Jason Whitlock of Fox Sports wrote a column on Jay that I really don’t agree with that much, but it’s an interesting perspective. I’ve thought about Jay’s actions last Sunday and this season, and realize, like my nephew said, he is not an emotional, rah-rah type guy. But he needs to reach out more to the media and the fans even though his personality is intense and private. He still has a chance to be a great quarterback in this league and his off field demeanor wouldn’t matter as much then, though I still think he needs to try a little harder to display a better public image.
He has the mentality more like a linebacker. He’s tough and he’s a competitor–he loves the game in my opinion there is no doubt–but he needs to really get in his conditioning, get on the practice field this Spring throwing to his receivers and he needs to get in the film room and study to get better; to prove all his critics wrong. There are a lot of them. Like them, I’ll believe it when I see it. He’s got the talent; he just needs to apply himself to his trade 100 percent this coming year. He needs to be all in. The Bears have a chance again next year to win it all– if there is a next year– so Jay has a great opportunity. I hope he can take advantage of it. A lot of people in the Bears organization are counting on him. He needs to show up and produce.

Rick Reilly was hard on Jay in his column on ESPN. com. He called Jay pretty much a jerk. I was pretty upset when I read it, but now I understand, Jay has a lot of proving to do. He needs to start with his attitude. If he can get that going and work his tail off, he could have a highly successful career.

Jason Whitlock column on Jay Cutler:

Both teams hauling outstanding classes as has been the case since Nick Saban has been at Alabama and Gene Chizik has established at Auburn. Signing day next Wed., Feb. 3.
Here’s a look at who’s left for Alabama and what they’ve got:

Tider Insider recruiting story:

Here’s what happened today for Auburn.

Auburn recent commit:

Here is a look at both classes along with the team rankings according to Rivals at the bottom. Both trying to finish up with some more outstanding players. Both in the mix for some four and five stars. Good recap by Tider Insider above. Auburn in running for a couple of same guys as Tide. Should be an exciting week coming up.

Auburn’s 2011 class thus far:

Alabama’s 2011 class so far:

Team Rankings according to Rivals:

(Cyrus Kouandijio is the top ol in the country, a five star according to Rivals. Alabama and Auburn are his top targets. His brother, Arie, was a signee for Alabama last year and was redshirted. He’s 6’5″, 335 and was a four star tackle. Cyrus is 6’7″, 335. Both are offensive tackles.)

I’ve noticed many NFL quarterbacks who are driven by their jobs. They are consumed with leading their teams to the Super Bowl, and, once there, winning it. Drew Brees wrote about his passion for his work and his city, New Orleans, in his 2010 book, Coming Back Stronger. Drew suffered what could have been a career ending shoulder injury in his last season at San Diego at the end of the 2005 season. He suffered a torn rotator cuff and ligament damage after trying to recover a fumble and being hit by a 340 pound defensive tackle. He was in pretty dire straits. He was pretty much let go by San Diego and was looking for another place to work.
Miami and New Orleans were the most interested suitors. He interviewed with Nick Saban, the coach of the Dolphins at the time, whom he said was very intense and highly serious. He went to New Orleans, a city that was reeling from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. He spent time with just hired coach Sean Payton, who sold him on the vision for his football team. The Saints had been a perennial loser and this was a risky situation for Brees. He wasn’t sure he would be ever as effective as he once was. Miami kind of eased off on him, but New Orleans and Payton didn’t. He signed with New Orleans and began to work towards getting ready for training camp.

His first throws in training camp were wounded ducks. It didn’t look good. But Brees, who had an intensive offseason of physical therapy and training, stayed committed, kept working his head off, and became one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL.

Brees tells the story of his first game in the Super Dome in 2006. He was always one to get to the games at least two and a half to three hours before kickoff, plenty of time to get taped up, worked on by the trainers and get warmed up for the game. He got caught in traffic. It was 6:30 and he was texting Payton that he was frantically trying to get to the stadium for the 7:30 Monday Night Football kickoff. He finally got to the stadium about 6:40 and when he was pulling into the deck in his SUV, his truck was too tall for the ceiling of the deck and he wrecked the top of his truck into the concrete ceiling above him. It was close to a disaster. Brees finally made it to the locker room with help from the Saints staff and played a tremendous game as the Saints welcomed their fans back to the Super Dome with a huge victory.

Brees was part of a rebirth of New Orleans and it climaxed with a Super Bowl 44 victory over the Indianapolis Colts in 2010. His teammate, Heath Evans, a former Auburn player, said he sees more Super Bowls in Brees’ future. It’s not just Brees, it’s Payton. They have a plan to succeed and they’re passionate about it. Evans said that Brees played six games this year with something torn in his arm. He’s a warrior. He gets his team together before every game and leads a passionate, motivational cheer. He’s an animal out there, and I mean that in a good way. He cares so much. One of his teammates, Jonathan Vilma, an outstanding middle linebacker, says Brees is not very fun to be around after he loses. That’s the way it should be. And he’s one of the most prolific quarterbacks in the game. He could be one of the best ever before he’s through. He cares about the city of New Orleans, also. He has multiple foundations to help the inner city kids and he’s always taking out time to spend with kids in the city. He has helped restore the city along with the rest of the Saints. The Saints fans love Brees and would just as soon punch you in the mouth if you said anything negative about their beloved, adopted native son. It’s a true success story. Hopefully, it’ll continue with more Super Bowl Championships. Drew and his team deserve it. They just care so much about success.

Peyton Manning has always embraced his job. He loves it. He works countless hours in the offseason. He’s a workaholic when it comes to the game. In the offseason, he’s working out with receivers on throws and routes. He studies the game relentlessly. He tries to find vulnerabilities in the opponent’s secondary so he and his receivers can exploit those and score touchdowns. He markets himself. I love his commercials. They’re funny and he’s a fun, well-spoken guy.

Tom Brady is the consummate professional. He studies, works with his coaches and is the ultimate competitor. He’s just cool and collected out there. He was a sixth round draft pick out of Michigan, but you’d think he was the top pick. You wonder what these GMs and coaches were thinking letting this guy slip to the sixth round.  He is 3-1 in Super Bowls, and save for a miraculous throw and catch by Eli Manning and David Tyree, would have been 4-0. I expect more titles from Brady. He and his coach, Bill Belichick, are too motivated and obsessed with winning it all  to not win win more championships. Brady could have multiple more titles before he’s through.

Ben Rothlisberger–though I don’t approve of his off field behavior last summer–gets it. He has become a true leader for his team. He’s also got two Super Bowl championships on his resume with maybe another one in a week and a half. He just make plays at the clutch time. His stats don’t totally overwhelm you, but they’re pretty good. He threw for 17 touchdowns and five ints this season in 12 games; pretty impressive numbers. The guy is a winner. He’s also calmed down his act. He seems to have learned from his mistakes and become a more mature, focused and controlled person. He’s always been a winner;  he now knows how to conduct himself off the field.

Aaron Rodgers is becoming one of the top quarterbacks in the game. He had an awesome season and was stellar in victories at Philly and Atlanta in the first two rounds of the playoffs. He is a pinpoint passer, can go deep and can beat you with his legs. He is putting his name in the elite category. He had a pretty rough second half against the Bears on Sunday, but I think that had more to do with the vaunted Bears defense. They’re very good and made adjustments. Still I think Rodgers is coming into his own.

Same for Mark Sanchez of the Jets. He played his heart out in the second half of the Steelers game on Sunday and was a couple of poor play calls away from bringing his team back from a 24-0 deficit and taking the Jets to the Super Bowl. He blamed himself after the game, which he shouldn’t have because he gave his team an opportunity to win; the defense just couldn’t stop Ben. The guy has shown he has a lot of heart and wants to win Super Bowls. He’s got a shot next year.

Eli Manning is there pretty much. He’s got a Super Bowl ring so that says a lot. Eli can be a little erratic at times, but he’s had a pretty good career and has some good years left. I was impressed with him this season after a couple of games, one in which there was nobody in the media room after a loss except for one young kid reported  and Eli patiently answered his questions. He also talked to the media after the final game of this season after the Giants had lost a chance to go the playoffs and he was first class. Like Eli a lot. He’s matured. He got married in the last two years so I think that’s helped him a lot. He’s from a classy family. The Mannings are winners.

Guys like Joe Flacco of the Ravens and Matt Ryan of the Falcons want to be elite. They are getting closer; maybe next season they’ll break through. They are becoming outstanding leaders of their respective football teams.The quarterbacks in this league are pretty amazing. There are others. Josh Freeman is a young, fledgeling player at Tampa Bay. Sam Bradford looks like he might be a big time winner at St. Louis if he can get some more help. Matt Hasselbeck is still a consummate pro at Seattle. Guys like Matt Schaub at Houston and David Garrard at Jacksonville are committed.

The quarterback of an NFL team is the face of the franchise; there is no doubt about it. These guys get it. They know their responsibility is to lead their team to the Super Bowl and win it. All of these guys seem to respect the privilege they are given, the money and the notoriety that comes with it. They are the villains if their teams don’t succeed. It’s not easy. Getting pounded by 330-40 pound defensive tackles, 270 pound defensive ends and 250 pound linebackers can wear on you and they deserve a good salary for risking serious injury every Sunday from September through January. But these guys put that all aside and strive to be the best they can be. They want to win for their teams and make a legacy for themselves and their teams.

I want Jay Cutler to be that way. I don’t question his toughness and competitiveness most of the time, but I did a little bit on Sunday. Some guys would play through a knee sprain; that’s debatable. The trainers and Lovie Smith told him not to risk it, so he didn’t. That was OK, though as a Bears fan, I wanted to see him out there. But it was his sideline demeanor through the rest of the game that bothered me. He seemed disengaged and not into the game. Afterwards he had kind of a nonchalant answer to why he couldn’t continue to play. A reporter for CNNSI wrote that Cutler was fighting back tears in the interview afterwards. I felt more compassion for him then. But that night, it was reported in the Chicago Tribune that he was seen at an exclusive steakhouse in Chicago with his girlfriend and a bunch of other people at a private steak dinner.  For some reason, and this is just me, if I had just lost the biggest game of my life and did not play well in the game and got hurt and couldn’t help my team win, I might stay at home and order take out and spend a quiet evening at home, hurting about the loss and thinking about what I might do next year to get to the big game. I would grieve a little bit. I remember losing high school football games and they would hurt. It made winning the next one that much better because you went back to work to not  let it happen again. You’d get over the losses in a day or two, but you’d use those losses  as motivation to get better. Losing a game of this magnitude is a lot bigger deal than that. Jay is getting paid on the range of $8-10 million a year, something like that. It needs to matter to him. And he’s got to connect better with the fans and the media. I know the media can be difficult at times, and they can burn you, but they can also help you if you’re forthright and just decent with them. I wish Jay had come out and made a statement Monday about his knee and how much this hurt him that his team couldn’t make it to the Super Bowl and that he was going to do everything possible next year to get his team back in this position again, and that next year they were going to win it. I just wanted to see him show some heart. Besides your faith and your family, your job should be your most important part of your life. When you’re getting paid that much money, you owe your organization, your fans, your teammates and your coaches your total commitment. As Gene Chizik says, you need to be “all in.” I haven’t seen that from Cutler. His play has been erratic and he seems angry a lot.

I want to believe in this guy like I do Brees, Manning, Brady, Rothlisberger, Eli, and  Sanchez and Rodgers who are coming on, but he’s not a second or third year player any more. He’ll be going into his sixth season next year with not very good results. He needs to adjust his attitude in a major way or his career will not be very successful and he’ll look back on his career when he retires and have a lot of regrets. He’s got it in him, he’s definitely got the arm, toughness and competitiveness. He just needs to amp up his passion and his work ethic if he ever wants to be elite. I hope he can do that. If he does, he and the Bears fans will be happy with the results. He owes that to his organization.

(Jay Cutler needs to cultivate his inner Drew Brees (above) to be a successful, Super Bowl winning quarterback in the NFL.)

As a Bears fan, I am very disappointed today in the 21-14 loss to the hated Packers. Jay Cutler let his team down. His knee injury could be serious; could be a torn ligament. But he didn’t show up in the first half, missed Devin Hester on a wide open pass at the three that would have tied the game if Cutler had put it on target. Most quarterbacks in the NFL could have made that throw. I know the three others in the championship games, Aaron Rodgers, Ben Rothlisberger and Mark Sanchez would have executed it. The Bears would have been tied 7-7 and it would have been a totally different ball game.
I don’t blame Cutler completely for not playing after the injury. The trainers and doctors told him not to. I still feel like though if you’re walking around on the sidelines you at least give it a go. Maybe the Bears would have had no chance if Cutler had played on basically one leg. Teammates like Brian Urlacher, who played his heart out in the game, were defending Cutler. Center Olin Kruetz said that Cutler’s leg was kind of dangling, so the injury may be serious.

But what disappoints me most is Cutler’s seeming lack of concern that the Bears lost the biggest game in each of these guys’ careers. This was a chance to go to the Super Bowl; this was not just any game. This was the biggest game in a lot these players’ lives. And Cutler said afterwards that “we gave it a go” but it just wasn’t happening. Something about that seems pretty hollow to me. Does the guy care about his teammates, his coaches and just importantly the Bears fans, who have wanted him to be good all along and supported him despite his bickering demeanor and lackadaisical attitude? If I was a Bears fan, and I’m sure about 99% of them feel this way, I would be very angry with Cutler. He just doesn’t seem to get it, and by that I mean, he doesn’t appreciate the opportunity that he’s been given. He doesn’t appreciate the God-given talent he’s been given, the enormous sum of money he’s been awarded for what so far has been an average career and the chance at making history. He just doesn’t seem to care enough about those things. And that’s very disappointing.

Will he ever be a great quarterback in the league? I’m starting to have my doubts. He’s immature. He dates some 22 year old from the highly thought provoking show, The Hills, who when last heard from, was in a car with her mother while her mother got a DUI and the girl was complaining to the cops that she needed to get something to eat at 2 a.m. while her mother was being arrested. She’s an idiot. I question Cutler’s judgment, his character and his commitment to the team. The guy just doesn’t seem to get the fact that he is a highly paid athlete in the NFL, a very elite position, and his job is to do everything he can to get his team to the Super Bowl. I think he has the physical talent. I just don’t think he has the head for it. He just hasn’t grown up. He’s 27, he’s a multimillionaire because of football, so his job is to study endlessly on football, get that pathetic foot work under control, work with his receivers and his coaches and do everything possible to be a great quarterback in the NFL. He’s not doing that. And, beyond that, he doesn’t care what the fans think. He blows off the media. I’m sorry, when you’re this highly paid, you’re going to have to suck it up and deal with the media. Because your fans are watching. They care how you represent them. They want you to represent them well. And you’re talking to your fans. Cutler comes across as a jerk. I’ve defended him all season when he gives those short, rude answers on television or in print, but I’ve run out of excuses for the guy. He doesn’t act right off the field, I’ve heard he’s a big carouser. And, beyond that, he doesn’t get it done on the field.

If he was passionate as a player, I’d cut him some slack, but so far he’s not been. He better hurry up or his legacy will be one of a loser. A guy with potential who never lived up to it.

I contrast that with Mark Sanchez, another quarterback who has caught some heat in the media. Sanchez was distraught yesterday after his team’s loss, blaming himself saying he didn’t pass well enough for his team to win, when in fact, he played a very good second half. The guy showed passion and remorse. He really cared. He wanted to get his team in the Super Bowl. He came across as a total team guy.

Aaron Rodgers was ecstatic in victory. Ben Rothlisberger, too. Should be a great Super Bowl. Talk about clutch? Rothlisberger was huge yesterday. What a throw on third and six with two minutes left that iced the game for his team. I’m not a huge Rothlisberger fan for what he did in Georgia last summer–I thought it was reprehensible and he’s lucky to be playing football and not in jail–but the guy is a winner on the football field. Two Super Bowl victories, a possible third. He’s quite an accomplished quarterback. If he keeps this up, he could be a top five quarterback of all time. Rodgers is laying a foundation for a Hall of Fame career, too. He’s got a chance at a first Super Bowl and he’s 27. The sky’s the limit. Sanchez at 24, has great possibilities, too. Rothlisberger is 28. All three of these guys care about their teams, their coaches, their fans and their legacies.

I just can’t figure out why Cutler doesn’t seem to. The only thing I can surmise is the guy is just not consumed with winning a championship. Maybe he’s not enough of a competitor and the extravagant amount of money has made him soft and dispassionate. The other three don’t look at their jobs that way. They are passionate about their professions. They want to win Super Bowls. One already has and the other two could very well win a couple or maybe more before their careers are over.

I don’t see that in Cutler. He’s 27, 28 in April, and he hasn’t gotten it yet. I don’t know if he ever will. He may just want to be content with making a lot of money and not worrying about a Super Bowl ring. To me that’s sad, and if that’s the case, the Bears should cut him.

The guy is a major disappointment. I’m a Vanderbilt guy and I always support our players, but Cutler just isn’t cuttin’ it. I hope he grows up and gets serious about football. It’s not too late. But he’s not a young player any more. He’s a veteran. It’s time for this guy to step up and help his team and his city win a championship. He’s starting to run out of time. And it’s very disappointing and disturbing. He’s letting a lot of people down and there’s no excuse for it.

(Jay Cutler’s career has been a bust.)

This should be a memorable Sunday in the National Football League. The oldest rivals in the league play each other with two of the hottest quarterbacks and outstanding defenses. In the other game it’s about two teams with fierce defenses, a proven quarterback and an emerging quarterback who will face off for the right to go to Dallas in Super Bowl XLV on February 6.
Packers (12-6) @ Bears (12-5)

Where: Soldier Field, Chicago

Time: 2 p.m. CDT

TV: FOX

Announcers: Joe Buck and Troy Aikman

Line: Pack -3.5

These two teams went to war twice this year as they always do with the Bears winning at Chicago in week 3, 20-17, and the Pack winning on the final week of the season, 10-3.

This is about two quarterbacks who are hot: Aaron Rodgers and Jay Cutler. Rodgers shredded the Atlanta Falcons’ defense last week for 366 yards and three tds. He was 31-36 and had a passer rating of 138. Jay Cutler had a pretty good day himself against the Seahawks last Sunday throwing for 274 yards and two touchdowns and running for two more scores. Both of these quarterbacks are not only weapons with their arms, but also with their legs.

The key for the Bears defense is playing tight press coverage and not allowing Rodgers to hit the underneath passes that Tom Brady used when the Patriots dismantled the Bears in November. The safeties will have to come over and help the corners. Nickel Back D.J. Moore will need to play one of his better games of his young career for the Bears’ defense to succeed.

For the Pack, they need to get a good pass rush on Cutler. Clay Matthews, Jr. had 13.5 sacks on the season and has had three during the playoffs. He will need to be a factor, so Cutler can’t set his feet and throw the ball downfield to his pretty talented receiving corps.

The oline is huge for the Bears and the receivers will have to find some holes in the vaunted Packers’ secondary which features stellar cornerbacks Charles Woodson and Tramon Williams. The running game is critical for the Bears. Matt Forte will take a lot of pressure off Cutler if he can get some yards on the ground. Again, the Bears offensive line will have to be huge.

Aaron Rodgers has talented receivers. The Bears are a little vulnerable in the secondary so Julius Peppers, Israel Idonije and Tommie Harris will need to get pressure on Rodgers. Safety Chris Harris sustained a hip pointer last week, but he’ll play. How effective he is will be the question. The Bears secondary needs Harris as he is one of the best interceptors of the ball in the league. They have to have him play well. He just makes interceptions at critical points in the game. His presence is a necessity. Bears will probably blitz linebackers and Moore on passing downs.  The Bears were second in the league in run defense, so the Packers may have a tough time running the ball.

Bears’ key is stopping Rodgers and receivers. Packers key is holding Bears running game in check to make Cutler do more than he needs to and possibly making mistakes. Defense on both sides is the key. Packers have Matthews and Woodson a little banged up, but they’re playing no doubt.

I say the Bears oline comes through, Cutler gets it done in the passing game, Forte in the running game and Bears defense stops Rodgers enough. Soldier Field will help, too.

Bears 24, Packers 20

Jets (13-5) @ Steelers (13-4)

Where: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Time: 5:30 p.m. CDT

TV: CBS

Announcers: Jim Nantz and Phil Simms

Line: Steelers -3.5

Can the Jets keep this momentum and  awesome play from Mark Sanchez, Ladanian Tomlinson, Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes, Jerricho Cotchery and a phenomenal defense going? I think they can.

But will it be enough to beat the  Steelers? The Jets beat the Steelers in week 15, 22-17, but the Steelers were without all world safety Troy Polamalu and tight end Heath Miller. Polamalu is somewhat healthy now. His effectiveness will play a definite role in the outcome of this game.

Sanchez may have the best receivers in the league, but he will be less experienced than Ben Rothlisberger. Rothlisberger has two Super Bowl rings and has played and succeeded in many big games. Sanchez is 4-1 as a postseason starter, but lost in the AFC Championship game last year to Indy. The experience in big games goes to Big Ben.

The Jets corners will be tested. Antonio Cromartie and Darrelle Revis will have to bring their A+ games to this one. Mike Wallace, Hines Ward and some young talented receivers will put pressure on the Jets’ secondary.

Both defenses are very good, Sanchez has emerged as an outstanding quarterback and the Jets running game is superior to the Steelers. I’ve gone back and forth on this one almost up to this minute as I write. I’m going with the upset. I have kept doubting the Jets throughout the postseason (though I did pick them over the Colts), but I am no longer doubting them. The Jets play great defense, Revis and Cromartie come through, the Jets run the ball well with LaDanian and Shonn Green and Sanchez and the receivers get it done against a Steelers’ defense with a somewhat hobbled Polamalu.

Jets 27, Steelers 24

(Julius Peppers, left, and Clay Matthews, Jr. will have to be at their best in order for their teams to win Sunday at Chicago.)

Bart Scott is the man, no doubt. Robert Gates needs to hire him in his Defense Department. Scott would get things done. He’d have Ahmadinejad and the Iranians begging the U.S. for forgiveness and scrapping all remnants of nuclear weaponry in fear that Bart and the Jets would come over to Tehran put a can on them. That’s what they did Sunday to Brady and the Patriots, as the New York Jets proved they belong in the Super Bowl hunt with a convincing 28-21 victory over New England the Patriots at Foxborough.

Many considered the Patriots unbeatable. Rex Ryan, Bart, Antonio Cromartie and Revis Island didn’t. They talked all week–usually not a good sign–but they sure backed it up. If you haven’t seen the interview with the colorful Scott after the Jets victory, here it is:

The Minister of Defense:

The Jets were simulating flying like planes after the game and Braylon Edwards did the most awesome cartwheel into a back flip I’ve ever seen by a football player. These Jets are incredible athletes.

Braylon:

This team will not stop talking and backing it up until they finish their job in Dallas. They talked a big game in Hard Knocks, the preseason HBO show on the Jets, but they are really backing it up. Not only do the Jets talk a big game, they play a big game. They are highly entertaining, led by Coach Rex Ryan and a classic collections of personalities.

I’ve thought Rex was funny all along. His comments that it’s personal between him and Peyton then him and Belichick seemed to fire his team up. He’s a showman, but he’s also a stellar defensive coach. I thought the Jets good fortune would run out against the Patriots, but they were just the better team. Like Scott said, the Patriots were the 25th best defense in the league and the Jets offense, led by Mark Sanchez, who just keeps winning playoff games, exposed the Patriots’ defense.

Sanchez was 16-25 for 194 yards and three tds and a quarterback rating of 127.3; that’s awesome. Shonn Greene ran for 76 yards and the clinching 16-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter after Antonio Cromartie had made one of the plays of the game when he scooped up a Shane Graham onsides kick at the New England 45 and returned it 23 yards to the NE 25. It was a beautiful play by an exceptional athlete. He’s another one of those game changers who wins football games for his team like the quarterbacks and Troy Polamalu and some others.

But there were many more highlights. Sanchez’s 37 yard pass to the amazing Braylon Edwards led to a beautiful seven yard swing pass to LaDanian Tomlinson which LT took in for a score to put the Jets uo 7-3 in the second quarter.

New England made their biggest mistake of the game on fourth and four at their own 38 late in the first half. They faked a punt and short snapped it to upback Patrick Chung. The mistake wasn’t in the play call in my opinion–despite what other people say I thought it was pretty cool call. I enjoy teams that take risks. It would have worked; the mistake was in the execution. Chung bobbled the snap and was stuck running around and trying to get the first down. He didn’t get it. He would have made it had he not fumbled the snap. The right side was open and he could have reached the marker at least and maybe gotten a lot more. I like Belichick for calling that. He’s always had the courage to take risks. He gambles some times to try and win the game. That’s good coaching. It just didn’t work. It backfired this time. It should have worked though.The Jets took it in on a Sanchez to Edwards 15-yard pass in which Edwards caught it at the eight and basically dragged two Patriots with him into the end zone. It was another beautiful play by the incomparable Edwards. The Jets led 14-3 at the half.

Brady took his team down for a touchdown and two point conversion to cut it to 14-11 as the third quarter ended. Then maybe the most important play of the game occurred. On second and six at the Jets 29, Sanchez found Jerricho Cotchery, of? Phillips High School in B’ham, for a fantastic 58 yard play. Cotchery has pretty much gone unnoticed with the arrival of Edwards and Santonio Holmes this season. They are great players, but Jerricho is a playmaker and a top flight receiver. He played a huge role in the game with five catches for 96 yards. Two plays later, Sanchez hooked up with Holmes on a seven yard score in which Holmes made an acrobatic catch in the end zone, diving getting a his right knee down and his left foot in bounds. Just a tremendous play. The Jets went up 21-11. Brady tried to get the Pats back in it, but the Jets were relentless. They were victorious proving their doubters wrong once again. I was one of them. I knew they were good, but thought the talking last week would hurt them.

Rex Ryan is an amazing coach. He’s brash, outspoken, flamboyant, but what gets lost in the shuffle is he’s an exceptional defensive coordinator and has one of the best offensive coordinators in the league in Brian Schottenheimer. Schottenheimer has been making championship winning calls throughout the playoffs and Sanchez and his offensive teammates are executing his plays to perfection. Holmes, Edwards and Cotchery are three of the best receivers in the league; probably the best receiving corps.

And what about the Jets defense? Brady was 29-45 for 299 and two touchdowns, but was intercepted for the first time in 11 games and his passer rating was 89.0. That’s an off day for Brady. He had trouble finding receivers all game. The incomparable Cromartie and Darrelle Revis demoralized Brady and his receivers. They are awesome corberbacks. The Jets played zone to counter Brady’s underneath stuff that he has been capitalizing on all year and forced him to throw downfield. Wes Welker was not a major factor and neither was the Pats’ tight ends, whom had been remarkable all year. Linebacker David Harris had 12 tackles and picked off Brady in the first quarter. Defensive end Shaun Ellis was dominant with five tackles, two for loss and two sacks. A lot of Brady’s yards came late when the Jets started playing soft zone coverage. They fooled him all day. He had time to throw most of the time, he just couldn’t find his receivers. They were all covered. Would Randy Moss have made a difference? Possibly, but with the Jets’ corners, he may not have.

The Jets now move on to Pittsburgh to play in the AFC Championship against the Steelers Sunday at 5:30 p.m. on CBS. Can they do it again? I’m not doubting them. They have an explosive offense and one of, in not the best, defenses in the league. That’ll win you championships. Of course they’re going against Big Ben and Polamalu and a great defense in Pittsurgh. It’s a tall order. But I like the Jets to get it done against another outstanding defense and quarterback. The Jets run the ball better than the Steelers and that should help Sanchez. I don’t believe the Steelers can run the ball against the Jets. The Jets beat the Steelers at Pittsburgh, 22-17, in week 15. They’ve beaten Peyton and Brady, so who says they can’t beat Ben? They’re on a roll, the hottest team in the league, and they are backing up their words with victories.

The talk is highly entertaining and a sports writers’ dream to have quotes like what’s coming out of the Jets locker room. Ryan is a master motivator and his players love him. His players are highly talented and extremely confident. That’s a recipe for success. They keep playing with a chip on their shoulder. They want respect, and they’re getting it now. This could be  a team of destiny. They’ve got to get by a very tough opponent on Sunday, but if anybody can win at Pittsburgh, it’s the Jets.

In the NFC, it’s the Bears and the Pack in what should be a classic. This is the 182nd meeting between the two teams. The Bears hold the edge 92-89, but the Packers have won three Super Bowls (1966, 1967, 1996) to the Bears’ one (1985). The Bears have 29 Hall of Famers and the Pack have 26. They have the same number of playoff appearances in their history; pretty astounding stuff.

Something has to give. Aaron Rodgers is playing at an astonishing level. He was 31-36 for 366 yards and three touchdowns on Saturday against the Falcons. He had a 136.8 passer rating; incredible. Jay Cutler was almost as good Sunday. He is starting to live up to his unlimited potential. Cutler was 15-28 for 271 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for two more. His passer rating was 111.3, but that doesn’t do his performance against the Seahawks justice. He was a dominant player and showed what many thought he could do throughout his career. Jay just needs to get off to a good start and get his confidence going like  he did Sunday with a 58-yard td pass to tight end Greg Olsen on the Bears first drive of the game. It was a perfect bomb that hit Olsen right in stride. It set the tone for a dominant Bears performance.

Two great quarterbacks and two outstanding defenses go after each other at Soldier Field Sunday at 2 p.m. on FOX. The Packers have the outstanding Clay Matthews (outside linebacker) who plans on making it a long afternoon for Cutler. They also have phenomenal cornerbacks in Tramon Williams (int for td against Falcons and game saving int in end zone against Michael Vick and the Eagles) and Charles Woodson. The Bears will counter on defense with Julius Peppers, Tommie Harris and indomitable linebackers Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs. Safety Chris Harris, a playmaker and game changer on the same level as Polamalu, had a hip pointer on Sunday against the Seahawks. The Bears need him. He told the Chicago Tribune he would have to be on one leg to miss this one. He’ll play.

Not sure who I like yet in this one. Kind of like the Jets right now, but want to do some more study. Will have analysis and predictions for both games on Friday. Please stay tuned. Should be an incredible Sunday of football in the National Football League.

(Left to right: Bart Scott, Troy Polamalu, Aaron Rodgers and Jay Cutler will be ready for war on Sunday.)

This should be an excellent weekend in the NFL with four classic games that could all come down to the end. In all four games, the teams have played each other already this year. In the AFC–in both games–the teams have been combatants twice this year. And I mean really combatants. The Jets-Patriots and Ravens-Steelers games are about teams that can’t stand each other. The Jets have been talking a lot of trash and have been lambasting Tom Brady. I really don’t think that’s very smart, but that’s the Jets. That’s the way they operate. Talk about a black and blue game, the Steelers and the Ravens will go after each other full bore. Ray Lewis and James Harrison (Steelers) are as fierce a pair of linebackers as you want to face. They are fearless and rattlesnake mean. That should be a war.
In the NFC, the Bears and the surprising Seahawks will do battle in the Windy City. Expect a hard hitting, intense game. The Seahawks beat the Bears in regular season, 23-20.

And the Packers go to Atlanta to try and knock off the team with the best record in the NFC and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Packers had a big victory at Philly last week, but can they do it in the Georgia Dome? They lost 20-17 during the regular season at Atlanta despite Aaron Rodgers throwing for 344 yards.

Here’s the breakdown of the games along with my predictions:

Baltimore Ravens (13-4) @ Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4)

Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Saturday, 3:30 p.m. CST

TV: CBS

Line: Steelers 3 1/2

The Skinny:The Ravens won at Pittsburgh, 17-14, in week four. That was a Steelers team without Ben Roethlisberger who was suspended for the first four games for conduct detrimental to the league. The Steelers won 13-10 at Baltimore in week 13 with Roethlisberger.

This is a battle of an elite quarterback (Rothlisberger) against a guy who is attempting to become an elite quarterback, Joe Flacco. Flacco had a clutch td pass that won the game for the Ravens in the game at Pittsburgh.

The Players:

Ravens:

Flacco is 306-489 (62%) for 3,622 yards, 25 tds and 10 ints. He has a qb rating of 93.6. He is trying to step up tpo the next level among quarterback elites. A victory here would help that cause.

Can Ray Rice be a factor against a tough Steelers defense? The running back has run for 1,220 yards and five touchdowns. A healthy Willis McGahee will help. McGahee has run for 380 yards and five tds. Flacco needs a running game to compliment his passing. The Steelers are so tough against the run though. They were first in the league in rush defense allowing only 62 yards a game and five tds.

Anquan Boldin has caught 64 passes for 837 yards and seven tds. Derrick Mason (61-802, 7 tds), Rice (63-556), T.J. Housmandzadeh (30-398, 3 tds) and Todd Heap (40-559, 3 tds) are the key targets for Flacco. Heap had 10 catches for 108 yards against the Chiefs in the Wild Card round last week. Flacco was 25-34 for 265 yards and two tds. His rating was 115.4. That was the Chiefs though. The Ravens beat the Chiefs, 30-7, and were dominant. They were very impressive, but this is a major step up in competition. The Chiefs could be very good in the future, but they’re not there yet. Still, the Ravens were impressive.

Ray Lewis, the tough as stainless steel veteran, is the leader on defense. He has 145 tackles (solo and assists) on the season. Dawan Landry has recorded 111 tackles. Outside linebacker Terrell Suggs has 11 sacks and Haloti Ngata, the nose guard, has 5.5 sacks. Suggs had two sacks against the Chiefs. The Ravens defense was dominant in that game. Safety Ed Reed, the Ravens perennial All-Pro safety, has eight interceptions on the season. Reed is playing with a heavy heart as his brother is missing in Louisiana. Reed performed well last Sunday despite the potential tragedy.

Steelers

For Pittsburgh it’s Roethlisberger, the running game and their tenacious defense. Roethlisberger is 240-389 (61.7%) for 3,200 yards, 17 tds and 5 ints. He has a rating of 97.0. The highest rating is 150. He has won two Super Bowls. He missed the first four games of the season due to his suspension, but has come on to have an excellent season.

Rashard Mendenhall has run for 1,273 yards and 13 tds. He’s averaging 3.9 yards per carry. Isaac Redman has run for 247 on 52 carries, 4.8 ypc.

Mike Wallace is Rothlisberger’s top target. He has 60 catches for 1,257 yards and 10 tds. He’s averaging 12.8 yards per catch. Hines Ward adds 59-755 and five tds. Tight end Heath Miller has 42 catches for 512 yards and two tds.

Lawrence Timmons leads the Steelers defense with 135 total tackles. James Farrior has 109. Troy Palamalu is a game changer on defense. He has 63 tackles and leads the team with seven interceptions. He was hurt at the end of the season, but played in the last game and should be ready to go.

Final Analysis and Prediction:

Should be an epic one here. Both defenses are intense, relentless and very opportunistic. Steelers were first against the run at 62 yards per game. Rice and McGahee had no success running against Steelers in their two meetings. Ravens fifth in NFL in run defense at 93.9 per game. Steelers number two in total defense at 276 yards per game. Ravens 10th at 318. Steelers were 12th in pass defense while Ravens were 21st. That could be an opening for Roethlisberger and company. Should be one of the hardest hitting games of the year. I’m giving Pittsburgh the edge because of their recent championship experience. Know Ray Lewis knows something about winning big games too since he won the Super Bowl in 2000 season, but Rothlisberger is clutch in these big games. He’s better than Flacco. Palamalu is another difference. He is like having a Tom Brady on your defense. He’ll blitz and cause a fumble which he did in the last meeting at Baltimore that won the game for the Steelers or he’ll make a clutch interception that wins games. He’ll also put a lick on you. With those two, I like the Steelers, but in a close, bruising classic. Look for Heap of Baltimore and Miller of Pittsburgh, the tight ends, to play a role in the outcome. For Baltimore to win they have to control Palamalu and get pressure and some turnovers off Roethlisberger. Flacco has to play well, of course. A tall order against the Steelers defense. Pittsburgh just needs to be Pittsburgh. That should be enough…barely.

Steelers 20, Ravens 17

New York Jets (12-5) @ New England Patriots (14-2)

Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

Sunday, 3:30 p.m.

TV:CBS

Line: Patriots 8 1/2

The Skinny:

Rex Ryan and his players have been mouthing off all week. Cornerback Antonio Cromartie has even gone so far as to call Tom Brady a pretty blatant expletive. It’s been out of control really. I don’t know if the Jets think they can beat the Pats or they’re just trying to make themselves believe they can by trash talking their heated rival. Jets beat Pats at home, 28-14, early in the season, but Pats blasted Jets at Foxborough, 45-3, late in the season. Do the Pats need any more motivation than beating a team they truly hate? They don’t, but Ryan and Cromartie and other Jest have given the Pats a lot of motivation. Ryan says it’s personal with Belichick, while Belichick is playing it calm and easy going, but he and Brady are out for blood. Jets trying to prove they’re the team they said they were before the season in Hard Knocks. They think they’re Super Bowl material. They don’t just think they can get there; they think they can win it. But they have to get through Foxborough and that’s a tough task that has been made tougher by their comments. I know that’s the way the Jets operate, but when you challenge a team like the Patriots it’s like fighting a guy who outweighs you by 40 pounds and is undefeated in every fight he’s ever been in and you’re taunting him. The Jets better bring their A+ game if they expect to fulfill their expectations. We’ll see if the Jets can do that.

The Players:

Jets:

Quarterback Mark Sanchez is in a similar position to Joe Flacco though Flacco is a better player. Sanchez is trying to prove that he’s an upper echelon quarterback. For the season he was 278-507 (55%) for 3,291 yards, 17 tds and 13 ints. Nothing special, but he did play a good game last week against the Colts and had a big throw to Braylon Edwards which led to the game winning field goal as time expired leading the Jets to the 17-16 victory. Coach Jim Caldwell of the Colts may have given Sanchez the biggest break of his career when he called timeout with 40 seconds left allowing Sanchez to talk the next play over with his offensive coordinator, Brian Schottenheimer, and decide to try a fade pattern to Edwards which worked for 18 yards and put the Jets in position for the game winning field goal. The Jets had a timeout left, but they didn’t have to use it until the last three seconds. They were not in field goal range before Caldwell’s timeout. Nick Folk hit the game winning 32-yard field goal as time expired.

Sanchez needs to be even better this week. The Patriots are 30th in the league in pass defense allowing an average of 258 yards per game, but lead the league in interceptions with 25.

LaDanian Tomlinson has found a fountain of youth with the Jets. He leads the team with 914 yards rushing and six tds. He had two last week against the Colts. Shon Greene has added  687 yards on 185 carries and two touchdowns. Tomlinson is the go to guy close to the end zone. Greene is a pretty powerful runner when healthy. New England is 11th against the run allowing 108 per game.

Dustin Keller, the Jets’ tight end, will be a big key for the offense. He has 55 catches for 687 yards and five tds. He came up big against the Colts last week. He had only three receptions, but they seemed to come at critical times. Edwards has caught 53 passes for 904 yards and seven tds. Santonio Holmes has 52 catches for 746 and six tds. This is an outstanding receiving corps that has gotten better and better as the season has progressed. Tomlinson has caught 52 passes and Jerricho Cotchery,out of B’ham, is a valuable player off the bench. Was a starter before Edwards and Holmes got to New York. He has 41 catches for 433 and two tds.

David Harris leads the defense with 99 tackles. The outstanding Bart Scott is next with 81. Cromartie leads the team with three interceptions. But the most valuable Jet on defense and probably on the team is cornerback Darrelle Revis. He doesn’t have an interception this year because nobody throws at him. But he held Colts star wideout Reggie Wayne to just one catch last week for one yard. Revis Island is a tough place to be and he’ll probably be all over Wes Welker. The Jets defense is third against the run in the league, sixth against the pass and third in total defense. You would have to give a decided edge to the Jets defense over the Patriots defense.

Patriots:

Tom Brady is right behind Montana and Elway as the best quarterback of all time. Could pass both of them if he wins some more championships. He’s completed 324-492 passes (65.9%) for 3,900 yards and has thrown 36 touchdowns against four ints. That’s ridiculously good. The guy is playing on another level this year.

Ben Jarvis Green out of Ole Miss has added a running game to the Patriots arsenal this season. He has rushed for 1,008 yards and 13 tds. Danny Woodhead has added 97-547 and five touchdowns. The Pats just keep filling in spots with players who even turn out better than the previous ones. Getting rid of Randy Moss was a brilliant move by Belichick.

Wes Welker, who could go down as one of the best possession receivers to ever play in the league, has 86 catches for 848 yards and seven tds. Deion Branch has 48 catches for 706 yards and five scores. Aaron Hernandez, the rookie out of Florida, has 45-563 and six tds and Rod Gronkowski has 42 catches for 546 and an astounding 10 touchdowns. The weapons just keep coming at you.

Belichick has a lot of young players on defense, but they’ve improved throughout the year. Inside linebacker Jerod Mayo has 175 tackles (solo and assists),free safety Patrick Chung has 96 tackles and cornerback Devin McCourty has 82. The Pats have four guys with three ints apiece. They are always opportunistic under Belichick and while they’re 25th in the league in total defense, they make the plays when they count..

Final Analysis and Prediction:

The Jets have a pretty good defense, but Brady torched them for four touchdowns and 326 yards and a 148 passer rating (out of 150) in week 13, a Patriots 45-3 win. The Bears put 38 up on the Jets in week 16. Brady probably won’t throw too much at Revis, nobody does, but he’ll try to get the ball to Welker some, so he might challenge Revis. He’s probably going to school Cromartie though, because Brady may have been playing  it cool about Cromartie’s comments earlier in the week, but it’s personal. And Brady is pretty good at doling out punishment on the field. He’ll be smart and pick his spots, but he’ll go after Cromartie with his wideouts and talented tight ends. The Jets need to somehow get pressure on Brady if possible. The offensive line for the Pats is so good and Brady is so quick getting rid of the ball that they’re basically unstoppable. I don’t think Sanchez and company can get enough done against the Pats defense to keep up. I see the Pats taking it to the Jets and punching Cromartie and Ryan in the mouth on the field where things should be decided.

Patriots 35, Jets 17

Green Bay Packers (11-6) @ Atlanta Falcons (13-3)

Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Ga.

7 p.m., Saturday

FOX

Line: Falcons 2 1/2

The Skinny:

The Falcons beat the Pack, 20-17, in week 11. Aaron Rodgers led his team to a game tying touchdown, but Eric Weems returned the Packers kickoff to midfield and the Falcons moved it down and won on a late field goal. Rodgers had fumbled at the Falcons’ one earlier in the game when he tried to leap in the end zone for a touchdown. His right arm was hurt so he tried to carry the ball in his left arm and it was knocked out and the Falcons recovered. The Falcons are great at home, particularly Matt Ryan, who is 20-2 in the Dome. But Green Bay is one of those teams you get every year in the playoffs that is hot. This could be decided at the end like the regular season game was.

The Players:

Packers:

Aaron Rodgers is a very good quarterback who is trying to become great. He needs to win a Super Bowl to do that and this year he has a chance. He’s got to make it through Atlanta and possibly Chicago to do that. He is 312-475 (65.7%) for 3,922 yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He has become very accurate and may get Packers fans to forget about Brett Favre if he wins a couple of Super Bowls. He was highly efficient against the Eagles last week completing 18-27 for 180 yards and three tds with a quarterback rating of 122.5. He wears his emotions on his sleeves on the football field, but seems to control them enough to perform at a high level. Like every other quarterback this weekend, he has to step up against a decent defense. The Falcons are 16th in the league in total defense, but only 22nd against the pass. But they are fourth in the league in interceptions with 22.

Brandon Jackson has run for 703 yards on 190 carries and three tds. But the real story is James Starks. He only ran for 101 yards on the season, but had 123 yards on 23 carries last week against the Eagles, a huge reason the Packers won 21-16 along with a Tramon Williams interception of a Michael Vick pass in the end zone at the end of the game. Starks could be a huge factor in this game. Atlanta is 16th against the run. If Starks can run the ball successfully along with Jackson and the clutch John Kuhn (281 yards, four tds), Rodgers should be able to have his way with the Falcons defense.

Greg Jennings is the leading receiver for the Pack. He has 76 catches for 1,276 yards and 12 tds. Donald Driver has 51 catches for 566 and four tds. James Jones adds 50 for 679 and five tds. Jordy Nelson has 45-582 and two tds. This was all during the regular season.

On defense is where the Packers have the edge. They are fifth in the league in total defense and fifth against the pass. They are 18th against the run, which Atlanta does well, so the Falcons might try to exploit that slight weakness. A. J. Hawk leads the Pack with 111 tackles. Desmond Bishop is next at 103. The awesome Clay Matthews has 60 tackles and 13.5 sacks on the season. He is another game changer like Palamalu. Williams leads the team with six ints. The Pack are second in the league in interceptions with 24. Charles Woodson is another weapon for the Pack on defense. He’s like Revis. He only has two interceptions on the season because nobody wants to throw at him. He is devastating on the blitz. He can change a game in a hurry with a big play. This defense is pretty special.

Falcons:

Matt Ryan is in the same league as Flacco; not as good as Rodgers, but trying to get there. He has completed 357-571 (62.5%) for 3,705 yards, 28 touchdowns and nine ints. He’s going against a pretty good secondary, so he’ll need some help on the ground.

Michael Turner has rushed for 1,371 yards this year on 334 attempts, 4.1 per game. He has 12 tds. Powerful runner with pretty decent speed.

Roddy White, from UAB, is outstanding. The wideout has 115 catches for 1,389 yards and 1o tds. He’s averaging 12 yards per catch. The always reliable Tony Gonzalez has 70 catches for 656 and six tds. Jason Snelling has 44-3o3 and three tds.

Curtis Lofton leads the defense with 118 tackles and Brent Grimes has 87. John Abraham has 13 sacks on the season. William Moore and Grimes lead the team with five ints apiece. The Falcons have 22 ints on the season, fourth in the league. Their run defense is 10th in the league while their pass defense is 22nd.

Final Analysis and Prediction:

I think Aaron Rodgers is ready to be a prime time quarterback. I don’t think Matt Ryan is there yet. Not against this defense. If Green Bay can run the ball effectively that is going to make Rodgers that much more dangerous. Again, Atlanta is 22nd in the league in pass defense, so Rodgers, with some help from Starks and company on the ground, could have a big night. Ryan is a good quarterback no doubt, but the Pack defense led by Matthews and Woodson are capable of making you pay for any mistake, Matthews by making the line pay by sacking the quarterback and Woodson by blitzing and sacking or by interceptions which he sets up for his teammates with his Superglue-like coverage. Gotta go with Rodgers and the Pack defense in this one. I know Atlanta is tough at home, but they have squeaked by some inferior opponents this year. Not a total believer in the Falcons. I am in the Packers.

Packers 28, Falcons 24

Seattle Seahawks (8-9) @ Chicago Bears (11-5)

Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

Noon, Sunday

FOX

Line: Bears 10

The Skinny:

The Bears have been very good a lot of times and not so good some times. Overall, they’ve had a good season. Jay Cutler is inconsistent, but when he’s on, he can be dynamic. Chicago has found a pretty good run/pass balance as offensive coordinator Mike Martz discovered they had to have if they were going to make a run this year. Matt Forte has been very good at running back. The defense is solid with some superstars on that side of the ball. The Seahawks got tired of being criticized by the media for their regular season and took it to the Saints defense last week in the first round. Matt Hasselbeck was awesome and Marshawn Lynch had an epic game clinching run. The Seahawks beat the Bears in the regular season, 23-20, so the Bears shouldn’t be overconfident. If they are, they’re done. Pete Carroll is one of the loosest, and, in my opinion, best coaches in college or pro ball. He is a fun guy who the players love to play for. He can really motivate them. The guy has a fun personality and the players respond to that. He’ll have his team ready. Lovie Smith brings a calm, steady hand to the sideline for the Bears. He’s done a great job in Chicago despite being relentlessly criticized over the last couple of years. He has a good coaching staff intact and the Bears could be primed for a run to Dallas this season.

The Players:

Seahawks:

Hasselbeck hasn’t had a great season, but he is a good postseason player as he showed last week. He’s 5-5 in the playoffs including a loss in the Super Bowl where the Seahawks were three blatantly bad calls away from beating the Steelers in the 2006 Super Bowl. He threw for four touchdowns last week against the Saints and was 22-35 for 272 yards with one int. He finished with a 113 rating. For the season he’s 266-444 (60%) for 3001 yards, 12 tds and 17 ints. Not that great. But the guy steps up on the big stage. Against the Bears earlier this season, he was 25-30 for 242 yards and a touchdown.

Lynch has run for 573 yards on the season and six tds. Last week against the Saints he ran for 131 yards and had an epic 67-yarder in which the Saints missed nine tackles. It was a mixture of  great running and terrible tackling. Justin Forsett has run for 523 yards and two tds.

Mike Williams leads the receiving corps with 65 catches for 751 yards and two touchdowns. He caught 10 passes for 123 yards, single handedly beating the Bears in the first game between the teams in Chicago. Deon Butler has caught 36 passes for 385 yards and four tds. Forsett has 33 receptions and Ben Obamanu out of Auburn has 30-494 and four tds.

Seattle’s defense is shaky. They are 27th in total defense, 21st against the run and 27th against the pass. David Hawthorne leads the team with 106 tackles. Marcus Trufant has 80. Super rookie Earl Thomas out of Texas–Alabama fans may remember this guy–has five ints on the season at safety.

Bears:

How will Jay Cutler do this week? That’s always the question. I love the guy but he is erratic. He could have the strongest arm in the NFL, but it’s almost a curse for him as he tries to force and will throws into receivers that just aren’t there and get intercepted. Rick Reilly wrote a pretty critical piece on Jay on ESPN.com this week calling him basically a jerk. I think Jay is a  misunderstood guy. He doesn’t have much time for the media and is short with them. They have been critical of him so I don’t blame him. He doesn’t look people in the eye a lot. His dad is a cop, so he’s had a pretty disciplined, tough upbringing. He’s a tough guy without a doubt, pretty emotional on the field, but teammate Greg Olsen calls him a great guy and one of his best friends. Your team knows you best. Jay is intelligent and has flourished at times in Mike Martz’s offense. He could be great down the road. He needs to get going though. Needs to mature some more. Has all the tools to be a great player. He’s highly competitive and I think that’s where he’s misunderstood. People mistake that for arrogance or cockiness. Jay is just being himself. He’s a good guy and wants to win in Chicago. He is 261-432 (60%) for 3,274 yards with 23 touchdowns and 16 ints. His passer rating is 86.3, not great, but not bad either. He has been sacked 52 times this year and that’s been a problem. He was sacked six times in the first game with the Seahawks, but the Bears line has finally come together and played pretty well at the end of the year. If Jay can get protection, he should be good. The line is critical in this one.

Matt Forte has been huge this season and has been a major reason the Bears won their division and got a first round bye. Forte ran for 1,069 yards and six tds. Chester Taylor hasn’t been much help. He’s run for 267 and three tds. In the first game against Seattle, the Bears only ran for 61 yards. Cutler was 17-39 for 290 but no tds. Devin Hester made the big play for the Bears in a losing effort. He ran a punt back 89 yards for a score. He’s had three returns for tds this season. He is the most valuable return weapon in the league; one of the greatest of all time.

Forte has 51 catches for 547 and three tds. Johnny Knox, a burner, has 51-960 and five tds. The reliable Earl Bennett, a former teammate of Cutler’s at Vandy and a B’ham product, has 46 catches for 561 yards and three tds. Bennett threw a punishing block on Hester’s punt return against the Seahawks in their regular season game. He is a valuable player. He was out in the last game of the season against the Packers and Cutler and the Bears missed him as they lost 10-3. Greg Olsen, a weapon at tight end, has 41 catches for 404 and five tds. Hester adds 40-475 and four tds.

Hester is the all time TD leader in kickoff/punt returns with 14; 10 on punts and four on kickoffs. He is a game changer.

The Bears defense is star-studded. Brian Urlacher leads the team with 126 tackles. He also has four sacks. Lance Briggs, another standout linebacker, has 88 tackles. Charles Tillman has 83 and the phenomenal Julius Peppers has eight sacks on the season. Israel Idonijie, one of the best players you’ve never heard of, also has eight sacks. Tillman and the ultra clutch Chris Harris both have five interceptions. Harris had the pick that iced the game against the Jets and made the int in the end zone that changed the momentum in the game against the Eagles which the Bears won. He’s another game changer.

Final Analysis and Prediction:

The Bears are second in the league in rush defense allowing 90.1 per game. Seattle is 21st at 118.9. Chicago is not as good against the pass as they are 20th in the league allowing 224 per game but have 21 ints. Seattle is 27th allowing 249 and 31 tds to just 12 ints. The Bears are ninth in total defense and the Seahawks are 27th. With those type of defensive numbers you gotta like the Bears. It’s all on Cutler, Forte and the offensive line. If the line can hold off Seattle giving Cutler time to throw, he should do well. If Forte gets holes, he’ll do well. So really for the Bears, it’s really about their oline. The Seshawks sacked Cuter six times in their first meeting, so protection is paramount.Hasselbeck is hot and Mike Williams dominated the Bears in their first contest. But if Peppers and Idonijie have their way, Hasselbeck could have a long afternoon. Lynch will not be able to run like he did against the Saints. He may have trouble getting 40 yards. So it’s about how Hasselbeck plays. Cutler and the Bears defense do enough here to overcome Seattle.

Bears 31, Seahawks 20

My overall record for college picks was 142-54 (72%). Finished 21-14 in bowls. I was 3-1 last week in my pro picks. Lost on the Saints like everybody else did.  Great football coming up beginning this weekend as teams aim for Jerryville in Dallas on Feb. 6. Enjoy the games.

(Tom Brady will try to punish Antoinio Cromartie and the Jets defense this Sunday.)