As promised today's Raczilla Report is a recap of my second round playoff game in the EA SPORTS Tiburon Madden Marketing League.  It may not have been quite as hyped as the Giants win over the Patriots in last night's Super Bowl, but it provided just as much drama for those who watched.   I'll start off with a bit of background on my opponent Jerrold Smith.  He's our NFL Tour product manager, a Chicago Bears fan, and lead his team to the second  best record in the league 14-2.  In fact, his only two losses came to divisional rival Green Bay who I beat in my wild card game.  I lost a pretty disappointing game to Jerrold earlier in the year (don't kick to Devin Hester.. remember?) and felt like he might be the toughest guy to beat as I made a run at the Championship.  He lived up to expectations and then some.  Here's how it played out:

Right from the beginning of the game it felt like it could be a defensive battle.  I moved the ball well on the ground on my first drive, taking up almost the entire first quarter before kicking a field goal.  Jerrold matched my long drive with one of his own, also picking up three points.  I got the ball back with a couple of minutes left in the first half and ran off tackle before managing to put the ball on the ground.  It was promptly recovered by the Bears for the quick score.  This was pretty discouraging as I only had a couple of minutes left in the half and would have to kick off to Jerrold at halftime.  I then made what was my only big mistake of the game by throwing a pick deep into Bears territory. 

At this point things were looking pretty grim.  I needed some kind of good fortune or the game could be put out of reach very quickly.  Jerrold was determined to put me away, which ended up being a mistake.  On a second down pass play I brought the pressure.  He hit the wrong button and threw into triple coverage where Laron Landry was able to make the pick.  With under a minute to go I executed one of my better drives of the year, scoring on a touchdown pass to Brandon Lloyd with seven seconds left in the half.  Tying the game right before the half swung the momentum in my favor even though I'd have to give the ball right back.

All I wanted to start the third quarter was a three and out and I got it.  On the punt return I moved the ball to the Bears forty where I was met by a hit stick, losing the ball once more.  Jerrold returned the ball to my 26 yard line and mounted a quick drive, putting me down 17-10.  My running game was just about unstoppable so far with Ladell Betts taking place of Clinton Portis who has been out since mid-season.  I drove the field again and tied the game 17-17 with a few minutes to go in the fourth.  If I could get the ball back once more I could end the game.  I stuffed the run and pressured Rex Grossman, getting the ball back with plenty of time for a game winning drive.  But with everything on the line I was stopped at the Bears 15 with about a minute and a half left.  It was 4th and 1 and I had to make a decision.  Take the points or try and end the game with no chance for Jerrold to score.

I'm a conservative coach but I don't pass up a chance to put a game away.  I ran a QB sneak and was stopped dead in my tracks, having potentially made a critical coaching mistake.  But I had faith that my defense could hold if I needed them to and they did.  On a third and long, Devin Hester caught a pass and was stopped four yards short of the first down.  Still deep in his own territory, Jerrold punted the ball.  His punt was on of the best I've seen, rolling its way to my 11 yard line.  I wasn't able to get a drive going and punted the ball back with little time left.  Jerrold heaved up a pass with no time left, but it was batted down just short of the end zone.  We were headed to overtime.

I felt like I could win the game if I was just fortunate enough to win the coin toss.  With luck on my side I won the toss and proceeded to drive the field in just a handful of plays, getting into field goal position.  Once inside the 20, I wasted no time and kicked the game winning field goal, sending myself on to the NFC Championship game against either the Bucs or 49ers (pending the results of that game.)  Jerrold gave me all I could handle, but I had just enough luck to come out on top.  Since I was 0-5 against human opponents in the regular season, I wasn't expected to go this far.  Can I win one more for a chance at the Super Bowl?  Find out in the next Raczilla Report.