DIVISIONAL PLAYOFFS
January 12th, 2007 | by HG |First up we have Indianapolis at Baltimore kicking off at 130pm Pacific time on Saturday. The Colts defense was able to shut down the Chiefs running game last week but the offense was kind of sluggish. The Ravens defense will be out to put pressure on Peyton Manning and crew. All 4 of the Colts losses this year came on the road, but they had big road victories at New England and at Denver. Throw in the fact that Manning is 3-1 in his career against the Ravens, including a 24-7 spanking on opening day in Baltimore last year, and I’m taking the Ravens…That’s right, I think Baltimore’s offense will be able to do just enough as the defense holds the Colts somewhat in check. I’m going with Baltimore to cover the 4 point spread 26-21.
The New Orleans Saints’ John Carney kicked a 31 yard field goal as time expired to give the Saints a 27-24 victory over the Eagles in week 6. McNabb was the qb then, Garcia’s the qb now, but Westbrook had a good game in week 6 and is absolutely on fire right now.The Eagles are riding a 6 game win streak while the Saints are riding a wave of public/national support after the Katrina tragedy. Drew Brees, an mvp candidate, Deuce McAllister, and Reggie Bush will provide problems for the Eagle defense. Another person to watch is Saints head coach Sean Payton. Payton has coached against the Eagles as a member of the Giants and Cowboys coaching staves. He understands Philly defensive coordinator Jim Johnson’s blitz schemes. That being said, I will take the eagles to cover the 6 points…but lose the game 24-21.
On Sunday at 10 am Pacific we have the Seattle Seahawks going up against the Chicago Bears. The Hawks are the defending NFC champions and they survived last week against the Cowboys so they’re dangerous. The Bears have a good defense but major issues at the quarterback position. Rex Grossman started the season well, but had a string of bad games, including one game where he had a zero point zero quarterback rating. If he can’t get the job done will bears head coach Lovie smith make the switch to Brian Griese?? At this point Smith says Grossman is his guy. Let’s see if two picks, a fumble, and overall ineptness change his mind… The line in this game is 9 points. I think the defending NFC champs will show some heart and avoid a blowout. However they won’t win the game. Bears 20 Seahawks 16
The final game, the game of the weekend on paper, features the New England Patriots vs the San Diego Chargers. Patriots qb Tom Brady is 11-1 in the playoffs. Charger head coach Marty Schottenheimer has a dismal 5-12 record in the playoffs, and he’s 0-2 as the number one seed. But, he does have this guy on his side Ladainian Tomlinson on his side.Even with all the records and accolades for LT, even with the Charger D lead by Shawne Merriman, I’m having a tough time going against the mastermind Bill Belichick and cool Tom Brady. The line opened up at 4.5 and hasn’t budged. Ok…here it is…Chargers 28 Patriots 27…living up to all the hype that we’ve put on the game.
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