Mattie T’s Wild Card Weekend Preview

Barack Obama wasn’t lyin’ when he said that it’s time for change!

That can be applied to this year’s NFL playoff field, as 5 of the 6 NFC teams missed the playoffs in the previous season.

Falcons/Cardinals: (Saturday at 3:30 pm CST on NBC)

Atlanta Falcons playoff history:  Have won 3 of their previous 4 Wild Card games.

Arizona Cardinals playoff history: Won their only Wild Card game, a 20-7 win over Dallas in 1998.

Even though Atlanta has the better team on paper, something in me feels that Arizona will be ready for this game despite going 3-7 outside of the NFC West this season.

I came to this conclusion after looking at the road numbers for both Matt Ryan & Michael Turner, who are two very important keys to the Falcons’ offense.

Ryan has just a 82.4 rating on the road this season, compared to a 94.7 rating at the Georgia Dome, where Atlanta finished 7-1.

14 of Turner’s 17 touchdowns (2nd in NFL) came at home, while he only averaged 83.4 yards-per-game on the road compared to 129 yards per game at the Georgia Dome.

Even though Arizona has been a one-dimensional team for a majority of the season, Kurt Warner’s numbers have been excellent at home as he sports a 105.5 rating with 17 touchdowns & just 5 interceptions.

In Atlanta’s 43 year franchise history, they have only won at Arizona once. This figures to be a high-scoring game, but look for the Cardinals defense to force Matt Ryan into a few mistakes which will decide the outcome.

Mattie T’s Pick: Cardinals 37, Falcons 34.

Colts/Chargers: (Saturday at 7pm CST on NBC)

Indianapolis Colts playoff history: Have won their last 3 Wild Card games dating back to 2003.

San Diego Chargers playoff history: Have lost 3 of their last 4 Wild Card games dating back to 1995.

Indianapolis is the NFL’s hottest team entering the playoffs with 9 straight wins.

They have definitely been battle-tested, with 7 of those 9 wins decided by 10 points or less. Even though starting linebacker Gary Brackett will miss Saturday’s game with a leg injury, the Colts allowed just 12 PPG in his 4-game absence.

Peyton Manning has played some of the best football in his career during the team’s current 9-game win streak , as he has thrown for 17 touchdowns & just 3 interceptions over that timeframe.

For San Diego to win this game, they will have to force Indianapolis into turnovers. Easier said than done, as the Chargers’ 26 takeaways are the lowest among the 6 AFC playoff teams.

Philip Rivers (led NFL with 105.5 rating & tied for league lead with 34 TD passes) has had a great season & deserves to be in the Pro Bowl, but he’s about to go up against a Colts pass defense that is 6th best in the NFL & has only given up a league-low 6 passing touchdowns.

Out of all the 12 contenders, San Diego is the only team that has yet to beat a opponent in this year’s playoff field (0-3 with losses to IND, PIT & MIA). Looks like the Chargers’ roller-coaster season is about to be finished for the winter.

Mattie T’s Pick: Colts 30, Chargers 24.

Ravens/Dolphins: (Sunday at 12pm CST on CBS)

Baltimore Ravens playoff history: Have won 3 of the team’s only 4 Wild Card games in franchise history.

Miami Dolphins playoff history: Have won 3 of their last 4 Wild Card games dating back to 1998.

Both of these teams have had surprising seasons, but Miami’s Tony Sparano is the front-runner to win Coach of the Year after transforming the Dolphins from a 15-loss team in 2007 to AFC East champs.

Baltimore has been very impressive as well, as they rebounded from a 13-loss season in 2007 to make the playoffs under rookie head coach John Harbaugh.

It’s no secret what the Ravens will do on Sunday. Run the football, as Baltimore leads the NFL in time-of-possession & has the league’s 4th best rushing offense.

I’m not sure how well the Dolphins will move the football against a stingy Ravens defense that is 2nd in the NFL against the run & 3rd against the pass.

Baltimore’s turnaround started back in Week 7 after their 27-13 win over Miami. Since then, they have only lost twice to teams (Giants & Steelers) that could very well end up in Tampa for Super Bowl XLIII.

It’s been a wonderful season for the Miami Dolphins, but it is going to come to an end on Sunday.

Mattie T’s Pick: Ravens 20, Dolphins 10.

Eagles/Vikings: (3:30 pm CST Sunday on FOX)

Philadelphia Eagles playoff history: Have won their last 3 Wild Card games dating back to 2000.

Minnesota Vikings playoff history: Have won their last 3 Wild Card games dating back to 1997.

Philadelphia’s offense has seemed to find life again after the team won 4 of its’ last 5 games (35.5 PPG in 4 wins) to claim the NFC’s final playoff spot.

It’s been incredible how they have done it without the use of their most dangerous offensive weapon, running back Brian Westbrook. The Eagles averaged 25.7 PPG in their last 3 games despite Westbrook failing to rush for at least 60 yards with NO touchdowns.

Philadelphia is one of the NFC’s only 2 teams (Giants are the other) that ranks in the top 10 both offensively & defensively, so look for them to put a lot of pressure on Tavaris Jackson, who will be making his 1st postseason start.

Adrian Peterson will make his 1st postseason start as well on Sunday, but will be facing the Eagles’ 4th ranked run defense. I think Donovan McNabb will find some holes against a Minnesota pass defense that ranks in the middle of the league in a low-scoring, but close game.

Mattie T’s Pick: Eagles 17, Vikings 10.

I will be doing in-game blogs for all four Wild Card matchups! Here is my Super Bowl XLIII prediction. Get ready for…….

The Manning Bowl. I predict it will be Colts vs. Giants in Tampa on February 1st, with Tony Dungy’s Colts winning the big game in his hometown.

How did i come to this conclusion? Well, after looking at the records against common playoff opponents against this year’s field, guess which two teams had the best marks?

The 5-1 Colts & the 5-2 Giants.

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