And in the end...

WILD CARD GAME

Ravens 33, Patriots 14 (1/9/10): All the questions about the Patriots in this up-and-down season were answered very early yesterday. Can they play a complete 60-minute game? Can they overcome injuries? Can their coaching staff bring forth a game plan that throws the other team off balance? Can their best players (mostly Brady) step it up when it really counted? No. No. No. And no.

The official end-of-dynasty proclamations will be issued and reissued all week on the radio and TV. I'll take a pass on listening to all that. The "dynasty" has been over since '04. Is that news? Each year in the NFL has nothing to do with the previous one or the next one. Sometimes two great seasons come back-to-back. Sometimes they don't come for decades. '03 had very little to do with '04 which had very little to do with '07 which had very little to do with this year. Sure, some players and coaches are the same. But things change quickly from year-to-year. Look at the Steelers this decade. So the Pats are out and the season ended in an embarrassing loss. They made the Ravens look a heck of lot better than they really are. Does that mean the Pats can't get back to the top next year? Once again the answer is, no.

But there are many things they need to improve on if they want to go deeper into the playoffs. And all of those things were on display from the first play of yesterday's game. The Ravens are a great running team. Their plan was to pound the ball right at the Pats D all day. The Ravens knew it. The Patriots knew it. Everyone in the stadium knew it. The Pats knew it, but they weren't ready for it. RB Ray Rice took the hand-off on the first play at his own 17-yard line, hit the hole up the middle, cut left, and went -- untouched -- for an 83-yard touchdown. On the first play of the game. I had skipped my pre-kickoff Don Julio margarita run in order to be in my seat for the national anthem. No sooner had Rice crossed the goal line, than I bolted up the stairs for a little liquid relief. You know, something to change the momentum.

I got to the front of the line at the Don Julio stand and said "Two margaritas please." The woman serving the drinks seemed annoyed with my order. "No margaritas today," she answered. No margaritas? The Ravens just scored on an 83-yard run on the first play of the game AND there are no margaritas? "This game is not starting out so well," I thought. "Why no margaritas?" I asked. "No hard liquor on playoff games. You want two Coronas?" "Coronas?" I repeated back to her. "It's January. Why would I want a summer beer?" "You wanted a margarita," she said. "That's a summer drink too." Good point. But one has tequila, the other doesn't. It's 15 degrees out. Which one would you prefer?

I drifted away from the margarita line, excuse me, the Corona line, and wandered dazed across the concourse. I looked up at the small TV hanging on the wall. (Hey, Mr. Kraft. Can we get some TVs that I can see please? Put the $400 I spent on parking this year towards it.) The Pats had the ball. Brady dropped back to pass, and from what I could make out on the screen, he fumbled the ball and the Ravens recovered. No, this game was not starting out so well at all.

It just got worse from there. The Ravens had a third down inside the Pats 10. Hold them to a field goal attempt there and maybe -- maybe -- the Pats could turn things around. Rice took the ball and hit the hole on the left but James Sanders came up from his safety spot and had a clear shot on Rice that would have stopped him short of the first. A tackle that had to be made. Sanders didn't make it. He completely whiffed and Rice bulled ahead for a first and goal. Two plays later, touchdown. 14-0. The Sanders missed tackle was emblematic of the season. A Patriot had a chance to make a play and he just didn't get the job done.

This would normally have been the point in the game where I texted my nephews and sister with messages like "Lots of time left." "This is ugly." "We just need a big play." Something like that. Or they would have texted me. But there was radio silence. Clearly we were all too stunned to try to offer each other hope. And for good reason.

Brady threw a horrible pick on the Pats' third possession. The Ravens scored again. Then he threw another pick on the next possession. The Ravens scored again. As the clock ticked down on the first quarter the Gillette scoreboard read Ravens 24, Patriots 0. The boos started to rain down. I prefer silence over booing my team but when you screw everything up for an entire quarter in the playoffs you have earned some boos. And they really weren't that loud. I believe me exact words were "You can't spot a team like the Ravens 24 points. We are done." How's that for analysis? Mark refused to die, knowing that teams can come back and believing that Brady could still summon up some magic. But there was no magic to be had. That Pats scored after a muffed Ravens punt to make it 24-7 and had chances to cut the lead to 10 before the half but just couldn't make the plays. Time and time again.

The second half started with the Pats going three-and-out. There were too many three-and-outs this year for an offense that averaged the sixth most points per game. They scored a lot. But they rarely scored when they had to. Red zone issues. No consistent production from their tight ends. Lots of problems for Belichick and the staff to address. The rest of the game consisted of the Ravens grinding down the clock and the Pats desperately trying to do something to climb back in the game. But the Pats couldn't get anything going. It was their worst game of the season and one of their worst in years. As the sun went down behind the south side of the stadium and the temperature began to go down with it, we left with just over three minutes to go so Mark could catch an earlier train out of Providence. It was one of just a handful of times we left before the final gun during our 16 years as ticket holders. But we had seen enough.

That's the only good thing -- as a fan -- about your team getting blown out and blown out early. You go through the stages of grief before the game is even over. By the start of the fourth quarter acceptance had settled in around most of the stadium. The season was over. Their unbeaten home playoff record under Brady and Belichick was over. The shot at a fourth Lombardi this decade was over.

The day after the season ends is always a gray one when your team comes up short. You kick away the snow in front of the shed and put away the grill, tables, chairs, tent, and all the tailgating supplies. (It's important to make sure you throw out any leftover meat or else it will not be pretty come spring when you open the door again). As I was carrying stuff across the yard something felt different. I realized this was the first time in a long time that I was storing things away after a season-ending loss at home. That was a strange feeling. It's been a great decade. A decade of great games and even better memories. The Pats had never ended a season by losing at home during that time. As I put the last items into the shed I thought about next season's outstanding home schedule and started to look forward to setting up in the Gillette lot some sunny September day with my friends. I can't wait.

Pick 'em: Wild Card round

It's playoff time. The Pats are back after missing it last year. But in some ways last year's team would have filled me with more confidence heading into the postseason. And that was with Matt Cassel at QB. I'm looking forward to watching Brady on the playoff stage again. He has to be the hungriest player on the field. But he can't do it alone. None of the stars on any of this weekend's competitors can do it alone. That's why I'm going with the four most balanced teams in the Wild Card match-ups.

AFC GAMES

Ravens at Patriots: This is the team I was hoping the Pats would get in the first round. Not because the Ravens will be easy to beat. Just the opposite. It's going to take a 60-minute, hard-hitting, mistake-free effort to beat Ray Lewis and Co. If the Pats can do that I'll feel a lot better about their chances of going deep into the playoffs. Welker is gone but Wilfork and Warren should be back. The Pats beat the Ravens 27-21 in Week 4. It was one of their most complete games of the season. It was also the only home game I missed this year. I'm looking forward to a game just as intense. And just as close. Pick: Patriots 23, Ravens 17

Jets at Bengals: One of three games this weekend that is a rematch of the season finale. An odd occurrence. The Jets stomped Cincy 37-0 to get in the playoffs. But that was in the Meadowlands. This will be in Cincy. The Bengals were the better team most of the season but the Jets -- if they don't have to rely on rookie QB Sanchez to win it for them -- are playing better ball right now. Rex Ryan has not exactly coached to his team's strengths (best D, great running game) this year. You have to think that will change in the playoffs. Pick: Jets 17, Bengals 16

NFC GAMES

Eagles at Cowboys: Dallas is playing some of the best football in the league at the moment. They just stomped on the Eagles 24-0 with the division on the line. The Cowboys can score in many ways and stop you in many ways. The Eagles can't. They will try to run on Dallas but their hopes rest with the playmaker DeSean Jackson. Like I said, the teams that are the most balanced will move on. The 'Boys will end their playoff drought in a big way. Pick: Cowboys 37, Eagles 17

Packers at Cardinals: The Cardinals are hoping for another magical run like the one that put them in the Super Bowl last year. It's going to take more than magic for them to beat the Packers. Green Bay has a great passing attack so they will be able to put pressure on the Cardinals D. The Packers' defense will be able to bring lots of pressure of its own. They should be in Warner's face all day ... and that usually spells disaster for the Cards. Pick: Packers 30, Cardinals 20

Playoffs?! Playoffs?!

At the start of this decade the Patriots had played in 17 playoff games in 40 years of football and their record was an underwhelming 7-10. There were some great games in there but also some heart breakers (Steelers 7, Pats 6 in '97 is a good example). In this decade the Pats have played in ... 17 playoff games. In just ten years. Their record? 14-3. It's still hard to believe.

As the Pats get ready for the playoffs in a new decade, it's a good time to look back at the last 10 years and rank the top playoff games. It's not really a ranking as much as a list of great memories. 14-3. Three titles. What a decade.

10. '06 Divisional round (vs. Chargers): The only non-Super Bowl year game to make the list. This was one I watched mostly with my hands partially blocking my eyes, fearing the Chargers next score that would have blown the game open. San Diego led 14-3 early but the Pats scratched their way back to 21-13 with eight minutes to go. The Pats were teetering on the brink of disaster the whole game and when Brady was picked by Marlon McCree with about five minutes left it looked like the Pats were done. But McCree kept running with the ball and the ever-alert Troy Brown stripped it and the Pats recovered. New life! Brady quickly cashed in on the second chance with a TD and two-point conversion (direct snap to Faulk of course) to tie the game at 21. The Pats D held and Gostkowski nailed a 31-yarder for one of the all-time great playoff thefts.

9. '04 Division round (vs. Colts): When a team's most impressive, dominating defensive playoff performance of the decade only comes in at #9, well, you know you've been treated to some great games. This was the "Clock Killin' '' Corey Dillon game. This was the game where the unstoppable force (Colts' offense) met the immovable object (Pats' D). The league had changed the rules after the Pats beat the Colts (and beat them up) the year before, allowing more freedom for the receivers. The new rules didn't help. Bruschi ripped the ball from Dominick Rhodes's hands. The Pats (with the help of the cold and snow) ripped the heart right out of the Indy offense. They beat the Eagles for the title two weeks later but this was the '04 Super Bowl.

8. '03 Divisional round (vs. Titans): The coldest playoff game in Patriot history. Every now and then a shiver will run through my body leftover from that day. How the players were able to play such a great game is beyond me. It took all my strength just to drink my beers. Brady hit Bethel Johnson on a 41-yard bomb as if it was a sunny September afternoon. Rodney Harrison hit everything in sight (and had a pick) and Adam Vinatieri hit yet another huge kick, nailing a 46-yarder with five minutes to go. I can still hear his foot smack the frozen ball as if he was kicking a cinder block. It hurt just to listen to it.

7. '01 AFC Championship (vs. Steelers): I watched this one at a bar with Paul. I was supposed to be at work. It seemed like a good day to take a three-hour lunch break. Other than the Sox Game 7 win over the Yankees this was the best bar game I've watched. The place was raucous. The Pats were big underdogs. The Steelers were way too cocky. Then Brady went down and Drew Bledsoe came in to play the role of hero. It was Bledsoe's shining moment as a Patriot -- and his last. He sure deserved it. Troy Brown made two huge special teams plays and the Pats found themselves headed to New Orleans for the Super Bowl.

6. Super Bowl XXXIX (vs. Eagles): A Super Bowl not in the top 5? A Super Bowl that gave the Pats back-to-back titles not in the top 5? That's right. It wasn't all that great a game. The Pats only won by a field goal (24-21) but the game never felt that close. Not every Super Bowl is a classic. The key is just to win it. The beauty always lies in the final score. The Eagles and T.O. put up a good battle but the Patriots were too experienced, deep, and confident to let the chance at history get away. Linebacker Mike Vrabel made an acrobatic TD catch and Rodney sealed the victory with a pick, ending the game by flapping his arms like Eagles wings. The Pats had soared to the level of a dynasty.

5. '03 AFC Championship (vs. Colts): When someone says Gillette Stadium isn't a great home-field advantage its pretty clear that they weren't there for this game. The rivalry was just starting to build at this point. If you asked most people (outside of NE) which of these teams was about to win back-to-back titles I bet 90 percent of them would have chosen the Colts. They would have been wrong. The Pats D forced Manning to throw four picks (three by Ty Law) by harassing him and knocking his receivers all over the field. Rule changes would follow. And so would more Pats victories.

4. '04 AFC Championship (vs. Steelers): Oh, this game was fun to watch. The rematch with the Steelers in Heinz Field. Three years later the Pittsburgh players were still whining about their '01 loss and, having put a beating on the Pats in the regular season, were predicting a blowout. They were right. It was a blowout. Pats 41-27. And it wasn't that close. Deion Branch caught a TD bomb to open the scoring and then ran one in on the reverse to close out the scoring. Brady was an efficient 14-21 for only 207 yards and two TDs. But the D forced three picks -- Rodney taking one 87 yards for a touchdown. Blowout.

3. Super Bowl XXXVIII (vs. Panthers): One of the strangest Super Bowls ever. And the most exciting. The first quarter was a defensive war. Neither team scored. Then Vrabel forced a fumble, Brady hit Branch for a touchdown, and the two teams busted out to score 24 points in the last three minutes of the half. 24 points in three minutes after a bruising defensive first half. I've never seen anything like it. The two teams went back into their defensive stance, both coming up empty in the third quarter. That all changed again in the fourth quarter when the teams combined to score 37 points. Most of them on big plays. The game kept swinging from a standoff to a shootout. The Pats had Brady and Vinatieri. They got off the last shot for one of the greatest Super Bowl victories in NFL history.

2. Snow Bowl (vs. Raiders): "After review, the quarterback's arm was going forward ..." Tuck that! I'll be watching the tape of this game when I'm a happy old man. Hopefully I will be able to remember what it was like to be there as well as I can now. I think I will. The weather. The old stadium. A franchise's luck changing forever. A kick for the ages. A game for the ages. Most of the talk now centers on the fumble-that-wasn't and Vinatieri's clutch kicks, but the Pats receivers (Patten, Brown, Wiggins, Faulk) made some incredible catches in the blizzard. It was a memorable way to close out the old place. There's only one game that could top this instant classic.

1. Super Bowl XXXVI (vs. Rams): I was sitting on the floor next to the television in my parent's den. I wanted to be as close to the TV as I could. Brady spike the ball with just seven seconds left, the ball bouncing straight up and landing gently in the palm of his hand. Everyone was silent as Vinatieri walked out for the kick. "If he makes this we are Super Bowl champs," ran through my mind about 100 times in 30 seconds. I'm sure it was going through the mind of everyone in the room. But no one dared say it. The ball was snapped. Vinatieri kicked it smoothly. The camera angle switched to behind the goal post, the ball heading right towards me. It was right down the middle. Right down the middle! We yelled and danced and hugged and laughed -- and even cried a little -- for hours. The kick was good. I still can't believe it.

Final standings

The regular season is over and the Colts are right where they started in my top 10 rankings -- No. 1. And that's where they belong. A columnist wrote last week (after the Pats had their way with the Jaguars) that there aren't a lot of good teams in the NFL. I couldn't disagree more. Look at the playoff teams ranked below (12, not 10). Any one of them could win the Super Bowl. They are all that good. Sure, there are some bad teams like Oakland, Washington, and others. But even they competed with the top dogs and pulled off some upsets. There may not be any powerhouses in the NFL right now, but there are a dozen or more very good teams. That should make for some great playoff games.

1. Indianapolis Colts (14-2): They lost their last two games due to indifference. So now Manning and the Colts head into the playoffs without the historic burden of 19-0. They can relax, get rested, and be ready in two weeks. But will they be ready? They are the best team in the league but they will have gone almost a month without competing. If they can shake the rust and get through the first playoff game they will be tough to stop.

2. San Diego Chargers (13-3): The hot team. The favorite pick to win it all. The Chargers stumbled out of the gate at 2-3 but have rolled off eleven straight wins to close out the regular season. Phillip Rivers should be the league MVP (of course it will go to #4). They were the team to beat way back in '06 when the Pats went into SD and stole one. They are a veteran team now. Less cocky. They know what it takes. Even Norv might not be able to screw this up. Maybe.

3. New Orleans Saints (13-3): What the hell happened to the Saints? It wasn't that long ago that they were whuppin' the Pats on Monday night and looking like the team to beat. They are still the team to beat in the NFC but they closed out the season with three straight losses -- two of them in the Dome. Their offense sputtered down the stretch, scoring less than 20 points in all three loses. Can they turn it back on in the second round of the playoffs? I think they will.

4. Minnesota Vikings (12-4): Brett Favre finished the season with 30 touchdowns. And only seven picks. Seven! I would have put a lot of money on him throwing double digits. But he didn't. Impressive. Favre gets all the attention but Minnesota has a lot more than #4 going for them. A great run defense. A great running game. Adrian Peterson is one of the most dangerous backs in the game. He can change a game with one play. The Vikes will be tough to beat at home in the Division round.

5. Green Bay Packers (11-5): It gets a lot harder to separate the remaining playoff teams. The Pack get the nod because of their overall balance. The offense put up the third most points-per-game. Aaron Rodgers matched Favre's 30 TDs. Grant Jennings and the ageless Donald Driver are as good a one-two WR punch as there is. The defense is even better. The have the best run D in the league. Theyare fast enough to win in a dome and tough enough to win in the cold. The Pack could make it to the NFC title game.

6. Dallas Cowboys (11-5): Dallas makes the fourth NFC team in the top six. Unlike many teams in the AFC, most NFC teams are heading into the playoffs on a roll. The 'Boys are rolling as well as anyone. Tony Romo smashed his "can't win in December" label into oblivion. Now we'll see if he -- and Wade Phillips -- can actually win a playoff game. They haven't won one since 1996. That's right. Dallas hasn't won a playoff game all decade. Jerry Jones might hang himself from the giant video screen at the top of the Jerry Dome if they don't break that streak. Too bad he has Phillips as his coach.

7. New England Patriots (10-6): Too high a ranking for the Pats? You're probably right. They won one less game this year with Brady than they did last year with Matt Cassel. Didn't expect that. But of the remaining teams competing for the seven spot the Pats have the best chance of winning a home playoff game and advancing. They went unbeaten at Gillette. The Ravens are going to be tough to beat (especially without -- gulp -- Welker) but Brady is still Brady. They still have lots of weapons. The defense has yet to show they can lock down a big win. If the Pats are leading the Ravens 24-10 going into the fourth quarter ... I'm going to be nervous.

8. New York Jets (9-7): What the heck are they doing in the playoffs? Didn't they blow a home game against Atlanta a few weeks ago that pretty much killed their season? Weren't the Colts leading them two weeks ago ... oh, right. The Colts gave up. Thus the Jets' season was taken off life support and they are now up and walking again. Right into the playoffs. With the best defense in the league. Nice going Colts. Rooting against the Jets is ingrained in me. But I think I would actually enjoy watching them win this weekend and then go into Indy and beat the Colts in a real game. Now that would be justice.

9. Cincinnati Bengals (10-6): Cincy ended the season by getting stomped 37-0 by the Jets. And now they play them in the Wild Card round. It doesn't mean a thing. The Bengals -- like the NYJ -- win with defense. At least that's how they should win. Also like the Jets, they get in trouble when they get away from that approach. Cincy has not looked strong down the stretch and are certainly vulnerable. If they can get in front of the Jets early and get the hungry Cincy fans fired up they will be in good shape. If not, their once-promising season will end a disappointment.

10. Baltimore Ravens (9-7): The Ravens barely beat the Raiders in a must-win game. But they won. They haven't had the most impressive season. But they scratched their way into the tournament. They are a well-coached, smash-mouth team. Ray Lewis will scream. John Harbaugh will have his team prepared. Joe Flacco will not make many mistakes. They won't beat themselves. But they can be beaten.

11. Arizona Cardinals (10-6): The Cards go into the playoffs in much the same unimpressive state that they did last year. And they went to the Super Bowl last year. Can Kurt Warner and the men in red catch fire again? Last year they opened up against a tough Atlanta team and beat them in a great 30-24 game. They will face a similar challenge against Green Bay. Can they do it again? I doubt it.

12. Philadelphia Eagles (11-5): The Eagles are in the playoffs yet again. But don't expect them to be making yet another trip to the NFC championship game this decade. They don't have the defense. Philly soared to the top of the NFC East behind the passing attack of Donovan McNabb and DeSean Jackson. Shut down the big plays (like the Cowboys did yesterday) and the Eagles don't have much else. It's been a good year for Philly, but the ride is over.

Dishonorable mention: The Denver Broncos. Or should I say Josh McDaniels. Denver started off 6-0 under the first year coach even though he had spent the preseason battling with his players and trading away his starting QB. After beating the Pats in Week 6 McDaniels stormed around the stadium roaring and screaming. He certainly earned the right to let it all out. It was a big win. But it was kind of a startling show of emotion for an NFL head coach. It's fine to show emotions but you shouldn't look like a college cheerleader (or frat boy). You wouldn't see Parcells doing that. Or Shula. Or Dungy. It made me wonder if he could keep control of his team the whole year. Turns out he couldn't.

Insult and injury

WEEK 17

I'm not a big believer in karma. But there are times when what goes around truly does seem to come around. So when Tom Brady went down in the first quarter of last season there was a part of me that thought "Spygate. Payback is a bitch." I know it had nothing to do with it but if there is such a thing as karma I figured the Pats were paid in full.

I guess not. Watching Wes Welker grab his knee in the first quarter in today's season finale in Houston -- just a week before the playoffs -- the only thought was "Did that just happen?'' Sadly, it did. Welker looks done for the year. The X-ray will say for sure but it looked like torn ligaments. You don't have to have Superman's vision to see that. Let the second-guessing fest begin! Should Belichick have played the starters? Should he have taken the safe road like the Colts last week? Is this just more of Belichick's arrogance? Well, no. It's a serious -- and disastrous -- injury. They happen all the time in the NFL. In preseason. Regular season. Playoffs. First quarter. And last quarter. Games with a lot on the line and games with little on the line. The same thing could have happened in the first quarter of the playoffs next week. You really can't hide from injuries in football. They will find you.

However, feel free to second-guess the coach when it comes to the QB. I'm still not sure what the heck he was doing with Brady today. He's in the game. Wait. He's out and Hoyer is in. Oh, wait. Brady's back in. One last drive to try to win the game? Brady's out again. I doubt Belichick will go into much detail on his thinking there but that's OK. It doesn't matter what he was thinking. It made no sense. None at all. Either leave him in or take him out. Lots of room for criticism there. But any talk comparing what happened to Welker to what the Colts did last week in tanking against the Jets is -- as usual -- way off base. Why? Because Manning, Clark, Wayne, et al played in the first half. Any one of them could have blown a knee. Once a guy lines up to play a down in a game there's a risk of injury. The Colts were doing the same thing as the Pats in the first half. Playing to win. It wasn't until the second half that the Colts quit.

The Pats, as usual, did not quit at all yesterday. And with 14 minutes to go they were up 27-13 and playing well. Welker or not, the Pats seemed to be building some momentum on both sides of the ball. And that is not meaningless. But then something very familiar happened. They proceeded to blow the lead by giving up three touchdowns. It looked a lot like the blown games against the Broncos, the Colts, and the Wildcats. When the Texans cut the lead to 27-20 I texted my nephew Pete "The D has to win this game." They didn't. Once again the Pats had a chance to show they could hold a lead in a crucial game against a tough opponent and once again they didn't get it done. Each time they have blown a lead this season I figured it was the last time I would see it. If it happens one more time then it will indeed be the last time I see it -- this season.

The regular season is finally over. As is any margin for error. With another blown lead -- and more importantly a Welker blown knee -- the Pats are heading into the playoffs in much the same condition they have been all season. Limping. We'll find out soon enough just how dangerous they can be when wounded.