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It's time for playoff football!
The unimaginable is nearly here! The Eagles first (hopefully of four) playoff games this year is just over 24 hours away, and everything seems to be pointing to an Eagles victory in Minnesota.
The Eagles have a better defense and a better offense than the Vikings, and that's before accounting for the fact that Tavaris Jackson is starting at quarterback for the Vikings. Statistically, Jackson has been a better quarterback since returning to the starting lineup in December, however, he's still Tavaris Jackson, and without looking, can anybody name more than one of Minnesota's receivers? I'll wait...
Didn't think so. That's because Minnesota's receivers are worse than the Eagles' receivers! (What is it with the Andy Reid coaching tree and not bringing in top receivers?) The Vikings' third receiver, Sidney Rice, played 13 games this year and caught just 15 passes for 141 yards. For the record, the Eagles have 10 players with more receiving yards than Rice this year. As an Eagles fan, you have to feel good about our secondary going up against their aerial attack.
What do you get when you combine an inaccurate quarterback with a group of lousy receivers and throw them up against a team that loves to blitz? A long day for the men in purple. The only way I can see the Vikings even competing in this game is if Adrian Peterson breaks a few long runs, which could happen, but is unlikely, as the Eagles defense, which is ranked third in the NFL (fourth against the rush), gives up less than 100 yards per game on the ground, and hasn't been gashed since playing the Giants in November. More importantly, Peterson has come down with a case of fumble-itis this year, putting the ball the turf 9 times. Combine that with the Eagles forcing 22 fumbles this year, and there is bound to be a time or two where Peterson is shaking his head as he walks off the field.
For the Eagles, the weakness of the Vikings' defense is the Eagles' strength on offense. Donovan McNabb engineered a record-breaking passing attack this year, and the Vikings' defense is very susceptible through the air. The Vikings do have the best defense in the NFL against the run, but the Eagles cannot abandon their ground game. They also shouldn't just run into a brick wall 30 times, so they will need to be smart about running the ball. That means running a lot of draw plays. And not just regular draws, I'm talking about extreme delays and screen passes (I know they aren't runs, but they will serve the same purpose) to counter the Vikings' strong defensive line.
Prediction: Still 27-17.
Other predictions:
Arizona over Atlanta 38-27. I think that the Cards will jump out to an early lead, and Ryan, even though he hasn't played like a rookie most of the year, will crack under the pressure, and throw two or three interceptions while trying to make a comeback.
Indy over San Diego 34-27. The Colts have won 9 straight, while the Bolts have won 4 straight. One of those streaks has to end today, and I'm going with the team that doesn't have an injured LaDainian Tomlinson. However, I do expect the 5' 5" Darren Sproles to have a very good game if L.T. can't go.
Baltimore over Miami 20-7. Why are people so stuck on this game? Baltimore won 27-13 over Miami in week 7. The Dolphins can't win games without running the Wildcat offense, and if there is one team that these trick plays won't work against, it's the Ravens. They held the Dolphins to just 71 yards on 22 carries in that game, and I expect them to do the same on Sunday.
The Eagles have a better defense and a better offense than the Vikings, and that's before accounting for the fact that Tavaris Jackson is starting at quarterback for the Vikings. Statistically, Jackson has been a better quarterback since returning to the starting lineup in December, however, he's still Tavaris Jackson, and without looking, can anybody name more than one of Minnesota's receivers? I'll wait...
Didn't think so. That's because Minnesota's receivers are worse than the Eagles' receivers! (What is it with the Andy Reid coaching tree and not bringing in top receivers?) The Vikings' third receiver, Sidney Rice, played 13 games this year and caught just 15 passes for 141 yards. For the record, the Eagles have 10 players with more receiving yards than Rice this year. As an Eagles fan, you have to feel good about our secondary going up against their aerial attack.
What do you get when you combine an inaccurate quarterback with a group of lousy receivers and throw them up against a team that loves to blitz? A long day for the men in purple. The only way I can see the Vikings even competing in this game is if Adrian Peterson breaks a few long runs, which could happen, but is unlikely, as the Eagles defense, which is ranked third in the NFL (fourth against the rush), gives up less than 100 yards per game on the ground, and hasn't been gashed since playing the Giants in November. More importantly, Peterson has come down with a case of fumble-itis this year, putting the ball the turf 9 times. Combine that with the Eagles forcing 22 fumbles this year, and there is bound to be a time or two where Peterson is shaking his head as he walks off the field.
For the Eagles, the weakness of the Vikings' defense is the Eagles' strength on offense. Donovan McNabb engineered a record-breaking passing attack this year, and the Vikings' defense is very susceptible through the air. The Vikings do have the best defense in the NFL against the run, but the Eagles cannot abandon their ground game. They also shouldn't just run into a brick wall 30 times, so they will need to be smart about running the ball. That means running a lot of draw plays. And not just regular draws, I'm talking about extreme delays and screen passes (I know they aren't runs, but they will serve the same purpose) to counter the Vikings' strong defensive line.
Prediction: Still 27-17.
Other predictions:
Arizona over Atlanta 38-27. I think that the Cards will jump out to an early lead, and Ryan, even though he hasn't played like a rookie most of the year, will crack under the pressure, and throw two or three interceptions while trying to make a comeback.
Indy over San Diego 34-27. The Colts have won 9 straight, while the Bolts have won 4 straight. One of those streaks has to end today, and I'm going with the team that doesn't have an injured LaDainian Tomlinson. However, I do expect the 5' 5" Darren Sproles to have a very good game if L.T. can't go.
Baltimore over Miami 20-7. Why are people so stuck on this game? Baltimore won 27-13 over Miami in week 7. The Dolphins can't win games without running the Wildcat offense, and if there is one team that these trick plays won't work against, it's the Ravens. They held the Dolphins to just 71 yards on 22 carries in that game, and I expect them to do the same on Sunday.
posted by Matthew Fleishman, Yardley News Editor at
1:13 PM
2 Comments:
My observation of three of the four games is that the refs almost got on their knees to blow them. Indy should have won that game, but there were so many blown calls it was pathetic. Also the Vikings had what 2 flags the whole game? Seriously it was ridiculous. What did you think?
The officiating in the Colts/Chargers game was terrible. I don't know how you can give a team three first downs on a drive in overtime. The face mask, while clearly evident should not have been called because it did not affect the play because Sproles was wrapped up already. It seems like the Colts are always on the wrong end of a bad officiating crew, and that crew called the most penalties of any crew all season, so you had to expect the officials to help decide the outcome.
I didn't notice much wrong with the Eagles game or the Ravens game, but I am curious why the officials are starting to enforce the "quarterback in the grasp" rule, and why it is only done selectively. In the Arizona game, they called it, and it resulted in a safety on Matt Ryan, despite him throwing the ball and completing the pass to Michael Turner. Earlier in the game, Kurt Warner did the same thing and it wasn't called a sack. In fact, the announcers kept talking about how you have to sack Warner's arms so he doesn't throw it while in the defender's grasp, so why is the veteran allowed to get the throw off and not the rookie?
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