Playing The Spread, Wild Card Weekend

It's time for one of my favorite annual traditions. This weekend and next weekend, we will be treated to four nationally televised games involving the elite teams of the NFL. Accordingly, the networks will have their top announcers covering the playoff battles. CBS will have Jim Nantz and Phil Simms, Fox will have Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, NBC will feature Al Michaels and John Madden, along with a second crew captained by Tom Hammond.

Yep, that's the same Tom Hammond who covers horse racing and figure skating for NBC, the same Tom Hammond that hasn't done play-by-play for an professional football game since 1997 (Arena League notwithstanding). You see, the current television contract gives the network that broadcasts the premier primetime game the right to carry both Saturday games for Wild Card Weekend. When ABC had the contract for Monday Night Football, they could easily pull the crew from cable partner ESPN's telecasts. But NBC has no such cable partner that covers games, so they are forced to jimmyrig a crew with an announcer that covers others sports, a color commentator borrowed from the pregame show (Cris Collinsworth), and a sideline reported from the Patriots' 5th Quarter show that airs on local television here in Boston (Bob Neumeier).

NBC certainly deserves a piece of the playoff pie, but why must the NFL insist on this nonsensical arrangement where a network that has broadcasted all season with one crew suddenly must televise two consecutive games? The NFL should rearrange the schedule, giving NBC either wild card games on successive days, or one wild card game along with one divisional playoff game. That way, fans can get games covered by crews that have been doing the job all season long. On the bright side, however, at least they didn't hire Bryant Gumbel.

The following picks are for entertainment purposes only and should not be the basis for any actual cash wagers.

Last week: 12-4
Season to date: 129-120-7
Best bets: 8-9
Final Eliminator: 14-3 (Streak: W 1)

Jets (+8.5) over Patriots
I really do think that the Pats will win this game. There's no way that Bill Belichick will let his former protege outdo him twice in one season (assuming he even acknowledges his existence). But this game is still one of those gritty AFC East battles, which I predict will end up with a very close final score. LOSS

Chiefs (+7) over Colts
It's January and Peyton Manning is starting at quarterback. 'Nuff said. LOSS

Cowboys (+2.5) over Seahawks
Yikes. The difficult part of picking a winner for this game is the fact that there has to be a winner. Dallas has looked downright pathetic since clinching a playoff berth, but since the Seahawks will be pulling people in off the street to fill out their secondary (since that meaningless win over Tampa Bay was so important), the Cowboys might actually be able to torch them with their passing game -- at least if Terrell Owens manages to hang onto the ball. WIN

Eagles (-7) over Giants
My selection for this game is based entirely on the quarterback's last name. Hell, if Joe Montana legally changed his last name to Manning just before Super Bowl XXIV, I would have picked against him as well. LOSS

BEST BET: Eagles (-7) over Giants LOSS