The Johnny Bacardi Show

Hey, look there! It's JOHNNY B's FEARFUL, I MEAN FEARLESS NFL PLAYOFF PIGSKIN PROGNOSTICATIONS!

Boy, did I stink on ice last weekend. Between Seattle's butterfingered receivers (why, oh why didn't they go to Jerry Rice more?), Brett Favre's troubling inclination to go berserk when faced with adversity, and the incredibly asinine, knuckleheaded, fuckwitted (and about a dozen other adjectives) playcalling of Marty (there is NO "WIN" in Marty) Schottenheimer and his coaching staff, I went a putrid 1-3. Feh. Bad thing is, I don't know if I can do any better this weekend either, because I felt last week's game were easier to call than this week's games! But I started this, and I'm gonna see it through- so here goes.

First, the usual disclaimer, more relevant now than ever.

These picks are FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY. I'm not betting illegally with these, and NEITHER SHOULD YOU...and I take no responsibility if you lose your house.

PITTSBURGH over The New York Jets. The Jets were damn lucky, despite Schottenheimer's best efforts to the contrary, to escape SD with a victory. They've overacheived to get this far, and I believe it stops here.

ATLANTA over St. Louis. As always with my Falcons, for them to win it comes down to this: the defense has to make stops and be solid. No 87-yard pass plays to Torry Holt thanks to busted coverages. And they need to be able to control the clock on the ground, with Dunn, Duckett and Vick. And Vick needs to be able to complete a decent amount of passes to keep them from going three-and-out. The Rams have been a lot better the last month or so, and they looked scarily efficient against the Seahawks last weekend, but I'm gonna go with my boys. If Vick's got any magic left, hopefully he can use some of it today.

PHILADELPHIA over Minnesota. Even though the Vikings have been better lately as well, I think the Eagles have enough, despite their long layoff, to win a close one. If you're betting, you might want to put a little on the Vikes to cover the spread.

INDIANAPOLIS over New England. The game of the week, although all of them promise to be good ones. I picked the Colts to go all the way at the beginning of the season, and Manning and Co. just seem to be in an unreal groove right now, which I think will still be effective against a depleted Patriots defense. They won't blow the Pats out, and it may come down to a figgie from big-mouth kicker Mike Vanderjagt, but I think the Colts will finally get over this hurdle.