Judgements: G-Men, P-Men highlight topsy-turvy playoffs

Five decisions you'd like to make again

2. Jacksonville's decision to not to rush Brady until everyone counted "One Mississippi ... two Mississippi ... three ..." OK, so the Jaguars took away Moss and Welker. Big deal. It doesn't matter when Brady goes 26-for-28, and the Patriots win.

3. Mike Tomlin's call on third-and-6 at the Pittsburgh 26 with just under three minutes left and the Steelers ahead by one. Jacksonville hadn't stopped Ben Roethlisberger in the second half, only I'm talking about Big Ben passing, not running. So Tomlin goes conservative, calls on Roethlisberger to jog left and gains nothing. The Steelers didn't play to win; they played not to lose. And they lost.

4. The Colts' decision not to play injured wide receiver Marvin Harrison until the playoffs. Think he was rusty? He fumbled the first time he made a catch and wasn't on the field for the Colts' critical last two series. I think we have our answer.

5. Michael Turner going wide on third-and-1 at the New England 4. He was thrown for a loss, and the Chargers settled for another field goal. You don't run wide on third-and-1; you take it up the gut. Twice if you must. "It was a play we're awfully good at," said coach Norv Turner. "Junior (Seau) read it, shot through and made a great play."

Five best plays

1. Seau's tackle of Turner on that third-and-1. Seau shot the gap, blew up the play and ran down Turner from behind. He saved a potential touchdown. "I just ran through the hole, and Mike was there," said Seau, "and I wrapped him up. It was a combination of a lot of things that happened."

2. Donald Driver's 90-yard catch and run for a touchdown. Great move to shake Corey Webster, but how in the world did he outrun him? Talk about finding an extra gear.

3. Garrard's run through Pittsburgh.

4. Brady's 53-yard pass to Donte' Stallworth in the fourth quarter against Jacksonville. Look at the replay again, folks: Brady looks left to toss a screen, but the play is covered. So he pulls down the ball, drifts right and throws a bomb just before he is hit. I thought he was throwing the ball away. Instead, it hit Stallworth in stride ... with Stallworth catching the ball with one hand. "I stuck one and out there and tried to tip it to myself," said Stallworth. "I was thinking, 'Run, Forrest, run.' I wish I was Forrest (Gump) because Forrest never got caught."

5. Favre looking more like Eddie Feigner in the second quarter against Seattle with that underhand delivery to tight end Donald Lee. Favre escaped a sack, stumbled out of the pocket and unloaded the ball as he was falling down. It turned into a first-down catch and led to the Packers' fourth touchdown. "If I did that play 10 times," said Favre, "nine times I'd probably fall flat on my face." Doesn't matter. He made the one that counts.

Five worst plays

1. Favre's brain cramp in overtime that turned a bad pass into a Webster interception. Not only did Favre throw the ball behind Driver, but Driver was covered. It was a mistake, and it was a costly mistake. It cost Favre another -- and maybe a last -- appearance in the Super Bowl.

2. McQuarters' fumble of a fourth-quarter interception. What should have ended a Packers' scoring drive wound up as a Mason Crosby field goal -- with tackle Mark Tauscher saving the Packers with the recovery. Can you say ... Marlon McCree?

3. Snee's hold on Ahmad Bradshaw's touchdown run with 2:05 left. Pardon me, but I still don't see the call.

4. Kenton Keith's second-quarter pass deflection. Nice play if he was playing for San Diego. But he was Peyton Manning's intended receiver, and he turned a sure field goal and possible TD into a turnover. No wonder Manning left the field shaking his head.

5. Brady's interception on third-and-goal at the San Diego 2. It was his first red-zone interception in two years, a streak that included 62 touchdown passes.

Five things that need to be explained

1. Why anyone would suggest the Cowboys' Phillips should lose his job because of a playoff loss. He was 13-3, people. I know Phillips can coach because I saw the Cowboys this season. I don't know what Jason Garrett can do, but here's a question: How come Garrett didn't catch more heat for the Cowboys' collapse? Look, I think the guy could be a terrific head coach, but look what happened to the Dallas offense the last month: It fizzled.

2. Seattle hosting a playoff opener six days after the Seahawks played on the East Coast. The Seahawks were the third seed. Doesn't that count for something? Apparently not.

3. Pittsburgh's Tomlin choosing to go for the two-point conversion when the Steelers were pushed back to the 12 because of a phantom holding call. It made no sense, and it ended up hurting him. Had he kicked the extra point then and on a subsequent TD the Steelers would have moved to overtime.

4. Patrick Crayton's hands.

5. Bob Sanders congratulating Nate Kaeding after Kaeding missed a field goal in the Colts' playoff loss to San Diego. I don't care that they're former teammates. It was a dumb and costly play. If you work for Tony Dungy, you should know better.