Playoff predictions so far, an underwhelming 4-4, with a disastrous 1-3 last weekend. This may be why I’m not found on ESPN, while the Sports Guy is 8-0. This looks like a decent set of games; I don’t know if they’ll be as good as last week, but then, that was one of the best playoff rounds ever.
Patriots over Colts
I’ve been a Tony Dungy fan for longer than most people have ever heard of him, as in college he was the star quarterback for the Golden Gophers. I even argued that Dennis Green should be fired and replaced by his then-defensive coordinator when Mr. Dungy was still with the Vikings. However, Indianapolis only won by a touchdown against a team without a defense, and historically, teams depending on great quarterbacking usually break down at some point in the postseason. I’d like to see the Colts win, but I don’t expect them to. And now I’ll duck, before Baseball Savant finishes frothing at the mouth and lets fly.
Panthers over Eagles
I don’t buy the QB of destiny argument, which is the strongest argument I’ve heard for Philadelphia all week. Carolina is a well-coached, well-disciplined team, and barring two breakdowns in the called pass on third-and-11 in FG range and the failure to call a timeout before the first FG attempt in OT, John Fox has impressed me. I don’t see him choking in the 4th like Mike Martz and Mike Sherman did. Donovan McNabb is playing as well as he has since 2002, which gives the Eagles a chance but hardly strikes fear into the heart of a powerful defense such as the Panthers. They weren’t run over by the Greatest Show on Turf in the Eddie Dome; they won’t be single-handedly taken apart by McNabb either. DeShaun Foster is a really good running back and I expect Carolina to have more than 150 yards rushing regardless of whether it’s him, Stephen Davis or some combination therein.