NFL: New Faces in the Playoffs
The 2017-18 NFL regular season is completely over, which means it's time for the playoffs to get going, and that starts this weekend with the Wild Card Round. The bottom eight teams of the 12 will play one another this coming Saturday and Sunday, with an opportunity to reach the Divisional Round. Out of the eight teams, there are six that weren't in the postseason last year. A ton of new faces this playoff cycle, including the Buffalo Bills making their first appearance since 1999, and the Jacksonville Jaguars doing so for the first time since 2007! Our NFL Staff is going to preview and predict each forthcoming matchup. Here we go.
No. 5 Tennessee Titans (9-7) vs. No. 4 Kansas City Chiefs (10-6): The Tennessee Titans travel to Kansas City to face off against the Kansas City Chiefs in an AFC Wild Card matchup. Kansas City has the edge all around. First off: Kareem Hunt. The rookie running back, out of the University of Toledo, led the entire league in rushing with 1,327 yards. In the air, Alex Smith threw for over 4,000 yards and 26 touchdowns and just five interceptions, while Marcus Mariota doesn’t even come close to that. He finished with 3,232 yards, 13 scores and 15 picks. In the backfield for the Titans, they have second year running back, Derrick Henry, taking the starting position this week for DeMarco Murray, who is out with a knee injury. I say Hunt goes for 175 yards and two scores in his playoff debut and the Chiefs win by double digits.
Blake Stoll: Chiefs (34-10)
Caleb Henderson: Chiefs (30-20)
Charles Post: Chiefs (24-20)
Max Heningburg: Chiefs (21-14)
Tyler Taylor: Chiefs (24-14)
No. 6 Atlanta Falcons (10-6) vs. No. 3 Los Angeles Rams (11-5): The 11-5 Los Angeles Rams, fresh off winning the NFC West for the first time since 2003, will now host their first home playoff game in over 20 years as they take on the reigning NFC champion, the 10-6 Atlanta Falcons, on Saturday night. This is bound to be a great battle between two high powered offenses, and likely a shootout under the lights in the end. Atlanta has a slight advantage at the QB position with reigning league MVP Matt Ryan, but the Rams aren’t too far behind in that department with budding young signal caller Jared Goff. The Rams, though, do have a potential MVP candidate in Todd Gurley at HB, and he might be the difference come Saturday night. After a sophomore slump last season in Jeff Fisher’s antiquated offense, Gurley has completely turned things around this season with over 2,000 all-purpose yards and nearly leading the league in rushing, if he didn’t rest in Week 17 against the San Francisco 49ers. One other key factor that could really help the Rams out, especially late is they have a better defense than Atlanta. Neither defense is particularly great, but Los Angeles’ has had their moments and can force turnovers when needed. Overall we’re in for a great game on Saturday night, but I think the Rams have a slight edge at running back and on their defense, and that’s why I’m picking them to win in a shootout, 41-35.
Blake Stoll: Rams (17-14)
Caleb Henderson: Rams (41-35)
Charles Post: Falcons (30-24)
Max Heningburg: Rams (28-17)
Tyler Taylor: Rams (30-17)
No. 6 Buffalo Bills (9-7) vs. No. 3 Jacksonville Jaguars (10-6): Both of these teams are making their first playoff appearance in at least a decade. The Bills last clinched a berth in the postseason way back in 1999, and Jacksonville hasn't made it this far since 2007. Either way, one of the two are going to advance and make it to the Divisional Round. I think Buffalo has the more talented quarterback, Tyrod Taylor, who finished the season with 2,799 yards, 14 touchdowns, and only four interceptions. On the other hand, Jaguars' signal caller, Blake Bortles, threw 13 (!) interceptions. However, the pick here has to be Jacksonville. They have the upper hand in virtually every other position. In the backfield, LeSean McCoy is no slouch, but he's been dealing with an injury. Leonard Fournette should be able to run on the Bills' defense, as he has 1,040 rushing yards in his rookie year. On the defensive end, where the Jaguars are the top ranked unit in the league, they shouldn't have much trouble getting to Taylor and creating pressure. It's going to be fun to see both of these young teams make their playoff debuts, but it's likely going to come down to which team turns the ball over more. If Bortles can take care of the ball, the Jags should win going away. I think he'll be able to do so, at least for this game, mainly because he won't have to do too much in order to win because I'm expecting Fournette to have a good day. I'm taking Jacksonville by double digits, but Buffalo will keep it close for a little while.
Blake Stoll: Jaguars (20-6)
Caleb Henderson: Jaguars (16-13)
Charles Post: Jaguars (28-17)
Max Heningburg: Jaguars (35-14)
Tyler Taylor: Bills (20-17)
No. 5 Carolina Panthers (11-5) vs. No. 4 New Orleans Saints (11-5): The Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints play on Sunday for the third time this season, with this game having the biggest effect on their season. The NFC Wildcard game features not only two teams with the same record, but also two teams from the NFC South. With both of these teams missing out on the playoffs last year, the Panthers and Saints hope to start off their postseason in the right direction and make a run. The Saints come into this game with one of the most high-powered and balanced offenses in the league. With the offense led by Drew Brees, the passing game is not the only thing the Panthers need to focus on. Coming in with the fifth ranked rushing attack, Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram lead a “two-headed monster” running game that is hard to stop. These two players are not limited to running the ball either. Both Kamara and Ingram are top five in receiving yards for the team, so look for Brees to use both backs a lot in the passing game. Ron Rivera and the Panthers come into this game with already two losses to the Saints this season. The defense has played inconsistent this season especially against the passing game. Even though the Panthers are 28th in pass defense, they come in third in the league in run defense and without allowing a 100-yard rusher in any game this season. The offense for the Panthers has relied on its fourth ranked rushing attack led by Cam Newton, Jonathan Stewart, and Christian McCaffrey to carry the team on the offensive end. The matchup I am looking forward to see is how Carolina’s secondary will matchup against the elite passing game from the Saints. In the last two matchups, Brees has played almost perfect. He has thrown for nearly 500 yards, four touchdown passes, no interceptions with a 64 percent completion percentage. WR Michael Thomas has been Brees’ number one target all season, and another big game from him can mean trouble for the Panthers. Since the year 2000, the Saints are 5-0 in playoff games at the Superdome. Playing in their first playoff game since 2013, the Saints look to continue their offensive hot streak and get their third win of the season against the Panthers. As for Carolina, Newton looks to turn around his offensive woes and the defense looks to shut down Brees and the fast-paced Saints offense.
Blake Stoll: Panthers (27-24)
Caleb Henderson: Saints (41-27)
Charles Post: Saints (28-24)
Max Heningburg: Saints (38-24)
Tyler Taylor: Saints (38-27)
Photo Credit: Sporting News.
