Friday, January 11, 2013

2013 Divisional Round Weekend Predictions

One week into the playoffs and my postseason picks aren't too bad.  I went 3-1 last weekend (which I was hoping to go 4-0 but Baltimore won so that didn't happen) and so it's onto the Divisional Round (for more banter check out the Three and Out Podcast where I discuss more about my picks).

The first game on Saturday is Baltimore vs. Denver.  The Ravens are coming off their win against the Colts while the Broncos lie in wait.  Out of all the games, this is the easiest game for me to pick.  I can't stand the Ravens + I like Peyton Manning = I'm picking the Broncos.  And the fact that Denver blasted them only a few weeks ago in Baltimore only adds to my case.  I think this will be the least interesting game and I'm okay with that because (hopefully) the Broncos will move on to the title game.

Broncos 31 Ravens 10

The night game on Saturday is Green Bay vs San Francisco.  We have another match up against two teams that played in the regular season.  In Week 1, the 49ers came into Lambeau Field and beat the Pack.  This will be different as it will be in San Francisco and the 49ers QB will be Colin Kaepernick instead of Alex Smith.  Out of the 4 games, this one is the hardest for me to pick.  Green Bay is playing better and healthy but they still have their weaknesses (O-Line shaky, not much of running game, defense can let teams hang around).  The 49ers have more playmakers this year compared to last year but this is Kaepernick's first playoff start.  I think this will be a close one but I'm thinking the home team pulls this one out.

49ers 20 Packers 17

The early Sunday game is Seattle vs Atlanta.  The Seahawks are coming off their first road playoff victory since 1983 after beating the Redskins.  They now have to travel again, this time to Atlanta.  Ironically, this is the only matchup this weekend where the teams are meeting for the first time.  Atlanta has a lot of pressure on them as the top seed with home field advantage.  QB Matt Ryan & HC Mike Smith are winless in the postseason but they do have that explosive offense.  Obviously key matchup will be Falcons WRs vs. Seahawks secondary.  It will be tough for a 10:00am pacific kickoff (1:00pm Eastern) but I think the Seahawks can pull it out and keep the ball rolling.

Seahawks 24 Falcons 20

The late Sunday game is Houston vs New England.  This is another rematch from a regular season game that saw the Pats beat the Texans on a Monday night game in the middle of the season.  The Texans are coming off a big win against the Bengals to kind of right the ship from the previous few weeks.  They do have a good offense and a good defense.  The Pats have their typical high scoring offense.  I think this time around the game will be a lot closer, however I still think the Patriots will win the game.

Patriots 27 Texans 24

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