by Mike Livingston; Host, The Clubhouse Radio Show
As the NFL playoffs got started this past weekend with four games, the stage seemed somewhat set for perhaps the best post-season ever. What, with the season the NFL has had so far, a year of accomplishments and records, a year signified by the performances of so many rookies and exemplified by so many comebacks and overall “great stories”…..yet, when the dust had settled (as it were) on the FedEx Field in D.C. on Sunday night, bringing to a close the last of the first round games, something seemed to have been lacking….
Sure, these games always seem to go one of two ways, dynamic or ultra-conservative and thus, boring but this week seemed more that way than any opening week to a playoff than I can remember. All four games were lousy (in truth). Sure, there were mitigating factors, but slow, methodical, grind-it-out football is not the best for viewers. Especially when you get four of them in a row….one would hope that with the match-up created, the stage might be the opposite this week with the match-ups created, but again, one can only guess.
After a late season, three game slump that cost them home field throughout the playoffs and created the need for them to play this first weekend, The Houston Texans and their defense came to life and shut down the up-and-coming Cincinnati Bengals in the first of the run first, pass second games. Arian Foster was his old self and the Houston coaching staff rode their Clydesdale all day. The Texans had back to New England next weekend which was bad news for them earlier in the season. Meantime, the Packers and Vikings squared-off for the third time in five weeks and with Vikings QB Christian Ponder deemed unable to play just an hour before the game it spelled curtains for the already undermanned Vikings who played well but still came up short 24-10.
Sunday brought the promise of two more games and the chance for perhaps, some excitement but that was short lived…..Ray Lewis came out and did his little dance that is not tired AT ALL after fifteen years, thankfully for the time as the Ravens end up taking out the upstart Indianapolis Colts who went from two wins last year to 11 this year and seemed poised for a playoff run. Not to be as the Ravens step-up and handle the Colts 24-9, setting-up a date with Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos. Washington was the last stop on the playoff train where the Skins hosted the upstart Seahawks, a team no one wants to play right now. RGIII, arguably this year’s Rookie of the Year was coming back from what looked to be a horrific knee injury last week only to suffer what we all can only hope is not another, as serious as it looked which, at press time is still undiagnosed. Seahawks win on the road 24-14 and head to Atlanta this weekend.
The playoffs continue this week and the best place to keep in touch with everything in the world of pro football, the big news in local sports talk radio continues to be “The Clubhouse with Mike Livingston” radio show on KNEWS 94.3 FM, Saturdays mornings from 6 – 8 a.m. Tune in and get your fix each week! Join me as we talk sports here in the valley and across the globe! The Clubhouse, Saturday mornings from on KNEWS 94.3 FM……
Mike Livingston is the Host of The Clubhouse Radio Show on KNEWS 94.3 FM on Saturday Mornings from 6:00-8:00 a.m.; Additionally, Mike is the Director of Management for Personalized Property Management Company, in Cathedral City
