After two rounds, my record is a scintillating 7-1, with Cincy’s meltdown the only game marring my stellar postseason record. It’s nice to know that, with only two weeks left for my “Best Picks” column, I’ll be retiring with a winning record.

We have a great slate of games this week, with the top two seeds facing off in both conferences for the first time in over a decade. This is how it’s supposed to be, folks, so enjoy the games.
 


New England Patriots at Denver Broncos

When these two teams met earlier this season, it was a matchup between two top defences, and one clearly superior offence. True to form, New England seemed to have the game in hand, until the contest turned into one of those “domino” games where a couple of unexpected things happen, and the ripple effect turns everything topsy-turvy. In this case, a little injured Gronk here, and a little muffed punt there, and the next thing you know, Denver steals the win. So, here we are again. The offences are basically the same, with the Pats clearly superior. The defences are banged-up, but still pretty top-notch. I feel the same way about this game as I did the previous one, that the Patriots should win. Beware the dominoes, though. Winner: Patriots
 


Arizona Cardinals at Carolina Panthers

Confession: I’m rooting for the Cards in this one. I mean, with Carson Palmer, Bruce Arians, and especially Larry Fitzgerald involved, what’s not to love? I’d really like to pick them to move on to the big game, but I just can’t. The Carolina defence is deep and talented, and more to the point, it makes big plays. And as for Cam Newton, he just looks like the difference-maker that smart fans always knew he would be. Winner: Panthers

So, I went 2-0 on my picks for Saturday, running my playoff record thus far to 5-1, and I won on an all-Pack/Cards ProLine, thanks to Arizona’s overtime cover and a bunch of prop bets. It was a good day. I feel like I’m playing with house money now.


 
Seattle Seahawks at Carolina Panthers

Two top defences. Two do-it-all QBs. A close matchup, and a tough pick. I think that Russell Wilson is more susceptible to being contained, whereas Cam Newton has looked like an unstoppable force of nature for most of the season. And if that’s not enough, Marshawn Lynch is expected to play in this one, and as strange as it might seem, Wilson, and the Seahawks’ offence, have played better in his absence. Winner: Panthers
 


Pittsburgh Steelers at Denver Broncos

Simply put, Pittsburgh is extremely lucky to even be here, and even if they were fully healthy I would have a hard time picking them to win against Denver’s top-tier defence. With Big Ben banged-up, and Antonio Brown out, I don’t think they have a chance. Winner: Broncos

Wild Card Round: 3-1
 
Special thanks to the idiots (and there were a lot of them) in the Steelers/Bengals game for spoiling my chance at a 4-0 weekend last week. The less said about that, the better. In fact, let’s not dwell on the past at all.


Saturday


Kansas City Chiefs at New England Patriots

KC crushed the Texans last week, but that was mostly due to a historically awful game by Houston QB Brian Hoyer (So bad, in fact, that I have to wonder if any team will EVER allow Hoyer to be anything but a backup again). Tom Brady is many things, but a Hoyer he ain’t. The Pats’ defence is more than capable of shutting down the Chiefs’ offence, so the game will be decided by how well New England’s offence performs. With the injuries to Edelman, Gronkowski, and the Pats’ OL, there are a lot of “ifs” that must be making New England’s fans sweat. If you believe that Edelman and Gronkowski will be effective, then the game should be a lock for the Patriots. I do, and it will. Winner: Patriots


 
Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals

There’s been an awful lot of talk this week about “the resurgent Packers” after the team’s decisive win in Landover last week. Yes, I picked Green Bay to beat Washington, and no, I’m not buying in to the hype. Aaron Rodgers was able to find a good groove last week because Washington’s defence isn’t that good. Arizona’s defence IS good, very good, and that combined with the Cards’ offensive potency will ensure that this game will not be very competitive. Sorry, sports fans. Winner: Cardinals 

So, Saturday’s games are finished, and they certainly were interesting. Two teams lost in horrific fashion; the Texans were never in their game, thanks to a five-turnover performance by Brian Hoyer, while the Bengals staged a dramatic fourth-quarter comeback, and had their game seemingly wrapped up before losing in epically ridiculous fashion. Honestly, I can’t decide which is worse, but ultimately, how you lose in the playoffs doesn’t matter. A loss is a loss.

Anyway, I’m on to Sunday.


Sunday

 
Seattle Seahawks at Minnesota Vikings

The extreme cold expected for this game makes for a real x-factor when trying to determine the outcome. So much of what the Seahawks do on offence depends on Russell Wilson’s ability to move around and make plays in the passing game while on the move. As good as Minnesota’s defence is, I don’t think that they have the pass rush to nullify Wilson, so it will be up to Seattle’s receivers to make plays despite the cold. The Seahawks will sell out to stop Adrian Peterson, so it’ll be up to Teddy Bridgewater to win it for the Vikings. I don’t think he’s up to it. Winner: Seahawks


 
Green Bay Packers at Washington

This is the toughest pick of the weekend for me. Simply put, the Packers are doomed due to the fact that their receivers, in the absence of injured Jordy Nelson, have not been able to rise to the occasion. James Jones plays well in spurts, but Randall Cobb, and especially Davante Adams, have been massive disappointments this year. The result has been a Green Bay offence that can be shut down by good defences, something that Aaron Rodgers has never experienced before in the pros. Now, here’s the swerve; I think that the Green Bay defence is just good enough, and the Washington defence just suspect enough, to allow Rodgers to work a little magic and pull out a miracle. It’ll be the last one, though, as the Packers will get slaughtered by either of the top two seeds in the NFC. Winner: Packers

It’s Wild Card Weekend, and, as befits the designation, I’ve been driving myself wild trying to guess what the outcomes of these close matchups will be. I have no trouble saying that 4-0, 0-4, or anything in between could be in play for me this weekend. So, I’ll dispense with the preliminaries and dive right in with my Saturday picks.
 

Saturday


Kansas City Chiefs at Houston Texans

Here, we have two teams that win with defence, and with just enough offence thrown in to squeeze out victories. The Texans will have the best player on the field on both offence (DeAndre Hopkins) and defence (goes without saying), and in a closely-matched game like this, that might be enough to sway me. Not this time, though. I think that the KC offence is deeper than Houston’s; Alex Smith has a recent history of strong playoff performances, and the running game is significantly better. That little extra edge on offence should be enough swing the balance. Winner: Chiefs


 
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals

A few weeks back, when the Pro Bowl QBs were announced (I know, who cares, but stay with me here), I remember reading something somewhere to the effect of “too bad for Andy Dalton… he had a great year, but who would you take off the roster to include Dalton?” At that time, I remember thinking, “How about Roethlisberger?” I mean, at that point, he’d barely played half a season, owing to his missing four games with an injury (not to mention how the league inexplicably picks its Pro Bowl rosters before the season is even over), and his numbers were nowhere near as good as Dalton’s despite playing in a pass-heavy offence. Since that time, Big Ben has played just well enough to win, lose to the Ravens, and barely beat the Browns, contributing 6 INTs in his last three games, to run his season total to 16 picks in 12 games. There’s been a lot of talk about how dangerous the Steelers’ offence is, and it certainly is explosive, but Cincy’s deep and balanced attack is no slouch either, even without Dalton. I think that with the strength of the Bengals’ defensive front, featuring the spectacular Geno Atkins, coupled with the absence of Steelers’ RB DeAngelo Williams, Roethlisberger is in for a rough night. It’ll be close, but as long as AJ McCarron plays mistake-free football, the better team will prevail. Winner: Bengals

Last Week: 11-5

Season: 148-92
 
So, after a busy week, I was ready to sit down and write my final regular season picks column. Then, my wife and I started watching “Making a Murderer,” on Netflix. It was riveting; we ended up watching the whole thing, without stopping. Somehow, this seems like a fitting end to strange season.

Sunday’s games are below. My picks are in bold.
 
Jets at Bills

Patriots at Dolphins

Saints at Falcons

Lions at Bears

Eagles at Giants

Cowboys at Home Team

Titans at Colts

Ravens at Bengals

Steelers at Browns

Jaguars at Texans

Raiders at Chiefs

Chargers at Broncos

Buccaneers at Panthers

Seahawks at Cardinals

Rams at 49ers

Vikings at Packers
 

Now, bring on the playoffs already!