NFL Conference Championship Weekend

[Donoghus]

Do the Vikes draft a QB and hope Favre mentors him for a year? I know, I know, he refused for Rodgers but maybe he's grown up a little.

On paper its a pretty decent QB draft.  With the exception of Bradford, there could be a pretty good crop available at the end of the 1st round.  I certainly wouldn't put it out of the realm of possibility.  One guy that comes to mind who could be sitting there and I think is pretty well built for the NFL is Clausen. 

[Roy Hobbs]

Wow...  two #1 seeds haven't met in the Super Bowl since 1994.  That definitely surprises me.

[chief3233]

I have so much homework tonight..and even more cod to play..but i cant stop staring blankly at the computer screen..i hope the celtics rescue me next sunday

[Donoghus]

Wow...  two #1 seeds haven't met in the Super Bowl since 1994.  That definitely surprises me.

Just realized that the SI cover jinx struck again.  Depending on what part of the country you are in, you had either Favre or Sanchez on the cover this past week.

[PosImpos]

Seriously though, interception and too many men in the huddle screw ups aside, why were the Vikings content to set up a 50 yard field goal at the end of regulation?  They let over a minute run off the clock on two short runs before the 3rd down blunder.

Huge blunder at the end. Overall Farve played a great game, but like the last couple of post seasons he made a huge mistake with the ball at the end of the game.

I don't know what to think about this SB match up. The teams appear to be pretty even overall. My gut says Saints have looked a smidge better overall, but the Colts team speed might be enough to contain their offense.

We shall see.

I think we're looking at a third straight classic Super Bowl.

2007 is not a classic in my mind...more like a nightmare where one of the best teams ever played awful against a mediocre team with admittedly good defense. 

Ahh well, I'll never not be bitter about that SB.

[PosImpos]

Wow...  two #1 seeds haven't met in the Super Bowl since 1994.  That definitely surprises me.

Yeah, surprising.  Though in the NFL where parity rules, I guess it's not THAT surprising.

Kinda cool that both the teams who were chasing perfection for a while are meeting up in the SB.  Too bad they aren't both perfect...would have made a truly epic matchup.

[Donoghus]

The wiseguys already have installed Indy as 4 point favorites in the Super Bowl.

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts opened as a four-point favorite to beat New Orleans in the Super Bowl.

Oddsmaker Sean Van Patten of Las Vegas Sports Consultants said the firm gave that line after watching New Orleans struggle to beat the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC championship game Sunday night. Las Vegas Sports Consultants provides betting lines for roughly 90 percent of sports books in Nevada.

"The big factor here is that Indy has been there," Van Patten said. "The experience factor is such a huge thing when it comes to the Super Bowl."

Manning and the Colts won the Super Bowl in 2007 over the Chicago Bears.

Patten said oddsmakers like that Indianapolis has succeeded against two top NFL defenses in consecutive games. The top-seeded Colts beat the New York Jets 30-17 Sunday in the AFC championship.

Indianapolis was a 4 1/2-point favorite in the Glantz-Culver line, with the over-under at 55 1/2 points.

Sports books gave Indianapolis 8-1 odds to win the Super Bowl at the start of the season, compared with 18-1 for New Orleans.

"I think the Saints are very fortunate to be in there," said Jay Kornegay, executive director of the race and sports book at the Las Vegas Hilton. "To get five turnovers at home and having to go to overtime to win it, I don't think they were playing that well."

New Orleans outlasted Minnesota 31-28 in overtime, even though the Vikings gained 218 more yards and had nearly twice as many first downs as the Saints.

Jay Rood, race and sports book director for casino operator MGM Mirage, said bettors began favoring Indianapolis soon after New Orleans won and the odds were posted.

Rood said that was because the Colts have been consistent all year, while Saints bettors who lost Sunday because New Orleans didn't cover the spread didn't want to take the team again so soon.

"They don't usually come right back on the team that just burned them on a bet," Rood said.

[PosImpos]

The wiseguys already have installed Indy as 4 point favorites in the Super Bowl.

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts opened as a four-point favorite to beat New Orleans in the Super Bowl.

Oddsmaker Sean Van Patten of Las Vegas Sports Consultants said the firm gave that line after watching New Orleans struggle to beat the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC championship game Sunday night. Las Vegas Sports Consultants provides betting lines for roughly 90 percent of sports books in Nevada.

"The big factor here is that Indy has been there," Van Patten said. "The experience factor is such a huge thing when it comes to the Super Bowl."

Manning and the Colts won the Super Bowl in 2007 over the Chicago Bears.

Patten said oddsmakers like that Indianapolis has succeeded against two top NFL defenses in consecutive games. The top-seeded Colts beat the New York Jets 30-17 Sunday in the AFC championship.

Indianapolis was a 4 1/2-point favorite in the Glantz-Culver line, with the over-under at 55 1/2 points.

Sports books gave Indianapolis 8-1 odds to win the Super Bowl at the start of the season, compared with 18-1 for New Orleans.

"I think the Saints are very fortunate to be in there," said Jay Kornegay, executive director of the race and sports book at the Las Vegas Hilton. "To get five turnovers at home and having to go to overtime to win it, I don't think they were playing that well."

New Orleans outlasted Minnesota 31-28 in overtime, even though the Vikings gained 218 more yards and had nearly twice as many first downs as the Saints.

Jay Rood, race and sports book director for casino operator MGM Mirage, said bettors began favoring Indianapolis soon after New Orleans won and the odds were posted.

Rood said that was because the Colts have been consistent all year, while Saints bettors who lost Sunday because New Orleans didn't cover the spread didn't want to take the team again so soon.

"They don't usually come right back on the team that just burned them on a bet," Rood said.

Interesting.

All I can say is I hope they're wrong.

I think they overestimate a bit how impressive it is that the Colts beat "two of the NFL's top defenses" considering those same defenses were part of teams with some of the NFL's weakest offenses. 

We'll see in a couple weeks I guess.  I hope it's a good one - unless the Colts get crushed; I'd be happy with that too.

[jdpapa3]

The way I see it: they are daring people to take the Saints by not having it at 3.

[PLamb]

Yesterday's game was Brett Favre's career consolidated into one game

Awesome iron man

Courageous quarterback playing through pain and leading his team through it all

At times truly spectacular

Ultimately always willing to try to force things and come up a bit short because he is prone to dumb mental mistakes and interceptions because he is trying to make the giant, risky play instead of trying to make the smart play

That last throw of his epitomizes Brett at his worse while those last drives after he hurt his leg epitomizes Favre at his best