NFL Team's Christmas Wish List

With millions of dollars, free agency, and the draft for most teams their wish lists becomes a reality more often than not. This is an examination of what each team would like waiting under the proverbial tree.

1. Arizona Cardinals - Quarterback that doesn’t joke around. After watching Kurt Warner light defenses up and lead their teams for five years now the Cardinals have had to endure a season of Derek Anderson, Max Hall, and for a brief stint Matt Lienart. We all knew coming into the season Lienart didn’t have what it took. I haven’t and don’t expect to see Derek Anderson return to the year of greatness he had in Cleveland.

2. Atlanta Falcons - Dome Field Advantage. Two wins in the final three weeks can lock up home field advantage for a team that could us it the most.

3. Baltimore Ravens - Anti-Aging Cream. This defense is old, a really good defense, but about as old as I’ve seen in a while. They’re going to have to play a lot younger down the stretch. On Monday night they gave up two 90+ yard drives to Houston, both resulting in touchdowns.

4. Buffalo Bills - Divisional Win. They’ll get their chance this weekend against Miami, if they can’t beat the Dolphins it gets harder facing the Patriots and the Jets to close out the season. A divisional win would be big to build on for 2011, though a running back would help out more.

5. Carolina Panthers - Bill Cowher. With the Cats unlikely to resign John Fox they can only hope that Cowher is ready to return to coaching close to hope and leave Dan Marino, Shannon Sharpe, and the rest of CBS behind. John Gruden would be a nice option as well, especially with the ability to face his former Bucs twice a year, but Cowher should be their first choice.

6. Chicago Bears - Deluxe Sideline heaters. After facing the Patriots in a blizzard last week you would think anything would be better. Now they’re going to have to play Monday Night Football against the Vikings at TFC Bank Stadium, a stadium that has been covered in snow for three weeks and will be colder than Soldier Field was. After playing their last game of the season at Lambeau they might be looking forward to traveling for the playoffs.   

7. Cincinnati Bengals - Anyone at QB but a Palmer. I used to believe in Carson Palmer, but after his knee injury two years ago he’s getting progressively worse. To add insult to injury Carson’s back up is his little brother Jordan. They could also benefit from a Carolina win against Arizona that could help them get the first pick in the draft and Andrew Luck.

8. Cleveland Browns - 3 wins to finish 2010. Not only would ending the season on this streak get them to .500 it could also end the playoff hopes for one of their divisional foes the Steelers or Ravens. They could also benefit from a top notch receiver through the draft or free agency there will be plenty available from both.

9. Dallas Cowboys - Jason Garrett. I think their best move would be to take the interim title off their coaches name plate. He already knows the players, staff, and can create a smooth transition into the next chapter for America’s team. Hiring Garrett without interviewing others can also help alleviate the media madhouse that would be sure to follow.   

10. Denver Broncos - Veteran Leadership. Whether it’s through their new head coach or free agency, this team needs a veteran voice. The Broncos are a young and very talented team and the youth has shown in multiple blow out loses in which they were not at a talent disadvantage.

11. Detroit Lions - Resigning Megatron. If the NFL teams lined up to see Santa, the Lions would be the annoying kid with a two page list. They’re not nearly the worse-off team in the league, but with their history they want badly to turn the tables. They could use better luck, between injuries and losing 6 of their 10 losses by 5 points or less. I think signing Calvin Johnson is the most important. He has already come out and voiced his displeasure of losing, something that has become synonymous with Detroit. By resigning him before the last two years are up they can secure the Stafford-Johnson tandem and guarantee their core.

12. Green Bay Packers - Good Health. No team in recent history has been as hit so hard by injuries. The Pack hasn’t been bitten by the short term bug either placing 15 players on IR and losing others for various lengths of time.

13. Houston Texans - Secondary Help. No team has been worse at defending the pass than this group. Whether through the draft or free agency or both they have to improve this unit that’s giving up more than 275 yards a game through the air.

14. Indianapolis Colts - Return of the real Peyton. Like the Packers, they could benefit from better health, but Peyton hasn’t been Peyton lately. They could greatly benefit from a solid running back in the draft, but with the playoffs still very much in play for Indy, they need a solution for the rest of this season.

15. Jacksonville Jaguars - Return to the Postseason. A divisional championship is within reach and could lead to the Jaguars first playoff game since 2007. The odds increase with a win against the Colts on Sunday. Making the playoffs would be huge for first year GM Gene Smith and allow for instant gratification.

16.Kansas City Chiefs - Patience. Not only are the Chiefs currently leading the AFC West, but they’re doing it with an experienced coaching staff and a large crop of young talent. If the Chiefs fall early in the postseason or fail to make the playoffs, with the Chargers making their usual December run, the entire Kansas City family must realize they’re built for the long haul and not a one-year playoff run.

Rendering of the New Marlins Stadium

17.Miami Dolphins - A New Marlins Stadium. Nothing is worse than playing three home games with a baseball infield in the middle of your stadium. Getting the Marlins’ stadium built would be a big win to the Fins.

18. Minnesota Vikings - A New Roof. Having to move one game to Detroit and playing another outside and across town the Vikings will have the entire offseason to not only fix the roof, but to leverage local officials for a new stadium. They could also stand to erase any history of the Brett Favre debacle.

19. New England Patriots - Breakfast in Bed. What could the Patriots possibly ask for, they’re everyone’s early Super Bowl favorites, they have a stockpile of draft picks in 2011 (2 draft picks in each of the first four rounds), and all the pressure has shifted to the Jets.

20. New Orleans Saints - A loss to Atlanta on MNF. Nothing could be better for the Saints than a “L” in ATL…..right? Keeping their current coaching staff intact with all the likely head coaching position opening up would be big moving forward.

21. New York Giants - A Gameplan for Vick. A win against Philly on Sunday would keep the Giants’ hopes for a first round bye alive. It’s no secret to stop the Eagles, they must stop Vick. The Cowboys and Bears have slowed down number 7 and the Giants have the defensive speed to generate pressure.

22. New York Jets - A Delorean. From week 2 up to their bye in week seven New York was playing great football on both sides of the ball. Since their loss to Green Bay at home their offense has been anemic and their defense has gotten progressively worse thanks in large part to injuries. I’m not sure what during their week off, but it seems to be the root of their problems. They need Doc Brown to strap them in and take them back to mid-September.

Rex Ryan's Possible New Whip

23. Oakland Raiders - Quality Quarterback Play. Jason Campbell and Bruce Gradkowski were serviceable this year, but are nowhere close to long term solutions. Would it surprise anyone if Al Davis went after Cam Newton in the draft or made a play at McNabb?

24. Philadelphia Eagles - Retaining Vick. Michael Vick will have suitor lining up to talk to him after the season, that could include, Minnesota, Tennessee, Oakland, Washington, Denver, Miami, and possibly others. With piles of debt and even more talent Vick should be looking for the best situation in terms of surrounding talent, money, and length of contract. You would figure that he will listen to Philly before all others for giving him a chance. Vick is also most likely to succeed in offenses with a wealth of speed…sounds like the Eagles to me.

25. Pittsburgh Steelers - Clone Polamalu. Hey, if anyone can do it its Santa right? You can’t have what you don’t ask for. Runner-up would have to be a quite postseason for Big Ben.

26. San Diego Chargers - An Entire Season Played in December. Under Norv Turner this team routinely comes slow out of the gate, but seems to always make a late run for the playoffs. Short of the firing, retiring, or resigning of Turner, this is their best shot of putting together a solid season.

27. San Francisco 49ers - Answers. The 49ers are going to be loaded with questions this offseason. Whether to keep Singletary, stick with either or both Smith’s at QB-both will be free agents in 2010, plan for the future at running back. Frank Gore will be a free agent in 2012, so they need to judge the likelihood of resigning him to plan for the draft. I don’t think management wants to answer any of these questions.

28. Seattle Seahawks - An Actual 12^th Man. The Seahawks are known for their loud fan base, known as the 12^th man, but they’d be better off with an actual twelfth man on offense and defense playing Atlanta this week.

29. St. Louis Rams - Extra Football. Making the playoffs this year would be at least a year ahead of schedule for St. Louis. Not only would they have an extra game to get better for next year, but likely an additional home game to help pay for all the high draft picks they’ve gotten recently.

30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Return of the Fans. The Pewter Pirates have played great this year, but even an increasing level of play couldn’t prevent blackouts when Pittsburgh and Atlanta came to town.

31. Tennessee Titans - Larry Hayes, Jr. “Larry Hayes, Jr. is a family law attorney in Nashville, Tennessee who focuses on divorce cases involving large estates or complex issues  at the trial and appellate levels.” Clearly this is where the Titans are headed with Vince Young and Jeff Fisher.

32. Washington Redskins - A New Owner. Let’s not kid ourselves by thinking Daniel Snyder is anything more than one of the worst NFL owner in the league in terms of putting out a quality product. Constantly overpaying for mediocre and aging talent, constant coaching changes, putting personalities that have no chance of messing together. Redskin fans have to be tired of this.

Agree or disagree with your team's wish? Let us know in the comments.

NFL Week 13-Atlanta Falcons vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 13 Atlanta Falcons @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Recap of the Green Bay game: Obviously this was a huge win for the Falcons, who control their own destiny for home field advantage through the playoffs. There were a couple of things that really stuck out to me in this game:

-The Jason Snelling hamstring injury, which I’m assuming came on his flight through the air on the goal line. He was held out of the rest of the game which may have just been precautionary, but the Falcons need him down the stretch. He was also held out of practice on Wednesday, but we’ll see that a lot over the last month to keep players fresh. How big would it be to miss Snelling? Just look at a 3rd and 4 at GB 38 play early in the fourth quarter. With a 17-10 lead the Falcons were driving looking to ice the game, three out of the first four plays went to Michael Turner. Naturally the 2^nd guy spelled Turner, but this time it was Gartrell Johnson instead of Snelling that was targeted and Johnson failed to gain the 1^st down and fumbled the ball out of bounds on a play that Snelling moves the chain on more often than not. Speedy recovery #44.

-A play before the huge “catch” by Tony Gonzalez made on 4^th down, Ovie Mughelli made an essential play on dump off pass on 3^rd and 19 to pick up 16 to even make going for it on 4^th a question. Ovie’s contributions, like Snelling’s to this team are unquantifiable; they show up big week in and week out without much praise. This time it lead to a significant touchdown by Gonzalez.

- It’s hard to complain about the three personal foul penalties when this team has been so well disciplined all season, but they all came at bad times that either stalled their drives or furthered Packer drives. The first one on Harvey Dahl for pushing a defended to the ground after the play directly in front of the ref turning a manageable 3^rd and 6 into a drive killing 3^rd and 20. All was not lost as we still got 3 points out of it, but we were headed towards putting the road team down by 7 before they even got settled. The second PF was on Corey Peters where the ball carrier had just gotten past him and his hand landed on the facemask, in all fairness it looked like Brandon Jackson was headed toward picking up most of the added 15-yards anyways. The final foul was on William Moore, a second year player, for giving the receiver an extra healthy shove out of bounds that gave Aaron Rogers an extra push on the drive. Moore’s penalty looked like it was brought about from frustration and should be fixed moving forward.

Week 13 brings divisional foe Tampa Bay at the Pirate Ship. This game is important as all games in December are, but it looms large because of possible tie-breakers with New Orleans based on common opponents. It is never easy to beat a team twice, especially on the road, though it appears that Tampa area could be headed towards a blackout.

The last meeting, less than a month ago, ended with a goal line stand by the Falcons defense to preserve a 27-21 win. Since losing in Atlanta the Buccaneers have played some good football beating cellar dweller Carolina 31-16, traveling to San Francisco for an impressive 21-0 win before losing at Baltimore on Sunday by one seven 17-10. Second year quarterback Josh Freeman has not throw an interception since the 2-INT performance against the Falcons. Freeman’s errorless streak is a little surprising because Tampa seems to be leaning more heavily on him than earlier in the season. One thing to keep an eye on Sunday is designed runs and scrambling from Freeman after watching Aaron Rogers picking up multiple first downs leading the Packers in rushing with 55 yards. Will Van Gorder leave a spy in the box to counter act this? The Bucs’ passing game is less threatening than Green Bay’s and likely won’t require the extra defender in coverage.

I look for the Falcons to attempt to strike early through the air and saving Turner for the second half to wear down the defense if Jason Snelling cannot go. If Atlanta can get up early they need to put the game away, by not relaxing on defense play-calling, like they have been prone to do.

The Falcons’ special teams must keep the momentum build in the win against the Pack as we all saw Michael Spurlock’s speed in Atlanta as the speedster racked up 209 yards on only 4 returns, one going the distance.

The Falcons can make NFL history by playing their fifth game in a row without a turnover on Sunday. If the Falcons can do that, reduce the inopportune penalties and prevent Freeman from beating them with his legs I think they take one more step towards playing in the Dome in late January.

Score Prediction:

Robert: Falcons 30 Buccaneers 21

Dekalb: Falcons 27 Buccaneers 17

NFL Week 12-Atlanta Falcons vs. Green Bay Packers

It’s week 12 in the NFL which matches arguably the best two teams in NFC, the Atlanta Falcons (8-2) and the Green Bay Packers(7-3). This is a huge game for the Falcons as a win would keep at least a one game lead on division foes, New Orleans Saints (7-3) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers(7-3), and would give the Birds the tie-breaker if it comes down to ATL and the Pack for home field advantage and first round bye. It’s been well documented how strong the Falcons have been at home with Mike Smith and Matt Ryan, as the duo is 18-1(.947) in the Dome and if you’ll remember that one loss was in 2008 against the Denver Broncos in a game the Falcons had no business losing (Falcons gave up the game winning score with five minutes to play and on 3^rd and 18 from around the 50 with little over a minute to go the now sure handed Roddy White dropped a wide open TD pass in the endzone). The Dome should be rocking, especially after head coach Mike Smith has implored the fans to come out early and be loud as well as the great pregame concession deals they’ve created this year.

It was just six weeks before their only home loss that the Falcons proved to me that they were on the way back. On October 5^th, 2008 the new look birds traveled to Lambeau and came home with a 27-24 victory. The last meeting between these two teams helped Atlanta take a huge step forward in their 2008 playoffs run and their overall rejuvenation as a franchise. I remember keeping up with the game on my phone (I was working) and checking the score in the first quarter with the Falcons up 10 and lighting up with disbelief and telling another Falcons fan in amazement that we were leading the mighty Packers in Green Bay with that rookie quarterback, Matt Ryan. I got to my car after work just in time to hear Wes Durham count down the seconds to a huge win, a win that would propel the Falcons to an 11-5 record and a playoff birth.

Green Bay has always been somewhat of a measuring stick for Atlanta when they have met. In the 2003 playoffs the Falcons rolled into Wisconsin as the sixth seed to take on the Pack who were 13-0 all-time in home playoff games, including 11-0 at the house that Lombardi built. If that wasn’t enough the Packers (12-4) were the three seed and just one week before lost home field and a first round bye with a loss to the Jets. The Falcons not only ended the home playoff winning streak, but in convincing fashion, 27-7.

Now fast forward to 2010 where the two teams meet again, in what could be an even bigger for the Falcons as they take a step towards their next overall goal, a date in Dallas. Also, a win would guarantee a third straight winning season.

The Packers have been battling injuries all season long but are currently been playing some of the best football in the NFL. Most recently the Packers, like the Falcons, have won four straight games beating the Vikings at home 28-24, the Jets 9-0 at the New Meadowlands, before putting the last straw in both Cowboys’ coach Wade Phillip’s (45-7) and Vikings coach Brad Childress’ (31-3) firing hats. Obviously the Cheeseheads’ passing game with Aaron Rogers and Greg Jennings will be the focal point for Brian Van Gorder and the Atlanta defense. The home team could gain a big jolt if John Abraham can go this week (he missed the St. Louis game with a groin injury). Having the Predator and rookie linebacker Sean Weatherspoon on the field together for the first time since Cleveland would be a major upgrade to an already stout D. On the offensive side of the ball there has been a lot of talk about the explosiveness of the Packers, but the Falcons rank higher in 4 out of five key offensive categories including points, total offense, rushing yards/game, and TOS, while only five yards behind them in passing yards/game.

The overall record between these two opponents is 12-13 with the Packers holding a one game lead in the series.  Here’s hoping the Falcons tie up the series and take that next step in the Dimitroff/Smith Playbook.

What are your predictions for the Falcons-Packers game?