Post by IAMCAPER on Jan 20, 2006 8:58:19 GMT -4
With his picks coming on Thursday, the Big Man shares his insight on why each of the four remaining teams in the NFL Playoffs could advance to the Super Bowl.
Why the Seattle Seahawks will win:
Forgotten in the Seattle's win over Washington was the performance on defence. The Redskins had 12 offensive possessions in the game. Six times they were held to three plays and a punt.
That is a remarkably high number consider it was a playoff game. Seattle's defense also did a solid job of limiting the effectiveness of Laveranues Coles, and will have a similar challenge with Steve Smith.
I also think Seattle will have an energy advantage when they face Carolina because they have an extra day of preparation to go along with Carolina's recent schedule. In the last three weeks, the Panthers played in Atlanta, then New York and last week Chicago.
That game against the Bears was very physical. I counted two concussions, one separated shoulder and a broken leg in the game.
The Seahawks will have an advantage at running back as DeShaun Foster is out with a broken leg, while Shaun Alexander will play despite his concussion that he suffered last week.
There are two other reasons to like Seattle. The defensive backs won't fall down or lose the 1-on-1 battles like the Bears backs did.
Secondly, quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has really become a leader through adversity as he demonstrated against Washington.
Those are the reasons why Seattle could advance to the Super Bowl.
Why the Carolina Panthers will win:
Resolve, determination, battle tested, toughness - you could use a lot of complimentary adjectives to describe the Panthers success this season.
As much as football is a business, it is still a business of people pulling together for a purpose. I sense that Carolina's biggest strength is the difficult to describe team concept. The Panthers really believe in each other and it is demonstrated so perfectly in the genuine enthusiasm of quarterback Jake Delhomme.
Then, how do you go about stopping Steve Smith? You know he is going to get the ball, yet he still manages to produce results. Offensive coordinator Dan Henning had done a solid job of producing opportunity and Smith has done a great job of taking advantage of the opportunities.
Carolina will miss running back DeShaun Foster, who is a very elusive, tough, complete running back. Having said that, every time Nick Goings has been asked to step in an perform, he has. There is no reason not to anticipate the same thing this weekend.
One of the best truths in football is that it's not always the best team that wins, it is the team that plays best together - and that is what the Panthers are all about.
Those are the reasons why Carolina could advance to the Super Bowl.
Why the Denver Broncos will win:
The first reason is simple. They beat the New England Patriots in a playoff game. That fact alone is a psychological accomplishment that should give the Broncos a really high level on confidence Sunday afternoon.
I also think the defensive backs for Denver will play well against a team with one pure wide receiver in Hines Ward. A key for the Broncos success will be their ability or inability to defend Antwaan Randle El, not just from the slot position but also a running back or a punt/kick return man.
Strong safety John Lynch has more playoff experience as the Colts duo of Mike Doss and Bob Sanders. Lynch will not overreact to run fakes or between the hash marks throws to tight end Heath Miller like the Colts did on defense.
Then there is quarterback Jake Plummer. As it has been mentioned many times, avoiding mistakes is of equal importance as making game changing plays, maybe even more so than ever before in the playoffs.
Is Jake Plummer the best quarterback in the post-season right now? No, Matt Hasselbeck is, but Plummer may be the most improved pivot from last year to this year.
Those are the reasons why Denver could advance to the Super Bowl.
Why the Pittsburgh Steelers will win:
Pittsburgh and Carolina are similar teams. The Steelers have a genuine confidence about themselves that after the win in Indianapolis can't be shaken.
When you evaluate the Broncos/Patriots game, New England made six major mistakes and six minor ones and the Broncos did not dominate the game.
The Steelers won't make the major mistakes and will control the minor ones they do make. I do not expect the Broncos to duplicate the protection problems that they gave the Colts, as the Steelers will learn form the film and play sound blitz pickup football.
Have you ever seen a more dramatic force in a secondary then Troy Polamalu? He got the better of Peyton Manning, and he can get the better of Jake Delhomme.
Both the Steelers and Broncos have exceptional run defenses and running backs. Tatum Bell is Willie Parker, Mike Anderson is Jerome Bettis but quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had a physical size and presence about him that I really like.
Those are the reasons why Pittsburgh could advance to the Super Bowl.
Why the Seattle Seahawks will win:
Forgotten in the Seattle's win over Washington was the performance on defence. The Redskins had 12 offensive possessions in the game. Six times they were held to three plays and a punt.
That is a remarkably high number consider it was a playoff game. Seattle's defense also did a solid job of limiting the effectiveness of Laveranues Coles, and will have a similar challenge with Steve Smith.
I also think Seattle will have an energy advantage when they face Carolina because they have an extra day of preparation to go along with Carolina's recent schedule. In the last three weeks, the Panthers played in Atlanta, then New York and last week Chicago.
That game against the Bears was very physical. I counted two concussions, one separated shoulder and a broken leg in the game.
The Seahawks will have an advantage at running back as DeShaun Foster is out with a broken leg, while Shaun Alexander will play despite his concussion that he suffered last week.
There are two other reasons to like Seattle. The defensive backs won't fall down or lose the 1-on-1 battles like the Bears backs did.
Secondly, quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has really become a leader through adversity as he demonstrated against Washington.
Those are the reasons why Seattle could advance to the Super Bowl.
Why the Carolina Panthers will win:
Resolve, determination, battle tested, toughness - you could use a lot of complimentary adjectives to describe the Panthers success this season.
As much as football is a business, it is still a business of people pulling together for a purpose. I sense that Carolina's biggest strength is the difficult to describe team concept. The Panthers really believe in each other and it is demonstrated so perfectly in the genuine enthusiasm of quarterback Jake Delhomme.
Then, how do you go about stopping Steve Smith? You know he is going to get the ball, yet he still manages to produce results. Offensive coordinator Dan Henning had done a solid job of producing opportunity and Smith has done a great job of taking advantage of the opportunities.
Carolina will miss running back DeShaun Foster, who is a very elusive, tough, complete running back. Having said that, every time Nick Goings has been asked to step in an perform, he has. There is no reason not to anticipate the same thing this weekend.
One of the best truths in football is that it's not always the best team that wins, it is the team that plays best together - and that is what the Panthers are all about.
Those are the reasons why Carolina could advance to the Super Bowl.
Why the Denver Broncos will win:
The first reason is simple. They beat the New England Patriots in a playoff game. That fact alone is a psychological accomplishment that should give the Broncos a really high level on confidence Sunday afternoon.
I also think the defensive backs for Denver will play well against a team with one pure wide receiver in Hines Ward. A key for the Broncos success will be their ability or inability to defend Antwaan Randle El, not just from the slot position but also a running back or a punt/kick return man.
Strong safety John Lynch has more playoff experience as the Colts duo of Mike Doss and Bob Sanders. Lynch will not overreact to run fakes or between the hash marks throws to tight end Heath Miller like the Colts did on defense.
Then there is quarterback Jake Plummer. As it has been mentioned many times, avoiding mistakes is of equal importance as making game changing plays, maybe even more so than ever before in the playoffs.
Is Jake Plummer the best quarterback in the post-season right now? No, Matt Hasselbeck is, but Plummer may be the most improved pivot from last year to this year.
Those are the reasons why Denver could advance to the Super Bowl.
Why the Pittsburgh Steelers will win:
Pittsburgh and Carolina are similar teams. The Steelers have a genuine confidence about themselves that after the win in Indianapolis can't be shaken.
When you evaluate the Broncos/Patriots game, New England made six major mistakes and six minor ones and the Broncos did not dominate the game.
The Steelers won't make the major mistakes and will control the minor ones they do make. I do not expect the Broncos to duplicate the protection problems that they gave the Colts, as the Steelers will learn form the film and play sound blitz pickup football.
Have you ever seen a more dramatic force in a secondary then Troy Polamalu? He got the better of Peyton Manning, and he can get the better of Jake Delhomme.
Both the Steelers and Broncos have exceptional run defenses and running backs. Tatum Bell is Willie Parker, Mike Anderson is Jerome Bettis but quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had a physical size and presence about him that I really like.
Those are the reasons why Pittsburgh could advance to the Super Bowl.