Former Giants TE Mark ‘Rambo’ Bavaro knows something about beating the heavy favorite in a Super Bowl.

So does Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

Bavaro and Belichick were on the Giants team that upset the Bills in Super Bowl XXV - a.k.a. The Wide Right Bowl (sorry, Bills fans). The media in New York dubbed it The Perfect Game, which is exactly what the Giants will have to play to defeat the undefeated Patriots.

“With Brandon Jacobs and (Ahmad) Bradshaw, that 1-2 punch is pretty formidable, and you combine that with Eli (Manning) all of a sudden looking better than his brother . . . he looks like a top-rated quarterback.”

Giants fans have to like Bavaro’s enthusiasm. However, Belichick was not only a part of the defense that slowed down the powerful Bills offense that year, he was the head coach behind the Patriots first Super Bowl championship, and slowed down one of the most powerful offenses in league history, St. Louis, in his third of five rings as a pro coach. If any coach knows what a team needs to do to stop a legendary offense, it’s Belichick.

This time, it’s his offense that the underdog needs to slow down. And no one has ever seen an offense like Belichick’s, in the Super Bowl or otherwise.

But now that Giants fans have to endure Eli Manning on the cover of Sports Illustrated, will the pluck that’s gotten them above where anyone figured they would be remain?

Last week’s cover man? Packers QB Brett Favre.

As Paul Schwartz of the New York Post mentions in his blog, Favre won four out of five games after being named the publication’s Sportsman of the Year on Dec. 10.

Brady’s injury a smoke-screen?

Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Post makes an interesting point in his blog The Blue Screen.

Could Brady’s injury be a fabrication, nothing more than Belichick’s desire to mess with the media, as he really seems to enjoy doing? In Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor’s autobiography, LT writes about the days going into Super Bowl XXV, and how Belichick had instructed his players to pump gallons of sunshine up the posteriors of their opponents, filling them with obscene amounts of “Gee, they sure are a great team,” and “we’re going to have a helluva of a tough time out there.” Taylor, in his book, seemed convinced that was a big reason why they were able to score the upset.

Also, it’s no secret Belichick lists Brady on the injury report as “probable” with some sort of right shoulder ailment every week, and has been doing that for years.

But then again, it’s not like Brady is Randall Cunningham, the health of his ankle two weeks before his next game is ultimately irrelevent, especially for a bred pocket passer.

Dude, Tiki didn’t retire too early

 about former Giants RB Tiki Barber in his blog, The Blue Screen. Not surprising, Tiki wasn’t short on words:

“I’m not, dude. I really am not,” Tiki said. “It’s interesting. My wife asked me that exact question. Ginny asked, ‘So you have to feel, even just a little bit of remorse that you left early.’ I said ‘Honey, I’m trying to make myself think that and wish I was still there. But I’m not. I was done with football. In my heart I knew I didn’t want to do it anymore. My life, personally and professionally, has gone a different way. My passion is elsewhere.

“That being said, I’m ecstatic for those guys. My longtime teammates, like Michael Strahan, it’s awesome for him. Amani Toomer is the same way. He’s really one of the most underappreciated wide receivers in the history of the National Fotoball League. This is a chance for them, after 2000 when we lost that game, for them to finish or at least conclude their careers on a phenomenal note. I’m happy for them. I really am.”

When the subject of how Tiki threw the team under the bus earlier this season, calling out Giants coach Tom Coughlin for being out-coached at the end of the 2005 season, and Manning, for “not being a leader of men.”

Leave it up to Tiki to use terms usually reserved for Civil War generals. Can’t just say “he didn’t lead on the field,” or anything like that…

I’m just throwing this link out there because it’s hilarious, and this is really a great site.

Maybe he’ll be listed on the injury report as having more than a sore right shoulder in the Super Bowl. Not that injury reports have been all that forthcoming in these playoffs.

Caught by TMZ cameras, the Patriots QB and NFL MVP Tom Brady was seen hobbling with a walking cast on his right foot in New York Monday, as he brought a bouquet of flowers presumably to girlfriend Gisele Bundchen in her apartment.

(too early to make jokes about the possibility of him being in New York to spy on the Giants?)

 The Boston Herald’s Karen Guregian noted in her column that Brady acknowledging the cast on his weekly WEEI radio show, but played off the injury as irrelevent to him playing in Super Bowl XLII vs. the New York Giants.

“Ah, you know, there’s always bumps and bruises. I’ll be ready for the Super Bowl,” Brady said, when asked point-blank if he had a leg injury. “I’m not worried about that. I’m not missing this one. I’d have to be on a stretcher to miss this one. There will be treatment this week. In games like this, you get a little nicked up. It’s nothing serious.”

Patriots coach Bill Belichick lists Brady on the team’s injury report as “probable” with an undisclosed ailment to his right shoulder every week, and has been doing so Brady’s entire career. This is most likely Belichick simply playing the smart-ass card, as Brady misses starts about as often as the sun fails to rise in the east.

As humorous as that is, though, perhaps his tongue-in-cheek jab at the system has its reasons. Chargers QB Phillip Rivers said leading up to the AFC Championship game he had a partially torn ACL and a sprained MCL. He was listed as “doubtful” on the injury report, having a “sprained knee.” After the Patriots 21-12 victory, Rivers told San Diego Union-Tribune reporter Kevin Acee his ACL was “totally gone” and he had arthroscopic surgery the Monday before the game to enable him to play.

Incidentally, that seemed to be several of the Chargers. As Jeff from Chargers Coverage says:

The Chargers left their hearts on the field in Foxborough, Mass.  They also left their knees, ankles, and toes on the field as well.  I don’t believe that they were out-coached or out-played; more they were out-manned. 

Rivers and RB LaDainian Tomlinson were both far worse than people expected (Tomlinson had two carries for five yards), and TE Antonio Gates faced single-coverage all game (Chris from Land of Patriots credits a tough Patriots red zone defense, and that should be mentioned), but only had two catches for 17 yards. Again, gutty effort on behalf of the Chargers, keeping the game within striking distance despite having that many key players who obviously couldn’t play go out there and try, anyway.

Call Brady “probable” (meaning he likely will play) with whatever ailment possible. Barring the unlikely event he is hit by a truck, or simply gets gouged in the eye by teammate Vince Wilfork  (or maybe Richard Seymour does something to him, Nick Hardwick seems to think he’s That Guy), Brady will play in the game.

Considering Rivers had a severe knee injury, and had surgery five days prior to the game, and still didn’t fair too badly in the brutal conditions, Brady having two weeks to prepare to make the Patriots the league’s first 19-0 team doesn’t seem too far off.

Two Great Equilizers in the NFL playoffs:

1. Field goals only matter in the fourth quarter and overtime (ask Giants K Lawrence Tynes, who missed two field goals, but drilled a Lambeau Field visiting team playoff record 47-yarder to win the NFC Championship game).

2. Cold weather (NFL MVP Tom Brady was surprisingly human in Foxboro, tossing three interceptions in rough wind conditions in a 21-12 win over San Diego in the AFC title game).

3. Red Zone defense (the Chargers took advantage of the weather, getting three turnovers from the Patriots, one in the Chargers end zone, but failed to score a touchdown. The Patriots gave up 311 yards, but very few came with the goal line in sight, and Nate Kaeding’s four field goals, instead of two Rivers touchdown passes, made the difference.

One could probably add a few more, and that would have something to do with match-ups on paper (visiting teams both covered their spreads quite comfortably), or the severity of injuries (Rivers played with a torn ACL, and put on a gutty display, despite two killer interceptions), or even the percieved advantage any defensive backfield may have (Giants WR Plaxico Burress shredded the loaded Packers secondary for 11 catches and 154 yards, most of those at the expense of Pro Bowl CB Al Harris).

All in all, Championship Weekend was full of interesting surprises. The one thing we can definitely count on in Super Bowl XLII, in Glendale, Ariz., is the weather won’t be -2 and windy. But it will be the new NFL Road Darling Giants vs. The Institution that is the Undefeated Patriots. A re-match of a Week 17 epic battle between these teams.

While Amy and Chris of Land of Patriots throw us a teaser with that classic celebratory picture of Tedy Bruschi (seriously, have we ever seen a more photogenic athlete in celebration than Bruschi?), Derek of Giants Bits pulled off the Live Blog quite well, especially considering how enjoyable the game turned out to be. He does leave something for Patriots fans, though:

They’ve gone this far. And New England didn’t impress me in their 21-12 ugly win over the depleted Chargers. Our team’s gotten to this point. Let’s totally SHOCK THE WORLD AND TAKE IT ALL!

Early Important Stats for Super Bowl XLIII

Eli Manning in the playoffs: Zero interceptions

Giants defense: allowing 60-110 passing with five interceptions

Giants secondary: Five members were listed on their injury report

New England held the ball for the last 9:13 of the AFC title win over San Diego

Patriots WR Randy Moss has two catches in the Patriots two playoff wins

Brady won his 100th game of his career

New England becomes the first franchise in the four major sports to start a season 18-0

It’s freezing in Green Bay, and all the heat of this weekend is focused on the undefeated Patriots and blazing-hot Chargers.

The latest on San Diego QB Phillip Rivers is that he is “optimistic” about his chances to play on Sunday. The San Diego Union-Tribune reported Friday that he took about one-third of the snaps in practice on Friday, the first time he got on the field this week.

“The way I felt Monday morning, I didn’t think I’d feel as good as I do right now,” Rivers said. “Certainly, it can ease my mind a bit.”

NFL rules state listing a player as “doubtful,” which the Chargers did Friday afternoon, means he has a 25 percent chance of playing. Typically, a back-up QB will take less than one-third of the snaps if the starter of the game hadn’t been decided yet. For example, Matt Cassel, the quarterback who backs up New England’s Tom Brady, probably took 15 percent of the snaps in practice this week. Odds are pretty good that Brady will start Sunday. As for the rest of the team, they seem…completely healthy. Well, almost.

As Chris notes in Land of Patriots, New England LT Matt Light has the flu, and that could affect his conditioning by the fourth quarter. Not wishing harm on Brady, but it would take one Shawne Merriman bullrush for Brady to turn into Cassel. Hey, Rivers partially tore his ACL completing a screen pass. Things happen.

Is that honestly the best someone can come up with in regards to beating the Patriots? Possible injury? As Murtaugh tells Martin Riggs, “thin…real thin.”

We’ll turn it over to the Bolts expert. Jeff Williams of Chargers Coverage starts to go Bennett Brower on his readers in his game preview. (he knows the Patriots are “really good” and they are “undefeated” and they “beat the tar out of the Chargers earlier this season.”) Jeff also makes some pretty good points in laying out his reasoning behind why he is pretty much the only writer in the country picking the Bolts to score the upset:

In Week 2, the Patriots met the young talented team who had not pulled it together.  The process of adapting to a new coaching staff took some time, and the players had to look within themselves to realize their full potential.  The Chargers have yet to play their best game, but they are definitely peaking at a great time.  Can the Pat’s say that?  I expect the Bolts to play a fundamentally sound game, play HUGE on defense, and force the Pat’s into kicking some field goals that normally would have gone for TD’s.  That’s how you keep the game close.  And that’s how the Chargers will win the game. Chargers 31, Patriots 27.

Sports Cartel’s take? While running the risk of getting into yet another Manning vs. Brady argument (we’ll pass, no pun intended), this is the same Chargers defense that picked off Peyton Manning six times in a regular season game, and beat him with taxi squad guys playing the second half in the playoffs.

Chris goes over the last two times the Chargers and Patriots have met - both Patriots wins. While he admits San Diego defeating Indianapolis without LaDainian Tomlinson and Rivers, it’s difficult to discount what the Patriots were able to do against a good AFC South team in their own right.

As good as the Chargers looked last week, you would have a hard time finding fault with the Pats effort against a very tough Jaguars team. The Pats are showing a laser-like focus now that the goal is in sight. As much turnover as there was on the roster after last year, there are still plenty of guys that remember what it felt like to go home from Indianapolis. And I don’t think it sits well with them. And the new guys are all looking at a chance for the ultimate validation for coming to New England.

Gutsy. Very gusty. We’ll leave it at that.

Boston Herald reporter Karen Guregian earns her paycheck by breaking this story:

Brady is the best quarterback in the league.

And old media types wonder why blogs are so popular…Sports Cartel appreciates Queen Obvious’s cutting insight into the game. We aren’t sure what we would do without the Boston media’s insistence on making the Patriots some sort of underdog all the time, and their habit of using dramatic metaphors to explain how impressed they are with their teams. Apparently, Laurence Maroney is now “Mr. January,” which could possibly be the most ridiculously unmerited nickname ever.

The Herald focuses on the match-up between Chargers NT Jamal Williams and Patriots C Dan Koppen. After a slight snicker with the writer’s suggestion that Williams is cut from the same cloth as Pats NT Vince Wilfork (As if Wilfork has been doing it longer than Williams has…Williams has had far more success), he does admit Koppen ”will have his hands full.” For the pure football fans, that truly will be a fantastic battle, as the value of a center cannot be underestimated, and Williams is probably the best nose tackle in the game.

Either way, the Patriots seem to have every advantage on paper, and San Diego will have to do what no other team has done this year; play the Pats perfectly for 60 minutes. The only question in the NFL this season is very simple: Is playing perfectly for four quarters enough to beat the Patriots?

We can probably expect around 33 million people tuning in to find out the answer Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.

Download podcast of Land of Patriots’ writer Amy on L.A. ESPN Radio

All three hours of a.m. 710 ESPN Radio host Steve Mason’s Friday show, including an interview with LofP’s Amy can be downloaded here. Give it a listen, feel free to leave a comment on this blog!

Hailed as a queen in and around St. Louis, and hated in Southern California, Georgia Frontieri was, to say the least, well-known in the sporting world. She passed away early Friday, succumbing to the battle with breast cancer she had been fighting for several months.

Her philanthropic efforts in and around her native St. Louis were inspiring. Her legacy, though, is that she moved the Rams - based in Los Angeles, she moved the team to Anaheim in 1980, then to St. Louis in 1995 in her tenure - out of California, and into baseball-mad St. Louis.

She rewarded St. Louis with a Super Bowl championship in 1999, and a Super Bowl appearance in 2001.

Frontieri is survived by two children - daughter Lucia Rodriguez and son Chip Rosenbloom - six grandchildren, and Earle Weatherwax, her companion of the last 19 years. Her sixth husband, Carroll Rosenbloom, owned the Rams until his death in 1979.

NFL Commissioner Roger Gooddell wrote this in a statement released Friday:

“Georgia Frontiere was the first lady of sports in her native St. Louis…Her philanthropic work was legendary and wide ranging, but her special focus was retired NFL players and the arts. She was a talented and wonderful person.”

John Shaw, President of the Rams, said this in his statement:

“It’s been my privilege for twenty-eight years to work for a loyal, generous, and supportive owner who was totally committed to her football team.  This is an enormous loss for me and for the Rams’ organization. All of our prayers and sympathy go out to her family.”

Member of “Steel Curtain” dies in car accident (posted from Die Hard Steel)

Ernie Holmes, a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers famed “Steel Curtain” defense in the 1970s, died Friday in a car accident outside Beaumont, Texas. He was 59 years old.

Holmes (nicknamed “Fats”) played alongside Hall of Famer “Mean” Joe Greene at the defensive tackle position, and L.C. Greenwood and Dwight White, the ends. With Holmes, the Steelers won two of their four Super Bowls during the decade, was a two-time All-Pro lineman, known for his unpredictable behavior, and this somewhat humorous story (depending on your perspective).

Holmes is a paramount example of how the Steelers, much like what the Patriots are doing today, and the Cowboys were able to do in the 1990s, drafted nearly flawlessly. He was an 8th round selection out of Texas Southern in 1971.

In fact, the Steelers fleeced the state of Texas for the bulk of their talent on defense, all from small Texas schools. White attended Texas A&M University-Commerce and Greene went to North Texas State University. Holmes went to Texas Southern University.

Jamison Hensley of the Baltimore Sun is reporting the Ravens will hire Eagles secondary coach John Harbaugh to replace Brian Billick as the team’s head coach.

Hensley writes the team will announce Harbaugh at a noon press conference tomorrow.

Harbaugh was the Ravens second choice, behind Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, who turned down their offer in favor of Dallas’s offer to remain in his current role.

Stephen at Ravens TD stopped at a McDonalds in Nowhere, Ill., to get a WiFi connection so he could write about it.

The former Miami University defensive back, until his hire, was known as a fast-rising assistant. Harbaugh has had more than his fair share of interest over the past two seasons. He was a finalist for the head coaching position at UCLA, which, incidentally went to Rick Neuheisel, who was Baltimore’s offensive coordinator in 2007, and their quarterbacks coach in 2006. Hensley writes:

Although Harbaugh might not have the typical credentials of some other head coaching candidates, he has been on the radar of several NFL teams. One high-ranking Ravens official predicted last year that Harbaugh would be an excellent head coach if a team took a chance on him.

Harbaugh will become the third head coach in Baltimore Ravens history, behind Ted Marchibroda and Billick - who was fired after the Ravens’ 5-11 season in 2007.

Harbaugh, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin (former Vikings defensive coordinator), Bengals coach Marvin Lewis (former Ravens defensive coordinator) and Browns coach Romeo Crennel (former Patriots defensive coordinator) rounds out the AFC North’s head coaches, all of whom have a defensive background.

Harbaugh is the only one without a Super Bowl ring, however. Tomlin was the secondary coach in Tampa Bay when they won the Super Bowl in 2003. Crennel won three titles with New England, and Lewis was Billick’s defensive coordinator in 2000 when the Ravens last won it all.

Harbaugh rose through the coaching ranks fast enough to be able to skip the traditional ascent. While most NFL coaches have at least a season as a coordinator, Harbaugh was the Eagles’ special teams coach for nine seasons, before being named the secondary coach just this past season.

He is the brother of former NFL QB Jim Harbaugh, the head coach at Stanford.

He almost sounds like a Billy Joel song.

Wayne Scullino moved from the warmth of Sydney, Australia, to Green Bay for the sole purpose of following the Packers in the 2007-08 season. He sold the house, closed the shop, bought a ticket for the midwest, and now he calls himself the Once in a Lifetime fan.

Apparently, he doesn’t need you to worry for he and his family, cuz they’re all right. They don’t want you to tell them it’s time to come home.

Like Joel in “My Life,” Scullino has decided the allure of another life is more attractive. I haven’t been to Sydney, but if Green Bay ranks high enough in his mind that he would be willing to basically bankrupt his family for life with merely the thought of a few football games and marginal book sales in his mind, his neighborhood must have been a demilitarized zone.

In the introduction on Scullino’s web site, Once in a Lifetime Fan, he waxes romantically about living dreams and offers advice to those who enjoy endangering their children’s livelihood (this seems to be common among Packers fans).

You see, in wanting what we want, we often sacrifice one thing for another. Recently I realised that despite my promise to always be that teenager I was 15 or so years ago, I turned into an adult. An adult that still loved everything he loved, but an adult that quite simply, had less time for it.

Apparently, Wayne is teaching us that we all have time to follow the Packers if we simply do not have to work. Strange, it’s like…I knew that all along! Is this trend picking up? Perhaps this is why our unemployment rate here is increasing.

For as easy as this is to poke fun at, truly, it’s a mesmorizing blog, and unless you are a Bears or Vikings fans, you will highly enjoy the YouTube clips he’s posted on his site.

There is an aura to Lambeau, for certain. The video encapsulates that feeling about as well as anyone ever has for me. Watching his experiences knowing full-well he doesn’t have Brett Favre or the Packers rammed down his throat for the last 15 years, you can really come to appreciate this franchise and the almost fearfully devoted fans who have made them one of the most successful franchises in all of sports in any time period.

Anyone with the intestinal fortitude to invest this amount of passion, devotion and loyalty into a football team is both maddening and charming at the same time. It’s hard to think anyone will look at this and not think - in a negative way - this man has completely lost his mind, but whether we would admit it or not, we don’t really look at the footage through the same eyes we thought we would.

He’s still out of his mind. It’s a fun read, though. Ya think fans have this type of commitment for the Houston Rockets? Nope. Gotta love the NFL…

Among the highlights of his blog:

Brett and/or Deanna Favre like Aussie accents

Lambeau experience “surrealistic” in win over Seahawks

Hooter’s birds are his favourites

Our Fearless Blog Leader is named Steve…n

From Dicer8: “Wayne, I really have enjoyed all your VD’s. I hope your going to the game Sunday.” Admit it, you didn’t think of VD as videos at first, did you?

Sports Cartel is fresh off two days of watching America’s Worst audition at the feet of Britian’s most sardonic man, and despite that “Brother” song getting stuck in our heads, it gave us a nice respite away from the intense world of the NFL.

But what a great time of the year…

It may not mean anything, but glancing at San Diego’s participation report compared to New England’s, it might seem a little daunting.

San Diego was without RB LaDainian Tomlinson, QB Phillip Rivers, TE Antonio Gates and NT Jamal Williams. The Patriots were without S Mel Mitchell and OT Ryan O’Callaghan. Obviously, Mel Mitchell was a huge part of the team’s 17-0 record thus far…we’ll have to ask Amy who he is.

Meanwhile…Derek at Giants Bits has a quasi-depressing shot of Cowboys coach Wade Phillips looking as if Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is about to pull out the Beatin’ Stick. It’s weird, Derek goes out of his way to pay Giants Offensive Coordinator Kevin Gilbride a compliment, too.

I’ve killed offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride plenty but for the most part, his playcalling in these two big Giant wins which brought their road record to a remarkable 9-1 has been very good giving Eli and a balanced offense a chance.

KEVIN Gilbride? You mean the guy who was mostly responsible for the Chargers finishing low enough in the standings to get Tomlinson, and the guy who destroyed Kordell Stewart JUST enough in Pittsburgh to earn Ben Roethlisberger? Apparently, Gilbride’s accomplishments have earned him consideration for the open head coaching position at the University of Hawai’i.

Hey, if June Jones can coach there…

Either way, though, Derek makes a required point:

Wonder what Tiki “Me-ki” Barber’s thinking right about now about Eli and this more together bunch? Maybe he and his brother Ronde will write a book about it!

Sports Cartel directs Derek - and everyone else - to the Green Bay Gazette, where they have pictures of Packers fans “celebrating the Giants victory.”

So what you’re telling us is that Packers fans are excited to take on the that’s 9-1 on the road because they beat them three months ago? That makes sense. Colts fans were pumped as hell when Pittsburgh beat the Bengals back in 2005. Then Broncos fans were really excited when the Steelers beat the Colts.

We’re not saying the Giants should or shouldn’t win this game, just simply that there is plenty of recent evidence that strongly indicates it’s unwise to dismiss any team that plays well on the road.

No hate toward the Packers. Read Tina Hollenbeck’s piece on Ryan Grant for some levity on the whole matter.

At Chargers Coverage, however, there’s no hatin’ at all. Quite the opposite. Jeff Williams (who was available to practice on Wednesday, incidentally) writes about the return of the last quarterback to bring the Chargers to the Super Bowl. Stan “The Man” Humphries will be the honorary captain for San Diego Sunday in the AFC Championship game.

How sweet is that?  The last truly-gifted, pre-Rivers, Chargers QB will be back to represent the Chargers as honorary captain.  Stan “The Man” will leave the comfort of his Louisiana home to brave the 15-degree weather of Foxboro to help get things started on the right foot.  Dare I say we will win the coin-toss, and it’s probably not a stretch to think that Sproles is a lock for a big return.

Apparently, Drew Brees wasn’t a gifted quarterback. But Jeff doesn’t predict a victory Sunday, mind you, just a coin-toss win and a big Darren Sproles kick return. Hey, think of it this way, everyone laughed at the thought of Stan Humphries taking the underdog Chargers to Pittsburgh and coming out not only alive and breathing, but with the Lamar Hunt trophy.

Steelers fans still remember that bitter January well. Maybe some of Humphries’ mojo is still there. An excerpt from Steeler Tribute’s chronicle of The Worst (Steelers) Game of the 90s:

Humphries began to drive from his own 20. Faced with 3rd and long on the Steelers 43 yard line, Humphries threw a pass that will linger in the minds of Steelers fans forever. The Steelers blitzed, as was their style. The Chargers picked it up, and that left CB Tim McKyer isolated on man-to-man coverage with WR Tony Martin. Martin burned McKyer, and the Chargers were shockingly in the lead.

Clearly, one of the finest moments in Chargers history. Clearly, the team is much better today than it was then. And the Patriots are better than the 1994 Steelers. These kinds of games have a tendency to become closer in reality than they are on paper.

A quick wish of support for Our Fearless Blog Leader Stephen, who was hospitalized last night for severe tendonitis in both wrists. The affliction was brought on after several postings on the Ravens coaching situation. Is it Jason Garrett? Maybe. Probably not though. Not yet, anyway. It’s enough to drive a newlywed mad.

At the very least, Stephen can flip on his hospital TV and wait with bated breath on whether or not Jerry Jones will pull something off. According to the Baltimore Sun, Garrett is deciding between the Cowboys’ offensive coordinator position, and the Ravens head coaching job.

Hmmm…this doesn’t seem to be too difficult of a choice. Obviously, ya gotta go with the Cowboys job.

That was below the belt. I’ll amend. One in the air beats two in the bush. Garrett would be crazy to not take the head coaching job now, leaving all respect to Jones and the Cowboys, his current employer. Hey, Jones was responsible for hiring Wade Phillips, not Garrett. Why should he wait another year for Phillips to get axed?

Big shocker, though, Tony Sparano (lookin’ forward to hearing Bryant Gumbel biff that name a few times next year) was hired as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins. Yeah, no one saw that coming. Here’s to Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, the 2008 recpient of the Token Rooney Rule Candidate award, getting some interviewing experience, and using it positively.

Mark Hale of the New York Post goes over the Giants precariously thin cornerback position going into the NFC Championship game at Green Bay.

Neither Sam Madison nor Kevin Dockery played in Sunday’s 21-17 win over favored Dallas, and rookie Aaron Ross seperated his shoulder in the game.

He told Post beat writer Paul Schwartz:

“As long as it’s not broke, I’ll be out there. It was painful but it’s the playoffs.”

Ross may have to play, hurt or otherwise. R.W. McQuarters (who had the game-sealing interception at the end of the divisional game) and Corey Webster are available, and Geoffrey Pope, the practice squad, is so unknown, he is listed twice on the Giants roster.

Considering how badly Packers QB Brett Favre carved up the Seahawks’ secondary in a 42-20 route Sunday, the Giants will need all the help in the secondary they can get.

Maybe both Popes could suit up.

Apparently, the allure of millions of dollars guaranteed, the likely instant insertion into the starting lineup and the various other minor perks of becoming a pro athlete weren’t enough for Ohio State linebacker James Laurinaitis.

Cleveland Plain-Dealer reporter Doug Lesmerises (who’s name is almost as hard to spell as the linebacker’s) is reporting Laurinaitis will stay in Columbus, skipping out on a seemingly certain top-10 selection in April’s draft.

Nod to MDS.

Laurinaitis told Lesmerises he spoke with former Buckeye and current Green Bay Packer linebacker A.J. Hawk.

“I talked to A.J. and he said you can’t take back that college experience,” Laurinaitis said. “And I can do nothing but solidify my draft position with another year, and this was the right decision for me and he helped me with it.

While Laurinaitis can do nothing but solidify his draft position, plenty of opponents in the Big 10 and beyond could. The difference in guaranteed money between a top 10 pick and a fourth round is infinite; around $10-$12 million and zero. One injury could cost him plenty.

But you can’t get that college experience back. Nevermind the opportunity to set up three generations of financial earning power, the draw of those keggers in Columbus combined with getting mauled in the BCS title game are too much to pass up.