American Conference Wildcard Round

Oklahoma Outlaws (11-5) @ Detroit Wheels (11-5)

Point Spread: Detroit -3

Oklahoma: Offense 5th Defense 4th
Detroit: Offense 15th Defense 24th

Last Playoff Appearance: Oklahoma 2002 Detroit 1994
Playoff Records: Oklahoma 11-9 (1-1 World Bowl) Detroit 16-10 (2-1 World Bowl)

Head to Head: Detroit is 2-0 vs Oklahoma in the post season. Oklahoma beat Detroit 17-10 Week 10 of 2001

Injuries: Oklahoma 3 probable, 1 questionable Detroit 5 probable

Prediction: Oklahoma 24 Detroit 16

Detroit is a hard team to figure out as the Wheels went 4-0 vs playoff teams (San Jose, Honolulu, Memphis, and Orlando) but 4 of their 5 losses were to sub .500 teams. Oklahoma lost 4 times to playoff teams, but this is just a singular game and all of the above means nothing. I think Oklahoma's tougher division will have them "playoff ready" and they'll take care of business.
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Memphis Showboats (9-6-1) @ San Jose SaberCats (12-4)

Point Spread: San Jose -7

Memphis: Offense 4th Defense 11th
San Jose Offense 1st Defense 2nd

Last Playoff Appearance: Memphis 2002 San Jose 2002
Playoff Records: Memphis 30-14 (5-0 World Bowl) San Jose 6-13 (1-0 World Bowl)

Head to Head: Memphis is 2-0 vs San Jose in the post season. Memphis beat San Jose 20-14 Week 4 of 2002.

Injuries: Memphis 7 probable, 4 questionable, 1 doubtful, 1 Out San Jose 15 probable, 2 questionable, 1 doubtful, 1 Out

Prediction: San Jose 11 Memphis 10

This is a true battle of attrition as both teams are very banged up, with 32 of 105 players on the injury report (Memphis carries 52 players, San Jose 53). It's hard to pick San Jose with all of their injuries but if anyone can navigate this mess, it's Smirt. I think the SaberCats will do just enough to get the win, thanks to a 2 point conversion on their lone TD.
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Honolulu Hawaiians (8-7-1) @ Portland Storm (13-3)

Point Spread: Portland -11

Honolulu: Offense 12th Defense 22nd
Portland: Offense 7th Defense 3rd

Last Playoff Appearance: Honolulu 1999 Portland 2002
Playoff Records: Honolulu 0-10 Portland 24-18 (3-2 World Bowl)

Head to Head: Portland is 1-0 vs Honolulu in the post season. Portland beat Honolulu 10-0 Week 15 of 2001.

Injuries: Honolulu 3 probable, 3 questionable, 1 doubtful Portland 7 probable, 1 questionable, 1 doubtful

Prediction: Portland 30 Honolulu 20

As much as I'd love to see Slick get his first USFL playoff win, the stats won't let me pick that to happen. They say Portland is better on both sides of the ball and that usually means a win in MFN but not always.

National Conference Wildcard Round

Birmingham Stallions (11-5) @ New Orleans VooDoo (12-4)

Point Spread: New Orleans -11

Birmingham: Offense 13th Defense 7th
New Orleans: Offense 3rd Defense 8th

Last Playoff Appearance: Birmingham 2002 New Orleans 2002
Playoff Records: Birmingham 5-11 (0-1 World Bowl) New Orleans 17-19 (0-4 World Bowl)

Head to Head: New Orleans is 1-0 vs Birmingham in the post season. New Orleans swept Birmingham this season, 40-24 Week 1 and 14-3 Week 6.

Injuries: Birmingham 4 probable, 3 questionable, 1 doubtful New Orleans 5 probable, 2 questionable, 2 doubtful

Prediction: New Orleans 27 Birmingham 17

This is a division game and a Birmingham win would not surprise me, but I like to stick with the trends. The trend in this series lately is New Orleans has won 8 straight against the Stallions.
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New Jersey Generals (9-7) @ Orlando Renegades (12-4)

Point Spread: Orlando -6

New Jersey: Offense 8th Defense 5th
Orlando: Offense 6th Defense 13th

Last Playoff Appearance: New Jersey 2002 Orlando 2002
Playoff Records: New Jersey 41-21 (4-6 World Bowl) Orlando 7-10 (0-1 World Bowl)

Head to Head: New Jersey is 3-1 vs Orlando in the post season. New Jersey won 30-21 Week 5 of this season.

Injuries: New Jersey 4 probable, 1 questionable, 1 I.R. Orlando 7 probable

Prediction: New Jersey 24 Orlando 23

I don't have high hopes of advancing very far this season as I never quite know what I'll get from my team from game to game. We are 2-5 vs playoff teams with 1 win being a gift Week 16 win over Philadelphia who benched their QB with the #1 seed wrapped up. The other win was against Orlando though.
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Shreveport Steamer (9-7) @ Pittsburgh Maulers (14-2)

Point Spread: Pittsburgh -10

Shreveport: Offense 22nd Defense 10th
Pittsburgh: Offense 9th Defense 1st

Last Playoff Appearance: Shreveport 2001 Pittsburgh 2002
Playoff Records: Shreveport 9-14 Pittsburgh 16-12 (1-1 World Bowl)

Head to Head: Pittsburgh is 3-1 vs Shreveport in the post season. Pittsburgh beat Shreveport 23-17 Week 12 of this season.

Injuries: Shreveport 4 probable, 1 doubtful Pittsburgh 6 probable, 4 questionable

Prediction: Pittsburgh 17 Shreveport 16

I don't know how to predict this game as the Maulers owner left recently and they're gameplan could be unpredictable.

American Conference Divisional Round

Oklahoma Outlaws (12-5) @ Houston Gamblers (13-3)

Point Spread: Houston -3

Oklahoma: Offense 5th Defense 4th
Houston: Offense 2nd Defense 14th

Last Playoff Appearance: Oklahoma 2002 Houston 2002
Playoff Records: Oklahoma 12-9 (1-1 World Bowl) Houston 37-13 (8-0 World Bowl)

Head to Head: These teams have split their 2 post season games, with Oklahoma beating Houston last season. They also split this season with Houston winning 22-13 Week 3 and Oklahoma winning in Week 10, 30-23.

Injuries: Oklahoma 3 probable, 1 questionable, 1 doubtful Houston 5 probable, 1 questionable, 1 Out

Prediction: Houston 24 Oklahoma 21

Both teams are on long winning streaks, Houston has won 6 in a row while Oklahoma has won 5 in a row so something has to give. Tony Dean is long gone but I still lean toward Houston in the playoffs given their history, as the Gamblers have won 74% of their 50 playoff games.
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San Jose SaberCats (13-4) @ Portland Storm (14-3)

Point Spread: Portland -5

San Jose: Offense 1st Defense 2nd
Portland: Offense 7th Defense 3rd

Last Playoff Appearance: San Jose 2002 Portland 2002
Playoff Records: San Jose 7-13 (1-0 World Bowl) Portland 25-18 (3-2 World Bowl)

Head to Head: Portland is 3-2 vs San Jose in the post season. Portland beat San Jose 19-9 in Week 14.

Injuries: San Jose 7 probable, 4 questionable, 2 doubtful Portland 5 probable, 2 questionable, 2 doubtful

Prediction: Portland 9 San Jose 8

Another battle of attrition for San Jose but now their lone QB is questionable with a leg injury. Carmichael will fight through it because he has to, and I expect this game to be a defensive dogfight. I wouldn't be at all surprised if San Jose were to win, but if they do, will they have a QB who can't stand on 2 legs?

National Conference Divisional Round

New Jersey Generals (10-7) @ Philadelphia Bell (14-2)

Point Spread: Philadelphia -7

New Jersey: Offense 8th Defense 5th
Philadelphia: Offense 10th Defense 9th

Last Playoff Appearance: New Jersey 2002 Philadelphia 2002
Playoff Records: New Jersey 42-21 (4-6 World Bowl) Philadelphia 1-6

Head to Head: New Jersey is 1-0 vs Philadelphia in the post season. They split this regular season with Philadelphia winning in Week 14, 22-17 while New Jersey won 20-14 the last week of the season when Philadelphia rested their QB.

Injuries: New Jersey 6 probable, 1 doubtful Philadelphia 1 probable

Prediction: Philadelphia 24 New Jersey 19

The team stats suggest New Jersey is equal to or better than Philadelphia, but the W-L records and on field head to head suggest otherwise. That means the Generals aren't doing everything to maximize opportunities, as their net zero turnover margin would suggest. The Generals are also the Raiders of the USFL, leading the league in penalties. In this game I expect those trends to continue as the Bell convert in the red zone while the Generals settle for 3's.
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New Orleans VooDoo (13-4) @ Pittsburgh Maulers (15-2)

Point Spread: Even

New Orleans: Offense 3rd Defense 8th
Pittsburgh: Offense 9th Defense 1st

Last Playoff Appearance: New Orleans 2002 Pittsburgh 2002
Playoff Records: New Orleans 18-19 (0-4 World Bowl) Pittsburgh 17-12 (1-1 World Bowl)

Head to Head: Pittsburgh beat New Orleans 20-15 in Week 9. New Orleans is 3-2 vs Pittsburgh in the post season.

Injuries: New Orleans 2 probable, 5 questionable, 1 doubtful Pittsburgh 7 probable, 1 questionable, 1 doubtful

Prediction: New Orleans 19 Pittsburgh 17

This pick is just a hunch, as all of the recent Pittsburgh success was under previous ownership, save for the Wildcard win so I'm not sure what to make of this game.

Burnout or not, the playoffs continue, and since I'm no longer alive and playing, I should have time for the previews.

American Conference Championship

Portland Storm (15-3) @ Houston Gamblers (14-3)

Point Spread: Houston -4

Portland: Offense 7th Defense 3rd
Houston: Offense 2nd Defense 14th

Playoff Records: Portland 26-18 (3-2 World Bowl) Houston 38-13 (8-0 World Bowl)

Head to Head: Houston is 4-3 vs Portland in the post season. Houston beat Portland 16-9 in Week 4, which is why they are at home and had the BYE.

Injuries: Portland 4 probable, 4 questionable Houston 6 probable, 3 questionable

Prediction: Houston 24 Portland 20

Am I allowed to predict Houston games now that Cjfred works in the league office? I would think so since I've always predicted my own games. My habit is mostly to pick Houston until they're eliminated and if it ain't broke...
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National Conference Championship

New Orleans VooDoo (14-4) @ Philadelphia Bell (15-2)

Point Spread: Philadelphia -1

New Orleans: Offense 3rd Defense 8th
Philadelphia: Offense 10th Defense 9th

Playoff Records: New Orleans 19-19 (0-4 World Bowl) Philadelphia 2-6

Head to Head: This is the first post season game between these teams. New Orleans beat Philadelphia 13-6 Week 3 of this season.

Injuries: New Orleans 8 probable, 2 questionable Philadelphia 4 probable, 3 questionable

Prediction: New Orleans 13 Philadelphia 10

This is a coin flip game and my coin landed on pick New Orleans because they won earlier this season. Sometimes my picks are just simple like that, especially when there is no clear advantage to either side and no gut feeling.