The NFL playoffs are in full swing, and of course as a football fan, I watch them.

However, I have to confess, since neither the Jets nor the Giants are involved, I don’t watch them with the same level of attention that I do when one of my teams is playing. I often work while watching… going over a copyedited manuscript, paying bills, balancing my checkbook, whatever. When something exciting happens, I can always rewind to watch what I missed. The wonders of having TIVO (I do love my TIVO).

So I really don’t have much to say about this weekend’s contests. Except…

The Patriots won. Bummed me out. Boring game too. I expected more of the Chiefs.

The Broncos won. No surprise, but that one was closer than I expected. Given the losses the Steelers have suffered, I thought it might be a blowout, but Pittsburgh hung in there gallantly. I have a lot of respect for the Steelers. The Rooneys, like the Maras, are one of the class ownerships in the NFL. I was glad to see Peyton advance, though. Can’t help but hope he ends his career with another ring. But first he needs to beat Brady and Evil Little Bill.

The Carolina / Seattle game was strange. Almost a repeat of the Giants game against Carolina during the regular season, minus the Beckham/ Norman war. Complete domination by Carolina in the first half, during which they built up a 31 – 0 lead. In the second half, they don’t show up. Almost blew that one, just as they almost blew the Giants game. Someone needs to tell the Panthers that NFL games last 60 minutes, not 30.

As for the Green Bay/ Arizona game… words fail me. That game was insane. Especially the ending. Discount Doublecheck indeed… Aaron Rodgers made what were essentially TWO Hail Marys to move from his own endzone to a TD. I have never seen anything like it. Impossible, really. And then came the overtime coin toss, and the bloody coin doesn’t flip. Plainly eldritch forces were at work. The end, with Larry the Fitz taking it over, was amazing and exciting and, I think, satisfying for any football fan not from Wisconsin. But hey, a great game, if a crazy one. I am glad neither of my teams was involved. Those last ten minutes would have killed me.

The latest news from the NFL: Los Angeles is getting the Rams back.

The San Diego Chargers and the Oakland Raiders, who also wanted to move to LaLaLand, lose out… or maybe win, depending on how you look at this. The league chose the Rams and their plans for a new stadium in Inglewood over the Chargers and the Raiders and their joint scheme for a new stadium in Carson. They did say the Chargers could have a year to decide if they want to join the Rams in LA, presumably sharing the yet-to-be-built Inglewood stadium. (The Chargers would be fools to take them up on that, if you ask me. San Diego has faithfully supported the Chargers for half a century, while LA has not proven it can support one NFL team, let alone two).

I feel sorry for my friends in St. Louis. This is the second time they have lost a franchise. First the Cardinals, now the Rams. They deserve better. St. Louis is a great town (Archon is great con too, for what it’s worth). A great sports town. LA isn’t. If there is ever another round of expansion in the NFL, let’s hope they get a new team.

Still… since the league was determined to get a team back to LA, and the candidates were the Chargers, the Raiders, and the Rams, I am glad they picked the Rams. “St. Louis Rams” never sounded right to me. “Los Angeles Rams” did, and does. (Yes, I know they started in Cleveland, but that was before my time). There is history there. And I’m old school, so I like history. Okay, true, the Chargers had history in LA as well, since they started there… but that was in the dawn of the AFL and they only played in LA for about five minutes. And the Raiders have history in LA too… but that was always wrong. The Raiders belong in Oakland… and the Chargers belong in San Diego, preferably in their powder blue uniforms.

Will LA support the Rams? Maybe at first. Novelty always counts for something. And after too, so long as they are winning. But if they start to lose? Don’t count on it. There’s a reason both the Rams and the Raiders left LA back in 1994. You know, during my years in TV, I went to a number of NFL games while I was out to LA. Mostly in the Coliseum, which is where the Rams will be playing until their new playpen is ready. How did I ever get tickets? you may wonder. Did I have a season pass? Not hardly. Did I buy them from a scalper? No need. I just walked up to the box office on game day and said, “I’d like a ticket.” Good seats too. The Coliseum was always half empty at the games I attended (mostly when the Jets or Giants were visiting). And half of the people who were there seemed to be rooting for the visitors.

But maybe this time will be different. Maybe.

I don’t know if the Chargers or the Raiders will stay put now, or try to move somewhere else. If they do move, however, I hope the NFL makes them change their names. If we have to shift franchises around, the way to do it is the way they did the Cleveland to Baltimore move, where the team moving leaves its original name with the city, and gets a new name for the new place. That’s much to be preferred than the Baltimore to Indianapolis model. The Colts name should have stayed in Baltimore, just as the Browns name stayed in Cleveland.

Of course, the best model of all is Green Bay, where the team is owned by the city and the fans and will never move. Would that we had more of those… but I fear the NFL would never allow it.

No, no, not my Wild Cards books… NFL football.

All four road teams won. So much for home field advantage.

“Life is miserable and full of pain,” I often say, when the Giants and the Jets go down to defeat. But I have to say, this weekend’s games put my own miseries into proportion. Yes, yes, the Jets have breaking my heart since 1969… but at least I am not a Vikings or a Bengals fan. (Though I have friends who are both. Hi, Mike. Hi, Steve). In all my years of watching football, I don’t think I have ever seen two such agonizing losses. If they had happened to one of my teams, I’d… I’d… god, I don’t know what I’d do. Talk about snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

Next week it’s on to the divisonal round. Someone please beat the Patriots and I will be happy.

Tom Coughlin announced today that he is stepping down as head coach of the New York Giants.

That makes me very sad.

Coughlin has been coaching the G-Men for twelve seasons, the longest tenure since Steve Owens back in the jurassic age of professional football. He’s compiled a winning record, and has led Big Blue to two Superbowls, winning them both. He helped shape Eli Manning into one of the best QBs in the NFL.

Yes, the Giants have missed the playoffs for four years. And this year was dreadful.

But I put most of the blame for that on the Giants front office, not Coughlin. The team had terrible luck with injuries this year — I believe the Giants ended the season with more players on IR than any other team — but even aside from that, the talent just wasn’t there. Look at the Minnesota game. With Odell Beckham Junior suspended, it became blindingly obvious that the Giants had no other receivers who could actually catch Eli’s passes. And the defense… oh, don’t get me started on the defense. Worst in the NFL?!?

Coughlin’s fault? No. Truth be told, no coach could have won with the roster he had this year. Not Evil Little Bill. Not Parcells. Not Don Shula, not Chuck Noll, not Tom Landry. Not even the sainted Vince Lombardi.

I wish Tom Coughlin well. He was a great coach and he had a great run, and he should leave with his head held high.

I have no idea who the G-Men can possibly bring in to replace him. He’s going to be a hard act to follow.

Nothing like starting off a new year with two agonizing fourth quarter losses.

Giants lost to the Eagles. It might have been Tom Coughlin’s last game as coach. I really thought the G-Men would rise up and win one for Tom, but noooooo. If TC does go, I hope the new coach makes it a priority to get a defense. For a franchise that has built its storied rep on D, having the worst defense in the NFL is a disgrace.

And the Jets, well, all they had to do was beat the Bills to get into the playoffs. But of course they lost too, also in devastating fashion, so now they are out. It was a better season that anyone could have expected under our new GM and new coach, but of course when the game REALLY REALLY COUNTED, the Jets came up short, the way they always do.

Pfui.

Yes, I know, the playoffs are coming… but with both my teams out, my interest is minimal. I want the Pats to lose, of course. Elsewise I don’t much care.

Time to start looking forward to the NFL Draft.

((ONLY football talk in comments, please. Off topic comments will be deleted)).