NFL Postseason Schedule Announced

By NoontimeSports.com

The NFL announced the 2011 playoff schedule on Sunday, and here are the potential match-ups.

Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012 – Wild Card Round

* (No. 6) Cincinnati at (No. 3) Houston Texans — 4:30pm eastern

* (No. 6) Detroit at (No. 3) New Orleans — 8:00pm eastern

Sunday, January 8, 2012 — Wild Card Round

* (No. 5) Atlanta at (No. 4) New York — 1:00pm easter

* (No. 5) Pittsburgh at (No. 4) Denver — 4:30PM eastern

Saturday, January 14, 2012 — Divisional Round

* Atlanta/New York/New Orleans at (No. 2) San Francisco (Afternoon)

* Cincinnati/Denver/Pittsburgh at (No. 1) New England (Evening)

Sunday, January 15, 2012 — Divisional Round

* Denver/Houston/Pittsburgh at (No. 2) Baltimore (Afternoon)

* Atlanta/Detroit/New York at (No. 1) Green Bay (Afternoon)

Sunday, January 22, 2012 — AFC/NFC Championship Games

* AFC Championship — 3:30pm eastern

* NFC Championship — 6:30pm eastern

Sunday, January 29, 2012 — NFL Pro Bowl

* AFC vs. NFC — Time TBA

Sunday, February 5, 2012

* AFC Champion vs. NFC Champion — Time TBA

Breaking Down The NFC Playoff Picture

By Brian Willwerth

With one week to go in the regular season, here’s the lowdown on the NFC playoff picture….

The Green Bay Packers will be the No. 1 seed. They’ve won the North, and have clinched home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The San Francisco 49ers are champions of the West. They can clinch the No. 2 seed and first-round bye if they beat the Rams in St. Louis on Sunday.

The New Orleans Saints won the South last night, with Drew Brees’ record-breaking performance. They can still get a bye if they beat Carolina, and San Francisco falters.

The Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons are the wild cards. That’s etched in stone.

The real drama lies in the NFC East, where the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants will face off in a winner-take-all showdown in primetime at the Meadowlands. The winner wins the division; the loser is out. Think NBC is licking its chops?

Willwerth: Breaking Down the NFC

Can Aaron Rodgers lead the Green Bay Packers to five more wins? (Photo Credit: Zimbio.com)

By Brian Willwerth

A quick overview of the division races in the NFC with five games remaining…

NFC EAST

This is a two-team race between the Cowboys and Giants. As of now, Dallas has a one-game lead, but these teams still have to play each other twice down the stretch: the first matchup is in two weeks, the second is the season finale. It will ultimately be those two games that decide the division winner. The other note from the East: Philadelphia [4-7] gets my vote for biggest disappointment in the NFL, at least for the moment.

NFC NORTH

You know the headline here: will the Packers go undefeated? Their five remaining games are against the Giants, Raiders, Chiefs, Bears and Lions. Three of them are at home. Four of those teams are over [.500], (KC being the exception) so it’s hardly a given that Green Bay will fly through them. The Lions are Bears are both in the thick of the wild card race at [7-4]. They split the head-to-head meetings this season. But Chicago has questions at quarterback, while Detroit will have to play the next two games without Ndamukong Suh, thanks to his “stomping” job against the Packers on Thanksgiving Day.

NFC SOUTH

Here’s another two-team race. The Saints and Falcons are separated by one game. Both teams are peaking at just the right time. New Orleans has already beaten Atlanta in the Georgia Dome (in the “Mike Smith 4^th Down Gamble” game.) The second meeting is the day after Christmas on Monday Night Football.

That game could be for the division title.

NFC WEST

The 49ers can wrap up the division with a win at home Sunday against the Rams. San Francisco also has the inside track to a first-round bye. The one game that sticks out on their remaining schedule is a Monday night game against the Steelers on December 19^th. Jim Harbaugh gets my vote for Coach of the Year, though it might be hard to bypass Mike McCarthy if the Packers go undefeated. Remember that tremendous game between the Saints and Packers on opening night? Wouldn’t you love to see a rematch in the NFC Championship game? I hope I’m right.

Daily Noontime – November 29, 2011

Drew Brees tossed 4 touchdowns on Monday, as the New Orleans Saints walloped the New York Giants on Monday! (Photo Credit: Burlington Free Press)

Good Tuesday to everyone and welcome into yet another amazing edition of the Daily Noontime! Here’s some quality headlines and news, enjoy!

Headlines:

* The New Orleans Saints offense and defense exploded for 49 points, as well as defeated the New York Giants on Monday Night Football.

* According to sources — The Jacksonville Jaguars have officially fired head coach Jack Del Rio and will announce the news on Tuesday at noon.

* Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh has apparently apologized to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell for his actions on Thanksgiving against the Green Bay Packers.

* On Monday, Ohio State University officially hired Urban Meyer to take over their football program next season.

* The Florida… excuse me… Miami Marlins have apparently made an offer to C.J. Wilson to join their pitching staff.

* According to a CBS Sports report, a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader was forced to delete her Twitter account after Thanksgiving’s game against Miami.

Games to Watch:

* Pittsburgh at New York Rangers (NHL) – 7:30pm eastern

* Phoenix at Chicago (NHL) – 8:30pm eastern

* No. 4 Duke at No. 2 Ohio State (NCAA Basketball) – 9:30pm eastern

Video of the Day:

Put this on a highlight reel, please!

Thanksgiving Football Prediction: Detroit-Green Bay

Lions-Packers — Can the Lions hand the Packers their first loss of the regular season on Thursday? We'll see!

By Matt Noonan

Nobody probably imagined that this would be the game to watch on Thanksgiving. Over the past few seasons, opponents have demolished the Lions on National Television, but this year, I expect quarterback Matthew Stafford to lead his team to victory.

The Lions have registered 25 touchdowns through the air, and have compiled 1,011 rushing yards, while Calvin Johnson leads the receiving core with 974 yards and 11 strikes to the end zone.

Detroit’s offense shouldn’t experience too many problems against a Packers defense that has allowed opponents to rack up at least 22 points per game, and roughly 391 yards of offense. Yet, the biggest issue facing the Lions will be containing quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who leads the league with 31 touchdowns.

FUN FACT – Green Bay’s most recent regular season loss came against Detroit last year when the Lions defeated the Packers, 7-3 at Ford Field. However, I doubt the Lions will hold the Packers to just three points this time around, right?

PREDICTION – Expect the Lions to “get-up” for this one, and even score first. Stafford should toss two touchdowns, while the Lions defense will most likely record one turnover. Detroit 34 – Green Bay 27