Tag: wild card

2025 NFL Playoffs and Super Bowl Predictions

It’s time to be wrong. We’ve previewed each of the league’s 32 teams; now it’s time to see how it’ll all play out in the postseason. Hopefully this isn’t the disaster that I’ve been known to produce in the past.

Cover photo taken from The SportsRush.

It’s time to be wrong. We’ve previewed each of the league’s 32 teams; now it’s time to see how it’ll all play out in the postseason. Last time I did this, I predicted the Super Bowl correctly (Chiefs over 49ers in 2023), so I’ve got a reputation to uphold here. Hopefully this isn’t the disaster that I’ve been known to produce in the past.

First, a look at the playoff picture:

NFC Standings

1 – Philadelphia Eagles (13-4)
2 – Green Bay Packers (12-5)
3 – Los Angeles Rams (12-5)
4 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (11-6)
5 – San Francisco 49ers (12-5)
6 – Washington Commanders (11-6)
7 – Detroit Lions (10-7)

AFC Standings

1 – Kansas City Chiefs (15-2)
2 – Buffalo Bills (14-3)
3 – Baltimore Ravens (12-5)
4 – Houston Texans (10-7)
5 – Los Angeles Chargers (12-5)
6 – Denver Broncos (11-6)
7 – Cincinnati Bengals (10-7)

And now, for the playoff prediction:

Wild Card Weekend

Buccaneers over 49ers

Better team wins a real toss-up. Home-field advantage and an offense with more playmakers puts the Bucs over the top in a shootout.

Packers over Lions

Lambeau finally holds its own as a fortress as Green Bay’s defense proves to be the difference-maker in a hard-fought divisional game.

Commanders over Rams

Jayden Daniels’ homecoming is an explosive one against an inexperienced Rams secondary with Washington winning an exciting road playoff game with plenty of burgundy and gold in the stands.

Texans over Chargers

See: last year’s playoff game.

Ravens over Broncos

Denver’s defense keeps Baltimore’s offense in check for a bit, but the Ravens’ overwhelming talent breaks through late for a close, hard-fought win.

Bills over Bengals

The wheels fall off Cincinnati’s defense as Josh Allen and the Bills get revenge for the 2022 Divisional.

Divisional Round

Eagles over Commanders

Sigh. We’ll see if the idea of revenge fires us up, but I still just don’t know if we have what it takes to keep up with the Birds right now. I’d love to be proven wrong.

Packers over Buccaneers

Tampa can’t keep up in the frozen tundra as the Packers offense explodes for a dominant win to get back to the NFC Championship for the first time since 2020.

Chiefs over Texans

See: last year’s playoff game.

Bills over Ravens

See: last year’s playoff game. I think Baltimore is the best team from top to bottom in the league, but until I see them win in January, I’ll trust what my eyes have seen repeatedly before picking them to finally win it all.

Championship Weekend

Packers over Eagles

Someone has to beat them, right? The Micah Parsons trade makes the Packers a bonafide Super Bowl contender, despite some of their shortcomings in the secondary. This feels like a year that it can all come together for them — from Jordan Love’s ascendancy to Micah’s game-wrecking ability off the edge, I think they’re able to go on the road and knock off the team that’s been the class of the NFC in recent years. Or so I hope.

Chiefs over Bills

Like I said with the Ravens, I actually have to see the Bills win this game to predict them to do so. I do think it’s a matter of when, not if, that Buffalo and/or Baltimore finally knocks off Kansas City. But it’s not for me to say that it’ll be now. I need to see it to believe it. If Buffalo winds up hosting this game, they’d almost have to win it — there would be no better way to send off the Ralph than finally getting the Mahomes monkey off their back and get back to the Super Bowl. And the thought of opening the new stadium with a banner dropping gives you chills. I genuinely hope that it happens. But I’ve seen this film before. We know how it ends.

Super Bowl LX Prediction

(you guys are gonna hate me for this)

Chiefs over Packers

I said it when I picked Patrick Mahomes to win MVP: this season screams 2022 for the Chiefs. That season, everyone wrote them off only for them to go on a run where Mahomes took home that award en route to another ring and Super Bowl MVP.

Well, here we are again. Everyone is discarding the Chiefs after they got crushed in Super Bowl LIX against the Eagles and once again pushing their chips towards the center of the table for Baltimore and Buffalo. Well, only one active quarterback has ever beaten Mahomes in the AFC playoffs, and his defense ain’t getting him to a position where he can do it again. So, to pick KC to get back to the big game feels simple enough.

This would be a very tough test against what’s going to be a vaunted defensive front, but we’ve seen the Chiefs get the job done in this spot time and time again. As I always say, it’s simply them until proven otherwise.

Wild Card Weekend Picks

The NFL Playoffs are finally upon us with six marquee matchups on tap that are sure to provide drama, emotions and a plethora of wild weather.

Cover photo taken from Los Angeles Times.

Last Week: 11-5

Season Total: 167-95

Browns 23-20 Texans

Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET, NBC

I tussled with this pick more than any other this weekend, and I’ve finally settled on the Browns for one main reason: the better defense usually wins in the playoffs. Cleveland’s defense has been perhaps the best in the NFL from start to finish this season, and although they might be without Denzel Ward in this game, their front seven is ferocious enough for me to believe they can affect CJ Stroud enough to make a difference.

On top of that, Houston’s defense is talented, but they haven’t shown me enough to like on the field to believe in them on this stage. Just last week they got gashed on the ground by the Colts. Going up against a similarly dangerous Browns rushing attack makes me believe they’re going to have their hands full yet again. And Joe Flacco should be able to do the rest.

I do think Stroud is going to do enough to make things interesting, but this feels like the spot that Houston’s injuries finally catch up to them. It’s unfortunate, but we all know the future is bright in H-Town. Blindingly bright.

Chiefs 20-10 Dolphins

Saturday, 8:15 p.m. ET, Peacock

Weather is the great equalizer in football, but when one team is from chilly Kansas City and the other is from sunny Miami, there’s gotta be some advantage there for the Chiefs — and it’s not just having the best quarterback ever lining up under center.

Even if this game was being played in a dome or in ideal weather, the Chiefs would win. We saw them beat the Dolphins once already this year, and that was on a neutral site. They should look even better in front of one of the best home crowds in sports.

Moreover, what I said above about the Browns defense applies here too. Kansas City’s defense is one of the best in football, and Miami’s is falling apart due to injury. That’ll be the difference on Saturday night: not the seemingly high-flying offenses, but the dichotomy of defenses.

Cowboys 27-20 Packers

Sunday, 4:30 p.m. ET, FOX

As much as I’d love to believe the Packers are winning this game, I can’t bring myself to pick them. Yes, they’ve been playing excellent football as of late, but Joe Barry’s defense is about to have a very rough return to Earth facing Dak Prescott, Cedarian Lamb and this explosive Cowboys offense after back-to-back gimmes against Jarren Hall/Nick Mullens and Justin Fields.

The win condition for Green Bay is having Jordan Love propel them to victory in a shootout. That’s entirely possible given the way this offense is clicking right now, but Dallas’ defense is also just too good to bet against at this point.

This will be entertaining and back-and-forth, but the better defense and team will prevail late, no matter how much we’d like to see it go the other way.

Rams 26-23 Lions

Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC

This is the premier matchup of the weekend, and we all know why. I’ll spare everyone the sentimental aspect of things and just stick to football here.

I’ve been high on Detroit for the last month or so, but I’m picking the Rams for a couple of reasons. The first of which is experience, which always comes through in the playoffs. Sean McVay has been to two Super Bowls, won one with Matt Stafford, Cooper Kupp and the vets. What about the rookies you ask? Well, they’re not really playing like rookies, are they? That’s the second reason right there: in the second half of the season, this team has found itself and is now firing on all cylinders. A 7-1 finish to the year is proof enough of that.

The Lions, on the other hand, don’t have much playoff experience at all outside of Jared Goff. And the coach on the other side of the field knows him better than anyone on the planet. I love what they have on offense and in their own coaching staff, but I just have to see it to believe it on this stage. Moreover, their defense has been a weak spot in big moments all year long, and they will have their hands full with the Rams and their weapons. Even at home, I just don’t know if they have what it takes to get the job done. They have to prove me wrong to instill the belief.

Bills 20-17 Steelers

Monday, 4:30 p.m. ET, CBS

Can someone tell me why the Bills are nearly double digit favorites in this ballgame? I can’t make sense of it.

The weather is going to have a huge impact on this contest — in fact, it already has, being moved 27.5 hours into the future to avoid dangerously high winds. That plays right into the hands of the Steelers and their admittedly more consistent style of play and superior run game.

Don’t get me wrong, Buffalo still going to win this game barring a complete Josh Allen collapse. But come on now… it’ll at least be close. Regardless, the Bills are the better team, and at home, they have no excuse but to keep the winning ways going.

Vegas usually knows something I don’t, and Pittsburgh +9.5 is the clearest trap of all traps, but it just makes too much sense.

Buccaneers 30-23 Eagles

Monday, 8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC

I didn’t think we’d be at this point with the Eagles, but here we are. Isn’t this great?

Simply put, the Birds are falling apart at the seams, and that’s a losing formula in the postseason. AJ Brown will miss this game with his knee injury, Devonta Smith has been beat up for weeks now, Jalen Hurts has been playing like a pumpkin for a month-plus and my, oh my, that defense is atrocious.

I know I’ve slandered Baker Mayfield for most of this season, but this is a spot for him to do some real damage. The Bucs offense had a strange finish to the season, but they still have the firepower to beat up a terrible defense like Philly’s, and their own defense has sneakily been solid with young guys like Antoine Winfield Jr. and YaYa Diaby being absolute studs. At home, this feels like a spot where they pull off an “upset” against a team that’s simply reeling so much that anything but a loss would be rather unexpected.

Wild Card Weekend Picks

The playoffs are upon us with six great games on tap in a stacked schedule that spans the whole weekend. Here’s some spoilers on how it’ll play out.

Cover photo taken from Sporting News.

Last Week: 12-4

Season Total: 173-95-2

49ers 24-13 Seahawks

Saturday, 4:30 PM EST, FOX

The Seahawks come into this game as big underdogs after sneaking into the playoffs following the final events of the regular season. Even in a divisional playoff game, which are always so close, nobody is giving Seattle a chance. That’s a perfectly fair assessment if you ask me. Not only are they arguably the worst team in the entire postseason field, but they’re going on the road to play the hottest and perhaps the best team in the entire NFL. San Francisco has been a freight train ever since the midway point of the season, and they haven’t blinked en route to a season sweep of the team they face on Saturday. While some may say that they’re bound to cool off, I assure you that it won’t happen in this game. I don’t even see them slowing down. Their defense is the best in the league and their offense is firing on all cylinders. With Deebo Samuel back in the fold, it’s only going to be harder to stop them on that side of the ball. I love the Seahawks offense and their young pieces on defense, but I just think they’re going to be overwhelmed in what is Geno Smith’s first playoff game. Unless their corners can step up and make plays to force Brock Purdy into some turnovers, the Seahawks are going to have a long afternoon in the Bay. With Tariq Woolen dealing with an ankle problem, that seems like it’ll be the likely outcome.

Jaguars 23-20 Chargers

Saturday, 8:15 PM EST, NBC

It’s both very rare and extremely cool to see a playoff matchup between two of the young elite QBs that will likely run this league for years to come so early in their careers. I have no doubt that Trevor Lawrence vs. Justin Herbert will live up to the hype in their respective playoff debuts. Both the Jaguars and the Chargers carry some winning momentum into this game, going a combined 9-1 in their last five games (with the Chargers’ loss coming in a game where they “rested” starters), and Jacksonville will be electric once again just one week after hosting the division-winning game against the Titans. But the news isn’t entirely good on both sides. Los Angeles’ star WR Mike Williams will miss this game, and likely the entire postseason if they were to move on, with a back problem that emerged while he was playing in the Chargers’ meaningless game last week in Denver. That will be a huge detriment to their offense, which we saw struggle mightily when not at full strength in the regular season. But Herbert will still have Keenan Allen on the outside and Austin Ekeler behind him, so the Bolts will still be able to do damage on offense. I just don’t know if it will be enough to overcome Jacksonville on the road. As I said earlier this week, the Jags essentially got their playoff jitters out of the way last week in a de facto play-in game. I think they’ll be much, much sharper on Saturday night, and I think Trevor Lawrence can have a big day against a maligned Chargers defense. Herbert will keep LA in it from start to finish, and this game could likely come down to whichever QB has the ball in their hands when the clock hits triple zeros. I just happen to trust the home team a little bit more in almost every other area.

Bills 30-13 Dolphins

Sunday, 1:00 PM EST, CBS

If Tua Tagovailoa was playing in this game for the Dolphins, perhaps it’d be worth talking about. We all saw how thrilling the primetime clash was between these two teams just a few weeks ago when Miami was at full strength. Alas, it will be Skylar Thompson once again for the Fins, which means they don’t stand a semblance of a chance. You’d think that any QB can step in and run that star-studded offense to perfection, but that’s simply not the case here. The Dolphins are infinitely worse without Tua, and it has shown in every single game he has missed. It took until the final moments of the final game of the season for them to win a game that Tua didn’t start and finish. That’s a pretty staggering statistic. Even if he were playing in this game, I don’t think it would have been enough to pick against Buffalo. The Bills are riding high into this matchup and playing inspired football, as we saw in last week’s amazing display for Damar Hamlin. They are simply better on both sides of the ball, and you can’t expect me to believe that Josh Allen won’t launch the ball all over the place once again in the playoffs. I think he’s in for what could be a special postseason run, and I think the Bills will once again put on a show en route to another emphatic victory over a division rival.

Vikings 26-23 Giants

Sunday, 4:30 PM EST, FOX

This could very well be the most fun game of the weekend, which is pretty hilarious given the QB matchup and the nature of these two teams. The Giants are a trendy sleeper pick in these playoffs despite finishing the year going 3-6-1 in their final 10 games. The Vikings are the team that everyone expects to bow out early due to their flukey nature when they play at a time other than 1pm and/or against good teams. Quite literally anything can happen in a matchup like this. They played just three weeks ago in this exact same spot and it was wild from start to finish with Minnesota walking it off on an improbable 61-yard field goal. New York was the better team in nearly every facet in that game and still came up short. Who’s to say that it won’t go the other way this time? It really wouldn’t shock me if the Giants were to flip the script. The Vikings aren’t that much better despite having a better record and the gift of playing at home. Plus, you just never know what you’re going to get out of Kirk Cousins. Rest really isn’t a factor when you consider that both of these teams rested their starters last week. So, what gives? I say experience. Experience matters in the playoffs. Kirk Cousins has played in this spot before in much tougher environments against much tougher teams. Daniel Jones’ toughest postseason test has been… the 2018 Independence Bowl? It just feels too inconceivable to see this young, inexperienced Giants team go on the road and knock off a more skilled Vikings team. I know their defense is awful, but I don’t believe the Giants have the offensive firepower to take advantage of that. Plus, all Minnesota has heard throughout the last few weeks is how awful they are and how they’ll be one and done. That’s bulletin board material for them. I think they’ll play this game with a chip on their shoulder, and while it might not be the most convincing win in the world when it’s all said and done, they’ll be the ones moving onto San Francisco in a week’s time.

Bengals 26-14 Ravens

Sunday, 8:15 PM EST, NBC

Remember what I said about Bills-Dolphins up there? Apropos of that here. The Ravens will once again be without Lamar Jackson as he misses his sixth straight game with what they said was a one-to-three week injury. Feels fishy, doesn’t it? Their reward for this medical mishap is going back on the road with their backup QB to play perhaps the hottest and, in my opinion, best team in the league who they just got smacked by one week ago with their own chip on their shoulders caused by the decision-making of the NFL. At least this time it’ll be Tyler Huntley, right? Who cares. Huntley has looked awful all year long, especially in divisional games. It might look prettier than Anthony Brown’s performance last Sunday, but I assure you, this will still be a wash for Cincinnati. The Bengals have so much to prove in so many ways, and Joe Burrow is going to light it up in an electric home primetime playoff atmosphere. It will honestly be awesome to see, and I can’t wait for it. I do have my reservations about the trenches for the Bengals on both sides of the ball. Their makeshift offensive line will have to keep Burrow upright against a solid Ravens front. But if he can get the ball out quick to his playmakers, then Cincy will absolutely cruise into a highly anticipated rematch with the Bills.

Buccaneers 20-17 Cowboys

Monday, 8:15 PM EST, ESPN/ABC

Let me get this straight. Tom Brady is hosting a playoff game against a notoriously awful playoff team, quarterback, and head coach in a primetime spot having never lost to said team… and he’s an underdog? Yeah right. To bet against Brady and the Bucs in a situation like this would be dubious at best. They may have fallen backwards into the playoffs. They may be the only team in the field with a losing record. They may have been awful for the better part of the season. And yes, I may have slandered them all year long. But I would be a complete idiot to pick the Dak Prescott and Mike McCarthy-led Cowboys to go on the road and beat Tom Brady in the playoffs. I do think Dallas is the better team in this game, but it just doesn’t make sense. They ended the year on a pitiful whimper in DC last week, and Dak has had perhaps the worst year of his career. Their offense looks worse by the game and their defense isn’t doing enough to make up for that. A team like Tampa will make you pay for those kinds of mistakes. They don’t inspire the most faith in the world, but their division-clinching win over the Panthers showed me that this team shows up when it matters. Tom Brady looked incredible in that win, and if he looks even half as good as that on Monday night, then the Cowboys are positively screwed. I don’t know if that will happen; this will probably be a tight game from start to finish that’s dominated by the defenses. In that case, I’m not picking against the Bucs defense against the turnover machine known as Dak. And I’m not picking against Tom Brady.

All stats taken from ESPN.