This Week's Class of Loser Island: Colts, Saints, Chargers and Panthers, they were all sent packing this past weekend. Safe travels, Andrew Luck. Bon voyage, Cam Newton! See you when I see you, Phil Rivers. You'll all have plenty of time to work on your tans with Andy Dalton, enjoy some Kool-Aid with Matt Stafford and maybe go fishing with Nick Foles or just plain work on your game with Jay Cutler. 

This weekend was a pretty decent round of game, Saturday games being much better than Sunday games.  I did watch every single game and here is my update. Whether you agree or not, you gotta love football man.  

Disclaimer: I was taking notes and watching the games at the same time, so if I am a tad bit off on some of the stats, plays, etc, cut a sister some slack. 

NFC DIVISIONAL GAME - SATURDAY, JAN 11 - NEW ORLEANS SAINTS VS. SEATTLE SEAHAWKS:

I merely picked the Saints because of the 34-7 spanking the took from the Seahawks on their last dance on the field. What I should have thought about is how mediocre the Saints have been playing in their last few games. This was a good game to watch but not as good as I thought it would have been. At half time, the Seahawks were up and clearly in charge 16-0. So I'm thinking, ok, Graham and Sproles are going to add some action to this game and along with Brees, they would cut this deficit and give the Seahawks a game.  WRONG AGAIN. I saw in the papers where Graham had to be separated from mouthing off to a few Seahawks about how the Saints were going to win and they should go home now, etc. You know the usual stuff players say to each other. Well, I don't think those Seattle guys took to kindly about that and let me tell you, they shut Graham down. Graham couldn't buy a catch, ok, he had one catch for 8 yards, SMH. Sproles was a non-factor as well and Brees, he just didn't show up. Not to mention that Seattle just plain out played the Saints in all categories. The talk through most of the game was the fact that Brees wore gloves. The second half didn't much matter. Seattle had not lost a game at home when leading at half time since Wilson became their QB and that didn't change tonight. In the 3rd Qtr, things didn't look any better. Bree's was sacked, again and he fumbled, the only thing that stopped a TD was a Saints recovery. I think he needs some red bull at this point, but maybe Seattle drank it all before the game. The Seahawks ran over, around and through the Saints.  The saints showed some signs of life with about 1 minute left in the 3rd.  Bree's looks like he is getting a feel for the gloves now. They were at 2nd & goal at the beginning of the 4th qtr, if they don't score on this possession, it's a wrap.  So, they get a TD and then a 2pt conversion and they make it 16-8. For a short moment there is a little brighter glimmer in the Saints, trying to hang on & win this one.  With 11:40 left in the 4th, looks like the Seahawks game got a little sloppy.  Wilson tried to make something happen on this drive but couldn't so they kicked it off again, giving the Saints a chance to tie it up. Well, they did nothing with the chance and it just gets worse for the Saints. Bree's threw a nice pass, then they get another catch with about 3:40 left but they didn't convert and they missed the FG.  So now the Seahawks have it again and we can pretty much put this game down in the books, especially with the 24yd catch by Baldwin, looks like the deal is sealed. But wait, we get a challenge on the play, did Baldwin have control of the ball going down?  The refs come back and say the usual, the call on the field stands, which after that call, Lynch grabs a 31yd pass from Wilson for a TD & FG, 23-8 Seattle with 2:40 left. The Saints decide to play in the last 2 minutes and score another one, 15-23. It's only 23 seconds left, it's over, call it a day, sorry that it had to end this way.  WAIT, hold on, Saints get an onside kick, 11 seconds left after the first throw by Bree's. Colston catches the next pass but instead of stepping out of bounds to stop the clock, he throws an illegal forward pass and get a penalty for that with 2 seconds left. The ref said that with that, they will run 10 seconds off the clock, 2 seconds left, game over. Brees threw for 309yds and 1 TD. Robinson had 13 carries for 57yds & 1 TD. Colston had 11 receptions for 144yds & 1 TD. Wilson threw for 103yds.  Lynch had 28 carries for 140yds & 2 TD's.  The Seahawks will host the San Francisco 49'ers for the NFC Title on Sunday, Jan., 19th @ 5:30pm on Fox

AFC DIVISIONAL GAME - SATURDAY, JAN 11 - NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS VS. INDIANAPOLIS COLTS:

This was no surprise to me. With the 43-22 win over the Colts, this will be Belichicks 8th AFC Champion Dance come next Sunday.  We get it started on the 2nd play of the game, Luck throws an interception with less than a minute into the game and the Patriots score and take the lead, 7-0. That was the beginning of the end for the Colts. The Patriots are looking sharp, alert.  Brady finding the open man, time after time after time and before you know it, 14-0. Colts have the ball, Luck throws a 38yd pass to Blount to put the Colts on the board.  The Patriots are plowing there way through the Colts like a hammer through mashed potatoes, no match. On the next play, not sure what happened but the passer threw the pass way over the kicker's head, he had to chase it down. The whole thing was confusing to me but the Colts came out with a 2 point safety. 21-12 Patriots. T.Y. Hilton finally shows up for the Colts with 2 minutes left in the half. But it was to no avail as Luck threw is 2nd interception, luckily the Patriots didn't score on that one and we are into half time, 21-12. The second half is much more of the same, the Patriots clearly came to not only play, but WIN.  They score again and add another 2pt. conversion, 29-21.  Colts get a late call, unsportsmanlike conduct and incur a 15yd penalty on next possession.  Luck throws a 46yd pass to Hilton to put them in nice range of a TD.  Luck closed that out with a TD pas to Brazil and just like that, 29-22. We have a game on our hands folks. We still have a whole Qtr to go. Then, L. Blount has a 73yd run for his 4th TD of the game and putting the Patriots up 36-22.  Then lets add a 1yd run by Steven Ridley and there you have it, Patriots 43, Colts 22. Brady threw for 198yds & 0 TD's. Blount, it was his day to shine with 24 caries for 166yds & 4 TD's.  Edelman had a little something to add to the party with 6 receptions for 84yds. Luck threw for 331yds & 2 TD's. Hilton had 4 receptions for 103yds.  The Patriots will visit the Denver Broncos for the AFC Division Championship on Sunday, Jan 19th @ 2pm, CBS. Tom Brady & Peyton Manning have been going at it for more than a decade, but it never gets old.  Brady & Manning will meet for the 15th time, and fourth time in the playoffs this weekend.
Brady holds a 10-4 advantage but this will be the first playoff game he will face Manning in Denver. The last time they met in the postseason was the 2006 AFC Championship Game when Manning  went on to win his only Super Bowl with the Indianapolis Colts.  Brady already has 3, but lost his last two Super Bowl appearances against the other Manning.  Maybe Manning will win this one, go on to win the SB and then retire with 2 rings like his little brother Eli. 

NFC DIVISIONAL GAME - SUNDAY, JAN 12 - SAN FRANCISCO 49'ERS VS. CAROLINA PANTHERS:

I know many people won't agree with me but this game was PATHETIC. It was like watching the rumble from West Side Story. It was more pushing, helmet butting, shoving, just plain brawling in this game, it took away from the game to me. A few of my guy friends said, that's football, that's what they do. I fully know and understand that but when it gets to the point where it takes away from the game, I can't get with it's football, that's what they do. Both teams conduct on the field was just stupid and they wasted 2-3 hours of my time that I will never get back. As I sit and watched this game it occurred to me that SF would win this game. They seem to be more disciplined than the Panthers, more professional and better at doing their dirt and getting away with it.  The Panthers came out acting like bullies, picking up penalties, giving up yards while the 49'ers just holding their hands up in the air like they are innocent and would do no wrong.  They were just more discreet about their under handed plays, pushes and shoves. By the 2nd Qtr, it was just a fight that turned into a piss poor football game. 

The 49'ers were up early 6-0. The Panthers did score a TD and took the lead for a short while, 7-6. As this game went on, it just got stupid, Cam failing like a fish out of water and falling back. I would not say the better team won this game, it was the team that broke down mentally and let the other get into their head, that lost the game. This was only the fist half ending with a 13-10 SF lead.  The 49'ers picked up where they left off, scoring another TD, 20-10.  Cam seemed like he was the only one that wanted to win, even though he didn't play like it.  The rest of the team was being pissed about no calls, etc. I originally picked the Panthers only for the fact that I thought that they would be super hyped to be there and would play their best game of the season. I was so wrong. San Francisco finished them off 23-10 when all was said and done. The funniest thing was at the end when Kap was being interviewed he said that "they were doing some pretty unorthodox things to us, but we hung in there and calmed down and got it done."  Really? As I said earlier, the 49'ers were just smarter in not getting caught, the Panthers were pissed so they didn't care.  The LEAST enjoyable game that was played this weekend, that's for sure. 

Good riddance to both teams.  I hope SF lose thsi coming Sunday.  I would rather see Seattle and whomever wins between the Broncos and Patriots.  My brother in law Andre is not going to speak to me for a week with this one, he is a SF fan. Kap threw for 196 yds & 1 TD. Bolding had 8 receptions for 136yds.  Newton threw for 257yds & 1 TD. Newton added 10 carries for 54yds, I told you he was the only one that wanted to win. Ginn added 4 receptions for 104yds.  Most observers view Seattle-San Francisco at the fiercest, most hate-filled rivalry in the NFL right now. Richard Sherman CB for the Seahawks vowed that Seattle would not be suckered into penalties. Sherman said, "I don't hate the 49ers but I don't like em either." Seattle & San Francisco split their regular-season meetings this season, the Seahawks thumping the 49ers 29-3 in Seattle in Week 2, then losing at San Francisco 19-17 in Week 14. The Seahawks are more than just talk, sporting the league's top defense and leading the league this season in passing yards allowed (172 per game), interceptions (28) and opposing QB rating (63.4).  Sherman led the NFL with 8 interceptions. San Francisco were fifth in the NFL in total defense this season and held opposing QBs to the fourth lowest rating in the league at 76.4. Let the game begin. 

AFC DIVISIONAL GAME - SUNDAY, JAN 12 - DENVER BRONCOS VS. SAN DIEGO CHARGERS:

The last game of the weekend, I was hoping for a much better game than the one I just watched.  The Broncos & Chargers have played each other 109 times but this was their very first meet in the post season. In the very 1st Qtr, SD got a call against Denver for 15yds but Rivers is sacked twice, so that served no purpose. Denver gets the ball and Manning connects with a 2yd pass to D. Thomas for the first TD of the game, 7-0 Broncos.  The game moves along and in the 2nd Qtr, Rivers is sacked a 3rd time, they try for the FG behind that and they miss it. They didn't capitalize on a fumble they just recovered either, so the ball is back in Denver's hands.  Denver adds another TD with a 3yd pass to W. Welker, short & to the point, 14-0, Broncos. It's 6 minutes left in the 2nd Qtr, Decker of Denver had a nice run going, 40yds before he tripped himself up. Still Denver is back at 1st & goal with 52 seconds left in the 1st half.  The Chargers got an interception in the red zone, they wouldn't score, no time but they did stop the Broncos from making it a 21-0 game going into the half. Going into the 3rd Qtr, Broncos draw first blood again with a FG, 17-0. The Chargers get the ball with 9:35 left in the 3rd Qtr. At this point they need to score! Not saying that they are out of it, we have ALL seen several teams comeback after being 20+ down and as late as the 4th Qtr. The crowd in Denver is so loud that SD had to call a timeout, couldn't get his guys lined up, they looking back and forth at Rivers, trying to hear what he is saying. Rivers throws a perfect pass to Green on 3 & 18 and Green let's it go straight through his hand, are you kidding me?  So they punt it back off to Denver. It came down to a FG for Denver and the kicker missed it. That's only the 2nd time this year that he missed a FG. The score remains 17-0. The Chargers were cheering so hard on that missed FG, you would have thought they scored. The Chargers finallyyyyy get on the board with 12:59 left in the 4th Qtr, 17-7.  Holiday has a nice 107yd punt return only to have it called back on a flag against his team.  I know he hates that, would have been pretty nice to add to your resume. San Diego just beating themselves while they are down, 2 fouls on the same play. Holding and personal foul I think was the second one, they give up 23yds on the holding penalty. You know what happens next, yep, Denver scores again with 8:12 left in the 4th, 24-7. Wait, could it be, we just got a pulse from San Diego, 2nd TD of the night, 24-14 with 5:43 left in the 4th. Awhhhhhh snapppp, SD gets an offside kick and get the ball back, River is sacked on the first play but gets a 1st down on the 2nd play. Denver's fans have gotten a little quite, the Chargers are moving the ball towards another TD, if they get this one, it's a new ball game. Well, they didn't, they could only squeeze out a 3pt FG. Instead of it being a 3pt game, it's now a 1 TD game. 24-17 Broncos, 3:48 left in the game. Well, I could say San Diego fought the good fight but did not prevail but I am sure they don't want to hear that crap. :o)  Denver wins it, 24-17. I can tell you one thing for sure, if Denver plays anything like they played today, the Patriots are going to eat them for breakfast. They played an OK game, not even good, especially knowing what they can do. Bring that game to the Patriots and you may as well not even show up. It wasn't a bad game, it was worth watching but it wasn't the game I expected. Manning threw for 230yds & 2 TD's. Moreno had 23 carries for 82yds & 1 TD. Thomas finished it off with 6 receptions for 76yds. Rivers threw for 217yds & 2 TD's. Allen had 6 receptions for 142yds & 2 TD's.

HERE'S WHY NFL CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND IS GOING TO BE AWESOME!

Got plans Sunday that have nothing to do with football? Cancel them.

We don't care if you have to throw a birthday party for your kid at the local Chucky Cheese, skip it. Going skiing with friends?  Do it next week. Wife's family in town?  Send them out to a museum.

The AFC and NFC Championship Games are going to be, in a word, special. We suggest you spend Sunday sitting on your couch, eating unhealthy foods for hours as the four best teams in the NFL battle on your TV for a spot in Super Bowl XLVIII.

It's time to share all the reasons why Sunday is going to be awesome.

1. Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning. Two of the best QBs to ever play the game square off for the 15th time. Let that sink in for a second. In 10 years we're all going to look back and realize how good we had it, being able to see these guys play each other so many times. This is Magic-Bird, Ali-Frazier,Tiger-Phil type stuff. Could this be the last time we see No. 18 vs. No. 12? Maybe. But we definitely know we will not see this match-up many more times in the future. They've combined for 850 career TD passes, six MVPs, four Super Bowl victories, and one trillion passing yards. OK, maybe not one trillion but a lot. Now they square off yet again with a Super Bowl berth on the line. Life is great.I got goosebumps just thinking about it.

2. Jim Harbaugh vs. Pete Carroll. On one side we have a gum-chewing, fist-pumping, life-loving dude with boundless energy. We're talking about Carroll, of course. On the other side we have a tongue-lashing, in-your-face type dude who wants to win and win now. We're talking about Harbaugh, of course. These two guys haven't really liked each other since Carroll asked Harbaugh what his deal was after Harbaugh's Stanford team threw a Hail Mary late in a blowout victory over Carroll's USC squad in 2009. They each want to win Sunday for obvious reasons, one of those being that they'll be sending the other guy home for the year. And that would make both of them downright giddy.

3.Colin Kaepernick vs. Russell Wilson. Think Brady-Manning about 12 years ago. We're not going to play up the whole "passing the torch" comparison because that's disrespectful to what Brady and Manning have accomplished. But these guys have the opportunity to be the next best thing in the NFL for years to come. It helps that they both play in the same division and will automatically play each other twice a year. Playoff match-ups like this one will only take their rivalry to a whole new level. We're guessing neither QB cares much about this stat, but it's still interesting.

4. Weather. No dome teams or warm-weather teams are left. These games will be played outside in the elements, the way football is supposed to be played. Wait, it's supposed to be 58 degrees Sunday in Denver? Only a 20-percent chance of rain in Seattle? Come on, football gods. Do something about that. We want cold. We want snow. We want rain. We want slo-mo shots of air coming out of players' mouths. We deserve this. Maybe we'll just have to wait for the Super Bowl for all of that. Or not. We all know how quickly weather can change.

5. This could be Petyon's last game. According to a report earlier this week, the Broncos QB could call it quits after this season. He didn't give us much info on his future after Sunday's win over the Chargers. Well, he told us all he wanted was a beer. But he didn't exactly come out and say that he would definitely be back for another season. Peyton would love nothing more than to go out on top and call it quits with two rings. We're hoping he does come back. So do some tourism folks in Omaha, Nebraska. But for now we'll just have to be like a professional athlete and take it one game at a time ... and enjoy each one.

6. Seattle's 12th Man will be LOUD. Chances are if you're not from Seattle you've grown tired of hearing about how loud their fans are. We get it. But they are a very passionate group that hasn't seen an NFC Championship Game on its home field since the 2005-2006 season. Now they get their chance again ... and it's against the hated 49ers. Oh how sweet it is. Buckle up, folks.

7. History will be made before the first snap on Sunday. What are we talking about? Weed, of course. For the first time in NFL history the championship games will be played in cities where pot is legal. What does this really have to do with football? Nothing at all. But come on, how do we ignore this fact? We're guessing many people in both cities will find the games really ... funny. Also pizza places in these towns are just sitting back and waiting for Sunday. Can you say cha-ching?

8.We might see Brady get a high five. This could be the most important storyline heading into Sunday. If you don't get sarcasm we suggest you take a few seconds to look it up. Back yet? Good. The Patriots' star QB has been dissed by his teammates in hilarious fashion throughout the season while looking for a high five. The lastest example happened after last Saturday's victory over the Colts when he was in the locker room, hand up as high as a Georgia pine, trying to get a high 5, it didn't happen, again. Will this finally be the day where Brady's hand gets slapped by another teammate's hand in celebratory fashion? WE SHALL SEE.

9. A battle of kickers. Just kidding, we don't care about kickers. Unless they miss a key kick that costs their team a chance to go to the Super Bowl. Billy Cundiff, anyone?

10. Oh yeah, the Super Bowl. By Sunday night we'll know which two teams will be playing at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 2. It doesn't get any better than this. In a world where almost nothing is guaranteed we football fans are pretty much guaranteed a great Super Bowl match-up no matter which two teams advance. Hooray for football!

Now get that couch ready. Sunday is quickly approaching.

*you guys know that once I read the above article on Fox Sports, I had to share*