Playoffs - Wild Card - Saturday

Cincinnati at Houston

Andy Dalton and AJ Green have been two great rookies this year, and if they can continue to do what they have done week in and week out then the Bengals have a good chance at going in to Houston and walking out with a first round wild card victory. If Houston and their rush defense have anything to say though, then Dalton will be seeing more turf than end zone. The Bengals offense is good, balanced, young, and explosive. They have the weapons to attack Houston's defense through many different angles, and can successfully go at them through a very balanced attack. Run, run, run, play-action. I expect Dalton and the Bengals crew to attack strong and with a very diversified look. The Texans might have a lot of injuries on their roster, but they still have one of the best running back duos in the league. Foster and Tate are both capable of carrying a team on their back, but giving them both a chance to take a rest and not lose much of the explosive look that the Texans carry it can be very dangerous for any offense.

In the end I think that all of the injuries that the Texans have amassed throughout this season are just going to be too much for them to handle. I think the Bengals get the upper strictly because they are still running with the same team that they've been fielding for the majority of the season, and it should all fall into place for them.

Bengals take the wild card on the road 28-24

Detroit at New Orleans

This game is going to be a shootout. The Lions and Matt Stafford threw for 520 yards and 5 touchdowns against a good Green Bay defense last week. The same familiar faces came out to play as Calvin got a touchdown, and some of the younger guys jumped on board too, throwing their names into the touchdown dance ring. If there are two absolutely explosive offenses in the wild card round it's these two teams. Drew Brees has thrown for more yards than any quarter back in NFL history in a single season, and they Saints are rolling and clicking at exactly the right time. This game is absolutely going to come down to which defense can stop which offense. Points will be scored, and probably plenty of them, but if one team can force a turnover or two, a couple of quick three and outs, then they are going to be in the drivers seat.

Drew Brees has two First Team All-Pro Guards protecting him for the man-beast that is Suh, and I think that is the key match-up at 8 O'clock. If Suh and the Lions defensive front can break the the wall that's been protecting Brees all season than they are going to cause some massive damage and really mess up the Saints game plan. But if the two Guards - Nicks and Evans - can do what they've been doing all year and give Brees time in the pocket then the Saints will be sitting pretty. Watch that war in the trenches today, because that's where the game is going to be won and lost.

Saints survive the shootout 42-38