NFL prop shop: Conference championships
By David Chan
For the second to last installment of Prop Shop, I’ve narrowed it down to one prop from each of Sunday’s conference championship games. Hopefully we can pocket a little extra cash and make the final Sunday of real football that much more enjoyable.
Philadelphia Eagles at Arizona Cardinals
Most pass receptions: DeSean Jackson vs. Steve Breaston
Play on Jackson
This is my favorite prop on Sunday’s board.
With Brian Westbrook dealing with yet another injury, which I believe is worse than the team is disclosing, the Eagles are going to look to their second-most explosive player and that’s DeSean Jackson.
Donovan McNabb is as comfortable in the pocket as he’s been in years and that bodes well for the Eagles' passing game. The Cardinals secondary was more aggressive in last week’s game in Carolina than it was against Atlanta and for much of the season for that matter.
If they take a few chances Sunday, they’re likely to get burned by Jackson’s pure speed and playmaking ability.
Jackson has only made five catches in these playoffs but we’ve seen time and time again, University of Phoenix Stadium is a venue where opposing wide receivers tend to blow up. As a point of reference, Falcons WR Roddy White caught 11 passes here in the Wild Card round.
With the news that Anquan Boldin is going to give it a go on Sunday, Steve Breaston once again becomes the Cardinals third option. He’s been more important to the Cardinals on special teams than in the passing game this postseason.
Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers
Most sacks
Play on Baltimore
Pittsburgh’s offensive line has had problems in pass protection all season long and while it didn’t break down last week against San Diego, it faces a much stiffer test Sunday against Baltimore.
Joe Flacco may be a rookie quarterback but he certainly isn’t playing like one.
Last week he stayed upright for the entire game against a tough Tennessee front line. His ability to stay out of trouble has to do with the Ravens solid offensive line and their offensive play calling. Flacco won’t be asked to do too much again, as the Ravens continue to rely on their ground game and defense to do the heavy lifting.
It’s difficult to take much from Baltimore’s one-sack performance against the Titans, as Kerry Collins was playing behind what was essentially a brick wall all season.
The same can’t be said for the Steelers o-line. They took care of business against the Chargers, but that doesn’t tell us much as San Diego didn’t bring a lot of pressure.
If there’s one thing we know about this Ravens defense, it’s that it loves to blitz. In two regular season meetings, Ben Roethlisberger was sacked six times. I’m thinking he goes down two or three times Sunday and that’s enough to get this prop win.