NFL playoff preview

Wild card weekend kicks off the 2008 playoffs and we have some good matchups. Each one of the wild card teams is capable of beating the division champions they are playing. Let's start with the NFC wild cards.

Atlanta @ Arizona- Good matchup. These two did not play each other this year. You have the rookie qb vs. the really old qb. Good coaches too. Mike Smith has done wonders with the Falcons and Ken Whisenhunt is making a contender out of an underachieving Cardinals team. There shouldn't be much defense in this one. The Falcons have the 24th ranked d and the Cards have the 19th. With the defenses being a wash, both teams have talented offenses that can light it up. For Arizona, Kurt Warner has had an MVP type season...of course throwing to Fitzgerald and Boldin can give anybody MVP type numbers. Atlanta focuses more on the running game with the talented duo of Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood. I give the edge to Arizona for the following reasons: home field, more experienced, Super Bowl winning qb, as opposed to rookie qb, and slightly better defense...slightly. It's been a good run for the cinderella Falcons but it ends this weekend.

Philadelphia @ Minnesota- Another good matchup but for opposite reasons. These two did not play each other during the regular season. These two teams play great defense...the Eagles rank 3rd in total d and the Vikings rank 6th. Philly has a better pass defense while Minnesota plays better against the run. The keys to this game are going to be the running backs of each team. Philly has "do-it-all" Brian Westbrook and the Vikings have Adrian Peterson, quite possibly the best young back in the league who by the way, led the league in rushing this year. The Eagles will have to rely on McNabb to Westbrook passing while the Vikings will have to rely on Peterson because Tarvaris Jackson is not going to beat this defense! I give the edge to Philly for the following reasons: playoff/Super Bowl experience, their offense matches up better with Minnesota's defense than Minnesota's offense matching up against the Eagles defense. If Philly gets any kind of a lead it's over in that the Vikings aren't equipped to come back. The only X-factor for the Vikings is Bernard Berrian, he is a great deep threat. Philly has no deep threat.

Baltimore @ Miami- This is going to be a low scoring slug fest! They played on 10/19 in Miami and the Ravens won 27-13. The Ravens have the 2nd ranked defense in the league, a defense that is big, nasty, physical and makes plays. They have a rookie qb in Joe Flacco who has a cannon of an arm and the offense has been better recently. The Dolphins have the 15th ranked defense and aren't spectacular on offense either, but they are fundamental and don't make mistakes, they find ways to win. I don't see the wild cat formation working in this one either. I give the Ravens the edge for the following reasons: Defense, Defense, Defense! It's been a great story Miami, but it's over this weekend. Baltimore advances for one more week.

Indianapolis @ San Diego- These two played on 11/23 in San Diego with the Colts winning 23-20. You would think the Chargers had the higher ranked defense but that's not true, the Colts rank 11th while the Chargers rank 25th. However, the Chargers play better run defense, while the Colts are better against the pass. The Chargers have had the Colts number in the playoffs in recent years and they do match up well against the Colts. Both teams and both qb's are hot right now. I think the Colts are going to try and expose San Diego's pass defense, while the Chargers will try to expose the Colts weak run defense. I believe Bob Sanders was hurt the last time these two played and his presence adds a lot to Indy's d. I give the Colts the slight edge for the following reasons: Manning will pick apart San Diego's secondary and the Colts defense will try to shut down LT and force Rivers to beat them, which I don't think he can.

We'll see what happens!