Division picks

My picks can also be found on the Sports on the Hill Podcast at the 1 hour 27:15 minute mark.

Seattle @ Atlanta (-6.5) - 

Ryan and Wilson face off for the 2nd time in the postseason they last met in 2013 when Ryan and the Falcons defeated the Seahawks in the division playoff round

The Falcons and the Seahawks played in the regular season in what turned out to be a nail biting 26-24 victory for the Seahawks.  Since then, Seattle's defense has struggled immensely since losing Earl Thomas for the season.  Kyle Shanahan's offense with Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, and Devonta Freeman look to exploit that weakness.    While I have Atlanta winning, it could be a close game given that Seattle has been running the ball well with Thomas Rawls and Atlanta's defense can be exploited given their weak secondary.  

The Steelers defense looks to pressure Alex Smith

Pittsburgh (+1) @ Kansas City -  Pittsburgh matched up well with the Chiefs in a 43-14 blowout in the beginning of the season.  This game should be closer, especially since the Chiefs are coming off a bye and are at home, although that advantage could be diminished since Pittsburgh fans travel well.  This game should favor the Steelers given that they have the superior running game with LeVeon Bell.  While Pittsburgh is not as good defensively as Kansas City, they do present problems for the Chiefs given that quarterback Alex Smith has struggled against the defensive packages that exposes Smith's lack of arm strength.  

 

Osweiler did beat the Patriots when he was with the Broncos in 2015

Houston @ New England (-16) - The Texans lost to the Patriots 27-0 in Week 3 and this game does not look any easier for the road team.  While Houston is looking to make up for a poor performance, the odds may be stacked against them given that it is in a cold weather.  New England will be playing with Tom Brady and Dion Lewis who did not play in Week 3.

Aaron Rodgers is looking to get revenge against the Cowboys after Green Bay lost 30-16 to Dallas  earlier this season

Green Bay (+5) @ Dallas  - While Green Bay's win was impressive against the Giants, they did it largely against a Giants team that had bad turnovers and could not run the ball and had a poor scoring differential.  Still, the Packers are on fire offensively as Aaron Rodgers is completing Hail Mary plays as routine ones.  If Rodgers is sharp, the Packers could expose the Cowboys secondary.  The key of course will be for the Packers to contain Ezekiel Elliot and force Prescott into a few bad decisions.  The Packers also should not forget about Dez Bryant who is looking to get revenge against the Packers after a controversial call that caused the Cowboys to lose to the Packers in 2015 postseason.

Wild Card Picks against the Spread: 2-2
Wild Card Picks Straight Up: 4-0
2016-17 Season: 137-113-7
Straight Up(since week 9): 95-45