NFL News: 2004 Playoffs: NFC Wild Card Games: Vikings v. Packers, Rams v. Seahawks

NFL Playoffs Begin:
The NFC Wild Card Games
By: Keith Dobkowski, NFL News Writer
January 4, 2005

The regular season is finally out of the way and the stars are back
and playing again. No more discussion of Peyton Manning,
Michael Vick, Donovan McNabb or Tom Brady sitting out. It’s truly
the most wonderful time of the year.

While most believe that the Super Bowl Champion won’t be
playing this weekend, that belief may be a bit far fetched. Each of
the eight teams that suit up this weekend offers a formidable
challenge and each of the four bye-week teams has a clear
weakness.

In the NFC the road to the Super Bowl is wide open as the
Philadelphia Eagles are without star Terrell Owens and the
Atlanta Falcons are one hit to Michael Vick away from mediocrity.
Here is a look at the NFC match-ups.

St. Louis Rams at Seattle Seahawks

Rams: The Rams are the most confusing team in the NFL this
season. And all the confusion comes directly from their coach Mike
Martz. Martz is a very creative and smart offensive coordinator
that has yet to fully understand head coaching. Martz seems
more concerned with the fantastic play and the media then he
does in winning games. When the media challenged that the
Rams could not win running, Martz had the team run to victory.
When the media suggested that Martz run first and pass second,
he decided to pass only and the Rams lost. Knowing what team
will show up on Saturday is anyone’s guess.

If Martz has the Rams playing smart they are still a very
dangerous team. Mark Bulger is a very dangerous quarterback
with big play Tory Holt as his main weapon. Stephen Jackson now
carries the load at running back, while Marshall Faulk is a proven
leader and third down threat.

The Rams defense has not been the same since Lovie Smith
moved on to the Chicago Bears. The front seven for the Rams
have problems stopping the run and thus will force the offense to
score quick and early to abort the Seahawks rushing attack.

Seahawks: The Seahawks were a preseason pick by most
experts to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. Instead the
Seahawks were lucky to even make the playoffs, let alone land
home field advantage the first weekend. The Seahawks started
the season 3-0 and all looked ahead to their meeting with the
defending champion New England Patriots as a preview of the
Super Bowl. That was bit premature as the Seahawks won only 6
of their remaining 13 games.

The Seahawks are led by underachieving Matt Hasslebeck, whose
giant leap forward last season was slowed down this season for
several reasons. Most of all Hasslebeck’s receiving core was on
the fritz for most of the year to such an extent that mid-season
acquisition Jerry Rice became the Seahawks most productive
receiver down the stretch.

Expect the Seahawks to run first and pass second. Running back
Shaun Alexander had another great season falling just one yard
short of the NFL rushing title. The more carries Alexander gets as
he attacks the Rams’ weak front seven, the better off the
Seahawks will be.

The Seahawks defense lacks a true pass rush with the injury to
Grant Winstrom. With the Rams air attack forces all-pro Marcus
Trufant to have shutdown game to stop the Rams from piling on
the points.

Pick: Both teams may be fighting for their Coaches job. Mike
Holmgren is definitely on a hotter seat. With the Seahawks 17
point collapse in Seattle to the Rams earlier this season the
motivation will definitely be high. Whoever scores first will win
this game. If it’s the Rams, the Seahawks will be forced to pass.
And if it is the Seahawks, Alexander will continue rushing. So
when in doubt always choose home field advantage and
therefore the Seahawks to win this one.

Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers

Vikings: Once again the Viking started hot and cooled down late,
losing six of their last nine, to gain a backdoor entry to the
playoffs. And the Vikings did it with a controversy brewing as
well. This time it is not coach Mike Tice and the other places he
would like to coach, but rather bad boy Randy Moss. For no good
reason, injury or otherwise, Moss left the field early in the Vikings
last game loss.

Five games into the season the quarterback talk was all about
Daunte Culpepper and not Peyton Manning. Then Moss got hurt
and Culpepper and Vikings stopped winning. With Moss back and
at full strength the Vikings hopes rest with Moss playing every
play at 100%. Moss has a history of taking plays off, not blocking
downfield and not running dummy routes. If Moss continues this
path, the Vikings will certainly lose.

The Vikings defense is their biggest weakness. Their linebackers
are often out of position and give up big plays early. This leads to
early deficits and forces the offense to bench their game plan and
rely solely upon the pass.

Packers: The Packers have been a mystery this year. They had
a lot of preseason hype including Brett Favre Super Bowl
prediction. Yet they started the season by losing often at home.
The Packers have always defended the home field well and we
are all familiar with their ability to win in the cold.

The offense has scored this year behind the passing and
leadership of Favre and the rushing attack of Ahman Green.
Favre has more playoff experience than any other quarterback in
the postseason and has a knack for shining when the spotlight is
brightest. Against the Vikings, the Packers will have to score and
score often.

The defense, specifically the pass defense, has been the Packers
weakness. They give up a lot of points and force the Packer
offense to score regularly. The Packers cornerbacks have been
called often for defensive penalties. The rumor that referees will
back off the five-yard defensive contact call during the playoffs will
benefit the Packers greatly.

Pick: The Packers are playing at home with a winter storm hitting
the Mid-west. This plays into Packers hands as they have only
lost once in over 30 games when the temperature is below
freezing. Of course the one loss was two years ago in the
playoffs to a very young Michael Vick and the Falcons. That was
an aberration and the Packers should easily defeat the slumping
Vikings.