Divisional Playoffs 06

At 3-1 I’m still right behind redsox1918 who’s sitting pretty at 4-0 so I’m going to play it kinda safe. Well, kinda. I have to make one divergence from picking all the home teams and it comes first…

Patriots@Broncos
Patriots
I know, I know. All week people have been talking about how people are disrespecting the Broncos. How it’s hard to win a playoff game at Mile High Jr., just as it was in Mile High Sr. Al’s going to disown me for this one. But as boring as the Patriots’ win over Jacksonville was last week, they looked more like the Pats of the past few years than they have at any point this season. They’re healthy, they’re hungry, everyone’s been saying their fifteen minutes are up, and Brady’s 10-0 in the playoffs…yeah, how do you pick against them?

Plus, I’m still holding out for a Bears/Pats reunion in Detroit.

This is a team that doesn’t give a shit about how hard it is to win on the road in Denver. They just don’t. They believe that they are the champions, probably because they are until someone beats them. Kinda like Pres. Shepard in The American President when he tells Sen. Rumson off in the climactic news conference. “My name is the New England Patriots and we ARE the Super Bowl Champions.”

Washington@Seahawks
Seahawks
As much as I’d love to see Washington win this one to set up an NFC Title game at Soldier Field where Da Berrs avenge a 2 point, season-opening loss it’s so not in the cards, it’s not funny. The Seahawks are a team of destiny, they’ve been trying to prove they’re the best in the league for years now and every year I fall for their act. This year isn’t any different. Hasselbeck is the real deal and so’s Alexander and this is the year they get to the NFC Championship game. The Seahawks are the new Iggles people. Believe.

Steelers@Colts
Colts
Am I trying to piss Al off? No. Am I trying to pick accurately and dispassionately to overcompensate for my total love for Da Berrs? Yes. The Colts haven’t come this far to blow a divisional game at home. Do I think they could blow the AFC Title at home? Yes. Yes I do. But this game will go a long way towards dictating whether their season ends in Indy or Detroit.

But no matter which team shows up, they’ll get past Pittsburgh. Wish it weren’t so, but it is.

Panthers@Bears
DA BERRS
You know how long I’ve been waiting to say that?

Yes, this team made the playoffs in 2002. Yes, I was making picks back then. But at the time they were just in email form between Cody and me. So I haven’t had a chance to pick them publicly before. Holy mother of SHIT am I pumped for this game. Da Berrs, at home, one win away from the NFC Title game; two games from the Super Bowl, twenty years after their last Super Bowl trip. How can you NOT be excited?

It’s not like we’re a team that makes it every year and chokes (Indy, Stillers, Seahawks, Panthers I’m looking at you.) No, we get one shot at this every few years and dammit we’re gonna make this one count.

But I should probably have some analysis. Face it, this D doesn’t give up points. No, I’m not expecting them to match or beat the 3 they held this team to two months ago. This is a Panthers team that knows how to win in the playoffs, so I am afraid of them. But at the end of the day I think the combination of the D holding them to single digits and Grossman under center is going to work wonders for Da Berrs.

Is Grossman the messiah? Yes and no. He isn’t right now. But I’ve always believed he could be, if he stayed healthy enough. This is a kid who’s career stats are scant because of injury and what stats there are aren’t much better than Orton’s abysmal ones. However, the Panthers’ D just doesn’t have enough tape of this kid to gameplan effectively for him. This sets up all sorts of wonderful things for both the running and passing games. Long story short, you don’t know what these guys are going to do, and that’s so amazingly thrilling.

Sadly, my loser friends out here in Kansas aren’t flocking to my Bears party this weekend. So it looks like Nena and I will be alone watching the game. Oh, how I miss you Chicago. Shit, this game’s huge down in New Mexico, too. I’m just totally in the wrong place at the wrong time.