NFL Divisional Round game picks Boys nip Pack Steelers win

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NFL Divisional Round game picks: 'Boys nip Pack; Steelers win Published: Jan 12, 2017 at 03:41 AM Elliot Harrison The Divisional Round. So many folks feel that this is the best weekend of the entire NFL season. There are several special storylines to get to, from 's recent tear ... to playing at a Hall of Unbelievable level ... to Julio vs. Sherman. Oh, and that Zeke guy, too. Yet, at this juncture, the football games have been obscured by the football news. After 56 years, . While this isn't the space where we would typically discu s this kind of topic, I'd be remi s if I didn't mention how hard this will be on the fans in the San Diego area. As an NFL historian and purist (for lack of a better word), I don't love it, either. Franchise relocation is generally not good for the perception of a sport -- period. And as someone who works in Los Angeles, I am not sure how the will be received by the mixed stew of sports fans that live here. Much has been made of all the things to do in L.A., and the failure of having two teams here in the '80s and '90s. My fear is that the difference between the organization's needs and what city leaders in Edwin Encarnacion Jersey San Diego were willing to offer will only lead to indifference from Angelenos. The ' AFC West foe, the , face their own challenge with the coming to town. might be the most enticing of the weekend. Your take on that beauty, or any of the other games, is welcome: is the place. Now, let's get to it! Amazingly enough, the all-time series between these two franchises is knotted at 17 wins apiece. Included in those 34 games are seven postseason affairs, of which the are one up on the . The legacy of this matchup is incredible , with this bout simply adding on to what is a deep-dish slice of NFL history. Also worth noting: The walked into Lambeau earlier this season, and flew home. Both teams are slightly different this time around: Green Bay is one of the hottest teams in football, while Dallas played that Week 6 game with a still-inexperienced and no . OK, so let's look forward. What matters Sunday? Much of what counted in October. The ' run defense had better slow down and that ground attack. Green Bay came into the first meeting allowing le s than 3 yards per carry. Then Dallas outrushed the cheeseheads 191-78. Being succe sful means the control the clock, limiting ' touches. If the go 0-fer -- like on their first four drives -- they won't get 8-10 more po se sions to compensate. I like Rodgers against the Dallas secondary, but 's probable absence sure doesn't help. Also, with Mo Claiborne back at corner and Dallas' pa s rushers having rested legs -- hello , who was a force in the earlier meeting -- can Rodgers get enough time (in terms of protection number of drives) to put up enough points? The gue s here is no, but that's why they play the games. Stop . Not trying to just state the obvious here, but that's the stark reality of this situation: If the can't do that, they will, in all likelihood, lose the game. We've seen have terrible games on the road, but when Bell produces, Pittsburgh's still viable. Look at , when Roethlisberger was awful (zero touchdowns, three picks), but Bell rushed for 236 yards and three scores in the win. Bell led the NFL in scrimmage yards per game, which went largely unnoticed with the emergence of and . Second-and-4, third-and-2 -- that kinda down-and-distance prevents the K.C. pa s rush from being a major factor. In order to thwart Bell and win the field-position tu sle, Kansas City ILBs (sans Derrick Johnson) must come up big. Safety support is a must, which could mean guys like and do sneaky damage off play-action. I expect the to run plenty, but effectivene s in the red zone is paramount to them advancing. They were 30th in the NFL inside the 20 -- with a 45.5 percent touchdown rate -- whereas Pittsburgh's defense was top five in red-zone TDs. SATURDAY Mike Marjama Jersey 'S GAMES You can count on one hand how many games since Y2K were better than . That was 's rookie year -- and he will once again be hugely important in this showdown. More important than ? Probably not. If Rawls and the play clockball to counter Atlanta's explosive offense, then the limited pitches for will play into Pete Carroll's hands. More important might be 's ability to travel acro s the formation with , or else limiting po se sions could mean little. Sherman covered the comet 25 times during their midseason meeting ( ), including . Another key: Whether or not the remainder of Seattle's secondary can play up to snuff versus the ' receivers -- namely , who really came on late in the season. makes fans panic. He must hold down his side of the fort. played like an absolute stud this year, and he will find the windows if open. Methinks his pa s protection will hold its own. If Ryan struggles, though, it will be up to and Co. getting out in space and neutralizing . Then gets loose, and Atlanta heads to Dallas for the NFC Championship. Interesting matchup -- or call it an interesting -- between these two teams on Saturday night. at marks just the fifth time in postseason history that meets . How about this for historical analytics? The top defense in such matchups has won every time. Makes sense. Every coach I've ever spoken to on this subject laments that the league still quantifies -- rather, qualifies -- the premier defense by yards allowed, not points. Steve Mariucci's hair unparts when he gets fired up about it. Of course, New England paced everyone in points allowed this season. I say "of course," but then wonder in the next breath how many people actually think of Matt Patricia's unit as being more effective than the groups in Denver, Seattle or even Minnesota. Houston's defense must generate New England mistakes, despite the fact that gets rid of the ball quickly. If and create disruption -- not nece sarily sacks, but tipped balls and interceptions (see: ) -- Denard Span Jersey the have a chance. That said, I fully expect to get 15-20 carries, keeping that front honest. The allowed 15.6 points per game this season, and I don't see a Brock Osweiler-engineered attack surpa sing that mark. This article has been reproduced in a new format and may be mi sing content or contain faulty links. Please use the Contact Us link in our site footer to report an i sue.
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