Perfection. Is such a thing even possible? Perfection as a concept is not an easy one to grasp philosophically. Even the United States founding father’s had a tough time with it, describing their new system of government as a “more perfect union.” something that should be impossible. Something perfect is already the best. It can’t be more best. James Madison… man, what a dumbass.
So the quest for perfection itself becomes the goal. And that’s what I am after as I begin my playoff picks with the Wild Card round. My best-ever record in the playoffs is 8-3 straight up. Not perfect, but certainly not bad. But this time, to begin the Year of our Lord two thousand and sixteen, it’s not good enough.
Not when I’ve got THE TOUCH.
Saturday Games
Kansas City at Houston (+3)
The Chiefs (11-5) come into this game on an unprecedented 10-game winning streak. Andy Reid would be the 2016 coach of the year if Ron Rivera hadn’t already put it in the back of his truck. What Kansas City has accomplished is remarkable because these haven’t all been wins against cupcake teams. In this streak the Chiefs have beaten the Broncos, the Steelers, the Bills and the Raiders twice. They also already beat the Texans once this year, in the season opener 27-20. That’s right before they went off the ledge on that five-game losing streak.
The Texans (9-7) earned their spot in the playoffs the hard way. Sitting at 2-5 at the end of October, they looked more like a team vying for a top draft pick, not a playoff spot. So what did they do? They went 7-2 the rest of the way including three straight wins to end the season and secure the AFC South title. Big wins? How about a victory over the Bengals and the Jets back-to-back?
So how’s this one going down? You have to respect what the Texans did to get here, but the Chiefs have been a steamroller since the end of October. There might be an end to their run in sight, but it won’t be in the first round of the playoffs. Chiefs 27, Texans 20
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Pittsburgh at Cincinnati (+3)
These two might be the scariest teams in the AFC playoff bracket. For the Bengals (12-4) it’s all going to come down to the play of quarterback A.J. McCarron who once again must step in for Andy Dalton, who had this team primed for a Super Bowl run before breaking his thumb last month. McCarron hasn’t played better than Dalton, but he’s done well and a victory here in the playoffs could very well give him the starting job next season since Dalton, as good as he’s been, has never won a playoff game.
The Steelers (10-6) enter this game after barely surviving the regular season. A devistating loss to the Baltimore Ravens two weeks ago should have sealed their fate, but thanks to the Buffalo Bills and Rex Ryan once again ruining the New York Jets’ postseason plans, the Steelers make the tournament and bring one of the most potent offenses in the NFL along with them.
These two teams split their regular season match-ups. With Dalton at quarterback the Bengals won 16-10 back on Nov. 1. With McCarron at the helm, the Steelers won 33-20 on Dec. 13. If my perfect run is in danger this week, I feel like this is the game. Still, I’m going with Pittsburgh. Steelers 28, Bengals 24
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Sunday Games
Seattle at Minnesota (+5)
The Vikings (11-5) may end up wishing they’d laid down and let the Packers beat them last week as their reward for claiming the NFC North title is a rematch with the Seahawks (10-6) a team that beat them 38-7 on their home field a month ago. What’s different this time? Marshawn Lynch is going to play. That’s what’s different.
Minnesota still has plenty to feel good about in this game. They’ve won their last three straight games and put up plenty of points in the process, scoring 38 on Chicago and 49 on the Giants. Against Green Bay last week their defense was able to almost completely shut down everything the Packers wanted to do, especially attack downfield.
With the exception of a 23-17 loss to the St. Louis Rams, the Seahawks have been on fire since mid-November. Seattle won six of their last seven games, putting the aforementioned beat-down on the Vikings along with a 39-30 win over the Steelers and an embarrassing 36-6 shellacking of the Arizona Cardinals last week. There’s still too much fight in this Seattle team to go out yet. Seahawks 26, Vikings 16
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Green Bay at Washington (-1)
The Redskins (9-7) have done the impossible. They’ve made the playoffs with Jay Gruden as their head coach. You’ll hear a lot of praise for Gruden and what he was able to do with this ragtag group of misfit toys and castoffs, but what you won’t hear is the truth. Washington is in the playoffs because Tony Romo got hurt, Chip Kelly shipped off half his team and the Giants blew nine fourth-quarter leads. If anyone thinks this is the beginning of some kind of Redskins resurgence, they’re nuts.
The Packers (10-6) limp into the playoffs looking like a disaster. They lost their last two games including a 38-8 defeat at the hands of the Cardinals that should shame future generations of offspring. Along the way they’ve dropped all their big games save one, a 30-13 win over the Vikings back on Nov. 22. All the rest, games against the Broncos, the Panthers, the Cardinals and the Vikings again, they lost and some of those losses weren’t even close.
There are even rumblings around that Mike McCarthy’s job might be in jeopardy if they lose this game and everyone is picking them to lose. Everyone but me. I’ve told you all week that this is the game that will stun the pundits, that they overvalue the Redskins and they undervalue the Packers. My guess is this one won’t be close. Packers 44, Redskins 19
Last Week
Straight up: 8-8
Against the spread: 7-9
Overall
Straight up: 141-115
Against the spread: 119-137
Survivor pool picks: 33-17
