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Playoff Preview
At long last the playoffs are here. Here's my take on what might happen this weekend:
Giants at Tampa Bay
I really like the Giants' chances in this one. Tampa has had a good season in a weak division and took it easy the last two weeks of the season. They are not a powerhouse team. The Giants are very good on the road and in Tampa the weather won't be a factor.
The Bucs haven't really played since December 16th resting their players for the playoffs. I think they'll come out a little slow at first, especially on offense. I remember the Giants held Jeff Garcia in check in Philadelphia in last year's playoffs even though they lost.
I think the game will be relatively close, which means the Giants must avoid the really bad turnover. This is the kind of game that can turn on a long Ronde Barber interception return.
Barring that kind of miserable occurrence, I'm going with the Giants 19 Bucs 13.
Washington at Seattle
This is a tough one. The Redskins are on a roll, but they are facing Seattle in Seattle with their backup quarterback. This is not the same Seahawk team that made it to the Super Bowl two years ago, but they should be good enough to beat Washington's backup quarterback on their own home field, something the Giants couldn't do.
Seattle 24 Washington 10
Jacksonville at Pittsburgh
The Jaguars beat the Steelers in Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh only a few weeks ago, so the home field advantage has been disproved for this game. However, I think the Steelers will react to that loss by coming up big in this game. They will not let Jacksonville beat them in the same way again.
Jacksonville is a tough team and the Steelers need their "A" game to beat them. I think they bring that effort into Heinz Field tomorrow night and get revenge on the Jaguars in what should be a great game to watch.
Steelers 20 Jaguars 16
Tennessee at San Diego
From a talent standpoint, this one is a no brainer. San Diego might have the most talent in the AFC with the exception of the quarterback position. The Titans are a power running team out of necessity. Vince Young has not quarterbacked very well this year and he has top receivers to throw to (why would they get rid of Drew Bennett and Bobby Wade?)
These two teams played a tight game in San Diego on December 9th. The Titans were leading but gave up a game tying touchdown with nine seconds left in regulation. San Diego won in overtime. It was a tough game where Shawne Merriman claimed he was set up by Titans coach Jeff Fischer to get hit and hurt.
This is a tough game to call. My original thought was that Jeff Fischer would out coach Norv Turner and the Titans would win another tough game. My problem with that scenario is the number of injuries Tennessee is dealing with. Wide receiver Roydell Williams broke his ankle in practice, so unless Vince Young can throw the ball to himself, he's going to have a tough time completing passes.
If I felt Young were capable of pulling a magical fourth quarter play or series, I would pick the Titans because I have no faith in Norv Turner.
I just can't count on that.
Chargers 20 Titans 9
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1/6/08 11:40 PM