When the Steelers defeated the Ravens in the AFC Championship game nearly two weeks ago, Vegas immediately made them seven-point favorites over the Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII.
Of course, there is a disconnect between betting lines and reality, and just because gamblers like the Steelers a lot doesn't mean the Cardinals are doomed. In fact, Arizona has developed something of a following since that line was set, if not from fans who've made their way to Tampa, definitely from people who get paid to make such predictions.
Partly because Arizona has been playing out of its mind the last month, but also due to a story line we've had shoved down our throats this week: the Cards have an advantage heading into the big game because their head coach, Ken Whisenhunt, was on the Steelers staff from 2001-2006.
Unless you have DirecTV's Sunday Ticket or are a die-hard Vikings or Jaguars fan who lives in a remote area, you probably won't get to hear Lynch's debut. It's a shame, too, since the Vikings are tied atop the NFC North standings, yet their fans get the new guy.
Fox also put their No. 1 broadcast team of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on the gripping San Francisco-Dallas game. Good thing there is no Cowboys bias at the network*. After all, Fox is only doing the NY Giants-Arizona and Carolina-Atlanta games. You know, three first place teams and the young, exciting Falcons.
*Yeah, yeah, yeah. I do know that Fox is shacking Buck and Aikman up in Dallas so they won't have to travel to do the Thanksgiving Day game. Still, put your best broadcast team on your best game. It isn't like Phoenix is that far away.
In an interesting twist on the NFL habit of players signing one-day contracts to retire with "their" team, Lynch's announcement will be attended by officials of both the Buccaneers and the Broncos. Lynch played with Tampa from 1993-2003 and helped them win their only Super Bowl title in 2002. He was a key player on Denver's defense for the last four seasons, but age and injuries caught up with him.
Lynch made nine Pro Bowls and is certainly going to be in Canton before much longer. That will make two Halls of Fame that Lynch will be associated with. His 1992 Erie Sailors jersey is in Cooperstown because Lynch threw the first pitch in the history of the Florida Marlins organization. He was a second-round pick that year, but gave up baseball to rattle spines around the NFL. That decision worked out well for Lynch.
Two days ago, the Broncos were 4-2, featured one of the best all-around offenses in the NFL, and were primed to take a two-game lead over the Chargers in the AFC West. All they needed to do was beat a reeling Patriots outfit. Instead, Denver got their ass handed to them, and that's putting it politely.
Yesterday, cornerback Champ Bailey suggested the Broncos' defense lacked a "sense of urgency," which is ironic since he'll be out for the next four to six weeks with a torn groin muscle. That he'll return in a month and a half is the good news coming out of Denver.
Champ's brother, linebacker Boss Bailey, is done for the season -- he needs knee surgery -- as is backup quarterback Patrick Ramsey, who briefly filled in for Jay Cutler on Monday night. Turns out, he was in there long enough to reinjure his right throwing elbow, which had bothered him since the preseason.
The hunt for a replacement for Rodney Harrisonin the Patriots defense may not take all that long and may result in the return of a familiar face. John Lynch was cut by the Pats just before the season started and speculation is that he'll be rejoining the team this week. Pro Football Talk reports that Lynch was seen at Logan Airport and Mike Reiss of the Boston Globe is thinking that way as well.
When Lynch got cut, all parties said they were open to a return and a recent Rick Reilly article positioned Lynch as eager to continue his NFL career. He'd fit seamlessly into Harrison's role as veteran and emotional leader of the defense. He's still a sure tackler and would help in the run defense.
There are downsides to Lynch, however. He couldn't cover anyone in the passing game last season and teams would certainly try to isolate him in man coverage. An already iffy Patriot secondary couldn't afford to play with a safety who is easily burnt which would mean that Lynch's role couldn't be as an every down safety.
He's the kind of player Bill Belichick would trust, though, something that would be hard to find among other available players. That would likely trump any concerns about his pass defense and make it more likely than not that Lynch will be with the Pats soon.
Those Bucs went 10-6 in just their fourth NFL season. They won the NFC Central and beat the Philadelphia Eagles in their first playoff game. They would go on to lose the the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship game, 9-0.
But that's not all. Tampa Bay will bring back those ugly cremecicle uniforms that the organization wore from 1976-1997 for at least one game next year. I wonder how thrilled the current Bucs are that they will get to sport those in front of everyone.
Brandon McGowan had beaten out Ricky Manning, Jr. as the Bears nickel back last season, and held onto the job tight this preseason. That's why the Bears cut Manning -- who promptly signed with the winning-challenged Rams.
Now, McGowan's season is lost to ankle surgery, stemming from an injury that was suffered during the fourth quarter of Sunday's loss in Carolina.
Danieal Manning will step in for McGowan when it comes to nickel duties. You know, the Manning with a female-sounding first name who is still better than only-tough-in-Denny's-Ricky?
One juicy nugget from the Tribune article linked above? Speculative mention of John Lynch, who is currently unemployed. It mentions that Lynch did excel under Lovie Smith's current scheme in Tampa Bay. I guess it couldn't hurt to try, however, last time the Bears went for the safety-no-one-else-wanted-who-excelled-previously-in-Lovie's-scheme, it was Adam Archuleta. We all know how that turned out.
When the Patriots signed John Lynch a few weeks ago, it wouldn't have been crazy to think that the Patriots found themselves a useful role player that could contribute something positive for ten-or-so snaps a game.
After all, it wouldn't have been the first time the Patriots picked up a once-great player off the scrap heap and found something they could use, much as they did with Corey Dillon, Rodney Harrison, and Junior Seau. Only natural to assume they would hit on another one with Lynch.
Turns out, that's not happening. At least not right now. The Patriots today released the former pro-bowler, according to the Patriots blog at the Boston Herald. However, Head Coach Bill Belichick isn't ruling out Lynch returning to the team at a later date.
Here's what Belichick offered on Lynch: "It goes without saying but John is an all-time great safety, one of the league's classiest professionals and his elite play speaks for itself. As has been the case in other situations, I would not rule anything out down the road.
The New England Patriots have signed safety John Lynch to a one-year deal worth $1.5 million. With Lynch, the Pats get themselves an experienced, intelligent player:
"I still have a great passion for the game of football," Lynch said after being released by the Broncos. "I still very much love it in my heart. I still feel like I can compete at a Pro Bowl level, but the situation is going to have to be right. I'm not going to just play for any team or any situation."
Lynch was released by the Denver Broncos when they wanted him to take a "different role" (read: not play you as much). The Patriots had an opening when safety Tank Williams went down with a knee injury last week.
Lynch has done everything in this league. He has been to nine Pro-Bowls (including the last four) and won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He's even done a little pitching in the Florida Marlins' minor league system and his hat is in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Rod Marinelli has accepted the torch from Bill Parcells and now can officially be referred to as Mr. "My Guy." Meaning, he likes players he knows and who he knows he can trust in the locker room and in his system. That's why you've seen so many ex-Bucs -- Jon Bradley, Chuck Darby, Brian Kelly, Kalvin Pearson, Corey Smith, Dwight Smith, and Dewayne White -- migrate north to join the coach in Detroit. It certainly wasn't for the city's majestic scenery.
So the natural question, when you see John Lynch -- who played the prime of a very good career with Marinelli watching from the sideline -- being freed from Denver, is whether he'll join that list.
Marinelli cites the team's depth at safety for staying away, which is sort of a valid excuse; the Lions actually do look good at that position. But if Lynch was still the even half of the Lynch that Marinelli used to watch everyday (or even half the Lynch of two years ago), the Lions would do whatever they could to find a way to get him on the field.
The truth is, Marinelli has turned away a couple of ex-Bucs (SEE: Rice, Simeon), so he's not sporting pewter blinders. At 36 and with an almost completely diminished skillset, Lynch simply has nothing of on-field value to offer the Lions.
We knew that 
Less than a month ago it looked like 
Two days ago, the Broncos were 4-2, featured one of the best all-around offenses in the NFL, and were primed to take a two-game lead over the Chargers in the AFC West. All they needed to do was beat a reeling Patriots outfit. Instead, Denver 
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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers feel they've been around long enough and have had enough success to warrant a Ring-Of-Honor. In 2009, the organization will honor the 
The New England Patriots have signed safety 
