Wild Card Round: Who the Falcons, Patriots, Steelers and Bears Want To Win
Time to take another spin on the NFL Playoffs, this time from the perspective of the first and second seeds in each conference.
It is time to forget about the teams that are playing this weekend for a second and focus on the best teams in each conference.
These teams have earned a Top Two seed in their respected conference, so let's give them a little more respect.
Time to take a different spin on these NFL playoffs and break down who these first and second seeds want to see win this Wild Card weekend.
Earlier I wrote about each team's easiest and hardest road to the Super Bowl, and I also provided a ranking of the most compelling Super Bowl matchups.
Today, I will spend time focusing on who the top seeds in each conference want to face in the Divisional Round.
First, the No. 1 seeds—Patriots and Falcons—can only play the four, five or six seed. If the three seed beats the six seed, they will play the winner of the four versus five game. If the sixth seed wins, then they will play that team regardless of what happens in the other matchup.
Wild Card action kicks off Saturday at 4:30 with the New Orleans Saints traveling to Seattle to take on the Seahawks. The day is capped off at 8:00 with the New York Jets traveling to Indianapolis to face the Colts. Both games will be televised on NBC.
On Sunday, even more Wild Card action with the Kansas City Chiefs playing host to the Baltimore Ravens at 1:00 on CBS. Wild Card round concludes with the Green Bay Packers traveling to face the Philadelphia Eagles in a rematch of their week one game. The game will kickoff at 4:30 and will be televised on FOX.
With that being said, who do the Falcons, Patriots, Steelers and Bears want to face, and who should they be rooting for?
AFC Playoff Picture
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Wild Card Round: January 8th and 9th
No. 6 New York Jets at No. 3 Indianapolis Colts—Saturday, 8:00; NBC
No. 5 Baltimore Ravens at No. 4 Kansas City Chiefs—Sunday, 1:00; CBS
Divisional Round: January 15th and 16th
Worst rated seed at No. 1 New England Patriots—Sunday, 4:30; CBS
Best rated seed at No. 2 Pittsburgh Steelers—Saturday, 4:30; CBS
AFC Championship Game: January 23rd; 6:30 p.m. CBS
Worst rated seed at best rated seed
No. 1 Seed: New England Patriots
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Possible Opponents: No. 4 Kansas City Chiefs, No. 5 Baltimore Ravens, No. 6 New York Jets
Ideal Scenario: No. 4 Chiefs
How this matchup happens: No. 3 Colts beat No. 6 Jets; Chiefs win
Why the Patriots want this matchup: Although they wouldn't mind playing the Jets, they would much rather play the Chiefs to have a chance to go to the AFC Championship Game. The Chiefs are a team that is just one or two years away from being a very good team in the AFC. They have alot of young talent; it is just not going to shine in the playoffs this year. The Patriots will most likely make the AFC Championship game, and the Chiefs would provide the easiest opportunity.
Toughest Scenario: No. 5 Ravens
How this matchup happens: No. 3 Colts beat the No. 6 Jets; Ravens win
Why the Patriots don't want this matchup: The Ravens have played the Patriots tough already this year. Their first matchup in overtime period was needed to decide the winner. The Pats would win 23-20, but if given the choice of playing the Chiefs, Ravens or Jets, they don't want to face Ray Lewis and the Ravens.
Realistic Scenario: No. 5 Ravens
Why this matchup will happen? The Colts will beat the Jets, and the Ravens will go on the road and beat the Chiefs. Kansas City is a team that is a year or two away from being a serious contender in the AFC, but just not this year. A Pats-Ravens rematch would be a lot closer than people will predict. I think the Patriots are still the hands-down favorite in the AFC. But it's the NFL; anything can happen. The Pats just don't want to face this Ravens team; they would much rather play the Chiefs or Jets.
No. 2 Pittsburgh Steelers
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Possible Opponents: No. 3 Indianapolis Colts, No. 4 Kansas City Chiefs, No. 5 Baltimore Ravens
Ideal Scenario: No. 4 Chiefs
How this matchup happens: No. 6 Jets beat No. 3 Colts; Chiefs win
Why the Steelers want this matchup: Nothing against the Chiefs, but they aren’t quite on the level of the Colts or Ravens. The Ravens have already played the Steelers tough two times this year, and they don’t want to face them a third. They also don’t want to face Peyton Manning in the playoffs. I don’t care if Manning has struggled, he isn’t a QB you want to see in the playoffs when he has something to prove. The Chiefs just give the Steelers the best chance to win.
Toughest Scenario: No. 5 Ravens
How this matchup happens: No. 6 Jets beat No. 3 Colts; Ravens win
Why the Steelers don’t want this matchup:They don’t want to face their divisional rivals for the third time this year. Baltimore won Game 1 and should have won Game 2. The Steelers just don’t want to play this Ravens team for the third time—they would much rather face the Colts or Chiefs. Nothing against those teams, but a Steelers-Ravens rematch would be just as good as the first two—each decided by three points.
Realistic Scenario: No. 3 Colts
Why this matchup will happen? The Colts will beat the Jets forcing the Steelers to host the Colts in the Divisional Round. This is better than having to play the Ravens—a divisional rival but worse than facing the Jets. The Steelers will luck out by not having to play the Ravens, but they will be rewarded with having to play Peyton Manning. Talk about quite a reward.
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NFC Playoff Picture
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Wild Card Round: January 8th and 9th
No. 6 Green Bay Packers at No. 3 Philadelphia Eagles—Sunday, 4:30; FOX
No. 5 New Orleans Saints at No. 4 Seattle Seahawks—Saturday, 4:30; NBC
Divisional Round: January 15th and 16th
Worst rated seed at No. 1 Atlanta Falcons—Saturday, 8:00; FOX
Best rated seed at No. 2 Chicago Bears—Sunday, 1:00; CBS
NFC Championship Game: January 23rd; 3:00 p.m. FOX
Worst rated seed at best rated seed
No. 1 Seed: Atlanta Falcons
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Possible Opponents: No. 4 Seattle Seahawks, No. 5 New Orleans Saints, No. 6 Green Bay Packers
Ideal Scenario: No. 4 Seahawks
How this matchup happens: No. 3 Eagles beat No. 6 Packers; Seahawks win
Why Falcons want this matchup: Who doesn’t want to face a team that won seven games in the regular season with a chance to lock up a berth in the NFC Championship Game. The Falcons dominated the Seahawks in Week 15 of the NFL season, but that was on the road. The Seahawks provide the best opportunity for them to advance to the next round.
Toughest Scenario: No. 6 Packers
How this matchup happens: No. 6 Packers beat No. 3 Eagles
Why Falcons don’t want this matchup: Because of the Packers defense. Clay Matthews is a freak, and Matt Ryan and the Falcons do not want to see him or that Packers defense in the playoffs. And then, there is Aaron Rogers taking snaps for the Packers on the other side of the ball. Plain and simple, this is the team the Falcons want to avoid.
Realistic Scenario: No. 5 Saints
Why this matchup will happen? Because the Eagles will beat the Packers, and the Saints will beat the Seahawks. This will set up an act three for these two teams. And this time, everything will be on the line. I would not be surprised at all though if the Packers beat the Eagles, and the Falcons will have to play a team they beat by three points earlier in the year. Regardless of the outcomes of these games, the Falcons will play a team for the second or third time this year.
No. 2 Seed: Chicago Bears
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Possible Opponents: No. 3 Philadelphia Eagles, No. 4 Seattle Seahawks, No. 5 New Orleans Saints
Ideal Scenario: No. 4 Seahawks
How this matchup happens: No. 6 Packers beat No. 3 Eagles, Seahawks win
Why the Bears want this matchup: See Atlanta Falcons reason. They are the Seahawks. They won seven games in the regular season.
Toughest Scenario: No. 3 Eagles
How this matchup happens: No. 3 Eagles beat the No. 6 Packers
Why Da Bears don’t want this matchup: Because healthy or not, regardless of how good your defense is, no one wants to face Mike Vick in the playoffs. He can just make plays that no one else can make. The Bears are going to have to root for their arch rivals so they can have a shot at going to the NFC Championship without playing the Eagles.
Realistic Scenario: No. 3 Eagles
Why this matchup will happen? The Eagles will beat the Packers, and the Bears will be forced to try and beat the Eagles for a second time this year. But, it’s not like that’s going to be easy. Nothing is easy in the playoffs. One thing is for sure is a Bears-Eagles rematch would be a great game and a toss-up.
Predictions for Wild Card Round Games
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Short and simple. One sentence preview on each game.
AFC:
Colts 27, Jets 20: It doesn't matter what Rex Ryan says, Peyton Manning and the Colts will beat the Jets and set up a Divisonal Round matchup with the Pittburgh Steelers.
Ravens 24, Chiefs 13: Even though the Ravens are on the road, they will still dominate the young Kansas City team and be the second road team to win this weekend.
NFC:
Saints 34, Seahawks 16: It's the seven-win Seahawks; this game won't even be close—or at least it shouldn't be.
Eagles 31, Packers 28: Mike Vick will lead the Eagles to a win against the Packers, and Philadelphia will avenge their Week 1 loss.
Early Look and Prediction of Divisonal Round Games
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Schedule:
Saturday, January 15th
No. 3 Colts at No. 2 Steelers, 4:30; CBS
No. 5 Saints at No. 1 Falcons, 8:00; FOX
Sunday, January 16th
No. 3 Eagles at No. 2 Bears, 1:00; CBS
No. 5 Ravens at No. 1 New England Patriots, 4:30; CBS
Prediction:
NFC: Falcons over Saints; Eagles over Bears
AFC: Patriots over Ravens; Steelers over Colts
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