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Didn't one by this title so I thought I'd put it out there so people can comment as much as possible before this weekend.
I'm going with all of the home teams this weekend which should be a superb weekend of football.
Saturday, January 11
4:35 PM EST New Orleans Saints (11-5) @ Seattle Seahawks (13-3)
8:15 PM EST Indianapolis Colts (11-5) @ New England Patriots (12-4)
Sunday, January 12
1:05 PM EST San Francisco 49ers (12-4) @ Carolina Panthers (12-4)
4:40 PM EST San Diego Chargers (9-7) @ Denver Broncos(13-3)
Seahawks
Pats ( could be a tough call with all the Pats injuries )
49ers
Broncos
I hate this round, because it's so hard to call. I was 3 and 1 last week, and I almost want to say 3 1/2 and 1 because I was non-committal on the Chargers-Bengals game, but I did lean Cincy on that one, I reckon.
Much harder week, but I'll give it a shot.
49ers beat the Panthers 20-17 on a last second field goal. Curse of the Nature Boy. Seriously, though, the Panthers offensive production has gone way down and Steve Smith's hurt. A big fan of Rivera's defense, but the 49ers defense can certainly match that of the Panthers, and they have a better offense. Won't be easy, but I like the Niners, who have become accustomed to playing in gritty games the last few weeks of the year.
Seattle will beat N.O. again. I think it'll be closer than last time. N.O. might try to mix it up and run more in the first half but I doubt they're successful. Seahawks 24-16.
New England beats Indianapolis in a game that could get really interesting late. Patriots 28-24.
San Diego will probably score 28 points against Denver. The question is, can Denver score more than 28 points on San Diego? With Welker back, I think that they can. I think it goes to overtime, and I'll take the Broncos to win it in OT. 34-28.
Saturday, January 11
4:35 PM EST New Orleans Saints (11-5) @ Seattle Seahawks (13-3)
8:15 PM EST Indianapolis Colts (11-5) @ New England Patriots (12-4)
Sunday, January 12
1:05 PM EST San Francisco 49ers (12-4) @ Carolina Panthers (12-4)
4:40 PM EST San Diego Chargers (9-7) @ Denver Broncos(13-3)
Saints @ Seahawks. Closer than the 34-7 Seahawks win back in December, but the Seahawks still get it done by double figures
Colts @ Patriots. Primetime game. At home. With Brady & Belichick. Once again, I'll take the home team by double digits Niners @ Panthers. By far the hardest game to pick. Both defense are great, Niners offense better than the Panthers offense, but the Panthers were able to win in Candlestick and now get the Niners across country at home. That Panthers win in Frisco was without Crabtree and with a healthy Steve Smith who will be banged up. I think a healthy Crabtree + playoff expierence will advance the Niners to round 3 and a 3rd meeting with the Seahawks.
Chargers @ Broncos. I really want to take the Chargers, I really do. They have nothing to lose while all the pressure will be on the Broncos, but for some reason I just can't get myself to pick them. I do know I'm going to kick myself to the hospital if the Chargers do indeed win this.
Saints @ Seahawks. Closer than the 34-7 Seahawks win back in December, but the Seahawks still get it done by double figures
Colts @ Patriots. Primetime game. At home. With Brady & Belichick. Once again, I'll take the home team by double digits
Niners @ Panthers. By far the hardest game to pick. Both defense are great, Niners offense better than the Panthers offense, but the Panthers were able to win in Candlestick and now get the Niners across country at home. That Panthers win in Frisco was without Crabtree and with a healthy Steve Smith who will be banged up. I think a healthy Crabtree + playoff expierence will advance the Niners to round 3 and a 3rd meeting with the Seahawks.
Chargers @ Broncos. I really want to take the Chargers, I really do. They have nothing to lose while all the pressure will be on the Broncos, but for some reason I just can't get myself to pick them. I do know I'm going to kick myself to the hospital if the Chargers do indeed win this.
The one game I just don't hesitate about is Seattle over New Orleans. It wasn't just a bad game for the Saints'; they were physically bruised and worn down over the course of the game. The Saints had one turnover that led to a score, but that's it. They would have lost anyway. I think they might catch Seattle by surprise a time or two in the first half, but the Seahawks will make the necessary adjustments and shut them down in the 2nd. It'll be close until about mid-way through the 3rd Qtr and I look for Seattle to take over after that.
The Pats - Colts match-up is intriguing because Indy has occasionally shown flashes of brilliance on both sides of the ball. But the Indy defense hasn't had an impressive game against a quality opponent in quite some time. I think the Patriots are the wrong team to be playing when a team like Indy's trying to resolve its defensive inconsistencies - and it's the wrong venue and wrong time of year, too. Even so, they've got a puncher's chance with their budding superstar Andrew Luck at the helm, and I think he's the reason why this game will be interesting when it otherwise probably wouldn't be.
The Panthers held the 49ers to a point total of 9 points, which was almost the season low. But that was without all of their offensive weapons in place. Carolina scored only 10 points against the 49ers then, and they've probably gotten a little worse on offense since that time. That's why I take the 49ers. I just wonder if the Panthers don't try to get a little creative on offense. My guess is that defensive-minded teams usually don't.
In the Broncos Chargers match-up, the magic number is 28. The Chargers will probably score about 28 points - maybe more but at least that amount. If Denver can score more, they win; if they can't, then I think their chances of winning go down significantly.
I got 3 of 4 this week by choosing all the home field teams; SF 49'ers being the only team to win on the road this weekend.
So far I've got 6 of 8 in the playoffs.
On to the Conference Championships next week.
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Last edited by Mike from back east; 01-12-2014 at 07:32 PM..
I went 3-1 this week, dropping the Panthers game. Fortunately I went 1-0 in the only game I actually cared about. I'm 5-3 in playoff picks.
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