See Eddie George. See Eddie see Ray Lewis. See Eddie bobble ball. See Ray grab ball from scared Eddie. See Ray run. Run Ray run. Bye bye Eddie. Bye bye Tennessee.

Shhhh.....it's over, go home. This is OUR house!

Sorry, I just had to post these photos I found on the web. The last time the Ravens visited Nashville for the playoffs, the situation was earily similar. The Titans were the #1 overall seed and the Ravens came in as a Wild Card. The Titans were favored and the Ravens put perhaps one of the original Baltimore Beatdowns on them 24-10, on their way to their Super Bowl Championship. The Ravens were also the first visiting team to ever defeat the Titans in what was their new home at the time. Therefore, being the visitor there this weekend does not faze me in the least. Being a visitor apparently does not faze the rookie QB, Joe Flacco as well, seeing that his away stats are even better than his home ones.

Regurgitating the game earleir this season is not really something I want to revisit for obvious reasons. I don't want to blame the refs for losing that game, but they certainly had a hand in allowing theTitans to continue their gamewinning drive. However, we still didn't stop them and therefore they got the win and we just continue to complain how we got jobbed by the refs. Doesn't matter anymore, folks, it's a different time of season. After 17 games, Flacco is just not a rookie anymore. The Dolphins said he would be flustered and he wasn't, just like he hasn't been all season. The Titans defense is certainly worlds above the Dolphins, but even so, that won't fluster him either.

While we will break down the game throughout the rest of the week, the only thing that is looming as scaring me is the weather report. Calling for cold rain and possible snow showers, we really haven't seen how Flacco handles the poor weather conditions. At the same time, if he hasn't been flustered by the defenses he's faced, then perhaps the weather is just one more thing he'll overcome, or so I hope.

Anyway, check out my posting over at Music City Miracles, but allow me the opportunity to post the responses to the questions. Feel free to comment on their postings or do so yourself. Lord knows the trash will fly the rest of the week and I rep'd you guys over there, telling them to be ready for your smack. So don't let me down and bring it!

Hey Music City Miracle, it's Rexx, the blogger for the Baltimore Ravens over at www.BaltimoreBeatdown.com. Time for part two of this season, this time in your house. Even though you (and the refs) beat us in our crib earlier this season, we really bring it at your place. You might remember the Music City Miracle, but us Ravens fans remember slamming McNair to the turf and Ray grabbing the ball from Eddie George's arms and running for a TD in the 2001 playoff game!

Anyway, it's a different time and we are on the hunt to continue playing football for the next few weeks. This post is for the serious game related questions and the answers from a Ravens perspective. Keep the trash talking and smack for other posts, as we both know that's certainly coming down the pike throughout the rest of the week. Go visit, join and post your comments and opinions over at the Beatdown. You can be sure my guys will be here and love to throw it down. We are a small, but loyal and knowledgable group of fans that prefer quality over quantity. We prefer to keep the name calling and personal attacks out of it, though. We both know the Browns fans are the worst at that, as so many other team blog's fans have agreed. However, we were so surprised how rude and obnoxious the Dolphins fans were this past week. Perhaps it was because they wereso unfamiliar on how to act once your team is in the playoffs!

Anyway, I will be back the rest of the week to post my responses to your questions. While I can't wish you guys luck, let's hope for a great game that is decided on the field and not leave it to the refs to decide. Agreed? Now bring it!

Sorry for the late post, but I just got back to Baltimore, so here is the post I wrote early this morning:

As I sit in the airport getting ready for my flights back to dreary and cold Baltimore from Florida through Atlanta, the Dolphins will always have one thing over the Ravens, and that is the weather all season long for their home games. Man, it is so nice to be able to go watch football games in January wearing shorts and a sweet Hawaiian shirt (of course)! However, after the results of the past two games we’ve played here, that might be it as far as advantages. Ed Reed and company might be staking their claim to the place as “our house” as we laid two of Miami’s six losses this season on them in their own crib. However, it appears the acknowledgement of our superiority has began to sink in with the more sane minds in South Florida, compared to a bunch of the rude and obnoxious Dolphin fans around me in my section as well as many on the team’s blog site.

I listened to a bunch of sports talk on the radio Monday and most of it centered on the Sunday’s football game. The first show I listened to in the morning was out of Orlando with a guy who sounded like a transplanted New Yorker, loud and opinionated, yet dead on with his comments. He said the Dolphins were pushed all over the field by the Ravens, lost the game on both sides of the ball, and were just not in Baltimore’s class of competition. He surmised that the Dolphin fans who thought their team was one or two players away from contending for a Super Bowl were delusional, as he thought the team had significant holes. Furthermore, he stated, Miami would be playing a first place schedule in 2009, and he expected a huge letdown as they would be facing six playoff teams next season and thought a record of 9-7 at best was in their future, and it could get ugly with an 8-8 or even worse record.

Late Monday afternoon, I was listening on their ESPN affiliate to the Miami fans who kept calling in to state they had a great season and were proud of their team. Many went on to say their defense held us down most of the game and still had a chance to win in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t overcome the five turnovers from a team that only had something like 13 turnover for the entire regular season. Former Dolphin RB Keith Byars even commented that the Dolphins should have pulled QB Chad Pennington late in the game due to his ineffectiveness. The other hosts had the same thought as me, which was, could you imagine putting the untested rookie, Chad Henne, in against the Ravens defense!? Didn’t they see what happened when the Eagles Andy Reid did the same thing, pulling Donovan McNabb and inserting backup Kevin Kolb, in Philly’s 36-7 beatdown courtesy of us in November? After hearing a bunch of sad, but hopeful Dolphins fans, I had to put in my two cents worth, so I dialed in.

When they answered the phone, I asked to speak to the host regarding the Dolphins game. They asked where I was from and I said Baltimore, to which they replied, “he’d love to talk with you!” He put me on the air almost immediately where I introduced myself and asked him not to give me a hard time because I was a Ravens fan. I told him I wrote a blog on the Ravens and that while I thought we would win all along, I felt the Dolphins game plan was ineffective, as it seemed that everything they used to get to where they were in the first place seemed to have been abandoned in the game plan against the Ravens. I stated that Penningotn’s decision to test our secondary by going deep against us time and time again played right into our hands and that he did not have the arm to make it happen in that manner. I also said that the short, crossing slants against our linebackers that worked towards the end of the first game in October never seemed to materialize and the lack of throws to the tight ends and RB’s were virtually non-existent. He replied that he was not going to be angry or yell at me, as he totally agreed and thought my comments were right on target. I told him my cousin, who is a huge Dolphins fan, said he and most fans would be disappointed if the ‘fins lost, but that they had a great season and for that they would be happy. However, I continued, most Ravens fans would have been devastated if the Ravens had lost, as our expectations had risen throughout the season. He agreed, stating that the Ravens were not too far removed from a Super Bowl champion and had two future Hall of Famers on defense while the Dolphins were building from the ground up. I finished by stating that we were much closer to the 2006 13-3 team than the 5-11 2007 team that was decimated by injuries and combined with the health, depth and amazing progression of the rookie Joe Flacco, that it didn’t matter to the Ravens if Flacco received zero votes for the Rookie of the Year, that coach John Harbaugh received zero votes for the Coach of the Year, and that while I didn’t know if Ed Reed had received any votes for Defensive Player of the Year (he did), I knew the Steelers James Harrison had won it. The Ravens loved not getting any respect and just wanted to prove everybody wrong, just as they did in their Super Bowl Championship season of 2000-2001. He said he totally agreed and thanked me for calling from a Ravens perspective.

It was pretty cool to talk sports on the radio in enemy territory, even cooler to have an open minded talk show host who saw the reality of the situation and pretty much agreed with all my points. It was great to represent the Beatdown, although I would have loved  to have had the opportunity to plug our blog. All in all, it was a great day to watch the replays on the NFL Network and ESPN, as well to read the local papers and hear the sports talk radio hosts and fans lament about their loss and heap (Heeaappp!) praise upon our Baltimore Ravens as we move onto a showdown this Saturday with revenge on our minds against the Titans.

(NOTE: If you have the time, click here to check out this six minute clip of highlights from this past Sunday's game, especially the pick six by Ed Reed, with my personal favorite, the "de-cleating" of the Dolphins' WR Ted Ginn by Haloti Ngata. Priceless!)

They were who we thought they were! The Baltimore Ravens demolished and demoralized the Miami Dolphins and their rabid fans yesterday in a typical Baltimore Beatdown, 27-9. I was terribly disappointed in the final score, as had Joe Flacco not scored that final touchdown, my pre-game prediction in yesterday morning’s post of 20-9 would have been dead on! In fact, after the Dolphins scored their lone TD of the day to make it 20-9 early in the fourth quarter, I turned to my cousin, a Dolphins fan, and said, "…there goes my prediction." His response? "Just wait, they’ll miss the extra point," which they went and did, making him, and possibly me, look pretty clairvoyant! Alas, that was not to be, as Willis McGahee made another back breaking long run with Joe Flacco sneaking the final yards to put the nail in the coffin.

I was surprised at how aggressive, rude and angry most of the Dolphins fans were before, during and especially after the game. In the October game, they were pretty tame, but I guess that was due to two things, as they were not yet division champs and I was sitting in the Club Level, where it is a touch more civilized than the lower end zone area. There were a few, sane and accepting fans as we walked to our car, giving us our props and wishing us luck against the Titans. Mind you, I said a few, as most were drunk and angry, beer and testosterone-fueled idiots, making the same personal comments that many Dolphins fan bloggers have made on this and the Phinsider blog all week long. Once again, I guess it was all due to the Hawaiian shirt I wore for good luck, as it worked in October and certainly did its job yesterday as well.

But enough of the Dolphins’ fans, how about those loud, proud and purple Ravens fans who made the long trip from Baltimore to brave the enemy harassment? There were a bunch of Ravens fans in our parking lot and I distributed a bagful of "FEAR THE RAVEN" purple wristbands to lucky Ravens fans to wear to show their pride.  We all high-fived each other when we passed in the stadium as if we knew something was coming that the Dolphins and their fans had no idea of what. The Dolphins fans on this and their blog said it didn’t matter that we might have 10,000 fans in the stands as their 65,000 would drown us out. Of course they would as long as the game stayed close. However, as I said in my comments and responses to their putdowns, 10,000 Ravens fans would be heard above the noise of 65,000 Dolphins fans stumbling up the steps out of the stadium as the clock winds down to a Ravens victory. And that was exactly what happened as the chant of "Let’s go Ravens" could be heard throughout with  a couple of minutes left in a contest which was over long before that.

And now onto the game. What can we say about this team, from top to bottom? The positives are almost endless at a time like this. The defense did exactly what we kept saying all week would happen. It’s not trash talking before nor gloating afterwards when your team goes out and backs up what your opinions and statistics have said all along. Ravens fans knew that this team was too physical for the Dolphins back in October and there was zero reasons why it would not happen again, which of course it did. The Dolphins fans thought they made too many mistakes to win, but to us it was because we made the mistakes happen. Sure Pennington made some poor decisions but we still made the plays. Offensively, we pushed the smaller Dolphins front line all over the field, gave Flacco the time to find his open receivers and he showed off the gun for an arm he had on the bullet passes as well as the deep balls. The long sideline rocket he completed to Mason before the end of the first half, who caught the ball and tiptoed the sideline was a thing of beauty. Mason got open all day and Clayton found holes in the secondary for first downs all afternoon. McClain and McGahee wore down then ran over a tired Dolphins front line, just as we said they would.

 Defensively, it was almost too easy. We knew they couldn’t run the ball but they needed to find out for themselves, managing a weak total of under 60 yards. Pennington tried time and time again to make the big play, going deep with an arm that is just unable to throw the long ball, as evidenced by the floaters that were picked off four times on the day. The Dolphins and Pennington abandoned the things that got them to this point, which was the dink-and-dunk short passes across the middle, which also was the Ravens weak point. The Ravens corners were too fast and safety Jim Leonhard might have been the player of the game if not for Ed Reed. Leonhard was everywhere, making tackles, breaking up or intercepting passes and even returning punts. I’ve said all season that I liked him better than Dawan Landry and will hard pressed to be comfortable with him losing his starting job to him next season. Combined with the rookie safties, Tom Zbikowski and Haruki Nakamura, this team is set in the deep secondary, as all these guys could start for most teams in the league. What about Ed Reed? The votes for NFL Defensive Player of the Year were cast a week or so ago and even though I’d still give it to him, but there should have been no question after yesterday’s game. Heck, even league MVP should have been a possibility. However, since Harbaugh got zero votes for Coach of the Year and Flacco received zero votes for NFL Rookie of the Year, then I wouldn’t be surprised to see Reed overlooked as well. That is fine with me, as all those award winners are no longer in the playoffs and we are.

Flacco wins the first game by a rookie QB on the road in NFL history.  The Ravens win a game by 18 points  in which they were favored . Over the course of the season, our wins have been by the exact same average of 18 points. That’s exactly what good teams are supposed to do, soundly defeat the opponents they are favored over. Now on to Tennessee and a rematch with the Titans. But before we go on to Saturday’s game, let’s spend another day reveling in an overwhelming victory.

It's finally game day and all the trash talking between both teams' fans has to come to an end, at least for one team. After this game, one of these two surprising teams will be moving on to the next round while the other is going home for vacation to watch the remainder of the post season on TV.

I apologize for the lack of depth and supporting insight on my prediction of the game, but I am getting ready to leave for the game and will be there in person to wildly cheer on the Ravens with the rest of the huge throng of Baltimore fans who have made the trip to South Florida just like me. We will be heard on TV's yelling "Heeaaappp" and "Reeeeed" so loud you'll hear us in Baltimore! The sight of so many purple-clad fans will almost make this a home game, just like it was in October when a sea of Ravens fans saw us demolish the Dolphins 27-13.

I see the same thing happening again today, as the teams have improved but they still are focused on the same things that they brought into week 7 and which have made them successful since then. A lot of Dolphins fans have said they are predicting a Miami victory, but would not be totally surprised if the Ravens beat them. However, ask any Ravens fan the same thing and they will say that they would be shocked if the Ravens do not win today.

This is because we watch our team all season long and see how badly we beat up the opposition. Sure teams like the Giants, Steelers and even Colts had our number, but they paid the price physically for those wins. The Ravens outmuscled and overpowered the Dolphins in October and plan on doing the exact same thing today. There is really no reason why that won't happen, as even with the excuse of injuries, the Dolphins are pretty much the same team with improvement over the earlier part of this season. Therefore, I totally expect Baltimore to pound the ball down Miami's throat, running with success and passing with efficiency. The Dolphins running game, including the Wildcat, will be ineffective and Pennington just does not have the arm to carry the team to victory. The Dolphins best bet will be to make a couple of long, big plays on offense, defense or Special Teams in order to keep it close, although I don't see that happening either.

The Baltimore Ravens send the Miami Dolphins packing for a well deserved vacation after a wonderful season, but ending earlier than all Dolphins fans want it to.

Ravens:  20-9

As I sit in warm, sunny South Florida in anticipation of another Ravens victory over the Miami Dolphins tomorrow., I still need to put my quick thoughts here on the Beatdown regarding the other three playoff games starting with tonight's game. So, in the interest of time and trying to enjoy being away from the frigid Baltimore weather, let's get right to it.

Arizona over Atlanta: Believe it or not, I actually like the Cardinals to rebound in a big way. Kurt Warner is playoff battle tested and knows how to handle the pressure. He also has geat receivers to throw to and the Cards usually play a lot tougher at home than they do on the road, especially when they have to go to the east coast. Meanwhile, the Falcons have been a wonderful surprise and have some great players, including Rookie-of-the-Year, Matt Ryan, and RB Michael Turner, who finished tied for second in voting for the league's MVP. However, Ryan is not nearly the QB on the road as he is at home and I expect the Cards to be able to outscore the Falcons in this one.

Indianapolis over San Diego: This is going to be the closest game of the weekend, as both teams can easily take charge and win tonight. Both QB's have the guns to put up points in a hurry and as well as the Colts have done in winning the last nine in arow, the Chargers have come back from the dead to steal the AFC West title on the arm of Philip Rivers. However, Peyton Manning is the master of his domain and should be able to pick apart the San Diego secondary all night. At the same time, the Colts defense has shown signs of life, with the pass rush of Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis and of course, All Pro safety, Bob Sanders stuffing the run as well as playing a great center field.

Minnesota over Philadelphia: Most people have jumped on the Eagles bandwagon, but not me. I know they destroyed the Cowboys when they needed to, but that was at home where they've played well all season. However, they lost a lot of luster in my eyes with their loss in Washington where they couldn't even score a TD all game. Now they have to go into a deafening dome as a visitor and deal with a very good defense and that Peterson guy at running back . As good as Donovan McNabb can be, he can also throw down a clunker like he did in Washington, as well as he did in Baltimore. I'm looking for the Vikings to let Peterson loose all night and McNabb to make the mistakes that give the game to the Vikings.

NOTE: I'll pick & pan the Ravens-Dolphins game in Sunday's posting, before I leave to go to the game tomorrow morning. GO RAVENS!!!

....does it seem that the trash talking between the Ravens and Dolphins fans has stepped up from the regular season to the playoffs or what!?

...I see bizarre similarities between the newly successful Dolphins fans comments and the same sort from the Cleveland Browns fans after their surprising 2007 season.

...I still admire their loyalty despite their rather personal attacks on our team, fans and bloggers.

...for whatever reason they do not handle the trash talking and smack very well, and get unusually defensive over on their site compared to here.

...I will continue to trade barbs with them and will gladly go back there after we win (or lose) to get "closure."

...I doubt anyone from there will come here to take their "medicine" after they lose.

...I would urge all Beatdown fans to continue to post the type of comments that you know I approve of, and keep our "quality-over-quantity" slogan true.

...I just can't see the Ravens losing this game on either offense or defense.

...me thinks this Ravens team is way too physical for the Dolphins to stick with for four quarters.

...while offense is sometimes good and bad, defense "travels" well.

...here's some stats for you:

...Miami's defense ranks 15th in the NFL, 10th against the run, 25th against the pass and 9th in points allowed.

...the Ravens defense ranks 2nd overall, 3rd against the run, 2nd against the pass and 3rd in points allowed.

...Miami's offense ranks 12th overall, 11th in rushing, 10 in passing and 21st in points scored.

...the Ravens offense ranks 18th overall, 4th rushing, 28th passing, but 11th in points scored.

...while it seems that the 3-4 points that the Ravens score more and allow less are relatively insignificant, they are absolutely not as that could easily be the difference between winning the Super Bowl or not even making the playoffs and is a spread of seven points per game, if taken together.

...the betting line has moved from Ravens -3 to -3.5, indicating a majority of the betting money is being put on the Ravens.

...don't be surprised if the line goes to -4 before the game on Sunday.

...I will post my predictions for the two Saturday games, as well as the other Sunday game tomorrow, although I am taking some of the underdogs this weekend.

...I actually like both NFC home teams, which are both underdogs, as are all the home teams this weekend.

...I still am not convinced that the Eagles are consistent enough to win a key game on the road in Minnesota.

...the Eagles loss in Washington convinced me that they are far from the improved team they are getting credit for.

...while the Vikings QB situation is less than optimistic, they have some guy named Peterson that you can never discount his effect on the game.

...while the Arizona Cardinals have stunk it up the past month or so, they are still tough at home and the Falcons' Matt Ryan has not looked so great on the road lately, throwing more interceptions than TD's.

...the Cards have a ton of firepower in the passing game and Kurt Warner has been here before and done pretty well in the post season.

...while the Colts have won nine in a row and I still think they will win over the Chargers, it could go either way as San Diego has had Indy's number over the past couple of years.

...both Phil Rivers and Peyton Manning have had great years and rolled up big stats in leading their teams to the playoffs when they both were looking pretty sickly after the first month or so of the season.

...it should be a great opening weekend of the post season and I can't wait to get on my flight tomorrow morning to sunny South Florida to see my Ravens repeat what I witnessed them do in October!

This post is sure to rile up the Dolphin fans, but I'm sure they don't need any more motivation to beat us after all the trash that's been strewn all over this and their blog in the past week. Both teams will be ready as will their fans. There are a ton of Ravens fans heading to South Florida this weekend and count this blogger among them. I just booked my flight and have score a couple of ducats to the game. The Baltimore Ravens sent emails to Club Level PSL Holders saying that they were given additional tickets and did we want them. If this game has anywhere near the number of purple jersey wearing Ravens fans that were at the October game, then this will be close to a home game for the Ravens, and we will be able to hear the cheer, "HEEEAAAPPP" every time Todd catches a pass.

Anyway, even if this is a game in enemy territory, it is ironic that Ravens rookie QB Joe Flacco has better stats on the road than he does at home. Either way, we were 6-2 at home and 5-3 on the road, so this team is not afraid to be the visitor. We all know the Ravens won the first game in week seven, but also know that was a long time ago. The Dolphins are a much better team then they were then, but so are the Ravens.Therefore, what do the Ravens need to do to come out of Miami with the victory? The answer is still pretty much the same thing as they did in October, regardless of either teams' improvement. Run the ball with authority, control the time-of-possession and take advantage of the take-a-ways if they occur. The Dolphins protect the ball as well as anyone in the league, while the Ravens take it away just as well, especially in the interception department, where they lead the NFL in that category. Interceptions are much more important than fumble recoveries, as they are usually advanced past the point of take-a-way, while fumbles are usually recovered on the spot. The Ravens also have the distinction of being able to score points on the defensive side of the ball, which takes pressure off the offense, even though they have not needed it this year. However, if they want to win this game Sunday, they will need to play mistake-free ball, or better hope for the game changing turnover similar to what happened in their first meeting.

The Dolphins prefer to manage the game and control the clock like the Ravens. They employ a duel headed RB approach with both Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams getting the most touches, with Brown the feature back. The Wildcat formation has been successful for them, but I don't expect it to be a factor just like it wasn't the first time. The running game will not be the difference in theis game, at least not for the Dolphins. Other than the New York Giants, and that was basically on just three long runs, no one has ran against the Ravens for years now, and the Dolphins just will not break that streak. However, the Ravens must be able to break down the Miami run defense, whether it starts in the first quarter or in the fourth when we are trying to protect a  lead, a la the Dallas game.

That leaves the passing games to dissect. The Dolphins were able to rack up almost 300 yards against us in week seven, although most were late in the second half when they were in a catch-up mode. However, they seemed to take the same angles as the Titans and Colts, which was to throw the short, over the middle crossing slants to their tight ends and RB's out of the backfield that our LB's couldn't keep up with. To me, that is our Achilles Heel on defense. If Pennington wants to throw downfield, over the middle deep or try to break down our secondary, it will be a long day for him. He is very accurate but his arm is just up to the standards that can put the ball between our defenders at the longer distances. If he tries that, then we will ge those turnovers I mentioned earlier. If he sticks with the shorter crossing routes, then he has a chance to be successful.

On our side of the ball, Flacco needs to continue his amazing education thus far. He needs to be protected like he has been lately and even though the Dolphins sacked him three times in the first meeting, they protected him pretty well the rest of the game which led him to his season best QB rating of around 120. If he has time this weekend, he will find the open receivers, be in the always reliable warrior, Derrick Mason, or the clutch deep threat Mark Clayton, as well as the big guy over the middle, Todd Heap. Hopefully the Ravens will have rookie Ray Rice to catch passes out of the backfield and make things happen with his deceptive quickness. This Ravens offense is not your father's Ravens offense, as it can score from anywhere on the field, evidenced by the number of big plays, including a bunch of schoolyard-type trick plays drawn up in the dirt by the creative Cam Cameron.

However, it is no secret that it all starts with the running game. The Ravens are near the top of the league in this category with their three-headed approach. Both Willis McGahee and Le'Ron McClain have had huge games this season and can break out the big gainer at any point. Teams have tried to beat us by shutting down what they know is coming but still have not been able to stop those big guns up front from opening gaping holes for our backs to run through. The Ravens stubbornly stick to their gameplan, although they know Flacco can and will air it out as needed and with great success. Sooner or later, they know the pounding will wear down the defense and the yards pile up while the clock winds down.

As long as the aforementioned continues, so will the Ravens season. If for whatever reason, the Dolphins defense steps up and combined with offensive success and the possible mistakes by the rookie QB, then they do have a chance to win this game. However, the experts see it as a Ravens victory, and the public agrees, as the line has now moved from -3 to -3.5 as more money is being bet on the Ravens. To be a road favorite is a huge advantage, as that line would swell to around -7 if the game was in Baltimore. However, it is a playoff game and we all know that anythig can happen once the post season commences. Let's hope both teams play to their capabilities and we have a great game. If they do, look for a Ravens victory and a continuation of the season and a rematch with the Titans.

That's how to beat the Dolphins. GO RAVENS!!!

Wow, I never thought that the excitement of making the post season after such an embarrassing season would bring out the worst in all of us, especially during what should be the holiday season.

I guesss that we never expected to be in this situation and are handling it with all the giddiness and immaturity of a little kid who just opened the best Christmas present that they could ever imagine. That goes double for the Miami Dolphins fans as well, who have every reason to even be more excited than we are. They turned their 2007 one-win season (who did they beat again?) into a division title this year and I'm sorry, but head coach Tony Sparano deserves every accolade as Coach of the Year, even over our own John Harbaugh. Harbaugh had a much better core group of veterans to work with and bonded with them to get them on board and behind him for every step of the way this season. For that, he deserves to win the award as well, and probably would if not for the great successes of Sparano and Atlanta Falcons rookie coach Mike smith as well.

So give the Dolphins the credit they deserve, which they should return to us for our great turnaround as well. It's nice to have some fresh faces in the playoffs instead of seeing the Patriots every year. Too bad we still have to deal with the Colts and Steelers as usual. However, that can wait at least another week for one of us and despite all the trash talking, we will just  have to wait until the game is over to see who had it right through all the smack.

Because of our recent and unexpected success, it seems to me that both teams' fans have handled this newfound position pretty poorly. The sophomoric comments on both sides really needs to stop and while a little trash is fine and even fun, the spewing of hatred and personal comments really turns my stomach. We expected and got that from the Cleveland fans and heard that from a lot of teams throughout the league when they played the Browns. But let's not lower ourselves to that level, regardless of what the other teams' fans throw our way. Let's see if we can tone that portion of our smack down a bit and focus on what has made our small group of loyal and knowledgeable fans great to trade comments between all season. That has been our "quality over quantity" mantra all season and should continue for what is left of our great season.

To the Miami Dol-fans: Maybe we have gone a bit overboard with our enthusiasm and zealousness and if we've offended you in any ways, we apologize. However, please don't misunderstand our spirit and excitement of getting to this point of the season which no one, including most of us, ever expected us to be at. You can certainly relate to that and understand our reasoning. So let's move on and focus our comments and opinions on the game at hand and honestly, may the best team win, move on and dethone those hated Steelers, Colts, Chargers and Titans!

Okay!?

HAPPY NEW YEAR FOOTBALL FANS!!!

Okay, perhaps we all got caught up in the excitement of the moment and didn't know how to handle the fact that we are BOTH in the playoffs after embarrassing 2007 seasons. But can't we all try to get along? I admire your loyalties and you should do the same with our fans. I'll try to keep them focused on the game and let's do away with the personal comments and focus on what will be a great game. So post your game-specific questions here and I'll come back to respond the rest of the week. Be serious and keep it clean for the serious fans who are truly interested in hearing the justification of our opinions based on real football stats or facts. The trash can stilll fly on the rest of your site or over at www.BaltimoreBeatdown.com.

Let's start over and try to appreciate the opportunity that we have this weekend while the other rivals of both teams have to sit at home, watch us, complain about lost chances and start their own off season soap operas!

So bring it! Thanks.