1. Saturday was judgement day as to whether or not Jim Harbaugh’s gamble paid off. Seeing the way Colin Kaepernick peeled apart and smashed the Packers bit by bit, I’d say Harbaugh got what he expected and then some. En route to victory, the he threw for 256 yards and piled on 181 more on the ground, more than any other quarterback in NFL history.
2. Losing is not in God’s plan for Ray Lewis. Not only is he performing at near-peak quality, but even when he’s not on the field, the Baltimore offense is channeling his spirit to pull off miracles. New England looks like they can dismantle just about any team, but can they fight against the will of the Man Upstairs next weekend?
3. Speaking of miracles, Atlanta did everything they could to blow the game but despite all that, they pulled out the W. Matt Ryan, and more importantly Tony Gonzalez got their first ever playoff victories.
4. Rahim Moore should contemplate witness protection.
5. Everyone should be afraid of seeing Seattle next year. Russell Wilson did everything he could to try to seal the comeback, and again proved why he should be Rookie of the Year. The NFC West has gone from the laughingstock to the best division in football.
6. New England is looking like a well-oiled machine, as usual. And since Baltimore has the higher power on their side, we all should be in for a game for the ages next week.
7. Houston is a fraud. Easily the weakest team remaining, their fall from grace ended with a disappointed thud against the Patriots. Something needs to be done to fix their red zone flaws. Is Matt Schaub still in the team’s future?
8. Peyton Manning is a true sportsman, in every sense of the word. Seeing him wait to congratulate Ray Lewis after the game was a touching moment. That was the way to go out in defeat. More athletes should take note and replicate the future Hall of Famer.
9. So much for all the hoopla about the NFL becoming a passing league. Three of the four winners of divisional weekend rushed for over 150 and one (San Francisco) went as high as 323. At the end of the day, no matter how well they play through the air, the ground game is what anchors teams and allows them to take control of the clock.
10. This was the best weekend of this NFL season, bar none. The Ravens-Broncos, Seahawks-Falcons, and Kaepernick’s untouched 56 yard scoring dash f*cked with my blood pressure for 48 hours. There’s six days to recover before it all happens again (hopefully).