A “Tiki Barber-ish” playoff preview.

It’s wildcard weekend!  Football should be great this weekend.  Lets run down the games.

Buccaneers (9-7) vs. Giants (10-6)

You know, on the surface, this game looks sort of boring to me.  And as I look deeper…well, I’m still searching for some sort of motivation.  You know who is in the same boat as me?  The Giants.  That’s why they’re focused on comments Ronde Barber made on Tiki’s radio show some 3 weeks ago.  Ronde’s comments, for the record,

“Of course we want to play the Giants. They [win] ugly, Shockey’s hurt and Eli has been inconsistent.”

Will someone explain to me how you get mad over something that is completely and utterly true?  That’s like me saying, “The Giants have blue in their uniforms” then Michael Strahan comes and TP’s my house.  Giant stupidity aside though, the best part of this game is Tiki Barber.  When the New York Post asked Giants receiver Plaxico Burress if Tiki would reveal Giant secrets to Ronde, he said this,

“Of course he would…It doesn’t bother me at all.  You still gotta go out and play. … Why wouldn’t he do it? That’s so Tiki Barber-ish. Why would you expect anything else?”

There you have it.  The first buzz word of 2008 is “Tiki Barber-ish”.  Use it accordingly.  As for the actual game, i think that in large part, it will come down to the Bucs offensive line ability to block the Giants front four.  If Strahan and Umenyiora are able to pressure Garcia and prevent him from “game managing” the Bucs down the field, this game will be over quickly, regardless of how inconsistent Eli Manning may be.  A lot of people are worried that the Giants might have a let down after last weeks game against the Patriots…but I’m not one of those people.  You can crayola the Giants into the next round on your charts at home.  Giants 28-14.

X-Factor:  Burress.  I look for him to get going against the Bucs secondary, which should lead to an easy Giants victory.

Seahawks (10-6) vs. Redskins (9-7)

If you asked me how the Seahawks managed to win 10 games this season, I really couldn’t give you an answer.  They are a team that everyone says is good, then when you watch them play they’re eeking out wins over the Rams and Bengals, or losing to the Panthers.  What do the Seahawks have going for them in the playoffs?  Well, Shaun Alexander decided to take the whole regular season off, so he should be well-rested for the playoffs.  And Seattle is playing at home (Qwest Field) which is a pretty hard place for opposing teams to play.  The team they play this week?  The Washington Redskins.

The Redskins have a lot of momentum going into the game, having won their last 4 regular season games to get into the playoffs.  They also seem to have rallied around the unfortunate death of Sean Taylor and around coach Joe Gibbs after that whole “two-timeout” debacle.  The Redskins have also gotten surprisingly good play from QB Jason Campbell. Kerry Collins? Todd Collins (who?).  This game all depends on the Seahawks passing game and the Redskins secondary.  As I mentioned earlier, the Seahawks running game has been non-existent for a majority of this season, so they have had to focus on their passing game.  The Redskins, as I mentioned earlier, tragically lost Taylor, who was a pro-bowl safety.  I think the Seahawks will eek out another win, although Clinton Portis and that Collins guy will make it close.  Seahawks 20-17.

X-factor: Shaun Alexander.  Yes, I said that the game will depend on the Seahawks passing game.  But if for some reason Shaun Alexander is able to rush for any sort of decent average, and he gets 20 carries? Winning this game will be all that much easier.

Chargers (11-5) vs. Titans (10-6)

The Titans are clearly the AFC version of the Seahawks.  How in the world did they win 10 games?  They don’t have good receivers, their running game is average, and to say Vince Young struggled this season…well, that’d be an understatement (just ask my fantasy team).  Their defense is definitely above average (at least when Albert Haynesworth is playing), and it looks like it is the defense they will have to rely on in any playoff game they play.  Unfortunately for the Titans, I don’t think that Titans coach Jeff Fisher is going to be able to “negotiate” his team to a win.

Remember at the beginning of the year when everyone was ready to fire Norv Turner and disband the Chargers?  Yeah, that seems like a long time ago.  The Chargers went 8-2 after their bye week. LT led the league in rushing, and Philip Rivers decided to not channel Ryan Leaf for the whole season, and Antonio Cromartie decided to play so well that they let him go to the pro bowl after starting only 8 games.  This game will be all about the Chargers offensive line.  If they’re able to open up some holes against that Titans defensive line then LT will be able to run free which will later set up Philip Rivers and the passing game.  Mark my words…the Chargers will win this game in spite of Norv Turner, not because of him.  But a win is a win, right? Chargers 27-10.

X-Factor:  Vince Young.  He’s not an X-factor per se, but he’s the key to this game.  If he decides to pass the ball like he’s done this whole season, it will be over in the first quarter.  If he’s healthy (enough) has some accuracy on his passes, and can run a little when he has to, then he can keep the Chargers offense off the field and keep his team in the game.

Steelers (10-6) vs. Jaguars (11-5)

And now the game that personifies “physical football”.  The Jags come into Pittsburgh having only played them a few weeks before, in a game in which they gashed the #1 defense in the NFL for over 200 rushing yards.  Maurice Jones-Drew, Fred Taylor, and the Jags rushing attack are all ready for the playoffs.  And a healthy, efficient David Garrard, and a tough Jags defense will be ready as well.  Commentators across the country are calling the Jags the “sexy” “dark-horse” pick to win the Super Bowl…When you look at their team, how can you blame them?

The Steelers suffered a big loss when RB Willie Parker broke his leg a couple of weeks ago.  But the return of safety Troy Polamalu should have the Steelers spirits lifted a bit.  Another positive for the Steelers was the fact that QB Ben Roethlisberger was still able to pick apart the Jags defense in the second half of the previous game even when the Jags knew Ben would be dropping back to pass every game.  This game, obviously, will all come down to the Steelers defense slowing down the Jags running attack.  If the Jags run for 200 yards again? my Steelers will be exiting the playoffs very early.  Fortunately, for myself, and other Steelers fans, I think its hard to beat a good team two times in a season, let alone give up 200 yards twice.  I look for the Steelers to win a very close one 24-21.

X-Factor: Whoever is playing left tackle on the Steelers offensive line.  With the Steelers down to their third string left tackle (unless they move all-pro left guard Alan Faneca to left tackle) it should be pretty interesting to see how well Big Ben’s blind side is protected.  A less than stellar performance will equal a long day for Ben and the Steelers offense.

MSNBC:  Giants angry with Ronde Barber, report says

New York Post:  Giants not worried if Tiki turns traitor

MSNBC:  Collusion? Titans, COlts had ‘communication’ 

Category: Football