Ah, Playoffs? Don’t talk about Playoffs? You kidding me, Playoffs? Sorry, Jim, we are going to talk about Playoffs because they are finally here. Yesterday marked the conclusion of one of the more interesting regular seasons in recent memory and now we can move on to, yes, the Playoffs. Per usual, there are contenders and pretenders in the postseason group, but next weekend should be interesting to say the least, especially on the AFC side of the ledger where Houston will attempt to snap out of its funk against Cincinnati and Pittsburgh hopes to put an end to Tebowmania in Denver.
The “are they for real” line of the week: Pittsburgh Steelers vs Denver Broncos (+8)
No team enters the postseason with less fanfare than the Denver Broncos. Yes, they are a nice story but, more pointedly, they are an improbable one. The AFC West was a disaster this year with no team finishing better than 8-8, a development that allowed Tim Tebow and company a playoff shot most mediocre teams are not afforded. It could easily be argued that Denver is the third best team in the division right now with both Kansas City and San Diego clearly playing better football, but that will not matter come Sunday. Denver gets to face the playoff savvy Steelers, who are not the kind of team one picks to break a three game losing streak against. The Broncos mostly addressed the “are they for real” question over the final three weeks of the season, but they will answer definitively in the negative this weekend. Pittsburgh is banged up, though, and most teams have a fighting chance in the postseason, particularly at home, so, while a Denver wins seems absurd, a cover does not.
The “barking dog” line of the week: Cincinnati Bengals vs Houston Texans (-3)
Cincinnati almost missed out on the playoffs after failing to beat the Ravens at home yesterday, but it still has more momentum than Houston right now. The Texans, who have been ravaged by injuries, ride a three game losing streak into this weekend’s game and their offense has been anemic since Matt Schaub’s season ended back in November. Yes, Houston did knock off Cincinnati at Paul Brown Stadium in early December, but it needed a most implausible late rally to do so. The Bengals have been a solid road team this season, getting five of their nine wins away from home and nothing about the current version of the Texans should or will scare them.
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2012 NFL Playoffs Schedule & Odds: Provided by SBG Global
Saturday, January 7 -
4:30pm ET (NBC) No. 6 Cincinnati vs No. 3 Houston (-3/38)
8:00pm ET (NBC) No. 6 Detroit vs No. 3 New Orleans (-10.5/58.5)
Sunday, January 8 -
1:00pm ET (FOX) No. 5 Atlanta vs No. 4 New York (-3/47.5)
4:30pm ET (CBS) No. 5 Pittsburgh vs No. 4 Denver (+8/34.5)
