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| The Chiefs Tamba Hali, who is tied for the team lead in sacks with 11, plans on playing Saturday despite a swollen knee. |
(4)Indianapolis Colts vs. (5)Kansas City Chiefs
When these two teams met in week 16, the Colts stomped the Chiefs 23-7 at Arrowhead. Going into Indianapolis, the Chiefs will look to prove that game was a fluke. The Colts are playing as good as is possible without Reggie Wayne. However, the Chiefs defense will be playing like this is the Super Bowl. They want to prove they're more than just a team that beats non-post season teams. Offensively, Kansas City will do what it's been doing nearly all season; lean on Jamaal Charles. He'll run circles around Indy's defense, and along with Alex Smith, will make sure those four turnovers don't happen again.
Prediction: Colts 17 Chiefs 31
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| Drew Brees should torch the Eagles porous secondary, even with the cold playing conditions. |
This is arguably the most intriguing game of the wild card round. The two quarterbacks attended the same high school, and both have their offenses red hot after huge late season wins. But while the Eagles have the more rounded offense, the Saints have a more rounded team, allowing just 305.7 total offensive yards a game, fourth best in the league. New Orleans' new-look defense also has two breakout pass-rushers in Cameron Jordan(12.5 sacks) and Junior Galette(12). Besides, I can't take the worst passing defense in the league against the 2nd best passing attack.
Prediction: Eagles 27 Saints 31
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| Chargers rookie Keenan Allen put up 8 catches for 106 yards against the Bengals in week 13. |
Perhaps the wildest stat of the playoffs as of late is this; as of 2009, whatever team plays the Eagles in Philadelphia's season opener wins the Super Bowl. It happened to the '09 Saints, '10 Packers, '11 Giants, and the '12 Ravens. Now I'm not saying the Chargers are winning it all, but they will get past the wildcard round. This is another matchup that played out earlier in the season, with the good version of Cincinnati coming out on top. This time around, Dalton and the Bengals won't be able to stop San Diego and it's four game winning streak.
Prediction: Bengals 23 Chargers 28
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| Frank Gore and the 49ers are riding a 6-game winning streak into Lambeau. |
At -30°F, this could wind up being the third coldest pro football game ever played. Other than that, and the fact that Aaron Rodgers is back, there isn't much pushing this game in Green Bay's favor. The biggest difference in the Packers from this year to last is the new, potent rushing attack, ranked 7th in the league. The 49ers however have the 4th ranked defense against the run. For Green Bay to have their best chance of winning this game, they need to turn it into a shootout between Rodgers and Kaepernick, which means containing the run, something I just don't see the Pack being able to do. The 49ers have proven three times in the past two years that they can out-duel this team. They'll prove it again on Sunday.
Prediction: Packers 17 49ers 38
Yes I am aware all my picks are the visiting teams. It wouldn't be the craziest thing to happen this season.
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