Official 'Other Divisional Round Games' Thread

[Foxx]

 

 

© Sarah Kloepping / USA TODAY Sports

 

The Wild Card Round is over and delivered several blowouts. Of the six games played, only two were competitive. The weekend's first game had the Bengals holding off the pesky Raiders with an interception in the waning moments to deliver Cincinnati their first playoff victory since 1991. Sunday afternoon's game saw the weekend's other competitive contest as the visiting 49ers held off a furious rally by the Cowboys. In this game, victory was not assured until Dak Prescott inexplicably decided to run for more yardage than he should have and slid in the middle of the field with 9 seconds remaining. With no timeouts, they were unable to get another play off.

 

The weekend's blowouts began Saturday evening in Buffalo at Highmark Stadium. The Bills completely dismantled the New England Patriots, who looked like they forgot to show up and didn't want to be outside in the frigid weather. As a result, Buffalo set several playoff records in the undressing of Bill Belichick's unprepared team. Even if the *Patriots had shown up, they were not winning on this night. For if there is such a thing as an NFL exorcism, Buffalo thoroughly performed one Saturday evening by exorcizing the New England demons of the past two decades.

 

Touchdowns on seven, count 'em, seven straight drives. No punts. Seven third downs and no fourth downs. Josh Allen had more touchdown passes (5) than incompletions (4). Up 27-3 at the half, they picked off Mac Jones on the *Patriots' first drive of the second half, and the rout was assured as they cruised to a 47-17 laugher. They did allow a couple of second-half garbage touchdowns while playing defense at half throttle.  

 

The weekend's other three blowouts saw the Tampa Bay Buccaneers outclass the Philadelphia Eagles, the Kansas City Chiefs destroy the Pittsburgh Steelers by scoring five touchdowns in the span of fifteen minutes and Monday night's game had the LA Rams confuddling the Arizona Cardinals.

 

Up next, the Divisional Round, in which all remaining teams will play. The Green Bay Packers and Tennessee Titans earned first-round byes and look to be well-rested, healthy, and ready to go when the whistle sounds on Saturday. With that, let's take a look at the weekend's matchups.

 

© USA TODAY Sports

 

To kick things off, the AFC is up as the upstart Bengals travel to Tennessee to take on the top-seeded Titans at Nissan Stadium, Saturday afternoon. Can Joe Burrow continue his breakout season against the Titans? It should be interesting to find out.

 

Tennessee had the league's twelfth-ranked defense during the regular season. Ranking number two against the run, and twenty-fifth against the pass. And while I don't expect the Titans' defense to slow the Bengals' passing game much, the key for Cincinnati will be to get their running game going to keep the Titans honest and not load the nickel and dime looks to sell out on the passing game completely.

 

Tennessee is hoping to welcome back Derrick Henry. He was cleared for contact on Tuesday, but a decision will not be made on game availability until later in the week. They will of course make him active with the only question being, how much they will utilize him. The Titans would love to have a healthy Henry back to bolster the rushing game for them because Cincinnati was near the top of the league in rush defense, coming in at fifth. Mike Vrabel's unit might be better off gaining yardage through the air, as Zack Taylor's bunch was slightly worse than the Titans, coming in at twenty-sixth in the league against the pass. To do so, like the Bengals attack, they will need a ground game that has to be accounted for to prevent an all-out commitment to stopping the pass.

 

With both defenses not being the best at stopping opposing aerial attacks, this game has the makings of being a high-scoring affair.  

 

Prediction: Cincinnati by 2

 

© Mike De Sisti / USA TODAY Sports

 

Saturday's nightcap sees the NFC's top-seeded Green Bay Packers welcome the San Francisco 49ers to Lambeau Field for the right to play for that conference's championship. Could Aaron Rodgers retire from the NFL at the top of his game if the Packers win the Super Bowl? He has given indications that he just might, and there is precedence. Both John Elway and Peyton Manning did just that, though whether or not they were at the top of their game could be debated, especially when it comes to Manning. To get there, though, there is the prospect of three games yet to be played.

 

First up is Kyle Shanahan's gritty bunch. San Fran has rediscovered the formula for their current success, running the ball. If the '9ers can run the ball effectively, they may not have to worry about Jimmy G's penchant for making a mistake at the most inopportune times. They will have to stay close so they won't have to abandon the running game if they are in a catchup position.

 

Prediction: Green Bay by 8

 

© Kevin R. Wexler / USA TODAY Sports

 

Sunday's slate gets started at 3 pm as the LA Rams head into Raymond James Stadium to play the defending champion, Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tom Brady's remarkable career continues as he is competing to get his eighth ring. Someone, please tell me that he will retire at some point because, at the age of 44, I don't know that he is showing many signs of slowing down. I mean, he can't play forever, right?

 

To get that eighth ring, Bruce Arian's team, that returned every starter from last year's title group, will have to dispose of a much tougher squad than the Eagles team they faced in the Wild Card round. Sean McVay's all-stars have come together to form a very tough team and are playing well after an in-season mini-slump that saw them lose three games in a row during November.

 

The Rams played better on the road than at home, going seven and two. For Tampa Bay, they only lost one home game all year, which was against the Saints. New Orleans seem to have Tom Brady's number since he joined the Bucs last year, going four and zero against them in that time. Maybe the Rams might want to dress in the Saints' colors to assure their victory here.

 

Prediction: LA Rams by 6

 

© Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

 

Closing out the Divisional Round, we have a rematch of last year's AFCCG between the Chiefs and Bills as Buffalo once again ventures into Arrowhead Stadium to play Kansas City. It is also a rematch of their week five contest in Arrowhead that saw the Bills get a measure of revenge for losing last year's conference championship game by beating them 38-20 in a game that wasn't as close as the final score indicated. While the Bills did win the in-season game, they retooled this past off-season with beating the Chiefs in the playoffs in mind. That time has now arrived. We will get to see if Sean McDermott's team was successful in that bid by whether or not they can win this game.

 

With how each team won their Wild Card Round playoff game, this one should be a barn-burner. It may come down to who possesses the ball last.

 

Prediction: Buffalo by 5

 

Go Bills!!

Divisional Round

Visitor	Home	Info	Location
Bengals	Titans	Sat, 1/22, 4:30 p.m. CBS	Nissan Stadium
49ers	Packers	Sat, 1/22, 8:15 p.m. Fox	Lambeau Field
Rams	Buccaneers	Sun, 1/23 3 p.m. NBC	Raymond James Stadium
Bills	Chiefs	Sun, 1/23, 6:30 p.m. CBS	Arrowhead Stadium

 

 

 

[Foxx]

 Retire already.

 

[Ann]

29 minutes ago, Foxx said:

 Retire already.

 

 

 

 

[B-Man]

 

 

Down and Dirty: Bengals Need To Win In Trenches To Beat Titans - CLNS Media

by: N/A —CLNS Media Network: CLNS11m

CINCINNATI – If ever the Bengals were going to get down and dirty and win a road playoff game, this is the time and place. This Saturday’s game against the top-seeded Tennessee Titans in Music City will truly be playoff trench warfare. 

 

 

[Foxx]

https://twitter.com/gmfb/status/1484171357990494216

 

[Alaska Darin]

58 minutes ago, Foxx said:

https://twitter.com/gmfb/status/1484171357990494216

 

I just don't know how you take Garrapolo on the road against Rogers.  There's no way Jimmy doesn't make at least 2 mind-numbing mistakes.

 

The Niners let the crackwagon hang around the entire game.  Rogers will destroy them like Alderaan if they do the same thing.

[Foxx]

8 minutes ago, Alaska Darin said:

I just don't know how you take Garrapolo on the road against Rogers.  There's no way Jimmy doesn't make at least 2 mind-numbing mistakes.

 

The Niners let the crackwagon hang around the entire game.  Rogers will destroy them like Alderaan if they do the same thing.

I thought the same but then I watched this clip (towards the end) and apparently the 9ers own the Packers in the playoffs. So... who knows.

 

https://twitter.com/gmfb/status/1484156255677653000

 

[Foxx]

https://twitter.com/gmfb/status/1484141157261078530

 

[Alaska Darin]

1 minute ago, Foxx said:

I thought the same but then i watched this clip (towards the end) and apparently the 9ers own the Packers in the playoffs. So... who knows.

 

https://twitter.com/gmfb/status/1484156255677653000

 

That much I knew...but I come from the Bill Belichick school of "stuff that happened in the past has no bearing".

 

I can see the Niners winning this game...but they're going to have to be almost perfect to do it and frankly I think they lack the killer instinct required.  The Packers defense is much better than they get credit for.

[Foxx]

3 minutes ago, Alaska Darin said:

That much I knew...but I come from the Bill Belichick school of "stuff that happened in the past has no bearing".

 

I can see the Niners winning this game...but they're going to have to be almost perfect to do it and frankly I think they lack the killer instinct required.  The Packers defense is much better than they get credit for.

I agree. In the OP I picked the Packers as the only home team that wins this weekend. I do think history, in all things, has bearing though.

[Alaska Darin]

3 minutes ago, Foxx said:

I agree. In the OP I picked the Packers as the only home team that wins this weekend. I do think history, in all things, has bearing though.

My biggest question for that game is "has Matt Lafluer grown a pair?"  😄

[Ann]

Titans change ticket rules for playoff game to try to keep Bengals fans out
 

</snip>
 

Brooke Ellenberger, Vice President of Ticketing for the Titans, explained why the rules are getting changed, per Chris Davis of News Channel 5:
 

“We want Nissan Stadium to be two tone blue. And so by limiting this transfer window, it also limits the number of visiting team fans that we’ll have in the stadium. By limiting that transfer time would limit some of the resale and some of that transfer activity that would happen in advance.”
 

Under the new rules, tickets can’t be transferred to someone else until 24 hours before kickoff.
 

</snip>

[IDBillzFan]

56 minutes ago, Alaska Darin said:

Rogers will destroy them like Alderaan if they do the same thing.

 

That's the second such references to Star Wars in the past 24 hours, and now I feel like I'm learning a whole new side to you, or a side I just completely missed during the past 30 years of forum discussions.

[Chandemonium]

53 minutes ago, Ann said:

Titans change ticket rules for playoff game to try to keep Bengals fans out
 

</snip>
 

Brooke Ellenberger, Vice President of Ticketing for the Titans, explained why the rules are getting changed, per Chris Davis of News Channel 5:
 

“We want Nissan Stadium to be two tone blue. And so by limiting this transfer window, it also limits the number of visiting team fans that we’ll have in the stadium. By limiting that transfer time would limit some of the resale and some of that transfer activity that would happen in advance.”
 

Under the new rules, tickets can’t be transferred to someone else until 24 hours before kickoff.
 

</snip>

This could end up biting them if their season ticket holders can’t offload their extras and they end up with a 2/3 full stadium. I guess people could give them away to friends and family who they know are Titans fans, but will they?

[Alaska Darin]

52 minutes ago, IDBillzFan said:

 

That's the second such references to Star Wars in the past 24 hours, and now I feel like I'm learning a whole new side to you, or a side I just completely missed during the past 30 years of forum discussions.

My wife likes to call me the most simple,  complicated dude alive.   😄

[snafu]

3 hours ago, Ann said:

Titans change ticket rules for playoff game to try to keep Bengals fans out
 

</snip>
 

Brooke Ellenberger, Vice President of Ticketing for the Titans, explained why the rules are getting changed, per Chris Davis of News Channel 5:
 

“We want Nissan Stadium to be two tone blue. And so by limiting this transfer window, it also limits the number of visiting team fans that we’ll have in the stadium. By limiting that transfer time would limit some of the resale and some of that transfer activity that would happen in advance.”
 

Under the new rules, tickets can’t be transferred to someone else until 24 hours before kickoff.
 

</snip>

 

That's pretty insecure.

 

 

[Foxx]

https://twitter.com/PFF_Fantasy/status/1484285608067534849

 

[Foxx]

https://twitter.com/CameronWolfe/status/1484281129192628230

 

[Foxx]

https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/1484278770035208192

 

[Foxx]

https://twitter.com/theMMQB/status/1484590558781837312