How the 2011 Super Bowl might turn out
They say anything can happen in the National Football League (NFL). They are mostly right. However, ‘anything’ does not include the possibility of a team, which has already been knocked out, playing the Super Bowl. The Playoffs have seen the elimination
of the two top seeded teams in the divisional round.
The sixth seed Green Bay Packers knocked the number one seed, Atlanta Falcons, out of the Playoffs. The next day the sixth seed New York Jets crushed the number one seed, New England Patriots and crushed their dreams of playing the National Football Conference
(NFC) Champion at the Cowboys’ Stadium.
One by one, eight of the teams that came into the playoffs were knocked out, leaving behind just four contenders. The Packers and Jets are still in it and both have made it to their respective conference championships. The second seed Pittsburgh Steelers
will face the Jets and in the NFC, while the second seed Chicago Bears will face the Packers. Two more teams will be eliminated by the end of the weekend. The Super Bowl can go only one of four ways from here.
New York Jets VS Green Bay Packers
If the Jets face the Packers in the Super Bowl, the Green Bay Packers are the favourites. New York’s quarterback Mark Sanchez has been spectacular; no doubt about it, but Aaron Rodgers has been doing even better. Sanchez has thrown three touchdowns in the
two playoffs games that the Jets have played. Rodgers has thrown six, without any interceptions. Sanchez was intercepted by the Colts and he threw no touchdowns in that game.
In the regular season the Packers were able to shutout the Jets and win 9-0. Green Bay has a better offence and defence than the Jets. A New York victory over Green Bay is as unlikely as the Jets beating the Patriots. That already happened and you only get
one miracle in a season.
New York Jets VS Chicago Bears
Although the Bears ended the regular season with the second best record in the NFC it doesn’t mean they don’t have weaknesses. Their offensive line is full of holes through which defenders have been tormenting quarterback Jay Cutler. Even then the Bears
still managed to defeat the Jets in the regular season. Chicago’s defence allowed Sanchez just one touchdown in that game however, New York’s strong rush pulled in two more touchdowns. New York got a fourth touchdown off an interception return.
The Bears won but since then Chicago has been more or less stagnant, while the Jets have been moving ahead and improving. They are almost a different team now. One bad pass from Cutler would give the game away to the Jets and having thrown 16 interceptions,
we know Cutler is prone to making mistakes.
Pittsburgh Steelers VS Green Bay Packers
The Steelers are one of the Heavyweights of the NFL and it’s only fitting that Big Ben (Ben Roethlisberger) is their quarterback. All four teams in the playoffs depend on their defence more than their offence. As far as defence goes, there is no team better
than the Steelers.
The Steelers are impervious to the rush but thankfully for the Packers, that is not one of Green Bay’s strong suits. Pittsburgh has the 12th ranked pass rush. Green Bay ranks as the fifth best passing side in the league. The numbers give Green
Bay the advantage but numbers aren’t everything.
The Packers defence is the strongest Big Ben could face in the NFL. The second strongest defence belonged to the Baltimore Ravens, and Roethlisberger was comfortably able to crush it. In the event of a Packers-Steelers Super Bowl, Pittsburgh has the edge.
Pittsburgh Steelers VS Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears have the worst turnover ratio of the four remaining teams in the playoffs. The Pittsburgh Steelers have the best. Roethlisberger has thrown the lowest number of interceptions among the four remaining quarterbacks. Cutler has thrown 11 more
interceptions than Big Ben.
Both the Steelers and the Bears depend on their defence to win games and Pittsburgh has the better defence. Chicago fans would be praying for a New York victory in the American Football Conference (AFC) Championship game because if the Steelers win, the
chances of the Bears winning the Super Bowl don’t look so good.
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