Playoff Predictions

The NFL this year has been made up of many surprise games, players and teams. Several teams, like the Saints, Panthers, and 49ers have hugely disappointed thus far this season, while the Cardinals, Browns and Bills have impressed with winning records so far. Although the ranking are not set yet with two weeks remaining in the season, it is predictable which teams will make the playoffs. With several capable teams this year, the race to the Super bowl will be one with much competition.

AFC- The two teams that will earn a bye-week in the first round will be the Patriots and the Broncos, as they both have an 11-3 record right now. The two games for the first round will be the Colts against the Chargers for the 3 versus 6 game, and the Ravens at the Bengals for the 4 versus 5 game. All four teams have a great chance to move on to the next round, as all four have solid quarterbacks and good defenses. The Colts should go on to beat the Chargers, as Andrew Luck will lead his young team past Philip Rivers and his talented offense. The Ravens will upset the Bengal, which will leave Cincinnati with their sixth playoff loss in a row. Although Joe Flacco isn't a great quarterback, he's better than Andy Dalton, and his experience with the playoffs will help him drive past the Bengals. In the next round, the Patriots will host the Ravens, and the Colts will play at the Broncos. The Patriots will easily win, with Pat Chung leading the defense to a great game. The Denver and Indianapolis game will be a good one, but Peyton Manning will escape with a victory against his old team. The matchup the following week between Brady and Manning will be a high scoring one, but Brady will ultimately lead his team to a hard fought victory to the Super Bowl.

NFC- The NFC does not have as many teams in contention for the last playoff spot, but they still have plenty of Super Bowl worthy teams. The Cardinals and Packers will earn themselves a bye-week in the first round, as both teams will win their remaining two games. The two first round games will be between the three seed Eagles  and the Lions, and the four seed Panthers will play against the wild-card Seahawks. Both wild-card teams will win their games, as Mark Sánchez will fall short of leading his new team past the number one defense in the league, and the Seahawks will manhandle the outmatched Panthers. The following week, the Seahawks will take on the Packers, a game between possibly the two best teams in the league. Aaron Rodgers will barely edge out Russell Wilson's team, upsetting the previous champs. The Cardinals and Lions will play, with the Cardinals pulling out the win with their explosive defense. In the NFC Championship game, the Cardinal will host the Packers, but the visiting team will comfortably get the win, as Rodgers will prove to be too much for the Cardinals defense.

Super Bowl- This game would be a rematch of week 13, where the Packers were able to beat the Patriots at home 26-21. It would be a matchup between two Super Bowl winning quarterbacks, as Brady has won three and Rodgers has won one. The game would be close, but Pat Chung's late interception will close the game for a Patriots victory 31-27. With his tremendous play, Chung will bring home the Super Bowl MVP award.