2009 NFL Playoff Round 2!

So the Patriots are out, now what? Everyone is talking about how the dynasty is over, and you know what in a way it is. Will the Patriots be in the playoffs next year? Absolutely they will. Do they need some retooling? Of course, but who doesn’t need retooling from year to year. The Pats still have a solid core on the offensive side of the ball. They have Tom Brady, Randy Moss, Kevin Faulk (who is a free agent, but I expect them to resign him) and Wes Welker once he returns from his ACL/MCL injury by mid season. The offensive line has some promise as well with Logan Mankins, and Sebastian Vollmer having very solid seasons. On the defensive side of the ball is where the creative thinking needs to be done. They have some young guys who showed promise in Brandon Meriweather, Jerod Mayo, Pat Chung, Jonathan Wilhite, and then some veteran presence with Ty Warren, and they need to resign Vince Wilfork. The rest can be filled by the draft and free agency, and now that the Patriots didn’t make the final 8, they are able to sign free agents even if they don’t lose any of their current players. For those who don’t know, next year will most likely be played with no salary cap because the current CBA is going to expire therefore meaning that in order to sign free agents if you are one of the final 8 teams left you can only do so as a replacement for a free agent you lost. The Patriots have four picks in the first two rounds of what pundits are calling a very deep draft. They can easily play around with their picks and grab a running back, and some defensive help that will give them the foundation for the future and help them next year as well.
So guys step back off the ledge of the Tobin Bridge, everything will be fine. Brady will heal, as will Welker and Moss. They will bring in some creative minds for the offensive and defensive side of the ball (this would have made me look great if I had posted this article yesterday as Dean Peeves announced today that eh will not be back to coach the defensive side of the ball) and everything will be fine in Foxboro.
Round 2 of NFL Playoffs
Arizona v. New Orleans
The Cardinals come into New Orleans hot, coming off a crazy back and forth round 1 matchup with Green Bay in which Arizona jumped out to a big lead, only to squander it away and then miss a game winning field goal with under a minute to go only to recover a fumble on the first drive of overtime to win the game. The Cardinals have playoff experience and success behind them, while the Saints have, on paper at least, a better team. Remember the Saints are a team that started out 13-0 only to finish 0-3 and the only good team they lost to was the Cowboys in week 15. Midway through the Saints season, especially after they shellacked the Patriots, I thought, along with the rest of the talking heads, that nothing could derail the Saints, and that playing in the Superdome was the TOUGHEST place to play, but since they lost to the Cowboys and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it doesn’t seem that way anymore. In addition you have the Cardinals, who lost in the Super Bowl last year, and everyone thought was a one-year wonder, right back in the thick of things. They looked spectacular on offense, and mediocre on defense last week, but the only part of that last sentence that matters is the spectacular on offense. What the Cardinals did last was show they can win a shootout, and that is what it will take to beat the Saints.
The Cardinals are now the team I have hitched my wagon too. Don’t worry I was accepted onto their bandwagon by the Josef Cousins. They have accepted my application and I am now riding the Cardinals back into the NFC Championship game. I think the Cardinals will put up plenty of points and stop the Saints when it counts. The Cardinals have Early Doucet who showed what he can do when team focus to heavily on Steve Breaston and Larry Fitzgerald. The Cardinals are a very tough matchup for the Saints. The Cardinals went on the road last year and showed everyone they can win when it counts. And is it just me, or do the Cardinals play their best when it matters the most. I like the Cardinals in a shootout. Cardinals 38 Saints 35
Dallas v. Minnesota
The Cowboys finally got off the Shnide and won a playoff game. They were the better team all year and they finally proved to America that they could win when it counts. They played spectacular defense against the Eagles and on offense they ran all over the Eagles defense. The Cowboys look like a solid all around team.
On the other side of the ball with the Vikings and Bret Favre who were all know is due for a clunker. Favre likes to run around and make the wild throws, although this year he reined it in just a bit, but he did blow some winnable games late in the season. The Vikings have an incredible D line and run game, but will Favre play second fiddle to them in this game? That is the key X-factor for the game. If Favre can manage the game and the Vikings can pound the ball with Adrian Peterson, they have an incredible chance of winning this game.
However, the X-factor for the Cowboys will be the amount of fans they will have in the stadium. Minnesota is notoriously known for not selling out games. Cowboy fans can easily procure plenty of seats and cause a lot of raucous for the Vikings. The Cowboys can run on the Vikings front 7 and thus open up the passing lanes for Tony Romo to Miles Austin, who will be able to run for Miles (sorry had to do it) on this Vikings D. I think the Cowboys go into the Metrodome and come out victorious. Cowboys 31 Vikings 23
Indianapolis v. Baltimore
The Ravens got here by dismantling my Patriots by pounding and pounding the football down the Patriots front 7. Normally the Patriots beat up on one-dimensional offenses, but not this week and the Ravens deserve all the credit in the world. They showed up to win, and the Patriots definitely did not. The Ravens have a great D and very solid running game. However, what they don’t have is a reliable quarterback. Joe Flacco can not be trusted to win a big playoff game by himself, so that means if the Ravens running game is stopped, or they fall behind early it will be very bad for the Ravens.
The Colts got a bad rap for resting their starters the last 2 weeks of the season, but if they win the Super Bowl no one will be able to second-guess Jim Caldwell. Unfortunately we have seen this movie before for the Colts. They start hot, rest some guys and then stumble in the playoffs because they are not used to playing meaningful football for over a month and it isn’t a light switch that you just turn on and all of a sudden there is electricity. The Colts have lost their first playoff game after a bye twice in the last five years, and that doesn’t include last year when they lost their first playoff game. In other words, in 3 of the last 4 years they lost in their first playoff game.
Now does this mean I think Indy is going down? No. I think Peyton Manning is ready to play and I think Baltimore played a perfect football game against a weak opponent. In their regular season matchup the Colts held the Ravens to five field goals and a 17-15 loss and people love to hype up certain teams after a round 1 victory, but don’t be fooled by the Ravens, this is the same team that shot themselves in the foot way too many times during the regular season. I think the Colts grind out a close football. Colts 24 Ravens 20
New York Jets v. San Diego
In what looks to be the most exciting matchup of the weekend, the Jets travel to San Diego to play in Mark Sanchez’s backyard. The Jets beat the Bengals for a second consecutive week and they did so by running the football, and to my surprise with Mark Sanchez managing an excellent game plan. The Jets are a very good team on D and they have an extremely confident coach (Rex Ryan handed out a schedule to his players that included a date for a Super Bowl parade) who knows how to scheme.
The Chargers have a very poor matchup with the Jets since they can’t run the football, which is the Jets main weakness on D. They have a very athletic and tall wide receiver in Vincent Jackson, with Phillip Rivers, who is an extremely confident and talented quarterback; throwing him the ball they have a chance to neutralize the Jets best defensive weapon, Darrelle Revis. Rivers has the ability to throw the ball to perfect spots where only Jackson can out jump Revis and retrieve a jump ball.
This is a very scary game to call because on the one hand you have a team that has won 11 in a row and is extremely hot coming into the playoffs, and then the other team is a team that struggled mightily to get into the playoffs and then beat a team in the first round that wasn’t too good to start with. The Jets D is solid, a Super Bowl caliber defense. As much as it pains me to say this, because I hate the Jets, but I think the Jets have an extremely favorable matchup and have an excellent chance at winning this game. However, at the end of the day I am going to trust my gut and go with the Chargers at home to prevail. I think the Chargers win a very close game, a game that can easily be won by the Jets if a call or two, or a turnover goes their way. Chargers 24 Jets 21
This weeks playoff matchups should be great and I hope the before each game the have a moment of silence for the fallen citizens of Haiti. What a tragic week for them and all the Haitian immigrants in America, my thoughts and prayers go out to them.
Next week we will break down the championship games. Should be great matchups and even though the Patriots are out, I am very excited for the rest of the playoffs.