The Next Step

The Conference Championships featured 4 teams with legitimate shots at hoisting the Lombardi Trophy in early February. New England had demolished San Diego early in the season, then survived a New York effort that the Giants used to springboard themselves into the playoffs. The Packers outlasted the Giants in the Meadowlands, and San Diego at home. That put the 13.5 point favored Patriots 2-0 against the 3 remaining teams and the 7.5 point favored Packers also stood 2-0. Tom Brady had thrown just 8 interceptions all season, yet three of his passes found the Charger blue on Sunday. Brett Favre had only lost twice at home in the playoffs and 43-5 in games under 34 degrees. Yet Eli Manning was standing victorious at mid-field late Sunday night.

The Giants will go to Glendale believing they can win. The Patriots will go knowing they can't be beaten. Another Patriots trophy will solidify a dynasty and galvanize a villain. And yet, the NFL and the football nation will turn off their televisions February 3rd and wonder what went wrong. The Patriots had the perfect season, 18-0. They had a quarterback playing the best football anyone had ever seen, and a coach who was determined to prove he was the best coach in football. The Giants had played extremely well down the stretch and had pushed the Patriots further than any team this season. The East Coast will love the match up: another Boston/NY clash of the titans. Only, just like Sox Yanks, no one west of Buffalo will really care.

Brett Favre vs. Tom Brady...the legend vs. greatest living...this would have been a match up rife with story lines. No doubt millions will tune in to see if the Giants can stop New England's bid for history. Had #4 taken on Brady and company, the ratings would have been astronomical, as the world would watch in earnest as one of the game's most heroic figures would look to take down the unstoppable super power.

Sure, the upstart Packers proved Sunday night that they weren't prepared for the spotlight or the pressure. Head coach Mike McCarthy did not have a tight game plan, nor did his players execute that game plan. In the biggest game of their season, the Green Bay Packers couldn't live up to the hype.

That must be where the adage, "That's why they play the games" came from. A Super Bowl XXXI rematch would have been too good to be true. Even if the Packers had survived in Lambeau, Green Bay was not ready to take down the NFL's latest and greatest bad boys. Like a Cinderella run into the Final Four, Green Bay's dance in the palace was over, or whatever other cliche sports phrase seems appropriate.

The Packers, Giants, and Cowboys will head into 2008 as the favorites in the NFC, while the Pats, Colts, and Chargers will all likely challenge for the top spot in the AFC. As always, teams like the Seahawks, Redskins, Jaguars, and Steelers will all be prepared to step in should a giant fall. 2008 will have no 19-0 teams, no 50 touchdown performances. 2008 will likely have no prohibitive favorite as is the nature of the NFL most seasons.

2007-08 may have have given Colt, Cowboy, or Packer fans the kind of ending they were hoping for. The beauty of the NFL is that there is always a next step. Scouts clamor to Alabama to watch college football's best seniors showcase their skills at the Senior Bowl this week. For every team not named Giants or Patriots, you have something to look forward to: taking the next step. While the discussion about "how do we get better" started in St. Louis and Miami weeks ago, for every team but 2, your new season has begun. It starts this week.