Saturday Jan. 9: Jets (+2.5) @ Bengals: Call me a homer if you want, but I think the Jets win this game. They blew out the Bengals at home last week to get into the playoffs and I know Cincinnati will play better with Cedric Benson back and they are at home, but the Jets are confident and playing some of their best football right now. Confidence is probably the best word to describe Rex Ryan's rookie season as coach, but he's done a really good job keeping his team confident and with very few exceptions he's stopped them from becoming overconfident. The quarterback situation is an issue for New York, and people are quick to point out that the Bengals will be better prepared for the Jets rushing attack, and they will, but the Jets have played fairly well on the road this season. To me it boils down to this: the Bengals offense is not that good, the Jets D is that good and it won't take much scoring for the Jets to win this game.
My pick: Jets 20, Bengals 10
Saturday Jan. 9: Eagles (+4) @ Cowboys: In another week 17 rematch the Eagles have an awful lot to prove against Dallas, but that only stems from the 24-0 drubbing the Cowboys handed down to their division rival last week. Dallas on the other hand has nearly a decade's worth of bitter playoff failures under their belt and the fact that the combo of Wade Phillips and Tony Romo have yet to win a playoff game is tremendously relevant. It sure looked like the Cowboys were a better team last week, but I know this, when Donovan McNabb plays bad one week, you can expect a complete reversal the week after. This team knows how to handle adversity and the Cowboys know how to bring it on themselves. This game marks the end of the Wade Phillips regime in Dallas, and look out NFC, the crafty McNabb might have one last playoff run in him
My pick: Eagles 31, Cowboys 28
Sunday Jan. 10: Ravens (+3) @ Patriots: This game could go either way. No team wants to play New England at home in the playoffs, ever, but Baltimore won two playoff games last year and that experience may prove crucial. You better believe the Ravens are going to use Ray Rice and Willis McGahee an awful lot against what I think is a soft New England defense. We all know about Tom Brady, and we know the Patriots reputation for scoring, but Wes Welker's injury is going to throw a major kink in the plans of the Pats who still struggle to run the ball. I think this one comes down to the wire, and the Ravens ultimately send New England away.
My pick: Ravens 27, Patriots 24
Sunday Jan. 10: Packers (PK) @ Cardinals: Another repeat of a blowout from week 17. This time the Packers laid it on the Cardinals and I understand that Arizona had played a "vanilla" game plan against the Packers, but I think history is destined to repeat itself. Aaron Rodgers is not good, he's great and the Packers offense has come into its own. On the other side the Cardinals made a Superbowl run last year with Kurt Warner hitting Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin, but Boldin might not play and even if he does he won't be at full strength. This team is really at its best when both those guys are going because you can't double them both and neither one can be stopped with single coverage. Arizona shocked the world last year so it's tough for me to rule them out now, but I just don't see how they get past Green Bay.
My pick: Packers 35, Cardinals 17
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