IT'S TIME

By Justin Albers
basketballss132002@yahoo.com
INDIANAPOLIS- It's that time of the week. Time to go home and relax, time to eat and eat and eat, but most of all it's time of predict this weeks Conference Championship games. We have 2 thrilling match ups coming up on Sunday, so let's get started.

#1 Chicago Bears vs. #2 New Orleans Saints 3:00 p.m. Sunday
Da' Bears take or Da' Story. The Saints were 3-13 last season and faced an serious uphill battle after Hurricane Katrina swept through town.
QB: Rex Grossman or Drew Brees?
Dree Brees. Simple as that. Brees has been the best quarterback in the NFL all year long, and he doesn't really have great receivers to work with. Grossman has struggled, but he won't have any impact in the game on Sunday. New Orleans has a weak defense and will have trouble forcing Rex to make stupid mistakes.
RB: Reggie Bush and Deuce McCalister or Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson?
Hmmmmmmm. This one is pretty tough. I'm going to have to overcome the adversity and choose Bush and Deuce. They have both been fantastic this season, and they are much more explosive backs then are Benson and Jones. Not to mention the Bears run defense has been less than stellar all year long.
WR: Jamal Hones and Marques Colsten or Mushim Muhammad and Rashib Davis?
Once again I have to go with the boys from the Saints. Colsten has been the surprise of the year, maybe even to the point where he deserves the Rookie of the Year. Jones is a young player with a lot of potential, and I think that will show on Sunday. Muhammad is a decent receiver, but he is past his prime and will not have a huge impact on this game.
OVERALL OFFENSE: SAINTS
New Orleans has far more weapons on the offensive side of the ball then the Bears do. The problem is they are going up against one of the NFL's stingiest defenses. The Bears are weak on the offensive side of the ball, and the Saints are weak on defense. What's gonna give? The defense. The Saints will give up 20+ points in this one so their offense better be ready to carry the load.
PREDICTION: SAINTS OR BEARS
Saints. The final score is going to be 24-21 and a John Carney kick will be the deciding factor late in the game. The Bears defense is good, but not good enough to keep New Orleans out of the end zone. Congrats to Sean Payton on a great season, we'll see you in Miami.

#3 Indianapolis Colts vs. #4 New England Patriots 6:30 p.m. Sunday
QB: Tom Brady or Peyton Manning?
Peyton Manning. I have been a Manning basher in the last few years after he choked in the playoffs, but I think he will finally get the monkey off his back with a solid performance in this one. Peyton did not really have any "great" games this year, but he also really never had any "bad" ones. He is going to have to play a role in this game if the Colts are going to win, and I think he will. As for Brady, he will perform well, but not quite as well as Manning, I would predict 1-2 interceptions out of him.
RB: Lawrence Maroney, Kevin Faulk, and Corey Dillon or Joseph Addai and Rhodes?
The New England tail backs will be much better then the Colts backs in this one. Addai has had a fabulous rookie season and Rhodes has played well in the playoffs, but the three headed monster from New England is too much to handle. I predict the Patriots have about 150 yards rushing in the game while the Colts manage 90.
WR: Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne or Javar Gaffney and Troy Brown?
Did I even have to put this one up there? It is obvious the the Colts receivers will be much more productive then the guys from New England. It appears that the Patriots are going to double Marvin Harrison, giving Wayne a golden opportunity to show why he's in the Pro Bowl. Both Wayne and Harrison will go over 100 yards in this one.
DEFENSE: Colts or Patriots?
It's really hard for me to choose either one because I think this one will be high scoring, but I'm going to go with Indy. Bob Sanders has brought a lot back to the Colts secondary, and I think he will have a large impact on the outcome of the game.
COACHING: Tony Dungy or Bill Billicheck
Sorry, but I have to go with Billicheck. He has been a football mastermind for so long, and he is just much better at preparing his team for playoff games then Dungy is. Both coaches are good, but Tony is out of his league when facing Bill.
X-FACTOR: Dallas Clark
I really think the Colts could have two x-factors in this game, but I'll just stick with Clark for now. If Dallas can find open spots in the middle of the New England defense, Indianapolis has endless options on offense. Clark must play well for the Colts to win.
PREDICTION: COLTS OR PATRIOTS?
I'm going with the Colts. I don't see any way that New England can win this game with the way the crowd is going to be in the dome. The final score will be 34-24 with the Colts heading off the the Super Bowl for the first time since moving to Indianapolis.