Championship Sunday Picks

We're down to the second to last Sunday of the NFL season and 4 teams will play for the right to go to the Super Bowl. Lets get into the picks.

Packers at Seahawks- These teams played in the first game of the season in Seattle all the back in Week 1. The Seahawks routed the Packers 36-16 and forced Aaron Rodgers to play one of his worst games of the season. The Packers were close in the first half of their Week 1 matchup but were just overwhelmed in the second half. The Packers couldn't move the ball down the field and were overwhelmed by Seattle's defense. Rodgers has had a great season and will likely win MVP, but he has struggled when faced with a good pass rush. For the Packers to have any chance to win the offensive line has to have a great game against the Seattle defensive line, even more so because Rodgers is nursing an injured calf. If the Seattle pass rush gets to Rodgers like they did Week 1 this game will be a blowout. Three of the Packers losses came against teams with good defensive lines (Seattle, Buffalo, and Detroit). All three of those losses were on the road where the Packers were only 4-4 this season. The cards are stacked against the Packers but they have the tools to pull out a win in Seattle. They need rookie Davonte Adams to have a great game against the Seattle secondary. The Seahawks will surely key in on Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb so if Adams can gain separation from Seattle's cornerbacks the passing attack will be much more lethal. Another key for the Packers is Eddie Lacy. Any yards that Lacy can rack up against the Seattle D will be crucial and will relive the pressure from a Aaron Rodgers. He will need to have a big game on Sunday. As we all know Seattle plays there best football at home. They use the crowd and any motivation as momentum to rout the opposing team out. Last week against the Panthers they started slow but used big plays to make a close game into a blowout. Marshawn Lynch tends to have great games at home and I expect him to run all over this Packers defense. In addition Russell Wilson has only lost two games at home in his entire career and seems to play better when as the game goes on. His ability to throw as well as run will be a huge advantage as the Seahawks physical play will wear the Packers down and allow for Wilson to take over in the second half. The Packers will keep it close for most of the game but the Seahawks have too many weapons on both side of the ball and will punch their ticket for a second straight Super Bowl appearance. Seahawks 27 Packers 21

Colts at Patriots- Most of America thought this game would be the Broncos vs the Patriots, but the Colts pulled off an upset of Peyton Manning and the Broncos in Denver. The Patriots, meanwhile, fended off the feisty Ravens for a thrilling 35-31 victory. The Colts executed a perfect game plan to neutralize the Broncos offense. The Colts secondary (especially Vontae Davis) shut down the Broncos passing game. Denver could only manage 6 points the rest of the game after their opening drive touchdown. The Colts face another great quarterback and offense with the Patriots. Tom Brady led the Patriots to a comeback victory and showed he can still lead a team in the playoffs despite being 37 years old. The Colts need to get pressure to Tom Brady and slow this Patriot offense down. In addition the Colts secondary will have to play another good game and the key will be shutting down tight end Rob Gronkowski. He has had a Pro-Bowl season and is the biggest advantage the Patriots will have on Sunday. The Colts have struggled with defending tight ends all seasons long and the Patriots will be sure to exploit that. When the Colts and Patriots played each other in Week 11, unknown running back Jonas Gray ran all over the Colts defense for 201 yards and 4 touchdowns. The Patriots had no running game against the Ravens last week but I expect them to use their stable of running backs this Sunday against a Colts team that is weak against the run. If the Colts have any chance of pulling off another upset, they need Andrew Luck to have an excellent game. He has the propensity to throw dangerous passes and turn the ball over and can not afford that against Darrell Revis and this dangerous Patriot secondary. Luck has to find a way to get the ball to T.Y Hilton, as he is one of the few playmakers on this Colts offense. I think this game will be a high scoring affair that will work against the Colts. Indianapolis just doesn't have enough weapons on offense and a lack of a running game will be huge disadvantage as they won't be able to match a high-powered New England offense. Patriots 37 Colts 28