championship more important, but everyone knows that the confernce title
games are a prelude to the bigger game in Miami in a little over two
weeks. All four teams have earned their way to this point and range from
playoff tested vets in the Patriots, to inspiring one year turnarounds
in the Saints to teams that are looking to shake their playoff jinxes in
the Colts and Bears. The teams that emerge victorious will claim
trophies: The George Halas trophy will go to the NFC winner and the
Lamar Hunt trophy will go to the AFC champion. But both winners want a silver trophy named after a guy named Vince and to get to that
opportunity they have to win the game in front of them.
January 21
NFC Championship
Saints (11-6 NFC South Champs #2 seed) vs Bears (14-3 NFC North Champs#1 Seed)
Soldier Field, Chicago- 3:00 (Fox)
Favorite-Bears by 2.5
How They Got Here-Both teams had first round byes as the NFC's top 2
seeded teams. Saints defeated Eagles 27-24 and Bears defeated Seahawks 27-24 in OT in their respective divisional playoff games.
Playoff History-Bears are 1-2 in the NFC Championship games, this the
Saints first conference championship game.
Playoff Matchup History-Bears defeated Saints 16-6 in the 1990 wild
card round
Just The Facts-The Bears are 1-1 at home in the NFC Title game, The
Saints have 2 playoff wins in team history both at home. The Bears won
their first playoff game since 1994 (0-4)
The Bears got here in spite of themselves. This team just seems to get
any and every fortunate break. The Saints are fast growing into a
cinderella/hollywood script status. But to think they are riding a lucky
wave is to miss the point of this team. They are a resillient bunch who
can beat you in so many ways. Drew Brees is a solid QB who if he has Joe
Horn at his disposal will have an even deeper cadre of offensive
weapons. Deuce McAllister and Reggie Bush are fast growing into a
Thunder and Lightning combo. Bush's breathtaking speed and McAllister sledgehammer power and deceptive quickness of his own will be the Bears biggest challenge this year. Rock solid LB Brian Urlacher will make the plays and Tank Johnson will create havoc on the line but the Bears will miss Tommie Smith helping with pass rush and gap control, something the Saints can and will exploit. All that said, the Bears will live or dieon the play of Rex Grossman. He will try to get silky WR Bernard Berrian the ball early an often to stretch the Saints defense and open holes for the running game If he doesn't try to force plays and can properly utilize the running game that the underrated duo of Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson provide. He and the Bears could carry the day. But I'm betting that Rex will wreck the plan and the Saints win the NFL JV errr....NFC title completing an improbable turnaround
Pick-New Orleans
AFC Championship
Patriots (14-4, AFC East Champs #4 seed) vs Colts (14-4 AFC South Champs #3 Seed)
RCA Dome, Indianapolis-6:30 (CBS)
Favorite-Colts by 3
How They Got Here-The Patriots defeated the Jets 37-16 in the Wild Card Round and the Chargers 24-21 in the Divisional round. The Colts defeatedthe Chiefs 23-8 in the Wild Card Round and the Ravens 15-6 in the Divisional round. The Colts have the higher seed and home field
advantage due to their 27-20 win over the Patriots on November 5.
Playoff History-The Colts are 2-3 in conference/league championship
games, 0-2 since moving to Indianapolis. The Patriots are 5-0 in AFC
Title games
Playoff Matchup History-The Pats have beaten the Colts in both playoff
meetings most recently 20-3 in the 2004 divisional round
Just the Facts-The Pats have played all but 2 of their conference title
games on the road (1996, 2003) This is the Colts first time hosting the
AFC title game. Tom Brady is 10-0 in domes
Will the 3rd time in the playoffs be the charm for the
Colts? They broke a long losing streak against the Patriots last season
and won again in Foxboro in November but the playoffs are a different
story Peyton Manning has thrown 5 interceptions in two playoff games and the Colts offense has looked sluggish, but they have rode a surprisingly stout defense to their first home AFC title game. The Patriots took
advantage of sloppy play by the Chargers to rally to a win. Tom Brady
has not been very sharp, but efficent enough to get the Pats to this
point. Simply put I think the Pats are living off their rep. They beat
the Colts in the last two playoff meetings by grinding out long TD
drives in the cold and forcing Manning to beat them with passing. With
Ty Law (who owns Manning) and Rodney Harrison lurking in the secondary passing was a dangerous proposition at best. This is not the case this year. Brady is Brady and with Maroney and Dillon the Pats can control the clock, but the Colts D has gotten markedly better as of late. That will force Brady to throw and his Jabar Gaffney and Reche Caldwell are not Deion Branch and Terry Glenn. The lack of a real big play receiver will come back to bite Belichick this time. Though Manning has not been particularly effective, the running game and defense have been. I think Manning is way overdue for a big game and playing at home this time around is a huge edge. A fellow scribe says thou should never bet on a Manning in a playoff game. I think this Manning blows that thinking to
shreds this time around and gets the Colts to their first Super Bowl in
Indy and first since winning it in 36 years ago.
Pick-Indianapolis
Last Week 3-1
Playoffs 7-1
Overall 162-102
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