NFL Wild Card Predictions

Oakland Raiders at Houston Texans-  This is one of the most intriguing games of the entire weekend, mostly because of the quarterback situations on both teams.  The Raiders are down to their third string quarterback Connor Cook thanks to injuries.  Houston will be starting Brock Osweiler, even though he was benched at the end of the regular season for Tom Savage.  This game could really go either way.  I think defense will decide this game, and Houston has the better defense.  Oakland won a lot of games this year by outscoring opponents.  Without Derek Carr, that will be tough to do.  I think Houston takes this one in a close game.  Houston wins 20-17.

Detroit Lions at Seattle Seahawks-  This game is probably going to be the worst of the weekend as far as competition.  I'm really not sure how the Detroit Lions won 9 games this year, but they did.  Matthew Stafford is the entire Lions team.  They have almost no run game and a very mediocre defense.  I don't think the Lions can compete with the Seahawks.  Seattle wins this game pretty easily, 31-16.

Miami Dolphins at Pittsburgh Steelers-  This is another game that I don't think is going to be super close.  Miami is playing their backup quarterback Matt Moore, who is not bad, but not good enough to outscore the Steelers.  Pittsburgh has a ton of weapons on offense and a great quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger.  Miami will keep the game close for a while, but Pittsburgh will pull away by the end.  Pittsburgh wins 34-23.

New York Giants vs. Green Bay Packers-  I think this will be the best game of the weekend and really could go either way.  Green Bay's offense has been on fire lately after a tough start to the season.  The Giants have also been very good this season.  They beat the Cowboys twice and have greatly improved their defense.  This game will be extremely competitive and could easily go into overtime.  I think the Giants are going to pull it out.  There's just something about the Giants in the playoffs, they always seem to win come playoff time.  Giants pull this one out 31-28.