Earlier
in the season, the Houston Texans were destined to be the number one seed in
the AFC, and the Cincinnati Bengals were destined to miss the playoffs
altogether. However, with a late season push by Cincinnati winning seven of
their last eight, and a late season collapse by Houston, a rematch of a
2011-2012 Wildcard game has formed. Quarterbacks Andy Dalton and Matt Schaub
have struggled in December, particularly on passes downfield. Matt Schaub has
severely underthrown receivers despite benefiting from having an exceptional
rushing attack, completing only 49% of his passes on pass attempts of ten yards
or more. Andy Dalton has failed to connect with star receiver A.J. Green only
completing one pass of 20+ yards in the Bengals last five games. So which
quarterback will end his December woes and carry their team to the Divisional
round? With help from a turnover ridden performance from Houston, Andy Dalton
will lead the Bengals past the Texans to advance in the playoffs.
Cincinnati- 24
Houston-
20
Minnesota at
Green Bay
Adrian
Peterson is the only reason the Vikings stand any semblance of a chance in this
game. But that victory over Green Bay in Week 17 was a fluke. Peterson rushed
for another 199 yards last week, bringing his total to 409 rushing yards and a
7.4 yards per rush attempt average in games against the Packers. Green Bay will
bring nine or ten guys into the box and force the Vikings to create offense
through the air. Not only will Green Bay’s defensive game plan primarily focus
on slowing down Peterson, but there are numerous Packers players, specifically in
the secondary, who should have been seriously ridiculed in the film room for
their efforts tackling last week. It definitely is not an easy task to ask a
cornerback to tackle Peterson, but some of those players barely even attempted
to get in the way. This Wild card game will be much different. Christian Ponder
will have to throw on several 3rd and long situations creating
opportunities for turnovers. Aaron Rodgers and the Packers will handily defeat
the Vikings at Lambeau field setting up a Divisional round matchup next week
against the San Francisco 49ers.
Minnesota-
21
Green Bay- 35
Indianapolis at
Baltimore
The
Colts make their return to Baltimore in an AFC Wild Card game. There is no
doubting the impact that Ray Lewis has had throughout his career, but his
physical impact on this game will be minimal. It is possible that his
leadership skills, the intensity he brings, and the mental impact will be
evident, but not enough to fix what has been an underachieving defense.
However, the inspirational impact of a coach and leader in Chuck Pagano was severely
underestimated. The Colts, with contributions from numerous rookie players,
shocked the NFL this year by making the playoffs. While Andrew Luck has turned
the ball over 19 times, his poise in pressure situations has culminated in seven
comeback wins already. Number eight is going to occur when his team needs it
most late in this win or go home contest. Despite surrendering several big
plays from Ray Rice, the Indianapolis Colts will battle back like they have all
season to move on to the Divisional round to face the New England Patriots.
Indianapolis- 31
Baltimore-
27
Seattle at
Washington
This
should be an exciting game to watch considering the unique abilities of both
mobile, rookie quarterbacks. Russell Wilson and RGIII have drastically altered
the futures of Seattle and Washington, giving each team a significant chance at
a playoff berth every season they remain healthy. Offensive Coordinators Kyle
Shanahan and Darrell Bevell have had to manipulate their gamplans to
accommodate their rookies talents mastering the read-option in Seattle and the
pistol read-option in Washington. While the stories surrounding this game will
center around Wilson and RGIII, the defense that executes their gameplan to
limit the opposing quarterback will determine the outcome of this game.
Washington’s defense led by coordinator Jim Haslett has improved tremendously
since their bye week, forcing 15 turnovers and surrendering 20 points per
game. Seattle’s defense has been stout all year and could prove to be the perfect krytonite to the dynamic rushing attack of the Redskins. In the most exciting game of the four this weekend, the Seahawks will stop RGIII to set up a matchup in the Georgie Dome next week with the Atlanta Falcons.
Seattle- 27
Washington- 24
