January 3, 2008
With the NFL’s regular season over, only 12 teams remain in the hunt for the Lombardi Trophy.
In the AFC, the Jacksonville Jaguars must travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers. The Steelers get to host the game, despite having won one less game than the Jaguars. With "Fast Willie" Parker out for the season with a broken leg, the Steelers running game lacks explosiveness, now relying on Najeh Davenport. This will put more pressure on quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to win.
Jaguars quarterback David Garrard threw only three interceptions in the regular season, and the running tandem of Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew should have a good day against the defense they ran for over 200 yards on earlier this season. In the end, the Jaguars should come away with a victory.
The other AFC matchup will have the Tennessee Titans visiting the San Diego Chargers. Titans quarterback Vince Young threw more interceptions than touchdowns this season, and the Tennessee running game is inconsistent. The Chargers have won 10 of their last 12 games.
Quarterback Philip Rivers has resurrected a would-be dismal season over the last few games, while running back LaDanian Tomlinson led the league in rushing and cornerback Antonio Cromartie led in interceptions. The weak Titan offense should struggle, and L.T. and Rivers will probably continue their strong play. The Chargers will probably win.
In the NFC, the Tampa Bay Bucs will host the New York Giants. Giants quarterback Eli Manning is coming off his best game of the season. However, the Giants defense gave up 38 points to the New England Patriots and has been inconsistent all year. Bucs quarterback Jeff Garcia had a solid regular season, and running back Earnest Graham has filled in very well for the injured Cadillac Williams. Manning will face a tough defense and a hostile crowd. I predict that the Bucs will take the game by a small margin of defeat.
The final first-round game pits the Washington Redskins against the Seattle Seahawks. Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander has finally picked up his play over the last couple of weeks. The Redskins have not lost since the funeral of their fallen teammate Sean Taylor, and quarterback Todd Collins has not thrown an interception since replacing injured starter Jason Campbell. In the end, the playoff experience of Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck should help the Seahawks win in a close one.
This would pit the Jaguars against the unbeaten New England Patriots, the Chargers against the defending Champions the Indianapolis Colts, the Bucs against the Dallas Cowboys and the Seahawks against the Green Bay Packers.
