
The NFL Divisional Round of the playoffs redeemed a largely boring and irrelevant Wild Card Round. Only two games last week were decided by one score, and three of the games had at least 21-point deficits. The blowouts sparked debates across the nation about the inclusion of seven teams in the expanded playoff field, but most fans walked away from games this past weekend entertained and enthusiastic about the upcoming conference championships.
Let’s take a look at the best slate of playoff games we’ve seen this football season.
Ja’Marr Chase led the Bengals with 109 receiving yards.
The Cincinnati Bengals have an offense loaded with weapons. They’re on par with the Chiefs from several years ago and last season’s Super Bowl champion Buccaneers in that sense. Joe Burrow is a budding superstar, and his connections with Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins went a long way to Cincinnati beating the first seed Tennessee Titans 19-16.
The few elite throws Ryan Tannehill made to A.J. Brown and Julio Jones were overshadowed by at least two interceptions that were his fault, including one that cost Tennessee the game.
The Titans seemingly had the ball last in regulation with a chance to try for a field goal or force overtime until Logan Wilson intercepted a batted pass with 20 seconds left. A 19-yard pass to Chase set up a 52-yard game-winner as time expired for Evan McPherson. The rookie kicker went 4-4 on the day.
Robbie Gould completed the comeback for San Francisco.
Aaron Rodgers is weeks away from winning his fourth NFL MVP, and he’ll have time to receive it in person because the Green Bay Packers are out of the playoffs. San Francisco won the game on a 45-yard Robbie Gould field goal as time expired.
It was a classic game at Lambeau Field: freezing conditions, snow falling, and the Packers choking away another season. Green Bay entered the game as the NFC’s top seed, but DeMeco Ryans’ 49ers defense barely gave an inch in the 13-10 win.
San Francisco overcame a horrible performance by a battered and bruised Jimmy Garoppolo thanks to their special teams. A blocked punt returned for a touchdown with just under five minutes left tied the game and eventually led to Gould’s game-winner.
Some might say the Los Angeles Rams wanted to lose their game against Tom Brady and the Buccaneers. It looked like they might succeed in letting Tampa Bay come back from down 27-3 to win the game, but Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp connected twice with under a minute remaining to set up Matt Gay for a game-winning field goal as time expired.
After getting dominated for a half, the Buccaneers scored 24 unanswered points to tie the game. Unfortunately, they left 42 seconds on the clock, which was enough for Sean McVay’s team to close the door on a potential overtime victory.
This was one of the best games from the past few years. It was extremely sloppy. The Rams had some disastrous plays, and that caused a rollercoaster of emotions for viewers. If you missed the game, do yourself a favor and find time to watch the full thing back.
The NFL is in good hands, as the quarterback play in the Bills vs. Chiefs game proved. Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes traded dynamic drives and long touchdowns. Neither quarterback turned the ball over, and they combined for 707 passing yards and seven touchdowns.
Buffalo and Kansas City scored 25 points combined in the final two minutes of regulation, including a last-second 49-yard field goal by Harrison Butker to force overtime. Mahomes got the ball first and drove down the field swiftly for the game-clinching score.
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