Wild Card Weekend Preview

Kansas City Chiefs @ Indianapolis Colts Saturday, January 4, 3:35 PM CT

Statistically, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Indianapolis Colts are very similar. Both teams finished the regular season with an 11-5 record. Kansas City quarterback Alex Smith and Indianapolis quarterback have both thrown for 23 touchdown passes. However, what defines both of these teams most this season is the fantastic start that each team experienced followed by erratic play after the bye week. The Chiefs and the Colts face off in Indianapolis today at Lucas Oil Stadium in the first of the NFLs Wild Card games this weekend. It has truly been a tale of two seasons for Kansas City. The Chiefs raced to a 9-0 record with their smothering defense and mistake free play of their offense. They never blew teams out early in the season, but then again they didnt have to with their weak schedule. The Chiefs scored easy early victories against bottom feeders such as the Jaguars, Giants, Raiders, Texans, Browns, and Bills. The lack of competition against superior teams hurt Kansas City in the long run, and they were ill-prepared to face the likes of playoff bound Denver and San Diego. The Chiefs dropped three in a row following the bye week, twice to AFC best and division rival Denver. Kansas City then finished the season by finding their offense and blasting lowly Washington and Oakland by scoring a combined point total of 101 in those two games. The Chiefs then lost very handily to this weeks opponent, the Colts, by a score of 23-7 in week 16. Was Chiefs coach Andy Reid holding back and not showing his hand against Indy in anticipation of todays Wild Card matchup? Maybe so, however, the Chiefs sure looked ugly in that dismantling by the Colts just a couple of weeks ago. The Colts experienced a similar early start to the season and had impressive showings against powerful playoff contenders. They beat San Francisco 27-7 at Candlestick Park in week 3. They edged both the AFCs and NFCs best teams by defeating Seattle 34-28 in week 5 and Denver 39-33 in week 7. Much like the Chiefs, the Colts adopted an alter ego after the bye week and were promptly pummeled by St. Louis, Arizona, and Cincinnati. The Colts lost these three games by a combined score of 120-47. The Colts did finish the season strong and currently ride the momentum of a three game winning streak into the playoffs. However, that winning streak may be a little skewed considering two of those wins were against Houston and Jacksonville, two teams that have been long out of the playoff picture. Your guess is as good as mine as to which versions of these teams show up for the playoffs. The Chiefs have the edge in the running game with vaunted running back Jamaal Charles. Not only is Charles the Chiefs leading rusher, he also leads the team in pass receptions and pass yardage. One could say that Jamaal Charles is the Chiefs offense. The running game is always important this time of year, especially in games outdoors in cold weather. However, this is the only Wild Card game this weekend being played indoors in the cozy confines of Lucas Oil Stadium.

Besides Jamaal Charles, nothing else scares opposing defenses with regard to the Chiefs offense. Like the meeting a couple of weeks ago, the Colts will key on stopping Charles. Kansas Citys offense lacks the threat of a big play downfield because quarterback Alex Smith is hesitant to throw downfield to try and make a big play. The Chiefs are also lacking in the wide receiver department with the exception of Dwayne Bowe. When the running back is also the leading receiver, there are clearly problems with the offense. However, this conservatism in the Chiefs offense has also been beneficial as quarterback Alex Smith makes very few mistakes. He only has nine interceptions on the season. Colts quarterback Andrew Luck has been slightly better this year by throwing only seven interceptions. Luck also has a dangerous receiving threat in T.Y. Hilton to throw to for the big play downfield. As we saw in the two games against Denver, Kansas City had difficulties covering speedy receivers. Hilton falls into that category. The Colts also have the edge playing at home at Lucas Oil Stadium, where teams playing in their home dome on Wild Card weekend enjoy a 7-2 edge over the last seven years. The Colts are also the fourth seed in the AFC. Four has been a lucky number in the NFL playoffs as of late. The last two Super Bowl winners started the NFL playoffs as fourth seeds, the Giants two years ago and the Ravens last year.

Kansas City Chiefs Indianapolis Colts

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New Orleans Saints @ Philadelphia Eagles Saturday, January 4, 7:10 PM CT

No other team appears to be in more dire straits this weekend than the New Orleans Saints. The Saints are 3-5 on the road this year, losing their last three away from home by a combined score of 78-36. The Saints playoff woes on the road are well documented and have been severely scrutinized this week in the media. If theres one thing that will motivate Drew Brees and company in tonights game, its the talk about how poorly the Saints have played on the road. However, facts are facts, and the statistic show that the task at hand for the Saints will be daunting. The team has posted a career record of 0-5 away from the Superdome. To make matters worse, teams that play their home games in a dome are 0-8 over the last seven years when they open up the playoffs on the road. Throw in a hot Eagles team and a cold Philly chill, and tonights playoff game seemingly spells trouble for the visiting Saints. Philadelphia comes into tonights game winners of seven of their last eight and winners of their last four on the road. The NFL playoffs typically favor the teams that finish the season strong, and Philly certainly meets that criteria. The

Eagles closed the season by hammering the Bears 54-11 and followed it up by clinching the NFC East by beating hated division rival Dallas 24-22. The Eagles also have the benefit of hosting Saturday nights tilt at Lincoln Financial Field where the temperature is expected to drop below 30 degrees. Surprisingly, the usually superb Drew Brees is 0-3 in such cold weather games with a subpar completion percentage of 56% to go with only five touchdowns and five interceptions. Quarterback Nick Foles has emerged this year for Philadelphia and may have a hotter hand than his counterpart Drew Brees. Foles tied an NFL record set by Peyton Manning earlier this year by throwing seven touchdowns in a game when the Eagles pummeled the Oakland Raiders 49-20 in week 9. If Foles isnt dangerous enough, the Eagles boast the NFLs leading rusher in LeSean Shady McCoy, who can singlehandedly change the outcome of a game. Philly was tops in rushing this year with an average of 5.1 yards per attempt while the Saints were 19th in stopping the run and allowed an average of 4.6 yeards per carry. Look for a large dose of Shady on the ground tonight. However, not everything favors the Eagles in this game. The Eagles defense let up a ton of yards this year and led the league in most pass yards allowed with 4,636. Last week, Cowboys backup quarterback Kyle Orton shredded them for 358 yards. Everybody knows that Saints quarterback Drew Brees is as skilled as a surgeon in dissecting defenses through the air. Brees once again threw for over 5,000 yards for the fourth time in his career, completing 68.6% of his passes with 39 touchdowns and just 12 interceptions. He has a plethora of weapons to throw to, including reliable wide receiver Marques Colston, monstrous tight end Jimmy Graham, and elusive running back Darren Sproles. Add to that all the talk about Saints road woes, and Brees and company will surely be motivated to quiet the critics. Even though Phillys pass defense is suspect from a yardage standpoint, they are adept at intercepting the ball. Last week, a Philly interception put the nail in the coffin for the opposing Cowboys. Phillys running game against a weak Saints run defense and the New Orleans aerial attack against the Eagles porous pass defense should pose some interesting matchups. This contest has the makings of a high scoring affair. However, the cold weather should create difficulties in both offenses moving the ball.

New Orleans Saints Philadelphia Eagles

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