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Wild Card Round Game Picks

Who's Gonna Win?



This week will mark the beginning of the playoffs for this season, on the road to win Super Bowl 51. Four team are on a bye - Patriots, Cowboys, Chiefs, and Falcons - while the other eight are playing for four playoff spots in the divisional round. Here are my game picks:

Houston Texans 20 - Oakland Raiders 14:
The quarterback situation for both teams is absolutely terrible in this game. The Texans paid $72 million to Brock Osweiler last offseason, but he has definitely not been worth the money, and has by far been one of the worst quarterbacks of this season. He was even benched for Tom Savage, but is the starter again because Savage got injured. The visiting team, the Raiders, has to start Connor Cook, a rookie, in his first ever start. Derek Carr got injured two weeks ago, and then Matt McGloin got injured last week. We don't know what to expect from both offenses, although I will expect some of the playmakers to help their quarterbacks out. I believe that this game will come down to which defense plays the best. The Texans defense finished the season as the best overall, and I believe that they will get the job done for the Texans.

Seattle Seahawks 28 - Detroit Lions 21:
I do not know what to think of the Seahawks right now. What I do know, is that the Lions are not as good as their record (9-7). They have had one of the weakest schedules of the season, and have had to rely on Matthew Stafford with his late-game magic. They come into the playoffs losing three straight to the Cowboys, Giants, and Packers, who are all playoff teams, and this shows they cannot compete with the premier competition. On the other hand, the Seahawks have one of the most terrible offensive lines in the NFL, and because of this, Wilson is not playing as well. They do not have a running game either. Also, the presence of Earl Thomas is not there in the Legion of Boom. These are all problems that the Seahawks have yet to fix, but it must be understood that the team is 7-1 at home, and 3-4-1 on the road. The 12th man will get them the win at home.

Pittsburgh Steelers 34 - Miami Dolphins 17:
The three B's - Ben, Bell, and Brown - will carry this team past the Dolphins. Le'Veon Bell should be in the MVP conversation and has been one of the top three running backs all season long, and Antonio Brown has been balling all season, doing what his team needs him to do. Ben Roethlisberger has been the one question mark at times, and he has thrown more interceptions this season than he normally does. Also, their defense is playing a lot better as of late. The Dolphins have too many injuries to deal with on both offense and defense. For example, they are missing their quarterback, Ryan Tannehill, and their safety, Reshad Jones. The only way this team will win is if they are able to run the ball effectively with Jay Ajayi. The Dolphins beat the Steelers in the regular season with Ajayi as the catalyst, but I don't think that will happen again. Steelers win.

Green Bay Packers 24 - New York Giants 23:
This is the game to see during Wild Card weekend. One of the top offenses led by Aaron Rodgers against one of the top defenses coupled with offensive firepower from Odell Beckham Jr. This game is quite hard to pick, because I am not sure of what to expect from Eli Manning. He has been off the entire season, but all of us must wait and see to figure out if he will play like he did in 2007 and 2011 when he won two Super Bowls, or the three other postseasons where he lost in the first round. We will find out on Sunday.

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