With one week left in the season, and 9 of the 12 teams clinching a playoff spot, let me be one of many to begin predicting which teams will inevitably play for the coveted Lombardi trophy.
NFC:
From afar, this conference looks like a closed book. Aaron Rodgers and company have rolled through almost every opponent they have faced outside of "The Neckbeard" himself Kyle Orton, and the Pack did not show any remorse on Christmas Day playing a woeful, discouraged Bears team. Also, Greg Jennings will be returning from injury for their first game after the Round 1 bye week and the righteous path to the promise land must go through Lambeau as well; where Green Bay has yet to lose. This seems fitting for the defending champs to repeat their title and prove they are the best of the best once again. BUT WAIT!
There happens to be a team... way down south, with a quarterback just as strong, just as accurate, just as undefeated at home, and is currently riding a 7-game winning streak to boot. The team I am referring to, if you have been living under a rock for the past month, is the New Orleans Saints. Sure, San Francisco's defense has been stellar and the Lions put up a lot of points, but the ONLY team in my mind that can compete with last year's Super Bowl Champions are the ones from the year before that. They both run high powered passing offenses with freakishly good QB's throwing 70% of their passes for completions. Also, New Orleans has two Pro Bowl offensive tackles this year to guard Brees, and the Saints offense has only a 12 point scoring differential this year from those 14-1 Packers.
The key stat, however, will be with the Packers defensively. Believe this or not but; the Packers have now allowed more yards from scrimmage than they have gained this year. Whoa. This stat may seem arbitrary to the naked eye but for someone that has seen how many yards that offense racks up on a daily basis, it really proves that the Pack have some serious holes, particularly in their secondary. This team has allowed more than 240 yards passing to QB's named McCown, Orton, and Palmer in the last three weeks, while allowing more than 275 passing yards to Manning (347), Stafford (276), and Freeman (342!) in the previous three before that. Now, I do not mean to deprecate the talent level of these passers, but they are children compared to the new NFL record holder for yards in a single season. I fully expect Breezy to go into Lambeau, hurl that pigskin 40-45 times, and leave 70,000 cheesehead fans disappointed that their boys could not become dynasty-worthy with a repeat title. Therefore, if it comes down to a Saints-Packers shootout for the NFC Championship, my money will hang in the balance of dem dat der Saints.
Soon to come... AFC predictions
Counterpoint: Aaron RAAHHHDDGGAAAHHHHS is a badass. And while the Saints are an unstoppable juggernaut at home, their mid-season ineptitude on the road (losing to the Bucs and the Rams, really?) has placed a return trip to Lambeau between the Saints and a 2nd title in three years.
ReplyDeleteUndefeated against NFC teams, undefeated at home, I'll take the Packers winning the NFC all day.
Fun Fact: Discount Double Check was the leading passer in only 8 of the team's 15 games thus far.