by: Ray DelVecchio

Isn’t it a shame that college football is missing out on the playoff fun?  On a weekend that began with all four road teams favored, the playoff picture became a little more clear after two great days of football.

Atlanta Falcons: 24
Arizona Cardinals: 30

I can imagine what it was like in the Cardinals locker room before the game.  After finishing the season poorly, they heard all week how they weren’t good enough, weren’t built to win in the playoffs.  They were playing at home, against a rookie QB in his playoff debut.  Their QB was a veteran, a Super Bowl MVP, with two NFL MVP awards to boot.  They had two of the best receivers in the league.  And they were underdogs.  I doubt that sat well with them, and it showed in their performance on Saturday.

And even though Warner, Fitzgerald and Boldin came through in a big way, the theme of the day – and the weekend, for that matter – was balance.  Arizona had 28 rushes and 32 passes, while Atlanta was limited to 24 rushes and 40 passes.  Give credit to Ken Whisenhunt for utilizing the savvy veteran Edgerrin James after he was nearly forgotten in favor of the Richmond rookie, Tim Hightower.  He provided the much needed rushing attack that opened up windows in the passing game for Warner and company.

The only negative in the game for the Cardinals was an injury to Anquan Boldin sustained on his 71-yd TD.  He did not make an appearance thereafter, and the Cardinals would be at a disadvantage should he not be able to suit up against the Panthers in the divisional match-up.

Prediction: The Panthers rushing attack will be too much for the Cardinals to handle, and Steve Smith should make plays downfield to propel Carolina to victory.  Carolina 24 Arizona 14

Indianapolis Colts: 17
San Diego Chargers: 23

Back to the theme of the weekend – balance.  The Chargers began the game with a banged up LaDainian Tomlinson, and finished it off with the short and speedy Darren Sproles.  They rushed 34 times versus 36 passes, while the Colts only rushed 22 times while passing 42 times. 

The Colts lack of a running game is really what made Peyton Manning so special this season, but it eventually caught up with them as they couldn’t score enough points to keep up with San Diego.  Now, Tony Dungy must evaluate his future and decide whether he wants to go through another wild NFL season.

On the other sideline, it’s easy to like what you see out of Philip Rivers.  He’s a fiery leader who has a knack for winning big games in this early stage of his career.  He’s already beat the Colts and Peyton Manning three times since entering the league.  The next matchup against Ben Roethlisberger will feature two of the premier young QBs in the league.

Prediction:  The Pittsburgh defense will be too much for the Chargers to handle and they will find a way to slow down Sproles to make San Diego one-dimensional.  I expect Polamalu to make a few momentum changing plays.  Pittsburgh 17 San Diego 10

Baltimore Ravens: 27
Miami Dolphins: 9

If I’m an offensive player in the AFC, my only thought after watching this game would be, “I don’t want to play this Baltimore defense.”  The Ravens tortured Chad Pennington all day, and Joe Flacco was efficient, despite what the stats may say.  The Ravens rush the ball more than any team in the NFL (37 times a game on average), and they followed that trend today – 33 rushes to 23 passes, while the Dolphins rushed 21 times to 38 passes.

Joe Flacco has a championship defense to back him and as long as he sustains drives and limits mistakes, they have a chance to win any game.  And what is good for Ray Lewis and Co. is that he has been phenomenal at doing his job since he started the season 2-3 with 1 TD and 7 INTs.  In that stretch, Flacco has thrown for 13 TDs and 5 INTs, while leading his team to a 10-2 record.  Baltimore now faces the #1 seed Tennessee Titans in a rematch from week 5.

Prediction:   I look for the Ravens to pull off the upset in an AFC defensive struggle.  The Titans have a great defense, but the Ravens defense is more opportunistic and Kerry Collins is less athletic than his younger counterpart at QB.  Ravens 14 Titans 10

Philadelphia Eagles: 26
Minnesota Vikings: 14

Here’s a game where the balance numbers are somewhat skewed – the Eagles had 23 rushes to 34 passes while the Vikings ran the ball 34 times and passed 35.  But it was the gameplay beyond the numbers that allowed the Eagles to pass effectively.  

They weren’t very successful running early in the game, but they kept at it instead of abandoning it like they did in Cincy.  Brian Westbrook ran the ball 20 times for 38 yards, and this persistence in the running game kept the defense honest and allowed him to break a 71 yard screen pass to put the game away.

Adrian Peterson broke loose once, but when push came to shove, the Eagles defense stepped up to the task and threw a shutout in the second half.  Asante Samuel stepped up in a big way, too, when he returned a Tarvaris Jackson INT for a TD.  This is why the Eagles gave him that fat contract in the off-season, and he sure lived up to his billing as a big play DB.

The Eagles win earned them a trip north to Giant Stadium for a true divisional showdown in what should be a very physical game.

Prediction:  The Eagles are on a roll and if they continue to lean on the running game, I think their defense is good enough to slow down the Giants to pull off the upset of the reigning champs.  Eagles 24 Giants 21.