Wild Card Week 2007 kicks off with a rematch from last year's Super Bowl, as the 3rd-seeded Piana Raze host the 6th-seeded Anderson Brewmeisters. This will mark the second consecutive season in which the Wild Card round featured such a rematch, as Jody's C.W.O.T. avenged their Super Bowl IX loss to the Abstract Machines a year ago, and now the '07 Brewmeisters would love to do the same to the Raze.

Both clubs – who won their respective divisions last year – finished as second place teams this season. A series of tiebreak losses dropped Anderson all the way to the No. 6 seed, however – their lowest postseason seeding in four years. While seven wins is still a winning season, it's a far cry from their 11-2 finish a year ago. The dominate players of that '06 team – Peyton Manning, LaDainian Tomlinson, Steve Smith, and Torry Holt – have all had bouts with inconsistency this season. Steve Smith has virtually disappeared from the stat sheets, and Peyton Manning was actually benched for a couple of weeks in favor of the hot arm of Derek Anderson. It does appear, however, that the Brew Krew is getting better at the right time of year. Following a startling 1-3 start, they won six of their final nine games, including a season-ending and record-setting 65-0 blowout of the Draft Bowl-bound Sims Stereco. The downside to that numerically "strong" finish is that Anderson's last five victories all came against teams that failed to make the playoffs while their last three losses all came against teams that did, including the Raze.

For the third consecutive year, the Piana Raze won eight regular season games. That mark wasn't good enough for a division title this time, however, so they settle back in as the top Wild Card, just as they were two years ago. Yet unlike the previous two Piana playoff teams, the '07 version lacks any real identity. Four different quarterbacks have made starts, along with seven different running backs. Last year's Super Bowl MVP Marc Bulger was cut midseason, and Larry Johnson and Maurice Jones-Drew have yet to recapture their '06 swagger. No less than six players on the Raze roster are banged up heading into the postseason, Two players – Mat Schaub and Roy Williams – were possibly lost for the remaining season in last week's grudge match with the Hellions. It's not all bad news for the Raze, of course. Terrell Owens and Reggie Wayne are enjoying career seasons, and Ryan Grant has contributed immediately in the backfield. Also working in their favor is the playoff bracket. The Raze went a perfect 5-0 against Eastern teams this season, and their potential road to Arizona is through the Brewmeisters and the C.W.O.T.

The Raze have won their last two meetings with the Brewmeisters, including last year's Super Bowl upset. Both victories had Piana outgunning the high-octane rivals. If they have enough healthy bodies to keep up with L.T. and company one more time remains to be seen.

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The Abstract Machines visit Pirk's Wicked Oil Profiteer$ in a Wild Card battle of division rivals. These two met on this very field just last week, setting up the league's fourth-ever back-to-back meeting of wild card opponents. It's actually something quite familiar to the Machines and Profiteer$, as they happened to be involved – individually – in the three previous instances. Pirk went back-to-back with The Pimps in 1998, and the Machines went back-to-back with Thomas in 2001 and with Anderson in 2005. In all three previous cases, the Profiteer$ and Machines emerged victorious in the Wild Card rematch. Something will have to give this week.

The Machines got off to their traditional slow start (1-3) before reeling off six wins in seven weeks. This surge put them into the driver's seat for the No. 3 seed, but consecutive losses to end the season – particularly last week's loss to P.W.O.P. and its tiebreaker implications – saw them drop all the way to the fifth seed. The Machines should certainly be familiar with life on the road in the postseason, however, as this marks the third straight year they've finished the regular season in the Five Hole. Probable league MVP Tom Brady is coming off his worst outing of the season, throwing for "only" 10 points in last week's loss to Pirk. He can't do it alone, and the Machines will certainly need more production from the defense in particular, which has tallied only a single point in the past two games.

Pirk's Wicked Oil Profiteer$ hit the postseason with the league's longest current win streak. Sitting at 3-6 with a fading shot at the playoffs, P.W.O.P. has since reeled off four straight wins to clinch their second consecutive playoff berth and earn their first playoff home game since 2002. Just as their wild card opponents are led by a star QB, so too are the Profiteer$. Tony Romo is second only to Brady in QB points, and the Oilmen's gunslinger has posted 13 or more points in four of the past five games. Pirk's ground game has been banged up all season, but the receivers have been solid and the defense and special teams have had a few truly dominating games.

The Machines have now made the playoffs in five straight seasons, but don't expect the Profiteer$ to be impressed. They swept the season series from the Mechanical Ones by a combined score of 70-34. A hat trick would get them into Championship Week for the first time since 2001.

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The Sims Stereco and The Pimps meet once again this season as they battle in Draft Bowl XI. Both clubs suffered disappointing seasons, finishing with identical 4-8-1 records. Following a Week 6 tie, the Stereco downed The Pimps in Week 8 to claim the tiebreak and subsequently send them o the road for this battle of draft day positioning.

The Stereco went from Draft Bowl to Championship Week and now back again thanks in large part to bad timing. In much the same manner as 2006's playoff run ended, Sims' start to 2007 was plagued by lineup misfortune. Players on the bench severely outscored their starting counterparts far too many times for the Stereco, who stumbled out of the gate with a dismal 0-4 record. After a single month into this season, the Red & Gold had already matched their loss total from a year ago. Sims was able to limit the damage down the stretch, going a respectable 4-4 to close out the season, which included victories over both eventual division champions (Jody and Thomas). Last week's record-setting loss to Anderson, however, squashed any hope of avoiding the franchise's third-ever Draft Bowl appearance.

The Pimps have also had a record-setting kind of year, and it's also in the bad kind of way. Even though this marks the third consecutive year of not making the playoffs, a tenth-seeded finish is a franchise first. Moreover, The Pimps haven't been in a Draft Bowl since the league's inaugural year of 1997 – an impressive run of ten seasons without finishing in the bottom two. 2007 started out well enough, with The P-Men bursting out of the gate to the tune of 3-1. Things went south in a hurry however, as The Pimps could only manage one win (by one point) over their final nine games. Rookie Adrian Peterson has been one of the brightest spots in the league this season, and The Pimps are excited to have the young phenom back in the lineup following three injury-plagued weeks. The Feathered Ones are hopeful AP can deliver them the No. 1 overall selection in next season's draft, and that that pick can help get the franchise back into the playoff mix in '08.

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