Whew, we had a roller coaster this weekend as the remaining eight teams battled to fight another day. And when you try to read about the story of this weekend…where in the world do you being? Turnovers were the reason for victory and for defeat for every single game. For the remaining teams, they still have Super Bowl dreams. For those eliminated, they may have some dreams they’d like to sell (for those of you paying attention, that is a Stevie Nicks/Fleetwood Mac reference…I’m so good). Also, regarding last week…I want to emphasize that football is definitely not a ploy to sell…
…Okay, I take it back. Let’s break down the games before the conference championships!
BILLS 30 – BRONCOS 33 (OT)
We expected fireworks from this game, and it did not disappoint. The Denver Broncos and Buffalo Bills battled to the last. In the end, it was another heartbreak for the Bills. It was a win for the Broncos…but for what Denver wanted most…to advance…there was a price to be paid in the end. It was reported that during the game-winning drive, Broncos quarterback Bo Nix suffered a broken right ankle. Now the Broncos will have to go the rest of the way without him. It won’t be easy to replace Nix. Yes, he threw an interception in this game, but he also threw for 279 yards and three touchdowns. Imagine how different this game would have been if the officials had reviewed that controversial interception call.
As bad as things are for the Broncos, pain and misery has returned to the land of Buffalo. Last year, Bills general manager Brandon Beane said the Bills didn’t need a WR1. Well, how about now? The Bills, the Ravens, and the Chiefs’ reign of dominance over the AFC is over. No one is afraid of them anymore. Other teams like the Broncos have caught them. Yes, Josh Allen threw two interceptions, but this is a team sport. You rise together and fall together. Now the question is: what do they do to support Josh Allen before his inevitable decline (and calling on his wife, who is a future Avenger, is not an actual option). Plus, the Bills need a new coach. Word came in early Monday morning that the Bills fired head coach Sean McDermott. Now the guy that said the Bills “don’t need a WR1” has been promoted to president of football operations and is going to lead the search for a new coach. I have a feeling that this may be the end of the Bills’ Super Bowl window…again. (Note: I’d also like to point out that there may be a new curse on the horizon: the curse of Hallmark making a Christmas movie about your fan base. Don’t believe me? Answer this: how did the Chiefs do this season?)
49ERS 6 – SEAHAWKS 41
Ouch, this wasn’t close, and it wasn’t pretty. The Seattle Seahawks ran rough shot all over the injury-ravaged San Francisco 49ers. The defense did all the work for the Seahawks in this game. That may be a reason Seahawk quarterback Sam Darnold’s stats didn’t exactly light up the world. Darnold only completed 12 of 17 passes for 124 yards and a touchdown. The 49ers’ QB Brock Purdy didn’t have any luck either, only throwing for 140 yards and an interception. It was definitely the ground game’s time to shine for the Seahawks as Kenneth Walker III looked unstoppable: rushing for 116 yards and three touchdowns. If I had a running game like the Seahawks did, I wouldn’t need to rely on the passing game either. But next week’s run game will look very different. It was reported Monday morning that running back Zach Charbonnet suffered a knee injury that will need surgery. This will effectively end his season. Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald called it “a significant knee injury, unfortunately. Breaks your heart. He’s going to need surgery, so he’s got a good long road to come back.” Not what you want to hear this close to a Super Bowl title.
While the Seahawks move on, the 49ers are obviously disappointed. They went into this season with the goal of being in the Super Bowl, which the city of San Francisco is hosting, and winning it in their city. Now they’ll have to watch as possibly one of their division rivals may hoist the Super Bowl trophy…on their field. The obvious goal for this offseason is to get healthy. The 49ers suffered an extensive list of injuries that would have literally hamstring their season if they didn’t have such a weak schedule. Even healthy, it wouldn’t hurt to upgrade the pass rush. It won’t be easy to find improvements outside the draft since the 49ers don’t have any salary cap space to work with. (Note: the city of Los Angeles would sympathize with the city San Francisco…if it wasn’t for the intense rivalry and hatred the two cities have for each other…)
TEXANS 16 – PATRIOTS 28
The seemingly unstoppable Houston Texans defense finally met its match: snow. In actuality, the New England Patriots’ defense was better at forcing turnovers than the Texans’ defense. Now the Patriots are heading back to the AFC Championship for the first time since the Tom Brady era. New English’s Drake Maye tossed three touchdown passes, but he also only threw for 179 yards and an interception. On the other side of the ball, Houston quarterback CJ Stroud had probably his worst game of the season at the worst possible time. Stroud threw four interceptions while also throwing for 212 yards and a touchdown. The fans of New England have hope for the first time in nearly a decade as the Patriots head to the next round.
It was definitely a stunner to see the best defense in the league get eliminated. People gave the Texans a chance to win this game because they were riding a ten-game winning streak going into this game. But let’s not all blame CJ Stroud. The offense needs a lot of work. They don’t have much of a run game, there is no viable receivers other than possibly Nico Collins (but he’s not exactly “the guy”…). So that’s what needs to be done: better receivers, better running backs, and better offensive line to give Stroud time to do what he does best. Maybe the Texans take a shot and try to add someone like Breece Hall? Stranger things have happened (like controversial endings to our favorite binge worthy show…while also proving no one learned from the shortcomings of the last season of Game of Thrones…). Considering the coaching changes that happen regularly, don’t be surprised if the Texans shake up the offensive coaching staff.
RAMS 20 – BEARS 17 (OT)
We had this a lot last week, but this is the only time I had to use it for this week: HOLY MOLE HOLES! Going into this game, the hometown Los Angeles Rams and Chicago Bears were both fantastic teams, especially in the decisive moments of a game. Both teams exchanged blow for blow that ended up going into overtime. In the end, the Bears finally met a team that could shut them down late in the game, and our hometown Rams lived to fight another day. It was not a great game for either Matthew Stafford or Caleb Williams in this fierce quarterback duel. Stafford didn’t have a passing touchdown, but he did throw for 258 yards. Williams threw for 257 yards, and while he did throw for two touchdowns…he also threw for three interceptions which included one in overtime that costed the Bears the win. Also, the Rams had a toss-up catch/interception call go their way (which I’m sure has riled up some Bills fans).
Obviously, the Bears have come a long way since last year. The offense is nearly where they want to be. Now they just need the defense to do more. The pass rush has been the Bears’ weakness all season long. The question is how. They don’t have any cap space to work with, and their first-round pick is No. 25. There is a way: they could dangle DJ Moore and see what they can get. He’s a good receiver, there’s no doubt, but the Bears’ receiving room is getting kind of full. If they do, they may free up some cap space. If they don’t, the offense is simply fine, but they’ll need to use the draft to get better at defense. But I will say this: the Bears will be back next season.
CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP: (2) NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS AT (1) DENVER BRONCOS
This will be an interesting matchup. The Broncos have a great defense, but their offense is now in disarray. This favors the Patriots: they just beat a team that was in the same boat the Broncos are now in. The Broncos are still a very resilient team, and they will have home-field advantage. Either way, this is looking like it will be a messy and hotly contested battle between these two teams. Anything can happen on any given day, and this is why we play the games on the field and not on paper. However, do NOT start hyping the Patriots to get an upset over the Broncos on the road just yet. Their victory over the Texans could have gone VERY differently. While they forced a lot of turnovers, the Patriots offense didn’t do much with it. That is a noticeably big gap to worry about. While they will get opportunities against an inexperienced quarterback, don’t count out the Broncos’ stingy defense either. There is also good news for the Broncos, as there is a chance that running back JK Dobbins, who was thought to be done for the year after Week 10, may be available on Sunday. Hope springs eternal.
GAMETIME: 12 PM PT, Sunday, CBS
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP: (5) LOS ANGELES RAMS AT (1) SEATTLE SEAHAWKS
Both teams’ fan bases are probably thinking the same thing: not you again! The Seahawks won the battle for the NFC West and the top seed. However, don’t forget that the Rams beat them previously. The Seahawks may have the most complete team remaining in the playoffs, but the Rams are playing the best football of any team still in the playoffs. The Seahawks may be one of the hottest teams in the NFL, but that’s not much of an advantage because the Rams are getting hot, too. The point is this: any advantage the “experts” can produce for the Seahawks to beat the Rams is also the same reason the Rams can flip the game on the Seahawks. It’s going to come down to the wire, just like the division race. Expect another close game, but don’t expect the Rams to make the same mistakes they did in Week 16.
GAMETIME: 3:30 PM PT, Sunday, FOX
