Playoffs? Don't talk about Playoffs!

So Friday, work got in the way of blogging. That's just wrong. As such, I did not get a chance to make predictions on the weekend's games.

What can I say? Saturday's NFL games were a joy to watch, and Sunday's NFL games made me sick to my stomach. Seriously, both Sunday games required meltdowns by the losing team in order to stick the winning team with a win. Chicago had several BIG passing plays (might I remind you, Rex Grossman was throwing these passes), and New England got lucky several different ways, benefiting from no-calls, personal fouls, and wacky turnovers. New England got severely outplayed by the Chargers, and walked away a winner, while Chicago looked similar to the Seahawks, but got the benefit of several big pass receptions that don't always fall their way.

San Diego could not get any pressure on the QB, nor could their coaches formulate any semblance of a game plan. Between 2:30 of the 3rd quarter and 2:30 of the 4th quarter, New England ran exactly one run play, and that was while the clock was not running, as it was the two-point conversion to tie the game -- and that was a TRICK PLAY, a direct snap to Faulk. In the meantime, they ran 22 pass plays, one of them being a sack on Brady. Only after New England completed a long pass play to put themselves in position for the go-ahead FG did they finally try to run the ball again. If San Diego's coaches are not smart enough to know that the Pats can manage the clock, and will continue to (only) pass the ball until they have the game in hand, then San Diego deserves to lose, no matter how much better of a team they are. We also know what we need to work on over the off-season. COACHING.

Saturday's games, however, displayed some real tough-nose football. The Ravens-Colts tilt gave new meaning to defensive battle. Actually, Baltimore's defense didn't do particularly terrible, but they also didn't hold the Colts to many punts or turnovers. They had a few chances at turnovers that they just didn't get, and the Colts offense just kept dinking their way down the field, turning blitzes into yards most of the time. Philly looked extremely good for having an injury-riddled season and backup QB, but they just couldn't match the firepower of the Saints in the end. Big plays by Deuce and Bush were key in turning Philly away.

In a generic prediction, let me just say that I believe that whatever AFC team went to the Superbowl out of the four teams going into this past weekend would have beaten any of the remaining NFC teams going into the weekend, and this weekend's games don't change that prediction. As for Conference Champions, I say the Saints roll over Chicago, and Indy rolls at home over the Pats. I don't feel the Bears or Pats were the better team in their respective games this past weekend -- there's no reason to believe they're any better than the teams they'll be playing this weekend.

In greater detail, here's how I see the games play out. In the Pats/Colts game, I'm a firm believer that the blitz can get to Peyton Manning, but more often than not, constant blitzing of the Colts will only result in long completed pass plays. Take a game with 6 big blitz plays. If all six succeed as best they can, resulting in sacks and/or turnovers, you can hope to handily beat the Colts, say 35-14. If all six are contained, and they result in short dump passes with YAC, you can expect to get trampled, say 49-10. The trick is to place those blitzes where they will be best met, which is really more luck than anything, although masking the blitz packages does go a long way toward confusing Manning and increasing the likelihood of success. I think Indy has finally seen enough of New England and their packages, plus the added benefit of playing at home, that they'll roll.

For the Bears to beat New Orleans, I think three things combined will net a sure win for the Bears. If they score at least one offensive touchdown, score at least one defensive or special teams touchdown, and if they have either zero turnovers, or at the most one turnover while the Saints have at least two, the Bears will win the game. If they don't satisfy all of those criteria, I think they'll have trouble beating the Saints.

Predictions: Indy 30, New England 24 in a game that's not as close as the score. New Orleans 35, Chicago 13.

Good Luck