Wild Card Round Picks

The playoffs have arrived. I finished the last week of the regular season at 11-5, which put my overall record on the season at 172-83-1.

Arizona Cardinals at Carolina Panthers
Ryan Lindley will again get the nod under center for Arizona as Drew Stanton is still not quite ready to return to game action. Carolina got into this game by pounding Atlanta. They played perhaps their best game of the season in the 34-3 Week 17 victory over the Falcons. With Lindley under center and the Panthers not having a great offense, it's tough for me to see a lot of points being scored in this game. I imagine it'll come down to which team makes the least mistakes. At this point, it's tough to see the Cards winning on the road with Lindley under center. I'll take the Panthers in an ugly affair.
My Call: Panthers 17, Cardinals 13

Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers
Perhaps the best rivalry in today's NFL will take center stage as these two teams will again meet in the playoffs. They split the season series and the combined scores of the two games were 49-49, but each team won by 20 points at home, so it ended up even in a weird sort of way. Key to the game will very likely be the Ravens defensive line against the Steelers offensive line. If Ben Roethlisberger has time to throw, he'll kill Baltimore and find Antonio Brown streaming open all day long. One element the Ravens won't have to deal with is running back Le'Veon Bell, who will miss the game due to a hyperextended knee injury suffered against Cincinnati last week. This means undrafted free agent Josh Harris will get the start at tailback for the Steelers. With freezing rain expected to be prevalent all game long, this game could come down to which team wins in the trenches and can run the ball more effectively. Without Bell, that team could end up being the Baltimore Ravens.
My Call: Ravens 23, Steelers 20

Cincinnati Bengals at Indianapolis Colts
Andy Dalton may have his best chance yet at winning a playoff game. Thus far he's 0 for 3, but with a Colts offense that's struggling due to the lack of a solid running game and lack of solid protection for QB Andrew Luck as well as a less than stellar Colts defense... could the stars be finally aligning for he and the Bengals to break through? It's possible, but one blow to that chance may come before the game even begins as star receiver A.J. Green is right now listed as doubtful to play as he has not yet been cleared to play from a recent concussion he suffered. Good news is even without Green, the Bengals should be able to find success running the ball with Jeremy Hill and Giovani Bernard. In a pick I'm not very confident in, I'm gonna take the Colts by a field goal.
My Call: Colts 30, Bengals 27

Detroit Lions at Dallas Cowboys
Lions got good news a couple days ago as defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, who was originally suspended for this game for stepping on Packers QB Aaron Rodgers, got the suspension thrown out in place of a 70 thousand dollar fine. He'll be a little lighter in the pocket but will be on the field. Still, I think the Cowboys have the better team. They're at home and Lions QB Matthew Stafford has never beaten a winning team on the road in his career.
My Call: Cowboys 27, Lions 24