CHARLES SMALL/NEWSMAKERS Kurt Warner hopes to take the Rams' high-flying attack all the way to the Super Bowl.

Look for Jags and Rams in Atlanta

Five years ago, the Rams were in Los Angeles, the Titans were the Houston Oilers, the Buccaneers franchise was synonymous with futility, and the Jaguars were in their first year of existence. Rams quarterback Kurt Warner was bagging groceries at a Hy-Vee in Iowa, Bucs quarterback Shaun King was a rising freshman at Tulane, and Titans quarterback Steve McNair was a first-year graduate of Alcorn State. Welcome to NFL Y2K, where anything is possible.

Imagine, though, the horror of the ABC executive considering the prospect of a Tampa Bay-Tennessee Super Bowl. Tampa Bay and Tennessee, two teams that make defense, as well as fan boredom, their top priority. Most TV viewers would probably opt for three solid hours of Regis and his millionaire show rather than this matchup. The NFC championship game between the Bucs and Rams is a study in wild contrasts. While the Rams feature an exciting aerial assault on offense, the Bucs stress defense, defense, and good punting, making them easily the most unwatchable sports team other than the Chicago Bulls. Still, they have a damn good defense, one that can force a turnover and score six faster than most NFL offenses. Warner, who has passed for a ridiculous 46 touchdowns in 17 games, is the league's MVP, and deservedly so. Meanwhile, the Bucs rely on their defense so much that even if they had Jamie Foxx taking snaps rather than Shaun King, they would still be playing on Sunday with just as many wins as they have now.

There's been much hype surrounding the tremendous defense of the Buccaneers, and surely Warner & Company won't have the field day they did against the Vikings in the divisional playoff (49 points, 405 yards). The line says Rams by 14, but it surely won't be as lopsided as most people think. While the Rams have a very underrated defense, St. Louis still should be considered an inexperienced team. When facing the tenacious Bucs pass rush, led by the scary good Warren Sapp, don't expect the Rams to put up more than 30 points. The Rams have still not faced a solid NFL defense. While St. Louis running back Marshall Faulk can run and catch as well as anyone, expect him to be contained, as you can be sure that he will be closely shadowed after every offensive snap.

The big question, then, is if the Bucs offense can get anything going. Since they could barely muster 14 points against a usually laughable Washington Redskins defense last weekend, don't count on it. If the Bucs score more than 20 points, it will come as a result of the Rams' turnovers. King, even if the Fox Sports commentators tell you otherwise, has looked very overmatched in most of his starts. Can't blame him—he's only a rookie from Tulane. Still, though, this game will be close into the second half, but look for a big Rams special teams play to break the game open.

In the AFC championship, the Titans and Jags meet for a third time this season. The key to this game is simple: if the Jags shut down Titans running back Eddie George, it will be no contest. Still, just four weeks ago, the Titans smoked the Jags 41-14. Tennessee is the NFC version of the Bucs; Coach Jeff Fisher doesn't ask much out of McNair other than to hand the ball off to his backfield mate. Fisher's got a heck of a defense, led by Jevon Kearse, who might already be just as good as Sapp. He is, at the very least, just as intimidating.

Fisher, though, has coached very conservatively in his past two playoff games, and when facing this Jags team, that style will hurt his team. Fisher's offense needs to take some big gambles since the Jaguar offense will come to play. The Jaguars have quietly entered this weekend as the NFL's most complete team. Quarterback Mark Brunnell is healthy again, and he is by far the most experienced quarterback left in the playoffs. Fred Taylor is running as if his injuries are all healed too. When healthy, Taylor is probably the best pure runner in the league. The Jags defense is sometimes inconsistent, but at home, they've been dominant, only giving up more than 20 points twice. This game will be tight, but Jacksonville, the team to beat in these playoffs, will pull it out behind Taylor's healthy legs.

The good people at ABC can sleep easy: it'll be the Jags and Rams in the Big Show. I'm not confident, but that is my final answer.

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