Ok, so the quest for perfection may have ended prematurely. Damn you, Bengals! However, I still have the opportunity to match my 3-1 record from last year's wild card weekend. The problem is that today's games present so many unknowns, it will not be easy to go 2 for 2. No complaining though. This is the life I chose. So without any further ado, here are my picks:
(Home team in CAPS)
GIANTS over Falcons
This weekend's true toss-up. The Falcons are loaded on offense this year. Last year's core of Matt Ryan, Roddy White, Michael Turner & future Hall-of-Famer Tony Gonzalez got an extra weapon in lethal rookie WR Julio Jones. Throw in the fact that the Giants have a weak secondary & you have a recipe for disaster. Atlanta has looked good going into the playoffs before, however, most notably last year when they locked up the #1 seed in the NFC, only to get raped in their first game by eventual champs Green Bay. Now they have to play outdoors against a peaking Giants team? Color me skeptical.
Kind of hard to be unbiased here, as I am a huge Giants fan so I get the chance to watch all their games. I've seen the highs & lows play out that eventually equaled a slightly above average season overall. However, NY, already featuring a potent passing attack with a near 5,000 yard passer (Eli Manning) & the best WR duo yardage-wise this year (Hakeem Nicks & sudden superstar Victor Cruz), has gotten their pass rush together on defense at the right time. The three-headed monster of Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora & All-Pro Jason Pierre-Paul will help cover up the holes in the secondary, slowing up Atlanta's offense just enough to grab a close victory.
Pittsburgh over DENVER
Wtf do we make of Denver? The Kyle Orton-led team that started the season slowly morphed into the Tim Tebow-led powerhouse that made them front-runners in the AFC West, only to see them drop their last three games & limp into the playoffs. Even with all that said, Denver is in a good position to pull off an 'upset' here. Not only is this game in Denver where the altitude presents a real disadvantage for visitors, but Pittsburgh is littered with injuries ranging from RB Rashard Mendenhall to safety Ryan Clark. Even their rock, Big Ben, has been slowed down recently with a hobbled leg. The Steelers are far from full-strength & Tebow loves Jesus. Hallelujah!
I still like Pitt here, and that is a testament to their veteran leadership & experience. The Steelers have been down this road before. If there's any team that can overcome adversity in the post-season, it's Pittsburgh. Tebow has looked flat-out amatuerish recently, including a dreadful performance against Buffalo where he threw four picks, two of which were returned for TD's. Denver's strength in the running game can be combatted by Pitt's stunning-as-always run defense. For me to pick Denver here, I would have to expect Tebow to play flawlessly. God forgive me but I don't see it.
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