NFL Wildcard Playoff Predictions

This weekend starts the one and done stage of the NFL season.  Here’s who I think will still be standing.

Atlanta over Arizona-This is a match up of two powerful offenses that get it done in different ways.  Arizona ranked 4th in the NFL in total offense almost exclusively behind Kurt Warner and the 2nd best passing game in the league.  The Cardinals however, were the worst rushing offense at just 73.6 yards a game.  That inability to run could be a problem against the Falcons, who ranked 6th in total offense and will look to control the clock behind Michael Turner and the league’s 2nd best rushing attack.  Atlanta is also the hotter and maybe more confident team coming in having won five out of six while Arizona lost four out of five before a season ending 34-21 win over Seattle.

Indianapolis over San Diego-I think this is an uphill battle for the Chargers.  Despite the fact they won four straight to steal the AFC West from the Denver Broncos, they face the hottest team in the league in the Colts who have won nine straight.  Regardless of the health of LaDanian Tomlinson, I don’t think the match ups are good for San Diego either.  The Chargers offense relied much more heavily on Phillip Rivers and the passing game than was probably expected at the start of the year, ranking 7th in the league throwing the ball.  However, the Colts ranked 6th in the league against the pass.  On the other side of the ball, MVP Peyton Manning and the Colts offense ranked 5th in pass offense and will face a Chargers defense that ranked next to last in defending the pass.

Baltimore over Miami-The plan for the Ravens all year has been simple: run the ball, ranking 4th in rush offense and play great defense, ranking 2nd in total defense and pass defense and 3rd in rush defense and scoring defense.  For Miami, who may be the 2nd hottest team in the league having won 9 of their last 10 games, their offense has been more balanced ranking 10th throwing the ball and 11th running it.  On defense they could give the Ravens some problems as they ranked 10th in the league against the run.  However, I just don’t think the Dolphins have the explosive weapons on offense to deal with the powerful Ravens defense.

Philadelphia over Minnesota-The Eagles are the only one of the eight teams playing this weekend to rank in the top ten in both total offense (9th) and total defense (3rd).  I wouldn’t look for a ton of rushing yards in this game as the Vikings were the best at stopping the run allowing just 76.9 yards a game and the Eagles ranked 4th at just 92.6 yards a game.  That last stat could bode very badly for Minnesota who relies heavily on the run ranking 5th in the league at 145.8 yards a game on the ground, while ranking 25th through the air offensively.  The Eagles conversely rank 6th in passing yards and just 22nd running the ball.  I think these numbers point to an Eagle victory and a date next week with the defending champs in New York.

Last Week: 12-4

Season: 96-43-1