AFC Wild Card: New York Jets (10-6) vs. Indianapolis Colts (10-6)

Date: Saturday, January 8th, 2011

Time: 8:00 p.m. EST

Following the NFC wild card matchup between the New Orleans Saints and the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday is a great matchup in an AFC wild card game. New York made it into the wild card round as the 6th seed in the AFC. The Jets were the fifth best defensive team in the NFL. They were particularly strong against the run at just 90 rushing yards allowed per game and 304 rushing points allowed on the season. Quarterback Mark Sanchez had a mediocre season averaging 200 yards passing per game after leading the Jets to the AFC championship game last year, where they coincidentally lost to Indianapolis. There has been a lot of media coverage surrounding Jets coach Rex Ryan’s comments this year and he is calling this rematch with the Colts personal. The Jets will need to exploit Indianapolis’ 24th ranked rushing defense with their fourth ranked rushing offense.

Indianapolis faced injury issues all season. 16 starters missed a game or more during the season. The Colts won the AFC South after two wins over Oakland and Jacksonville to end the season. Ageless quarterback Peyton Manning had another great year aside from some interception issues, and the Colts finished with the most passing yards in the NFL at 4,700. They were the worst rushing team in the NFL at just 97.2 yards per game, but they have Joseph Addai back.

My Pick: This is one of the closer NFL wild card picks. Sanchez proved his grit as a rookie in the playoffs last year, but he has been inconsistent this season. The edge goes Indianapolis because of Manning’s playoff experience. I predict the Colts to win 21-17.

Money Line (odds provided by Party Bets)

New York: 11/10

Indianapolis: 3/4

Point Spread: Indianapolis -2.5

Over/Under: 44.5