Fearless Dilettante Football Predictions - Wild Card Weekend Edition

Duty calls, so here are the picks. For another take and one based on more on cogent analysis than snark, you should go see Brad Carlson, too.

Atlanta Falcons 31, Arizona Cardinals 24. The first game out of the box should be fun. The Cardinals were the best of a very bad lot in the NFC West and they were downright schizoprhenic this year, getting absolutely walloped on a few trips to the East. Kurt Warner has been here before and has done a good job getting the ball to the Cardinal skill players. The problem is the Cards don't play a lot of defense. The Falcons are a great story -- roadkill a year ago, reeling in the stench of the Michael Vick scandal, but revived with a new coach (obscure assistant coach Mike Smith), resourceful rookie quarterback (Matt Ryan) and crucially a fresh new running back (Michael Turner, escaped from the shadow of LT in San Diego). The Cards are much better in their home, but the Falcons have proven they can win on the road and overall they look like the better team. Figure that Warner will make a crucial mistake at some point and that the methodical Falcons will win.
ACTUAL RESULT: CARDINALS 30, FALCONS 24. Close on the score, but not on the result. Give the Cards credit for holding up. Matt Ryan demonstrated that he is still a rookie. He'll be back, though -- I like the way the Falcons are built. Meanwhile, the Cards get a chance to see if they can win in the Eastern time zone.

Baltimore Ravens 34, Miami Dolphins 21. The Cardinals last hosted a playoff game in 1947. The Dolphins enter the playoffs this year featuring an offense last seen in 1947, a modified single-wing set they call the Wildcat. Give the Dolphins a lot of credit for turning it completely around from a dismal 1-15 season last year, but they are stepping up in class this time. The Ravens are a nasty team and it would not surprise me at all to see them make a long run in the playoffs. My guess is that the Fins will be back next year.
ACTUAL RESULT: RAVENS 27, FINS 9. Defense wins championships. The game against Tennessee will be a war.

Indianapolis Colts 41, San Diego Chargers 27. Give the Chargers a lot of credit for picking themselves up off the mat and rallying to a division title. Then remember that they are 8-8 and played in a division with footwipes like Oakland and Kansas City. The Colts are the same as always -- offensively potent, defensively suspect and under the unerring leadership of Tony Dungy. The Chargers are dangerous and at home, but that won't bother the Colts.
ACTUAL RESULT: CHARGERS 23, COLTS 17 (OT). I held my tongue when the NFL's asinine overtime rules cost my beloved Packers two chances to win this year, but this game gives me a chance to make the point. You can't square having sudden-death and a coin flip. Do you suppose that if Peyton Manning had been able to get the ball first, that the Colts may have won the game? I sure think so. The collegiate game has had a viable overtime format for over a decade now. It's time for the NFL to take a hard look at it.

Philadelphia Eagles 24, Purple Helmeted Love Warriors 21. Bad matchup for our homestanding Vikings -- Tarvaris Jackson has improved but he hasn't seen anything like what the Eagles will cook up on defense. The key to this game will be if Brad Childress and Darrell Bevell are patient enough as coaches to keep running Adrian Peterson, especially if the Eagles get out to an early lead. The Eagles love to blitz and if the Vikings can get the blitzers blocked, Peterson could have some long touchdown runs. The downside is that Peterson isn't a very good blocker and if the Vikes happen to pass when he's in the game, he could get T-Jack killed. On defense, Pat Williams probably won't play and the underrated Ray Edwards definitely will not. Donovan McNabb won't be afraid of what he's facing -- he's already got Darren Sharper's scalp on his wall, to this eternal regret of this Packer Backer.
ACTUAL RESULT: EAGLES 26, VIKINGS 14. I'll take a bow for my comments in re Peterson. He broke a long touchdown against the Eagles blitz, and he almost got T-Jack killed at the beginning of the game. Not coincidentally, you saw a lot of Chester Taylor yesterday. Bottom line is that the Vikings aren't good enough. Jackson did not play well, although the Assante Samuel interception looked like more than a few balls that Gus Frerotte threw this year. The problem is that we still don't know if T-Jack is going to be good enough to lead the Vikings to the next level. Defensively the Vikings are a good team but the window will close on that side of the ball within 2 years. My guess is that Sharper won't be back and there's a chance that the Williamses will have shortened seasons next year. Even though my beloved Packers weren't a factor this year, I like their future better than I like what I see happening here.