Clayton's Midseason Grades

Just noticed that ESPN has allowed the NFL nerd, John Clayton, to speak on camera about his midseason grades. I should probably preface these comments by saying that midseason grades are basically worthless, but it gives rookies like me something to think (fume) about and then make those who are reading along at home suffer through.

I give most of these kinds of analyses (midseason grades, power rankings, etc.) the same credence I give to Mel Kiper's draft coverage. The analysis is meaningless once the draft begins, once another week goes by in the league, once the teams have had a chance to prove the analysts dead wrong. We shouldn't waste too much time with this kind of thing.

Clayton puts the Cowboys on top of the NFC East with an A-, followed by the Eagles (B), Giants (C), and Redskins (D-). I haven't bothered to watch him grade the other divisions, but if we are going to assign grades based on placement in the division, then this analysis is a bit of a yawner. Not to mention the fact that most of these media types are in such a sickening love-hate relationship with the Cowboys. Even Clayton says that a few weeks ago the Cowboys were a "D" in his book (perhaps because they were tied with the Redskins for last in the division?). Can I get an objective analysis in the house?

My frustration with this whole thing continues when Clayton makes his picks for the Super Bowl. He has the Saints playing the Vikings in the NFC Championship game (#1 and #2 overall in the conference so far, mind you), with the Saints winning because of home field. As I said yesterday, I have doubts that the Saints will even have home field advantage. But today, I have many more doubts about the Vikings. The Cowboys won't get a chance to play against them until the playoffs, and I believe that by then Favre will be either injured or just too worn out to be productive by week 16. Can the Vikings be successful with a backup quarterback? Can any team be successful without their starting QB? At this point, I'll hand it to the Saints and the Vikes. They have played well. But just because they have played well to this point doesn't mean they will continue to be strong throughout the rest of the season and into the playoffs.

Which brings me to my own meaningless midseason picks. I think the Cowboys will be playing the Saints in the NFC championship game, and I'm going to go out on a limb and say that game will be in Dallas. Yes, that's right, I'm hoping the Cowboys will win out and the Saints will lose once before they play Dallas (or after, for that matter). Sorry Vikings, but I went to college with your fans, and I will love nothing more than to see them implode in the postseason once again. At least living in New Jersey, I'm not subject to watching all of their games as my "local broadcast team." What a joke.

So to John Clayton, I say congratulations on another wasted bit of analysis. And to anyone reading this, I say congratulations on wasting a few minutes of your day.

The Sports Pastor