HJ Sports Blog

It’s all over!

After a 17-week long marathon, 256 regular season games, the Herald Journal Publishing NFL pick-a-winner online contest is finally over. The results are completely tallied, and a champion is ready to be crowned.

As I predicted, the final week of the regular season was full of difficult games to predict. Some of you played the odds, guessing playoff-bound teams would bench their starters, and for some the gamble paid off. The lowly Bills topped the Colts, and the Browns beat the Jaguars in unpredictable games. Most difficult, however, was the Chiefs beating the Broncos. Nobody was able to predict that game.

Three players had 12-4 records in the final week. John Krueger, who finished fourth with an overall record of 172-84, Gary Kosek, who finished third with a 173-83 record, and Rob Neumann, who took second with a 176-80 record.

There can only be one champion, however, and to him go the spoils. Matt Field held a one-point lead for first going into the final week, and he solidified that with a phenomenal 14-2 final, finishing the season 179-77 to win it all with a three-point margin.

Congratulations to Field, and all of the participants who made it to the finish. 27 players started, ten people played in the final week, but only eight hung with it for all 256 games.

Field can contact me by email at swiblemo@heraldjournal.com to discuss more.

As the commissioner, I would like to thank you all for playing, and please feel free to leave comments or suggestions for next season. Have a great 2010, enjoy the playoffs, and go Vikings!