The show must go on...

Tough to come up with any funny videos after the Cards blowing that one. At least it was basically over at halftime so I had time to get used to the idea. Good run boys. Stringing together playoff runs is part of becoming a legitimate threat again, and it only gets tougher in the West.

Anyways, the picks must go on. Here are Sunday's playoff games; home teams in CAPS.



Cowboys vs. VIKINGS

The Cowboys defied the critics last week and flattened the Eagles for the third time this season, looking pretty impressive doing it. Meanwhile the Vikings have been taking it easy since their blowout of the Giants on week 17 and Brett Favre is back after being rested, and won't have to play a cold weather game the rest of the season. This game is going to come down to one thing, line play on both sides of the ball.

Why the Cowboys will win: The Cowboys. Are. Rolling. It could be argued that no team is hotter right now. They appear to finally have all of the pieces on offense and defense. Romo is looking like the QB everyone has been waiting to see, and he has legitimate targets in Miles Austin, Jason Witten, and Roy Williams. When they aren't stretching the field with Austin's speed they'll be working the play action game and getting Marion Barber and Felix Jones involved. This will force the safeties down and allow Jason Witten room to blow past them up the seam of the field, where he excels. Dallas' big offensive line matches up pretty well against the Vikings, so it could neutralize them and force the Vikings' LB's and DB's to make plays. The Vikings secondary will have a tough time trying to continually adjust to Big D's game plan. On defense the Cowboys have the deepest secondary in the league and should be good enough to cover Minnesota's trio of talented WR's. In the meantime, Favre will be running for his life against the likes of Anthony Spencer and DeMarcus Ware, possibly the best pass rusher in the league. Adrian Peterson won't likely have a lot of room to run with run stopper Jay Ratliff blocking the middle. The remainder of Dallas's linebacking core, Bradie James and Keith Brooking, are right behind him up the middle to stuff AP and potentially strip the ball from an RB who has consistently had fumble problems.

Why the Vikings will win: The Vikings are extremely talented on both sides of the ball and they finally have what they have been missing, a battle-tested and proven veteran at QB in Brett Favre, who is enjoying yet another Pro Bowl season in his storied NFL career. The Vikings can beat you either way, with the run and Adrian Peterson or the pass with Favre and his numerous receiving targets. Sidney Rice, Percy Harvin, Visanthe Shiancoe and Bernard Berrian. If you bring 8 men in the box, Favre will check down and will find any one of the above-mentioned players to get the ball to. If you play Nickel or Dime, AP gets the ball and runs through people at the point of contact. The Cowboys will find that they are going to have a tough time containing the Vikings defensive line. With pro-bowlers Jared Allen, Pat Williams, and Kevin Williams on the defensive front, the Cowboys will need to pick their poison. No one is better at stopping the run than the Williams', while Jared Allen is in the same elite class as Ware as a pass rusher. The Cowboys can't double team all three of those guys. Barber and Jones are going to find that the middle of that line is a brick wall. Once again, the Cowboys have question marks on special teams. If they get in a tight ballgame, they're going to have to trust on the shaky leg of Redskins cast-off Shaun Suisham (how do the Cowboys settle for a kicker that wasn't good enough for Washington? I guess that's another story). They lucked out last week as it was a blow out, but the Vikings are rested and ready to play, so there's no question he'll be forced to get some work in and likely in a pressure situation.

Pick: The picks only get tougher from here on out. Both teams excel on both sides of the ball, and it should be a great game to watch. It is truly going to come down to which offensive line has the better game. I give this game to the Vikings, but by the slimmest of margins.


Jets vs. CHARGERS

The upstart Jets took it to the Bengals last week on defense and running the ball, and as any great coach has said, you excel at those two facets and you win championships. The Chargers on the other hand have 11 straight wins and mountains of postseason experience on their side.

Why the Jets will win: Rex Ryan has this team brimming with confidence after decisively spanking the Cincinnati Bengals in the Wild Card round last week. He believes they have the talent to get all the way to the Super Bowl, and he may be right. RB's Thomas Jones and Shonn Greene run behind one of, if not the league's best offensive line. They open up massive holes for both backs to run through. Mark Sanchez stuck to the game plan last week and did just enough for the Jets to be dominant; he didn't turn over the ball. When you don't turn over the ball, you win games. He has help on the outside in Braylon Edwards and Jerrico Cotchery who both excel at moving the chains when needed. The Chargers will win or lose this game on whether or not their defense can stop the run. Historically, they have not been able to in the past, and will have a tough time against one of the best run games in the league. While Phillip Rivers is solid, Kris Jenkins, Calvin Pace and company will try to force him out of the pocket where he is least comfortable. The Chargers running attack consists of LaDanian Tomlinson--who has clearly lost a step--and the diminutive Darren Sproles. The Chargers have not run the ball well this year averaging only 80 yards a game, barely enough to keep defenses honest. They will try their luck though against the Jets, considering the other option is throwing to Vincent Jackson while he is covered by stud corner Darrelle Revis. The Jets biggest concern will be covering Antonio Gates in the middle of the field and will rely primarily on SS Jim Leonard to stick to him like glue on passing downs.

Why the Chargers will win: The Chargers come into this match-up at the top of their game. They have one of the leagues premier passers, Phillip Rivers and stud targets Vincent Jackson, Antonio Gates, and Darren Sproles out of the backfield. Let's not forget, one of the all time greats at RB, LaDanian Tomlinson is still a force to be reckoned with and will not go quietly into the night. He has 12 TD's this year and still knows how to find ways to score in the red zone as well as anyone. The Chargers defense struggles against the run, but they have performed well as of late. They have historically performed well against the Jets, keeping them under 100 yards in both of their last two meetings. The Chargers will come out and are going to try to run the ball enough to keep the Jets honest while looking to pass for their points. Other than Revis, the Jets need some help in the secondary to be able to stop the Chargers passing attack. They are going to have to find an answer to covering Antonio Gates, and without moving Revis, they don't really have a solid option. Leonard will be the one to give it a go, but it's tough to imagine him sticking to Gates all game. The Chargers also have two of the best kickers in the league with K Nate Kaeding and P Mike Scifres, and should unquestionably dominate the Jets on special teams.

Pick: The Chargers have just too many weapons for the Jets to deal with. The Chargers take this one, sending the Jets home packing and leaving Rex Ryan to explain why they weren't as good as he thought they were.