Championship Weekend Recap:
Game # 1: Prediction: Falcons 31 49ers 28 Loss - De ja vu all over again for the Falcons. Home field advantage, big lead, lose the lead in the 4th quarter, squeak out the victory – oops! Not this time! The Falcons had the 49ers shut down and the game won, but a crazy head slap call on the Atlanta defense on a big 3rd and long continued the drive for SF and let them get the go ahead and winning score. Atlanta came out on fire in the 1st quarter and took what probably everyone thought was a commanding and insurmountable 17-0 lead. SF then settled down and it seemed as if the 49ers were going to prove that Colin Kaepernick didn’t have to run to beat the Falcons. He only ran the ball 2 times for 21 yards the eintire game but threw with precision and wiped out the deficit and guided his Red & Gold to New Orleans for a Brotherly showdown in Super Bowl XLVII.
Game # 2: Prediction: Ravens 34 Patriots 31 Win – Good bye Tom Terrific and Bill Personality! The Ravens are on a mission. Whatever you want to say, they’re squeezin every last drop out of this run to the Big Dance, not only for Ray Lewis, but for Ed Reed and Ravens fans all over. Once Baltimore finally decided to consistantly run the ball like I was screaming at them to do at the beginning of the 2nd half, they took total control of the ball game. It was clear that Brady and company didn’t have the weapons to compete. New England put up 420 yards of total offense but it was only between the 20′s and it didn’t matter. New England controlled the ball for over half of the first 30 minutes and came away with a 13-7 halftime lead. They weren’t impressive though and it was just a matter of time before Baltimore took over the game. They did with 21 un-anwered points in the 2nd half and held the Patriots to a punt, a punt, a fumble, turn over on downs, an interception and finally a game ending interception. Total self -destruction for team that was favored to win it all.
This was how it should have been last year…The HarBowl!! Congratulations to the 49ers and Ravens! The 49ers come out of the gate as a 4.5 point favorite.
The Chipper’s Super Bowl XLVII Top Pick will be on the board later in the week. Stay warm!