Wild Card Round: Who Shows Up?

Are these two (Russell Wilson and Kirk Cousins) the best two
quarterbacks playing this weekend? Statistically, yes they are.

Well we finished off one wacky NFL season and it is time to get into everyone's favorite time of year, the playoffs. Strength vs. strength. The best against the best. This is the football everyone wants to watch. There is a lot of parity in this week's playoff matches, which always makes it fun to watch.

Only Teddy Bridgewater and Brian Hoyer have a lower passer rating than Aaron Rodgers out of all the quarterbacks playing this week (yes, even AJ McCarron has a higher passer rating than Rodgers in the few games he has played). This is going to be a wild week. There is a reason it is called Wild Card Weekend.

I am sure there are plenty of fans that are wishing their team made it past the regular season (including myself), but there is little argument this year that these are the best teams in the league. There are few years that you can say that, but these teams have been the best all year long and all have a legit shot at taking home the Lombardi Trophy. This might be the strongest cast of Wild Card teams in my lifetime, as I could see any of these four teams making a run at a title.

Enjoy these games because football will be gone before you know it. But first, check out how Stally and I predict how these games will shake out.

Austen's Eight-Point Pick
Seattle over @Minnesota

Austen: No Marshawn Lynch, no Jimmy Graham. No problem. Russell Wilson has had a historic season this year (he is the first player in league history to throw for 4,000 yards, rush for 500, and throw for 30 touchdowns in one season), most of the damage being done since his two two offensive weapons were lost for the year. The defense, for the fourth year in a row, finished top of the league in points allowed. Despite their early season struggles, this is a team that can still beat you in so many ways. Teddy Bridgewater did not really make the type of strides people expected in his sophomore year with a full season under his belt and a healthy Adrian Peterson. The Vikings may have beat out the Packers this year, but that does not make them a good team. They will not have a lead in this game. 

Stally: I don't like disrespecting Minnesota like this.  The Vikings have been playing football, but this is a bum luck draw.  The Seahawks are the most dangerous team to win the Super Bowl that's playing this week, and I expect their experience in big games will give them a confident win.

Stally's Eight-Point Pick
Kansas City over @Houston

Stally: The Chiefs own the longest winning streak in the league at 10 games, that's impressive.  The Texans and the word "impressive" really haven't gone together often this season.  They plodded through the worst division in football and did just well enough to win it.  This game could be close, but I don't think the Texans are good enough to win it.

Austen: The Chiefs were at one point 1-5. Their one win was against, you guessed it, the Texans. Even when they were bad, they could beat the Texans. This Texan team has taken a lot of strides in the right direction since Week 1, but DeAndre Hopkins and JJ Watt will have to be the best two players on the field today for the Texans to upset the road team. 

Austen's Four-Point Pick
@Washington over Green Bay

Austen: Statistically, this is the worst Packers offense since the season before Brett Favre was brought to town. That was 1990. George Bush Senior was President of the United States, Warren Moon lead the league in passing, and Aaron Rodgers was seven years old. This is a very bad offense, and their defense is not the type that wins championships. Say what you want about Kirk Cousins, but no quarterback in the league could be putting up better offense with this pieced together offense. Since Week 7, he has scored 26 total touchdowns to 6 total turnovers (interceptions and fumbles). He also lead the NFL in completion percentage. These are Tom Brady esque numbers. He is not Tommy Boy, but he has enough juice in his arm to knock off a very weak Packers team.

Stally: Austen and I agreed last week that there's something wrong in Green Bay.  Aaron Rodgers could pull a rabbit out of a hat for the win, but I'm not predicting it.  Despite a 9-7 record and having pulled out a poor division win, the Redskins have been a good team lately.  They've won four in a row since being mired with a mediocre 5-7 record, and they should keep the momentum going.

Stally's Four-Point Pick
Pittsburgh over @Cincinnati

Stally: This is a tough game to call, especially with DeAngelo Williams being out at running back for the Steelers.  That said, Ben Roethlisberger is a game changer at QB.  He could throw the ball around for 450-500 yards if he has to, and he has the weapons to catch for that many yards.  I have to go with the two-time Super Bowl champion over a QB in AJ Mccarran who has started a total of three games in his career.

Austen: Football is a team game. That is why I am sticking with the better overall squad. Andy Dalton is not coming to the rescue, but the Bengals are one of the deepest teams in the NFL. They have the offensive weapons to prop up a young quarterback (backup turn starter, AJ McCarron). Their defense is second in the NFL in points scored and have made life difficult for running backs all year. That means everything is going to fall on Big Ben and his slew of pass catchers. While that is the strength of the Steelers, I do not think they can be one dimensional on the road and pull off a victory. I like the Bengals to win this one for Dalton, giving him a shot to play next week and continue his stellar season.