This is a huge blow to the Jets since Holmes and Revis are two of their star players on the team. Mark Sanchez looked confused and rattled against the tough 9ers defense. I will give him the benefit of the doubt since he was going against a rugged defense. After the game was out of hand you wonder why Coach Rex Ryan did not put in Tim Tebow to play some garbage time to get acclimated to the Jets offense. This is puzzling on many levels.

One why risk an injury to Sanchez especially with the luck they have been having with losing other players. Two the game was out of reach so why not put in Tebow to get some game time. You have to wonder if this Sanchez/Tebow experiment is more of a hindrance than a help. Is the psyche of Sanchez that fragile that if Tebow does well it would add pressure on Ryan to use Tebow more in the offense? The Jets are 2-2 with barely escaping the last week’s game against the Dolphins. We will have to see how the Jets react to the injuries and their lack of offense. The Jets have a tough game next weekend when they play the 4-0 Houston Texans.

On the flip side the 49ers looked like the team from weeks one and two. The offense started off slow, but after the half the 9ers got back on track with their signature punishing ground game. The defense and special teams produced turnovers and blocked punts to secure a victory. The 3-1 49ers will take on will take on the Bills next week.

Saints @ 49ers

This week, the Saints depart from the comforts of their dome that overlooks the coast of Louisiana and head toward the coast of Northern California. The team that awaits them is nothing like the team they just left in the dust. The 49ers, with Alex Smith at the helm, will not engage the Saints in a shootout. This won’t be the Wild West. If the 49ers have it their way, this will be the brand of football that analysts are claiming has been lost –running, defense, and concussion-inducing handshakes.

The best defense the Saints can play may be to keep 49er coach Jim Harbaugh away from Drew Brees’ throwing hand. Similarly, the 49ers best defense may need to come in the form of a weather miracle. It’s supposed to be pretty nice in San Francisco this weekend –if they want it damp, they may have to get the hose out and “make it rain”.

What to watch for: To the untrained ear, it would seem the 49ers have an impenetrable defense.  Their defensive corps, which has the weight of football traditionalists riding on its shoulders, hoping for the “defense wins championships” mantra to live on, has been vaunted for the past couple weeks in advance of this game. However, the truth is that the 49ers are not that tough against the pass. In fact, they are mediocre at best.

The 49ers rank 16^th in pass yards allowed this season…and they didn’t exactly face stiff competition. The list of quarterbacks they held under 230 yards reads like a Who’s Who among Future Career Backups Yearbook with the exception of Andy Dalton, Josh Freeman and Joe Flacco (who are yet to be proven, but not exactly Tom Brady, yet, either). The rest of the list consists of AJ Feeley, Tarvaris Jackson, a tag-team of John Skelton and Richard Bartel, and Kellen Clemens. Stop me when you feel intimidated. This same “great” defense gave up about 250 yards passing to Colt McCoy, almost 350 to Tony Romo, and over 400 to Michael Vick.

When the 49ers lost, it wasn’t because of their overall defense or their rushing games failing to live up to the hype. It was their passing defense. In the two losses that weren’t the Ravens (who simply outmuscled them), the 49ers won the turnover battle and had more rushing yards in both games. But the other consistent of both of those games –they were dominated in the passing yard comparison.

For the Saints, it will be vital for them to abandon their shootout mentality. This game will not be about who has the ball last. It might come down to which team has the ball longest. Seeing as how time of possession will almost entirely depend on the success of Frank Gore and the 49ers’ running game achieving first downs, the Saints’ run defense will have to take center stage in order to bring a victory party back to the streets of New Orleans.

The Saints should be aware of this winning formula. In all three of their losses, including the two inexplicable losses to the Rams and Buccaneers, the Saints lost the comparisons of time of possession and number of first downs, while giving up over 100 yards rushing. The 49ers are 10-0 this season when they rush for over 100 yards. Though the Saints, not prided on their defense, have held teams below 100 yards seven times this season, they also rank 31^st in opponents’ yards per carry. Gore is sure to run a lot in this game. If the Saints want to win, and maintain a good ratio with time of possession, they are going to have to step it up and stop the run.

Who to watch for: Marques Colston, even more than usual, has a chance to really light up the stat sheet this week. In the 49ers’ two losses (again, excluding the Ravens game, which was simply a trench battle), they gave up huge numbers to the opposing teams’ number one receivers. For the Cardinals, Larry Fitzgerald had 149 yards and a touchdown, while the Cowboys’ Miles Austin had 143 yards and three touchdowns. If the pass defense remains vulnerable, Colston may be poised to have a huge performance in San Francisco.

Who will win: Much has been made of how different a team the Saints are on the road. That’s fair. After all, away from the dome they are only averaging 27.25 points per game, which pales in comparison to their totals in New Orleans. That being said, 27 points may be enough. The 49ers have only topped 27 points this year in four of their 16 games.

Much has also been made of the 49ers defense –specifically their rush defense. But the Saints don’t need to run well in order to win. In fact, sometimes it seems better if they don’t. The Saints, this season, are 7-0 when held under 100 yards rushing.

With the 49ers’ pass defense being susceptible, I think Brees & Company have a good chance of scoring over 27 points. And I think 27 points will be enough. If Gore doesn’t control the clock, Brees will find the end zone. Saints win a close one 28-26.

Giants @ Packers

Several weeks ago, I wrote an article about the then-undefeated and Vegas-favorite Packers, who not only had momentum on their side, but also statistical history. In some ways, their rise to a second Lombardi trophy in as many years seemed a foregone conclusion –at least as close as the NFL gets to foregone conclusions. This week, the Packers still enter their playoff game as the overwhelming favorites, but whispers of doubt have joined the wind that will swirl on Lambeau Field. The most dangerous of playoff foes has entered the arena –the hot Wild Card team. If recent history has taught us anything, it is that the hot Wild Card team is not to be messed with. This week, for the first time all season, people aren’t talking about the Packers in the NFC Championship as if it is destiny. Now, there is doubt. Now…other possibilities suddenly seem much more possible.

What to watch for: For Green Bay, this is their chance to give their pass defense a final identity. All season, the Packers’ secondary has been feast or famine. They rank first in forced interceptions, while simultaneously ranking last in passing yards and 27^th in passing touchdowns allowed. If the Packers want to win this game and stay on the road that leads to defending a championship, they need to feast on the balls of one Eli Manning. The balls he throws, that is.

This season, the Giants have lost every game in which Manning throws two or more interceptions. This is good news for the Packers secondary. In 11 of their 15 wins, they forced two or more interceptions. Two of the games in which they failed to were against the Giants and Saints –their two most competitive wins of the season that easily could have gone the other way. But with this promising history for the Packers comes even more recent history which will make this trend difficult to imitate. Eli Manning is on fire. More than that, he’s also protecting the ball. Eli has only thrown 2+ interceptions twice in the last 11 weeks. If the Packers want to keep this game from being dangerously close near the end, Charles Woodson and Friends need to swipe the ball from the cold air of Lambeau Field.

The Giants’ best chance to win resides in their defensive line. The Packers offensive line, which protected Aaron Rodgers for much of the year, is hobbled, with Sherrod and Bulaga both far from 100%. In their lone loss to Kansas City, this weakness took center stage and may have revealed a formula to beating the then-seemingly unbeatable Green Bay Packers.

In the loss to Kansas City, Aaron Rodgers was sacked four times. When the Packers have given up four sacks this season, the game has been competitive (with the exception of the Raiders). The Vikings and sack-master Jared Allen managed to keep the Packers very close when they broke through the line, as did the Chargers. Both teams lost by a single possession.

The Giants have a chance to use this to their advantage in order to find a way to reach the next level and beat Green Bay. In two of their last three games, they’ve recorded 5 sacks or more, and their defensive line looks stronger now than it has all season. Over the entire season, the Giants have reached the magic four-sack total 6 times. None of these games occurred in their lull of losses that defined the middle of their season.

If either of these keys to the game goes in the Giants favor, they should be able to keep this game close. Considering that Eli has led 5 fourth-quarter comebacks this season, a close game with seconds to spare may be the Packers worst nightmare and the ticket to a shockingly early exit for the Super Bowl favorites.

Who to watch for: If the Giants are going to get after Aaron Rodgers and pressure him, there are two names that are going to constantly raid your television screen: Osi Umenyiora and Jason Pierre-Paul. The Giants’ two key defensive linemen both enter this playoff game red hot, and only have eyes for the ball and the quarterback.

JPP finished the season with at least one sack in each of the final four games. In five games this season, Pierre-Paul put the quarterback on the grass at least twice. Umenyiora, not to be outdone, has three sacks in his last two games, and is making up for an injury-plagued slow start to his own season. Combined, these two beasts had over 25 sacks for the season. It may take only four between them to disrupt Rodgers enough to make a difference.

Who will win: I’ve been trying to convince myself for hours to change my mind. All common sense points to the Packers, who have had a legendary season. But they have a weak spot, and if the Giants can continue to take care of the ball and not revert to 2010 interception-happy Eli, they have a chance to play even with this Packers team. More importantly, the Giants are the hot Wild Card team…and recently, it’s more detrimental to bet against that team than to bet against the favorite.

This Packers team is eerily reminiscent of last season’s Patriots. The Patriots had an amazing record at 14-2 and earned the one-seed. The Patriots were also a passing machine and turnover factory. And yet, when the Wild Card Jets rolled into town from New York, the Patriots lost, and the Jets avenged a regular season loss. In the upset, the Jets didn’t turn the ball over and Brady was sacked five times.

Somehow, I feel as if history may repeat itself. A New York Wild Card, with a fresh loss to the favorite in the regular season still stinging their memory, found a way to protect the ball and hit the quarterback. I can’t believe I’m saying it…but Giants win 31-28 late. Eli, once again, will show that little brother has his own clutch gene.

Cory’s Report Card:

Playoff Picks so far: 4-0