Crank up the Hanukka Song!

Happy Hanukkah to all of my Jewish family, friends and readers.

The 8-day Festival of Lights begins at sundown this evening, so put that Adam Sandler classic on the CD player, fry up some potato latkes and let the dreidel roll.

The celebration of the Jewish faith can be summed up by the classic line from John Goodman's character Walter in The Big Lebowski: " 3000 years of beautiful tradition, from Jesus to Sandy Koufax."
Mazel Tov.

Since there is no adequate segue from that to the NFL I'm just going to say the Seahawks monumental 24-14 choke job at home against the 49ers last night is the kind of loss that drop- kicks a team right out of the playoff picture.

It was bad enough Seattle (8-5) gagged against the lowly Cardinals the week prior, but to let a sub-.500 team that had lost 3 in a row come into your crib and steal a win with 21 points in the 4th quarter is just unacceptable.

The lousy weather that had been forecast didn't materialize and for the first half neither did San Fran's offense for three quarters. But despite racking up yardage and first downs Seattle only led 7-3 going into the 4th. That's when QB Alex Smith and the Niners offense came to life. The quarterback threw for 2 TDs, one to Vernon Davis and one to Frank Gore, and then bootlegged for an easy 18-yard score to ice the game with two minutes left.

Gore gashed the Hawks again after setting a franchise record in the first meeting, also won by San Fran. Although he didn't tally 212 this time he did rush for 144 on 29 manly carries, while Shaun Alexander was a no show with just 73 yards on 23 touches.

By losing its second straight division game Seattle blew its shot at a first round bye. Not only that, should it lose its final two (likely vs. San Diego, unlike vs. the Bucs on New Years Eve) and San Fran wins its final two (vs.ARI, @DEN) the tie atop the division would go to the Niners due to the season sweep of Seattle.

Super Bowl Hangover Theory, anyone?