After the fantastic endings and upsets from the Wild Card round, the NFL playoffs are back with the Divisional round! We get two division rivalry rematches in the AFC while we get another pair of regular season rematches in the NFC. Let’s delve into some football!
Saturday
4:30 PM ET, CBS
(13-4) Baltimore Ravens at
(12-4) Pittsburgh Steelers
The Breakdown:
Who’s ready for some football? And I don’t mean this offense-infused game we’ve been seeing the past few years. I’m talking about the vicious, hard-hitting and low scoring brand of football we always manage to see whenever this rivalry renews. Pittsburgh’s week off let them rest up for this smash-mouth affair while the Ravens pummeled the Chiefs in Arrowhead last week. Baltimore has reloaded on the offensive side of the ball, bringing in three name receivers in Anquan Boldin, T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Donte Stallworth to play next to Derrick Mason. When you add them to Todd Heap and running back Ray Rice, the Ravens are surprisingly loaded on offense. Their victory lies in Joe Flacco’s hands. If Flacco avoids costly mistakes as he has most of the year (unlike that fumble in the last game these teams met), they’ll keep this road show going.
For Pittsburgh, it’ll be tough-sledding if they try to rely on their running game to break through the Raven front seven. If they are going to take advantage of Baltimore, it will have to be through the air against a weaker secondary than fans might realize. Unfortunately, that’s going to leave Ben Roethlisberger scrambling for his life in the pocket to get smacked around as he usually does in these affairs. Quick passes to his wide-outs and tight ends should help ease the pressure of a running game that won’t be especially explosive. Look for a few big play-action openings down the field that Ben will have to capitalize on.
The Odds: Pittsburgh is a three point home favorite.
The Prediction: I’ll give the slight edge in defense to Pittsburgh, but for some reason I feel Baltimore can put up more points. I’m hesitantly going Baltimore.
God I wish Jeff Reed still played for the Steelers. Such a great douche.
8:00 PM ET, FOX
(11-6) Green Bay Packers at
(12-3) Atlanta Falcons
The Breakdown:
If it weren’t for Jets-Patriots… or Ravens-Steelers, this would be the game of the weekend. Still, don’t overlook the drama that will come tonight when Aaron Rodgers heads to Atlanta to take on Matt Ryan. Two of the best young quarterbacks in the league lead dynamic offenses, but it will be the defenses that decide this one. Green Bay has been one of the best scoring defenses in the NFL all season long. Linebacker Clay Matthews will be moved all over the field Saturday night in an effort to get more pressure on Ryan. As good as the Packer defense is, they’re geared to stop the pass, especially when they throw out their 5-DB sets. Michal Turner could give them fits if he gets going early. Rodgers is going to need similar help from James Starks if they’re going to keep Ryan and Turner on the sidelines and off the scoreboard. If I were the Pack, I’d set Tramon Williams on Roddy White and let Charles Woodson do anything and everything.
Playing at home, the Falcons only lost once this season. They’ve been the most balanced team in the league, but that’s not exciting enough apparently. While Matt Ryan’s very good, he hasn’t proven anything in the postseason yet. Offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey never forgets about the run, so Turner will get at least 20-25 carries today. Where Ryan is going to have to make his money is with the play-action passes to Roddy White or Tony Gonzalez. Gonzalez will get targets in the red zone, but White needs to get down the field to open up running lanes on the outside.
The Odds: Atlanta is a two point home favorite.
The Prediction: Agh… that’s a small spread. I’m going to add to the Falcons’ disrespect and take the Packers in this one.
Don't fret Falcon fans... you've still got her... unless Rodgers takes her home as a trophy.
Sunday
1:00 PM ET, FOX
(8-9) Seattle Seahawks at
(11-5) Chicago Bears
The Breakdown:
Like I’m going to blow my Bears wad in a few paragraphs. Pssh. For my in-depth analysis of this match-up, check back for my Chicago Bears GameDay Preview!
The Odds: Chicago is a whopping ten point home favorite.
The Prediction: Do I tell you here? I’ll take the… Nah. Wait for it.
4:30 PM ET, CBS
(12-5) New York Jets at
(14-2) New England Patriots
The Breakdown:
Can this game just start already? I can’t breathe through this thick hype. As much drama and trash-talking has led up to this game (punctuated nicely by Wes Welker’s “foot” press conference), the New England Patriots start their playoff run as big favorites over their talkative division rival. Tom Brady has had arguably his best year as a pro in a season where the Pats traded away their number one receiver early on. You saw the difference without Randy Moss when Brady lit up the Jets for 45 points in a blow-out. Without Moss, the Jets have no one focus on defense besides for Wes Welker, who still finds a way to get open anyway.
On offense, the Jets can’t settle for the 17 points it took to beat the Colts. New England averaged over 32 points a game during the regular season, so Mark Sanchez can’t have the first half he did last week. He won’t be able to recover. He needs help from the running game and more than anything else, he needs his receivers to recover from the raging dropsy epidemic they’ve suffered from all year. Braylon Edwards and Santonio Holmes need to help Sanchez out by catching passes deep. The defense is going to give up at least 24 points. Rex Ryan’s offense needs to show up or his team is going home.
The Odds: New England is a nine point home favorite.
The Prediction: Patriots. Anything else you need to know?
And it's not just becuase we have the same hair.
Enjoy the games everyone! PLAYOFFS!
