You can almost hear Tom Brady laughing from his throne as he looks at the NFL playoff bracket this year, and can you blame him if he is? Just look at the competition, or lack thereof, in this year’s playoffs. Have you ever seen a more pathetic showing than this in recent years? To be fair some of the teams were good, but injuries to key players have made this year’s playoffs into a joke in some aspects. Nevertheless, the games must be played.

Texans vs. Raiders

All you have to do is look at the first game on the slate and you’ll think wow, one of these teams gets to move on to the next round. The Raiders to be fair were looking like the favorite team to lose to the Patriots in the AFC Championship game. However, in their second to last game of the regular season, their star quarterback Derek Carr, broke his fibula, and if you know anything about football in the modern day, the quarterback is everything. Just ask their opponent the Houston Texans who paid 72 million dollars for a quarterback that they hoped would be good. Spoiler alert, he sucks. But he’s at least played the whole season and knows the offense as opposed to the Raiders who will be starting a rookie. To be honest, the Raiders might have a better chance if they let Carr play with his broken leg. Two weeks ago, it wouldn’t have even been a question that the Raiders would win this game. Now it looks more like the Texans are the favorite to move on. They have a better running game and a good defense. Although even a bad defense could probably stop the Raiders at this point. It’s not even a question at this point, Texans all the way.

Dolphins vs. Steelers

The other AFC Game to be played this week, or really the only AFC game, to be played is the Dolphins and Steelers. I say the only AFC Game because the Texans and Raiders are more like a middle school scrimmage. At least the Dolphins and Steelers have a shot at looking like a game. You would think it’s an easy pick. You would think the Steelers should destroy the Dolphins since they have a top 3 wide receiver and the best running back in the league. Not to mention the Dolphins much like the Raiders will be without their starting quarterback. However, when these two teams played earlier this year, it wasn’t the Dolphins quarterback that beat them, it was their running back. Jay Ajayi ran for over 200 yards against the Steelers for a Dolphin win the last time they played. Obviously, the Steelers are going to make sure that doesn’t happen again. They will commit everything to stopping the run and in turn that will let backup quarterback Matt Moore have a shot at completing some passes. Unlike the Raiders, however, the Dolphins backup is actually quite capable of playing football, and against a soft secondary like the Steelers, he should have some decent opportunities. That being said the Dolphins defense is just as bad against the pass and absolutely putrid against the run. Not to mention they have their main offensive starters still, so look at that, I guess the Steelers really were an easy pick.

Lions vs. Seahawks

Everyone knows that the Seahawks have one of the best home-field advantages in the NFL. The Seahawks are a very good team at home and likewise, the Lions are a very bad team on the road. But this isn’t the same Seahawks team that won the Super Bowl just a few short seasons ago. They haven’t had a run game since Marshawn Lynch retired and despite them being the tenth best passing team, their passing game sucks too. They have no one on that offense that scares you. They just have a hobbled Russel Wilson who can make plays appear out of nowhere. Then you have the Lions and their hobbled quarterback. Although don’t let the dislocated finger fool you, Matt Stafford looks just fine throwing the ball even with a splint on his finger. I understand that he is up against the fabled legion of boom, but I just don’t think their defense scares teams anymore, especially with Earl Thomas out for the season. Plus, the Lions have receivers that I have actually heard of. I know the Seahawks are heavily favored in this game but I think they will finally run out of magic. In fact, here’s a bold prediction for you. Former Seahawks receiver, Golden Tate scores the game-winning touchdown for the Lions.

Giants vs. Packers

This all just seems too familiar, doesn’t it? Giants and Packers in a playoff game at Lambeau field. To quote the late Yogi Berra, “It’s like déjà vu all over again.” Once again you have a great Packers team going up against the overlooked New York Giants. Nothing about the Giants says Super Bowl champion, but then again that didn’t stop them the last two times. Sure, the Packers have probably the second-best Quarterback in the league who is on fire right now, but the Giants have a defense. And when I say a defense I mean the best defense. (well second best technically, but who cares.) and if we know anything from the last couple Super Bowls, it’s all about defense. Normally I give the advantage to Aaron Rodgers because you just don’t bet against him. However, despite them playing better these last six games, the Giants defense has been lights out. And on the other side of the spectrum, the Giants offense has been getting a little bit better, while the Packers defense just lost a couple players on their already bad defense. If you figure the Packers offense and Giants defense cancel each other out, then that leaves Eli Manning, one of the best playoff quarterbacks in the game, all the time he wants to gash that Packers defense. And if that happens and the Giants win, like I believe they will, Tom Brady might not be laughing for long.