An NFC Championship matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers is in line if both teams win out, setting up a rematch of one of the most infamous endings in NFL history.

By Mike Corasaniti

If you’re sick of seeing the picture to your left, then you’re human. Or, you might just be a Packer.

The Sept. 24 ending to the Monday Night Football thriller is not only a shrill reminder of one of the most embarrassing lockouts in all of sports, but also the play that sent Green Bay to their first regular season second loss since 2010. A little long winded, but they don’t like losing.

About 14 weeks later, both teams are two wins away (easier said than done) from a late season matchup with a championship berth on the line. And for the Packers especially, there’s probably nobody else outside of Chicago they’d like to pound than the team that crushed their hearts by the hands of some replacement referees.

How the Packers get there

Green Bay handles the Vikings with ease later today and then beats San Francisco in overtime next weekend. Aaron Rodgers has been playing too well and the Packers are too motivated to bow out early this season, especially after their 2012 early exit.

They gave up way too many yards against Adrian Peterson last week, and between San Francisco and Minnesota, stopping Adrian Peterson could be their toughest challenge in getting to the conference championship. But as long as they keep Purple Jesus to around 100 yards, Green Bay has more than the right stuff to cruise by the Vikings at home and then upset the 49ers.

How the Seahawks get there

The Russell Wilson-Robert Griffin III matchup may be the most exciting one on this seasons slate of divisional matchups, as both players have the opportunity to put up equally as exciting games. Seattle is simply just the better team though, and emotion on the side of the Redskins won’t be enough to get past the Seattle defense.

Getting by Atlanta will obviously be the bigger challenge, but it’s no secret that Atlanta may be the softest No. 1 seed of all time entering the playoffs. Behind Seattle’s stellar run game up against the Falcons mediocre run defense (No. 21 in the league against the run), it could easily be another disappointing exit for Matt Ryan and Atlanta.

Matchup

The toughest challenge for Seattle this postseason will be playing on the road. They’re potent at CenturyLink Field, winning all 8 games at home this season, but they haven’t won an away postseason game since the early 1980s.

This is huge for Green Bay who, historically, is one of the toughest teams in league to see at home in the playoffs. The matchup will lie between Aaron Rodgers and the Seattle pass defense, No. 6 in the league entering this weekends games.

Seattle has a solid opportunity in front of them entering the playoffs, but in this what if matchup, a Green Bay Packers team at home coming off a win over San Francisco would be too much for any team in this field to handle.

Green Bay 23-10

A lot less stands in the way than you might think of a Super Bowl rookie fiesta between Robert Griffin III’s Washington Redskins (10-6) and Andrew Luck’s Indianapolis Colts (11-5).

By Mike Corasaniti

If the NFL has proven anything in recent memory, it’s that anything can happen once the chains in the playoffs start moving.

Take the New York Giants as the league’s most shining example of playoff parity. Two Super Bowl seasons since 2007 now, during which they never won more than ten games and were never higher than the No. 4 seed entering the playoffs

If that’s a great sign for anyone, it’s the Colts and the Redskins.

Both teams have tough roads ahead of them, the toughest stops along the way for the Colts being Denver (who they would most likely see in the divisional round) and for the Redskins being San Francisco (who they would most likely see for the conference championship). But both teams have proved that they are strong enough to beat any team thrown their way at this point (especially the Colt’s first round matchup with Baltimore).

If their season-long success stories are enough to carry these teams through one or two solid upsets each, it’s not impossible to imagine a Washington-Indy matchup come kickoff in New Orleans.

How the Redskins get there

The Redskins run to a division crown was no accident, but they also didn’t get there without a heaping plate of luck. If the Skins plan on making a deep run, their secondary has to stop playing like, well, their secondary[1].

If the likes of DeAngelo Hall and London Fletcher can step up on defense however, all Washington really needs to hope for is a healthy quarterback. Kirk Cousins proved that he is a worthy backup worthy of a starting position somewhere else in 2013, but Griffin’s absence in the lineup takes away the unpredictability and excitement that made Washington’s offense so potent in the second half of the season.

Riding steady defense, Griffin, and Alfred Morris and the league’s strongest run game, the Redskins could be Super.

How the Colts get there

Provided that the Indy offensive line gives Luck enough time to make plays, the rookie quarterback has shown that he can pick apart the best defenses when the game is on the line.

Their rush defense is weak though, very weak, and a strong rusher[2] could quickly end any semblance of a deep run for the Colts. Their pass rush should however be enough to carry them past a hot offense, as Dwight Freeney still hasn’t seemed to lose too much spring from his step.

The matchup

If Griffin takes too hard of a hit at any point in the playoffs, this scenario would be completely different. The Redskins have proved that they aren’t just a one-trick pony, but the team belongs nowhere near a deep playoff run discussion without RG3.

If healthy though, there’s nothing saying the Robert Griffin III doesn’t have what it takes to lead Washington past Indianapolis.

It would not be surprising at all to see a high scoring game out of this matchup, as both defenses have shown their inconsistencies while both offenses have shown the ability to dominate a scoreboard.

If Luck is hot, the Colts could put up 30. But if Griffin is healthy, then it’s Washington’s game to win. Or Lose.

Washington 30-17[3]


[1] The Redskins finished the season ranked No. 30 in opposing passing yards, allowing an average of 281.9 yards per game.
[2] Such as Ray Rice in Indy’s first matchup.
[3] The same score from the team’s August 25 preseason contest.