Packers, Bears, Jets, Steelers

American pro football is nearing its climax. This weekend, the two championship games before the Super Bowl are being played.
It's the New York Jets against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Pittsburgh and The Green Bay Packers against the Chicago Bears in Chicago.
Now, let me say first that I'm from western Pennsylvania and grew up on pro Football  in the 1950-60s when it was just gearing up to become a mania. In the1950s, the Steelers didn't win much, but Pittsburghers were loyal fans and supported the Rooney family every hard step of the way. Then along came quarterback Bobby Layne and John Henry Johnson in the early 60s and later, could we ever forget the mythic teams in the late 60s and 70s, with Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris and the unforgettable (especially if you were unlucky enough to be lined up opposite them and got in their way) Joe Greene and Ernie Holmes. My mother met Holmes once and never forgot how enormous he was beside her 5-foot frame, and how gentle and kind he was, too.
Okay, nostalgia aside, I like the Steelers against the Jets. The Jets have only ever won one game at Pittsburgh and that was earlier this season. I just cannot imagine that Ben Rothlisberger will let it happen again, not in Heinz Stadium.  It will almost surely be a high-scoring game, and the man with ice in his veins, Rothlisberger, will need to pass like he always does and his defense will have to keep the Jets from scrambling for first downs. Steelers 27 - Jets 17.
In Chicago, it will be a different matter entirely. Here, I like the Packers in a lower-scoring defensive cruncher. First, they have a monstrous defense that Chicago will not be able to overcome often enough to win. Second, the Packers have a better record and momentum going for them. And, not to forget, they have Vince Lombardi. He may be gone now, but Lombardi's spirit inspires the Pack, just as it does all of American football. It used to be, long ago, on the field in South Bend, that Notre Dame won it for the Gipper. This weekend, the Pack is going to win one for the coach - Lombardi, of course. Packers 13 - Bears 10.