...Number 8 from yesterday sure is a loooong run-on sentence.

I am looking into my crystal ball to see which teams will emerge victorious from this weekend's playoff games, and it all seems so obvious.

In the NFC game it's hard to imagine any scenario in which Eli "I won't play for your team because you suck, and if you draft me, I'll just take my neck and go home to daddy" Manning can overcome the ice pack that is Lambeau Field in January, or his own propensity to put the ball on the ground for no good reason. I don't think he can handle the pressure, and I think Brett Favre wants this title so badly he can taste it.

Now, don't get me wrong, the Giants have truly come together as a team over the last few weeks and are playing as well as they can play right now. I'm not buying all the talk that Manning has all of a sudden matured, and the other players see him as their fearless leader and have complete faith in him now. The Giants are going to have to score to win and if Green Bay gets on him early, Manning may not have the presence to do much of anything good. I mean, this is the NFC Championship Game at Lambeau freaking field, the closest thing the NFL has to a shrine outside of Canton! I don't think Eli is man enough to do it.

I do think the Giants defense is good enough to stop the Packers offense, and if they have any success against the run they could even win. The home field advantage the Packers have earned will be the deciding factor in this game.

Packers 17 Giants 12.

Now, in thinking about the Patriots vs. the Short Circuits, I have to say outside of the quarterback and one wide receiver, I think the Chargers are more athletically talented, the Patriots the better team. Unfortunately for the boys from San Diego those two players will be the difference in this game. The Chargers defense is better than the Patriots, but what they do best, getting pressure up the middle, is something the Patriots are good at stopping.

Bill Belichick versus Norv Turner?! That's a joke right? Belichick can out coach Turner in his sleep with or without video.

Tom Brady is the greatest the game has ever seen, I'm talking Montana, Ol' Horseface (Smellway), you name him. There have been great QB's, but name one who has led three such wildly different rosters to Lombardi Trophies. I might give you Terry Bradshaw, but only because he called his own plays.

Moss is the big play receiver Brady has never had, and he is making the most of it. Moss is still as athletic as ever, and if he's lost a step, he seems a little more clever.

Special teams seems to favor San Diego, but then again how do we really know? It's not like New England ever punts.

I think San Diego's best chance is to run the ball 60-70% of the time, but that only works if Phillip Rivers is able to keep them honest by passing effectively. If he's too injured, and the Pats can sell out against the run as efficiently as they did to Jacksonville, I don't think even L.T. is enough to win. The Chargers will have to gain yardage on the ground to keep New England's offense off the field and eat up the clock, I just don't think they can do it.

New England has bought into the team first mentality so well, they just don't get distracted. They take care of business.


Patriots 24 Chargers14