NFL Playoffs: Predict Winners Here

[Indy]

AFC Wild Card:

Jacksonville Jaguars @ New England Patriots-
Will the Jags start David Garrard or Byron Leftwitch? I think they'll go with Leftwich, but it won't matter. The Pats are too seasoned of a team to go down in a wild card game, and they'll win this one.
Pats-20 Jags- 13

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Cincinnati Bengals
This one will be the most interesting game of the wild card weekend. Unfortunatley for the Bengals, almost nobody on their team has ever played in a playoff game before. The Steelers are completely the opposite.
Steelers- 24 Bengals- 21

NFC Wild Card

Washington Redskins @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This is a matchup of a team that started out extremely hot against a team that ended extremely hot. The Redskins have the momentum, the Bucs have Chris Simms at quarterback. Nuff said.
Redskins- 33 Bucs- 17

Carolina Panthers @ New York Giants
This will be interesting too. If Carolina can control Tiki Barber they have a chance. Unfortunately for the Panthers, they can't. The G-men are primed to make a postseason run, and it starts here.
Giants- 20 Panthers- 10

AFC Divisional Matchups

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Indianapolis Colts
I have quite a bit of a bias here, but it doesn't matter. The Steelers know that if they beat the Bengals they have to come to the dome, where we handed them their asses earlier this year. It'll happen again.
Colts- 31 Steelers 23

New England Patriots @ Denver Broncos
Great season for the Broncos this year, but they are scared of playing the Patriots. They are definitley rooting for Cincinatti to win, because then they'll get to play them. They can beat the Bengals, they can't beat the Pats, not in the playoffs at least.
Patriots- 23 Broncos- 21

NFC Divisional Matchups

Washington Redskins @ Seattle Seahawks
[b]Shaun Alexander is one of the few players that can win games on his own in football. When you combine that with a pretty good defense, and the best quarterback in the NFC in Matt Hasselback, you have an end to the 'Skins run. But hey, at least they finish better then the Cowboys right?
Seahawks- 30 Redskins- 23

New York Giants @ Chicago Bears
Tiki Barber is the factor again, and the Bears have what it takes to stop him. The question though, is whether or not Rex Grossman can put up the points, or better yet, can he even stay on the field? Yes he can, and the Bears win it in Soldier Field, but it'll definitley be close.
Bears- 14 Giants- 13

AFC Championship

New England Patriots @ Indianapolis Colts
Every other year, this matchup scared me, and rightfully so. The streak of getting beat by the Pats ends this season, especially since we'll be at home. Fuck You Tom Brady.
Colts- 30 Pats- 17

NFC Championship

Chicago Bears @ Seattle Seahawks
This is such an intriguing matchup, that it is so hard to predict. The Bears do a great job stopping running backs, but can they really control Shaun Alexander? That seems like a task that nobody can take on. On the other hand, you know the Bears defense won't let up anymore then maybe 17 points, and Rex Grossman has looked pretty good... I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say the Bears win it in a very close game. They are just so good at controlling the tempo, and Seattle's luck ends here.
Bears- 21 Seahawks- 17

Super Bowl

Indianapolis Colts vs. Chicago Bears
Boy, what a matchup. High powered offense vs. High powered defense. When you look at matchups like this you have to look at both team's weaknesses, and whoever has the stronger weakness is the team that will win. Indy's D vs. Chicago's O? Not even close.
Colts- 20 Bears- 13

Let's hope I'm right.

[Riot]

AFC Wildcard-

Steelers@Bengals-
Steelers win

Jaguars@Patriots-
Patriots win

NFC Wildcard-

Redskins@Bucs-
REDSKINS win

Panthers@Giants-
Giants win

AFC Divisional-

Steelers@Colts
Steelers win!

Patriots@Broncos
Broncos win

NFC Divisional-

Redskins@Seahawks-
Seahawks win

Giants@Bears-
Giants win

AFC Championship-

Steelers@Broncos
Steelers win

NFC Championship-

Giants@Seahawks-
Seahawks win

Super Bowl-

Seattle Seahawks vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers win

Uh huh...that's how it's going down.

[dada]

AFC Wildcard

Steelers@Bengals-
Steelers win

Jaguars@Patriots-
Jaguars win

NFC Wildcard-

Redskins@Bucs-
Bucs win

Panthers@Giants-
Panthers win

AFC Divisional-

Steelers@Colts
Colts win

Jaguars @Broncos
Broncos win

NFC Divisional-

Bucs @Seahawks-
Bucs win

Panthers @Bears-
Panthers win

AFC Championship-

Colts@Broncos
Colts win

NFC Championship-

Panthers@Bucs-
Panthers win

Super Bowl-

Panthers vs. Colts
Colts win




Thanks for the template Riot.

[#12]

AFC Wildcard-

Steelers@Bengals-
Steelers win. Steelers win one for The Bus

Jaguars@Patriots-
Patriots win. Patriots are more experieced

NFC Wildcard-

Redskins@Bucs-
Bucs win. Bucs win with a big defensive play

Panthers@Giants-
Panthers win. Steve Smith can not be handled by Giants

AFC Divisional-

Steelers@Colts
Steelers win. Manning chokes

Patriots@Broncos
Patriots win. Broncos have no playoff experience

NFC Divisional-

Bucs@Seahawks-
Bucs win. Seahawks can still not win a playoff game

Panthers@Bears-
Panthers win. Bears have a good run d, but panthers pass more.

AFC Championship-

Steelers@Patriots
Patriots win. bad weather somehow affects steelers

NFC Championship-

Panthers@Bucs
Panthers win. Steve Smith has a great game

Super Bowl-

Panthers vs Patriots
Patriots win. Brady leads NE to game winning drive. NE is a dynasty for real.

[Emiliano]

AFC Wildcard-

Steelers@Bengals-
Steelers win (not sure about this one, this will be a close one)

Jaguars@Patriots-
Jaguars win (Go Jax)

NFC Wildcard-

Redskins@Bucs-
Redskins win (low scoring game but the 'skins take this one)

Panthers@Giants-
Giants win (Tiki Barber is unstoppable so far)

AFC Divisional-

Steelers@Colts
Colts win (Colts take this one)

Jaguars@Broncos
Broncos win (c'mon Jax, let's try to get this one!)

NFC Divisional-

Redskins@Seahawks-
Seahawks win (Redskins defense won't stop Alexander)

Giants@Bears-
Bears win (Bears defense will make this game a close one)

AFC Championship-

Colts@Broncos
Colts win (High-scoring game)

NFC Championship-

Bears@Seahawks-
Seahawks win (Alexander is just too good)

Super Bowl-

Seattle Seahawks vs. Colts
-Very hard to decide-

[Anthony15]

AFC Wildcard-

Steelers@Bengals-
Bengals(steelers will choke)

Jaguars@Patriots-
Patriots(pats D will lead them)

NFC Wildcard-

Redskins@Bucs-
Redskins(Portis will have a monster game)

Panthers@Giants-
Giants(will be close)

AFC Divisional-

Bengals@Colts
Colts(pretty simple)

Patriots@Broncos
Broncos(they already beat Pats once, they can do it again)

NFC Divisional-

Redskins@Seahawks-
Seahawks(Alexander>Portis)

Giants@Bears-
Bears(will be close again)

AFC Championship-

Broncos@Colts
I can't decide...since Broncos is my fav team i'll go with them(i hope denver D can shut down manning)

NFC Championship-

Chicago@Seattle
Seattle(alexander have a big game again)

Super Bowl-

Broncos vs Seattle
Can't decide either, i hope Broncos will win.

[Jugs]

I'm rooting for the Bengals

[kevC]

All I know is that Peyton's going to choke again and won't make the Superbowl.

[air gordon]

Bears over Colts 20-17

Yes finally a homer pick

[skateballer]

I'm rooting for the Bengals

Same here!

[Cable]

Go Argos!

[Avrah3]

Seahawks are going all the way.

[Matthew]

I'll do these predictions week by week.

NFC
Panthers@ Giants

I'm going with the panthers. IMO they were the best non eagles team in the nfc last season despite not making the playoffs. Now they are healthy and have a freakish defense that is suddenly overlooked.

Redskins @ Bucs

Tough game to predict. I'll go with the skins just becuase Simms is essentially a rookie quarterback and cadalic williams is also a rookie. thats just too much inexperience at this level to win a playoff game. However, the bucs defense is good enough to win a game all by itself. But so is washingtons.. and i'd take portis/brunell/moss over simms/williams/galloway

AFC

Jaxsonville@ New England

One month ago I would have bet the house on a Jags win, but with a possible rusty Leftwich and a suddenly rejuvinated pats defense i have to go with the defending champs. However, alot of teams are looking over the jags big time. They could very easily win this game. Its not to going to be easy

Pittsburgh @ Cincinatti

I'm going to pick the Bengals in this. Pittsburgh got lit up by a very simialr offense in Indy not too long ago, plus they lost the game to the bengals. Pittsburgh's offense might struggle with Big ben still hurting, and alot of people are convinced the bengals are sleepwalking into the playoffs. I think they should be fine, Chad Johnson and Calson Palmer are the most explosive qb/wr duo in the league this season.

[ixcuincle]

Washington Redskins @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This is a matchup of a team that started out extremely hot against a team that ended extremely hot. The Redskins have the momentum, the Bucs have Chris Simms at quarterback. Nuff said.
Redskins- 33 Bucs- 17

I like your thought here. The Redskins never should have lost at Tampa Bay and only lost because Gruden had the guts to go for 2 and supposedly Alstott did not cross the line on the 2 point conversion (this is debatable though). The Redskins have a LOT of momentum entering the playoffs seeing as that no other team in the NFC other than Seattle has been as hot as them down the stretch. They will beat Tampa and beat Seattle (although Seattle is hard to beat at home , correct me if I'm wrong but I believe they are undefeated) and beat someone else to reach the Super Bowl. It's a long shot but I hope it comes true...the Redskins are capable of beating anyone in the NFC , and have already beaten the Bears and Seahawks in the regular season.

[ixcuincle]

So Week 1 of the NFL Playoffs concludes and we now know who is going to the 2nd round. It's time for my late predictions as to the rest of the NFL Playoff picture.

NFC
Redskins @ Seahawks
With the Redskins winning at Tampa last Saturday the Redskins have now won 6 straight and have the best winning streak in the NFC. This being said , I would be surprised if they pulled off an upset of the #1 seed Seattle Seahawks. Then again , the Redskins did beat the Seahawks in Week 3, didn't they? Whether that win was deserved or not , we can debate that for all time. The thing is , I think the Redskins have the defense to stuff Shawn Alexander. Clearly , they must contain him because if he goes crazy on that Redskins defense , the Redskins have no chance. The Redskins must also get an early lead like they did in Tampa and convert off turnovers. If the Redskins defense is robust and quells a red-hot Seattle offensive team I think they might pull off the victory. Of course , Jim Lampley of HBO fame pointed out on the Jim Rome show that Seattle is almost unbeatable at home. Hopefully Seattle will "choke" (no pun intended) , the Redskins pull off the upset , and advance to the NFC Championship game , 23 - 17.

Panthers @ Bears

Unfortunately the Panthers playoff run stops here. I hate to say it but I don't see enough from Carolina to indicate that they can defeat a strong Bears defense , especially away from home in the cold chill of Soldier Field. Bears 16 - Panthers 6.

AFC

New England Patriots @ Denver Broncos

The Patriots administered a whooping on the Jaguars and showed the world that the champs are not done yet. With a revitalized defense and Tom Brady as good as he always is , I still do not see the New England Patriots giving up yet. They will shock Denver and Mile High by knocking off the AFC West champions. The New England defense is back , and with the exception of the minor setback Week 17 they have a nasty winning streak going on. Pats 28 - 10.

Steelers @ Colts

The Steelers rallied to reach the playoffs and beat the Bengals to advance to this game. The bus however stops here for the Pittsburgh Steelers and they will not beat the Indianapolis Colts. The Steelers defense may be good but so is the Indianapolis defense. Indianapolis has more firepower and a better quarterback , I would be stunned if the Colts managed to lose this game. Colts 30 - Steelers 17

conference championships

Redskins beat Bears like week 1
Patriots beat Colts as they always do in postseason under Brady sorry Indy

Super bowl XL

Patriots win over Redskins , which happened when I played the 2005-06 season with the washington redskins in Madden 06. Both teams made the super bowl then and both teams should make the super bowl in real life.

[Matthew]

I predicted 3 out of 4 picks correctly. If Palmer didnt get injured, I would have been 4 from 4.

Onto this week:

Redskins @ Seahawks

Washington is on a roll, and seattles choking is very well documented. With that said, Seattle is a different team to last season and they are at home. Washington doesnt have the offense to keep up with seahawks no matter how good the washington defense is. Also, dont discount how good the seahawks defense is.
My Pick: Seattle

Panthers @ Bears

Now I'm looking forward to this! I love defensive battles and this should be great. Grossman is the definition of an enigma and that bears defense is second to none. But the panthers made eli manning look like a chump and this is grossmans first playoff game as well. Alot of pressure on him and carolina seems to be firing at the right time.
My pick: Carolina

AFC
Pats@ Broncs

This should be interesting. New England seems to be playing really well and this is the first game that the pressure has really been on plummer (i know he lead the cardinals to a playoff win, but there was next to no pressure on him in that game). I will say this; New England has had an easy run. They didnt beat a 12-4 team last game, they beat a team with a very rusty and immobile leftwhich who was playing a leg in a cast. Dont expect the Pats defense to be that good against the Bronco's.
My pick: Broncos

Steelers@Indy

This is one game I dont know how to pick. It could very easily go either way, but I'll go with Indy becuase of their completeness and they are at home. The dome is a huge advantage for them this season.
My Pick: Indy

[Jing]

it will be a good nfl season as long as indy doesnt win. that steelers colts game is gonna be like a battle between legend and jackal

[Matthew]

Yeah, it will be a blowout. Legand has nothing on Jackal.

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

it will be a good nfl season as long as indy doesnt win. that steelers colts game is gonna be like a battle between legend and jackal

I don't think it will be that boring... maybe a touchdown or two...

[Riot]

The Patriots/Broncos game should be really good.

[Carmo]

sorry for my ignorance (i don't know a lot about nfl) but can anyone tell me how well ben graham (aussie) had done this season?

[ixcuincle]

Australian punter masters American football
By Leela de Kretser

The New York Jets' latest punting hopeful is no stranger to a football field.

After 11 years of playing professional football at the highest level, Ben Graham knows the ins and outs of a locker room and the nervous excitement of running out in front of big crowds.

It's just that for this 31-year-old Australian that football field was normally round.

Graham, who is from Melbourne, hopes to make the transition from his native game, commonly known as Aussie Rules, to the NFL big time.

"Kicking is something I've been doing from a very early age," he said recently from the Jets training grounds at Hempstead, Long Island. "Now it's a matter of how I get if off in two or three steps."

Like Pro Bowl All-Star Darren Bennett, an Australian who now plays for the Minnesota Vikings, Graham is looking to take the long kicking style inherent in the Down Under game and use it as a punter.

"Kicking is kicking, in a way," said Jets special teams coach Mike Westhoff, the man who will decide Graham's NFL fate. "If you have the power and finesse to kick a ball well, whether it’s a soccer player kicking a field goal or playing the Australian game or becoming a punter, the mechanisms are similar."

In his former life as a fullback for the Geelong Football Club, Graham was known for his thumping punts, one of which sent the unusually shaped Australian ball called a Sherrin sailing more than 90 meters.

But that kick, like most of his longest in the Australian game, was executed with plenty of time on hand and without the threat of bodily harm. In Aussie Rules, the clock is stopped for the fullback to get the ball back into the game and he can’t be tackled while he does it.

Now, Graham must get used to getting the ball off in under two seconds and with the pressure of an entire team suited in pads and helmets bearing down.

"What we have to be able to determine is can he transfer this technique he has learned in training and apply it in a pressure situation?" Westhoff said. "We are going to have to wait and see."

Westhoff first discovered Graham through a videotape the Australian made of himself punting balls at an oval back home and then sent to NFL teams.

Then, when his Aussie Rules season for 2003 finished in September, Graham traveled to the United States to try out with several teams. The Jets, who had first shown interest in the Australian back in 1997, signed him.

He said he had often sought the advice of fellow Aussie Darren Bennett, who turned a 78-game career with Melbourne Football Club into a punting career at the San Diego Chargers. Bennett, considered one of the NFL’s all-time best punters, is still playing at 40.

“I get a lot of tips from Darren Bennett,” Graham said. “He left me with a bag of balls and a helmet, and we talk regularly about the game.”

Graham, who was 30 at the time the Jets gave him the contract, said he was at first concerned about starting a new career at a relatively late age for sporting life.

But he said when he voiced this to the Jets coaching staff, they said: "That's the last of your worries."

Graham and Westhoff agree that as a career-changer, the Australian has a mature outlook on the demands of professional sport.

“I have played professional football back home for a long time now,” Graham said. “I know the sacrifices you have to make, the team environment and how much pressure there is playing in front of big crowds.”

Ray Pelfrey, who runs the Professional Kicking Services and is regarded as one of the best kicking instructors in America, met Graham last month when the Jets sent him to Pelfrey’s Nevada training camp.

After two weeks in Nevada, where Graham practiced over and over again receiving and getting his kicks off in under two seconds, Pelfrey said he was impressed.

“What do I think his chances are?” Pelfrey said after the camp. “I think they are pretty fair.”

“He has great length and strength, and he is a seasoned, professional athlete.”

Pelfrey said that during the training camp, he had watched Graham get used to the differences between kicking an Aussie Rules ball and an American football. “There’s a great deal of difference in Australian style punting,” he said.

Not only is the shape of the Australian ball different, said Pelfrey, but the alignment of its seams and the way a kicker must strike the ball are not the same.

“What we tried to do with Ben was to blend together what we could of the two games without making any drastic changes,” he said.

Graham said that like his predecessor Bennett he was pleased to be able to show his new American teammates the drop punt, a specialized Australian kicking style, which he said allowed the ball to hang longer in the air and provided greater accuracy than the traditional NFL spiral kick.

He said he also got a laugh out of answering his American teammates questions about his hometown. “There’s a lot of them asking me what Crocodile Dundee is really like?” he said.

E-mail: lmd2109@columbia.edu

[air gordon]

I predicted 3 out of 4 picks correctly. If Palmer didnt get injured, I would have been 4 from 4.


Panthers @ Bears

Now I'm looking forward to this! I love defensive battles and this should be great. Grossman is the definition of an enigma and that bears defense is second to none. But the panthers made eli manning look like a chump and this is grossmans first playoff game as well. Alot of pressure on him and carolina seems to be firing at the right time.
My pick: Carolina

Just keep in mind that Foster was running over the Giant's 20-something ranked defense.

Remember the Bears beat the Panthers without Grossman. Even if Sexy Rexy is a rook, Carolina won't be able to load up the box like they did when Orton was playing. The Bear's offense isn't dependent on Grossman's arm like NYK's is with Manning.

That being said- Carolina was the team I didn't want the Bears to face in the 1st round. They had the least amount of flaws of the 3 teams the Bears could have faced

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

Ahhh, screw it.... Go Bears!!!

[Anthony15]

The Patriots/Broncos game should be really good.

yes, i'll be watching it:)
I hope Patriots will have big problems with breathing and will play worse.