Eight teams remain in the 2010-11 NFL Playoffs as the tournament moves into the Divisional Round of play this weekend. The second week of postseason action should be more than interesting with New England and Pittsburgh each facing a division rival for a third time and the Falcons and Bears squaring off against teams they met in the regular season. The latest NFL Odds are favoring the home team in each case, but Chicago and New England are expected to be the biggest winners. The Patriots are listed as a -9 against the spread favorite against the Jets while the Bears are presently a -10 favorite against the Seahawks. 2011 Super Bowl Picks Early Look have New England listed as a +140 moneyline favorite to win the Lombardi.
One could argue that the only reason the 
Patriots are not a bigger favorite to win Super Bowl XLV is their fluky 14-33 home Wild Card loss to the Ravens last season. New England was outscored 24-0 by Baltimore in the first quarter of that game after turning the ball over three times in the opening frame. Consider that in eight previous home playoff outings under Bill Belichick the Pats turned the ball over just eight times.
It is difficult to argue against New England, a team that is 14-4 in the postseason with Belichick at the helm. The combination of Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady is 8-1 at Gillette Stadium in the playoffs, 4-0 as a host in Divisional playoff games, 4-1 in conference championship appearances, and 3-1 in the Super Bowl.
Yes, the odds are good with a strong team like Pittsburgh (+500) or a surging Packers squad that fields an MVP calibur signal caller (+600), but the smart money is on Brady and the Pats.
Apart from their ridiculous postseason numbers, the magical pair of Brady and Belichick has produced a 17-1 record in their last 18 games at Gillette Stadium. The lone loss being the aforementioned anomaly against the Ravens.
Yeah, the Jets can talk all they want, but they've already lost this weekend. The Steelers/Ravens can start preparing for the same kind of disappointment next weekend.
Oh, and the Patriots one showing in Dallas under Belichick…they won that too, stomping the Cowboys 48-27.
2011 Super Bowl Picks Early Look:
New England Patriots +140
Atlanta Falcons +450
Pittsburgh Steelers +500
Green Bay Packers +600
Chicago Bears +700
Baltimore Ravens +800
New York Jets +1500
Seattle Seahawks +4000
