What a wild weekend the divisional round of the playoffs has been. The incoming Super Bowl favorite Patriots were knocked out by the smash-mouthed Jets. While the other number one seed Atlanta fell to the extremely hot Packers at home. Unsurprisingly, the Bears convincingly outscored the Seahawks at home. Lastly, Big Ben Roethlisberger appeared in the dying moments of the game to dismantle a great effort by the tough Ravens. As stunning as the Packers are right now, it’s hard to watch them go down against the Bears, but we all know the saying, “just any Sunday.” Not many people expected the AFC Championship game to be played without the Patriots, but it’s going to be a great show between the Jets and Steelers.
AFC Championship Game:
Let’s start with the home team, the Pittsburgh Steelers. After losing 21-7 in the first half to the Ravens at home last Saturday, it looked like the Steelers’ offensive line had finally been exposed and they were headed for an early playoff exit. Little did we know that in the second half, the traditional Steelers defense would step up and send the Raven offense cold as the weather was. The entire team rose to the challenge as he climbed on the shoulders of Big Ben for the ultimate ride and eventual victory. Now to next week with their matchup against the Jets. We all know the offensive line is soft, but with Roethlisberger’s superb play they are ALWAYS in the game because he can perform in the most difficult situations possible. With Troy Polamalu back at safety, cradling the Steelers D, it’s hard to imagine them giving big plays to the Jets. Look for them to harass Mark Sanchez and kill off the Jets’ efficient running game.
Now as far as the Jets go, they are coming off two big wins against arguably the two best quarterbacks in the league. Starting with the wild-card round, Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez has shown no signs of the infamous sophomore slump. He continues to develop at the right times and is running the offense better than ever with all the offensive weapons he has to play with. Who doesn’t know that the Jets’ defense is good? But it seems they are getting better and better. Stopping Tom Brady and the seventh-highest scoring offense in NFL history last Sunday was no easy feat. Not only did they hold the Patriots to 21 points in the game, New England had no more than 3 points at halftime. Pittsburgh certainly isn’t an offensive machine, so we know this battle will be won in the trenches. It bears mentioning here that the Jets already gave the Steelers a loss at Heinz Field, so the game can really go either way.
With the Steelers at home and Ben Roethlisberger’s game clincher, I don’t see how the Jets pull off this win. Steelers will represent the AFC in the 2011 Super Bowl.