By Sameer Kini
Sports Editor
This week, both national and WA sports have important games to watch. Here are my picks to see for this week.
National – NFL Playoff Football. This will most likely be what to watch for every week up until the Super Bowl in February as the NFL kicks off the playoffs with Wild Card weekend this Saturday and Sunday. In each division, there will be two matchups that pit some of the best teams together. However, I think two of these four matchups stand out the most, one from each division.
In the AFC, the game to watch will be the 3rd seed Indianapolis Colts vs. the 6th seed New York Jets at 8 on Saturday night. This is a rematch of last year’s AFC championship, and the buildup for this game has started early thanks to Jets coach Rex Ryan calling this matchup against Indy’s quarterback Peyton Manning “personal.” It is a pretty classic defense vs. offense matchup as Indy looks to use all its weapons against the Jets fast, blitzing defense. My pick is biased, as a Colts fan, but honestly, expect the Colts to come out firing. Ryan likes to do the talking before big matchups but expect Manning to do the talking with his play. If the Colts jump out early, look for Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez make crucial errors with Indy’s pass-rushers Freeney and Mathis in his face all night. Expect the Colts to win and move on to the divisional round.
My NFC game to watch will be between the 3rd seeded Philadelphia Eagles and the 6th seeded Green Bay Packers on Sunday at 4:15. This intriguing matchup pits Mike Vick and his Eagles against Aaron Rodgers and the Pack. Green Bay is a very well-balanced team, but they will need to prepare well, especially defensively to stop Philly’s three-headed monster of Vick, LeSean McCoy and DeSean Jackson. Offensively, Green Bay’s passing offense is lethal, with Rodgers, Greg Jennings, and Donald Driver leading the way, but their lack of a run game since Ryan Grant went down early in the season could seriously hurt them here, unless John Kuhn emerges as a decent threat. However, I am going to go out and take a risk here by taking the Pack. Green Bay comes in riding a hot streak while playing intense playoff-like games to earn their wild card spot, while Philly has limped in, losing to the Vikes and resting starters in their final game. Expect the Pack to slow down Vick and for Rodgers to lead them to an upset.
WA – WA Boy’s Hockey. The Varsity Hockey team looks to rebound after a slow start to the season this week with two big games. First on the slate is Concord-Carlisle, a DCL rival, who they will play on Wednesday at 7:45 at Skate 3. Next comes another test in Chelmsford, who will be played on Saturday at 1:30 at Skate 3. The boys have started this season on a low note, with a record of 0-3-1, as they continue to focus on getting their first win. The competition looks to be tough however, but the boys are determined to finally pick up their first W. WA hockey supporters should go out to Skate 3 for both the games this week as fan support will be huge if the hockey team is to win these games. As for my picks, I expect a good week for the hockey team. Expect them to emerge with at least their first victory of the year, if not two. I expect them to go 1-0-1, with no losses this week as they attempt to right the ship after a poor start to the season.