Baltimore vs. New York

The Ravens and Giants may be hauling a host of redemptive story lines to Tampa, but it's my job to police the truth, and remind the world that these respective NFL cities carry some serious baggage into the big throwdown: There is nothing New York about a team that plays in Jersey, and Baltimore warped its pigskin karma by robbing Cleveland of the Browns.

I'll admit growing up in Buffalo made me sympathetic to a rust belt brother like Cleveland -- at the time of the big move, I said there would be no peace on Lake Erie until the Dawg Pound got to toss Art Modell's head around the stadium like a beach ball at a Foghat concert.

Of course, growing up in Buffalo also meant watching all of your tax dollars leave the area to fund methadone clinics in Brooklyn.

So objectivity rears its ugly head, and I'm forced to take both of these cities on their own terms: New York vs. Baltimore. The City That Never Sleeps versus The City That Brought Us Movies Starring Divine. Let's see how they stack up at the Tale of the Tape:

So there you have it, it's so simple when you break things down scientifically. In a $500 cab ride from the airport, the advantage goes to New York. But hang in there Baltimore, I'm still taking you plus 2 1/2 points. Until next time, I'm Nick Bakay reminding you: The numbers never lie.