Who Will Be the Surprise NFL Team of the 2008 Playoffs?

Admit it. As much as you like when the best team wins and perhaps complain when the better teams get knocked out of the playoffs, you have to like the Cinderella stories, when the underdog comes out of oblivion and runs away with it all. That exactly what happened with the Giants last year and it could happen again this year. The only question is what team.

Looking at the playoff picture in the AFC, there are not many teams that would qualify as shocker teams. For the most part, you've got the haves (Steelers 11-4, Titans 13-2, Colts 11-4) and the have-nots, which would include the Broncos (8-7), Chargers (7-8), and perhaps the Jets (9-6), who have shown that their hot streak earlier this season was a fluke.

To me, the team to look out for, assuming they make the playoffs, is San Diego. The Chargers average nearly 26 points a game, which is 7^th in the league, and Phillip Rivers is near 4,000 yards passing. They've also outscored their opponents by 61 points, which indicates rotten luck along the way. Their Achilles heal has been there running game, with running back LaDainian Tomlinson having a subpar year with 1,014 rushing yards, and their pass defense, which has allowed the second most yards per game. If they can continue to score and if somehow LT turns it on, they could be a dangerous team.

In the NFC, only the Giants (12-3) and the Panthers (11-4) appear dominant, which makes my Cinderella pick the Philadelphia Eagles (8-6-1), again assuming they can get into the playoffs. They've allowed about 19 points a game, 6^th in the league, and the defense has been adept at stopping both the rushing and passing game. Offensively, it's been a down year for star running back Brian Westbrook, who has been plagued by injuries. But like LT, he has the ability to get hot. Quarterback Donavan McNabb has thrown 11 interceptions, his highest total in since 2003, but a lot of that is because he had missed time in recent seasons. If the defense keeps them in the game, they could beat anybody, as they showed in their victory against the Giants.

Don't know about you, but for me the postseason can't start soon enough.