Wednesday, February 01, 2006

Super-matchup in DeeTroit

Previewing the big game on Sunday. So far for NFL playoffs, I've gone 7-3 ATS, and 8-2 straight up overall, looking to finish strong. Let's roll...

Defense

D-Line: Pittsburgh. The Seahawks are almost as good but the Steelers front four are better. The Steelers are quicker and are the heart of the awesome blitz that took out Indy and Denver.

Linebackers: Pittsburgh. The Seahawks are arguably more athletic and hit harder but much more inexperienced. Troy Porter and James Harrison over Lofa Tatupu and Jamie Sharper.

Secondary: Pittsburgh. The Seahawks are once again talented yet inexperienced. All it takes is one mistake to get burned. Steelers use a lot of Safety blitz with Troy Polamalu.

Offense

O-Line: Seattle. The Seahawks have the best 5 in all of the NFL. Walter Jones is a hall-of-famer, enough said.

Quarterback: Seattle. Ben Roethlisberger plays to not lose the game. Matt Hasselbeck plays to win.

Running Backs: Seattle. Can't go against the MVP of the league in Shaun Alexander. A lot is made of Jerome Bettis, but Willie Parker is the dangerous one.

Receivers: Seattle. Too much skill, speed, and experience with Darrell Jackson, and Joe Jurevicius. Jeremy Stevens is the X-factor at TE for the Seahawks.

Special Teams

Kick/Punt: Seattle. We all know how important it is to have the big game kicker and the Seahawks have it in Josh Brown who has hit some big ones so far this season. Tom Rouen is one of the most experienced punters in the league.

Returners: Pittsburgh
. Antwaan Randle El is a gamebreaker, watch out if he breaks free. Seahawks have issues here as witnessed in the Redskins game.

Coaching: Seattle. Mike Holmgrem has won the big one with Green Bay and as an assistant with San Francisco. Bill Cowher may have a trick play or two up his sleeve but he better not try it here.

As you can see, it's almost a dead heat between both teams when you break it down. The bottom line will come down to whether the Seahawks can handle the Pittsburgh blitz. If they can, the Seahawks will be able to score enough points early and hold on for the win. If they can't, the Steelers will force the turnovers required to come away with it. Given that the Seahawks have had 2 weeks to prepare for this one, I think the Seahawks have a good chance at defeating the blitz. Take the Seahawks and the points.
*Photo from Yahoo!Sports

What's on TV
NHL, Montreal vs Boston, 4:00pm PST on TSN
NHL, Columbus vs Edmonton, 6:00pm PST on Sportsnet West

Picks of the Day
Boston Bruins -160 over Montreal Canadiens
Record YTD (33-40, -1723)

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