Charles Brossy, Reporter
@cbros8
AFC:
Indianapolis Colts (6) at Kansas City Chiefs (1), Jan. 12, 4:35 (NBC)
Projected Winner: Chiefs by 5.5 points, according to NFL.com
The Colts match up very well against the Chiefs which is bad news for the home field favorites. The Chiefs are coming in with two wins against the 4-12 Oakland Raiders, a near loss to the Baltimore Ravens, a home loss against the Chargers, and a loss on the road against the Seattle Seahawks in their last five games of the season. All of these games except the Raiders contained offenses that are run-oriented. The Colts offensive line, led by rookie Quenton Nelson, allowed 18 sacks during the regular season against the Houston Texans in the Wild Card game. Marlon Mack who is the lead running back is coming off a monstrous game of 148 yards and a touchdown. I expect Marlon Mack to continue running downhill versus the Chiefs and, therefore, it’s going to be hard to stop this on-fire Colts offense. Andrew Luck has plenty of playoff experience, while Patrick Mahomes will be making his first playoff start. While Mahomes is leading the MVP race, he looked shaky at the start of some of the primetime games this year.
The Colts defense can’t hold back the Chiefs offense all game, which I think Chiefs coach, Andy Reid, will take advantage of on play call. The playoffs are a different animal and species of themselves so anything can happen. I’m calling an early lead by the Colts and that they will hold the lead the whole game. With Sammy Watkins out for the Chiefs and the only vertical threat of Tyreek Hill will only open up so many options in the passing game. They will struggle like they have in recent games and recent running back star Kareem Hunt getting released for violating team rules.
Prediction: Colts 31, Chiefs 17
Los Angeles Chargers (5) at New England Patriots (2), Jan. 12, 8:15 (Fox)
Projected Winner: Patriots by 4 points, according to NFL.com
With the Patriots being undefeated while playing at home this season, it will be a tough test for the Chargers team to come out victorious. Tom Brady struggled in the Steelers game in late preseason, but the Patriots rebounded beating the Bills and the Jets by a combined score of 62-15 in his last two games. Coming into the postseason hot with two weeks to prepare for this game and, with Belichick on their side, Tom Brady and the Patriots will be a tough force to stop.
Even though playoff Brady breaks out, he turned 41 years old in the beginning of August. Having been present in the Conference Championships every year up to date starting in 2011, the Patriots in fact have history on their side. The Chargers team has been injury-prone in the late regular season but as their team comes back healthier during this Division playoff game, they are a tough team to stop. Moreover, Philip Rivers has experience in the playoffs as well and has been playing one of his best seasons of his 15 seasons in the NFL. Rivers also has a team that is top 10 in almost every category and running backs and recievers, including Melvin Gordon and Keenan Allen who are playing good football right now. Also, the Chargers have a struggling offensive line that has given up 38 sacks during the regular season. The Patriots have no star player along the line so I believe they will have a tough time getting to Philip Rivers.
Prediction: Chargers 28, Patriots 21
NFC:
Philadelphia Eagles (6) at New Orleans Saints (1), Jan. 13, 1:05 (CBS)
Projected Winner: Saints by 8, according to NFL.com
The Saints have a strong inside-outside pass rush to get after Foles and their coverage is built to slow down his top two targets, Alshon Jeffery and Zach Ertz. The Saints aren’t the best when defending against the run but the Eagles are ranked 28th in the NFL in rushing yards while ranking 18th in points put on the board. The Saints offense shows no sign of slowing down, having averaged putting up 31.5 points the whole regular season and ranking top 8 in total yards per game this season. The Eagles are going to have a hand full on defensively dealing with Drew Brees and play caller head coach, Sean Payton, as well as running backs Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram III and Pro Bowl receiver Michael Thomas.
In Week 11, the Eagles battled at the Saints with the Saints dominating the whole game, 48-7. This might be a fluke in terms of high scoring but this team has been hard to stop losing only 3 games all regular season, tied for the best record in the NFL. With Brees and the Saints going after big plays to build a lead and the defense slowing down the Eagles offensive run by last year’s Super Bowl sensation Nick Foles, the Saints will come out with a very big lead and will remain like that the rest of the game.
Prediction: Saints 31, Eagles 13
Dallas Cowboys (4) at Los Angeles Rams (2), Jan. 13, 4:40 (Fox)
Projected Winner: Rams by 7 points, according to NFL.com
Dallas is playing great football right now and has been simplifying the play call by coach Jason Garrott for quarterback Dak Prescott and the Dallas offense. The projection by analyzers was really surprising to me. Throughout the season, the Rams have not blown any good teams period. The only team above .500 this season that they beat by more than seven was the Chargers. The Rams are a run-oriented team and Dallas excels at stopping the run ranking at fifth in the NFL at that. The Cowboys are the same way, leading it with running back, Ezekiel Elliott, who has been very productive this season.
Los Angeles’ passing game hit a major speedbump when Connor Kupp went down earlier in the regular season. First season coach, Sean McVay, has never coached in an NFL playoff game. Two weeks to prepare is a good thing for McVay to find the weaknesses in the Dallas offense so that they can slow them down. The Rams have the best four up front on the defensive side rushing the passer. I think Dak Prescott gets a lot of pressure from the defensive line which is led by Aaron Donald. Ever since Amari Cooper arrived from the Raiders, the Cowboys have had a storming offense and I think that it’s too much for the Rams defense to handle, especially in their secondary.
Prediction: Cowboys 21, Rams 17
