POLITICAL THOUGHTS

Broncos Win Squeaker, Panthers Roll to Set Stage for Super Bowl 50

The Denver Broncos held off the New England Patriots, 20-18 while the Carolina Panthers absolutely crushed the Arizona Cardinals, 49-15 to advance to Super Bowl 50 in two weeks.

Peyton Manning and the Broncos are headed back to the Super Bowl

Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning out dueled counterpart Tom Brady by throwing for two touchdowns in the first half to pace his team to a 17-9 halftime edge.
The second half was a slug fest as the defenses took over trading field goals until Brady hit tight end Rob Gronkowski for a four-yard touchdown pass with 12 seconds left in the game to provide the final outcome. The two-point try to tie the game failed when Brady's pass was deflected and intercepted.
The ensuing onside kickoff was recovered by the Broncos and it was party time in the Mile High City.

Panthers players celebrate their NFC title game win

Down in Carolina, the Panthers, led by QB Cam Newton's two rushing touchdowns along with two TD passes, jumped out to a 17-0 first quarter lead and never looked back. They held a 24-7 lead against the Cardinals at the half.
The second half was more of the same as Carolina built up a 34-7 lead entering the final quarter and rolled to the final outcome to punch their ticket to their second ever Super Bowl appearance.

A key statistic in each game was the defense for the winning team as the Broncos sacked Brady four times and picked off a pair of passes as well. Meanwhile, the Panthers defense registered three sacks and forced SEVEN turnovers, including four interceptions against Arizona QB Carson Palmer, one of which was returned 22 yards for a score by linebacker Luke Kuechly to put the icing on the cake for the Panthers victory.

SUPER BOWL 50 IS SET

It will be the Denver Broncos going against the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 in two weeks.

NFL PLAYOFFS - AFC and NFC Championship Game Previews

Tom Brady and Peyton Manning meet again with a trip to SB50 on the line.

The New England Patriots will be defending their Super Bowl title on Sunday when they go against the Denver Broncos for the AFC championship.
The two teams met two years ago (in Denver as well) with the Broncos winning,  26-16 to earn the trip to Super Bowl 48, where they lost to Seattle.
That was then and this is now.
The Tom Brady-Peyton Manning saga is getting huge play once again as the two veteran quarterbacks get ready to face off for the 17th time in their Hall-of-Fame careers. Brady holds a 11-5 advantage, but the pair are 2-2 against each other in the post-season.
The Patriots seem to be back in gear on offense after getting back several key players from injuries for the passing game. Brady is a master at exploiting enemy defenses with the various schemes the team employs.
Meanwhile, Manning has been less than stellar this season with foot injuries slowing him down big time. He seems to be a shell of his former self from the glory years. However, do not dismiss the fact that Manning led the big touchdown drive last week against Pittsburgh to help the Broncos to the win.
All in all, expect a slugfest between these two teams with the Denver defense being ranked number-one (yardage) as well as ranking among the best in points allowed. The key for Denver will be getting pressure on Brady while Manning must limit mistakes and keep longer drives going to keep the Patriots offense off the field.

Over in the NFC, the top two teams from that conference will battle it out in Carolina as the Panthers host the Arizona Cardinals, who defeated the stubborn Green Bay Packers, 26-20 in overtime last week. The Panthers held off the Seattle Seahawks, 31-24 to advance to this weekend's game.
Carolina is led by MVP candidate Cam Newton, their unquestioned leader at quarterback.
Newton had a big season while Carolina rolled to a 15-1 finish. His main targets in the passing game is tight end Greg Olsen and wide receiver Ted Ginn, Jr.  and along with a solid running game led by Jonathan Stewart (106 yards and touchdown last weekend against Seattle) gives the Panthers a formidable attack.
The Cardinals are looking good with QB Carson Palmer (also mentioned along with Newton and Tom Brady in MVP talk) throwing the ball to receivers Larry Fitzgerald, John Brown and Michael Floyd. Rookie David Johnson has spearheaded the rushing attack after taking over for the injured Chris Johnson, who was having a big season to that point.
Both teams have good defenses that can limit opposing passing attacks with stellar secondaries and are also decent at stopping the run.
Look for a close game here as well as the teams look to limit mistakes and not turn the ball over.


The Heftyinfo predictions for this week . . .  (Home teams listed in BOLD)

New England over Denver
Carolina over Arizona


Last week's record:  3-1

PLAYOFF RECORD:  6-2

Illinois Residents Have A Message For Gov. Bruce Rauner

Too Little, Too Late Rick Snyder

Michigan governor Rick Snyder (Republican) has vowed to release emails that showed what was going on during the current lead tainted water crisis in Flint, Michigan that he had a direct hand in causing due to his neglect.
Snyder appointed a would be dictator (aka town emergency manager) to take over Flint, Michigan and super cede the Mayor and City Council in that town.
Well, that turned into a disaster when the dictator switched the water supply of Flint from Detroit to the Flint River (which is polluted) in an effort to save money and that river water caused the pipes to corrode and release the lead which got into the water system.
The rest is recent history and this joker needs to resign from office and get the hell out of the state of Michigan.
Disgusting!

NFL Playoffs - Divisional Round Review

Denver fans celebrate the playoff win.

And then there were four.
The AFC and NFC Championship Games are set for next Sunday as the New England Patriots will travel to face the Denver Broncos for the AFC crown while the Carolina Panthers will host the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC title bout.
The winners will advance to Super Bowl 50 in three weeks.
The New England Patriots eliminated the Kansas City Chiefs, 27-20 as quarterback Tom Brady scored a rushing touchdown and hooked up with tight end Rob Gronkowski for two scoring passes to lead the way.
The Denver Broncos roared back in the fourth quarter after the defense came up with a fumble recovery that led to a touchdown drive capped by a one-yard touchdown run by C.J. Anderson.
Broncos kicker Brandon McManus made five field goals in the 23-16 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Meanwhile, Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger had 339 passing yards in the loss while playing the game with a sore throwing shoulder and without wide receiver Antonio Brown (concussion) and running back DeAngelo Williams (foot).
The Arizona Cardinals survived a 'Hail Mary'  touchdown pass as time ran out in regulation by Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers to win 26-20 in OT and advance to the NFC Championship Game.
Cardinals QB Carson Palmer overcame two interceptions by throwing for three scores, including the game winner to WR Larry Fitzgerald.

The Carolina Panthers jumped out to a 31-0 halftime lead against the visiting Seattle Seahawks and then held on for a hard fought 31-24 win to advance.
The Panthers defense intercepted Seahawks QB Russell Wilson twice, including a 14-yard touchdown off a pick by linebacker Luke Kuechly. Carolina RB Jonathan Stewart scored two rushing touchdowns and ran for 106 yards. Panthers QB Cam Newton (pictured left) added a touchdown pass to account for the final score before the half.
Seattle scored all their points in the second half on three TD passes by Wilson and a 36-yard field goal by kicker Steven Hauschka, but fell just short when the onside kickoff with just over a minute left to play was recovered by Carolina.