Philadelphia, PA -- (Sports Network) - Tony Dungy won one Super Bowl, which puts him in the same category as immortals such as Barry Switzer, Don McCafferty, and (dare I say?) Brian Billick.

During his entire seven-year career in Indianapolis, which ended when Dungy retired earlier this week, he had at his disposal Peyton Manning, a quarterback that might go down as the best of all time, and wide receiver Marvin Harrison, who plays it a little fast and loose with his firearms but belongs in a discussion of the five best wideouts ever. How could he fail?

If you're looking to poke holes in the notion of Dungy's coaching greatness, you'll find your main arguments above. When Dungy's candidacy for the Hall of Fame comes up, you can bet there will be a contrarian or two in the room full of writers that select these honors who will trot out these points as reasons to vote against him.

On balance though, the debate about Dungy's Hall of Fame candidacy, and his worth as an NFL head coach, is kind of like Artie Lange sitting on a see-saw opposite Nicole Richie...all of the weight is on one side of the argument, and that argument says that Dungy is bound for Canton.

It's not just the numbers, which are as gaudy as they come.

-139-69 (.668) regular season record in 13 seasons with the Buccaneers and Colts, and nine more wins in the playoffs.

-Seven seasons of 11 wins or more - including a record of at least 12-4 in each of the last six (think about that a second), and only one losing mark, a 6-10 finish with the then-woeful Bucs in his rookie season of 1996.

-Ten consecutive trips to the playoffs with Tampa Bay and Indianapolis - a record for an NFL head coach. In addition to the Super Bowl win and three Championship game appearances, let's not forget that it was Dungy who built that Buccaneers' Super Bowl winner up from nothing, before Jon Gruden cut the ribbon on the already-existing structure in his first year and held the Lombardi Trophy.

And it's not only his influence, which extends from the Tampa-2 defense that he brought into vogue to the many coaches - Mike Tomlin, Herm Edwards, Lovie Smith and now Jim Caldwell, to name a few, that he turned into household names.

The fact is that there may never have been a coach who was so successful, so influential, and simultaneously oozed class the way Tony Dungy did and does.

Can you name another coach with basically zero detractors among his current and former players, among his fellow coaches, among the media, and among an overwhelming percentage of fans? Can you name another NFL figure, past or present, who falls into this category?

Dungy was forever gracious and humble among everyone he encountered, hardly an easy thing to do given the high-pressure nature of his job, and showed the world that you can win football games - a lot of football games - with a cerebral, mannered approach.

Thanks in large part to Dungy, the fire-and-brimstone, Mike Ditka-type coaching paradigm is as unfashionable as a mauve Members Only jacket, and Dungy's comportment will have influenced about two decades worth of coaching hires when all is said and done.

Owners will continue to search for the next Dungy, and while they'll find traces of his approach, as the Steelers have found in Tomlin and the Bears in Smith, they'll not find his equal as either a man or a coach.

The NFL was a better place with Tony Dungy in it, and the Hall of Fame will be too.

Let's take a look at the week that will be in the National Football League:

NFL POWER POLL

The Sports Network's updated NFL Power Poll, which ranks all 32 league teams, can be found at:

http://www.sportsnetwork.com/default.asp?c=sportsnetwork&page=nfl/misc/nfl- poll.htm

THE GAMES

I was 2-2 in my picks and 3-1 against the spread last week, with my straight- up selections cut across conference lines. I had the Ravens and Steelers in the AFC Championship, but whiffed on both the Cardinals (me and the rest of the world, though I did think Arizona would keep it close) and Eagles on the NFC side. In the 2008 postseason, I'm now 5-3 in my picks and 6-2 with Vegas involved. The records for the year are now 164-100 (.621) straight-up and 141-114-9 (.551) when walking the line.

Philadelphia (11-6-1) at Arizona (11-7), Sunday, 3:00pm (FOX) (Philadelphia -3)

Storylines: Cardinals are in NFC Championship for the first time in their team history...Arizona is one of two franchises that have been in continuous existence for every season of the Super Bowl era and not advanced to the ultimate game (Detroit)...Rematch of a game played on Thanksgiving Night in Philadelphia, won by the Eagles, 48-20...Eagles, who are in the NFC Championship for the fifth time in the last eight seasons, are attempting to advance to their third Super Bowl all-time (1980, 2004)...Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner attempting to advance to the Super Bowl for the third time, after doing so with the 1999 and 2001 St. Louis Rams...Arizona wide receiver Anquan Boldin (hamstring) questionable after missing last week's 33-13 win over the Panthers...Cardinals are 13-4 at home in two seasons under head coach Ken Whisenhunt...Teams' last postseason meeting was the 1948 NFL Championship, with the Eagles beating the then-Chicago Cardinals, 7-0... Cardinals re-signed tight end Jerame Tuman on Tuesday after Stephen Spach (knee) was lost for the season last week.

Fast Fact: The winner of Sunday's NFC Championship will become the first team with nine or fewer regular season wins to reach the Super Bowl since the 1979 Los Angeles Rams, who were 9-7.

Prediction: Donovan McNabb won't give Cardinals the same gifts that Jake Delhomme did, and Warner will have life tougher against aggressive Philly defense. Eagles 31, Cardinals 20.

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Baltimore (13-5) at Pittsburgh (13-4), Sunday, 6:30 (CBS) (Pittsburgh -6)

Storylines: Teams will meet for the third time this season, with the Steelers earning narrow wins over the Ravens in Week 4 in Pittsburgh (23-20 in overtime) and Week 15 in Baltimore (13-9)...Pittsburgh is the playoffs' highest remaining seed...Teams that have met an opponent for a third time after losing to them twice in the regular season are 7-11 all-time... Baltimore's Joe Flacco, already the first rookie quarterback in NFL history to win his first two playoff starts, attempting to become the first rookie QB to lead his team to the Super Bowl...Steelers running back Willie Parker rushed for 146 yards in last week's win over the Chargers, his best total in over two years...Ravens are 1-0 in AFC Championship, beating the Raiders in their only appearance there (2000)...Baltimore is 1-7 in its last eight trips to Pittsburgh, starting that run with a loss at the Steelers in a 2001 AFC Divisional Playoff...Ravens are 4-0 on the road since losing to the Giants on Nov. 16th...Steelers safety Troy Polamalu (calf) expected to play...Ravens pass rusher Terrell Suggs (shoulder) and cornerback Samari Rolle (groin) both regarded as questionable... Ravens have never lost to an opponent three times in one season.

Fast Fact: The Steelers are 0-3 since 1995 when earning a second home postseason game, losing in the 2004 and 2001 AFC Championships to New England, and in the 1997 AFC Championship to Denver.

Prediction: Third time won't be a charm for Ravens, who can't hope to get another error-free offensive performance against the stalwart Pittsburgh defense. Steelers 17, Ravens 13.