Upsets are not as prevalent in Super Bowl betting as they are during the regular season. But when a playoff upset happens, it usually makes the headlines. Last season, the first round defeat of the New Orleans Saints by the Seattle Seahawks made sports headlines all over the country. This year we have already had one major upset with the Denver Broncos beating the Pittsburgh Steelers in the wild card round. The price per head sports experts usually bet against it, but there could be another upset brewing in the divisional round of the playoffs. Denver Broncos @ New England Patriots (-13 ½) Bill Belichick is one of the best head coaches in NFL playoff history. His ability to analyze an opponent and pick out each weakness is uncanny. But even though the Patriots throttled the Broncos once already this season, there is something different about this Broncos team now. Even though that beating was only three weeks ago, the Broncos were able to adjust its style of play to beat the Steelers in the wild card round. The pay per head sports experts are quick to point out that the adjustments made by head coach John Fox and quarterback Tim Tebow beat one of the best defenses in the NFL. The New England defense, on the other hand, is the worst in the league. What makes this game an upset possibility is the rapid improvement from week to week of Broncos’ quarterback Tim Tebow. In that win over the Steelers, Tebow threw a playoff record three passes for 50+ yards. That had never been done in a single playoff game before. His passing was not always accurate, but it was accurate when it needed to be. If the Denver defense decides to play like it did earlier in the season, then it could give Tom Brady and the New England offense all kinds of problems. It is not the likeliest upset of the weekend, but it is not out of the realm of possibility. New York Giants @ Green Bay Packers (-7 ½) Think about these odds on this game. The 15-1 Green Bay Packers, the defending Super Bowl champion, is at home and it is barely a touchdown favorite. A bodog review of the Giants’ wild card win over the Atlanta Falcons shows that the Giants’ defense completely shut down the Atlanta offense. The New York offense, aside from a moment of ineptness in the second quarter when it allowed a safety, was methodical. It ran and threw the ball with precision and in a manner that shows significant improvement over its performance earlier in the season. The Packers’ offense is normally extremely efficient. With recent tragedy that has befallen offensive coordinator Joe Philbin, the Packers offense will be distracted. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the rest of the Packers’ offense intend to use the tragedy as inspiration. But it is the Packers’ defense that could be allowing NFL scores that will turn the tide of this game. With the Giants’ offense working so well and the New York defense shutting down high-powered offenses, this game could easily slip away from the Packers very quickly.
