Sat, Jan 12
Baltimore Ravens (11-6) at Denver Broncos (13-3) Winner: Denver Broncos
The Broncos beat the Ravens in Week 15 in Baltimore. The Broncos ended the regular season on fire and won 11 straight games and captured the #1 seed in the AFC Playoffs. Look for Peyton Manning to take advantage of the bye week and the home field advantage they have. Manning should have a big game, like he has all season and attack the Ravens defense. The Broncos defense has to shut down Ray Rice and force Joe Flacco to beat them. The Ravens had a big win last week in Ray Lewis last game in Baltimore but it will be hard for them to pull out a victory this week. The Ravens has to get Ray Rice the ball a lot and let him break down the Broncos defense. Joe Flacco has to take care of the ball and get the ball to Torrey Smith and Anquan Boldin. The Ravens offensive line has to protect Flacco and stop Von Miller and Elvis Dumerville from getting any pressure on him. The Ravens defense has to put pressure on Manning and not let them pick them apart. This might be Ray Lewis’s last game of his career so expect the Ravens to put up a good fight.
Green Bay Packers (12-5) at San Francisco 49ers (11-4-1) Winner: San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers beat the Packers in Week 1 of the season and this is going to be a much different game than the 1st time they met. The 49ers will take advantage of being the home team and having a week off to game plan and get healthy. The pressure will be on Colin Kaepernick, who is making his 1st career start in a playoff game. Kaepernick has to take care of the ball and get the ball to Vernon Davis, Michael Crabtree and Randy Moss. Frank Gore should have a big game running against the Packers defense and take pressure off of Kaepernick. The 49ers defense has to put pressure on Aaron Rodgers and slow down their explosive offense. Aaron Rodgers will be playing in his hometown and should have a big game, like usual. Rodgers has to take care of the ball and get the ball to his weapons Greg Jennings, Jordy Nelson, James Jones and Randall Cobb. The Packers had a big win last week against the Vikings and have to play the same way. The Packers defense has to shut down Frank Gore and force Colin Kaepernick to beat them with his arm and not his legs. This game will be a fun and exciting game and it will come down to Colin Kaepernick if he can play thru the pressure of making his 1st career start in a playoff game.
Sun, Jan 13
Seattle Seahawks (12-5) at Atlanta Falcons (13-3) Winner: Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons are the number 1 seed in the playoffs and will have to take care of their home field advantage against the hot Seahawks. The Falcons want to make a statement and prove that they can win playoffs games and will look for a big win this week. Matt Ryan always plays good at home and they will need him to have a big game and get the ball to Roddy White, Julio Jones and Tony Gonzalez. The Falcons also have to use their running game with Michael Turner and Jacquizz Rodgers to break down the Seahawks great defense. The Falcons defense has to step up and shut down Marshawn Lynch and they have to put pressure on rookie quarterback Russell Wilson. Rookie quarterback Russell Wilson continue to surprise everybody and continue to get better every week. If they can find some way to upset the Falcons in Atlanta there might be no stopping them. The Seahawks has to get Marshawn Lynch the ball early and keep feeding him and let him break down the Falcons defense. Russell Wilson has to take care of the ball and make plays with his arm and legs and keep the Falcons defense off balance. The Seahawks defense has to put pressure on Matt Ryan and find a way to slow down the Falcons explosive offense. This game will come down to who’s playing better between the Falcons offense or the Seahawks defense and the Falcons has to win a game in the playoffs and will be motivated.
Houston Texans (13-4) at New England Patriots (12-4) Winner: New England Patriots
The Patriots beat the Texans in Week 14 at home. Look for the Patriots to take advantage of their home field. Also look for Tom Brady to have a big game and get the ball to his weapons Rob Gronkowski, Wes Welker, Aaron Hernandez and Brandon Lloyd. The Patriots defense has to shut down Arian Foster and Andre Johnson and force Matt Schaub to beat them by throwing the ball to somebody else. The Texans will need to stick with what brought them here and have a big game from Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson. Arian Foster has to have a big game and keep Tom Brady off the field. JJ Watt and the Texans defense has to put pressure on Brady and find a way to slow down their explosive offense. The Patriots have too much weapons and have a lot of experience in the playoffs and will wear down the Texans in this game.