Rejoice NFL followers, for the 2023 postseason<\/a> has arrived. \u201cTremendous Wild Card Weekend\u201d \u2013 apparently the nomenclature is right here to remain \u2013 begins Saturday afternoon and goes till Monday evening, that means the playoff pandemonium will flicker for greater than 48 hours.\u00a0
Each No. 1 seeds, the Baltimore Ravens within the AFC and the San Francisco 49ers within the NFC, earned byes and won’t be taking part. The opposite 12 playoff groups are in motion.\u00a0
Choosing a matchup based mostly on \u201cwatchability\u201d in comparison with one other might really feel sacrilegious. It\u2019s the NFL playoffs! However not all video games are created equal.\u00a0
Fortunately for many who favor their playoffs with a aspect of drama, there is no such thing as a scarcity of storylines this spherical.\u00a0\u00a0
The Payments proudly owning the No. 2 seed appeared unimaginable two months in the past. The identical may very well be stated of the Steelers qualifying for the postseason following their loss to the Indianapolis Colts three weeks in the past. Mason Rudolph helped Pittsburgh rattle off three straight wins, however the heartfelt third-string QB story can solely final so lengthy (until you\u2019re Brock Purdy). Buffalo has gained 5 in a row since its Week 13 bye.\u00a0
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This sport may go the blowout route, it may very well be ugly, and it is likely to be a mix of the 2. Plus, no T.J. Watt for the Steelers makes this one much less intriguing. In 11 video games with out Watt since drafting the go rusher, Pittsburgh is 1-10.\u00a0
Tampa Bay hosts the \u201cMonday Night time Soccer\u201d contest within the wild-card spherical for the second straight yr.
As for the Eagles, 1-5 to finish the season after beginning 10-1: The final workforce to make the playoffs with 5 losses of their ultimate six video games was the 1999 Miami Dolphins. In Corridor of Fame quarterback Dan Marino\u2019s final sport, they misplaced to the Jacksonville Jaguars, 62-7. The Eagles probably gained\u2019t endure the identical destiny, however they’ve performed like they’re wandering the wilderness for an alarmingly lengthy stretch.\u00a0
The Buccaneers\u2019 offense is inconsistent, however Philadelphia\u2019s protection is putrid to the purpose Mike Evans may need some vertical alternatives. Will or not it’s a final stand for Eagles heart Jason Kelce and the group of veterans introduced again with targets of reaching a second straight Tremendous Bowl?
They performed this matchup three weeks earlier, minus a key stakeholder: Texans QB C.J. Stroud, who missed the regular-season tilt whereas recovering from a concussion. The probably soon-to-be Offensive Rookie of the Yr has dazzled along with his means to make all varieties of throws, and the Browns\u2019 protection will current one of many greatest challenges he\u2019s confronted in his first season.\u00a0
Over 5 video games, Browns quarterback Joe Flacco\u2019s efficiency pushed him into the Comeback Participant of the Yr dialog. It was six weeks in the past the 38-year-old was answerable for coordinating pickup and dropoff for his kids. Now he returns to the stadium the place he helped Amari Cooper set the Browns\u2019 single-game receiving report on Christmas Eve.\u00a0
Value noting: Flacco has an interception fee of three.9%, which might rank final within the league if he\u2019d thrown sufficient passes to qualify in 2023. Stroud led the league in that class (1.0%).
There’s a potential for offensive fireworks from either side. The betting unfold signifies that Vegas expects a detailed sport. Stroud and the Texans must overcome their inexperience to drag off the upset.
That is the purpose within the rankings the place the NFL scriptwriters begin displaying off. Tyreek Hill has already confronted the workforce that traded him in 2022, besides he\u2019s but to return to GEHA Area at Arrowhead Stadium to face the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs. That modifications Saturday evening.\u00a0
The forecast calls for cold temperatures, and Miami QB Tua Tagovailoa, the native Hawaiian, hasn\u2019t at all times fared effectively in such climes. A September sport between these groups would have a greater likelihood of being higher-scoring. But when the Dolphins\u2019 offense can flip again the clock to earlier this season when the group appeared like some of the explosive items of all time, it ought to be a enjoyable chess match between Miami head coach Mike McDaniel and Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. A depleted Dolphins protection ought to give Patrick Mahomes and the shaky Chiefs offense an opportunity.\u00a0
Necessary public-service announcement: The sport is completely out there on Peacock, an indication of the NFL\u2019s all-in method to the streaming period.\u00a0
Some of the storied NFC postseason rivalries in league historical past takes heart stage Sunday afternoon. From The Ice Bowl to the convention championship video games of the Nineties to \u201cDez Caught It,\u201d Cowboys-Packers has delivered throughout the many years when the stakes are highest.\u00a0
Dallas\u2019 offensive efficiency at residence offers the Packers a lot to be involved with defensively, as coordinator Joe Barry\u2019s unit has been inconsistent and uninspiring. However Inexperienced Bay\u2019s means to run the ball \u2013 one thing Dallas has struggled to defend and do themselves \u2013 may open the door for an upset. If Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and the Cowboys offense get off to a quick begin, it will not be a difficulty.
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy has already downplayed the emotional angle of the matchup; McCarthy coached in Inexperienced Bay from 2006-18 and gained a Tremendous Bowl with the Packers. If McCarthy\u2019s present workforce doesn\u2019t get the job performed, his job safety will change into the subject of dialog in Dallas.\u00a0
Will the NBC broadcast have sufficient time to cowl the entire connections on this one? (They’ll, as a result of the Mike Tirico-Cris Collinsworth-Melissa Stark saying crew has been top-notch all yr.)\u00a0
There\u2019s Rams QB Matthew Stafford<\/a>, the primary total decide by the Lions in 2009 who performed 12 seasons in Detroit, in what can be an emotional homecoming of kinds.\u00a0
There\u2019s Lions QB Jared Goff, the primary total decide by the Rams in 2016 who performed 5 seasons for Los Angeles, in what can be a revenge sport of kinds. Lions basic supervisor Brad Holmes additionally got here from the Rams and rebuilt the Lions right into a workforce that gained 12 video games for the primary time since 1991.\u00a0
The surroundings ought to be electrical, with Detroit hosting its first playoff game in 30 years<\/a>. Two of probably the most energetic head coaches in Sean McVay and Dan Campbell can be head-to-head. On high of that, the sport ought to be tightly contested. No workforce had a stronger second half than the Rams, who gained seven of their final eight video games \u2013 the one loss coming in overtime to the Ravens<\/a>. The Lions cannot ensure what they are going to obtain from record-breaking rookie tight end Sam LaPorta<\/a>, who who suffered a knee damage within the regular-season finale in opposition to the Minnesota Vikings. Los Angeles can have its record-breaking rookie, although, in wideout Puka Nacua<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n