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Wild Card Weekend: Coolest football weekend of the year, man. When I was a kid, Championship Sunday was my favorite. Yet, after watching enough blowouts in the '80s, this weekend morphed into the best. Yes, I like this more than the Divisional Round because a) it kicks off the playoff season; and b) it's a weekend in which a dozen teams are still in the championship hunt. The recently retired Tom Coughlin earned his first Super Bowl title with a wild-card team in 2007. Another two-time Super Bowl-winning head coach, Tom Flores, earned his first Lombardi Trophy as a wild card with the 1980 Oakland Raiders -- although he didn't receive the love Coughlin has been showered with this week. Will any of the non-division winners take the Super Bowl 50 crown? See below. And, as always, share your take: @HarrisonNFL is the place. Houston is the place where the fun gets started, so we begin there ... Elliot Harrison went 8-8 on his predictions for Week 17, giving him a record of 151-105 so far this season. How will he fare on Wild Card Weekend? His picks are below. SATURDAY 4:35 PM ET ESPN 24 17 Kansas City continues its white-hot streak, taking down the Texans in front of their home crowd. Houston has fared well in these wild-card home games in the past, toppling the Bengals in the 2011 and 2012 postseasons. But Cincy committed significant turnovers in those contests, the likes of which I don't think we'll see from this Chiefs team. Kansas City, despite uncharacteristically turning the ball over twice vs. the Raiders last week, still has just 15 giveaways on the season (second-fewest in the NFL). Even if K.C. does cough up the ball, the rejuvenated defense -- with a healthier Justin Houston, resurgent Tamba Hali and improved Dee Ford -- should be able to hold the fort. There has been much banter regarding the Texans being the caboose, the weak link, the overused pun of the playoff field. Whatever. Let's celebrate the fact that Bill O'Brien has gotten to this point despite the fact that he got a grand total of 163 rushing yards this season from one of the best all-around backs in the game ( Arian Foster, who logged just four games due to injuries). Once again, Alfred Blue, Jonathan Grimes, Chris Polk and Akeem Hunt (Who? An undrafted rookie from Purdue ...) will be relied upon to provide balance for Brian Hoyer. They gained 160 yards against the Jags' defense in Week 17. Uh, this ain't Jacksonville they're facing. The Chiefs have allowed a scant 13.5 points per game over the last 12. And since their Week 9 bye, the Texans have yielded ... 13.5 points per game. Can you say "defensive slugfest"? Thinking Hoyer turns it over, spotting Kansas City six points. #KCvsHOU SATURDAY 8:15 PM ET CBS 23 22 Time to pop some Sudafed and giddy up -- or something like that. Ben Roethlisberger sent a message to Martavis Bryant this week, something to the effect of Two catches for six yards the last two weeks isn't stepping up. Pittsburgh has turned it on at this time in years past, though the Le'Veon Bell injury derailed their Sevenburgh aspirations last year. Roethlisberger played through several injuries as a second-year player (which is precisely where Bryant is in his career), yet managed to lead the Steelers to a Super Bowl title that season -- a playoff run that began with a road win in Cincinnati during Wild Card Weekend. Meanwhile, the general consensus seems to be that the Bengals are weaker sans Andy Dalton (his status for Sunday doesn't look too promising), making Pittsburgh lock city to many folks. How people are so quick to dismiss AJ McCarron is a bit weird. He has performed viably in his three starts, winning two. Sure, the two victories came against the 49ers and Ravens, but what's the guy supposed to do -- lobby the schedule makers to abruptly switch things up so he can play the Patriots and Seahawks and prove his worth? Come on. Sure, the two interceptions during the loss to Pittsburgh in Week 14 hurt. You try playing a division rival after you get, oh, maybe five percent of the snaps in practice that week. For the record, I think a relatively healthy DeAngelo Williams would spell a win for Pittsburgh, but not because McCarron wets himself in a big game. If no Williams, it's Fitzgerald Toussaint's baby. And if that's the case, I'm less confident in the pick here. I mean, look, I have it as a one-point game as is ... #PITvsCIN SUNDAY 1:05 PM ET NBC 20 16 Seattle is looking like a real tough out right now. Tougher than Jay Buhner on a 3-0 count in the mid-'90s. (Buhner hit in the climate-controlled Kingdome, though. This sucker apparently is gonna be hovering around zero degrees.) Much of the fear factor has to do with Russell Wilson, who has been playing out of his freaking mind since mid-November. Over his last seven games, Wilson has thrown 24 touchdown passes against just one interception. And now he'll be getting Marshawn Lynch back. Now, Lynch is coming off a sports hernia -- that's a difficult injury. That said ... Beast Mode with fresh legs > almost every run D in the league. On that note, the Vikings must work to establish the run in the first half -- even if it is not working. Stay committed to getting one-on-ones outside. I'd love to see Norv Turner dial up a play action to hit a nine route down the sideline. Why not go deep early and send the Seahawks a message that their top-ranked scoring defense will have to play the whole field? At some point, Stefon Diggs or Mike Wallace must beat single coverage. If not, Kyle Rudolph had better be more involved than he was in Green Bay last week. The tight end had the same number of catches as the expected temperature Sunday. #zero #SEAvsMIN SUNDAY 4:40 PM ET FOX 27 17 I don't like the Packers in this game. I do like Kirk Cousins. Why? How about time to throw, for starters. That is a commodity that Aaron Rodgers has enjoyed little of over the last several weeks. Green Bay's franchise quarterback has gone down 13 times in the past fortnight, while being chased out of the pocket on countless others. Add to that the startling stat that he has suffered multiple sacks almost every week of the season. The last time he went down only once was in Week 3. Moreover ... I just wanted to use moreover in a sentence. Meanwhile, Cousins has been lights-out at home. Since that dud performance in Week 1 versus Miami, the resilient signal caller has gone 6-1 at FedExField, with 15 touchdowns and zero picks. His passer rating in those games? 123.7. And on the season, he led the NFL in completion percentage at 69.8. That boy good. Whichever team can run the football more effectively will have a tremendous advantage. Dear Alfred Morris, 100 yards at five yards per tote for the second straight week would be a surprising -- and wonderful -- development. #GBvsWAS http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000...s-ready-to-roll
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Legend
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Legend
Joined: Oct 2006
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KC
Pittsburgh
Vikings
Packers
![[Linked Image]](http://www.dawgtalkers.net/uploads/Punchsmack/punch.gif) “...Iguodala to Curry, back to Iguodala, up for the layup! Oh! Blocked by James! LeBron James with the rejection!”
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Dawg Talker
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I hope you are right about the Steelers, but without DeAngelo Williams this is going to be tough.
#gmstrong
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Legend
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Legend
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I am soooo torn on the Cinci-Pitt game.
On one hand, I absolutely HATE the idea of Pitt winning any more games.
On the other hand, I would find it absolutely hilarious for Cinci to, yet again, be one-and-done in the Playoffs.
Browns is the Browns
... there goes Joe Thomas, the best there ever was in this game.
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Legend
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Legend
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I'll take some stabs here... my predicted winners:
KC
CIN
SEA
GB
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Hall of Famer
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these are the winners:
Steelers
Texans
Seahawks
Redskins
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Legend
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Legend
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I think Teddy has a shot at winning his first playoff game.
the lights are about to come on.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
- Theodore Roosevelt
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Legend
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Legend
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Who do I want to win and why?
KC: Don't want to hear we coulda shoulda have Hoyer.
Pitt: Normally that is a never but I rather have the Bengals wallow in their Haven't won a playoff game status.
Seattle: Like the team hate the coach but Wilson Is a guy I like to see win.
Packers: My boys are Giant and Cowboy fans - I naturally dislike the Redskins from their perspective.
Defense wins championships. Watson play your butt off!
Go Browns!
CHRIST HAS RISEN!
GM Strong! & Stay safe everyone!
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2nd String
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2nd String
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Cincy beats Pitt, Denver beats Cincy, KC, and Carolina and Manning gets a ring and retires.
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2nd String
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2nd String
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If I'm the Bengals, I have Sanu ready to take over the QB position if needed.
Man I wish the Browns would have selected him when they had the chance.
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I think all of these games present good match-ups that are hard to predict.
The Bengals have a very good defense and are at home. Pittsburgh has a great offense, but it would be huge if they lose DeAngelo Williams. I think this game will ultimately be decided by turnovers.
KC and Houston feature really good defenses w/suspect offensive play. KC does force a lot of turnovers and Smith has really utilized his feet as of late. I think KC wins this one.
Washington has been on somewhat of a roll and Green Bay has struggled a bit. I really like what Cousins has done in Washington and Jordan Reed is a quality TE who scores TDs. Green Bay's OL is awful and they are lacking the big-play WR this year. However, Washington's defense is pretty bad and have given up a ton of points. It will come down to if Rodgers has time to throw or not and if Washington's inexperienced playoff offense can remain poised in a game of this magnitude. I really don't know what to predict, so I will guess and say Washington wins in a shootout.
Seattle vs Minnesota is the game of the weekend. Both teams have excellent defenses. Seattle's offense is superior to Minni's and they have the better qb. The game is going to be played in cold and windy weather that will produce wind chill factors far, far below zero. Cold is okay. Wind and cold combined is not. Thus, I gotta look at the run game and run defense of both teams. Both have very good RBs and Minni might have the better run defense. But, I think Seattle is the one team that is peaking right now. Heck, they are my favorite for winning the entire thing. The weather could throw a monkey wrench into this game, though. Another tough pick, but I will take Seattle in a hard-fought physical game that will be decided by a big play or two.
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Legend
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Pulling for Hoyer and Cincy.
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Legend
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Who do I think wins this weekend?
Until proved otherwise, Pittsburgh knows how to win in the post-season, and Cincinnati does not. Sure Pittsburgh doesn't have a RB .... but they have Roethlisberger, and great QB play wins in the playoffs.
KC is so darn impressive right now. They started out 1-5, and finished 11-5. Wow, that is just amazing! They opened the season against Houston, and won 27-20. I think that they have improved dramatically since then.
While I think that Minnesota will give Seattle a good game, the difference for me is the way Russell Wilson is playing right now. He is as good as any QB in the NFL today. They also get beast mode back for the playoffs. They could go all the way, again.
If you asked me at the beginning of the season whether Green Bay or Washington would win a playoff game, I would have laughed and said Green Bay in about .000001 seconds. However, Green Bay looks like a mess right now. It is like they forgot how they win games.
My picks: (with apologies to each of these teams, except Pittsburgh)
Pittsburgh
KC
Seattle
Washington
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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Legend
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I don't know how the NFC is set up , but the AFC is 1-6, lowest remaining seed plays #1 seed New England.
So Pittsburgh is playing for a chance to play at New England.
Cincinnati is playing for a chance to play at Denver.
Now Kansas City was almost in Denvers spot,
To be honest , I don't want to see games I've seen before. I don't want to see Pitt vs New England, I'd rather see just about any of the other teams vs New England, even the Jets who didn't make it in.
And Houston, even if they beat KC, I don't believe would give NE a game. So I really want to see the only outcome that gives me a matchup I haven't seen already , 2 years ago or 4 or 5 years ago.
I want to see Kansas City vs New England and Cincinnati at Denver
But that isn't going to happen.
Edit. Did New England become the #2 seed. Hmm.
Last edited by THROW LONG; 01/09/16 02:08 AM.
Can Deshaun Watson play better for the Browns, than Baker Mayfield would have? ... Now the Games count.
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Legend
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While Cincy continuing to lose is fun. I fear Pitt winning could start a run for them, and they are first on the list of teams I never want to even consider watching in the SB.
Plus, what happens when AJ McCarron wins a playoff game, then Dalton comes back and loses..? Hilarity, thats what..
That list by the way is..
Pittsburgh
Baltimore
New England
Cincinnati
Everyone Else
Brandon Weeden
Am I the only one that pronounces hyperbole "Hyper-bowl" instead of "hy-per-bo-le"?
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Legend
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Legend
Joined: Sep 2006
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Steelers will get destroyed their next game 
Defense wins championships. Watson play your butt off!
Go Browns!
CHRIST HAS RISEN!
GM Strong! & Stay safe everyone!
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Hall of Famer
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Hall of Famer
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I expect KC to take this one even though we came this far from beating them. I'd be fine with Hoyer winning but I don't think they'd go beyond that.
Steelers vs bengals. That's the hard one for me. I wish they could both lose. I expect Pittsburgh to win but won't like it. The only redeeming quality in that is the bengals going one-and-done again. On the other hand Purp may have laid out the best scenario, Steelers lose, Dalton returns for the next game and he loses continuing his one-and-done efforts.
#gmstrong
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Legend
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Legend
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Since in week 17 Denver took the #1 seed, if Pittsburgh wins they go on to play at Denver.
If Cincinnati wins they go on to play at New England.
Because Pittsburgh's 6th seed would be lower than either the 4th, or 5th, winner of the game between KC and Houston, and Cincy's 3rd seed would be higher than those 4th and 5th seeds.
It's almost like New England, was ok to lose, to avoid playing Pittsburgh until they absolutely had too. And almost like Pittsburgh the same way, was ok to lose to avoid playing New England until they absolutely had to.
The road is not the same. Make Believe, the Jets, were in the steelers spot, and faced a road game at Cincinnati, then a road game at Denver, ( I would argue easier opponents.)
Vs . Make Believe, the Jets, were in Cincy's spot and faced hosting Pittsburg and then a road game at New England, (I would argue harder opponents.)
KC, I'm pretty sure, is going to win, so .. and Pretty sure Pittsburgh is going to win, so Pittsburgh will be at Denver, and New England will have the, we will have the opportunity to see that game between KC,(or Houston) and New England.
Either way, it won't be that boring played out scenario of NE vs Manning or Ben again.
EVERY YEAR FOR YEARS! Teams that make it to the Conf. Championship game seem to have one thing that one common trait that I always see, and it's NOT good enough to get them to the super bowl, without some other factor.
And that is that "awesome pass rush" that myrtlizes the other quarterback.
Denver, demonstrates that awesome pass rush, in my opinon, more than any of the other teams, in recent play.
So still 3pm before a snap of the post season has played, I'm "preeety sure" the AFC is a 3 team race.
New England
Pittsburgh
and Denver, with Denver not having the QB play to get them out of the Conference championship game and into the Super Bowl, but Denver having the "awesome pass rush" to get them out of the divisional round and into the Conference Championship game.
Matchup 1, Kansas City, vs Houston
Kansas City, if they can .. Kansas City is the one I can't define, because if you look at New Englands, wayyy back very first appearance of this era, IIRc,(maybe it was Denver in 97) they didn't start their win streak until mid season, and that's where KC is.
I don't know the coach, Qb matchups in that game. Hoyer and? and ? and ?
The Cincinnati vs Pittsburgh game. (aside from the fact that Ben is a millon and 0 in Ohio, almost)
The coach qb combos are Tomlin and Roethlisburger
Vs Lewis and McCarrin. The glaring weakest link is McCarrin.
It's going to be a Pittsburgh win.
My advice to Cincinnati if they want to win is, Run the ball, on O and drop 8 in coverage on D
Can Deshaun Watson play better for the Browns, than Baker Mayfield would have? ... Now the Games count.
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I'm rooting for hoyer and weeden. As close as It gets to browns players in the playoffs
I`m good with Baker... Playoffs is good enough for me.
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Hall of Famer
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Hall of Famer
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I'm rooting for whoever can beat the broncos
It's supposed to be hard! If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard... is what makes it great!
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Legend
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Legend
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So far so good...
Hoyer sad to say cause he's a good guy but he has choke written all over him. 6-3 with us and named the Browns starter after a Thursday nite game blow out of Bengals...then choke city.
Last night..pretty much cemented his career as a starter - or should I say back up.
Bengal fans still have the pleasure of not winning a playoff game since like Boomer Esiason... Now for the Steelers to get crushed next week.
Defense wins championships. Watson play your butt off!
Go Browns!
CHRIST HAS RISEN!
GM Strong! & Stay safe everyone!
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Hall of Famer
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Who do I want to win and why?
KC: Don't want to hear we coulda shoulda have Hoyer.
Same things going to happen if the Vikings win.. coulda shoulda had Teddy... right Vers ? Today i would like to see Minnesota win.. and Washington.
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2nd String
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I'm rooting for whoever can beat the broncos The refs may help you with that next week.
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Legend
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Legend
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I see no way that THAT Pittsburgh offense can do anything against Denver's D.
The refs can only help so much..
Hopefully KC can play out of their minds and I can enjoy not having to hear about Pitt or NE winning another SB.
Am I the only one that pronounces hyperbole "Hyper-bowl" instead of "hy-per-bo-le"?
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2nd String
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2nd String
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Probably gonna be KC playing the winner of Pit/Denver. I don't think NE beats KC, but who knows.
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Legend
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Legend
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So the remaining matchups in the AFC are
Andy Reid, and Alex Smith, vs Bill Bellichic and Tom Brady
and
Mike Tomlin and Ben Roethlisburger, vs Denver coach and Peyton Manning.
( Browns have no coach and 4 QB's, no wonder they are 3-13)
I think the Bellichic, and Brady's are going to meet the Tomlin and Roethlisburgers. (Because I think Manning isn't what he was, and he wasn't what he was made out to be, and his buddy Brock isn't going to get the chance.) ( And I think the Reid's couldn't beat the Bellichic's when they had Terrelle Owens .
Dolphins have hired their x(high number) coach since 2009, the last 5 AFC north coaches to be fired were all Cleveland Browns coaches.
(Does this help us beat Pittsburgh?)
Can Deshaun Watson play better for the Browns, than Baker Mayfield would have? ... Now the Games count.
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Legend
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Legend
Joined: Sep 2006
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So 4 for 4 so far who would have thunk that 4 out of 4 home teams lose.
Bengal fans gut wrenching...lol 
Man, Viking fans that has to be the worst - it wasn't like it was a 40 yarder - we are talking old extra point almost.
I thought TB played well for his first Playoff game and in the cold. Right before the kick I'm like telling my Son, boy are the Cards and Panthers happy that Seattle is getting knocked off....OH NO WOW, WOW, WOW!
Defense wins championships. Watson play your butt off!
Go Browns!
CHRIST HAS RISEN!
GM Strong! & Stay safe everyone!
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Legend
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Legend
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Sucks to be Carolina. Go 15-1 and dominate the regular season in order to get a first round bye and your first opponent in the playoffs has been to the last 2 Super Bowls.
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Legend
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Legend
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I went 3 for 4.
Am I right in seeing that eotab was the only one to get all 4 right? Sure, he technically commented on who he wanted to win, not who he thought would win, but I'll give it to him.
“...Iguodala to Curry, back to Iguodala, up for the layup! Oh! Blocked by James! LeBron James with the rejection!”
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Legend
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Legend
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 49,979 Likes: 356 |
I also had 3/4, with the Packers return to life blowing my perfect record to pieces.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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DawgTalkers.net
Forums The Archives 2015 NFL Season NFL Post Season 2015 Wild Card Weekend
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