In a very strange development, three of these games are Week 17 rematches. Philadelphia at Dallas: The marquee matchup of the weekend is a game that sees Dallas trying to go 3-0 this year against Philadelphia. Most people believe it?s near impossible to beat the same team three times in one season, but history says otherwise. Teams that swept the first two meetings went 12-7 in the third meeting. However, Dallas is 0-2 in those situations, including their last visit to the playoffs against the Giants, a game which they statistically dominated but couldn?t close the deal. The key to this game is Donovan McNabb, who was terrible in last week?s drubbing. He routinely missed open receivers and got too caught up in looking for the Dallas rush than finding the holes in the spotty Cowboys secondary. Dallas? aggressive defense is playing with both confidence and intelligence, not giving up containment while still flying around the field in pursuit. McNabb must be poised, patient, and accurate. The same is true of Tony Romo, who is playing better than at any time in his career. He gets a lot more help from the running game, which is firing on all cylinders with a beautiful contrasting barrage of Marion Barber and Felix Jones. Philly?s LBs have been mixed and matched all year, and that spells trouble against Jason Witten. Romo finally appears to have overcome the late-season yips, and Miles Austin is legit as his #1 receiver. Still, I think this game comes down to how well McNabb bounces back. The Dallas offense is going to get theirs, so McNabb & Co. must answer strongly. They have just one offensive TD in eight quarters against Dallas this year, and Brian Westbrook?s horizontal running style just doesn?t work against the Cowboys. The Dallas safeties will get caught out of position at times, and McNabb must connect with DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin to take advantage. With TE Brent Celek emerging as a strong option, that will help occupy a safety and open up the flares and wheel routes that Westbrook thrives upon. And I like Philly?s chances if it comes down to a battle of the kickers, where I strongly favor David Akers over Sean ?The Ethnic Slurs cut me? Suisham. But I don?t think Philly is strong enough to make that happen. Dallas wins 30-20. New York Jets at Cincinnati: You can absolutely ignore last week?s game, because the Bengals were completely disinterested in that ugly loss. They knew winning meant nothing and played like it, while the Jets knew they were fighting for their playoff lives and played as such. Having said that, I still like the Jets to head into the Jungle and come away with a win. Cincinnati has demonstrated very little ability to stretch the field with the passing game, and they lack the dynamic underneath receiver that can turn a 6-yard route into a 60-yard gain. With Darrelle Revis capably locking down Chad Ochocinco (despite what 85 thinks), Carson Palmer has to dink and dunk and make quick checkdowns in the face of the varied Jets blitz packages. That?s simply not his game. I do think the Bengals will find some success running the ball with a fresh Cedric Benson and Larry Johnson running behind a very solid OL, but that?s not going to put many TDs on the board. The Jets will also struggle to score points, but I?m positive they saw something exploitable with using Brad Smith running the option. The Bengals lost Rey Maualuga and the dropoff in the edge run defense is significant without him. With Domata Peko and Tank Johnson both slowed (if they both play at all), the interior DL isn?t the run-stuffing force it was early in the year. That means Thomas Jones can gash the defense up the gut, and few runners break inside runs outside than Jones. It also sets up play action for Mark Sanchez, even if the Bengals secondary has a good chance of shutting down a middling receiving corps. I expect this to be a low-scoring affair, and it will only take a couple of successful shots to generate enough points to win. The Jets advance with a 20-16 upset of the Bengals. Green Bay at Arizona: Green Bay dominated last weekend in a game that Arizona?s offense clearly didn?t care. This week they?ll most certainly care, but with Anquan Boldin very gimpy with both knee and ankle injuries, it won?t be easy. Green Bay?s defense is very good at slowing down one-receiver attacks, and with no Boldin they can use defensive MVP candidate Charles Woodson all over the field on Larry Fitzgerald. The Cards do have some decent complementary receivers in Steve Breaston and Jereme Urban, but without Boldin they are missing their most reliable 1st down machine and the one player that can turn a short throw into a long gain. Beanie Wells is running well, but because the Cards rarely throw to the TE the Packers LBs can pin back their ears and charge at him in the hole. Again, no Boldin means that quick-hit play-action crossing route on which he and Kurt Warner thrive is a lot less dangerous. Packers coach Mike McCarthy deserves a ton of credit for modifying his offense mid-season. Knowing that his OL couldn?t handle most pass rushers, he changed the fundamentals of the passing attack. Gone were the 7-step drops and deeper routes, in came 3- and 5-step quick drops with shorter slants and more misdirection routes. It?s worked great, keeping Aaron Rodgers upright and allowing the line to build some confidence. The receivers are good enough to make it work, and Rodgers has no problem spraying the ball all over the field to anyone who might be open. Arizona faces this attack with their top CB, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, slowed with a knee injury and one of their best pass rushers, Calais Campbell, playing with his hand in a cast for a broken thumb. They still have ample talent to make life difficult for the Packers, especially if Ryan Grant can?t find a groove early. But they?ve got to make it happen early. I almost can?t believe I?m doing this, but I?m going to pick against Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald in a shootout. I just think Green Bay has too many ways to answer and that the Cards will miss a full-speed Anquan Boldin too much. This one is the lowest confidence pick of the bunch, and I have a sneaking suspicion that I should pick the team that is regarded as the least likely to win this weekend, because that team almost always does in the Wild Card round...but I?ll stick with the Cheeseheads. Green Bay 33, Arizona 30. Baltimore at New England: This is the one game that isn?t a rematch of last weekend. It?s also a lot less likely to be another Patriots victory (they won 27-21 in Week 4) with the loss of Wes Welker. That injury allows the Ravens to dedicate a safety to helping cover Randy Moss, and the Patriots lack another proven offensive weapon other than Kevin Faulk out of the backfield to ease that pressure. New England is not a great running team, and few teams snuff out the run as consistently as Baltimore, who led the league in defensive efficiency against the run. The Ravens are not as blitz-happy as in past years, but they can still vary the point of attack and keep Tom Brady uncomfortable. Baltimore also features an outstanding rushing attack, and the Week 17 reemergence of Willis McGahee means even more trouble for a Pats front that is hurting. New England has had a lot of trouble rushing the passer, and Joe Flacco has the arm and confidence to burn a very iffy secondary on deep throws when given time. The matchups favor the Ravens, who fear no one and do a much better job of forcing turnovers. That was my train of thought heading into sitting down to write this. But to quote My Cousin Vinny, ?Everything that guy said is bullsh**.? Actually, My Cousin Vinny is quite apropos here. No matter how many people saw his New York clients guilty with a preponderance of evidence against them, he just scrapped and lucked into victory, aided by mistakes from his opponent and some help from a truculent muse. Likewise, these Patriots are quite apt to do much the same. No team shoots itself in the foot more than the Ravens, who led the league in penalties. New England has historically found ways to counterattack in unexpected means (remember the surprise 4-3 defense or the entire half without a run?) and these Ravens are talented but somewhat inflexible. Baltimore is trapped by the evidence of what they are and what they?re trying to do. And this won?t be played in the friendly confines of a hostile home courtroom, err, crowd. Baltimore should win, but I just don?t think the evidence holds water. New England 34, Baltimore 28. ..And because everyone else is doing it, my Super Bowl pick: San Diego vs. Minnesota, the two teams I trust the most to beat any other opponent on any field. Special teaser: Alabama 23, Texas 21. Roll Tide! Jeff.Risdon@RealGM.com