Titans Get Street Cred Boost From Kid Rock, Lil Wyane

"EAT THAT RUTS! This is our year," said Coach UTVOL54. "The gloves are coming off."

"How Bout The Cowboys?!"

In the first ever Super Bowl to go into overtime, the Dallas Cowboys staged an incredible 4th quarter comeback to defeat the Tennessee Titans 24-21 in the RUTS2 Super Bowl 2.

The Titans controlled almost the entire game, jumping to a quick 14-0 lead, and remained ahead 21-7 deep into the well-played game. Neither team has a turnover, but both team's defenses controlled the line of scrimmage.

Trailing 21-7 with 4 minutes remaining in regulation, the Cowboys completed a comeback for the ages, thanks to an improbable 96 yard TD pass late in the game, steady defense, and clutch passing by QB Tony Romo.

The Cowboys tied the game at 21 with less than 2 minutes left, and the game went into overtime, where the Cowboys won the coin toss. Dallas ran the kickoff back 61 yards deep into Titans territory, but referee Ed Hochuli missed a blatant block in the back call, which sprung the long kickoff return. Coach UTVOL54 was livid on the sidelines, but no penalty was called.

The Titans held Dallas on 3 straight plays and forced the Cowboys to try a 46 yard game winning Fg attempt, which kick Nick Folk drilled through the uprights, sending the crowd into a frenzy (Super Bowl was played in Cowboys Stadium in Dallas).

The members of the 1972 Miami Dolphins undefeated team stormed the field, celebrating the win, as they remain the only undefeated team in NFL history. Cowboys Coach utvol27 was ecstatic after completing what he called his biggest victory ever in RUTS.

And Titans Coach UTVOL54, after losing back to back Super Bowls must face the music in Nashville all off-season, listening to critics calling him the "Marv Levy of the South" who can't win the big one.

Cowboys QB Tony Romo was named MVP of the game.

The RUTS2 Season 3 draft takes place on Tuesday, January 19, at 8:30 p.m. ET.

The blog logo will be updated to add the Saints this week.

Breaking News: Saints Hire Coach EBDial, RUTS Welcomes New Coach

On the eve of the Super Bowl, the New Orleans Saints announced that they have hired new head coach EBDial to lead the franchise, starting in season 3 of RUTS2. The Saints have a loaded offensive lineup, and after missing the playoffs this season, will look to Coach EBDial to lead them back to prominance next season. Coach EBDial reportedly turned down the Tennessee Volunteers head coaching position before agreeing to terms with New Orleans lat elast night.

SUPER BOWL PREVIEW

Dallas, TX ----We're one day away from RUTS2 Super Bowl 2, and the excitement in Big D is building to a crescendo. The largest crowd to ever witness a Super Bowl will be on hand in the new Cowboys Stadium to witness the (18-0) Tennessee Titans take on the (17-1) Dallas Cowboys.

The Titans are looking to become the first team since the 1972 Dolphins to cap off an undefeated season with a Super Bowl win. While Dallas looks to get revenge for its only loss of the season, a 23-15 defeat to the Titans in Nashville in week 16. The Cowboys have the advantage of being able to play this Super Bowl in their own stadium, and although the Titans will have their share of fans there, the Cowboys expect a huge home field advantage.

As with every Super Bowl, the media circus began earlier this week in Big D. The week kicked off with the annual "Tony Romo 'This Is The Year I Finally Don't Choke Away a Big Game' Golf Tournament." It's always a big event in Dallas, but this year, with the Cowboys actually in the big game, and with it being played in Dallas, Romo brought out the big guns.

Tiger Woods made his first public appearance since November and played a round with Romo, who donned a sweet throwback Starter hat. Tiger was also gracious enough to pose for a few pictures on hole #1, although Romo was puzzled by the sudden disapperance of Tiger and Jessica Simpson after the group teed off. (Boom, Roasted!)

Meanwhile, Titans RB Chris Johnson took time during his busy week to enjoy some educational sight-seeing around Big D. After a trip to the John F. Kennedy assassination museum, CJ visited the Dallas courthouse, where he learned about all sorts of court cases and mumbo jumbo. While on the visit, CJ posted this to his always informative Twitter Account : "Ridin In the courthouse me who dat pimpin the Marlins cap dig CJ2k what?!"

Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones has been on cloud 9 all week, just thinking about how much money he's going to make with a) hosting the Super Bowl, b) selling Cowboys super Bowl Champion merchandise, and c) winning the "Dancing with the Stars Super Bowl Edition" with his dance partner and new man-crush, Steve Urkel.

When it's all said and done though, the Super Bowl is about the game, and these two teams look to fight it out on the field to determine the best team in season 2 of RUTS2. The Titans boast the NFL's MVP in Chris Johnson and AP Defensive Player of the Year Cortland Finnegan, while the Cowboys rely on an array of talented superstars on both sides of the ball. Qb Tony Romo has had his best year as a pro and with two rookie WRs, TE Jason Witten, and RBs Marion Barber and Felix Jones at his disposal, the Cowboys will most certainly look to score more than the 15 points they put up in Nashville in week 16.

Dating back to RUTS1, Titans Coach UTVOL54 has won the past 4 games against his brother, Coach utvol27. However, he knows winning this game will be extremely difficult.

"Dallas just doesn't make a lot of mistakes," he said. "So that means our offense also has to take care of the football at all times, limit penalties and turnovers, and then play defense like a bunch of caged bulls. Our biggest decision is going to be which uniforms we wear. Our players really want to wear our AFC Oilers throwbacks, so we can state claim that we own the state of Texas!"

As with most battles between these brothers, it should come down to the wire. We look for an exciting game, which will likely be low scoring. The difference in the game will be turnovers, and although Vince Young has been stellar lately, not having thrown an INT in 4 or 5 games, we think the Cowboys talented defense will force an INT at a crucial time and beat the undefeated Titans, 24-21.

AP Names Season Award Winners

From Staff Reports - Today several RUTS players got the telephone call that every player loves to get, a congratulations from the Commish for winning one of several player awards. While the AP awards are not official, members of the RUTS media do get together and vote for their choices. The Winners:

NFC Defensive Rookie of the Year:

TIE
Julian Craft, CB - Dallas Cowboys - 33 Tackles, 5 TFL, 2 INT, 1 Def TD
Lee Carter, OLB - Minnesota Vikings - 24 Tackles, 6 TFL, 1 INT, 2 Sacks, 1 Def TD

(Honorable Mention: ARZ OLB Josh Sneed)

AFC Defensive Rookie of the Year:

Prince Justin, FS - San Diego Chargers - 64 Tackles, 7 TFL, 1 INT, 1 Sack, 2 Forced Fumbles

(Honorable Mention: TEN CB Juran Riley; NE DE Ronnie Maeweather)


NFC Offensive Rookie of the Year:

Cameron Jackson, TE- Arizona Cardinals - 34 Receptions, 439 Receiving yards, 5 TD

AFC Offensive Rookie of the Year:

Clayton Roberson, WR - San Diego Chargers - 64 Receptions, 1,138 Receiving yards, 8 TD

(Honorable Mention: NE WR Brandon Trammell, NE RB DeVonte Sanders)

NFC SPOTY (Presented by EA's Spotty Online connection) Special Teams Player of the Year:

Percy Harvin, WR/KR - Minnesota Vikings

AFC SPOTY:

DeVonte Sanders, RB/KR - New England Patriots

NFC Defensive Player of the Year:

Darnell Dockett, DE - Arizona Cardinals - 32 Tackles, 20 TFL, 14 Sacks, 1 INT, 1 FF
(Honorable Mention: DAL OLB DeMarcus Ware)

AFC Defensive Player of the Year:

Cortland Finnegan, CB - Tennessee Titans - 30 Tackles, 14 TFL, 14 Sacks, 3 INT, 1 FF, 1 Def TD
(Honorable Mention: NE DT Ty Warren, PIT OLB James Harrison, NE DE Derrick Burgess, NE DE Ronnie Maeweather)

NFC Offensive Player of the Year:

Michael Vick, QB - Arizona Cardinals - 3,717 Passing yds, 39 TD passes; 367 Rushing yds, 11 Rushing TD

(Honorable Mention: MIN RB Adrian Peterson)

AFC Offensive Player of the Year:

Chris Johnson, RB - Tennessee Titans - 2566 Rushing yds, 33 Rushing TD; 1,040 Receiving yds, 10 Receiving TDs
(Honorable Mention: PIT QB Ben Roethlisberger, NE QB Tom Brady)

RUTS Rookie of the Year:

Clayton Roberson, WR - San Diego Chargers - 64 Receptions, 1,138 Receiving yards, 8 TD

(Honorable Mention: NE WR Brandon Trammell, NE RB DeVonte Sanders)

RUTS MVP:

Chris Johnson, RB - Tennessee Titans - 2566 Rushing yds, 33 Rushing TD; 1,040 Receiving yds, 10 Receiving TDs

(Honorable Mention: ARZ QB Michael Vick; PIT QB Ben Roethlisberger)

Super Bowl is set....

NFC Championship
Arizona - 17
Dallas - 24

AFC Championship
New England - 17
Tennessee - 28

It's brother vs. brother in the Super Bowl!

And Then There Were FOUR!

The NFC and AFC Championship Games take place this week, and it could go down as one of the most exciting weeks in RUTS Online Dynasty history. The final four teams have a combined 3 losses between them, and both games are rematches from barn burner regular season games. These four teams were the predicted favorites to reach the title game entering the season, and now that all four have made it here, it's anyone's guess as to which two teams emerge victorious.

The Arizona Cardinals head east to Dallas to take on the Cowboys. In week 2 of this season, the Cardinals lost an overtime heart breaker to Dallas 34-31, but Coach StuBucksman has his troops primed and ready to make a return trip to Dallas for RUTS2 Super Bowl2 by defeating Coach utvol27's Cowboys.

"Our game in week 2 gave us a lot of confidence," said Coach Stu. "That game was Vick's first game as our starter (the Cards traded Kurt Warner to Oakland that week) and we're much improved right now. I don't like Dallas's chances at all...and I know I will look amazing on that jumbotron in Cowboys Stadium tonight."

The Cowboys look to get speedy tailback Felix Jones back from injury, and Coach utvol27 plans on Jones being a key component to his gameplan. Arizona will be playing its second game without slot WR Reggie Bush, so Coach Stu will have to continue to dial up the passing magic to keep Dallas from keying in on star WR Larry Fitzgerald.

The AFC title game pits two rivals who are no strangers to one another. Coach UTVOL54 and Coach cjohnchavis have waged some classic RUTS battles, dating back to their time at LSU and Florida State. While the Titans have had the upper hand in all three of their RUTS2 games against New England, the gap is narrowing at light speed. New England lost a heart breaker in last season's AFC title game in Nashville, and in week 8 of this season, thanks to clutch running and passing by Vince Young, the Titans were able to nab a 20-10 victory.

Once again, this game will be played at LP Field, and the Titans fans will be sure to have the stadium rocking. The Patriots have been rumored to wear their retro red/white uniforms, and coach cjohnchavis has already told ESPN guru Chris Mortenson to expect a flea flicker on the Patriots' first play from scrimmage.

In their week 8 game, the Titans held Tom Brady to an unheard of 73 yards passing. But look for the Patriots to get Brady's arm going early and throw in some tough running from Frank Gore to keep Tennessee's defense off balance.

The Titans will rely on Young, NFL MVP Chris Johnson, and the likes of Shagg Makino, Kenny Britt, and Bo Scaife to keep its offense balanced.

These two games could go down as two of the best ever in RUTS, between 4 teams and coaches that have established themselves as the teams to beat in RUTS. The games will be close, and the Swami Sez....

Arizona 27, Dallas 23

New England 24, Tennessee 21

PLAYOFFS!!??

The playoffs are here! There were a few surprises in the final week of the season...the Colts won their 3rd game in a row and finished at 8-8, and since the Raiders lost again (their 6th consec. loss) and also finished at 8-8, the Colts won the tiebreaker between the two teams and made the Playoffs.

In addition, the defending champion Cardinals and Coach StuBucksman suffered a tough injury in week 17, as slot receiver and backup RB Reggie Bush was lost for the season.

Here is a look at the playoff matchups in the Wild Card round:

AFC -
(Titans and Patriots have byes)
Colts (8-8) @ Steelers (13-3)
Jets (9-7) @ Chargers (11-5)

NFC -
(Cowboys and Cardinals have byes)
Redskins (8-8) @ Vikings (12-4)
Rams (11-6) @ Panthers (10-6)

NFL MVP Finalists
Here are the finalists for this year's NFL MVP...please go to the poll on the top/right side of the blog to cast your vote...

- Chris Johnson (Titans, RB): 2566 rushing yds, 33 rush tds; 1,040 receiving yds , 10 rec. TDs

- Ben Roethlisberger (Steelers, QB): 4462 passing yds, 36 td passes

- Michael Vick - 3,717 passing yds, 39 td passes; 367 rushing yds, 11 rushing tds

- Adrian Peterson (Vikings, RB)- 2,314 rushing yds, 34 rushing tds

- Larry Fitzgerald - 108 receptions, 1,625 rec. yds

- Santonio Holmes- 1,709 receiving yds

RUTS Rookie of the Year
Here are the finalists for this year's NFL MVP...please go to the poll on the top/right side of the blog to cast your vote...

- Cameron Jackson (Cardinals, TE) - 34 receptions, 439 yards, 5 tds

- Clayton Roberson (Chargers, WR) - 64 recpetions, 1,138 yards, 8tds

- Devontae Sanders (Patriots, RB) - 764 rushing yds, 15tds

- Brandon Trammell, (Patriots, WR) - 60 receptions, 1,058 yards, 10 Tds

Season 2 Playoffs Right Around The Corner

The RUTS2 Season 2 playoffs are right around the corner, and much like in season 1, the matchups look to be exciting as we move into the playoffs in the next day or two.

Here are the projected seedings and First Round Playoff Games:

AFC
1. Titans (16-0) - 1st round bye, home field advantage
2. Patriots (15-1) - 1st round bye
3. Steelers (13-3) - will likely host Raiders in Wild Card Round
4. Chargers (11-5) - will likely host the Jets in Wild card round
5. Jets (9-6) with 1 game left
6. Raiders (8-7) with 1 game left

NFC
1. Cowboys (15-1) - 1st round bye, home field advantage
2. Cardinals (15-1) - 1st round bye
3. Vikings (12-4) - will likely host Redskins or Saints in 1st round
4. Rams (11-5) - will likely host Panthers in 1st round
5. Panthers (10-5) with 1 game left
6. Redskins or Saints (both 7-8) with 1 game left

In the coming days, we'll be voting on the Season 2 League MVP in the blog poll...I will list the finalists and their stats in the blog poll soon.

In addition, in Season 3, we will be welcoming a new player to RUTS, Eric Dial, who will likely be taking the Saints. Also, for season 3, we will likely be moving to All-Madden, in hopes of increasing the competition in user vs. cpu games.