The NFL's final four
In the AFC, it's a story of two very familiar underdogs
STEVE BOHRN Staff
Fans of the AFC were waiting in anticipation of a championship game that would pit the two teams that were widely considered the best two teams in football against one another.
But the San Diego Chargers and Baltimore Ravens will not be facing each other next weekend. Instead, we get the underdog, yet perennial contenders, New England Patriots visiting the underdog, yet perennial under achievers Indianapolis Colts, as both teams have transformed into the playoff machines that we have seen from these two clubs in the past few seasons.
The Patriots had the difficult task of disposing of the top-ranked AFC team, the San Diego Chargers. They had to somehow devise a game plan to stop the mighty LaDainian Tomlinson, who tore up the league this season, winning the NFL’s MVP award and astonishing audiences in every stadium he played in.
In what turned out to be a backand- forth affair, the Chargers were ahead by eight with less then five minutes remaining in the game before Tom Brady did what he does best — win playoff games. After a slough of breaks, which included a San Diego fumble on an interception return and a penalty that negated a fumble, Brady drove the field to score a touchdown, then added a two-point conversion to tie the game.
The Patriots would eventually get the ball back, and once again, Brady drove the length of the field, giving the Patriots an opportunity to hit a field goal with just over a minute left to put them ahead. The Chargers missed a 54-yard field goal as time expired to give New England a 24-21 win and a spot in the conference championship game.
Their opponents in the big game, the Indianapolis Colts, have a similar underdog story to tell of their playoff experience this year. They played against the Baltimore Ravens and what is considered to be the best rundefence in the league.
In what was a little bit of a change from the regular season, the Colts defence was the one doing the dominating, and proven playoff performer, kicker Adam Vinatieri provided all the points that the Colts would need.
This was the first playoff game since 1979 to not have a touchdown scored. As the Colts won 15-6, Vinatieri broke the team’s playoff record by going 5-5 on field goals on the day.
Perhaps the most impressive part of the game was how quarterback Peyton Manning was able to maintain possession of the ball against the No. 1 defence of the Ravens and eat up much of the clock in the fourth quarter before Vinatieri nailed the final field goal to put the Colts up by nine and put the game out of reach.
This set up an all-too-familiar matchup of two fierce rivals. The Colts and Patriots have met seven times in the recent years, with the Patriots coming out on top in five of these games, including all three times the teams have met in the playoffs. However, if you are counting recent success, the Colts have won the last two meetings, including a week-13 win this season.
If that wasn’t enough of a storyline for you, this game will also feature prize place kicker Vinatieri. Vinatieri has been the kicker for the Patriots for 10 years, becoming a legend in the state of Massachusetts for his clutch kicking that helped win three Super Bowls. After not being offered fair market value for his services by the Patriots, the Colts swooped in and signed the kicker, and as exhibited in the divisional round, the money was well spent.
But New England will have their own ace in the hole, a quarterback and coaching tandem that together have gone 12-1 in playoff games. Brady, and Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, will have a distinct advantage over their counterparts Manning and Colts head coach Tony Dungy, who have proven themselves to not be sure-things come playoff time.
One thing is for sure, is that this one should be a game for the ages and might just be the best game of the season.
In the NFC, two completely contrasting styles battle for one prized spot
Romer Bautista Staff
The NFC Championship game pits the two top teams in the conference up against one another, with the New Orleans Saints paying a visit to Soldier Field and the Chicago Bears.
It’s a classic “offence versus defence” scenario.
New Orleans is an offensive explosion waiting to happen, as they led the league in pass yards and total yards per game. Leading the deadly aerial attack for the Saints is quarterback Drew Brees, who was tops in the NFL with 4,418 passing yards. Even with No. 1 option Joe Horn likely out due to a groin injury, Brees will have plenty of options down-field. Look for Brees to key in on rookie receiver Marques Colston, who led all rookies with 1,038 receiving yards.
Helping keep the Saints offence balanced will be the two-headed running back tandem of Deuce McAllister and Reggie Bush. In the divisional-round win over the Philadelphia Eagles, the two back combined for 195 yards on the ground.
That high-powered offence will be in for its toughest task of the season, as it will be going head-to-head with the NFC’s top-rated defence.
The Chicago Bears held teams to just 15.9 points a game this year, and they did so in bruising fashion.
The heart and soul of the Bears defence is their linebacking corps, especially team leaders Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs. Urlacher was the 2005 Defensive Player of the Year, while Briggs led the NFC this season with 113 tackles.
The defence will be looking to do what it did best all season long, hit hard and cause takeaways. Along with 23 interceptions, the Bears’ physicality forced a league-high 20 fumbles.
Not only will the Saints have to be wary of the Bears’ defence making game-changing plays, the Saints will have to avoid the big play from Chicago’s all-pro rookie kick returner, Devin Hester.
Hester had a record-setting year, returning six kicks for touchdowns. In the divisional-round win against the Seahawks, Hester had a 64-yard punt return called back due to a penalty. He is always a threat to take a return to the house.
Home advantage, while proven to be overrated in the AFC, had held true in the NFC. The home team has been victorious in all four NFC playoff games this year.
With the game to be held in frigid Chicago on Sunday, where the Bears are 7-2 this year, home-field is sure to be an advantage.
On paper, and especially considering the role of Soldier Field, the Chicago Bears should win going away.
But, this is the NFL, and there is a reason why the outcome is decided out on the field, and not on paper.
There are two huge mitigating factors, which leads me to believe that the Saints are bound for Super Bowl XLI in Miami.
First, there is Chicago’s shaky quarterback, Rex Grossman. The young quarterback’s up-and-down season makes it difficult for anyone to know which Rex Grossman will make an appearance on Sunday afternoon. Even in his “solid” performance (21/38, 282 yards, one TD) against the Seahawks, Grossman proved himself to be prone to making mistakes, as he threw for an interception, and coughed up a fumble. A sub-par Grossman outing against the Saints is sure to sink the Bears’ Super Bowl hopes.
Second, the New Orleans Saints, just like the Pittsburgh Steelers last year, have the look of a team of destiny. After the devastation of Hurricane Katrina left the city in peril, the metaphoric rise of the Saints from cellar-dwellers to NFC South champions has New Orleans buzzing again. Everything the Saints have done this year has gone right. Drafting Reggie Bush, hiring Sean Payton as head coach, and signing Drew Brees to be the face of the franchise have all turned into golden moves.
This 2006 New Orleans Saints team just seems like a juggernaut that not even the Bears defence can stop. With that in mind, I’m taking the Saints, 24-20.
