AFC Championship Prediction

The AFC Championship Game features a contest between the top two teams in the AFC. Baltimore and New England are old rivals. The Pats are built on offense, the Ravens are built on big D. These two teams have always been pretty dominant, and now they are meeting for the chance to make it back to the big game. But who will prevail?

First let's look at the Patriots. New England can survive solely on Tom Brady's back alone. The defense have been atrocious for most of the year (although they managed to look competent against Denver). Brady thrives and the inside threats, with the ever shifty Wes Welker and the manipulative tight end duo of Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. The Patriots offense is essentially built around these four men. With a tough offensive line and enough protection, Brady has enough firepower to expose any defense. Speaking of defense, the Patriots D has been pretty terrible for most of the year. The D-line has frequently overpursued, the linebackers have been immobile, and the secondary has been beaten. Of course, stars like Vince Wilfork, who remains a constant bull up front, and Brandon Spikes, a tackling machine at middle linebacker, can surely keep a stylistically inept Baltimore offense at bay. But the defense will definitely have to step up.

Baltimore will need all the help they can get to defeat the Patriots. The Baltimore offense will definitely have to keep up with the Pats scoring-wise, but they also have one consistent thing that New England doesn't: a consistent runner in Ray Rice. Joe Flacco can be off and on, but Rice can be incredibly consistent. Rice can certainly keep the Patriots' offense on the sidelines, but Flacco will definitely have to stretch the field every so often. He could do that against the Pats. Of course, Baltimore's defense will be the real story. Ray Lewis is as great as ever, Ed Reed is superhuman, and Haloti Ngata is a man-beast. And that's not even half of it. The Ravens defense is what will keep them in this game. If the stars can shine and the defense can penetrate, the pressure will eventually get to Brady. Brady has never looked comfortable under duress, which was especially evident four years ago in Super Bowl XLII. The Ravens are also masters at gang-tackling, which is essential to any team making a title run.

Defense wins championships, and the Ravens are certainly winners in that category. But the Patriots are an offensive juggernaut. If they stick to the same gameplan that they used against the Broncos, they will outscore the Ravens before Baltimore even has time to catch their breath. Unless the Ravens can get pressure on Brady and force turnovers, I don't know if I can trust Joe Flacco and company to win this game. It's possible, but things must go the Ravens' way. In Foxborough. With the forecast calling for a possibility of freezing rain, this one may turn out to be wet n' wild.

NEW ENGLAND 37, BALTIMORE 30

UTTQ 2011 NFL Predictions: AFC North

The 2011 season may have not begun, but our 2011 NFL Regular Season predictions have. Here's a brief summary of each AFC North team, in no particular order, starting with the defending AFC champion Pittsburgh Steelers:

PITTSBURGH STEELERS
The Steelers have looked like their typical selves during the preseason. The question is can they translate that to the regular season? The Steelers may suffer from the Super Bowl hangover in an up and coming division. With a plethora of young, fast, and methodical receivers, ben Roethlisberger hopes to lead his team back to the promised land. Of course, this team has always been about defense, and features a defense that returns relatively intact from their Super Bowl run. Led by Troy Polamalu, James Harrison, and a slew of other studs, look for this team to scare others in a division of high playoff hopes.

CINCINNATI BENGALS
Did I say "a division of high playoff hopes"? Hmm...my bad. Looks like the Bengals ruined that picture. Carson Palmer literally screwed this team (or, perhaps it was Mike Brown). Without him, and with new quarterback Andy Dalton of TCU, the team looks destined to struggle this season. Gone are top offensive and defensive playmakers (Chad Ochocinco and Johnathan Joseph), with a bunch of young, unproven talent in place (particularly on offense). Manny Lawson and Nate Clements come in from the Bay Area to help a struggling defense.

BALTIMORE RAVENS
The team that will challenge the Steelers the most should undoubtedly be this Ravens team. After all, the defense is still studly (Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Haloti Ngata, and Terrell Suggs form the core of this unit), and the offense is up and coming with the development of Joe Flacco and runningback Ray Rice. Lee Evans provides a threat across from Anquan Boldin. Hell, even the kicker, Billy Cundiff, can be an consistent offensive threat.

CLEVELAND BROWNS
It was not too long ago that the 2007 Browns shocked the NFL world by going 10-6, only to miss the playoffs. And although that team was purely a fluke, this Browns team could be much better. Long gone is Derek Anderson, with Colt McCoy ready to take the helm of this team. Bruiser Peyton Hillis can be a real weapon on this team, but he needs some backfield buddies to provide depth (will Brandon Jackson heal in time, and will Montario Hardesty stay healthy?). The only thing will be to also groom a defense of up and coming playmakers like Joe Haden, and continue to use special teams extraordinaire Josh Cribbs effectively.


AFC NORTH TITLE: Pittsburgh Steelers

• The Steelers will be looking over their shoulders at the Ravens more this season, but it shouldn't be much of a problem. The Steelers have a creampuff schedule, and, with consistent play, should easily take this division.

WILD CARD TEAMS: Baltimore Ravens

• The Ravens will once again enter the playoffs right behind the Steelers, and could at least stick around for a while. The Browns are a work in progress, but they are showing signs of improvement. The Bengals have had their ups and downs through the years, but it's hard to ignore this current downward spiral.

The Greatest Teams: 2000 Baltimore Ravens

Our series "The Greatest Teams" starts off with the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens franchise has only been in existence since 1996, so this was a pretty easy choice. The 2000 Baltimore Ravens not only won the franchise's first Super Bowl, but also boasted one of the most stifling defenses in NFL history. The offense wasn't exactly as stifling, but still respectable, even though they went through 5 consecutive games without scoring a touchdown.

The defense was led by defensive tackles Sam Adams and Tony Siragusa, both of whom consistently demanded the attention of opposing offensive linemen. This gave the stellar linebacking core of Jamie Sharper, Ray Lewis, and Peter Boulware the chance to make plays. Boulware and Lewis were particularly exceptional, with Sharper playing under the radar but still playing well. The secondary featured the impeccable safety Rod Woodson, with a featured duo of Chris McAlister and Duane Starks at cornerback. The defense soon instilled fear in opponents. After a Week 2 win against Jacksonville, 39-36, the defense only allowed opponents to score over 20 points just twice more that season.

The offense was led by quarterback Trent Dilfer, who replaced the inconsistent Tony Banks. Veteran runningback Priest Holmes and rookie runningback Jamal Lewis carried the load, while receiver Qadry Ismail and tight end Shannon Sharpe did most of the work through the air. The offensive line, anchored by left tackle Jonathan Ogden, did their job as well.

The 2000 Ravens, coached by Brian Billick, boasted a terrific defense and respectable offense that led the team to a berth in Super Bowl XXXV against the New York Giants. The Ravens won, 34-7, cementing their place in history and on this list as the best Baltimore Ravens team of all time.