2016-17 NFL Wild Card Round Predictions

Here are my predictions for the Wild Card Round of the 2016-17 NFL Playoffs.

Saturday, January 7th
Oakland Raiders (12-4) vs Houston Texans (9-7)- 4:20, ESPN/ABC: These two teams met in Mexico back in November and the Raiders won a close one. Oakland is coming off a brutal divisional road loss in Denver against the Broncos to close out the regular season to drop them to a Wild Card berth. Houston is coming off a divisional road loss in Tennessee against the Titans in a meaningless game. Connor Cook will start for the Raiders after Matt McGloin suffered a shoulder injury. Brock Osweiler has had a disastrous season and he's back under center thanks to a concussion suffered by Tom Savage. This wasn't an easy call, but the Texans have the better defense and that will make a difference here.
Prediction: Houston 16, Oakland 13.

Detroit Lions (9-7) vs Seattle Seahawks (10-5-1)- 8:15, NBC: These two teams did not meet this season, but they met last season on a Monday night in Seattle in which the game was decided on a controversial call. Detroit is coming off a brutal divisional home loss against the Green Bay Packers which cost them the division title. Seattle is coming off a divisional road win in Santa Clara against the lowly 49ers. The Seahawks haven't looked right of late and part of that is due to injuries to Earl Thomas and Tyler Lockett and poor offensive line play. That said, I love the Seahawks here at home and Russell Wilson will be the difference maker.
Prediction: Seattle 27, Detroit 17.

Sunday, January 8th
Miami Dolphins (10-6) vs Pittsburgh Steelers (11-5)- 1:00, CBS: These two teams met a few months ago and the Dolphins won at home, but that was the game Ben Rothlisberger got hurt in. Miami is coming off a divisional home loss against the New England Patriots. Pittsburgh is coming off an overtime home win over the Cleveland Browns in which most of the starters rested in. Matt Moore was surprisingly good two of the last three weeks, but I do not see him leading the Phins to a playoff road win. The Steelers offense should lead the way to a playoff home victory.
Prediction: Pittsburgh 30, Miami 20.

New York Giants (11-5) vs Green Bay Packers (10-6)- 4:40, FOX: This is clearly the best playoff game of Wild Card weekend. These two teams met in week five and the Packers won that game on a Sunday night in Lambeau. The Giants are coming off a divisional road win in Landover against the Redskins to knock them out of playoff contention. Green Bay is coming off a huge divisional road win in Detroit against the Lions to win the NFC North title. This wasn't an easy call, but the Giants defense has been shutting down some great offenses the last few weeks and I believe they'll pull off yet another playoff upset at Lambeau.
Prediction: NY Giants 24, Green Bay 20.