The final eight teams battled each other this weekend and we were treated to some wonderful performances. Some dreams died while others survived for another week. Let\’s go ahead and breakdown each game.
Green Bay Packers 32 Los Angeles Rams 18
The Packers were the first team to punch their ticket to the NFC Championship with an impressive win over the Rams. Green Bay had their offense firing on all cylinders in this game as they amassed 484 yards and 28 first downs. The Rams did keep it close and even had a chance to tie in the 4th quarter, but alas it wasn\’t meant to be. For the first time in Aaron Rodgers\’ career the Packers will host the NFC Championship game.
Once again Aaron Rodgers showcased why he should be this year\’s MVP. Facing the league\’s number one ranked defense, Rodgers repeatedly carved them up. Aaron Jones also had a big day finishing with 99 yards on the ground. Jones set the tone early in the 2nd half with a 60 yard run in their first drive. Defensively the Packers sacked Jared Goff 4 times and made stops when they needed them most.
Los Angeles will be disappointed that their season ends here, but they just lost to the better team. Aaron Donald not being 100% obviously hurt the Rams in this game as they couldn\’t stop Rodgers from having his way. Offensively the Rams did pretty well even though they couldn\’t keep up with Green Bay\’s offense. Just a few weeks after thumb surgery Goff looked really good in this game. If he can consistently play like this, the Rams will have a future worth looking forward to.
Buffalo Bills 17 Baltimore Ravens 3
For the first time since 1994 the Buffalo Bills are headed to the AFC Championship game. It wasn\’t pretty, but that won\’t matter to Bills Mafia as they will get to see their team play for a Super Bowl berth. The wind was clearly a factor in this game as several field goals were missed. The wind also seemed to effect a few offensive snaps as well.
It wasn\’t an impressive win, but you don\’t get style points in the playoffs. All that matters is that you win and Buffalo found a way to do just that. The game flipped in their favor late in the 3rd quarter. Up 10-3, Taron Johnson picked off Lamar Jackson and took it to the house for a game changing play. Instead of Baltimore potentially tying up the score, the Bills were able to increase their lead. Josh Allen wasn\’t great, but he didn\’t make any mistakes which was enough this week.
Baltimore will rue their missed opportunities in this game. Justin Tucker, for the first time in his career, missed two makeable field goals. Lamar Jackson threw the back breaking pick six just when it seemed like they were back in the game. It became a defensive struggle and unfortunately for Baltimore the Bills were the one who created the crucial turnover. Jackson had to leave the game in the 4th quarter with a concussion, killing off any comeback hopes. With one playoff win under his belt Jackson will hope for better fortunes next season.
Kansas City Chiefs 22 Cleveland Browns 17
The Chiefs survived a scare to move within one game of the Super Bowl. Mahomes was knocked out of the game halfway through the 3rd quarter with a concussion. This left Kansas City hanging on for dear life as Cleveland was surging for an upset. Backup QB Chad Henne just did enough to outlast the Browns and send his team to the AFC Championship game.
The big question moving forward will obviously be the health of Patrick Mahomes. As for this game the Chiefs were able to move up and down the field with relative ease. A missed field goal and extra point were the only blemishes on the offensive side of the ball. Defensively the Chiefs did just enough to outlast the Browns including a game swinging play near halftime.
The Browns will look back to the end of the 2nd quarter as their biggest what if. Receiver Rashard Higgins caught a pass and raced towards the endzone. Right before he could score, he was hit by a defender which caused him to fumble the ball into the endzone and out of bounds. Because the ball was fumbled out of bounds in the endzone it was called a touchback. That meant that instead of the Browns scoring the Chiefs got the ball instead. It was a massive points swing which ended up being the difference in this game.
New Orleans Saints 20 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30
Tom Brady got the better of Drew Brees in their final matchup against each other. It was reported right before kickoff that Brees would be retiring after this season. It\’s a shame that Brees final home game ended in a loss, as for Brady he finds himself once again in the final four. Tampa Bay also was the only road team to win this weekend.
In his final game Brees looked terrible throughout the game. Once Tampa figured out that Brees couldn\’t throw the ball downfield they stymied the Saints offense. Brees finished the game with only 1 TD and had 3 INTs. Defensively the Saints defense actually did well keeping the Bucs offense quiet. Unfortunately for them, they couldn\’t bail their offense out with so many turnovers.
Tampa Bay won this game due to making less mistakes than the Saints. Tom Brady didn\’t play well in this game and was fortunate not to throw several INTs himself. The key for them in this game was their defense. The Buccaneers defense forced 4 turnovers which led to 21 points. In the 2nd half they completely shut the Saints offense down. They will hope for a similar performance against Aaron Rodgers next week.