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Ground battles key, but Ravens and Cards can come good

Kevin Cadle Posted 8th January 2009 view comments

It's the Division Round in the NFL with four teams fighting it out to take place in the Conference games next weekend. All four games will be live on Sky Sports and fresh from calling three out of the four Wildcard games correctly, we have got Kevin Cadle to run the rule over Saturday's showdowns...

Baltimore @ Tennessee

You cannot win the Super Bowl with a good defense alone. In fact you cannot win the Super Bowl with even an outstanding defense alone.

All the headlines have been made by that Baltimore defense, but don't think for a minute that is all this team has to offer.

James: gives Arizona the edge

James: gives Arizona the edge

They were in the top 10 point scorers for the regular season in the NFL and while that defense has picked them up some points here and there along the way, Joe Flacco and his offense have showed they have that balance you need to succeed at this stage of the year.

When you get into the play-offs, it is too late to change. You just do what you do, you dance with who you took to the ball and you have faith in what has got you to where you are.

When it comes to the play-offs I always wonder about the sides that get the first weekend off and whether they can just slip right back into or not - and I am not sure about the Titans being able to do that before it's too late. And I like the way Arizona can get things done. I don't think they have to take a back seat, even if most things are leaning towards the Panthers.

Kevin Cadle
Quotes of the week

NFL DIVISIONAL PLAY-OFFS
Live on Sky Sports 2 and HD2
Baltimore @ Tennessee
9.30pm, Saturday
Arizona @ Carolina
1.00am (Sun), Saturday
Philadelphia @ NY Giants
6.00pm, Sunday
San Diego @ Pittsburgh
9.30pm, Sunday

For Tennessee that usually means running the football. But they do have a veteran quarterback in Kerry Collins who has shown us that when he has to, he can step back and pass the football. While Baltimore is not all about defense, Tennessee is not all about running and you can expect that passing game to compliment the work put in by LenDale White and Chris Johnson.

Tennesee are who they are - and they are a running side. And they are a physical running side. The whole offensive line is geared towards that battle, although the big question here will be is Kevin Mawae fit? If he isn't then the Titans will have to look at a completely different offensive set-up.

They have big tight ends like Bo Scaife, Alge Crumpler, while White is a big physical running back and the only player who doesnt really have that size to work with is the rookie riunning back Johnson. The rest of this Titans offense is kind of built for a match-up with Baltimore!

This promises to be a real bruising affair and if you look back to the Week Five meeting between the two, which Tennesee won 13-10, I think we can expect a similar sort of game on Saturday. It might not be the same outcome, it might not be the same score, but I do think we can expect the same sort of action.

But, there is one factor - other than mistakes which no-one can plan for - that we can throw into the mix this time around that will be different... Flacco.

What you will see this weekend is a completely different quarterback to the one we saw way back then. He was only five games into his rookie season, now he's thrown 13 touchdowns in his last 12 starts and just five intereceptions, compared to one touchdown and seven interceptions back then.

The win in Miami last week was not only big for the whole Baltimore organisation but it was a big game for Joe too. All he had to do was not make a mistake and as simple as that sounds, when you get into play-off country, that is a big, big aspect for any quarterback, never mind a rookie, to master.

If you don't turn that ball over, you stand a chance of winning and Joe realised that. He didn't have great stats down in Miami but they were good enough - and had he connected with a couple of those long passes, his figures would have taken a big jump.

He did enough to keep the Miami defense on their toes throughout and let that Ravens defense do what they do best. And whatever way you look at it, whether or not Baltimore comes through this, Flacco has done a great job for them this season.

CADLE'S CALL: I am going with who I like this week and I like the Baltimore Ravens! When it comes to the play-offs I always wonder about the sides that get the first weekend off and whether they can just slip right back into or not - and I am not sure about the Titans being able to do that before it's too late. I also like what Baltimore brings to the party.

Arizona @ Carolina

If I had been calling the game last Saturday afternoon I would've chosen Arizona to come through against Atlanta.

OK, I made my call on Wednesday and went with the Falcons, but the closer the game got, the more and more I looked at the Cardinals, the more I liked them. And when the game got underway the more I liked what I saw.

What got them a trip to Carolina this Saturday was the establishment of a running game. It was not great, but there was some semblance of one and it was good enough to compliment that Arizona passing game.

Yes, this is Kurt Warner's offense and always will be; yes, Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin had big games catching the football, but they came up with something on the ground - and that was crucial.

That will give Carolina something to ponder this weekend and it might even open up a passing game that already ranked fourth in the regular season, make it more explosive than before.

Tim Hightower has usually been the man to do that, but what we saw last week was that Warner can now give the football to Edgerrin James and he can be productive again.

It was nothing special and certainly not spectacular but it was enough to keep Atlanta guessing and will have given Mike Trgovac and that Carolina defense something to think about in practice all week.

If they are going to get through - and I do like them - Arizona are going to have to keep the Carolina offense off the field as much as possible and they are going to have to score points when the chances present themselves.

And really they should be doing that with the personnel they have. You're talking about Warner being a two-time MVP, Larry Fitzgerland a Pro Bowler, Edgerrin James a Pro Bowler.

Steve Breaston is a big complimentary receiver so if someone goes down, they've got a 1,000-yard man to turn to. They do have guys that can produce the goods.

The flipside to this football team though is that they just don't have the playmakers - or playbreakers - on defense. They went OK against Matt Ryan last week, and he is probably a better passer than Jake Delhomme is.

But throw in Steve Smith and Muhsin Muhammad as wide receivers for Carolina, then Jake has some veteran guys to work with - and that will be the big difference for the Arizona defense compared to last week.

There is also DeAngelo Williams to contend with. This man has had one heck of a breakout year, but only after they finally decided to give him the ball!

I asked our team on a Monday night show about third-year running backs because DeAngelo, Reggie Bush and Maurice Jones-Drew have all had good years and not many people would've put Williams alongside the likes of Bush before the season started.

But they have let him have the ball, let him come out and play football and along with Jonathan Stewart, they have put their faith in him. That whole offensive line loves nothing better than run blocking and what I like about Williams and Carolina is they don't mess around in that backfield; if they find a hole, they hit it and they go!

That might give them the edge over Arizona, but there are also plenty of other things to take into consideration for the Cardinals. Don't forget they lost 27-23 in Carolina in week eight and were 17-3 up going into the third quarter. So they will have that little man in the back of their minds reminding them of that.

Also, Arizona are not the best side on the road. And they have struggled big time on the East Coast this season. But these records, these streaks have to be broken some time and perhaps Carolina will be thinking that Arizona can't come to Charlotte and perform.

CADLE'S CALL: I like the way Arizona can get things done. I don't think they have to take a back seat here, even if most things are leaning towards the Panthers. It's great to know who you are and Arizona certainly knows that and at some stage that whole East Coast thing is going to come to an end. The weather will not be that atrotocious that it won't let them be who they are.

Comments (5)

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Dani Vega says...

I predict a low scoring Baltimore victory and a high scoring Carolina victory! I still fancy The Giants to overcome Philly though!

Posted 13:29 9th January 2009

Ash Bird says...

Have to agree with the thoughts on the Ravens Titans game. Flacco will be key and will probably be the reason whether the Ravens win or lose. But i do feel that the Titans are hardly being talked about when they earnt the no. 1 seed on some great play calling and matches (Steelers match comes to mind), so I do feel they may edge. Can't see how the Cardinals are going to beat the Panthers. Carolina are unbeaten at home and play their best football at home on pressure situations. Just look at the results against their divisional rivals. If you consider Arizona's away results as well, the match has Panthers all over it.

Posted 23:50 8th January 2009

Paul M says...

Kev, like your thoughts on the Ravens Titans matchup. Flacco will be key. I've got the feeling he's got a few big plays in him that Tennesse maybe havn't allowed for. You just get the feeling that this Tennesse team is maybe a bit rusty. Also, the way the Baltimore D is playing right now you can't right them off in any game. As a Steelers fan I'm rooting for Baltimore so we'll be at home again next week, and have an easier route to the Superbowl!!

Posted 20:52 8th January 2009

Darren Tandy says...

I agree with Kev about the Ravens they will be tougher and smarter than in week 5 i like the way Baltimore create turnovers and whoever wins this battle i take to win the game. Arizona in the other hand look too fragile on the road and if they go behind early in this ball game i fear the running game will be quickly forgotton which will make them one dimensional for a decent Carolina team to win by 10 Points. ps: love the coverage keep it up guys

Posted 20:11 8th January 2009

Andrew Gordon says...

Im going with the panthers on this one, it helps that they are my favourite team. The Moose will rule on the day!

Posted 18:44 8th January 2009

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