The NFL Playoffs are here and we’re going to be breaking down every wild card matchup this weekend. We finished the regular season with a 196-76 record.
Los Angeles Chargers (#5) at Houston Texans (#4)
The Texans won the AFC South, but feel like the weakest team in the entire playoffs. The AFC South is a joke and they barely managed a winning record. To give them credit, they lost both Stefon Diggs & Tank Dell for the season with fellow offensive players Nico Collins & Joe Mixon missing time as well. With the offense being troubled, the Chargers defense is just going to overpower them and Jim Harbaugh notches a playoff win in his first season back as an NFL coach.
Winner: Los Angeles Chargers
Pittsburgh Steelers (#6) at Baltimore Ravens (#3)
The Steelers lost 4 in a row to end the season to lose the AFC North. The Ravens on the other hand have won their last 4 which includes a beatdown of Pittsburgh & beating another playoff team in the Texans on the road. Baltimore has all the momentum & is getting hot at the right time. The Ravens win this to set up a potential big showdown against Buffalo in the next round of the playoffs.
Winner: Baltimore Ravens
Denver Broncos (#7) at Buffalo Bills (#2)
Major credit needs to be given to both the Denver Broncos and the Buffalo Bills on the seasons they’ve put together. The Broncos were expected to have less than 6-7 wins and finished with 10 and the last wild card spot in the AFC with a rookie quarterback, the worst run game in the league, and a top 5 defense. The Bills lost Diggs & Davis, but still managed to have Josh Allen be in the MVP running. The Broncos are a few years away from being truly dangerous & the Bills show them who’s boss by bullying them around.
Winner: Buffalo Bills
Green Bay Packers (#7) at Philadelphia Eagles (#2)
Both Jordan Love & Jalen Hurts are banged up, but both are likely to power through their injuries and play with their team’s Super Bowl aspirations on the line. It’s been longer since Hurts played, but the Packers even when Love was healthy was not having any significant output towards the end of the year. Both teams are going to need to rely on their running backs more and if that’s the case, we’re giving the edge to the team with NFL’s leading rusher in Saquon Barkley and the Eagles.
Winner: Philadelphia Eagles
Washington Commanders (#6) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (#3)
Both teams are going to take advantage of the weaknesses that the other has. For Tampa Bay, their defense is dealing with their fair share of injuries & for Washington, they’ve barely won their last 4 games. The weather is calling for rain which plays well for the Buccaneers who can control the clock with Bucky Irving and the rush attack. Jayden Daniels is a lock for offensive rookie of the year and we’re excited for the career he has in store, but his inexperience is what’s going to cost him & the Buccaneers are going to lock down on him hard.
Winner: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Minnesota Vikings (#5) at Los Angeles Rams (#4)
With this game being moved to Arizona, essentially a neutral location, the Vikings got a boost. The Vikings lost to the Rams once this season already. This time around, we’re expecting different results. Sam Darnold just came off of his worst game of the season, but the Vikings kept going for it on 4th down in the red zone and kept getting stopped. They were trying to keep up with the aggressive nature of Ben Johnson and Detroit. The Rams are more conservative and this will allow the Vikings to manage the game script better & come out on top.
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