Divisional Round Picks

Last week, we learned a couple things from Wild Card Weekend:

*If you suck the entire regular season but go into full-on "Bo Jackson in Tecmo Bowl" Mode in the playoffs, people will forget all about the last four months of dragging ass. Exhibit A: Lynch, Marshawn.

*Never doubt Pete Carroll in a big spot on Saturday night with paid players....something tells me he's been here before.

*Peyton Manning doesn't get nearly enough shit for being 9-10 for his career in the playoffs.

*Mark Sanchez is three years away from eventually losing his starting job to Nick Montana.

*An all-day tailgating affair of brats and cheddar cheese couldn't induce as many heart attacks as watching Mike McCarthy coach during a two-minute drill

*We have a good shot at seeing a 9-9 Seahawks team host a Packers team with 12 players on the IR in the NFC Championship.

*The Tampa Bay Bucs would beat every team left in the NFC

*If Charlie Weis never takes the Florida gig and instead commits to shoving Jamaal Charles down the Ravens' throats, Kansas City probably upsets Baltimore.......

*.........that last statement still doesn't scare me from the pick I'm about to make.

Last Week: 2-2

Playoffs: 2-2

Ravens (+3) at Steelers

Pick: Ravens - It really comes down to this....who do you trust more: Pittsburgh's offensive line or Joe Flacco? My answer is Flacco, almost by default. The Steelers have struggled to protect Ben Roethlisberger(who doesn't take enough criticism for his tendency to hold the ball too long) all season and I really don't like thier chances against a Baltimore front three that consists of 897-pound Terrance Cody, 625-pound Haloti Ngata, and 462-pound Kelly Gregg. I see Baltimore stuffing Rashard Mendenhall, smacking Big Ben in the mouth repeatedly and then a Aaron Smith-less Steelers D struggling to stop Ray Rice. The game will still be close because Flacco is due for a brain fart or two, but I'll take Baltimore by 6.

Packers (+1.5) at Falcons

Pick: Falcons - Reverse jinx obviously in play, but also, can you really trust McCarthy and a penalty-loving Packers team in the loud confines of the Georgia Dome? The Packers should have won this one in Atlanta a few weeks ago, but they found a way to lose and that's really the tough part about this Packers team. On paper, they should annihilate the Falcons, but if this thing is close(and I think it will be), my money has to go on the Dirty Birds. They can run the ball better and they make far less dumb mistakes in crunch time. Falcons by 3.

Jets (+9) at Patriots

Pick: Jets - I'd like to think this one will be closer than the beatdown New England gave New York the last time they met. For all the talk coming out of Gang Green, it better be. The Jets have been the squeaky wheel all season and this is where they need to put their money where their mouth is. This game is significantly more important than whatever happens next week if New York wins. It's a division rival. There's bad blood and you've talked a Super Bowl media week's worth of shit. I picked the Jets here simply because 9 points is a bit high for a Patriots team that susceptible to the run(something the Jets do well) and whose line may not be sturdy enough to keep Tom Brady from getting smacked in the mouth a couple times(something that always kills the Pats). I think Brady's pick-free streak ends here with a toss to Antonio Cromartie, but New England escapes thanks to Belichick outsmarting Rex Ryan in the closing seconds. Pats by 3.

Seahawks (+10) at Bears

Pick: Seahawks - I'm not on the Seahawks bandwagon at all, but 10 points is a lot to give a team with a shaky playoff QB facing a team that they've already lost to at home in the regular season. The 'Hawks may be a team of destiny or just really lucky, but I've never been high on this Chicago team and I have no reason to change my mind. Can rookie Russell Okung shut down Julius Peppers? That remains to be seen, but I see Jay Cutler gives the ball away a few times and Seattle keeping it close with the occasional big play here and there. Seahawks get the W here and the rest of the world shakes its head.