Coming off of my 1-3 weekend last week, I am going to give it another try this week.  Every game this week is a rematch of a regular season game, both AFC games are the 3rd matchup this season with both teams splitting in the regular season.  Looks like another great weekend of NFL Playoff Footall coming up.  Same as last week, I am picking winners and losers, no odds, points, etc.

Saturday Games

NFC: Packers (10-6) @ Falcons (13-3)

This is a tough one, Falcons had a great season and are tough at home, and beat Green Bay in Atlanta in week 12, but the Packers seem to be on a roll right now, coming off a nice road win in Philly.  I have to pick the Packers to roll through Atlanta and move on to the NFC Championship in Chicago (oops just got ahead of myself).

Pick: Packers

AFC: Ravens (12-4) @ Steelers (12-4)

I picked against the Ravens last week, but the Chiefs simply did not show up to play.  Baltimore won in Pittsburgh in Week 4, lost to Pittsbbugh at home in week 13, both games had a 3 point margin of victory. I am picking against them again (which means @baltimoretom will tell me I suck at this again), but I expect a good game.

Pick: Steelers

Sunday Games

NFC: Seahawks (7-9) @ Bears (11-5)

Seriously, do I even have to say it? Unless the Bears get trapped and are looking ahead to the NFC Championship, they win, simple. (I am throwing out Seattles week 6 victory at Soldier Field one of only two road wins for them this season)

Pick: Bears

AFC: Jets (11-4) @ Patriots (14-2)

In week 2 at the Meadowlands the Jets doubled up on the patriots 28-14, in week 13 in Foxborough the Patriots demolished the Jets 45-3.  So even though I have spent enough time listening to confident Jets fans explain why this time will be different, I am not buying, New England is headed to the AFC Championship game.

Pick: Patriots

Who are you picking this weekend?

It’s Playoff time! My Giants didn’t make it this year, but I thought I would take a crack at predicting this weeks games.  It is a strange lineup of games with three road teams having better records than their hosts, the most glaring being the 11-5 Wild Card Saints traveling to Seattle to face the division winning 7-9 Seahawks, but that is how the NFL works, division winners are ranked higher than wild cards, regardless of record.  

I am not picking scores, or dealing with odds, just picking winners and losers.

Saturday Games

NFC: Saints (11-5) @ Seahawks (7-9)

Five of the Seahawks seven wins were at home, and Seattle is known as a tough place to play, but I have to pick the Saints they are clearly the better team, and it is hard to see a sub .500 record team advancing to the divisional round.  Seattle lost to the Saints in New Orleans in week 11 34-19.

Pick: Saints

AFC: Jets (11-5) @ Colts (10-6)

Being a New Yorker I have certainly heard enough about this game this week, and there are a lot of confident Jets fans calling NYsports talk radio.  At 11-5 the Jets sport a better record than the Colts, The Jets lost 3 of their last 5 their 2 wins being an impressive road win in Pittsburgh and a week 17 win against a hapless Bills team.  I don’t see the Jets beating Peyton Manning in Indy, but I do think it will be a good game, I look forward to watching it.

Pick: Colts

Sunday Games

NFC: Packers (10-6) @ Eagles (10-6)

Forget anything else here, this one is a straight emotional pick, I want to see the Eagles out, I pick the Packers to win.  This is another one that should be a good game to watch.

Pick: Packers

AFC: Ravens (12-4) @ Chiefs (10-6)

This is another easy pick, not really based on the teams performances.  The Chiefs went 9-7 in 2006 and made the playoffs, since then they were 4-12 in 2007, 2-14 in 2008, and 4-12 in 2009.  Coming off a 10-6 season would be nice to see the advance.  Besides those poor folks in Kansas City need something to root for, not like they could look forward to baseball season it’s been a while since the Royals even finished above .500 in a season.

Pick: Chiefs

Enjoy the games!

Yes please – all sports need to look at using technology to solve officiating problems

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – The National Football League (NFL) are in discussions about employing chip-in-ball technology to help rule on contentious touchdown and first down calls, German manufacturer Cairos Technologies has told Reuters.

“Yes, we are talking. There is a demand in American Football,” Cairos sales director Mario Hanus told Reuters in a recent interview on the sidelines of the Soccerex Asian forum in Singapore.

The NFL would not deny or confirm the talks. However, a spokesman for the league said on Tuesday that they are looking at expanding their use of technology.

“We are always exploring ways in which we can be innovative with technology to improve our game and our fans enjoyment of the game,” spokesman Michael Signora said.

Currently NFL team coaches are able to use video replays to challenge two contentious calls a game.

Cairos have been bidding to have their technology used in soccer to help rule on dubious goals when there is doubt about the ball crossing the goalline.

The debate was re-ignited during the World Cup in South Africa after a shot from England midfielder Frank Lampard, in a second round match against Germany on June 27, landed a meter over the goalline after hitting the bar but was not spotted by the referee or his assistant.

So far soccer lawmakers, the International Football Association Board, have rejected the use of the technology leading Cairos to look at other sports who could use their expertise.

“There are other sports more open to the topic maybe than soccer at this time but the requirements are different and the development was in first placed to solve that particular issue (in soccer),” Hanus said.

However, he said that the technology could easily be adapted to rule on debatable first down decisions, especially when a scrum of players block the view of the officials.

“In American Football you have the same situation, you need to cross a line and the ball needs to be over the line 100 percent and they (the players) are always above the ball (covering it).”

Hanus demonstrated the technology which uses a soccer ball, made by German sporting goods company Adidas, capable of holding a small chip in the center and, should it fully cross the goalline, would send an alert to an officials’ watch.

Cairos say their system, which they have been working on for nearly a decade, is not as expensive as many forecast and would prove cheaper than soccer employing two additional referees in matches, as they will use for some European games this season.

via news.yahoo.com