The NFL’s weak have been weeded out in Darwinian fashion and the Conference Championship matchups are set. The final four have their crosshairs locked on the Lombardi trophy and want badly to book a ticket to Miami, Florida in early February.

Heading into this weekend, the Saints go marching into Soldier Field and Peyton’s posse gets set to renew acquaintances with Brady’s Bunch.

The final four features a number of teams that have been here before. The Colts and the Pats are always among the teams that travel far down the playoff road and the Bears have a championship caliber defense.

But one of these teams is not like the other; with the New Orleans Saints and their very short post season résumé. It’s been a brutal two years in the Bayou, with the Saints having to contend not only with Hurricane Katrina recovery, but a nomadic lifestyle as well last season. If there was any optimism at the beginning of the season, it was very slight. They acquired a new QB in Drew Brees and drafted Heisman trophy winning RB Reggie Bush, but Brees was coming off shoulder surgery and Bush, for all his talent, was an unproven commodity in the big leagues.

Prior to the season’s start, the bookmakers at Bodog had the New Orleans Saints at 80/1 to take home Lombardi in Miami.

But preseason projections and odds don’t mean squat and new head coach Sean Payton has worked wonders, leading his team out the wilderness in Moses like fashion. Drew Brees’ shoulder responded well to surgery, Reggie Bush has been every bit as effective for the Saints as he was for the USC Trojans and the odds for a Saints Super Bowl win have almost been cut in half, currently standing at 24/5.

The latest incarnation of the Chicago Bears is drawing comparisons to the Iron Age of Ditka. They aren’t doing the Super Bowl Shuffle, but Lovie Smith and Da Bears have a suffocating defense and are getting solid play at the quarterback position in the playoffs.

In their divisional playoff game against the Seahawks, Rex Grossman posted some solid numbers and didn’t make any mistakes that were detrimental to his team (21/38, 282 yards, 1 TD and only 1 INT).

If Grossman can continue to run the offense efficiently (knock on wood), the 2006 Bears will be doing a certain dance that the Windy City hasn’t seen since 1985/86.

The Bears are currently listed at +482 to win the Super Bowl by Pinnacle Sports. (Continued)

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