With the NFL (National Football League) regular season coming to a close, it’s now time for the climax of the season, the playoffs, and ultimately what all teams have been working for: the Super Bowl. With an exciting regular season coming to a close with many injuries, 66 different starting quarterbacks and many surprises, it’s time to look ahead to the playoffs.
Starting in the AFC (American Football Conference), MVP (Most Valuable Player) favorite Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens are the first seed and have a “first round bye” — basically they finished as the best team in their conference and get to skip the first round known as the wildcard round. The number two seed Buffalo Bills, led by quarterback Josh Allen, takes on the seventh seeded Pittsburgh Steelers and their solid defense on Sunday at 12 p.m. on Jan. 14 in Buffalo. The winner of this matchup plays the Ravens in the divisional round. The next matchup is between reigning MVP and Super Bowl winner Patrick Mahomes with the number three seeded Kansas Chiefs and the number six seeded Dolphins with their explosive offense led by Tua Tagovailo in chilly 0°weather at 7 p.m. on Jan. 13 in Kansas City. The final matchup in the AFC has the fifth seeded Cleveland Browns and their veteran quarterback Joe Flacco taking on the number four seeded Houston Texans led by rookie of the year favorite CJ Stroud at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 13 in Houston.
In the NFC (National Football Conference), the San Francisco 49ers and their star studded team, led by quarterback Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy, have the first seed so they also have a “first round bye.” The number two seeded NFC East champions, Dallas Cowboys with Dak Prescott, face the seventh seeded Green Bay Packers with Jordan Love, who barely squeezed in the playoffs, at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 14 in Dallas. Next we have the number three seeded Detroit Lions headed by former Rams quarterback Jared Goff who finally won their division, the NFC North, playing the number six seeded 2022 Super Bowl winners, the Los Angeles Rams, headed by former Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford at 7 p.m. on Jan. 13 in Detroit. In the final matchup of the playoffs, we find the number five seeded Philadelphia Eagles with Jalen Hurts showdown against fourth seeded Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 7 p.m. on Jan. 15 in Tampa Bay.
The 49ers and their roster full of stars are the current favorites to win the Super Bowl. You can expect them to make it far. Behind them is the Baltimore Ravens with one of the best defenses in the last 20 years. You can also expect them to be heavy favorites to make it far in the postseason. Next up on the list of favorites is the hit or miss Buffalo Bills. With a season full of highs and lows, you can expect quarterback Josh Allen to throw four interceptions or four total touchdowns, so you never know what you are going to get with the Bills. The fourth favorite team to win the Super Bowl is the Dallas Cowboys, with star receiver Ceedee Lamb breaking out this season for over 1700 yards, it really could be their year. Finally, the number five favorite I’ll be covering is the Kansas City Chiefs. It hasn’t really been Patrick Mahomes’s season this year, but it’s never too late to count out the two time MVP and two time Super Bowl winner. Some other sneaky teams to watch out for are the Lions, Browns, Eagles and Dolphins. The playoffs kick off Saturday afternoon with the Browns and the Texans in the wildcard round, in what should be starting a thrilling postseason.
