By Simon Evans

(Reuters) – If Super Bowl favourites the Green Bay Packers watched ‘wildcard weekend’ they will have seen plenty of exciting football but probably only one team that will be truly worrying them – the New Orleans Saints.

Sean Payton’s team look like champions in the air and on the ground and every bit as effective as the 2009 Super Bowl winning class.

If they can get past the San Francisco 49ers, an admittedly big ‘if’, they are set for an NFC championship decider, probably against the Packers.

Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos provided the story of the weekend with the dramatic overtime upset win over the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Giants and Houston Texans both offered evidence of how they were able to make the post-season, but it was New Orleans that provided the real quality.

Facing a tough task against the Detroit Lions, the Saints ran out 45-28 winners and quarterback Drew Brees continued his remarkable season with three touchdowns and 466 yards passing.

But while Brees, the cool and composed face of the franchise, led the way once again, there is so much more to this New Orleans team than just a wonderfully talented quarterback and reliable receivers.

By Simon Evans

(Reuters) – The Atlanta Falcons look to overcome their recent playoff pain when they face a New York Giants team on Sunday that has fought its way into the National Football League post-season with a late rally.

The Falcons have twice made the playoffs under head coach Mike Smith and quarterback Matt Ryan but were blasted 48-21 by the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round last year and in 2008 lost to the Arizona Cardinals in the wildcard round.

Atlanta does not want to dwell on those performances, though.

“All the stuff that happened in the past doesn’t really make a difference,” Ryan told reporters. “It comes down to preparing this week and doing whatever we can to keep advancing throughout the playoffs.”

Certainly, Atlanta (10-6) looks to have quality in all the right areas. Running back Michael Turner (1,340 yards rushing), receivers Roddy White (1,296 yards receiving) and Julio Jones (959 yards) and Ryan (4,177 yards passing) make up a nicely balanced offense.

But Ryan will be up against a Giants pass rush that has produced 48 sacks this year and has been particularly effective in the final stages of the regular season.

By Simon Evans

(Reuters) – Quarterback Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos’ route to the National Football League’s (NFL) playoffs has been an unlikely and fascinating journey and it will require another unexpected twist if they are to overcome perennial post-season performers Pittsburgh in Sunday’s wild card game.

No team has won more playoff games than the Steelers, who are tied for the best record of 33 victories with the Dallas Cowboys and are looking for a record seventh Super Bowl win this season after being beaten in last year’s decider by Green Bay.

Pittsburgh also have form on their side. They head to Colorado having won 10 of their last 12 games and so often their defense has been key. They lead the NFL in total defense (271.8 yards per game) and passing defense (171.9).

“It’s going to be tough sledding for sure,” said Broncos coach John Fox. “They are the number one defense over the regular season in many critical areas, so there won’t be anything easy against the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense.”

In contrast, Denver, which had the next to worst passing offense in the league, finished the regular season with three defeats and with Tebow struggling to reproduce the late bursts of yardage that pushed the Broncos into top spot in the AFC West.

In the great American debate over Tebow, the skeptics have felt justified of late as the quarterback threw three interceptions and gave up a fumble in the 40-14 hammering by Buffalo and then had his limitations exposed again on Sunday while completing only six of 22 passes for 60 yards in a 7-3 loss to Kansas City.

By Simon Evans

(Reuters) – The Denver Broncos and Cincinnati Bengals clinched places in the National Football League playoffs despite losing their final regular season games on Sunday, while the streaking New England Patriots captured the top seed in the AFC.

The Broncos (8-8) and Bengals (9-7) earned playoff berths as results elsewhere favored them, ensuring that both teams will be in action next week when the wild card round begins.

Quarterback Tim Tebow and the Broncos will host last year’s Super Bowl runners-up, the Pittsburgh Steelers, while Cincinnati visit the Houston Texans.

The Detroit Lions will be in New Orleans against the Saints and the Atlanta Falcons take on the winner of Sunday’s late game between the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys.

The AFC road to the Super Bowl goes through New England as the Patriots erased a 21-0 first quarter deficit to beat the Buffalo Bills 49-21 and ensure they enter the post-season on the back of eight consecutive wins.

Brady finished with 338 passing yards and three touchdowns to move ahead of Hall of Famer Dan Marino into second place in the single-season passing record. Last week, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees broke Marino’s record of 5,084 yards, which he established in 1984.

By Simon Evans

(Reuters) – The New England Patriots earned home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs and the San Francisco 49ers secured a first-round bye in the NFC postseason with wins in their final games of the National Football League’s regular season on Sunday.

The defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers, who already clinched top seed in the NFC, wrapped up their regular season with quarterback Aaron Rodgers on the bench and back-up Matt Flynn setting franchise records with six touchdowns and 480 yards in a 45-41 win over the Detroit Lions.

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady became the third quarterback to pass for over 5,000 yards in a NFL season as he rallied the Patriots to a 49-21 win over the Buffalo Bills that assured his team of home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.

The Patriots, who already earned a first round bye in the playoffs, knew a win would secure home-field advantage but were stunned when the Bills raced out to a 21-0 first-quarter lead.

But the Patriots stormed back in the second half and Brady finished with 338 passing yards and three touchdowns to move ahead of Hall of Famer Dan Marino into second place in the single-season passing record.

Last week, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees broke Marino’s record of 5,084 yards, which he established in 1984.

Dec 29 (Reuters) – Former FIFA vice-president Jack Warner said he was sold the World Cup television rights for Trinidad and Tobago for as little as $1 in return for supporting FIFA president Sepp Blatter in soccer elections.

Warner, who resigned from all his soccer positions in June after he was suspended by FIFA following allegations in a cash-for-votes scandal, issued a statement on Thursday revealing the details of the television deals.

A spokesman for FIFA said soccer’s world governing body was “looking into” Warner’s statement and would make no further statement in the meantime.

Warner said that he was awarded the rights for seven World Cups at a minimal fee.

For the 1998 tournament, Warner said FIFA sold them to him, through a Mexican company, for just $1. Warner said the money he made from selling the rights “was used primarily to assist in the development of football in Trinidad and Tobago”.

“This was just after Blatter had won the FIFA presidency following a most brutal campaign against Lennart Johansson, a campaign in which (Mohamed) Bin Hammam and I played critical roles in support of Mr.Blatter,” Warner said in the statement.

Warner has been heavily critical of the FIFA boss ever since he resigned midway through this year as president of CONCACAF, the regional confederation for North and Central America and the Caribbean.

By Simon Evans

(Reuters) – The final week of the National Football League (NFL) regular season takes place on New Year’s Day with seven teams battling for the last three available spots in the playoffs and another four hoping to earn a week off on the road to the Super Bowl.

Nine of the 12 playoff berths have already been snapped up but the fight for the remaining three spots will go right down to the wire with the New York Giants (8-7) and Dallas Cowboys (8-7) clashing in Sunday’s featured night game at the new Meadowlands Stadium.

The stakes could hardly be higher for a regular season game with the winner advancing to the playoffs as the NFC East division winner and fourth seed, while the loser will miss the postseason altogether.

“The guys are ready. We understand what’s at stake,” Giants quarterback Eli Manning told reporters.

The other five NFC spots have already been claimed with the Green Bay Packers (14-1), the defending Super Bowl champions, assured of home field advantage during the playoffs.

The San Francisco 49ers (12-3) can lock up a first week bye if they beat St Louis but New Orleans Saints (12-3) could snatch it if they beat the Carolina Panthers and the 49ers slip up.