THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
The expanded playoffs for this season always had the worry that an extra team from each conference would weaken the field. Those in favour of the 14-team system would point to teams regularly appearing in the postseason with an even 8-8 record. In some extreme circumstances teams with a losing 7-9 season have entered the January tournament, as recently as 2020 when the Washington Football Team won the NFC East with that record.
Some teams did back into the playoffs this year, one being the Pittsburgh Steelers, who despite last-week-of-season heroics still had to wait for their destiny to be decided when the Las Vegas Raiders kicked a late field goal to put themselves and historical rivals Pittsburgh through, at the expense of the Los Angeles Chargers. However, both teams failed to advance in the “Super Wild Card Weekend.”
The Cincinnati Bengals held on to beat the Raiders, to end their postseason win drought of 31 years. Las Vegas had a chance to take the game to overtime but a failed pass attempt on fourth down in the last moments confirmed the Bengals' win by 26-19.
The Kansas City Chiefs completely outmatched the Steelers despite Pittsburgh taking a shock lead through a defensive score by probable Defensive Player of the Year, TJ Watt. The score only served to wake up the Chiefs, who went on to score six touchdowns, all through the air. Patrick Mahomes threw 5 scores and the unlikely source of Tight End Travis Kelce added one more. The final score of 42-21 flattered Pittsburgh and put notice to the rest of the AFC teams that Kansas City were still a major threat.
The other game in that conference was another high scoring blowout with the Buffalo Bills finding their rhythm at the right time and scoring a perfect game with scores on every one of their drives, including five touchdown passes by Josh Allen who finally elevated his play at this level. The constant barrage of points meant that the New England Patriots who had fluctuated for most of the season, had to be perfect also. That was just too much to ask, and the score of 47-17 was right in terms of the balance of play.
Over in the NFC the hugely anticipated game in Texas between the Dallas Cowboys and the San Francisco 49ers delivered the game of the weekend. The Niners jumped up to an early lead, and the stunned Cowboys could not get moving, even their top ranked defense were playing beneath themselves. Only late in the game did the score start to even out, but when Dallas had the chance to tie the game with seconds remaining, a curious play call of a quarterback draw saw Dak Prescott run the ball and there was not enough time on the clock for the official to restart play. San Francisco were worthy winners despite running out of steam late in the game, and the 23-17 score sees them advance.
Defending champions Tampa Bay Buccaneers, carrying injuries aplenty, had a less tension-filled game as they defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 31-15. Once an early lead was established, the Bucs just had to rely on their defense to see the game out, which despite a couple of scares they managed, to head on to the next round. The cliché of 'when Tom Brady is playing you always have a chance' will still be in the minds of their next opponents.
The final game of the “Super” weekend was on Monday night as the Los Angeles Rams renewed their divisional rivalry with the Arizona Cardinals. They had split the series in the season, both teams winning on the opposing field, so Arizona was ready. The Rams though, like other teams over the weekend's play, scored early and often, taking the wind out of the Cardinals sails. The score of 34-11 did not reflect how well LA played and the Rams should be confident going into the next round, as they can be very explosive on offense.
So, what does this all mean going into this weekend and the Divisional Round of games? Well, we now see the introduction of the number one seeds. Part of the expansion in this year’s playoffs also meant that there was only one team that had a bye week, as against two in previous seasons.
In the AFC, the Tennessee Titans gained that bye, and the Green Bay Packers had that honor in the NFC. The tradition of the number one seed hosting the lowest seed remaining after the opening games still stands, so the Titans will have the Bengals as their visitors, while in the other AFC matchup the Chiefs will host the Bills in what could well be the game of the weekend.
Over in the NFC the Packers matchup against the 49ers, and the two have had some stellar playoff outing in the past so this will be another great game to witness. The Rams will try to knock the Buccaneers off their champions' perch but they will need another near-perfect game from their offense if they are to do so.
Saturday 22 January
Cincinnati Bengals at Tennessee Titans 21.30
San Francisco 49ers at Green Bay Packers 01.15 (Sunday morning)
Sunday 23 January
Los Angeles Rams at Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20.00
Buffalo Bills at Kansas City Chiefs 23.30
