Championship Sunday predictions

Posted by Michael Sciannamea

January 20, 2008 |

nflplayoffs1.jpgToday is the big day when we learn who the two Super Bowl teams will be. Hopefully by this time next year the Jets will be in the mix, but that’s another dream for another day. Here are my thoughts on today’s games.

Patriots vs. Chargers — The Chargers are all banged up, with Phillip Rivers, Antonio Gates, and LaDainian Tomlinson nursing injuries. Even if they were healthy, they would have a very hard time keeping up with the Patriots. The Pats have come too far to get derailed now. The Charger defense, improved over the years, will not be able to contain the Pats’ passing game. Tom Brady knows when to throw the ball and who to throw it to, and the Charger secondary will not be able to contain Randy Moss for an entire 60 minutes. The only chance the Chargers have, and it’s a very small one at that, is to keep the ball on offense for long periods of time and tire the old Pat defense out, but they have to score at every opportunity, because the Pats will. Patriots 34, Chargers 17.

Packers vs. Giants — Although I am a Jet fan, I’ve always had a healthy respect for the Giants. They are a better-run organization, and they are competitive every single year. This is going to be a hard game for Big Blue. They’re going into a buzzsaw in Green Bay, and the frigid conditions won’t make things any easier. The Packers have been the Cinderella story all season long, and Brett Favre has never played better than he has this season. The Giants will need to put pressure on Favre and force him into mistakes, which he is prone to do on occasion. Offensively, the Giants will have to run the ball well and not make Eli Manning have to win the game on his own. It’s better that he is in a position to manage the game as he has the past few weeks than have him do it alone. Favre can, but Eli can’t–at least not now. I’m going to root hard for the Giants, but the Packers are on a roll, and Favre can smell the finish line. Packers 24, Giants 16.


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