Spread Em: NFL Divisional Round

The regular season is over, and we now enter the dangerous waters of the playoffs. I'm not sure what happened this season, but somehow, someway, I managed to get more games right than I did wrong. Consider it another sign that the world will be coming to an end soon, right there with global warming. The playoffs, though, they're a different story. Will I wilt under the pressure, or rise above the rest of my non-existent competition like the virile beast I am? I don't know, I'm just hoping this paragraph is long enough at this point to "cover" the photo to it's right. So let's just get on with the picks.

Saturday Games

Packers (-8) vs. Seahawks - I know Josh Brown is going to be wearing hot pants, but not even his sweaty thighs will be good enough for the Seahawks to knock off the Packers this weekend. The Seahawks were basically a missed field goal away from being eliminated last weekend by the Redskins, and there's a large difference between last week's game and this week's. This week, the Seahawks are on the road. They're a very good home team, but get them outside of Seattle, and they become mediocre at best. The Packers meanwhile will be coming off of two weeks rest, and Brett Favre would like to get back to the Super Bowl one more time. There's a chance Mike Holmgren will walk back into Lambeau Field this weekend, and deny the quarterback he helped get the first ring a chance at his second, but I doubt it.

Patriots (-13) vs. Jaguars - Do I think the Jaguars can beat the Patriots? Sure. Do I want the Jaguars to beat the Patriots? No doubt. Will the Jaguars beat the Patriots? No. No they won't. The Jaguars are the type of team that can beat the Patriots thanks to their run game and defense, but they'll probably be without John Henderson this weekend and along with the injury to Marcus Stroud, that means Jacksonville won't have their two starting defensive tackles. Which is the strength of Jacksonville's defense. Also, when given a full week to prepare for a team, Bill Belichick is damn near unbeatable. I'm sure he's already figured out a way to stop Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew, and force David Garrard to beat New England. He can't do it.

Sunday Games

Colts (-9) vs. Chargers - Normally I would take the Chargers in this game with the nine points, especially after seeing San Diego already beat Indianapolis earlier this season, but there have been some things that have happened since then that are causing me to take Indy. First of all, the Colts are still the defending champions, and nobody's talking about them at all lately. How the defending champs can fly under the radar, I don't know. Second of all, Marvin Harrison is back. So now Peyton has his security blanket back, and thanks to all Marvin's time on the sidelines, Manning was able to develop a relationship with Anthony Gonzalez. So he has more weapons at his disposal. Finally, did you see San Diego after they beat the Titans last week? Norv Turner was dancing on the sidelines, and the players were acting like they'd already won the Super Bowl. In other words, San Diego's season has already been a success in the mind's of the players, whether they're aware of it or not. That means I expect a big letdown performance this week in Indianapolis. I wouldn't be surprised if the Colts win by over 20 points.

Cowboys vs. Giants (+7.5) - I don't care that the Cowboys have already beaten the Giants twice this season by the combined score of 76-55. I don't care that Eli Manning is still the Giants quarterback. I'm taking the Giants this weekend for a few reasons, including one huge NFL conspiracy. One being that I don't care that the Cowboys are rested. They peaked in November and have been on a steady down trend since. The Giants meanwhile have played their best football of the season the last few weeks. Finally, the NFL wants the Giants to get to the Super Bowl so that Eli can face off against the Colts. That's right, I think the Colts are going to beat New England next week as well. Hate to spoil the surprise for you, but give me a few weeks. You'll see.

Last Week: 3-1

Overall: 130-106-9

All spreads courtesy of Bodog