Divisional Playoffs Review

 The final four in the NFL is set for Championship Sunday. In the AFC, the top two seeds meet in Kansas City as the #1 seed Chiefs host the #2 seed Bills. In the NFC, the #1 seed Packers host the #5 seed Buccaneers. There is plenty of star power at QB in this round as Pat Mahomes, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and emerging star Josh Allen have all lead their teams this far. Here is my recap of Divisional Playoff Weekend.....

NFC Divisional Playoff Game

(1)Green Bay Packers-32 (6)Los Angeles Rams-18

1) You have to give Aaron Rodgers credit. Once again he proved that is one of the best QBs on the planet and one of the best QBs all time. He played great and he made the throw that put the game away when he hit Allen Lazard on a 58 yard TD pass to give the Packers a 32-18 lead with 6:52 left in the game. He gets to his fourth NFC Championship Game as a starter, but this is the first time he is at home as a starter for a title game.

2) I have been critical of Packers head coach Matt LaFleur in the past, but I have to give him credit. He did a nice job with his gameplan for this game. I loved the play calling and the mix of run, pass, and play-action. The first TD of the game from Rodgers to Davante Adams was a sweet play down by the goaline. 

3) The Rams played hard and were valiant but in the end it just wasn't enough. Cooper Kupp missed the game with a knee injury, Aaron Donald was limited with a rib injury, and they were down by 15 in the third quarter, but they didn't roll over. They fought back into the game and got it 25-18 after a TD and sweet two-point play. They played hard until the end when Rodgers hit Lazard to put the game away. Sean McVay does a great job with that group, and I think they will be back in the mix next year.

4) The Packers return to the NFC Championship Game for the second year in a row. Last year, they were run over and embarrassed by the 49ers in San Francisco. This year, they got the bye in the first round, won their Divisional Playoff game, and now are hosting the NFC Title Game for the first time since 2007. It is hard to see them not getting back to the Super Bowl this time around.

AFC Divisional Playoff Game

(2) Buffalo Bills-17 (5) Baltimore Ravens-3

1) The play of the game was the 101 yard interception return by Taron Johnson with 41 seconds left in the third quarter. It completely changed the game. The Ravens looked like they were going in to tie the game at 10, but Johnson stepped in front of a Lamar Jackson pass and took it to the house to give the Bills the 17-3 lead. 

2) The Bills have not played their best game so far this postseason, and they still have advanced to the AFC Championship Game. The weather was really difficult on Saturday night in Buffalo. The wind was really having an effect on both teams. Josh Allen played well but they only put up one offensive touchdown when Allen hit Stephon Diggs for a 3 yard TD early in the third quarter. It is all about winning and advancing in the playoffs and no one cares how you do it.

3) The Ravens offense was bad on Saturday night. They had multiple bad snaps on shotguns to Lamar Jackson and their passing game was not good. Jackson was bad, their receivers and running backs dropped passes and looked out of sync, and K Justin Tucker missed two field goals in the first half and once that happened, you knew the Ravens were in trouble. Jackson had a receiver open in the endzone on 3rd and goal down 10-3, and he missed him because he was pressured. The next play, he throws the pick six and the game is over. He wasn't good all night and then he got knocked out of the game after the interception with a concussion. It wasn't a night for all the supporters of Lamar Jackson. 

4) The Bills were the better team and they deserved to advance. A lot of people picked the Ravens to win and many people thought the Ravens were about to get on a run, but that was not the case. The Bills are a better team and now Buffalo heads to their first AFC Championship Game since 1993. It has been a long journey for the Bills and their fans, but they have earned this trip, and I'm happy for them.

AFC Divisional Playoff Game

(1) Kansas City Chiefs-22 (6) Cleveland Browns-17

1) This game was going to be a blowout until the Pat Mahomes concussion. Mahomes' concussion changed the game entirely. KC scored a TD on their first two possessions and they were up 19-3 at halftime. This game was going to be a blowout for KC if Mahomes didn't go down.

2) KC was up 16-3 late in the second quarter when Cleveland WR Rasard Higgins fumbled the ball out of the endzone diving for the pile on in front of the endzone. The play resulted in a touchback and the Chiefs went down the field and got a field goal right before the half. If the Browns score and cut it 16-10, it might be a different game, but that play really was a game-changer for the Browns.

3) Another key sequence was when after Baker Mayfield threw an interception on the first drive of the third quarter, but the Chiefs missed the field goal. Instead of making the lead 26-3 or 22-3, the Browns were still down 19-3. Cleveland drove down the field and made it 19-10. 

4) Pat Mahomes got hit running an option play around the right end and fell on his head late in the third quarter. He got up and couldn't stand on his own and was helped off the field. He went into the locker room and was ruled out for the rest of the game. The Chiefs did get a field goal on that drive to make it 22-10 but the whole complexion of the game changed once Mahomes was out and Chad Henne was in at QB.

5) Cleveland had their chance to win the game. They really did. Kareem Hunt scored a TD with 11:07 left in the game to cut the lead to 22-17. KC had to go with Chad Henne the rest of the game and after a decent drive, Henne got intercepted in the end zone on an ill-advised deep throw. The Browns took over at their own 20 with 8 minutes left in the game. They had to convert a 4th and 1 from their own 28, but they burned their second timeout after they got the first down. With 5:17 left and at their 30, they ran for a 1 yard loss, Mayfield threw incompete on second down, and he checked it down to Hunt on 3rd and 11 and Hunt only got 2 yards, and the Browns had to punt. This was going to be Baker Mayfield's moment, and it didn't happen. I really thought the Browns were going to at least drive down the field and make it interesting, but it just didn't happen.

6) The Chiefs got the ball at their own 28 with 4:09 left, and they ended the game with their offense. Chad Henne somehow scrambled for 13 yards on a 3rd and 14 with 2:00 minutes left in the game. Facing a 4th and inches at their own 48, Andy Reid decided to go for it, and Henne hit Tyreek Hill on a quick out for the first down and the game was over. Give Reid credit for going for it, but I guarantee that having that Super Bowl win in his back pocket was a factor in going for it in that spot.

7) The Browns will be left to think about what could have been. They had a chance to steal a playoff win in KC after Mahomes went down with the concussion but they couldn't pull it off. It was a very good season for the Browns, and they won their first playoff game since 1994, but this will hurt all offseason because they had their shot.

8) The Chiefs head to their third AFC Championship Game, and they will be hosting the game for the third time in a row. It is amazing. This team didn't win a playoff game from 1993-2005, but they have won 5 playoff games in the last three seasons. We will find out if Mahomes will be able to play this week, but I suspect he will be cleared in time for Sunday. 

NFC Divisional Playoff Game

(5) Tampa Bay Buccaneers-30 (2) New Orleans Saints-20

1) The Buccaneers forced four turnovers and that is the story of this game. Drew Brees threw three interceptions. The first one was early in the second quarter and it set up a TD pass from Tom Brady to Mike Evans to give the Bucs a 10-6 lead. With just over 4 minutes in the 3rd quarter, the Saints were up 20-13 when Jared Cook was stripped by Antoine Winfield Jr and Devin White recovered it and returned it to the NO 40. Brady hit Leonard Fournette on a 6 yard TD pass to tie the game at 20. After a field goal by the Bucs on their next drive to make it 23-20, Brees got picked off again and this time it was the dagger. Devin White picked off Brees and returned it to the NO 20 yard line. Brady hit Rob Gronkowski for 14 yards and then snuck it in for a TD to make it 30-20 and the game was essentially over. Brees threw another interception on the next drive and that was it.

2) I didn't know how to judge this game all week. I ended up going with the Saints because I put too much faith in Brees and Sean Payton, and I got burned. The Buccaneers lost both games to the Saints in the regular season and they got the best of them on Sunday. 

3) The Bucs went all in when they signed Brady in the offseason and added veterans like Gronk and Antonio Brown. They are going for it this year and so far it has paid off. Brady wasn't great on Sunday, but he was good enough, and he certainly was better than Brees. Give the Bucs credit. They signed Brady to give the franchise a boost for the first time since Jon Gruden won them a Super Bowl. It certainly has put life in this franchise and now they are reaping of the benefits.

4) The Saints come up short once again, and it has to just kill their fans and the team. This is the fourth straight disappointing finish in the playoffs for them. They lost the miracle game to the Vikings in 2017, they lost the NFC Championship Game in overtime to the Rams in 2018, they lost in OT to the Vikings in 2019, and now this year, the Bucs come into the Superdome and knock them off in the Divisional round. Each year, they were one of the teams that could have actually won the Super Bowl, but it just didn't happen. They lost at home three years in a row as well, and now they face the retirement of Drew Brees and a roster that has major cap issues. It is time to rebuild in New Orleans. They took their shot at another Super Bowl, got close, but just couldn't seal the deal. That will be very tough for Saints fans to deal with as the years go on.

5) It is a shame that Drew Brees' final pass as a pro was an interception in a playoff loss. In all likelihood, Brees will announce his retirement shortly. It was a great career and Brees ranks in the top 15 of QBs all time in my book. He did win one Super Bowl, but it feels like he should have won more or played in more. I always loved watching Brees from when he was a star at Purdue and also rooted for him. It seemed like he wasn't the same this year and then it really was not the same after he fractured his ribs and had a punctured lung. It was a great career but a tough way to go out for Brees.

6) The Buccaneers are headed to their first NFC Championship Game since 2002. Tom Brady is headed to his 14th Championship Sunday appearance. He was the story of the offseason and now he has the Bucs on the brink of the Super Bowl at 43 years old.