So the Giants got the living crap kicked out of them in what turned out to be their home finale. They're out of the playoff picture. You know this.


Happy trails, Osi Umenyiora.

A quick rundown on the the 2009 team and what's should come of it next year:

The Giants' lack of a consistent pass rush all year is the obvious culprit for their early goodbye to the season. Osi was trouble, on and off the field, from the start of training camp this year, Justin Tuck vanished and nobody else stepped up. A key injury in the secondary to safety Kenny Phillips helped make the Giants pass defense atrocious for much of the season.

But, the offense overall exceeded expectations this season. Yes, Brandon Jacobs wasn't as good as everyone thought, but he and Ahmad Bradshaw formed a great one-two power-speed combo in the backfield. The wide receivers, which came into the season as the team's biggest question mark, were fantastic. And Eli Manning simply had, by far, the best year of his career.

So blame it on the defense. I think the Giants are a good draft and a healthy Kenny Phillips away from being Super Bowl contenders once again next season. The offense is dynamic and as good as it's been under Tom Coughlin, and the defense is a good linebacker, a good corner and an effective Justin Tuck away from being one of the NFL's best again.

So Jet fans, do you actually want to make the playoffs?

You might be wondering why the hell I would ask such a seemingly obvious question. But the Jets beat a group of second and third stringers on Sunday who basically rolled over and played dead in the 2nd half. The Jets even ran the same play, Thomas Jones right tackle, for 90% of the 4th quarter (that's an exaggeration, but they did run that play a hell of a lot), and the Colts still couldn't do anything.

So next week, if the Jets actually do beat another hapless team also playing for nothing (the Cincinnati Bengals) and get into the playoffs, would you, as a fan, actually want to see that? The Jets didn't earn a playoff berth; playing a horrible team like the Chiefs or the Rams would be harder than playing a group of untested second stringers on a good team. If Peyton Manning had played the full game or the Bengals really do play hard and play their starters on Sunday and the Jets still win, then that's certainly a reason for pride. But what's the fun in beating teams who are simply going through the motions and protecting their players? Plus, here's almost certainly what's going to happen if they do manage to win on Sunday:

They will get smacked by the Patriots (or the Bengals).

And if they do get smacked by the Patriots (or the Bengals), then all you've accomplished is teasing your already tortured fan base once again and proving how second rate the Jets really are right now. Of course, if they do beat the Patriots (or the Bengals), then you can disregard everything I'm saying now. I know that's the argument of every Jet fan right now, there's always a chance, but  do you really think the Jets, with a mediocre rookie QB running the show, are good enough to win a playoff game right now? They're a solid team, but I really don't think they're ready to win a road playoff game, at least not yet. And as I wrote about last week, you have to have a negative mindset when thinking about your sports teams, especially when they beat two teams playing for nothing to get into the playoffs. Expect the worst, hope for the best. And no sane Jet fan can possibly be expecting anything more than a smackdown Wild Card weekend, and that would suck more than not making the playoffs in the first place.

Like, would you really go to Modell's and buy a "2009-2010 New York Jets Wild Card" t-shirt if they lost their playoff opener?

I'm also telling you this because my Broncos are in the same position, and I'm not really interested in seeing the Broncos get destroyed again Wild Card weekend. I've already given up on them, and I don't want my team to give me another glimmer of hope and then shatter it once again.

A few additional notes from this week's football:

-Briefly on the Carolina Panthers, who looked fantastic on Sunday: I texted a Panthers fan friend of mine after the game, asking him why this Matt Moore guy hasn't been starting all year. He replied with a text that I can't entirely post on this site, but he angrily speculated that John Fox and Jake Delhomme may be more than just co-workers.

-The Denver Broncos have entered the NFL's Chokeaholics Anonymous program. If Denver doesn't win or either the Jets or Ravens win Sunday, this will be two straight seasons where the Broncos have blown three-game leads in their division and didn't even make the playoffs either year (sounds like a local baseball team!). But, Denver does own Chicago's first round pick in April's draft. Hello, Jimmy Clausen?

-Greg Buttle, of 1050 ESPN radio in New York, observed the following when told the Houston Texans were beating the Miami Dolphins 27-3 at the half :
"I don't think Miami is coming back."

-Anybody else notice that Ben Roethlisberger has gotten pretty hefty? Pittsburgh didn't change their team at all after their Super Bowl win last season, but they're obviously playing sub-par football at 8-7 now and having lost to some of the NFL's worst teams. Maybe it's a weaker defense, maybe it's simply a hangover effect, but maybe Big Ben's been partying at Domino's a little too much? He's had a great season overall, but he's slumped off the past month, notably with a terrible performance at Cleveland and making key turnovers in big games against weak teams. Look for Ben to get a personal trainer and drink a ton of disgusting weight loss shakes this offseason if the Steelers don't make the playoffs.