Latest NFL divisional round preview
By Chinmay Kulkarni
The first-ever Super Wild Card Weekend finally comes to an anticlimactic close, full of games that were either ref shows or all-out pummeling by the heavy favorites. A fun fact for all the bettors out there ”“ favorites went 5/6 in Wild Card Weekend, leaving only the Dallas Cowboys to do the yearly disservice of letting down their fans and handicappers all around the US. However, random stats aside, the Divisional Round is nearly upon us, and it’s chock-full of teams having had historical success. A few intriguing matchups this week from a statistical standpoint make a statement, so it’s once again time to make some predictions.
Cincinnati Bengals @ Tennessee Titans
It’s impossible to hate this Bengals team. Joe Burrow has been electric all season, the running game has been efficient, and the city of Cincinnati might be ascending into one of the better fanbases in the NFL. Watching this team is truly a treat, but they’ve recently played some odd games. The Bengals offense sometimes trends towards clunky ”“ something that we saw during the Raiders Wild Card game. Though the Raiders are generally a tough team to play, the Bengals are still a better-coached team, with a better quarterback and better offensive weapons. So, it’s concerning that the Bengals are facing the 6th best defense in the league in terms of restricting points/game with the Titans defense. The rested Titans are a completely different animal with AJ Brown and Julio Jones back and healthy. With the potential of Derrick Henry back in the lineup, Tennessee is a team that the Bengals strive to be within 5-years. It’s been a great season for the Bengals, but playing on the road to a rested 1-seed that can both run and throw the ball effectively seems like a tall task for the young Bengals.
San Francisco 49ers @ Green Bay Packers
This is a clear matchup of quarterback versus quarterback, and Aaron Rodgers has the fire-power around him to place to Packers on his shoulders and carry the 1-seed into the NFC Championship. The Niners have always been a tough, gritty, physical, well-coached team, but with respect to the ease of offense either live or die with the performance of Jimmy Garoppolo. Though these teams have already played this year in Santa Clara, this is a new, more refined Packers team that already has the puzzle pieces together with respect to some of their key defensive players. If there’s a chance to beat the Packers, SF must pressure the quarterback. As one of the top teams in sack percentage, the Niners defense must get Rodgers into uncomfortable situations. However, the Niners are pretty similar to the Raiders in terms of toughness, and I think this will be a low-scoring, defensive affair with the Niners losing to the Packers by one score.
Los Angeles Rams @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This is quite literally the sort of game that Tom Brady wakes up for. The Rams beat Tampa at home in week 3 of this season, with this playoff matchup happening in Florida instead. Los Angeles has been a largely inconsistent team this season, hinged by the play of Matt Stafford on whether the Lions version of himself shows up in critical situations. Unfortunately for the Bucs, the Rams are peaking at the right moment, with an extremely strong defensive showing in the beatdown of the Cardinals on Monday Night Football and a blueprint of a game where Cooper Kupp takes a back seat to other receivers on the team. On the other side, Tampa had an easy showing against the weaker Eagles team. Unfortunately for them, their success will come down to their injured offensive line – especially Ryan Jensen and Tristen Wirfs. The Rams have one of the best pass rushes in the league and take advantage of the building injuries and a weaker secondary of the Bucs. The Rams will knock off the defending champs in a high scoring affair.
Buffalo Bills @ Kansas City Chiefs
The rematch of last year’s AFC championship game is coming a bit too soon, as likely the best two teams in the AFC compete in the divisional round for what should be the most anticipated game of the weekend. The Bills and Chiefs are peaking at exactly the right time. The Chiefs put on a complete clown show on the Steelers, throwing touchdowns to offensive linemen and flips into the endzone by Tyreek Hill. However, this is the same situation with the embarrassment of the New England Patriots by the Bills, showing everyone how difficult it is to play in a freezing Buffalo. This game is likely to have the offensive fireworks to wrap up the divisional round on Sunday night, however, the top defense of the Bills is a sight to hold. The defense is something that makes a difference this week, and the Bills beat the Chiefs on the road to advance to their second straight AFC championship.
