Happy New Year!

Here's to a happy, healthy and successful New Year!

My friend Woosang has his sentiments right on the mark...

Nothing beats the NFL

I had the pleasure of being able to attend the Seattle Seahawks vs. San Francisco 49ers game last week (pictured on the right with my friend Ed), and I have to admit I love the atmosphere at an NFL game.

Now I realize that living in Canada there will be many of you out there saying "what about the CFL"? I have nothing against the CFL, believe me. But comparing the two leaves a lot to be desired.

The Noise:

This was my second trip to a Seahawks game, having attended their playoff game against the Redskins last year. On Thursday it poured rain, the wind gusts reached hurricane force, the game started late due to the weather conditions, and yet the place was packed full of hardy fans ready to cheer on their team. The noise of the 67,650 paid in attendance was deafening.

In comparison, in November I attended the BC Lions Western Final where they knocked off the Saskatchewan Roughriders. I remember people commenting how loud it was - and yes, for the CFL it was loud. But compare that to what's in the NFL, and you swear you could hear a pin drop.

The Stadium:

The Seahawks stadium itself, Qwest Field, is certainly a sight to behold in and of itself. Built a few years back to replace the decrepit Kingdome, the sightlines, the amenities, and the food at Qwest Field are spectacular.

While BC Place is a good home for the BC Lions, I firmly believe the indoor building takes away from the atmosphere. As well, food options are few and far between - and those that are there could use some work on quality and speed of service.

The Product on the Field:

While the CFL is geared to be a more exciting game, the NFL is able to pull off an all around better product. In Seattle there is always quality entertainment - including a solid half time show. The CFL doesn't have that - and when it does only at the Grey Cup. As well, the players in the NFL are the best in the world competing on the world stage. While CFL players are very solid to be sure, it is certainly tricky for them to make the jump to the NFL - although there are those who have done so very successfully (Warren Moon, Doug Flutie, Jeff Garcia).

While I admire the work done by BC Lions Head Bob Ackles, he can only work with what he's got (although he'd make a great commissioner of the league one day).

The CFL certainly draws the football fans in this town. Now it just has to work on growing it's base and attracting non-traditional fans to the game as well. Working on the above items will go a long way to make that happen, but how practical they are remain to be seen.

The NFL Today

I noticed many of my recent posts related to my beloved Calgary Flames, so I thought I had best take a moment to chat a bit about the NFL.

To put it briefly, I seemingly couldn't pick a game right under any circumstances. Don't get me wrong, I'm still in first place in my annual football pool, but I'm certainly giving away a lot of ground at this point. It looks like it will be two weeks in a row that I'll finish alone in last place. Not a good sign to be sure!

Here are some teams that have made my recent football weeks one to remember for the wrong reasons...

Atlanta - I can't get their games right if my life depended on it. The weeks I think they'll do poorly, they win big. The weeks I think they'll break out, they get buried. Go figure!

Miami - They started off rough when I picked them weekly and now that I don't they keep winning. I'm sure if I pick them again, the trend will reverse. Dolphins fans, don't let me pick them!

Carolina - A team that looks like a contender one week, and then is dead on arrival the next. I'm just glad I don't have season tickets for their Jekyll and Hyde show!

And as the season winds down, I have to say my early Super Bowl pick of New England is still holding up. They're leading their division, but looked horrid this week.

If I had to do it all over again today I'd certainly pick San Diego. LaDainian Tomlinson is the real deal and then some! Still, for an early season pick, I think New England still looks like they have an outside chance.

Only a few weeks left until the playoffs, let the drama begin!

Another home win...

Okay, it's still early in the season, but the Flames have won a franchise record tying 9th win in a row on Saturday against the lowly Vancouver Canucks. Just thought I'd let everyone know.

For the Canucks fans out there, I think the script is pretty much following my October predictions. Let's see what happens from here on out.