The NFL Playoffs get underway Saturday with a pair of Wild Card games, followed by two more Sunday. After a bizarre Week 17 in the AFC and some tremendous finishes in the NFC, we’re down to 12 teams all hoping
The NFL Playoffs get underway Saturday with a pair of Wild Card games, followed by two more Sunday. After a bizarre Week 17 in the AFC and some tremendous finishes in the NFC, we’re down to 12 teams all hoping for a shot at the Lombardi Trophy on February 2. Need some info on this weekend’s action? Well, sure. That sounds doable.
Kansas City (+1.5) at Indianapolis (11:35 a.m., Saturday, NBC) – This is a recent rematch, as the Chiefs (11-5) hosted the Colts (11-5) in Week 16. That turned out to be a one-sided affair, with the visiting Colts dominating in a 23-7 victory. After getting shellacked 38-8 in Week 10 by the Rams and 40-11 in Week 12 by the Cardinals, the Colts have won four of their final five games. Though the Chiefs have had little to play for recently, they’ve lost five of their final seven games after a 9-0 start to the season.
Kansas City RB Jamaal Charles will probably finish second or third in MVP voting this season after tallying 1,980 total yards and 19 touchdowns, but the Chiefs will need QB Alex Smith to make a few plays in the passing game. Colts QB Andrew Luck seems to have gotten past the initial struggles of losing WR Reggie Wayne to a torn ACL, but will his collection of lesser known weapons be able to step up on the big stage? I think the Colts are playing better and their record against playoff teams (4-2) is far more impressive than the Chiefs’ (1-5).
The Pick: Colts 23, Chiefs 16
New Orleans (+2.5) at Philadelphia (3:10 p.m., Saturday, NBC) – The Eagles (10-6) survived a do-or-die road game against the Cowboys to win the NFC East and went 7-1 to close the season. Philadelphia has not scored fewer than 24 points in a game since Week 8 and has gotten the Chip Kelly offense moving more from frenetic to surgical under QB Nick Foles. Foles threw 27 touchdowns to just two interceptions and RB LeSean McCoy finished with 2,146 total yards. The Philly defense can be an enigma, surrendering 48 points to a bad Vikings team one week and holding a rolling Bears offense to just 11 the next.
The Saints (11-5) are also a tale of two cities – New Orleans and everyplace else. When at home, the Saints went 8-0 and scored 34 points per game. On the road they were 3-5 and scored just under 18 points per game. Despite being one of the greatest statistical quarterbacks ever, Drew Brees doesn’t get the same production outside the friendly confines of the Superdome.
The Pick: Eagles 30, Saints 24
San Diego (+7) at Cincinnati (8:05 a.m., Sunday, CBS) – How are the Chargers (9-7) here? Thanks to some less than clutch play by the Ravens and Dolphins, the Chargers snuck into the playoffs despite almost losing to the Chiefs’ second string and thanks to a missed penalty from the refs. But they won their final four games to crash the party and now Philip Rivers and Co. have a chance to surprise us some more. Rookie WR Keenan Allen has been great (1,046 yards, eight touchdowns) and Ladarius Green will be the league’s next big thing at the tight end position.
The knock on the Bengals (11-5) has been that they will go only as far as QB Andy Dalton allows them. In his third season, Dalton had his best statistical year, throwing for 4,296 yards and 33 touchdowns. But he peppered in 20 interceptions – fifth-most in the league. The Cincinnati defense has been great, despite losing maybe its two best players in Leon Hall and Geno Atkins.
These two teams met in Week 13, with the Bengals winning a surprisingly low-scoring game, 17-10. Bengals WR A.J. Green is the best player on the field and will be the difference maker.
The Pick: Bengals 23, Chargers 20
San Francisco (-3) at Green Bay (11:40 a.m., Sunday, FOX) – The 49ers (12-4) are the only road favorite, heading to Lambeau to battle the rival Packers (8-7-1) in another rematch of Week 1. The Niners won that one 34-28 in San Francisco. While it’s been a topsy turvy season for Green Bay, the perennial playoff team got QB Aaron Rodgers back last week, just in time for a division-clinching win over the Bears. They also got back WR Randall Cobb, who returned from a knee injury that caused him to miss 10 games and caught two touchdowns, including the game winner.
For the Niners, it’s been a somewhat quiet, ho-hum season. They’ve been one of the most under-the-radar 12-win teams I can remember, especially considering they’re coming off a Super Bowl appearance. There haven’t been quite as many Colin Kaepernick highlights, but San Francisco has gone about its business and won its last six games. It’s hard to gauge how good the team is, given that it has just a 2-4 record against playoff teams. Two of those defeats were a 10-9 loss to Carolina and a 23-20 loss to New Orleans, but the others were 29-3 and 27-7 thrashings by Seattle and Indianapolis, respectively. So which is the real indicator?
I wouldn’t be surprised to see San Francisco in the NFC Championship Game, but I think getting Rodgers back gives Green Bay the confidence to get the job done in a classic.
The Pick: Packers 27, 49ers 26
