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CA Dreamin

Gender: Male

Location: LA

CA Dreamin wrote:

LAC 24, HOU 16
PIT 17, BAL 34
DEN 20, BUF 31
GB 20, PHI 28
WAS 27, TB 31
MIN 30, LAR 23

What actually happened:

LAC 12, HOU 32
PIT 14, BAL 28
DEN 7, BUF 31
GB 10, PHI 22
WAS 23, TB 20
MIN 9, LAR 27

50/50 on predictions. The Wild Card Round is the round that separates the good teams from the great, but usually it's a little more interesting than this. 5/6 games were decided by two scores, with 3/6 decided by three scores. The Bucs-Commanders was lone close game. The Chargers and Vikings were disappointing. They chose the wrong time to play their worst. Credit to the Texans and Rams for playing well. Glad my team advanced. Jalen Hurts was a little rusty after resting three weeks. But Saquon and the defense did their part. As expected, the Ravens and Bills took care of their decent, but inferior opponents. Now, the Division Round:

HOU 13
KC 21

While they did not look like their usual selves in the regular season, the Chiefs are still the Chiefs. They're experienced, well-coached, have a good defense. And hey, they still won 15 games. They're something to be said for that. And it's supposed to be very cold this afternoon. The Texans aren't used to that. We remember what happened last year when the Chiefs hosted a cold game against a warm-weather team. ChiefRocka, if you're still out there, how are you feeling about this team?

WAS 20
DET 34

Top-to-bottom, the Lions are the stronger team, and should win this. The Commanders were perhaps the biggest surprise this year, and they have an optimistic future under Daniels.

LAR 17
PHI 24

Last week, the Eagles didn't call as many pass plays, given Jalen Hurts has just been cleared of concussion protocol. Now, he should be back in rhythm. Add on Barkley, a great defense, and the Philly fans, it'll be too much for the Rams. Likewise in KC-HOU game, the weather might affect things. It's supposed to wintry mix tomorrow in Philly. It might be a low-scoring game with more turnovers than usual. Fly Eagles, fly!

BAL 23
BUF 27

The last game of the weekend will also be a freezing one, but that will not factor, as both teams know these conditions. This should really be an exciting game! 2018 was the rookie season for both Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen, and they've regularly led these teams to the playoffs ever since. But this is only the second time they've faced each other in the playoffs. It could go either way.

CA Dreamin

Gender: Male

Location: LA

CA Dreamin wrote:

HOU 13, KC 21
WAS 20, DET 34
LAR 17, PHI 24
BAL 23, BUF 27

What actually happened:

HOU 14, KC 23
WAS 45, DET 31
LAR 22, PHI 28
BAL 25, BUF 27

3/4, and pretty close on the scores in the AFC games. A boring Chiefs win. A shocking upset in Detroit. And two thrilling games in the snow in Philly and Buffalo. We knew Detroit's defense was vulnerable when they allowed over 40 points to the Bills, but nobody was expecting an upstart Commanders team to pull the same feat. The Eagles took us on a roller-coaster ride, going up by two touchdowns with 4:30 to go, and then nearly squandering it. That was more intense than it needed to be. I burned so much energy on that game, I couldn't focus on the Bills-Ravens that started right afterwards. Who would have thought it'd be decided by two failed 2-point conversions? Tough break for the Ravens.

NFC Championship Prediction:

WAS 23
PHI 30

The Eagles have a stronger defense and running game. They'll wear out the Commanders by the end.

BUF 27
KC 20

The best rivalry in the AFC right now. 4th playoff meeting in five years. This will be really exciting, and this will be the game the Bills finally prevail. Kansas City is very good, but they're not at the same level as the past few years.

CA Dreamin

Gender: Male

Location: LA

I'm speechless

CA Dreamin

Gender: Male

Location: LA

Another regular season in the books. Some takeaways from each division:

NFC East - Back-to-back champions in this division for the first time since 2003-04. Wow. It was my team who last did it, and my team who ended the drought. Hell yeah! I was half expecting the Commanders to win this year, because well, that's the NFC had been going for 21 years. But what happened to the Commanders? They came into 2025 with so much expectation and they were lousy. Even with Daniels injury, 5-12 is a large regression.

NFC North - The strongest division in the NFL in 2024. And it was strong again this year. Every team finished over .500. I don't think that has ever happened in NFL history. The Lions missing the playoffs is the biggest shock here, but still, 9-8 isn't bad. And well, the other teams in division were all better-than-average. Just super-competitive.

NFC South - The weakest division in the NFL. The Bucs' reign has ended. Three years with Brady and the last two with Mayfield...it was quite a run. And they were looking great the first half before falling apart. We knew the other teams were rebuilding, and the 8-9 finishes for Carolina and Atlanta were improvements for them. For Carolina, it was good enough to win this weak division.

NFC B West - LA and SF were expected to be good, but how about Seattle? They came out of nowhere this year, and they are legit.

AFC East - The Pats are back on top. Drake Maye showed promise last year, and they got Diggs in the offseason. I had a feeling they would be much-improved but winning the division over the Bills with a 14-3 record is beyond anyone's expectation. They will be a tough out in the playoffs. And so will Buffalo for that matter. The Bills were inconsistent this season, but when they are having a good day, they can take on anyone.

AFC North - Underwhelming. Sure, injuries to Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow probably cost each team some wins. But even they were healthy, something seemed off. The Bengals clearly have a terrible defense and they won't be SB contenders again until they improve there. As for the Steelers, I'm glad to see Rodgers in the playoffs again, but I still figured they'd be better than 10-7 and +10 point differential. Nevertheless, the Steelers-Ravens rivalry had another exciting chapter last night. Too bad it was decided by bad special teams.

AFC South - The Colts were running away with this division until the unfortunate Jones injury. It was really cool to see Philip Rivers make a comeback, but there was no stopping the Texans and Jaguars, two recent playoff teams who got off to a slow start before they hit their stride.

AFC West - The Chiefs' reign has ended. It was sort of expected. KC overachieved last year. Plus, it's been a competitive division for years. The Chargers were a usual 2nd place wild card team, but the Broncos joined last year. Three good teams in one division, something was bound to give.

Repo

BeA Sunflower

Location: Forest Park

Great summary, CA Dreamin'! Who ya got winning next weekends games?!

Go Pats!!! \m/ 😈

CA Dreamin

Gender: Male

Location: LA

Repo wrote:

Who ya got winning next weekends games?!

Nice to finally see another commenter here. Fly Eagles fly! Wild Card Weekend, let me see:

NFC

LA Rams 30
CAR Panthers 17

This is a mismatch. The Rams are legitimately good, while the Panthers are legitimately average. LA's only two issues this year were their tough schedule and not playing their best on the road. Carolina is rebuilding. In the three years with Bryce Young, they've gone from 2 wins, to 5, to 8 this year. So good job, they're obviously improving...but 8 wins isn't typically good enough to make the playoffs. They benefited from their weak division and the playoff format. They're not ready for this. LA is way better on paper, and has tons of playoff experience. The Panthers squeaked by a 3-point win over the Rams in the regular season, so the Rams are out for revenge, too.

GB Packers 23
CHI Bears 20

Interesting fact, the Packers have been the #7 seed in the NFC for the third straight year. That means a lot. It means they've been consistently just good enough to make the playoffs. It also means they would not have been a playoff team before they added the third wild card in the 2020 season. However, it lastly means the Packers indeed have playoff experience, and to this day, there are the only #7 seed to win a wild card game. And I think they can win again this year. They enter the playoffs on a 4-game losing streak, but that's GB for you in recent years. They're notoriously streaky; some days they look unbeatable, other days they look flat. But aren't they due to win one? Chicago is all-around good, but they don't dominate in any aspect, and they don't have playoff experience. As division rivals these teams know each very well. They split the regular season games against each other and both were close (28-21, and 22-16 in OT). So I'm expecting this one to also be close and hard-fought. It's a coin-flip but I'm going with the team who's been here before.

SF 49ers 20
PHI Eagles 27

If we're judging from their most recent games, the Eagles looked better. The Niners got a nice last-minute win against the Bears, but then got wrecked by the Seahawks. Excluding the Eagles loss with second-stringers, they convincingly beat the Commanders, and then the defense held off the Bills in Buffalo. I'm not currently confident in my team's chances of repeating SB champions, but I think we can and should get through this round. I can see us losing though. SF is still pretty good.

AFC

BUF Bills 30
JAX Jaguars 27

This is the most intriguing game of the weekend. This could go either way. I think it all depends on which version of Buffalo shows up, the one who got blown out by Miami, or the one who blew out Pittsburgh? The one who fell behind 21-0 to NE, or the one who rallied back to win that game? The Bills have had their ups and downs, but we all know how good they're capable of being when they bring their A game, and they usually do come playoff time. For at least one game, anyway. True, they've notoriously choked in the later rounds, but they've won in the wild card round in 5 straight seasons. That's something to consider. It's also worth considering the Jaguars are at home and have won 8 straight games. Yes, six were against easy opponents, but the other two were double-digit wins over the Chargers and Broncos. I think they are a legit SB contender. Oof, this is so hard to call. I have Buffalo, but I could see myself changing my mind. Either way, I'm definitely not gonna miss this game, it'll be a nice lead-in to the Eagles-49ers on Sunday.

LA Chargers 17
NE Patriots 34

When it comes to teams with playoff experience vs. teams without, I usually go with the experience. Not in this case. For one, the Chargers are 0-2 in the playoffs under Herbert. And the Patriots are simply better on paper. Maye and Vrabel may show signs of nervousness early on, but they'll put it together and win this.

HOU Texans 27
PIT Steelers 13

I've always respected Aaron Rodgers, and I'm glad he's back in the playoffs. But hey, he's not in his prime anymore. And the Steelers aren't anything special overall. I'm going with the Texans because they're on a 9-game winning streak, and also because the Steelers struggled against Top 10 defenses this year, especially in their most recent three. They scored 10 against the Chargers, 7 against the Bills, 6 against the Browns. Houston has the #1 defense in the NFL, so I wonder if even my 13-point prediction for Pittsburgh is generous. It might be Rodgers's final game. And if so, like Manning, Brees, Brady, and Big Ben, at least he finishes his career in the spotlight of a playoff game.

So...I've predicted 4 wild card teams to win on the road this weekend. That seems kind of wild. Maybe I will change a prediction.

Ok Repo, your turn, who do you got!?

Repo

BeA Sunflower

Location: Forest Park

CA Dreamin wrote:

Repo wrote:

Who ya got winning next weekends games?!

Nice to finally see another commenter here. Fly Eagles fly! Wild Card Weekend, let me see:

AFC

BUF Bills 30
JAX Jaguars 27

This is the most intriguing game of the weekend. This could go either way. I think it all depends on which version of Buffalo shows up, the one who got blown out by Miami, or the one who blew out Pittsburgh? The one who fell behind 21-0 to NE, or the one who rallied back to win that game? The Bills have had their ups and downs, but we all know how good they're capable of being when they bring their A game, and they usually do come playoff time. For at least one game, anyway. True, they've notoriously choked in the later rounds, but they've won in the wild card round in 5 straight seasons. That's something to consider. It's also worth considering the Jaguars are at home and have won 8 straight games. Yes, six were against easy opponents, but the other two were double-digit wins over the Chargers and Broncos. I think they are a legit SB contender. Oof, this is so hard to call. I have Buffalo, but I could see myself changing my mind. Either way, I'm definitely not gonna miss this game, it'll be a nice lead-in to the Eagles-49ers on Sunday.

Great analysis. Completely agree. It really all comes down to one player - Josh Allen. He is not a mere a mortal. That's how they came back against my Pats a couple of weeks ago. That's how they win every game, really, especially this year. Although to be fair, James Cook is a BEAST. Buffalo is really a two-headed monster this year! Still, it all comes down to Allen in the 4th quarter.

Besides Chargers @ Pats (of course), it's the game I'm looking forward to the most this weekend. I'll be routing for Josh & the Bills. I just don't know much about the Jags just yet.

Bills by 2, with the usually 4th quarter heroics by Josh! This will be the best game of the weekend most likely.

Quote:

LA Chargers 17
NE Patriots 34

When it comes to teams with playoff experience vs. teams without, I usually go with the experience. Not in this case. For one, the Chargers are 0-2 in the playoffs under Herbert. And the Patriots are simply better on paper. Maye and Vrabel may show signs of nervousness early on, but they'll put it together and win this.

Dude, I am sooo biased. Pats by 14. 😈

Quote:

HOU Texans 27
PIT Steelers 13

I've always respected Aaron Rodgers, and I'm glad he's back in the playoffs. But hey, he's not in his prime anymore. And the Steelers aren't anything special overall. I'm going with the Texans because they're on a 9-game winning streak, and also because the Steelers struggled against Top 10 defenses this year, especially in their most recent three. They scored 10 against the Chargers, 7 against the Bills, 6 against the Browns. Houston has the #1 defense in the NFL, so I wonder if even my 13-point prediction for Pittsburgh is generous. It might be Rodgers's final game. And if so, like Manning, Brees, Brady, and Big Ben, at least he finishes his career in the spotlight of a playoff game.

The Texans defense is going to give Rodgers traumatic nightmares for the rest of his life. 🤣 Rodgers is going to take such a beating that he might just retire before the game is even over. The main reason the Ravens lost on Sunday night had nothing to do with a missed field goal. They couldn't get to the quarterback. That will NOT be a problem for the Texans defense. Their defense is legit scary.

Texans by 10.

I'm totally a one-team guy, so I don't know the NFC as well. Will think about it some and post on Thursday night. (I have my kids tomorrow night.)

CA Dreamin

Gender: Male

Location: LA

Repo wrote:

The Texans defense is going to give Rodgers traumatic nightmares for the rest of his life. 🤣 Rodgers is going to take such a beating that he might just retire before the game is even over. The main reason the Ravens lost on Sunday night had nothing to do with a missed field goal. They couldn't get to the quarterback. That will NOT be a problem for the Texans defense. Their defense is legit scary.

Texans by 10.

I'm totally a one-team guy, so I don't know the NFC as well. Will think about it some and post on Thursday night. (I have my kids tomorrow night.)

Dude, you stole the words out of my mouth. I'm a little worried about Aaron Rodgers. He's an old man by NFL standards, and yes that Texans defense is scary. I would not want to see Rodgers finish his career the same way as Troy Aikman. Rodgers needs to be smart and get rid of the ball quick, and hope his OL holds up.

You gotta brush up on the NFC, haha. We'll see those predictions tonight. Wonder how yours will differ from mine.

Repo

BeA Sunflower

Location: Forest Park

CA Dreamin wrote:

Repo wrote:

The Texans defense is going to give Rodgers traumatic nightmares for the rest of his life. 🤣 Rodgers is going to take such a beating that he might just retire before the game is even over. The main reason the Ravens lost on Sunday night had nothing to do with a missed field goal. They couldn't get to the quarterback. That will NOT be a problem for the Texans defense. Their defense is legit scary.

Texans by 10.

I'm totally a one-team guy, so I don't know the NFC as well. Will think about it some and post on Thursday night. (I have my kids tomorrow night.)

Dude, you stole the words out of my mouth. I'm a little worried about Aaron Rodgers. He's an old man by NFL standards, and yes that Texans defense is scary. I would not want to see Rodgers finish his career the same way as Troy Aikman. Rodgers needs to be smart and get rid of the ball quick, and hope his OL holds up.

You gotta brush up on the NFC, haha. We'll see those predictions tonight. Wonder how yours will differ from mine.

Yeah. If I had any confidence in the Texans offense, I'd have it has the biggest likely rout this weekend besides whoever the Panthers are playing because ...

Repo

BeA Sunflower

Location: Forest Park

CA Dreamin wrote:

Repo wrote:

Who ya got winning next weekends games?!

Nice to finally see another commenter here. Fly Eagles fly! Wild Card Weekend, let me see:

NFC

LA Rams 30
CAR Panthers 17

This is a mismatch. The Rams are legitimately good, while the Panthers are legitimately average. LA's only two issues this year were their tough schedule and not playing their best on the road. Carolina is rebuilding. In the three years with Bryce Young, they've gone from 2 wins, to 5, to 8 this year. So good job, they're obviously improving...but 8 wins isn't typically good enough to make the playoffs. They benefited from their weak division and the playoff format. They're not ready for this. LA is way better on paper, and has tons of playoff experience. The Panthers squeaked by a 3-point win over the Rams in the regular season, so the Rams are out for revenge, too.

... The Panthers do NOT belong in the playoffs. They already had their wildcard playoff game against the trending-in-the-wrong-direction Bucs last weekend and LOST. It makes my head hurt that Panthers are somehow in and the Bucs are not. (Not that Bucs would fare any better against the Rams. )

This will be the biggest blowout of the weekend.

Rams by 20.

Quote:

GB Packers 23
CHI Bears 20

Interesting fact, the Packers have been the #7 seed in the NFC for the third straight year. That means a lot. It means they've been consistently just good enough to make the playoffs. It also means they would not have been a playoff team before they added the third wild card in the 2020 season. However, it lastly means the Packers indeed have playoff experience, and to this day, there are the only #7 seed to win a wild card game. And I think they can win again this year. They enter the playoffs on a 4-game losing streak, but that's GB for you in recent years. They're notoriously streaky; some days they look unbeatable, other days they look flat. But aren't they due to win one? Chicago is all-around good, but they don't dominate in any aspect, and they don't have playoff experience. As division rivals these teams know each very well. They split the regular season games against each other and both were close (28-21, and 22-16 in OT). So I'm expecting this one to also be close and hard-fought. It's a coin-flip but I'm going with the team who's been here before.

Yeah. I'll be routing for city I've live in for the last TWENTY years (hard to imagine. How did I freakin' end up here?!?! 🤣 ) My neighbor is a die-hard Bears fan, HATES da Packers and I even bought him one of those Cheese Grater Foam Hats for Christmas. (He loved it! 🤣 )

Anyways, Bears seem to have better energy than the Packers rn. Plus their coach has really connected to the players and honestly to the city of Chicago as a whole. Chicago NEEDS this after the year we've had. What with ICE and all. AND it's a home game. It will be one of the biggest sporting events since I've moved here quite honestly.

So... GO BEARS!!!

Bears by 10. (For the first time all season the Bears will stun everyone and not wait until the 4th quarter to start playing!!! 😅)

Quote:

SF 49ers 20
PHI Eagles 27

If we're judging from their most recent games, the Eagles looked better. The Niners got a nice last-minute win against the Bears, but then got wrecked by the Seahawks. Excluding the Eagles loss with second-stringers, they convincingly beat the Commanders, and then the defense held off the Bills in Buffalo. I'm not currently confident in my team's chances of repeating SB champions, but I think we can and should get through this round. I can see us losing though. SF is still pretty good.

The 49ers and the Eagles are the two most unpredictable teams to bet on right now. How many points did the 49ers put up agains the Seahawks last week?! And the Eagles have been a schizophrenic headcase for YEARS now. Who knows which version of the Eagles we're going to get. I have more faith in Shanahan to get his team right than Sirianni so I'm going with the 49ers on this one by the lowest margin possible...

49ers by 1.

BUT, I'll be pulling for you guys. I LOVE the city of Philadelphia. (Just don't EVAH' expect me to route for the 76ers!!! 😅)