12/23 (Sunday) Quickie

Happy Festivus! My airing of grievances begins and ends with the Wizards...

We went shopping for a new couch last night, and it's hard to overstate how important the couch is for us -- for better or worse, it is the center of our home and we spend incalculable hours on it, hanging out or eating dinner informally or, typically, watching TV. All I can say is that I'm leaning toward the idea that it's probably worth spending a little extra if the couch is particularly comfortable. (Not that couches have to be necessarily expensive -- our current model, which we've had for 5 years, was a cheapie floor sample from Macy's on Fulton Street in Brooklyn, and it has held up great.)

I'm thinking of the couch because today is the second-to-last Sunday of NFL Red Zone, which in less than two seasons has become my favorite TV tradition -- basically 7 hours of being on/around/near the couch with the family, watching games and tracking fantasy teams and ducking in and out but otherwise enjoying the time with each other (and with Red Zone host Scott Hanson). The two boys are down in Florida for the week with their grandparents -- our own holiday tradition/"vacation" -- so watching Red Zone is not quite the same without them. But it just hit me this morning that Red Zone season is almost over. It'll be missed. But next year's season of Red Zone will feature an awesome new couch, so there's that.

Anyway, a few notes on a slow Christmas Eve eve...

*Tebow to the Jaguars? It has always made the most sense, and it sounds like it is finally going to happen. Tebow's No. 15 is even open, right between Justin Blackmon (14) and Jordan Shipley (16). It will be the biggest seller in the NFL next season -- and that's part of the point, isn't it?

*Falcons cruise past Lions and earn No. 1 NFC seed: It's Super Bowl or bust for this team, as it has been since August. Anyone else have zero faith the Falcons will get through the NFC playoffs? I'll be surprised if they win their initial Divisional at home against the 4-5 Wild Card winner.

*NFL Week 16: Good luck to anyone playing for their fantasy-league title. If I'm paying attention to any single game this week, it's the Redskins and RGIII.

*Great day in college hoops yesterday: If you didn't know the name "Ben McLemore" -- the Kansas star redshirt freshman who is taking college hoops by storm in his first season -- you do now, after KU beat Ohio State... Temple gets its annual win over a Top 10 team by KO'ing Syracuse... Another name to know: South Dakota State's Nate Wolters, who led the Jackrabbits over New Mexico in Albuquerque (by NBA Draft night, Wolters' stock will be sky-high)... Tough night for Florida... 

*CFB: Boise State finally got its clutch field goal, a season or two too late.

*NBA: Steve Nash is back and the Lakers already look like a much better team. No coincidence there, of course. LA's playoff seed is irrelevant, as long as they make the playoffs and are healthy heading into late April.

*Wizards' fan lament: Any chance the Wiz can trade promising big man Kevin Seraphin for Sacramento's DeMarcus Cousins (now repped by the same agent as John Wall)? Seems like a decent trade for both sides, and if Cousins isn't quite a happy camper, playing alongside former college teammate Wall could only help, right?

-- D.S.