NFL Playoffs: Divisional Round Recap
NFL Playoffs: Divisional Round Recap
Home teams have won just one of the last six NFL playoff games, with the Steelers' 35-24 win over the San Diego Chargers that lone triumph. Next up: The NFC and AFC Championships to fill out the XLIII lineup.
Can an NFL team defer its bye week?
Only one of the four home teams in the Divisional Round managed to make it out alive over the weekend. That makes the home side 5-7 SU and 2-10 ATS over the past three years in this round. They must have been inspired by last year's New York Giants, who won all four of their playoff games as underdogs on the way to the championship.
Too bad the Giants couldn't inspire themselves on Sunday. They lost 23-11 to the Philadelphia Eagles (+4) in a rather disappointing game from both clubs. Wind gusts didn't help either quarterback, as Eli Manning and Donovan McNabb each threw two interceptions. But the Eagles were still able to find the end zone twice, while the Giants failed to score a single touchdown despite five trips inside the Philadelphia 20-yard line.
Some Philly fans are already planning their Super Bowl parties – the opponents for the NFC title will be the Arizona Cardinals, who steamrolled the Carolina Panthers 33-13 to cash in as 10-point road dogs. But this is a dangerous-looking Cardinals team; the defense showed up in spades on Saturday, forcing six turnovers (five picks, one fumble) from QB Jake Delhomme and keeping WR Steve Smith at bay until the final minute.
Arizona kept things humming on offense with 43 carries split between Edgerrin James (57 yards) and Tim Hightower (76 yards). That opened up the field for QB Kurt Warner to find WR Larry Fitzgerald eight times for 166 yards and a major. The Eagles have a much better run defense than Carolina, though, and better still than the Atlanta Falcons team that lost to Arizona in the Wild-Card Round. The betting odds have Philadelphia pegged as a deserving 3-point road favorite against the Cardinals this Sunday with a total of 48.
The AFC Championship Round game is the third meeting of the season between the Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Baltimore (+3) punched its ticket by upsetting the Tennessee Titans 13-10. The Titans actually dominated their Divisional matchup with 391 yards of offense to Baltimore's 211, but Tennessee fumbled the ball away twice inside the Ravens 20, and Kerry Collins also had a pass intercepted in the red zone. Joe Flacco, on the other hand, was pick-free for the fourth game in a row.
That's usually the way the Steelers end up winning games, too. But on Sunday, it was mainly about the offense in a 35-24 triumph over the San Diego Chargers (+6.5). Willie Parker stampeded San Diego for 146 yards on 27 carries with a pair of TDs, and Ben Roethlisberger only suffered one sack on the day as the Chargers were unable to generate any turnovers. The Steelers defense held Darren Sproles to 15 yards rushing on 11 carries and sacked Philip Rivers four times with one pick to keep the Bolts offense at bay.
San Diego's defense ultimately couldn't make up for the injuries it suffered this year, particularly to linebacker and noted sack machine Shawne Merriman. The Steelers will get a much tougher test from the Ravens. Pittsburgh and Baltimore have the two best defenses in the league according to efficiency, and the Ravens have the superior power running game. Nevertheless, the Steelers are 5-point favorites at home with a total of 33. Pittsburgh won both its contests with Baltimore during the regular season, splitting the cash in the process.
We've now been through two rounds of NFL playoff football. The home team is 3-5 SU and ATS, as are the underdogs. Road teams are 142-115-6 ATS (55.2 percent) on the season with away faves remaining the play of the year at 46-32-2 ATS (60.0 percent). The under went 3-1 in both the Wild-Card and the Divisional rounds to improve to 127-126. In last year's Conference Round, the away team cashed in both games, while the overtime frame between the Giants and Packers allowed the over to split the cash.
Home teams have won just one of the last six NFL playoff games, with the Steelers' 35-24 win over the San Diego Chargers that lone triumph. Next up: The NFC and AFC Championships to fill out the XLIII lineup.
Can an NFL team defer its bye week?
Only one of the four home teams in the Divisional Round managed to make it out alive over the weekend. That makes the home side 5-7 SU and 2-10 ATS over the past three years in this round. They must have been inspired by last year's New York Giants, who won all four of their playoff games as underdogs on the way to the championship.
Too bad the Giants couldn't inspire themselves on Sunday. They lost 23-11 to the Philadelphia Eagles (+4) in a rather disappointing game from both clubs. Wind gusts didn't help either quarterback, as Eli Manning and Donovan McNabb each threw two interceptions. But the Eagles were still able to find the end zone twice, while the Giants failed to score a single touchdown despite five trips inside the Philadelphia 20-yard line.
Some Philly fans are already planning their Super Bowl parties – the opponents for the NFC title will be the Arizona Cardinals, who steamrolled the Carolina Panthers 33-13 to cash in as 10-point road dogs. But this is a dangerous-looking Cardinals team; the defense showed up in spades on Saturday, forcing six turnovers (five picks, one fumble) from QB Jake Delhomme and keeping WR Steve Smith at bay until the final minute.
Arizona kept things humming on offense with 43 carries split between Edgerrin James (57 yards) and Tim Hightower (76 yards). That opened up the field for QB Kurt Warner to find WR Larry Fitzgerald eight times for 166 yards and a major. The Eagles have a much better run defense than Carolina, though, and better still than the Atlanta Falcons team that lost to Arizona in the Wild-Card Round. The betting odds have Philadelphia pegged as a deserving 3-point road favorite against the Cardinals this Sunday with a total of 48.
The AFC Championship Round game is the third meeting of the season between the Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Baltimore (+3) punched its ticket by upsetting the Tennessee Titans 13-10. The Titans actually dominated their Divisional matchup with 391 yards of offense to Baltimore's 211, but Tennessee fumbled the ball away twice inside the Ravens 20, and Kerry Collins also had a pass intercepted in the red zone. Joe Flacco, on the other hand, was pick-free for the fourth game in a row.
That's usually the way the Steelers end up winning games, too. But on Sunday, it was mainly about the offense in a 35-24 triumph over the San Diego Chargers (+6.5). Willie Parker stampeded San Diego for 146 yards on 27 carries with a pair of TDs, and Ben Roethlisberger only suffered one sack on the day as the Chargers were unable to generate any turnovers. The Steelers defense held Darren Sproles to 15 yards rushing on 11 carries and sacked Philip Rivers four times with one pick to keep the Bolts offense at bay.
San Diego's defense ultimately couldn't make up for the injuries it suffered this year, particularly to linebacker and noted sack machine Shawne Merriman. The Steelers will get a much tougher test from the Ravens. Pittsburgh and Baltimore have the two best defenses in the league according to efficiency, and the Ravens have the superior power running game. Nevertheless, the Steelers are 5-point favorites at home with a total of 33. Pittsburgh won both its contests with Baltimore during the regular season, splitting the cash in the process.
We've now been through two rounds of NFL playoff football. The home team is 3-5 SU and ATS, as are the underdogs. Road teams are 142-115-6 ATS (55.2 percent) on the season with away faves remaining the play of the year at 46-32-2 ATS (60.0 percent). The under went 3-1 in both the Wild-Card and the Divisional rounds to improve to 127-126. In last year's Conference Round, the away team cashed in both games, while the overtime frame between the Giants and Packers allowed the over to split the cash.