It’s appropriate Bill Cowher resigned on wild-card weekend. The former Pittsburgh Steelers coach did the NFL a huge favor last season when his team became the first sixth seed to win a Super Bowl.
Wild-card weekend has become almost irrelevant since the league went to the 12-team playoff format in 1990. The opening round of games are usually no more than the undercard for the main events that start with next weekend’s conference semifinals.
There’s an 81 percent chance that the Super Bowl teams will come from the four teams with byes this weekend–Bears, Saints, Chargers and Ravens. In 16 years, only six wild-card teams, including last year’s Steelers, have made it to a Super Bowl. Only two, the Steelers and the 2000 Ravens, have won.
The four bye teams not only have an enormous advantage, but it is also irrational for the NFL to leave its four best teams watching from the sidelines when the playoffs open, according to the late, great owner of the Kansas City Chiefs, Lamar Hunt.
Hunt, who died last month, lobbied for the expansion of the playoffs that would force the top teams to be showcased throughout the postseason. Hunt never bought the argument that the teams with the best regular-season records earned the break.
To Hunt, the innovator who started the AFL and named the Super Bowl after spearheading the NFL-AFL merger, the entertainment value of football was as important as competitive issues. Details, such as televising all playoff games without adding another weekend or the certainty of rewarding losing teams, never bothered Hunt as much as starting a postseason without the stars on stage.
So Cowher’s contribution of leading his Steelers to three road victories–at Cincinnati in the first round, Indianapolis in the conference semifinals and Denver for the AFC title game–on the way to the Super Bowl gives the wild-card teams more credibility even though over the years they have only a 19 percent chance of advancing to the Super Bowl and a 6 percent chance of winning it.
Rex like Eli?
The way New York Giants general manager Ernie Accorsi defends quarterback Eli Manning should make all Bears fans more confident about Rex Grossman.
Accorsi, who will retire after the season, traded for Manning and has been a keen observer of quarterbacks since noticing a young Johnny Unitas play an exhibition game for the Baltimore Colts, a team Accorsi also eventually worked for.
“[Manning] has played great at times,” Accorsi told New York reporters. “If a guy can play great, he can play great. You can’t take a player, in any sport at any position, who has performed tremendously and then say he’s not good. Obviously, anybody who has two eyes who has seen him play can see that. His first two seasons, he’s ahead of anybody we’ve ever had. Has he played well down the stretch? No. But he has played well.”
How good can Manning be?
“There’s no question in my mind that with the proper supporting cast and the proper handling, he’s a championship quarterback,” Accorsi said. “I don’t pay any attention to this yo-yo stuff. I think this trade will be worth it. History will prove it. I just hope I’m on this earth so I can enjoy it.”
Final Aikman ratings
Although the Saints possess the No. 1 offense according to league rankings that include only yards, they finished fifth in the Aikman rankings. The Bears are among the teams that attach more credibility to the more comprehensive ratings named for former quarterback Troy Aikman.
In Aikman rankings, the Colts edged out the Chargers for the top spot by .01 of a point. The Colts ranked first in both first downs and third-down conversions. Like the Chargers, they also outscored the Saints. San Diego, in addition to being the NFL’s highest-scoring team, had the fewest turnovers in the NFL. The Colts led the Saints in all seven Aikman categories, including yards per rush and yards per pass play. A big reason the Saints gained more yardage was they ran 64 more plays than the Colts and 59 more than the Chargers.
On defense, the Ravens are the clear-cut Aikman winner, leading the Bears by 7.1 points. Baltimore also led the NFL in fewest yards allowed.
In combined Aikman ratings, the Patriots are first, followed by the Chargers, Ravens, Jaguars and Bears.
Tom’s time
Another reason first-round playoff teams have a chance: Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is 10-1 in playoff starts.
“It’s my favorite time of year,” Brady told reporters while preparing for the Jets. “You look over the course of the 16-game season and you come to this week and you’re so fatigued from 16 games, but you definitely get a second wind. It’s just a different feeling, a different approach.”
A career 62 percent passer, Brady did not reach 60 percent until the sixth game this season after the departure of his top two wide receivers, David Givens and Deion Branch. Brady was over 60 percent in nine of the final 11 games, finishing at 61.8 percent.
“He adapted to the new guys on our offense and showed a lot of patience, knowing it would take a little time for the receivers to get to know the offense,” third-down back Kevin Faulk said.
Brady’s five interceptions in 367 playoff passes is the lowest playoff interception percentage in NFL history (1.36 percent), better than Bart Starr (1.41) and Phil Simms (2.15).
Most improved
If this were high school, Detroit receiver Mike Furrey would be a shoo-in for most improved. He led the NFC with 98 catches. Last year, he had zero.
Furrey played safety for Mike Martz’s Rams because the Rams were in dire straits and Martz said he was the best athlete on the team. When the Rams let him go in free agency, Martz prevailed upon the Lions to snap him up and return him to his original position, which he played sparingly for two seasons.
Furrey will be a free agent in March.
Vikings go south
If momentum entering the off-season means anything, pick the Vikings for last in the NFC North next season.
The Lions went to Dallas and beat the Cowboys in their final game, losing the No. 1 pick in the draft in the process but salvaging a bit of pride.
The Packers came to Chicago and trounced the Bears after learning they had been eliminated from the playoffs.
The Vikings quit on first-year coach Brad Childress in a 41-21 loss at home to the Rams, who didn’t have anything to play for either. At one point, it was 41-7.
“I don’t think [we] were ready to play,” defensive tackle Kevin Williams said. “We missed some tackles. [Steven Jackson] was running hard, and then you pile on the fact you’re already halfway out the door when the game starts. . . . If you don’t come out with your mind frame ready to play, things like that happen.”
Added cornerback Antoine Winfield: “[Rams coach Scott] Linehan had them ready to play. They went out there and ran their offense, ran their defense and made a lot of plays. They did enough to pretty much blow us out.”
Saban message
Bears general manager Jerry Angelo and President Ted Phillips appeared to have botched their brief pursuit of Nick Saban as coach three years ago before ending up with Lovie Smith. Angelo and Saban were friends from early coaching days at Syracuse. Turns out Angelo must have known him better than either thought.
Seattle running back Shaun Alexander was wearing his Alabama T-shirt last week when he said this about the high expectations for Saban: “You know, I’m like every other Alabama guy. I only expect like, what, he has 10 years? Three national championships. So good luck with that.”
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dpierson@tribune.com
