Rejuvenated McNabb, rested Steelers will meet in Super Bowl
Philadelphia Eagles at Arizona Cardinals
These two teams met on Thanksgiving night in Philadelphia. The Eagles won easily, but I would discount that game.
Arizona was traveling to the East Coast on a short week, and I think that hurt a lot. Also, this is a different Arizona team; the Cardinals have recommitted themselves to the running game, which has helped their play-action passing game and made them a more physical team on both sides of the ball.
|
|
| Getting Brian Westbrook the ball in the open field gives him a chance to make big plays. (US Presswire) |
Of course, Philadelphia has also improved. Donovan McNabb started his late-season surge with a great game against Arizona. Much has been made about whether Andy Reid made the right move in benching McNabb. After studying the Cincinnati game from the week before and the Baltimore game -- in which he got benched -- I completely understand why Reid did it.
McNabb was poor in his decision-making and accuracy. Since then he has played better, though the Eagles have helped him by not dropping as many balls and getting Brian Westbrook more involved. In that Arizona game, the Eagles started off by using Westbrook a lot in the running game and emphasizing the short passing game to get McNabb into a rhythm.
From Arizona's side, one thing that struck me was at the end of the season, Kurt Warner made some statements to the effect that his teammates have to understand there is a different intensity level in the playoffs. When I see Warner interviewed, I can see the look of a person that has extra determination.
It somewhat reminds me of 1982, when John Riggins went in to see Joe Gibbs and told him to give him the ball and put it on his shoulders in the playoffs, because he did not know if he would have this chance again. The rest, of course, is history. Riggins led the Redskins to the championship by setting playoff and Super Bowl rushing records.
Warner has been a league and Super Bowl MVP, and a number of years later was unemployed. He knows there is no guarantee of being in this position again.
This should be an exciting matchup. I believe the Eagles will win in a close game because of their defense. They should be able to stop the run and, with their blitz schemes, put enough pressure on Warner to disrupt him. The secondary will have to do a good job tackling the Cardinals receivers, who are very good at making plays after the catch.
When the Eagles have the ball, they must continue to get Westbrook involved throughout the game. He is an explosive runner who is most dangerous when they can get him the ball in space, such as on screen passes or as a wide receiver. The Eagles do well in pass protection and McNabb also does a good job of getting rid of the ball quickly to avoid getting sacked.
The Cardinals have done a better job of stopping the run and pressuring the quarterback in the playoffs, but I think as long as McNabb continues to move around and keep the ball alive and extend the play, this will cause the Cardinals problems on defense.
Earlier, I talked about Warner's mental attitude going into the playoffs. I have to believe that being benched really hurt McNabb, and since then he has had an extra incentive to play well.
Also, from my experience, when a player is going home to play -- and Arizona is a second home to McNabb -- he will take extra pride in playing well. He also mentioned he wants a new contract; I have to believe that is somewhat of an extra motivation for him, too.
Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers
I know a lot of people say it's hard to beat a team three times in one season, but not if you are the better team and the third game is at home.
I believe the Steelers are the better team for two main reasons: They are better at quarterback, and they are the healthier and more rested team.
|
|
| The health of Samari Rolle and other Baltimore defenders will have an impact on the Ravens. (US Presswire) |
I do think playing last Saturday, which meant the Ravens received an extra day off, and the fact they are facing a very familiar opponent will help. They will not need as much prep time for this game and it is a short trip.
The other factor will be the availability of their injured players: defensive end/linebacker Terrell Suggs, cornerback Samari Rolle, safety Jim Leonhard and right tackle Willie Anderson. As of Sunday, the day after the Tennessee game, all of these players were questionable for the AFC title game.
I think both teams will struggle to run the ball and both will pressure the passer with blitzes. How the offensive lines handle this will go a long way toward deciding the winner. Pittsburgh's line has struggled this season in pass protection, but I think it did a better job Sunday against the Chargers. Also, Ben Roethlisberger is hard to sack because of his size and strength.
Joe Flacco has done a good job of not turning the ball over, and his arm strength has helped him make a couple of big-time throws in the playoffs. I think it would be a lot to ask Flacco to do it again in this game.
As a rookie, Roethlisberger was unbeaten as a starter going into the AFC title game, but then his inexperience seemed to catch up with him and he made some critical mistakes. I think the same thing will happen here with Flacco. The Pittsburgh defense will force him into some mistakes.
The Baltimore defense will be hard to run against and will put pressure on the QB, but you can make big plays against it if you can get some pass protection and withstand the first wave of its rush. There are holes in the coverage, and I think Pittsburgh will make some plays in the passing game because of this.
I like Pittsburgh to win the game.
