cincinnati at houston
the houston texans, for the better part of the year, were the number one seed in the afc. then in the last week of the season, they not only lose the number one seed and having home field advantage throughout the playoffs, they lose having a bye week to start the playoffs. fortunately, they play a bengal team that doesn't have any offensive weapons other than a.j. green. while the bengals' defense has played well overall, gary kubiak, who is second to only mike krzyzewski [age 65] in sporting a overly black hair dye job, should be able to employ a gameplan that uses zone blocking scheme and play-action to move the ball on offense, especially if the texans start with more than a one possession lead.
the pick : houston
minnesota at green bay
green bay is one replacement referee snafu away from having a bye this week, but instead they play a team that beat them the previous week in a game where both teams were trying to win. the packers can still win even if adrian peterson has a big day, but they must limit his runs from sustaining long drives. in a game where the team with home field advantage probably wins, the packers' offense should be able to build a lead that takes the ball out of peterson's hands.
the pick : green bay
indianapolis at baltimore
even though this will [probably] be ray lewis' last game, he will [probably] not make much of a positive impact as he is still recovering from what was first believed to be a season-ending injury. this game mostly hinges on how well joe flacco can play and how well the ravens' defense can overcome injuries from key positions. the ravens also benefit from playing this game at home, where their record has been exceptional. throughout the season, the colts have played well enough to stay close to their opposition in the fourth quarter and get game-winning drives led by andrew luck [which sounds exactly like what the broncos did with tim tebow last year, yet it is so, so different]. key factors in this game include jim caldwell's lack of experience in play-calling and whether chuck pagano's inspirational story continues to translate to his player's play on the field.
the pick : baltimore
seattle at washington
a selection committee could not scheduled a better game in the first round of this year's playoffs. rookie quarterbacks robert griffin iii and russell wilson are both dynamic players who have already earned the respect of the veterans around them. while robert griffin iii's team has won seven games in a row, russell wilson's team may be the hotter team given their recent dominating victories. seattle also has the pass rushers to slow down robert griffin iii in the pocket, and an elite secondary that can contain robert griffin iii in the air. but with that said, the emergence of alfred morris may help the redskins avoid seattle's defense's strengths. in what seems to be an even matchup, home field advantage may decide the winner in this game, since seattle is a mediocre road team at best.
the pick : washington
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