NFL Picks: Divisional Round

by RENALDO DORSETT and SANNIE BROWN

Renaldo: 151-104-1, .589

Sannie: 151-104-1, .589

Renaldo: 3-1 (.750)

Sannie: 3-1 (.750)

The “It’s Amazing Someone Botched This Bigger Than Me” Award presented by the Referee Crew from the Cowboys/Lions Game  – Jim Caldwell.

If he doesn’t believe his team can gain one yard with the season on the line, he should just retire.

The “You Had One Job” Award presented by the Referee Crew from the Cowboys/Lions Game   – Cardinals Punter Drew Butler. He then proceeded to kick nine punts for a career-low average of 34.8 yards per punt. The Panthers returned eight punts and of those eight, their starting field position was about the 44-yard-line. Carolina scored 17 of its 27 points off Butler’s punts.

The “Mr Magoo” Award presented by the Referee Crew from the Cowboys/Lions Game  – The Referee Crew from the Cowboys/Lions Game. Even Mr. Magoo never had to apologise and admit he has wrong in a public forum. Just embarrassing.

Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers

SANNIE: My first thought was to choose the Cowboys because Beyonce is  from Texas and well, she is everything. But I can not go against Clay Mathews, my favorite show, Sons of Anarachy – which I am convinced he cameo-ed in – is finished , done, no more. So in honour of the Sons, I choose the Packers.

I listen to whatever Aaron Rodgers tell me. We all should. I panicked about the early season struggles and he said to relax, he talked about the benefits of dating a fake reporter and I had to follow suit. So if Aaron Rodgers says his health is not an issue coming into this game – I believe him.

Another thing he said, the Packers are hungier this year.

After home playoff losses in two of last three years, they’ll have to be hungry to buck that trend against the Cowboys, the best road team in all of football this year.

Not only are they America’s team, but they’re apparently the referee’s team as well.

The Packers have 20 players left from the team that won Super Bowl XLV but that doesn’t include key contributors like Eddie Lacy, Randall Cobb and Julius Peppers.

The Cowboys may lack star power on defence but have a legitimate two MVP candidates in the backfield in Romo and DeMarco Murray, not to mention Dez Bryant who went for  11 catches and 153 yards when the teams met last season.

Rodgers wasnt on the field in latest reports as the Packers began practice Thursday which caused around the clock coverage as Matt Flynn and Scott Tolzien took all the first and second team reps.

Is Aaron Rodgers’ calf now the most important calf in calf history. Has one seemingly insequential body part ever been placed under this much scrutiny? The fate of the entire NFL rests on this one calf.

Carolina Panthers at Seattle Seahawks

SANNIE: That smile. Cam Newton’s smile should be packaged and sold to lonely women everywhere. He could brighten anyday!

He’re why we won’t see that smile this weekend – Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, Earl Thomas and Byron Maxwell.

Cam Newton is a dual threat quarterback who can control the game both with his arm and his legs, one of the league’s transcendent stars, a dynamic talent. Here’s the thing – everything he does well…Rusell Wilson does it better.

Cam also has to go against the NFL’s top ranked pass defense which finished the season with 13 interceptions.

Last week’s win against the QB-less Cardinals shouldn’t do much for Cam’s smile when he realizes he faces that vaunted pass defence, the third ranked run defence and an offence that’s third in rushing.

Did I mention they have to win on the road in Seattle?

As if the Panthers didn’t have enough to worry about playing a much more superior team, head coach Ron Rivera has been understandably distracted after his house burned down Monday morning.

After this week, the Panthers can finally stop paying Greg Hardy to sit at home and do nothing – presumably with his ridiculous face paint pattern fully intact.

Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots

SANNIE: Tom Brady is married to Giselle. One of the most beautiful women in the world and an original Victoria Secret model. He has to win something.

Fun fact: Brady won all of his Super Bowls pre-Giselle marriage. If we always go to the numbers with Brady and Manning…shouldn’t we do the same with this matchup. Brady has an overrated postseason clutch factor, it actually seems like Flacco takes it up a notch. Since 2008, Flacco’s postseason record is 10-4 and Brady is 4-5; Flacco has more postseason road wins with seven to Brady’s zero; Flacco has a winning percentage of .714 while Brady’s is .444; and Flacco has six passer rating games over 100 while Brady has just two. In head to head playoff matchups, Flacco has a 2-1 edge in wins, has thrown more touchdows 5-3, less interceptions (3-7) and a better quarterback rating (89.5-56.8). Despite all that emperical evidence, Brady almost completely won me over with one quote when he was asked about the frigid temperatures expected in Foxboro this weekend – “I’m a (expletive) machine.”

Indianapolis Colts at Denver Broncos

I’ve never seen this many people forced to defend Peyton Manning. Wait, yes we have, in 2011. It’s ridiculous that John Fox having to defend Manning all week in press conferences because of this amazing fall-off he’s suffered this year. In the greatest fall-off season of all-time this awful quarterback threw for 4727 yards, 39 touchdowns, 15 interceptions and a passer rating of 101.5. Horrible. Anointing the next great one has become so commonplace that we fail to realise that these old guys can still dominate.

If Andrew Luck is going to make the leap, this is his moment.  We know he throws for tons of yards and tons of touchdowns, but to escape the shadow of his predecessor he’ll have to get it done in the playoffs. It only makes sense for that path to go through Manning.

One thing is for certain we have no idea what’s going to happen with both of these running back by committee situations. Infact both of these teams combine to use almost as many running backs as the Cardinals do by half-time.

Will the corpse of Julius Thomas make an appearance? Will TY Hilton hold onto passes? Will Andrew Luck shave?

SANNIE: I know Peyton Manning is supposed to be great because I keep hearing his name come up in football conversations but Andrew Luck and his terrible beard has my vote. Any man that can look that bad and still be happy must be something special.