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They should call this weekend rematch weekend. Not only has every match-up happened at least once before this season, but three of the games occurred just last weekend. Both NFC games are rematches of last weekend and both were very big blowouts. How much weight should we put into this? Who knows, anyone that reads this site knows I blow at predictions. Nonetheless, let’s break down some key stuff for each NFC match-up.

Packers at Cardinals

So get this…for weeks I have told everyone how much I do not like this Packers team, how they are simply a product of a ridiculously easy schedule. I hate to turn on that opinion, so I won’t (just being stubborn). The Packers to me are still a flawed team that has played an easy schedule. I will give them credit for winning those games, and recently they have beaten bad teams “properly.” What do I mean by that? Well it’s one thing to beat the Seahawks, but they are one of the worst teams in the league, you should beat them by 20+. That is exactly what the Packers did, beating the Seahawks by 38 points two weeks ago.

Since their week 9 loss to the lowly Bucs the Packers have gone 7-1 with an average scoring differential of +15. That is pretty good. So why don’t I believe in them? I don’t trust their defense or their mental toughness. Aaron Rodgers has improved big time from the beginning of the season, but it is rare a QB who has never been in a big game to suddenly play well when it matters. Furthermore their running game can be suspect.

Defensively they have allowed some huge games to opponents. The Steelers game has to come to mind where they allowed Really Big Ben pass for 5 football fields (500+ yards). Charles Woodson will be matched up one on one with Larry Fitzgerald. I called Woodson a fraud candidate for DPOY and I think Fitz will win this head to head battle.

The Packers rank extremely high against the pass and the run but look at the teams they have played.

Bad at Passing and Rushing:

Bears (twice), Lions (twice), Rams, Seahawks, Browns, Bucs, Helmets

One Dimensional:

49ers, Ravens, Bengals (check Palmer’s stats, they are bad)

Their defensive statistics might be a little bit skewed if you ask me.

As for the Cardinals they lost to the Packers by 26 points last week and yet I like them in this game. They had nothing to play for last week and played like that (resting Warner and other starters). If this team has proven anything it is that they do not carry any momentum from week to week, whether that be good or bad momentum.

Here is a breakdown of their season:

Loss, Win, Loss, Win, Win, Win, Loss, Win, Win, Win, Loss, Win, Loss, Win, Win, Loss

Lots of back and forth in there, furthermore they did not build on either big wins or bad losses. This team defines unpredictable, but it almost in a predictable way. If they play bad one week, they play well the next. And if they play well expect a let down. Their two three game win streaks were against 6 non-playoff teams. So basically who knows with these guys.

Anquan Boldin looks like he is banged up, but when isn’t he at least a little hurt. Hurt or not he is dangerous in the game, and has some ridiculous hands…check out this footage from SuperBowl warm-ups last year…

Also how can you count this team out when they have Larry Fitz. The guy put together the greatest postseason ever by a WR last year. Does anyone doubt if he can do it again?

Top Match-up:

Fitzgerald vs. Woodson

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Eagles at Cowboys

Unlike the Cardinals, the Eagles came into last weekends game with the Cowboys with something to play for. If they won they could have home field advantage in this game. Instead they got destroyed by the Cowboys. This is the second win for the Cowboys over the Eagles this year. I usually trumpet the opinion that beating a team three times in a season is extremely difficult to do. In recent history we have seen the Steelers beat the Ravens three times in a season and the Pats beat the Jets. So this might be an outdated theory.

Eagle fans though should not worry about playing on the road in this game. The last two years at least two road teams have won games on Wild Card weekend. Last season the Eagles were one of those teams beating the Vikings on the road. Then again the Vikings had Tarvaris Jackson as QB. Last year he had this wonderful INT to Asante Samuel and got jacked up in the process…

Ok so enough about a guy who wont play in this game. The Cowboys are playing arguably the best football of anyone (outside maybe the Chargers) right now. Remember when they couldn’t win in December? Those days are gone and they have three big wins in a row.

Their defense is led by one of the great underrated players in this league. DeMarcus Ware? Nope. Terrence Newman? Nope. The answer is Jay Ratliff. He is one of the most disruptive defensive tackles in the league today. He is both stout against the run and effective as a pass rusher. He is so athletic in fact that he can even drop into some coverage for really exotic blitzes. Look for his screaming celebration a lot this weekend…

If the Cowboys win it will be Tony Romo’s first career playoff win. His play in December has been outstanding. He helped carry my fantasy team to the finals, where I lost (let’s not talk about that). If Romo keeps up his recent work and the Cowboys lose it won’t be his fault.

Bottom-line is this game is going to come down to whether or not the Eagles can hit the big play. My buddy Doug asked me recently if I thought Desean Jackson was a top 5 WR in this league. Interesting question. We both agreed that he definitely has the stats to be in the argument. But his stats almost all come from the big play. I mentioned Larry Fitz, Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne, Randy Moss, Steve Smith, even Brandon Marshall as more complete WRs. Think of it like this. Wes Welker is the best slot/short yard WR in the game. Desean Jackson might be the best big play WR in the game. But neither has the combination of both to be considered the best of the best when it comes to complete WR. (although Welker was coming on strong until well…nevermind). I would not discount Jackson though, any man who has moves like this has to be paid attention to…

Top Match-up:

Desean Jackson vs. Cowboys Secondary (Terrence Newman)

vs.

That is all for the mini preview today. I want to leave everyone with something that might become a new part of each blog entry…With the NFL Draft only a couple months away I feel the need to enlighten some people on a prospect every time I post. Sometimes the prospect will be obvious other times he might be lesser known. I will probably just post a youtube highlight clip made by someone else, but I will also let you know if I “like” the guy, or think he is going to be a bust (meaning bad, no one knows where everyone will be drafted yet).

Up first the likely first pick in the draft. The guy has a name that is almost as difficult to say as it is to block him…

Ndamukong Suh

Will he be good?

He is an absolute beast, and manhandles people. No doubt I think he will be a stud, and it’s not like I’m alone, everyone says he will be the top pick.

Highlights:

That all today…

And remember if you don’t know…LutchKnows

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