The Seattle Seahawks arrived in Detroit a day ahead of Pittsburgh. They were basically welcomed by a sea of black and gold - the city seems to be leaning Pittsburgh's way.

Allegedly, even Shaun Alexander's best friend is a Steeler's fan.

Distance is a factor of course. You can take a drive from Pittsburgh to Detroit and in the same journey time fly from Seattle to Detroit...well close enough. The point is that many Seattle fans will not be making the trip. It's expensive.

Pittsburgh fans will arrive in their masses this week. Ironically, with all the support for the Steelers, it may give the impression of a home game for Pittsburgh. With their road record it is something that they will want to avoid.

Roethlisberger can cement his status as an NFL superstar in the Super Bowl. He has already reached iconic status in Pittsburgh. He has done very well in the playoffs this year (compare that to last year) and he can cap it off on February 5th.

Roethlisberger had a 13-0 record as a rookie last season but he was backed up by a very strong team. Now, he's calling the shots in only his second pro season.

It is largely down to the the twenty-three year old quarter back that the Steelers are the first 6th seed team to reach the Super Bowl and only the second team in history to win three on the road in the playoffs.

In three post season games, Roethlisberger has connected with 49 of 72 passes for 680 yards, one interception, seven touchdowns, and a 124.8 passer rating - he has been sacked five times.

Not bad.

The following is a list of current NFC teams in contention for Super Bowl. Odds are shown for Super Bowl and NFL Conference. See the post below for the AFC preview.


Chicago Bears 9/1

Chicago are 5/2 to win the NFC conference. The Bears are 11-5 on the season, winning their games with stubborn defense. Defense is a must for Super Bowl winners if the Patriots are anything to go by. Quarterback, Rex Grossman is back under center, and he will at least keep defenses honest. The Bears have a bye and so can rest up this week. It remains who will visit Chicago in the cold.


Washington Redskins 40/1

Washington are 12/1 to win the NFC conference. Washington are the 6th seed in the NFC conference, which means they will need to win three games on the road to get to the Super Bowl. Only the 1985 New England Patriots managed to do that.


Carolina Panthers 35/1

Carolina are 12/1 to win the NFC conference. They play at the Giants this weekend and then head to Chicago or Seattle if they win. Carolina are a good road team at 6-2. They lost to the Bears in Chicago earlier in the year, 13-3, but they are still a good team and lets not forget their Super Bowl appearance just two years ago.


NY Giants 28/1

New York are 9/1 to win the NFC conference. The Giants are at home to the Panthers, and will play at Seattle or Chicago if they win. The Giants are great home team at 7-1. But quarterback Eli Manning has not been convincing overall, and he must step up for this playoff run if the Giants are to see a final.


Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25/1

Tampa Bay are 10/1 to win the NFC conference. Tampa Bay went 11-5 and are number three seeds. Quarterback, Chris Simms has had trouble winning the big game at the University of Texas. Carnell 'Cadillac' Williams is going to be needed to carry a lot of weight on his shoulders.


Seattle Seahawks 7/1

Seattle are 10/11 to win the NFC conference. Seattle went 13-3 which gives them the number one seed. It means they play just two games before the Super Bowl, both at home. Seattle are the heavy favorites to win the NFC, and a Bowl appearance seems so close this time around - just bear in mind though that if they do make the Super Bowl and play against either Denver, Indianapolis, or even New England, they will most likely be the underdog.

The following list shows the Super Bowl odds for AFC teams. The NFC teams will be looked at tomorrow. Check back with Gameday every day for coverage of the NFL Playoffs and Superbowl.

Denver Broncos 8/1

Denver is also 5/1 to win the AFC championship. With the Patriots at 13/2 to win the Super Bowl, the Broncos are not getting much respect here. True, the Patriots could still be living on their reputation of recent years. Consider this though, Denver own the number two seed and a first round bye, add to that fact that Jake Plummer has had an excellent year with only seven interceptions and that Denver is undefeated at home (8-0) and you have the beginning of some decent value.

New England 13/2

New England is also 9/2 to win the AFC championship. New England is the two time defending champion which is why their odds are so low. But they will need to beat Jacksonville at home, as well as Denver and most likely the Colts on the road just to get to the Super Bowl. New England are improving, but it is a big ask for their current team.

Indianapolis Colts 5/6

Indianapolis is also 1/2 to win the AFC championship. The Colts started off the season 13-0, but lost in a home game against San Diego, 26-18. The Colts mostly rested their starters for the last two contests, which means it will have been four weeks since the first choice players last played a meaningful game. Despite the victory for the Colts over the Patriots earlier this season, they will not relish facing New England again.. The Patriots eliminated the Colts from the playoffs during the last two years.

Jacksonville Jaguars 100/1

Jacksonville is also 30/1 to win the AFC championship. The Jaguars have the third best record in the AFC at 12-4. They have to play at New England on Saturday night, and it might get cold for a warm weather team. But 100/1 for the Bowl is a big price and on paper they are no worse than the Patriots.

Cincinnati Bengals 30/1

The Bengals are also 16/1 to win the AFC championship. Cincinnati were 11-3 two weeks ago, but then went and lost their last two games, even though the Kansas City game was meaningless. The Bengals really haven’t played a great game since beating the Pittsburgh Steelers. As fate would have it - the Steelers are their first round opponents, with Cincinnati currently getting three points at home.

Pittsburgh Steelers 18/1

Pittsburgh is also 13/1 to win the AFC championship. Pittsburgh finished 11-5 but is on a four game winning streak. They ended up needing every one of those wins, as one loss would have eliminated them. Now they need to win every one of the next few games. If the Steelers beats Cincinnati this week, they will travel to Indianapolis and try to atone for a 26-7 beating they got back in November. Revenge could be sweet.