(5) Browns vs. (4) Texans: Saturday, 4:30
This game between the #4 seed Houston Texans and the #5 seed Cleveland Browns will be one of the most exciting of the weekend. The Texans who have been electric this year are led by the probable Offensive Rookie of the Year, QB CJ Stroud and possible coach of the year DaMeco Ryans are a young team with little playoff experience. On the other hand, the Browns have Joe Flacco, a 38-year-old former Super-winning quarterback who seemed like his career was over, but was signed as a free agent to take over for the injured Deshaun Watson in week 13. He has played at an elite level, lending a hand to the browns top ranked defense who have allowed the least yards in the league by a margin of nearly 400 yards. It will be a close game with both offenses playing at a high level, but we think the browns have the clear defensive edge, and therefore will come out on top.
Final Prediction: Browns 33, Texans 24
(3) Chiefs vs. (6) Dolphins: Saturday, 8:00
This game between the #3 seed Kansas City Chiefs and the #6 seed Miami Dolphins looks like it will be a great offensive game. The Chiefs have had a downseason compared to last year where they won the Super Bowl. On top of that Travis Kelce had his first non-1,000-yard receiving season for the first time in 7 years. However, their defense has had a great year ranking second in the league led by Defensive Tackle Chris Jones who is one of the best defensive players in the league. The Miami Dolphinsare coming in as the 6th seed after losing the division in week 18 into the Buffalo Bills. Despite this, the Dolphins have been a defensive powerhouse leading the league in yards and being the runner up in total points for. The offense is loaded with weapons including running back tandem Raheem Mostert and Devon Achane, WR Jaylen Waddle, and of course Tyreek Hill, who has had a career year with just under 1800 yards and was tied for the league lead in touchdowns. The weather seems like it will be a big factor during the game with wind chills as low as negative 30 degrees, and the Dolphins who play in Miami, Florida will likely be affected by it. The game will be close, but in the end, the playoff experienced will do just enough for the Chiefs to advance to the next round.
Final Prediction: Chiefs 24, Dolphins 20
(7) Steelers vs. (2) Bills: Sunday, 1:00
Sunday afternoon the (7) Pittsburgh Steelers will travel to Highmark Stadium to face off against the (2) Buffalo Bills with a forecast that calls for subfreezing temperatures and possible snow. The Steelers seemed to make the playoffs by the skin of their teeth, winning their last three games behind third-string QB Mason Rudolph after Kenny Pickett went down with an ankle injury in week 13, and backup Mitch Trubisky was benched not long after. On the other hand, the Buffalo Bills have won their last 5 games and clinched the AFC East with a victory over the Miami Dolphins last week. The Steelers are certainly the projected underdogs heading into this matchup, and this can be attributed to their lack of offensive production throughout the season, where the team ranks 28th in points for, and 25th in total yards, whereas the Bills are ranked 6th in points for, and 4th in total yards. Defensively, both teams rank in the top 6 in points allowed. However, the Steelers will be without DPOY candidate TJ Watt, who sprained his MCL last week. The Steelers will likely rely on running backs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren and their run game to control the tempo and will look to force turnovers to compensate for their mediocre offense, however pitted against Buffalo’s elite defense, they won’t be able to outscore the Bills high powered offense led by Josh Allen and his receivers Steffon Diggs and Gabe Davis who should have big games.
Final Prediction: Bills 31, Steelers 17
(7) Packers vs (2) Cowboys: Sunday, 4:30
The Packers departed with hall-of-fame quarterback Aaron Rogers this past offseason Jordan Love was given the keys to the franchise. He had a rocky start to his first full season as a starter, as the team started with an underwhelming 2-5 record, making Packers fans wonder if he could be the future of the franchise. However, the team won some big games throughout the season, including their final 3 which was enough to secure the 7th seed. The Cowboys have had an extremely successful season with Dak Prescott, who is a top 5 MVP candidate, and Ceedee Lamb who is having the best season of his career. The defense has had a great year with cornerback Daron Bland who has set the single-season record with 6 Interception return touchdowns. It seems like the Cowboys should have a pretty demanding win, but you never know with the Cowboys in the playoffs.
Final Prediction: Cowboys 23, Packers 16
(6) Rams vs. (3) Lions: Sunday, 8:00
This between the #3 Detroit Lions and #6 Los Angeles Rams will be an exciting one. The Detroit Lions have completely turned around their franchise in just a few seasons behind Dan Campbell, winning their first division championship since 1993. For the Rams, they have their Super Bowl win in 2021, and it seemed after that they would be on a rebuild, but with their stars rookie receiver Puka Nacua, Cooper Kupp, Aaron Donald, Matthew Stafford, and a good coaching staff they seemed that they could be back in just a year or two. Offensive Rookie of the Year candidate Puka Nacua broke the receiving yards and receiving reception record for a rookie. The receiving yard record stood for over 63 years. This one is going to be a good one with the two quarterbacks facing their former teams Jarred Goff (Lions) facing the team he lost a Super Bowl with, and Matthew Stafford facing the team where he became a popular figure in Detroit. With the Ram’s playoff experience and the young Lions team with inexperienced coaching in the playoffs, we see the Rams with the edge in this game.
Final Prediction: Rams 27, Lions 24
(5) Eagles vs. (4) Buccaneers: Monday, 8:00
This game between the #4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers and #5 Philadelphia Eagles is very interesting. The Eagles have had a historic collapse. Going into the season, and for the first few weeks, it seemed they would be the number one seed in the NFC and the playoffs, but after the 42-19 loss to the San Francisco 49ers things seemed to fall apart for Philadelphia. On the Buccaneer’s side, they won their division in a pretty weak NFC South division. Earlier in the year the Eagles beat the Bucs 25-11 in a pretty demanding win, however, this Eagles team is much different. It doesn’t seem like they trust their coaching or the way they play and it seems they have almost given up, despite their numerous talented players on both sides of the ball. The Buccaneers are 5-1 in the last six so these teams are in two very different positions at this moment.
Final Prediction: Buccaneers 30, Eagles 20
