It was one of the best NFL Divisional rounds in NFL history. It was filled with great performances from individual players and an explosive offensive game that neared 70 total points. We have teams that continued to display consistent dominance, such as the Kansas City Chiefs, who have made it to the AFC Championship round for the seventh consecutive season. We also had a young upstart Washington Commanders upset a No.1 seed and a showdown between the two MVP favorites, Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen.
Let's dive into one takeaway from each NFL divisional game.
The Chiefs' Defense Dominates the Texans
AP Photo/Ed Zurga
Winning is what the Chiefs do when it comes to the postseason. It’s almost preordained. They did it again in their 23-14 victory over the Houston Texans to go 7-0 in the Divisional round in the Patrick Mahomes era. Now Mahomes and his running mate Travis Kelce came up big when their team needed them most, as they have many times. The defense stepped up, as they have all season long.
Now, while the Chiefs run defense allowed 95 yards on the ground in the first half and 149 in total, something they’ll have to be better at next weekend. They came up big. The defensive front line did a tremendous job swarming Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud the entire game, pressuring that weak offensive line that led to the Chiefs sacking him eight times, with George Karlaftis having a career day with three of those.
Their eight sacks are the seventh most in a single playoff game in NFL history, per StatsMuse.
The defense did a terrific job pressuring Stroud to a career-high 23 pressures and was under duress on 56% of his dropbacks. Karlaftis, Justin Reid, and Chamarri Conner were just a few who wreaked havoc all evening for Stroud. Add in the fact their kicker, Kirk Fairburn, missed two makeable field goals, albeit in windy conditions, one to potentially tie the game in the first and one after a Joe Mixon touchdown.
It doesn’t help that ”Playoff Kelce” showed up with 117 receiving yards and a touchdown to help propel the Chiefs to victory. He set an NFL record for nine playoff games with 100 or more receiving yards and is second all-time in playoff touchdowns behind only Jerry Rice with 22. Kelce also joins Rice as the only player to amass over 2,000 career playoff receiving yards.
The Texans lost in the Divisional round for the second consecutive season. Despite the loss, they put up an intense fight, with Stroud showing resilience in the face of the Chiefs' relentless defense. This game marks the 300th of Andy Reid’s historic coaching career, making him the fourth coach in NFL history (Don Shula 347, Bill Belichick 333, and George Halas (324) to do so.
Still, Mahomes, Kelce, and Reid make winning look mundane. They advance to their seventh consecutive AFC Championship en route to their quest to become the first team in NFL history to three-peat.
Daniels helps Commanders take command in Detroit.
AP Photo/Seth Wenig
As a young team with a star rookie quarterback coming on the road against the No.1 seed and best offense in the NFL, you’d think they may get rattled. Think again. The Commanders showed precisely why they were a top-five scoring offense this season, going into a hostile Detroit atmosphere and pouring in 45 points to shock the Lions in a 45-31 upset.
The Commanders outscored the Lions 28-14 in the second quarter and finished with no turnovers compared to the Lions five. It was an explosive offensive game between both sides, as both teams scored over 30+, with the two teams combining for 52 at the half. The Lions threw the first haymaker to start the game with a Jahmyr Gibbs touchdown. It began to get chaotic from there.
Turnovers haunted the Lions, five of them led by Jared Goff’s three interceptions and a fumble, and three of his turnovers came in the first half, which allowed the Commanders to get going offensively. Both teams traded touchdowns on three consecutive drives before Goff’s pass was intercepted by Quon Martin, who returned it for 40 yards for a touchdown to push their lead to double digits.
The Lions would respond with a Jameson Williams touchdown, but the Commanders answered with another, showing their poise as a young team to go back up 10. There were some more costly turnovers for the Lions, and a young, poised Commanders team was able to respond to the test every time the Lions tried to come back.
The rookies played like star veterans for the Commanders. Daniels finished with 299 passing yards, two touchdowns, a 71% completion rate, and no turnovers. He set the NFL rookie record with 242 first-half passing yards just one week after setting it. Daniels joins Joe Flacco as the second rookie quarterback to knock off the No.1 seed while becoming the first rookie in NFL history with 300+ passing yards in two postseason games.
Meanwhile, their other rookie cornerback, Mike Sainrisitl, caused two turnovers. One was a heads-up IQ play pass intended for Williams, but the rookie wasn’t fooled and intercepted it in the endzone. That play sealed it for the Commanders, who scored on their next offensive drive to go up 17 with 7:31 remaining.
Ultimately, the Commanders' poise and the Lions' unforced errors cost them the game. The Commanders advance to the NFC Conference Championship for the first time since 1992, when they will face off against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Saquon Powers Eagles past Rams
Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
A game in cold weather conditions wasted no time getting off to an explosive start. The Eagles were able to squeeze by the Los Angeles Rams 28-22 as they advanced to the NFC Championship. Eagles running back and MVP candidate Saquon Barkley proved why he was arguably the best offseason acquisition. Barkley helped power the Eagles with a monstrous game of 205 rushing yards for two touchdowns on 26 carries.
His 205 yards are the fifth most all-time in a single playoff game and an Eagles postseason franchise record. Barkley was 15 yards shy of the record for the most rushing yards among active running backs, with Raheem Mostert holding that title with 220 in the 2019 NFC Championship game against the Green Bay Packers, where he scored four touchdowns.
The Rams had a chance to take the lead down the stretch, but the Eagles' defense showed why they were the top defense in opponent points allowed. Jalen Carter came up with a big sack on 3rd & 2 for a loss of nine yards that forced a 4th & 11 for the Rams at the Eagles 22 that ended up being an incomplete pass to Puka Nucua and turnover on downs.
The Eagles have made the NFC Championship Game for the second time in three seasons. They will face the young, explosive Commanders on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET.
The Bills survive the Ravens to finish the season undefeated at home.
It was a classic showdown between the two prohibitive MVP favorites in quarterbacks Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. Both had incredible historical seasons as they looked to clinch their spot in the AFC Championship game to face Mahomes and company.
The Bills came up with the win 27-25 just by the skin of their teeth, with the Ravens squandering the two-point conversion of the Mark Andrews dropped pass that would have forced overtime. Turnovers were costly for the Ravens, with three in the game, including one interception and fumble for Jackson and another for Andrews. Those two fumbles converted into 10 points for the Bills.
It was the first time Jackson had multiple turnovers all season. After the game, he expressed his frustration.
“I’m tired of being right there. We need to punch it in. We need to punch in that ticket.”
The Bill defense, which was called too small, can’t stop the run, etc., all season long hushed critics to hold the best rushing team to just 176 ground yards. The Bills defense held Henry to just 84 rushing yards, who was second in the NFL all season with 113 per game. Bills linebacker Terrell Bernard was the key defensive player of the day who punched the ball out of Andrews’ hand with 3:29 left to set up a Tyler Bass 21-yard field goal that helped increase their lead to eight.
The Bills did a great job protecting the football, finishing with no turnovers. In the second half, Allen rushed for two touchdowns, using brute force to get through Raven's elite defensive frontline. The crowd chanted, “MVP! MVP!”
What a complete win,” Allen said. “All year, this team has heard we’ve got no talent, we’re too small, we can’t stop the run, we’re not good enough to compete. We’ve just put our head down and worked hard. I’m so proud of our defense. I’m so proud of our offense and special teams.”
The Bills will now face the Chiefs for the third time since 2020. Allen and company aim to reach Super Bowl 59 by overcoming their 0-3 postseason record against Mahomes.
Comments