Benji's Championship Round Picks

Jets @ Colts: I may have only picked 1 out of 8 games correctly so far, however, that 1 team that I happened to be right on is the Colts, who I predicted to go all the way. Now of course, to be honest, I would never take the Jets regardless of who they were playing, but this time, I'm taking the Colts to win, not the Jets to lose. I'll admit that despite how incredible lucky they've been (kickers are 0-5 on field-goal attempts against the Jets this postseason, among several other factors), the Jets have had a very impressive run. But, that run will end tomorrow in Indianapolis. If there is 1 QB in the league who will be able to read and handle the Jets defense, it's undoubtedly Peyton Manning. Not to mention, just like the Jets had severe matchup problems last week with Antonio Gates, I'm very anxious to see who tries to cover Dallas Clark. Wait, don't forget about Reggie Wayne, Austin Collie, or Pierre Garcon either. That's right, the Colts have even more weapons than the Chargers did. On the other side of the ball, Indy has the fastest defense in the league, hands down. This time I'm positive that Mark Sanchez will actually have to step up and make plays to keep the Jets in the game. Against a defense like this, I just don't see that happening. The Colts will be able to contain the run game, forcing Sanchez to pass far more than Rex Ryan is comfortable with, in effect, leading to massive mistakes. It's been fun, but it's finally time for Rex Ryan to start his offseason conditioning program.

Vikings @ Saints: Similar to the Jets scenario, it would pain me to ever pick Brett Favre to win a game, however, that's not why I think the Vikings will lose. I think the Saints will win this game. They may have had that hiccup at the end of the regular season, but when they're clicking, this team is unstoppable, especially at home. All of my concerns that they may be sloppy from not having played in so long were erased last week when they hung a 45 spot on Arizona. The Vikings do have a great defense, but the Saints have an elite offense. Not to mention, the Vikings specialize in the stopping the run, while the Saints specialize in torching defenses through the air. In addition, by the looks of how Reggie Bush was ballin' last week, and with the Vikings being without MLB EJ Henderson, I'm not sure if they can contain Bush. All it takes is 1 big play, which can happen any time that guy touches the ball. Favre may have been great last week, but the Saints secondary will be more formidable than the Cowboys', despite how well they'd been playing. New Orleans corners will bump receivers, particularly Sydney Rice, at the line of scrimmage, and force them out of their comfort zone. You also gotta love having a guy like Darren Sharper playing centerfield for you, especially considering he played with Favre in Green Bay, and should be able to read him like a book. Oh yeah, and what if Percy Harvin can't play (suffering from migraine headaches)? And even if he does, will he be close to 100%? Highly doubtful. Of course you always need to consider AP, but I'm confident the Saints can limit his effectiveness in the beginning of the game, get ahead, then force the Vikings to mainly go to the air for the rest of the game. That will spell trouble for Minnesota. That being said, I'm going with the team the Saints. It's only appropriate that the teams who started 13-0 and 14-0 meet on the grandest stage of them all. Just as Rex Ryan is going to be starting his conditioning program, Brett Favre will now be able to get back to his Wrangler Jeans commercials, the most horrendous commercials ever.