Our managing editor, Jonathan Comey, has been lording it over the rest of us all week, so we might as well get it out of the way right off the bat: He nailed it last week.
He picked three of four, almost down to the number, and predicted the Seahawks to give the Saints all they could handle before losing by two. It's not a win, but it's as close as just about anyone outside of Seattle got.
Can he do it again? And will he ever shut up about it?
Read on as we break down the Saturday games.
Last week:
Jonathan Comey: 3-1 (4-0 vs. spread)
Ben Stockwell: 2-2 (2-2 vs. spread)
Neil Hornsby: 2-2 (2-2 vs. spread)
Nathan Jahnke: 2-2 (2-2 vs. spread)
Khaled Elsayed: 1-3 (1-3 vs. spread)
Sam Monson: 1-3 (1-3 vs. spread)
Baltimore (+2.5) at Pittsburgh
Sam Monson: The third meeting of these two sides this season, but unlike the Jets and Patriots, also meeting for the third time, both previous games have been nail biters. The Ravens and Steelers are built very much alike, and they have a tendency to cancel each other out. Both sides like to grind it out and win ugly, and they both have defenses that at their best can be suffocating. This should be a good old-fashioned game of football, one that is a far cry from all the spread-formation dome passing that the league has become in recent years. He who hits the hardest wins. Steelers 20, Ravens 17.
Neil Hornsby: It just feels like every time these two teams play each other recently, with something REALLY important on the line, the Steelers come out on top. That may not be entirely true but that's certainly my perception without running the numbers and I guess the Super Bowls don't lie. By my calculations the Steelers only have two real weaknesses – both their lines – and a lot of major strengths linebackers, quarterback, receivers, running backs. The Ravens on the other hand have no significant problem areas but perhaps don't quite match Pittsburgh in some of the key positions mentioned above. As usual I feel the Steelers will find a way to mask their deficiencies and somehow come up with a way to win but this one, as always will be very close and if Flacco brings his “A game” ( I guess I don't see it) the Ravens win. Steelers 24, Ravens 21.
Nathan Jahnke: I believe the Ravens will win this for a number of reasons. I know when the Ravens won earlier in the year, Charlie Batch was playing. On both drives in which the Steelers scored, Fabian Washington gave up big plays. He has since been replaced by Josh Wilson. Wilson was the only Ravens starter on defense to have a rating worse than one in the second game, but since the game he has picked up his game immensely. Ray Lewis has picked up his game in recent weeks and typically plays great football in the playoffs. I expect the Ravens defense to stop anything the Steelers try, and for their offense to still score enough to win. Ravens 10, Steelers 6.
Ben Stockwell: Ravens & Steelers, it almost seems as if playoff football isn’t quite the same without this encounter every off-season. This matchup screams old school playoff football and even though the Ravens would appear to have the edge on paper you can as ever throw that out of the window when these two teams meet. If the Ravens can keep Mike Wallace, James Harrison and Lamarr Woodley quiet, they should be able to grind out the win. Ravens 20, Steelers 16.
Khaled Elsayed: Could you want a better match to kick off the Divisional Playoffs? The Steelers lost the first match up without Ben Roethlisberger, and then Ravens lost the latter due in large part to their inability to pick up a blitzing Troy Polamalu. So fine are the margins in these games, that it’s likely to come down to a play here of there. I’ll be leaning towards a Ravens win, brought about in large part due to my complete lack of faith in the Steelers offensive line. I’m going for Terrell Suggs to be the difference maker. But don’t hold me to anything written in here. Ravens win 20-10.
Jonathan Comey: Baltimore has the better overall team, but the Steelers have two very important advantages: home field, and the better quarterback. Roethlisberger might well have been our MVP this year had he not missed the first four games of the season — he was that good in his 12 games, although no one seemed to notice. The Steelers won't be able to run the ball, but they'll be able to pass it, and Mike Wallace will get loose for some big plays. You'd be foolish to pick the Ravens to do anything but keep it close, so call it a hunch. Steelers 28, Ravens 17.
Green Bay (+2.5) at Atlanta
Neil Hornsby: When the Packers came out and ran the ball reasonably well against the Eagles, I think the dynamic of this whole thing changed. The Falcons run defense has been moderate at best and in their week 12 meeting I felt only Green Bay's inability to generate anything meaningful on the ground stopped them getting the road win. I think this week the Packers retain their commitment to the run and as a result play better in the air too. The Falcons will get some points but I feel the Packers will hold them enough to pull out Rodgers' 2nd playoff win. Green Bay 28, Atlanta 20.
Sam Monson: The key to this game is ball control. The Packers are at their best when they're on offense, and the Falcons are at their best when they can control the ball, grind it out, and move the chains in small increments. If the Falcons can keep hold of the ball and wear down the Packers' D then they are in good shape. Green Bay is playing well at the moment and have overcome a couple of tough games just to get to this point, so they're as battle ready as any team is. This might be my favorite game of the week, and by the way, there’s a hell of a quarterback battle involved too. Falcons 24, Packers 21.
Nathan Jahnke: I expect the Packers to come out on top because of a few things that will be different this time around. First, the emergence of James Starks at running back is big. This will help both the Packers' rushing and passing offense. The Packers struggled in short-yardage situations last time, but John Kuhn has been a factor there in recent weeks. On defense, B.J. Raji has stepped up big recently, and his pass rush should force Matt Ryan to throw the ball quicker, which will help the secondary. Michael Turner should be able to have another good game, but not if the Falcons fall behind. Packers 30, Falcons 20.
Khaled Elsayed: In their first meeting you could argue that the Packers blew an opportunity to win. They didn’t challenge a Tony Gonzalez ‘catch’, fumbled on the goalline and gave up a big special team play. And they’re playing some good football right now, so it wouldn’t be far-fetched to see the Pack win this one. But I just don’t see it, and the big difference in this compared to their earlier meeting is the Falcons defense. They’re playing much better, and will have learned so much from when Aaron Rodgers was able to scramble so effectively to keep drives alive. For this reason (and some long Falcon drives) I sense a happy Georgia Dome. Falcons win 27-19.
Ben Stockwell: The opening encounter between these two in week 12 was a fantastic appetiser to this playoff game and hopefully this game will deliver a game of similar quality. With the Packers unearthing and unleashing James Starks last week this game is no longer a battle of balance against imbalance on offense but a battle of two balanced offenses and fairly well-balanced teams, with both teams able to call upon game winning performances or big play threats from all across the 45 man gameday roster. Homefield advantage could be key here though, you don’t fluke your way to only losing 2 home games in 3 seasons, and for that reason I favour the Falcons to again sneak through. Falcons 23, Packers 17.
Jonathan Comey: I’ve loved the Packers all year, and think they’re the kind of well-balanced team that can get the better of the flawed Falcons. The two keys for victory on Green Bay’s side are Brian Bulaga and Clay Matthews. If Bulaga can at least be decent and Matthews can be more than that, it should be enough to counter the Falcons’ home-field edge. In the battle of our two MVP leaders, I’ll take Rodgers over Ryan but won’t be surprised by any result short of a blowout either way. The winner of this one will be a big favorite in my eyes to wind up in the Super Bowl. Packers 31, Falcons 27.
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