2011-2012 AFC Wildcard Playoff Predictions
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- Category: Sports
Expect An Upset On Wild Card Weekend
After the San Diego Chargers lived up to their potential by dropping 30+ points on the Oakland Raiders in Oakland during the afternoon games, all of the AFC playoff positions and seeds were sealed. The Chargers eliminated the Raiders from a postseason berth with a win over the silver and black, which allowed the Denver Broncos to back into the playoffs with an 8-8 record after losing their final home game of the season to the Kansas City Chiefs. With the playoff picture now in total focus, the GPS fleet management specialists at GPS Tracker Shop are now ready to make their annual playoff predictions for wild-card weekend in the AFC.
With both the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens taking wild card weekend off with a bye, the sports writers at GPS Tracker Shop will first be focusing on those games set for this weekend, starting with the surprising Cincinnati Bengals visiting the Houston Texans.
The Texans have been ready to take the next step for quite sometime, but with the neck injury to Peyton Manning putting the Indianapolis Colts on ice, Houston was thrust into the role of alpha dog in the AFC South. The Texans defense was ranked highly all throughout the season, and the offense was almost equally as impressive. However, the one thing that can be expected with every NFL season is injuries, and now the injuries are really mounting up for Houston. Heading into their first ever home playoff game, Houston will be starting a third string quarterback, along with an offense covered with bumps and bruises. The Texans will have to overcome a plethora of injuries to key players to snap their three game losing streak, winning their first playoff game in franchise history.
The Houston defense is going be required to step up big time to advance into the divisional round.
Cincinnati was one of the most surprising teams in the NFL this year, going 9-7 in a division where Baltimore and Pittsburgh both went 12-4. After starting quarterback Carson Palmer decided to act like a diva, forcing his way out of Cincinnati, the Bengals put the franchise on the back of a rookie quarterback named Andy Dalton. Dalton did a terrific job in Cincinnati, beating every football analysts' opinion that the Bengals would not be a postseason team. The Bengals have hung tough with the big dogs in their division, and will take that black and blue attitude to the much weaker AFC South. The only question is whether the freshman jitters will be too much for a Bengals team that clearly over-achieved this season.
Prediction: Cincinnati 13 Houston 24
Many sports analysts still believe that the Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the best teams in the league, but the twelve-win team from the AFC North will start their Super Bowl run on the road, playing the 8-8 AFC West Denver Broncos. The Steelers continue to use the same blueprint of a fast, blitz pounding defense to rack up playoff wins. And why wouldn't they? The Pittsburgh Steelers have consistently made the postseason, making three Super Bowl appearances and winning two of those Super Bowls with that blueprint of success. Although the Steelers are a veteran squad with a talented defense, their quarterback is injured, and he will have to step up against a solid Broncos defense playing at home.
A sports writer cannot talk about the Denver Broncos without talking about Tim Tebow, but this game will be more about the Denver defense. Tebow and the Broncos got yet another miracle courtesy of the San Diego Chargers beating the Raiders in Oakland. This allowed the Broncos to back into the divisional title, even though there was a three-way 8-8 tie atop the AFC West. Regardless of how the Broncos got in the tournament, they are in and will play at home.
This game reminds this GPS Tracker Shop sports editor a lot like the game Pittsburgh played at San Francisco when the Steelers offense was forced into multiple turnovers by a 49ers defense that could attack an immobile Ben Roethlisberger. Therefore, this analyst believes that the Denver Broncos defense will keep the score in the game low enough for the Broncos to actually have a real shot at winning. With a couple of key turnovers and short field provided by some good special teams play, the Broncos will only be required to make a handful of first downs via their league-leading rushing attack to contend in a game that will likely be field goal kicking dominant. Also, it is important to note that the Denver Broncos are the team with the better kicker, something that could be very critical in a low-scoring defensive game.
Prediction: Pittsburgh 10 Denver 16