Super Bowl XLI Options

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Being a Detroit Lions season ticket holder I usually have to adopt a playoff team to root for. With the NFL season winding down I wanted to discuss who other people thought would make the Super Bowl this season.

I really think this year's Super Bowl will be the Chargers vs. the Saints.

I know the Chargers are the in pick right now, but I have been following them all year and I truely think they have the team to go all of the way this year. Tomlinson has a chance to be the best back this league has ever seen if he keeps up the way he is playing for a few more years.

I don't think the Bears are a solid lock with homefield advantage (just look at last year) and I think the Saints have what it takes to go into Soldier Field to beat them. I don't think there is a better team in the NFC this year. Despite their deficits on defence, the offense will carry them.

My prediction is Chargers over the Saints in Super Bowl XLI.

What do you think?

[edstipe]

New England vs. Chicago

It surprises me that NE gets very little respect these days as a serious Super Bowl contender, especially for a team that has won it so often in the past half-decade. They have a 10-4 record, a playoff-experienced group of players/coaches, and a guy at QB that is as steady and consistent as they come. As much as I like the Chargers/Tomlinson, the fact that they have a guy at QB who is virtually a rookie might just the their demise; in the pressure of the playoffs, rookie mistakes are magnified, and it is harder for a guy without experience to respond positively to the pressure.

In the NFC, I like the Bears simply for their defense. Although their quarterback situation is obviously extremely shaky, it doesn't really matter because nobody expects them to rely on their offense anyway. In any other year I probably would go with someone else, but the NFC is pretty weak as a whole this year, so the Bears should be able to cope with their offensive deficits and win it anyway.

There's one other factor that influences both of my picks that nobody has brought up yet: the weather. The playoffs take place in the middle of winter, and conditions are often treacherous as a result. Therefore, teams that are used to playing in that type of weather have an advantage over teams that aren't. San Diego NEEDS to hang to to their home-field advantage, because if they have to play a road game in Indy or Baltimore, I don't seem them adjusting from the California warmth well enough to win the game. New England should be fine either way, since they have played many crucial games in the freeze in recent years.

On the NFC side, the Bears are suited for a harsh-weather game. Not only do they play a lot of freezing games in Chicago, but it is an obvious fact that defensive football is emphasized when the weather is bad. As such, any cold weather games that come their way -- and there should be a couple, since they have already secured home-field -- should play right into their hands.

So yeah, Bears vs. Patriots!

[Hoodstock]

On the NFC side, the Bears are suited for a harsh-weather game. Not only do they play a lot of freezing games in Chicago, but it is an obvious fact that defensive football is emphasized when the weather is bad. As such, any cold weather games that come their way -- and there should be a couple, since they have already secured home-field -- should play right into their hands.

So yeah, Bears vs. Patriots!

Great Idea, but living in the Midwest I would have to say this is the mildest winter I have ever seen. It was in the mid 50's in the Detroit area just yesterday. If this weather holds the Bears will have a very small homefield advantage. Also, I don't think that the weather helped them stop Steve Smith last year. He tore them up. I think Brees will do the same.

As for the Patriots, it appears that they'll have to win at least two games on the road this year to get to the Super Bowl. I think in the past they could have, but this year's team is not the same team that won the Super Bowls. They are capable, but I don't see them going into both Baltimore and San Diego and winning two weeks in a row. Possible, yes. Going to happen, No.

By the way, defense does win. That is why the Giants are going to lose today to the Eagles. Be ready to be smothered by national coverage of the Giants collapse.

[edstipe]

Great Idea, but living in the Midwest I would have to say this is the mildest winter I have ever seen. It was in the mid 50's in the Detroit area just yesterday. If this weather holds the Bears will have a very small homefield advantage. Also, I don't think that the weather helped them stop Steve Smith last year. He tore them up. I think Brees will do the same.

As for the Patriots, it appears that they'll have to win at least two games on the road this year to get to the Super Bowl. I think in the past they could have, but this year's team is not the same team that won the Super Bowls. They are capable, but I don't see them going into both Baltimore and San Diego and winning two weeks in a row. Possible, yes. Going to happen, No.

By the way, defense does win. That is why the Giants are going to lose today to the Eagles. Be ready to be smothered by national coverage of the Giants collapse.

1) Good point about the weather this year. However, as we all know, that can change in a hurry. I still think that the Bears' defense is going to put them in the Super Bowl. Come playoff time, the importance of defense is so strongly emphasized that a team with a dominant D like Chicago has a huge advantage. Combine that with the home-field crowd that Chicago has wrapped up through the Super Bowl, and I can't envision anyone else from the NFC making it past them. (On a personal note, I would LOVE for the Saints to go all the way -- now that the 49ers are done, they are definitely the team I WANT to win it all -- I just don't think they will.)

2) The Patriots are 6-1 on the road this year. Granted, they haven't played an "elite" team in that stretch, but they have shown that they can thrive away from home. Don't underestimate the value of experience. The playoff and Super Bowl veterans that the Patriots have on both offense and defense will make a huge difference in the playoffs. Obviously, picking the Patriots over the Chargers, Ravens, and even the Colts is pretty bold -- but I can see it happening pretty easily based on the strengths/weaknesses of the Patriots and their AFC counterparts this year.

3) The Giants don't play the Eagles today; I believe you have Philly confused with New Orleans. In any case, you're right -- the Giants have been a terribly overrated club most of the year. They don't deserve to make it to the playoffs, so it is nice to see that they'll be staying home watching from their living rooms this year.

PS - I have correctly picked the two Super Bowl teams before week 1 of the playoffs three of the last four years, so if you're a betting man, feel free to steal my thoughts.