It’s conference semi-final weekend and that means more nailniting action in the NFL. After the rollercoaster ride that was the Green Bay @ Arizona match I for one am hungry for more.
If you followed Genie’s picks from last weekend you’d have come up trumps on Lavernues Coles at 12/1 and the Ravens won too so Genie had a pretty good weekend, all considered. Apologies to those of you who followed the advice to back the Bengals. They really performed poorly and nobody moreso than Carson Palmer who looked like a bag of nerves for the whole first half.
Anyway, just like Padraig Harrington, we always endevour to look forward, not backward. This weekend throws up alot of tight games and i’m dodging most of them.
Arizona Cardinals @ New Orleans Saints
The Saints start as the obvious favourites but at 1/3 with William Hill
I will certainly be giving them a miss. Arizona are a hit and miss team and this one is set to be a shootout. These are 2 of the best passing offences around and Kurt Warner Machine will carry no nerves into the game so expect big plays from him. It should come down to who can manage to get 100 yards on the ground. If Beanie Wells can run the ball 20 times for 100 yards then Arizona will win this one because keeping New orleans off the field is half the battle.
All said I can’t pick it but i’ll be sitting back and enjoying a great game. It should be a high scoring game but the total points spread is 57 which is about right for this matchup.
Recommendation: No Bet
Baltimore Ravens @ Indianapolis Colts
I’m going to disappoint the backers again on this one and sit on the fence. The most underrated team in the NFL plays against the best team in the NFL. The phenom that is Peyton Manning takes hit playoff jitters to the field with a group of wide receivers that is his weakest in years but Archie’s Boy will put up points. The Indy defence is capable of playing a big game.
Indy should win this one but at 2/5 with Ladbrokes I am not going to have any piece of this one either.
Recommendation: No Bet
Dallas Cowboys @ Minnesota Vikings
The Cowboys have found form in recent weeks and have shed both their December jitters and their playoff hoodoo. Their first win since 1996 was a very impressive all round performance and Brad Childress will have his coaching team working around the clock watching the tapes.
That said I believe that Minnesota are the best team in the NFC and should make their home advantage count. The noise that they can generate in the dome is reknowned and will certainly upset the Dallas defence. Let’s do the match ups. Minnesota have a better passing game and a better running game. They have a better defesive line. The safety department and special teams are pretty even and Dallas probably have the edge in their offensive line. This time last year Minnesota were just 2 things short of being the best team in the country; a quarterback and some special teams. Percy Harvin has been a revelation and the evergreen Brett Favre is still a joy to watch.
Watch out for the superstars Sidney Rice, Percy Harvin and Jared Allen to shine. The story makers will be looking to Favre but I think that offensive Adrian Peterson holds the key in this game. Dallas haven’t been tested against the run in recent weeks but that is about to chnage drastically as they come up against the bets in the business. With his ‘Best RB in the NFL’ tag highly debated these days (and desrvingly so with Chris Johnson) Adrian will be keen to lay down a marker and remind the Vikings fans what they can do better than any other team; run the football.
Take the Vikings to win this one. This is my nap of the week.
Recommendations:
Vikings -3 points with Ladbrokes @ 11/10.
Vikings to win the NFC at 3/1 with Blue Square
New York Jets @ San Diego Chargers
I’m chickening out on this one too. In short I think that the Jets have been playing with house money for the last 2 weeks. Philip Rivers has soe offensive weapons at his disposal but if the Jets can get into a grinding groove he might find that his time on the field is limited.
Recommendation: No Bet