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My Postseason prediction of a Saints-Ravens Super Bowl is still in tact. Of course, neither team played last week, so there was never a chance of it getting derailed.

Lots of great games this weekend. If only it was the Cowboys in Chicago instead of the Seahwaks…arrggg…i’m still not ready to talk about that.

Let’s take the games in chronological order:

Indy at Baltimore, 4pm Saturday - forecast is calling for warm weather but a good chance of rain throughout the weekend. Probably won’t play much of a factor, though. Indy’s defense probably faced it’s toughest test last week in Larry Johnson, but they’re facing a much more resilient QB this week in Steve McNair. This guy knows how to win, and the Ravens defense almost always has him in a position where he can do so. Since I’m picking the Ravens to go to the Bowl, it’s obvious that i think they’ll win this game. I can see Peyton throwing 2 touchdowns and 2 picks, but i don’t know if it will be enough. Of all the NFL QB’s, i think Manning spends the least time on his butt, so it will be interesting to see what kind of pressure Ray Lewis and Co. can put on him. I think they get to him early and often, and the Ravens win a close one with defense and special teams. Ravens 27, Colts 20.

Philly at New Orleans, 8pm Saturday - I think the Saints will March all the way to Super Bowl XLI, so the question is: How are they going to stop Brian Westbrook? Honestly i have no idea. Not even sure if they can. I do, however, think that with 2 weeks to gameplan Sean Payton is going to have an awful lot of chincanery coming for the Eagles Defense. I bet you’ll see Reggie Bush line up in 6 different spots throughout the game. I think you’ll see alot of Deuce McCallister running right into (and through) the Eagles front 4. I think you’ll see Brees take some big shots down the field at opportune times. The Eagles will score, but the Saints will score more. Saints 37, Eagles 24.

Seattle at Chicago, 1pm Sunday - Forecast is calling for a wintry mix and that might be a good thing for the Bears if it means that Grossman only throws 15 times. Then again, Shaun Alexander had a monster game against the Packers in the snow on a Monday Night a few weeks ago, so he could slash the Bears Defense for some big runs. The Seahwaks don’t belong here, they should be sitting on thier lazyboys sipping Starbucks. But thanks to that shiny, wax-coated football that slipped out of Tony Romo’s hands, the Seahwaks will be freezing thier hineys off in Chicago and it could be a long day. Look for Chicago’s defense to score twice and knock Hasselback out of the game early. Bears 24, Seahawks 10.

New England at San Diego, 4pm Sunday - Two powerhouse teams locking horns. The newbie QB versus the playoff stud QB. The coach looking for redemption versus the coach looking to add a 4th Super Bowl ring. The best offensive player in the game versus an offense with little star power outside of their quarterback. The game has all the makings of a classic, and i don’t know which way to go. I mean, honestly, if my life was on the line, i don’t know who i’d take. I think the Chargers have too much firepower on offense to ever be out of this game. On the other side, if San Diego comes out scorching and goes up 14-0 in the first quarter, i don’t know if the Pats can catch up. I’ll be rooting hard for the boys from New England, but i can see them having a tough day against a team that can hurt you on both sides of the ball. Hoping that I’m wrong, I’m predicting Chargers 34, Patriots 17.

No money riding on the playoffs for me…this is when i just enjoy the games.

Folks often ask me who my favorite team is, and it’s not a simple answer. I grew up rooting for the Cowboys, and that hasn’t changed. I grew up in New England, and enjoy rooting for the Patriots. So that’s basically where my allegiances lie. If they faced each other in the Super Bowl? I’d probably be cheering for guys with the stars on their helmets, but I would be happy for both teams. In relative terms, though, compared to my love for the Red Sox i don’t really have a favorite NFL team…i just like watching the games.

With being said, who would i like to see win it all? Well, since my pre-season pick didn’t even make the playoffs (5 of my 12 playoff teams were incorrect…ouch), i’ll go with my heart and say the cowboys followed by the patriots, saints, chargers, and…well..i guess the Eagles. I just feel so bad for Philly fans…they really do deserve a title…and wouldnt it be crazy if the QB who gave it to them was Jeff Garcia and not McNabb? I would find that very amusing.

My picks for this weekend: I’m going with the chalk in the AFC and taking one road dog in the NFC:

Indy 48, KC 23

Dallas 28, Seattle 24

New England 28, NYJ 10

Philly 31, NYG 20

(right now I’m seeing a San Diego-Baltimore AFC Championship and a Dallas-New Orleans rematch for the NFC Crown with a Ravens-Saints SuperBowl…tracking)

And so concludes another year of picking NFL games against the spread. A pastime that is as maddening as it is enjoyable.

4 weeks ago, i contemplated just picking underdogs…and at the last second decided to just go with my gut. wrong move? perhaps. but in the end it’s all good.

I ended the season with a record of 137-119. Not bad. Had i just gone ahead and chosen all underdogs in the last 4 weeks i would have finished with 144 wins. The winner of the pool? He finished with 143 wins. So yeah, had i gone with the dogs I’d have won $500. oh well.

My total of 137 was good enough for 3rd place though, barely beating out my dad for that bronze medal thanks to Rex Grossman’s horrid performance on Sunday night. And for that i think i get $125. So that’s cool. Add that to the $50 i won in Week 2 for going 14-2 and in the end my $50 entry fee turned a $125 profit.

Will i kick myself for not going with the dogs? Maybe for a few more days…then I won’t give it another thought. As i’ve said before, picking games against the Vegas Spread is a total crapshoot. The fact that i’ve been able to place in the top 5 more than once over the past few years is pretty sweet. Here’s my finishes:

2002: Tied for first place (not sure my record or how many guys participated, but i ended up with second place prize money thanks to a dumb tiebreaker)

2003: 30th out of 35, 122-134 (sophomore slump)

2004: 4th out of 34, 141-115 (finished just out of the money)

2005: 8th out of 37, 138-118

2006: 3rd out of 33, 137-119

4 out of 5 times I’ve finished in the top eight. luck or skill? who knows.

join me next year as i try and figure it out all over again.

ps…coming into week 17 i was tied for 4th, so what did i do? i went with all dogs in week 17 and i went 11-5 (including 4-0 in the late games) to finish in the money. woof woof.

like every other blogger on the face of the sphere, i’ll be using this week to recap 06 and to look ahead to 07. there’s nothing like a fresh start, eh?

as far as looking back, i’ll probably hit up the art that i enjoyed the most these past 12 months. mostly music…but i might mention movies, magazines, and stuff of that ilk as well. not sure if i have a “Recapping the year” post in me, but that would be fun.

Looking ahead to 2007, i’m going the Goals route over the Resolutions route. Resolutions come with the baggage of failure attached…Goals has a much better connotation. Not sure whether i’ll post all my goals here or not, but suffice it to say that i’ve got a handful of them and I’m excited to dream big and achieve this year.

In the meantime, here’s a few tidbits to munch on while i do laundry and take down Christmas decorations today (Erica’s working at the pretzel store today)

• you can check out the Top Resolutions for 2007 over at 43things.com. They’ve listed them in order on the righthand side of the page.

• my buddy Geof is going to go with monthly goals for 2007 instead of yearly goals…not a bad idea.

• crazy day in the NFL yesterday. Sorry about the Broncos, Jake and Dave. Although the tough loss was quickly overshadowed by the tragic news of the murder of 24-year old Cornerback Darrent Williams.

• Writer Don Miller wants to write a better story with his life this year. I found his thoughts pretty inspiring, you should check them out.