COMMENTARY: ON MATT’S MIND

Don’t fret if you didn’t catch Sunday’s
Pro Bowl. If it’s on your TiVo and you’ve
yet to watch it, don’t bother. It was even
less relevant this season than in years
past, if you can believe that. There was
no chance of seeing Eli Manning hook
up with David Tyree another time
before a restless offseason and no bid
by Lawrence Tynes to become the next
Adam Vinatieri.

Instead, there was just a heavy dosage
of Cowboys and Colts – two teams that
combined for zero playoff wins this postseason.
Granted, those stars shined in the
regular season, but they’re old news. Time
to start thinking about next year, guys.

The NFL treats the Pro Bowl like it’s
played midseason. Why does the voting
end before the regular-season finale?
When the polls closed in December,
popular sentiment was the New York
Giants would be lucky to secure a playoff
spot. No one in their right mind praised
Eli Manning seriously. But things change
in the playoffs, as any casual observer
could tell you.

Although they were invited, New
England Patriots Tom Brady and Randy
Moss turned down a chance to play for
the AFC in Honolulu.

Super Bowl XLII, the most watched
Super Bowl in history and one of the
most entertaining, was played just a
week prior to the Pro Bowl. The best
opportunity Giants fans had to relive
their team’s Super Bowl win was to watch
Osi Umenyiora make a single tackle. That
was the highlight of the game for the
G-Men. The Patriots, who boasted the
best offensive season in league history
and were the Super Bowl runner-up, had
not one player post a stat on offense in
Honolulu. All-star game, eh?

So remind me. Why watch the Pro
Bowl?

It’s fun to see Tony Romo and Peyton
Manning lock arms … just hold the game
around Halloween when those guys
peaked. Watching them duke it out a
month after their last snaps shouldn’t
happen. If the game is played after the
Super Bowl, have the voting take place
after the Super Bowl. Otherwise, play
the game midseason and have it count
for something, like in MLB.

In other all-star game news

NHL

If an all-star game were played in
Atlanta, would it make a sound? You
might not have known, but the game
was played Jan. 27 with the East winning
8-7. The NHL isn’t doing itself any favors
by selling the game to Versus, a channel
most people either don’t get or don’t
know about. At least it’s played during
the middle of the season.

NBA

The NBA is holding its all-star game
Sunday in New Orleans. The association’s
showcase weekend has everything a fan
could ask for: skills competitions, high
scoring and the “now” – meaning the
guys taking the court won’t be the ones
that played well only until December.
The Pro Bowl’s final score was NFC
42, AFC 30. Add a “1” in the hundreds’
column for a prediction for this contest:
West 142, East 130.