HOME | POLITICS | SPORTS | LIFE | SCI/TECH | OPEDS | HELPFUL TIPS
|
Jan. 8, 2006 It was nothing but wild during the NFL’s Wild Card Weekend. Only one home-standing team, the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, managed to win. The famed Barber brothers, Ronde and Tiki, will now get a chance to watch the rest of the playoffs from home, after their teams suffered stunning home losses. And one team tasted victory despite mind-blowing offensive futility. The four survivors from Wild Card Weekend get to face four teams that have had an extra week of rest and boast home-field advantage. All four games in the Divisional Playoffs on January 14 and 15 will be rematches of regular-season contests, and all but one of those games will be in the same venue. Washington at Seattle, 4:30 PM on Saturday, January 14, on Fox. In Week 4, the Seahawks dropped a tough game on the road at Washington 20-17. This time, though, Seattle gets to play at home in the cold and rainy Pacific Northwest, after taking a week to rest up. If the Redskins hope to win this game, they must stop this year’s league MVP, Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander, without the services of defensive lineman Renaldo Wynn, who broke two bones in his forearm in the wild-card game against Tampa Bay. They must also do a lot better on offense. Washington managed only 120 total yards on offense against Tampa Bay, including 25 yards in the air. That is the lowest offensive output for any winning team in NFL playoff history. There’s a lot of pressure on Seattle. They’re the NFC’s number-one team, and they haven’t won a playoff game in over two decades. Mike Holmgren has done a masterful job with quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, and things have been going Seattle’s way much of the season. And that’s why the Redskins move one step closer to the Super Bowl. Final score: Washington 24, Seattle 19 New England at Denver, 8:00 PM on Saturday, January 14, on CBS. The Patriots dropped their Week 6 tilt in the mile-high air of Denver 28-20. It was their last game before their bye-week, and at that time they were 3-3. They went 8-3 the rest of the way, winning the AFC East and bouncing the Jacksonville Jaguars 28-3 in the wild-card round. They have been playing some good football as of late, which is bad news for Denver. The good news for Denver, though, is that they’ve had an extra week to rest Mike Anderson and Tatum Bell, as potent a 1-2 punch at running back as there’s ever been in pro football. And Jake Plummer put up MVP-type numbers during the regular season. Denver’s been playing some good football, too, winning their last four games to close out the season and win the AFC West. Something has to give here. And as good as New England is, it may be their defense that finally betrays them. Final score: Denver 34, New England 28 Pittsburgh at Indianapolis, 1:00 PM on Sunday, January 15, on CBS. When they beat the Steelers 26-7 on Monday night in Week 11 to continue their unbeaten streak, the Colts looked nearly invincible. But a lot has happened since then, including a shocking 26-17 loss at home to San Diego in Week 14 and the death of head coach Tony Dungy’s oldest son. Indianapolis dropped their Week 16 tilt at Seattle, under assistant head coach Jim Caldwell, before Dungy returned to coach their victorious finale at home against Arizona. Pittsburgh has won six straight games following that loss, including a 31-17 takedown of division rival Cincinnati on Wild Card Weekend. They’re not only doing it on the ground, they’re also doing it in the air and doing it on defense. Like the Redskins, the Steelers have been in playoff mode for the last quarter of the season. Like the Redskins, they shocked their wild-card opponent. Unlike the Redskins, though, the Steelers do not advance. Final score: Indianapolis 35, Pittsburgh 24 Carolina at Chicago, 4:30 PM on Sunday, January 15, on Fox. This has been an up-and-down season for the Panthers. “Up” is the brilliant 23-0 shutout that they pitched against the New York Giants on the road on Wild Card Weekend. “Down” is the 13-3 defeat they suffered in Week 11 at Chicago, in a game that really wasn’t that close. The Bears’ defense dominated that day, sacking Carolina quarterback Jake Delhomme eight times with nothing but the pressure from the down linemen. There were two bright spots in that game for Carolina, though. Their Pro Bowl wide receiver, Steve Smith, caught 14 balls for 169 yards, and the Panthers limited the Bears offense, under the direction of Kyle Orton, to a touchdown and two field goals. Chicago isn’t exactly an offensive juggernaut; their highest point output came in a 38-6 rout of Detroit at home in Week 2. Whoever gets their offense on track in this game first wins. And in terms of offense, Carolina has the edge. Final score: Carolina 17, Chicago 13 If the Redskins win on Saturday, either Carolina or Chicago will host the NFC Championship Game on Sunday, January 22. If Seattle wins, they host the Carolina-Chicago winner in the NFC Championship Game. If Pittsburgh wins on Sunday against Indianapolis, the winner of the New England-Denver game will host the AFC Championship Game on Sunday, January 22. If Indianapolis wins, they host the New England-Denver winner in the AFC Championship Game. For the latest team news and information, visit http://www.nfl.com. ------------ About the author: Claxton Graham has written a number of articles for Useless Knowledge. He works as a business systems analyst. Email: scifiwriter8502@email.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
