Here are my NFL Championship Picks
(5-3 for the postseason, 170-85-1 for the regular season)
Bye teams: none
GB @ Sea – The big story going into this game is Aaron Rodgers’ calf. He’s been playing with the injury, the Packers have been winning, but how much longer can he get by without his legs? He still has a strong arm, which allows him to bullet in passes that he can’t get his legs behind. Peyton Manning couldn’t do that, couldn’t throw off-balanced and still have the power to put the ball in the spot he wanted. Aaron Rodgers can, so that’s not the problem. The problem is that when he’s blitzed, Rodgers won’t be able to run. The Cowboys failed to blitz effectively, and when they did, Rodgers made their poor secondary pay. I don’t think the Seahawks are going to have that problem. They’ll blitz, they’ll cover, and they could wreak havoc on the Packers’ O-line and on good ol’ Aaron. Russell Wilson and the offense should be able to string enough points together to out-duel an injured QB and win this game.
Ind @ NE – My somewhat-mighty Broncos have fallen. It was apparent while watching the game that Peyton didn’t have the physical tools to win the game. In the past few weeks, the Broncos had been able to run the ball to hide Manning’s weaknesses. For whatever reason, they couldn’t do that against Indy, and so they lost. Whether this means Peyton is done or not we’ll soon find out, but the Broncos are finished for the season. The Colts move on to face the Patriots, and that’s not good for them. The Pats are on fire, they always win at home, and I don’t think the Colts are the team to throw them off their stride. It’s maddening how often Brady & Belechick win in the playoffs, but there’s no denying their skill, and they ought to make it to the Super Bowl at least one more time.