Playoff round-two picks

Just for fun this week I decided to lighten up my column and make a few NFL post-season, week-two, predictions. This seemed fitting considering last week’s column about predictions and how they are generally wrong. Hopefully I will disprove my reasoning from last week with four solid picks for this week’s games. For those of you who aren’t up to date let me catch you up. Last week there were three blowout wildcard games. The Cowboys killed the Eagles with a 34-14 pounding. (I’m a Redskin fan who is sympathetic to the Eagles (and I like Michael Vick) but us Redskins fans are the ones who needs sympathy. I’m not even sure if the Redskins won a game this year, did they?) The Ravens beat the Patriots 33-14 and the Jets knocked off the Bengals with a 24-14 victory. The best game last week was between the Cardinals and the Packers. I would have written a column on this game alone but just do me a favor and YouTube it. Cards came out on top by a touchdown in overtime 51-45 – a rough way to go out for you Packer fans (Aaron Rodgers looked good though). The Wild Card games of last week are teams from the lower seeds; this means they are the “long-shot” Super Bowl teams and this week they’ll face the “big dawgs.” I’ll make my picks below and briefly explain the main reasons why; here is what week two looks like. Arizona Cardinals will face the New Orleans Saints on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. on Fox. In a statistical “head to head” lineup the Saints look slightly better in most areas including total offense but the Cardinals have one thing the Saints don’t have – Kurt Warner. Saints quarterback, Drew Brees might be more accurate but as a leader, there may be none better than Warner. He can make the passes under pressure, especially to Larry Fitzgerald, and he’s got the experience. Warner will do his part Saturday; if the Arizona defense does theirs, the Saints will go home. Game two will be Saturday at 8:15 on CBS between the Baltimore Ravens and the Indianapolis Colts. I started liking the Ravens last year when I heard about their Rookie QB, Joe Flacco. (This guy reportedly has never owned a car and his first big purchase, after his $30-million contract, was a lawn mower for his mother.) So how will Flacco fair against the very awesome Peyton Manning? If it is anything like their last meeting it’ll be a close game. The 17-15 game came down to the Colts holding the Ravens to a field goal from the redzone in the fourth quarter. Statistically the game is a fair matchup with the Ravens actually looking better in every category that has little or nothing to do with Peyton Manning (total yards allowed on defense, total rushing yards). I’ve been back and forth with my pick on this game but I’ll agree with the Ravens, Ray Rice; “It will be a fourth quarter game.” I think the Raven’s defense will have a little something for Manning but I’m not sure it will be enough. I’ll be cheering for the Ravens but if I was a betting man (generally I’m not) I’d pick the Colts by a touchdown. Sunday’s game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings (Fox at 1 p.m.) could turn out to be one of the better games of the week and a tough one to pick. Both teams have looked good and the Cowboys have played exceptional over the past three weeks. Both teams have beaten the other this season and each win was convincing. I’m assuming it will come down the quarterbacks. Bret Farve always has the potential to control the game but Tony Romo has been under media pressure here lately and has something to prove. Both men will lay it all out on the table Sunday in what will likely turn out to be a high scoring game. The 40-year old Farve has never beaten Dallas in a playoff game but he’s also never had them at home. I pick Farve and the Vikings but I’m also pretty sure it will be a very close one. CBS will get the last game of week two on Sunday at 4:40 p.m. between the New York Jets and the San Diego Chargers. The Jet’s have looked better this year in rushing yards and total defense but they don’t fair as well against the Charger’s passing game. Philip Rivers has nearly double the total passing yards as the Jets QB Mark Sanchez but Jets running back Thomas Jones will be a big ground threat (even though he only averaged two yards per carry and 34 total in last weeks win against Cincinnati) . My final pick will be the Chargers in another close game. The bottom line is this; all four games will be worth watching and it’s likely we might even get another overtime game.