot at not losing the game in such disgraceful fashion this weekend
• Season Matchups:
• Week 2: Jets win, 28-14 (game in New York)
• Week 13: Patriots win, 45-3 (game in New England)

Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Baltimore Ravens

• The Baltimore Ravens headed into Kansas City last week and showed many of the flaws that a young up and coming Chiefs team had, beating them 30-7 in a game that was never really that close after the opening quarter. Joe Flacco had an impressive game, throwing for 265 yards and 2 Touchdowns in the win. Now, it’s time for them to come to the Steel City and take on the Steelers for a third time this season. Another fierce divisional rivalry (The Jets/Patriots rivalry is on the rise again, but this one is probably the best in the NFL at the moment), the Steelers getting the first round bye came in the last game of the season. What you can expect to see in this game between these two teams is the typical smash mouth type of football that these two teams are known for playing year in and year out. Expect this game to be a low scoring affair, and hopefully the team that wins will have enough players able to suit for the Championship game!
• Season Matchups:
• Week 4: Ravens win, 17-14 (game in Pittsburgh)
• Week 13: Steelers win, 13-10 (game in Baltimore)

Both games promise to be greatly entertaining. Let’s hope they both live up to the hype and everything else the sports media has been paying attention to for the last week and don’t end up being total duds in terms of excitement.

Predictions:

  31 – 24

  14 – 13

This season was a season of redemption for Michael Vick with the Eagles, but it was also a season of the “What if” for the NFC West. These topics will be covered in a bit, but for now, the season in review for each team.

1. Atlanta Falcons (13-3) – NFC South Champs

• The season before Matt Ryan came to be the QB of the Falcons (Ryan was the starting QB for the Falcons in 2008), they were in complete disarray. In 2007, the Falcons lost Michael Vick during the dog fighting saga. Bobby Petrino bolted for Arkansas, who is playing in the Sugar Bowl tonight. That season, they went 4-12. Since then, the Falcons have not had a record worse than 9-7.  In 2008, the Falcons posted an 11-5 record before losing to the Cardinals in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. 2009 saw the Falcons just barely missing the playoffs with a 9-7 record, and this year, the Falcons are the number one seed in the NFC with a 13-3 record. As long as Matt Ryan, Roddy White, and Tony Gonzales are on that offense for the Falcons, they can go far in the playoffs.

2. Chicago Bears (11-5) – NFC North Champs

• What a wacky year it has been for the Chicago Bears. From the low points of the season (losing to the Giants 17-3, Jay Cutler getting sacked 9 times in one game), to the good (posting a record of 7-3 in games decided by 7 points or fewer), the Bears have seen both the highs and lows that an NFL season can bring. The offense was anything but spectacular this season (28th in Passing offense, 22nd in rush offense overall), but the Bears don’t pride themselves on playing offense, they pride themselves on playing defense. Boasting the 2nd ranked rush defense in the NFL, the Bears defense will be a force to be reckoned with, and as long as the Bears offense can score a touchdown or two for them, the Bears will probably win in the playoffs.

3. Philadelphia Eagles (10-6) – NFC East Champs

• What a season of redemption this has been for one Michael Vick. Vick started off this season as the backup to Kevin Kolb, who early in the season ended up suffering a concussion. This opened the door for Vick, who has since had a monster season. Even with missing a few games with broken ribs during the middle of the season, that did not stop Vick from throwing for 3,018 yards and 21 touchdowns, and it also didn’t stop him from rushing for 676 yards and 9 touchdowns. Over 3,500 yards of total offense generated and 30 touchdowns. It’s a shame Vick is in the same league as Tom Brady, or Vick would be the hands down winner of this year’s MVP Award.

4. Seattle Seahawks (7-9) – NFC West Champs

• This has been a season of firsts for the Seattle Seahawks. First year coach Pete Carroll is leading the Seahawks to the playoffs as the first division winner that made it to the playoffs with a losing record. Pete Carroll has said that he likes to be a coach of “Firsts”. Well, he has that chance, and it shows. The Seahawks are nothing short of a mediocre team when it comes to playing both offense and defense. In their 9 losses this season, the Seahawks lost by an average of 21 points per game., and the only real impressive win the Seahawks have on their resume is a win against the Bears back in October. Pete Carroll might have another first on his resume after this upcoming weekend against the Saints: First Division winner with a losing record to get destroyed by their opponent. In all honesty I would have rather seen the Giants or a team that was more deserving get in, but this is the way it’s going to be, so we’ll have to deal with one playoff game that isn’t going to be very good this weekend.

5. New Orleans Saints (11-5) – Wild Card

• The defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints come into the playoffs this season with their explosive Passing offense led by Drew Brees seeking the repeat. The biggest obstacle standing in the way of the Saints is this: The New Orleans Saints, in their years as an NFL Franchise, have never won a “True” road playoff game. This weekend seems to be the ideal time to get it done, as the Saints head to Seattle to take on the Seahawks in a game that pits one of the best offenses in the league, against one of the worst defenses in the league. If the Saints plan to get back to the Super Bowl again, they’re going to have to win at least 2 “True” Road playoff games, maybe 3. If they can prove to do this when they haven’t done it before, there is nothing stopping the Saints from at least getting back to the Super Bowl.

6. Green Bay Packers (10-6) – Wild Card

• With a win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday, the Green Bay Packers are back in the playoffs as a wild card. Aaron Rodgers has led an explosive Packers Pass offense into the playoffs, ready to head into Philly and possibly steal a win. This is the big thing separating the Packers from the Bears, their offense is more explosive than the Bears. The Bears defense, however, does have the slight edge over the Packers defense. I would not be surprised, however, to see the Packers be the team that might surprise people and get to the Super Bowl from the number 6 seed.

The only real question mark I have with any of these teams is the fact that a team from the NFC West even had to make the playoffs. I wouldn’t have minded had the Rams won and made the playoffs as an 8-8 team, but a team with a losing record getting a spot in the playoffs just does not seem like a great thing to me. Sure, they won their division, but that division was nothing but the weakest division in the NFL all season. Perhaps the NFL should have just let another team in and left the Seahawks out.

Prediction: New Orleans Saints return to the Super Bowl.

Now that the playoff teams have been covered, here’s a brief review of the rest of the teams in the NFC.

New York Giants (10-6)

• Would the real New York Giants like to stand up and please show up for a football game? What an up and down season this has been for the Giants. They are ranked in the top 10 in all the offensive and defensive categories (10th overall in Passing offense, 6th overall in Rushing offense, 9th in Passing defense, and 8th in rushing defense), the problem is, the Giants just didn’t show up for 6 of those games this season. As much respect as I have for Tom Coughlin, I think it’s time for a change in New York. The team just seems to lock him out at points, and just doesn’t play to their full potential at times. The Giants could have easily been a 13-3 or 12-4 team and in the playoffs contending for a Super Bowl bid. Instead, they’re left sitting at home for another season wondering “What if”.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-6)

• What a turnaround for second year coach Raheem Morris. After going 3-13 in his first season as head coach of the Bucs, Morris has taken his team and turned them into a playoff contender for years to come. Quarterback Josh Freeman led a balanced attack on offense this season. The only major issue that the Bucs have to patch up this offseason? They need to fix their run defense. Their run defense was 28th in the NFL, allowing over 130 yards per game. If they can patch that up, we might be talking about the Bucs as NFC South champions next season.

St. Louis Rams (7-9)

• In what can only be described as a turnaround season for the Rams (this is their best record since going 8-8 in 2006), they have found their quarterback of the future in Sam Bradford. Bradford made great strides this season in the right direction, however, he needs to improve his decision making in the red zone. Too many mistakes in the Red Zone cost the Rams this season. If the Rams can make a few key additions over the offseason and the draft, there’s nothing stopping them from making it to the playoffs next season in the weakest division in the NFL.

Detroit Lions (6-10)

• The Detroit Lions did something this year that haven’t done in a long time. Finished the season on a 4 game winning streak. Although most teams wouldn’t be happy with 6-10, the Detroit Lions should be, seeing as they were the first team to go 0-16 in NFL history just 2 years ago. Jim Schwartz has stepped up the expectations in Detroit, and let’s hope they keep going that way.

Minnesota Vikings (6-10)

• How bad was the Vikings year? Well, let me tell you. Brad Childress was fired, the Metrodome roof collapsed, Brett Favre came back (again), then he got injured and finally ended his streak of consecutive starts at 297. Now, just maybe, Favre will finally step away from the game for good. You can’t put this all on Favre, as Childress made a royal mess of things himself, but it’s time for Favre to go and give the reins of the offense over to Tavaris Jackson. Leslie Frazier will be head coach of the Vikings next season, after leading the team to a 3-3 record down the stretch. A good choice? We’ll have to wait and see.

San Francisco 49ers (6-10)

• Mike Singletary was fired with one game left in the season. This, although many people in the bay area probably expected it to happen, still confuses me. Why would you do it with only one game left in the season? Let the man finish up the season instead of firing him when there’s only one game left in the season. Give the man the honor of leading his team one last time even if he knows he’s not returning. Oh well, at least now the 49ers can start trying to hire Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh to the same position! Singletary will find a job somewhere else, although it probably won’t be as a head coach, but as a defensive coordinator.

Dallas Cowboys (6-10)

• Tony Romo got injured. Wade Phillips was fired. Jason Garrett was thrown into the job of head coach for the remainder of the season on an interim basis. Now, that interim tag is gone and he is coach of one of the biggest media market teams in the NFL. Will Garrett be able to handle the pressure that comes with being the head coach of a team owned by Jerry Jones? We’ll find out soon enough.

Washington Redskins (6-10)

• The last of the teams that went 6-10 in the NFC, Donovan McNabb cannot be pleased with the treatment that he got from the Shanahan family in Washington. Being benched in the final two minutes of game because he wasn’t “athletic enough” and “Rex Grossman gave them a better chance to win” straight to just flat out being benched for the final 2 games of the season so Rex Grossman could start did nothing but hurt the reputation of Mike Shanahan. In truth, Shanahan isn’t even that great of a mind in coaching, as he hasn’t won anything in the NFL without that QB named John Elway on his team. Hopefully Donovan gets cut free of that contract in Washington so he can go somewhere where he will be accepted as the great QB that he is.

Arizona Cardinals (5-11)

• The quarterback carousel was in full swing in Arizona this season, with the Cardinals switching between Derek Anderson, John Skelton, and Max Hall for a majority of the season. The Cardinals have a lot of holes to fill, starting with that offense (last in passing offense, 31st in rushing offense) before they can even start to think to get back to respectability, even in the NFC West.

Carolina Panthers (2-14)

• John Fox is out as Panthers head coach. Many people in the NFL have a lot of respect for Fox. Don’t be surprised if he’s at the top of many teams boards as their new head coach. If Andrew Luck (Stanford QB) declares for the NFL Draft this season, don’t be surprised if the Panthers take him with the number on pick. Jimmy Clausen does not look like the quarterback of the future for the Panthers.

This wraps up the NFC season in review. Don’t forget to check out the AFC in Review, and enjoy the playoffs!