James Lofton breaks down each NFL wild-card round game
Westwood One analyst James Lofton joined the show to preview the NFL playoffs.
Lofton hopes that someone makes a case for defense in this year’s playoffs. He noted it might be nice to see the 49ers make a run because they’re style is so different than the prevailing trends in the NFL.
Here is Lofton’s take on each wild-card round game:
Denver-Pittsburgh: Lofton said he hopes Tim Tebow has a nice game, but he can’t see the Broncos beating the Steelers.
New Orleans-Detroit: Lofton said the last Lions-Saints game was closer than the final score and a couple of bad plays really cost Detroit. Lofton, a Hall of Fame receiver, said he is wowed by Calvin Johnson in person. “He’s bigger than all the other receivers,” Lofton said.”There’s not a negative about him.”
New York-Atlanta: “I like Michael Turner,” Lofton said. “The one thing the Giants do really well is rush the passer. Sometimes when you rush the passer, you run right by the runner.” But Lofton said that the Giants probably know when the Falcons are going to run and picks New York in a close one.
Houston-Cincinnati: Lofton said the key is how young players react to the pressure of being in the playoffs.