After 18 weeks of sitting on the edge of your seat watching total nonstop action the time has come. The NFL playoffs have officially begun and the first week has officially been completed.
This year’s playoffs have some familiar faces but for many casual fans some teams may not be as familiar. The Vikings with Justin Jefferson, Baker Mayfield and his Bucs, Lamar Jackson and the Steelers, and the most popular players in the league Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and the Chiefs all did not return to t
he post season. All of which has led the playoffs wide open for anyone to claim this year’s superbowl.
The first game on the schedule was the NFC south champions Carolina Panthers playing at home vs the Los Angeles Rams. The two times had already faced each other in the regular season with the Panthers pulling off a miraculous underdog win. Despite their history many still saw the Rams as the superior team due to their stellar defense and explosive offense.
The game played very similarly to their previous encounter with the panthers trailing early and playing catch up with the rams. Despite Bryce Young rallying the Panthers to come back and take the lead with 3 minutes left on the clock in the 4th, it was just not enough as Matthew Stafford connected with Cody Parkinson to secure the game winning touchdown. With the Rams winning 34-31 advancing to the divisional round.
The game after this clash was a division rivalry between two of the NFL’s oldest teams, The Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears. These two teams have a heated rivalry starting all the way back in the 1920’s. The Packers have always been the older brother to the bears however this season Chicago had looked red hot.
Like most games this year the Bears offense struggled to get the gears turning early into the game. Green Bay on the other hand went in guns ablazing looking to avenge their previous loss. Going into the fourth quarter it was 21-6 and looked seemingly over. However Caleb Williams showed the world why he was given the nickname ice man during the regular season.
In the fourth the Chicago bears scored a whopping 25 points and took a 31-27 lead over the Packers. Due to the Packers kicker Brandon McManus missing a chip shot field goal in the 4th the packers needed a touchdown to secure the win. Despite Jordan Love’s best efforts to heave the ball deep it was not enough for Green Bay to secure the win.
As a Packers fan Chase Sparks (12) had a lot on his mind about the loss, “It’s disappointing, but the Packers have been through a lot of injuries this season. If we were fully healthy we would have been able to take home the win that game”.
The last game occurring in the NFC side of the playoffs was the San Francisco 49ers vs the reigning Superbowl champions the Philadelphia Eagles. Both of these teams have dealt with very underwhelming seasons due to their incredibly high standards. The 49ers have dealt with the second most injuries this season while playing in the toughest division in the entire NFL, yet they still finished with a 12-5 record. On the other hand the returning champs have looked stagnant on offense and have had some very ugly losses.
The game was very slow with neither team really jumping ahead of the other. However after two 4th quarter touchdowns by the 49ers running back christian McCaffery the Niners prevailed over the Eagles. When it rained it poured for the Eagles since the only highlight their offense created all game was sideline footage of their star wide receiver A.J. Brown and head coach Nick Sirianai getting into a fight.
This sets up next week’s games to be the Number one seed Seattle Seahawks coming off a bye playing the 49ers. According to the betting odds many see the Seahawks world class defense and high power offense to be enough. When asked about what he thought Parker Stralka(12), a die-hard Seattle fan said, “This is the best Seahawks team I have seen since the legion of boom. I think we will crush the 49ers and are on our way to the Super Bowl”
In the other divisional game Then the Rams and Bears will face each other in Chicago. Despite playing away and having a worse record many still see the rams as the likely favorite to come out with the win.
Now in the AFC the first game to take place was Josh Allen’s Buffalo Bills going up against the Jacksonville Jaguars. For those who are looking for a new team to root for now that Taylor Swift’s favorite team the Chiefs didn’t make the playoffs, the Bills are a worthy replacement. Since they too are led by a celebrity power couple, this one between the MVP quarterback Josh Allen and Academy Award winning actress Hallie Steinfeld.
Many fans going into the season did not expect the Jaguars to
even make the playoffs after last season having the fifth worst record in the league. However with the help of their first year head coach they were able to turn the season around finishing with 13 wins on the season and winning their division.
Experts expected this game to be very evenly matched with how skilled each team was. As predicted the game was neck and neck up until the final whistle. With both teams exchanging touchdowns and neither looking to budge. However it was the Bills who pushed through and overcame the odds winning 27-24.
After that tense exciting game the one following it up was a big disappointment. In the Chargers vs. Patriots neither team had any real offense going. There were high expectations going into the game especially with MVP front runner Drake Maye leading the Patriots. To everyone’s surprise this game was won by the defenses.
Early in the game the Chargers Defense was able to get multiple big turnovers in scoring territory for the offense. However due to abysmal o-line play the chargers stalled out and were only able to put up 3 points on the board. In the fourth Drake Maye was finally able to crack the defense leading a touchdown drive to seal the game 16-3.
Many Chargers fans were furious about the loss since not only was it sad, but the offense did nothing. When asked his opinion Brian Logan(12) thought,” The defense was great but our offense was nothing short of terrible. I want to give Herbert some slack because our o-line is horrid, but he also played terribly.”
Then in the last game off the Wild Card round it was the Houston Texans vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite starting 0-3 the Texans have been the hottest team in the NFL, finishing 12-5 and riding a 9 game win streak. However they were going against historically one of the best and hardest playoff teams in NFL history and future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
While the odds were close going into gameday it played as an absolute domination. In the first half the Steelers were able to complete 2 turnovers giving the offense the ball in the redzone. Against other teams they may have easily scored, but the Texans stopped them only allowing them 3 points.
Similar to the Patriots game this too seemed to be another low scoring affair. Then in the second half the Texans went nuclear scoring off a defensive forced fumble, then scoring on their next o
ffensive drive, and finally knabbing a pick six officially putting the game away 30-6.
After such a humiliating loss many steelers fans were furious. When asked about the game Aaron Burrell (11) said,”Of course I am disappointed my team is eliminated, but I am more excited I get to watch these exciting playoff matchups for the next couple weeks with no stress”
Thus it will be the Buffalo Bills vs the number one seed Denver Broncos. Similarly to the Texans many see the Broncos defense as a very good unit, but close wins and issues on offense have many unsure of the true quality of the team.
Then in the other Matchup it will be the Houston Texans battling against the New England Patriots. This matchup has occurred many times before in the past, with Tom Brady leading the patriots to a win every time they faced in the post season. However with the improved defense it may be the time for history to change.
When asked about his thoughts on the divisional match up Patriots fan and Drake
Maye Lover William Danaher(11) said, “I think Drake “Drake Maye” Maye will bring us the win since the Texans offense is not that good, But I am a little scared since their defense is really good.”.
With the Super Bowl approaching some teams will lose and some will win until there is one. For the viewer we get to win every week since we get to watch some of the best football get played every single week.
