Wild Card Round
Monday, January 4, 2021
10:48 PM
I stopped making predictions a few years ago when I got every single game WRONG over the course of the entire wild card weekend, and the divisional round. 0 for 8. Now I know that my favorite sport switched from football to soccer (football) awhile ago, but I still thought I knew what I was talking about… at least a little bit. Well, this new year has inspired me to start writing a little bit more, and I guess I'm good at talking about sports? Well, we shall see. To make it a little more interesting for these playoffs, I asked all 3 of my children to partake in the prediction process; if I'm capable of going 0 for 8 again, then I deserve to get roasted by my boys. They live for it.
Buffalo Bills vs Indianapolis Colts.
It should be the easiest game of the weekend. If it wasn't for Aaron Rodgers to play out of his mind for an entire season, Josh Allen would be the NFL MVP. In his 3rd season. That's crazy to me. The weapons are good, but not great, the running game is average, but not good, and the play calling has been a little interesting at times. What Allen has going for him is this: he has a Ben Roethlisberger type arm, with Aaron Rodgers escapeability. I should've known when he came into US Bank stadium a couple of years ago that he would be special, and now I have no problem saying it. He might be right there with Pat Mahomes as an elite QB of the next generation.
The reason it might not be the easiest game of the weekend, is because of DeForest Buckner and Darius Leonard. I only got to see them twice because of the crappy bias the NFL seems to have against the Colts - I can't remember ever seeing them in primetime outside of the game against the Green Bay Packers. I also watched them run roughshod over the Minnesota Vikings. But in those two games, their defensive line made it very tough for Kirk Cousins to throw comfortably, and even Aaron Rodgers didn't have a typical Rodgers game. Can they make Josh Allen uncomfortable? I believe they can, I also think that they will. And he's too good.
Bills in a 31-24 win.
Aiden: Buffalo
Logan: Buffalo
Lucas: Buffalo
Seattle Seahawks vs Los Angeles Rams.
This is my favorite matchup of the weekend, but after sitting on social media and an hour on NFL LIve, it seems like no one wants to talk about it. Sean McVay has a really good record against the Seahawks and they played them tough in both games this year. He won't be afraid to call the game the way he wants to; personnel and score don't really matter. I could see the Rams trying to get into a shootout with the Seahawks; I could also seeing this game being a defensive struggle filled with clock management play calling and conservative plays. I hope it's the first one.
Seattle is going to be a tough out in the NFC, and I'm surprised they weren't talked about this Monday morning. It was Tom's Bucs, and Aaron's Packers, and Drew's Saints. I know that all 3 QB's have rings and they aren't fazed by much. But Russell is right there in that group. He was one bad play call away from potentially having 2 rings. This game will be fun, but I think it will be won or lost in the X's and O's. Without the 12th man involved, and Jared Goff healthy, I'm calling for one of the few upsets of the weekend.
Rams squeak by 24-21.
Aiden: Seattle
Logan: Seattle
Lucas: Seattle
Washington Football Team vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers
When I saw Dak go down that warm Autumn day, I truly thought that Rivera's "Football Team" would be the ones to break out of this terrible division. Making my predictions before the season began, I really thought Dallas would be one of the challenging teams for the title this year, but Dak is just too important to everything that they do. We saw McCarthy turn down the high risk plays to almost nothing afterwards, Dallas was boring, but usually in games. It was the best he could do. Washington deserves this spot; Nate Sudfeld be damned. They have a tenacious pass rush, but unfortunately they're not really good at anything else. It was good enough to beat a battered up Steelers team, but covering all the Bucs weapons and getting to Tom will be the toughest thing they have to do this season.
Tom had a really good season, and they were a Saints sweep away from locking up a top 2 seed. When teams get to him, this team is very ordinary and have a hard time coming back from bigger deficits. The Packers game was a little different, Aaron threw 2 picks that turned a 10-0 lead into a 10-14 deficit, and Tampa just took over from there. But they are a team that loves to play with an early lead. They give the rock to Ronald Jones and occasionally Leonard Fournette, and ride the backs to victory. The key lies within. If Washington can get Tom into 3rd and longs, then they'll have a chance at 7-9, to make a splash in the NFC playoffs. I'm not one to bet against Tom though, I see the Bucs starting to realize that it's going to be the Wild West in the NFC this month.
Bucs win because of the early lead 28-16.
Aiden: Tampa Bay
Logan: Tampa Bay
Lucas: Tampa Bay
My wife: Washington Football Team ☺
Tennessee Titans vs Baltimore Ravens
Of course this would be the noon game. What a delicious story. The 2019 Ravens were the league's darlings and Lamar Jackson was coming off an MVP season. And then bang! Derrick Henry, and game over. This year had some friendly taps on the helmet and a few hands to the chests, just conflict among friends. No. Not really. No love lost between these two teams, and I think this game will be a real battle. Maybe not the closest game per se, but great for television.
I've been half right half wrong about this Titans team all year. For those that remember, they were my Super Bowl pick to come out of the AFC. I thought they would ride Derrick Henry to 2,000 yards (right), and play in tough defensive minded affairs (wrong). The Browns scored at will against this team, the Jaguars scored 30, the Packers casually scored 40 and the Texans put up 36 and 38. Tennessee has had to rely way more on AJ Brown and Ryan Tannehill than I could've possibly imagined, and I've always been of the opinion that relying on Tannehill is not a good thing for any NFL Franchise. I admit I was wrong, and had he not played as well as he did, the Colts are winning the AFC South. Baltimore is getting hot at the right time, and their offense is still very difficult to deal with. Lamar just doesn't make mistakes, and he has really learned how to be patient with his throws, and when and how to use his legs. This game should be high scoring, but it benefits both teams. Who does it benefit more?
Tennessee Titans in a thriller 34-28.
Aiden: Baltimore
Logan: Tennessee
Lucas: Baltimore
Wife as a tiebreaker: Tennessee
New Orleans Saints vs Chicago Bears
The AFC couldn't have picked a better time to add a 7th team to the wildcard playoffs. The NFC? Not so much. There were times this year in which I thought the Bears were one of the worst teams in football. Their offense couldn't get a first down on important drives, and their defense was giving up big plays, which was totally uncharacteristic of them. They were one bad quarter against the Vikings away from not making the playoffs, but low and behold, here we are. And what a delicious opportunity for the Bears. The Saints got a little taste of the COVID-19 virus, and while it didn't affect them in the least against the Panthers, I wonder if maybe the Bears can't cook up a game plan to contain the Drew Brees/Taysom Hill QB duo.
No, they probably can't. While I will never care for Sean Payton the human being, he is an offensive mastermind and he won't have to deal with a playoff team in a purple jersey this season. And the issue was never their offense. A huge whiff on Stefon Diggs in the miracle game, and Kyle Rudolph's mitts were just too big to tear the ball away from. Jimmy Graham is a shadow, and while I think Cole Kmet is the new Kyle Rudolph, it's safe to say Mitchell Trubisky isn't the new Kirk Cousins. Fortunately for the Bears, there are a tale of two Saints this year. There's the team that smashed the Buccaneers twice, played the Chiefs extremely tough, and made easy work of the Vikings, Broncos and 49ers. There's also the team that struggled to beat the Lions, lost to the Eagles, and needed a really questionable penalty call to beat the Bears in OT earlier this year… with Nick Foles as the Bears QB. That game told me everything about the Trubisky/Foles conundrum. Well Trubisky is back, but so is Michael Thomas. I know who I would rather have.
Saints start gaining momentum 27-14.
Aiden: New Orleans
Logan: New Orleans
Lucas: New Orleans
Pittsburgh Steelers vs Cleveland Browns
Uh…. Um… null and void? So if the head coach can't be in the facilities or on the field this weekend, how do they expect the Browns to perform at their very best, or even well enough to compete in the game? What if there is an outbreak at the Cleveland facilities this week? I'll try and guess based on the information that I have, but this game could be anything. Or played on Tuesday. Or not even at all.
The Cleveland Browns season has been nothing short of amazing. I know a lot of people were surprised with the Stefanski hiring, but I actually thought it was nothing short of brilliant. He has always gotten good QB play from his quarterbacks in Minnesota, and I think each and every one of them over achieved under his tutelage. Sam Bradford was not worth a 1st, but was still solid. Teddy played well until the injury. Case did nothing wrong. Kirk had decent numbers considering the neglect of the offensive line. So I'm thinking Baker and Kevin could be special. And for some moments they have been. That Ravens game was probably my favorite of the season. And while any QB that got 4 games vs the NFC East has likely looked good this year, I grudgingly admit that Baker did take it to another level to get the Browns to this level. Pittsburgh has been my biggest question mark this year. Coming into the season, I saw them as your typical 8-8/9-7 team. Then they get 8 wins in 8 weeks, and I start questioning my opinions as a football mind. Then they were who I thought they were, when I looked at their schedule and saw 15-1/14-2. Had they played that way the final 8 weeks, this game would be like another bye week. Their struggles concern me. But not as much as a head coach in quarantine.
Steelers in a weird one 27-10.
Aiden: Pittsburgh
Logan: Pittsburgh
Lucas: Pittsburgh
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