It's going to be a Wild (Card) weekend

Big, big, big weekend football fans. Especially for us Jets fans -- and you Eagles, Cowboys, Patriots, Ravens, Packers, and Cardinals fans.

My prediction: while the Cincinnati Bengals have the better record (10-6 versus the Jets 9-7) and home field advantage and are favored by the odds makers (albeit by only three points), I think the Jets have a real shot at beating the Bengals this Saturday at 4:30 p.m. EST (on NBC) in the first round of the NFL Playoffs. Especially if the Bengals play like they did last weekend.

(And while realistically I don't think the Jets are going all the way to the Super Bowl, at least this year, I wish Joe Namath would just SHUT UP.)

[Slightly O/T: The New York Times has an amusing article about Bengals' wide receiver Chad Ochocinco, who turns 32 on Saturday, in today's online edition, which you can read here.]

As for all those other teams, per the spouse and my 2009/2010 NFL Post-Season Playoff Bracket Pool predictions, in addition to the Jets beating the Bengals, we predict that the Patriots will beat the Ravens in the other AFC Wild Card match-up; and that the Cowboys will beat the Eagles (and you have no idea how hard it was for my Giants-loving, Cowboys-hating spouse to write that in) and the Packers will beat the Cardinals over in the NFC playoffs -- with ultimately the Chargers playing the Vikings in the Super Bowl.

Don't get me wrong, I like the Colts and the Saints, a lot (though not as much as the Jets and the Giants). But, in the case of the Colts, I have this niggling little feeling that the Chargers, assuming they beat the Patriots (or the Ravens) next weekend, which I do, could beat the Colts.

Similarly, while I have absolutely nothing against the New Orleans Saints (other than that they decimated both of my teams, i.e., the Giants and the Jets, this season), I think the Vikings are the team to beat right now (barring something happening to Brett Favre, Adrian Peterson, and Percy Harvin).

So who will you be rooting for this weekend? Let me know via the Comments.

UPDATED 1/9/10: JETS WIN! JETS WIN! Final score: Jets 24 - Bengals 14. As a result of the Jets' win over the Bengals, Chad Ochocinco is changing his name to Chad NoShowCinco.