For a wild-card game, this one's not bad, the Buffalo Bills
(11-5) at the Tennessee Titans (13-3), the most combined wins in
any wild-card game ever.
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| Jevon Kearse and the Titans have made life miserable for opponents at Adelphia Coliseum. |
Except that Buffalo coach Wade Phillips did a strange thing on
the way to this (excuse the expression) clash of the Titans -- off
one strong performance in a meaningless game, he elevated Rob
Johnson to the starting quarterback role over Doug Flutie.
OK, Flutie didn't have the year he had last season. But he still
managed to find a way to win. In the last game he played, he
started slowly, then completed his last 12 passes to rally his team
to a 13-10 overtime win in New England.
"My feeling is, with either one of them we can win," coach
Wade Phillips said. "It was a tough decision. It wasn't a
haphazard thing."
It may turn out to be a tougher decision.
Johnson has talent. The Bills surrendered a No. 1 pick for him,
then signed him to a $25 million five-year deal.
But Flutie has magic and magic is what's needed in the playoffs,
particularly against a Tennessee team playing as well as any team
in either conference entering the playoffs.
The Titans are favored by 4½ the half-point was added after
Johnson was named the Bills' starter. The last time they played
against the Bills in the postseason, they were the Houston Oilers
and blew a 35-3 lead at Buffalo.
Johnson will see a lot of Jevon Kearse. And with Flutie on the
bench, the Titans won't blow any leads. Titans 24, Bills 14
Detroit (plus 5½) at Washington: On Dec. 5, the Lions beat the Redskins 33-17 to end an 18-game
losing streak to Washington. They haven't won since and they
haven't beaten the Redskins on the road since 1935, when the Skins
played in Boston.
QB Gus Frerotte, who got his revenge against the Redskins in
Pontiac, is back for the injured Charlie Batch. Washington has too
much firepower, so exit one bedraggled 8-8 team. Redskins 31, Lions 13
Dallas (plus 7) at Minnesota: The Cowboys and their backers point to the game at the Metrodome on Nov. 8, when the Cowboys took a 17-0 lead as Emmitt Smith ripped through the porous Minnesota defense. Then Smith and Troy Aikman
were hurt and the Vikings ended up winning 27-17.
But Minnesota has moved John Randle inside now.
And the Cowboys are still a 1-7 team on the road.
They'll compete, but ... Vikings 27, Cowboys 21
Miami (plus 3½) at Seattle: There's drama here, but not much of it involves the game. Both teams stumbled into the playoffs, each losing five of six, the Seahawks only getting in when Kansas City's kicking game let it down and it lost to Oakland in overtime.
The drama is if this might be Dan Marino's last game.
The drama is if this might be Jimmy Johnson's last game.
It might, but .. Dolphins 16, Seahawks 13
Last week: 8-6-1 (spread); 9-6 (straight up). Season: 113-126-9 (spread); 151-97 (straight up).
