With the kickoff of Wild Card weekend just mere hours away, it’s time for playoff predictions. For us less fortunate fans who won’t get to see our favorite teams compete in the tournament this year, we’ll all still be glued to our televisions because it’s a yearly ritual. This is when the best football of the season is played, and we’ve got some good matchups to look forward to right off the bat. But I’m not going to just limit the picks to the four games being played this weekend. I’m going to give it my best shot to take you all the way through the playoff bracket to show you who I think will be playing for the Lombardi trophy in February at Cowboys Stadium.
Wild Card Round
January 8th, 4:30
#5 New Orleans (11-5) @ #4 Seattle (7-9)
The defending Super Bowl Champs take on the first ever playoff team with a losing record. Seattle is a tough place to play and has the loudest outdoor stadium, but should be no match for the Saints. All 9 of the Seahawks’ losses have come by 15 points or more and this one will be no different. Drew Brees will throw his obligatory interception or 2, but in this game he’ll be able to afford a few mistakes here and there. It’s next week where those turnover problems will have to be corrected.
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8:20
#6 NY Jets (11-5) @ #3 Indianapolis (10-6)
These are 2 teams seemingly headed in different directions as of late. The Colts have gotten back to their winning ways after sitting at 6-6 with their playoff future in doubt. Meanwhile, the Jets stumbled down the stretch, with the defense looking vulnerable and Mark Sanchez appearing less confident. It all started when they were blown out against the Patriots on Monday night, and coach Rex Ryan even admitted recently that he thought of pulling Sanchez out of the game. As long as Peyton Manning can play the way he has the past month and not let the defense confuse him, and the Colts’ run defense continues to hold, I like them at home.
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January 9th, 1:00
#5 Baltimore (12-4) @ #4 Kansas City (10-6)
A very interesting matchup here as the Ravens’ rugged defense takes on the top-rated rushing offense. Jamaal Charles averaged 6.4 per carry on the season and was runner-up for the NFL’s rushing title. But it’s not only the ground game that the Ravens will need to worry about defending. Matt Cassel has been terrific all season also, with a resurrgent Dwayne Bowe and breakout tight end Tony Moeaki as his main weapons. However, Ray Rice is hitting his stride for Baltimore and Joe Flacco has his own arsenal of receivers that are nothing to overlook. Baltimore is the most dangerous Wild Card team in my opinion and should win a close one in the toughest of environments for visiting teams at Arrowhead Stadium. Then it could be on to Foxborough for a rematch with New England, who they destroyed on their way to the AFC Championship game.
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4:00
#6 Green Bay (10-6) @ #3 Philadelphia (10-6)
This is my opinion, but the winner of this game is going to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. I’m not sold on either Chicago or Atlanta and I don’t think New Orleans can find the same magic they had last year. So basically to me, this is the NFC Championship until proven otherwise. They definitely saved the best for last this weekend, as I like everything about the way these teams match up in order to make for a classic game. Aaron Rodgers has been as good as ever since returning from his concussion and it’ll be interesting to see if he can find Greg Jennings on the deep throws with Asante Samuel lined up across from him. Then there’s the looming question of whether Green Bay’s blitz packages can get to Vick and force turnovers before he burns them for a deep throw to Desean Jackson. Vick has been very prone to fumbling the ball, but in the end I am still picking Philadelphia because I feel they have too much offense. Vick will wear out the linebackers and the receivers will eventually beat the corners for big plays down the field.
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As for the rest of the playoff picks, I’ll go more into depth if the matchups actually come to be next week. But these are my predictions for the rest of the tournament leading up to Dallas.
Divisional Playoffs
**#1 New England **over #5 Baltimore, 20-16
**#2 Pittsburgh **over #3 Indianapolis, 28-24
**#1 Atlanta **over #5 New Orleans, 34-27
**#3 Philadelphia **over #2 Chicago, 30-20
Conference Championships
****#2 Pittsburgh ****over #1 New England, 23-20
**#3 Philadelphia **over #1 Atlanta, 28-21
Super Bowl XLV
**Pittsburgh **over Philadelphia, 21-17