297

Tonight Brett Favre will not start at quarterback for the first time in 297 regular season games. His first start in this streak was in week 4 of 1992. That's 20 years.

That's 20 years of pro football.

That's 20 years of being the best quarterback on your team and healthy enough to play.

I have always been a fan of Brett Favre. He played football with reckless abandon. He always played it like a kid. He would make a play, probably something that shouldn't have happened, and he would smile. You could tell he enjoyed what he did. He wanted to win. He wanted to be a part of the team. After he through a touchdown he would sprint to the end zone to get in on the celebration.

Brett Favre was the NFL MVP. He won the Superbowl. He holds a lot of records. He was exciting to watch and never gave up.

He payed a big price with his body. He is going to have arthritis everywhere. When he gets older he will be sore. I don't think he would trade playing as much as he did for a pain free retirement.

Some say the streak will never be broken, some say it will. I don't think it really matters. I loved watching Brett Favre play quarterback.

The Patriots

I have never liked the New England Patriots. I'm not too sure why. It may the be the smugness that Head Coach Bill Belichik goes about his job. Maybe its because they just keep winning. Maybe its how they treated Drew Bledsoe so many years ago. I'm not really sure I just have never liked them.

Irregardless of if I like the Pats, I have to admit they are good at what they do.

A week ago they destroyed the Jets on Monday Night Football. The Jets are a good team. Next up they run the Chicago Bears into the snowy turf of Soldier Field. Again the Bears are a good team.

In this era, the Patriots seem to have figured out how to win. They change players and stay good. They don't get too old. The coach doesn't seem to get stale. It is a bit of an enigma in pro sports.

In an era of salary caps, and the cut-throat nature of pro-football the Pats seem to be able to put a great team on the field year after year. They are having another great season an will be in the playoffs once again.

I usually like teams that make an effort to be great. I believe if you do your best and your best is better than everyone else's best then you should be rewarded and admired. Despite all that, I still do not like the New England Patriots. I can't seem to get on the bandwagon. My mind understands how good they are but they have never captured my heart.

Maybe its the cold, calculating way they do their business. They are not an engaging team. They don't make it easy to like them. Having said that they are also not a hated villain. They are very neutral. They are the off-white of the NFL to me. It's almost like if no-one else steps up to win it all, we will just give the title to the Pats. Again, I know in my mind that is not the case. I know they work very hard, but I just can't seem to like them.

I know the New England Patriots are a great team. I just don't seem to like them very much.

Monday Night Meltdown

What was supposed to be the matchup of the year turned into a total dud. The Tom Bradey led New England Patriots defeated the New York Jets 45 to 3. This goes to prove no matter how much you hype up a game it will always be decided on the field.

It looks like the Jets were never in it. They could not move the ball and could not stop the Pats from doing whatever they wanted.

Mark Sanchez has the makings of a great quarterback. In time we will hold him up there with the best but on a cold night outside Boston he showed he still needs to learn more about playing in the NFL. Of course he didn't have the advantage afforded to Tom Brady. When he took over, nobody thought he would become the star he is. Having said that, he keeps going year after year.

It is the TV networks job to bring in viewers. In doing so, they need to hype up the game. Before the first snap this game deserved to be hyped. It just turned out to be a big snoozer. You can't win them all.

Tonight one team brought their best to play in front of the football watching world and one did not. Unfortunately it doesn't make for much of a game to watch.

Grey Cup Pick

So tomorrow evening the Montreal Alouettes will face the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the 98th Grey Cup in Edmonton Alberta.

Although it will be chilly I don't think the weather will be a major influence on the game. A greater influence will be the last two weeks of football the teams have endured.

On semi-final Sunday the Riders were battling it out at Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field with the scrappy BC Lions. They did eventually beat the Lions in overtime in a hard fought game. That same day the Als were resting.

On Finals Sunday the Riders put together a come from behind win against the Calgary in a very cold McMahon Stadium. They definitely eared the victory and played hard for 60 minutes to get it. The Als had the game against the Argos pretty much wrapped up at half-time. They played just hard enough to ensure victory in the second half.

So if you look at it all the Riders may feel more comfortable out in the cold but I thing Montreal is healthier. They have not had to work nearly as hard but they arena very professional team and will be ready. The Riders will be ready but I'm not sure they will be able to overcome the nicks and bumps they have had to endure to get to the big game.

In the end you can't get the girl if you don't go to the dance and both teams will be there. I just think the Montreal Alouettes will be victorious in the end.

CFL Finals Sunday

Later today the participants for the Grey Cup in Edmonton will be determined. They will be two different games but winners will be declared.

East Division

In the confines of Olympic Stadium, the Montreal Alouettes will host the Toronto Argonauts. Although the Argos surprised the CFL by beating Hamilton last week they really have very little chance to beat the Als. Toronto doesn't have a strong quarterback and has won many of their games in despite of that position. The Als are good at everything. Without any factor from the weather, they will run over Toronto.

West Division

Out on the very cold bald faced prairie the Calgary Stampeders will host the Saskatchewan Roughriders. It will be winter temperatures. The ball is going to be hard as a rock. Kicking and catching is going to be difficult and as such, the running game will make the difference. Both teams can run the ball. The Riders are not very good at stopping the run. I am sure they worked on it this week but most of their losses this year came due to not being able to get the ball back late in the 4th quarter, as their opponents ran it down their throats.

I realize I was not very good at picking winners last week but I hope this week will be a bit better, especially in the West.

0 For

Well I went 0 for 2 with my CFL Playoff predictions this week.

I can't comment on the East Division as I was driving for the entire game.

I did see the double overtime Rider win over the Lions. The Saskatchewan Roughriders did just enough to beat the BC Lions. Not one bit extra. They seem to be at the mercy of their opponents. They don't drive the play. If they play like this next week the Stamps will chew them up. Of course I didn't think they were going to make the Western Final so don't bet your house on my prognostication.

I will save my predictions for later this week, I need to hear who is healthy. I can't do any worse than this so I will try again.

Playoffs

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers did not make the playoffs but that doesn't mean we can't talk about them.

In the East division it's the Hamilton Tiger-Cats hosting the Toronto Argonauts. If both teams bring their A game, the Argos will get run over by Hamilton. The only chance Toronto really has is Chad Owens runs back a lot of kicks for touchdowns. He has been the only real game-changer for the boatmen this season. If the Ti-Cats can keep him in check and play like they can and often do play, they will win.

The West division is a little more interesting. The BC Lions will be visiting the Saskatchewan Roughriders. The Riders have not looked good since the Banjo Bowl. Their wins have been squeakers and they have not been competitive in a lot of games. If they can put together a good game they can earn a trip to Calgary but they are in for a fight. The Lions seem to have found themselves a bit as of late. If they can control the ball they have a real chance to win the game. If Coach Buono can get his team ready and they get an early lead, it will help them a lot.

So what do I think will happen.

The Ti-Cats will beat the Argos and the Lions will beat the Riders.