Wildcard Weekend Picks

The playoffs start with Wildcard Weekend this Saturday. I always liked WildCard weekend better then Divisional Weekend. I think you have a better chance of getting more upsets and wild endings in this round than in the second weekend of the NFL Playoffs. This weekend is strange because we have all four road teams as favorites. Let's take a look at the matchups and make some picks:

ARIZONA (+1) over Atlanta: A lot of people like the Falcons, but I'm gonna go with the Cards in this one. First, I know the Cards defense isn't very good, but I like them at home. I think they are a different team at home. Second, I think the Cards offense will be too much for an average Falcons defense. Finally, I will take the playoff-tested Kurt Warner over the rookie Matt Ryan. Final Score: Arizona-31 Atlanta-24

Indianapolis (-1) over SAN DIEGO: This is the best matchup of the weekend. Both teams are red hot and they played a classic game in November. I think the Chargers run to playoffs was a little overrated. They beat a terrible Raider team, were an onside kick away from losing to KC, bombed a collapsing Tampa team, and buried a collapsing Denver team. I think this game is close but I will take Peyton Manning and Tony Dungy over Philip Rivers and Norv Turner.
Final Score: Colts-27-Chargers-20

Baltimore (-3) over MIAMI: The NFL must have been cringing when they saw this matchup for Wildcard Weekend. About 2 weeks ago, it looked like the NFL and CBS were getting a classic Jets-Pats, Pats-Pitt, or even Jets-Colts in this Sunday spot. Now, they got stuck with Ravens-Dolphins. Look, the Ravens defense is just too much for Miami. Chad Pennington will have trouble all day against Baltimore. This one could get ugly. Final Score: Ravens-23-Dolphins-9

Philadelphia (-3) over MINNESOTA: I just think that Philly is a better team. You can't trust Tavaris Jackson. The only thing the Vikings have going is Adrian Peterson. I think the Eagles contain him enough and McNabb and Westbrook make big plays all day. An Eagle win sets up a classic Philly-Giants matchup next week. I think we get that. Final Score: Eagles-24- Vikings-13.