Wild Card Round Preview by Jorge Gonzalez
Wild Card Round Preview
The Wild card round of the NFC is here and the games played in the first
round have teams matched up that have plenty of weaknesses to exploit.
Unfortunately, the Oddsmakers are on right on the money and the point
spreads will be tough numbers to go against. All eight teams have keys
that they will need to execute to be able to advance to the division al
round of the playoffs. The season was up for games through week 12 of the
season and the best teams started to assert themselves and are now waiting
on their bye weeks for their first opponent. Each NFC Wildcard team will
have game plans that they will need to execute to keep their playoff hopes
alive.
The Seattle Seahawks (7-9) are the first team with a losing record to make
the playoffs. They came in having lost five of their last six games but
won when it mattered most by beating St. Louis last week 16-6 to win the
division. The Seahawks will be facing the New Orleans Saints (11-5) at
Qwest Field. The Seahawks have to play a perfect against the reigning
Super Bowl Champs. Only hope is to pressure Drew Brees into a bad passing
game with the leading rushers, Chris Ivory and Pierre Thomas in 2009, from
the last seasons out of the playoffs.
The New Orleans Saints (11-5) came on during the second half of the season
but have to play their best football. They were able to beat the Falcons
and Matt Ryan in the week 15 of the season. The Saints quarterback Drew
Brees was the leader in yards (4,620) and touchdowns (33). The Saints will
be playing Seattle for the second time this season and will look to
duplicate the 34-19 beat down that they gave the Seahawks back on November
21. The Saints also have one of the best head coaches in the game in Sean
Payton. Not only will Payton have the best game plan ready to go, he will
make the right adjustment for the players during the game. The Challenge
that Payton faces is having his players motivated to win by a double
digits while playing their third game in 12 days. The Saints are also
winless in the three road games in franchise history.
The Green Bay Packers will be going into hostile environment when they
take the Philadelphia Eagles. Their top rated passer Aaron Rodgers will
lead the packers. The offensive line has had their struggles this season
protecting their quarterback. The running attack is not very productive
and puts pressure on the passing game. No team with a losing record has
ever won the Super Bowl. The Defense for the Packers is one of the best
under the guidance of defensive coordinator Dom Capers.
The Philadelphia Eagles have produced an exciting 80 plays on the season
of 20 yards or more, tied for first in the league, with DeSean Jackson
leading the way with 21 catches of 20 yards or more. The Eagles lost the
opening game of the season to the Packers. Vick came in the second half of
the game and almost brought Eagles back to a victory. The crowd will be
the 12th man of the Eagles creating a hostile environment for the game.
The eagles have some injuries on defense and will need players to step up.
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