Can Bills & Rams Seriously Stop Chiefs and Bucs? NFL Divisional Playoff Preview & Predictions
The weekend that many consider the *last* best weekend of the NFL season is upon us: Divisional playoff weekend! The road to Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles is about to become clearer. The question that everyone is asking and overanalyzing right now is simple: will there be any huge upsets this weekend? And there is good reason to think so.
Case in point, the Buffalo Bills head to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs in a re-match of last year’s AFC Title game. Both of these teams met in October with the Bills dominating both sides of the football in a stunning 38-20 win on Sunday Night Football. And, the Bills are coming off a “perfect game” where they scored a touchdown on every possession against the New England Patriots in the Wild Card game. So of course, the Bills, with their young quarterback Josh Allen, and a team of young, talented stars are in the conversation to beat out the reigning AFC Champions in Arrowhead.
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI – OCTOBER 10: Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs scrambles upfield past the defense of Mario Addison #97 and Ed Oliver #91 of the Buffalo Bills during the first half of a game at Arrowhead Stadium on October 10, 2021 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Another example is the Rams-Bucs game this weekend. A lot of people are riding the Rams bus on its way to Tampa, Florida. Why? Because the Rams broke out offensively last week against a overmatched Arizona Cardinals team.
Odell Beckham Jr. looked like the wide receiver he once was with the New York Giants, and, oh by the way, the Buccaneers are riddled with injuries. Let us not forget the GOAT is under center for the Bucs? It doesn’t seem to matter, everywhere one turns, the Rams are the trendy pick.
And history shows the divisional round is usually where the biggest upsets DO indeed happen.
Remember when the New York Jets upset the 14-2 New England Patriots in divisional weekend back in January of 2011?
The Patriots were heavy favorites entering the game. They had already waxed the Jets 45-3 a month earlier on Monday Night Football, and just the idea of Mark Sanchez beating Tom Brady sounded too ludicrous to even consider. But the upset happened. Sanchez probably had the best game of his infamous Jets career, tossing three touchdowns. Rex Ryan ran down the sideline to hug his players in the end zone, and didn’t care he got flagged for it. Braylen Edwards was doing summersaults when the final gun sounded. Yes, the Jets won, 28-21, and it wasn’t really that close.
The time @Mark_Sanchez and the @nyjets took down the Patriots (2010 Divisional: Jan. 16, 2011)pic.twitter.com/yiPSDhFZN1
— NFL Legacy (@NFLLegacy) July 23, 2019
Not convinced? How about the time in January 2012 when the New York Giants walked into Lambeau Field against the 15-1 Packers, and not only upset the Packers, they destroyed them, 37-20! Eli Manning tossed three touchdowns, and Aaron Rodgers, who was by far and away the MVP of the League in 2011, had no answers for the Giants defense. The Giants used that upset to catapult themselves to a Super Bowl win over the Patriots.
10 Years Ago Today - 1/15/2012: The 9-7 Giants defeated the 15-1 Green Bay Packers in the 2011 NFC Divisional Playoff Game. #TogetherBlue pic.twitter.com/rdbCxKP5vE
— Giants Fans Online (@NYGFansOnline) January 15, 2022
And speaking of Giant upsets in the divisional round, four years earlier in 2008, the Giants shocked the 13-3 Dallas Cowboys 21-17 in an NFC East tug-of-war in Big D. Brandon Jacobs scored the winning touchdown in the fourth quarter, and Eli Manning outdueled Tony Romo to send the G-Men to the NFC Title game, where they would upset the Brett Favre-led Packers, en-route to upsetting the undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl LII.
So, as we know here in the Tri-State area, upsets in this round are very common. Sometimes they can catapult a team to glory, (i.e. the 2007 and 2011 Giants).
Mike Cohen’s Divisional Playoff Picks!
Las week: 5-1
Season: 57-27
Cincinnati Bengals (11-7) @ Tennessee Titans (12-5) – 4:30 p.m. – CBS. The Titans have gotten a lot of disrespect this season, mainly due to the fact they lost dynamic running back Derrick Henry for most of the season with a foot injury. Now Henry is back, but the load won’t be all on him. The Titans discovered that D’Onta Foreman and Dontrell Hillard can carry the load for Tennessee, if Henry is not 100 percent. Foreman is a lot like Henry. He’s a big, physical, bruising runner who ran for 566 yards this season in nine games. Put all three runners on the field in this game, it will be tough for the Bengals to slow down. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill isn’t flashy, but he gets the job done more often than not. Expect some playoff jitters for Joe Burrow and the Bengals who are riding the high of winning the franchises first playoff game in 31 years. Keep in mind the Mike Vrabel-coached Titans are 4-0 off a bye week. PICK: TITANS 26, BENGALS 17.
GLENDALE, ARIZONA – OCTOBER 28: Quarterback Aaron Rodgers #12 of the Green Bay Packers reacts during the NFL game at State Farm Stadium on October 28, 2021 in Glendale, Arizona. The Packers defeated the Cardinals 24-21. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
San Francisco 49ers (11-7) @ Green Bay Packers (13-4) – 8:15 p.m. – FOX. Depending on your preference, this could be the Game of the Week. Certainly like the Dallas game, it will leave us with the biggest over-reaction. There is lot of pressure on Green Bay to win this game. They have lost their last three playoff games against San Francisco, including the NFC Title game two years ago. Aaron Rodgers knows everyone will look to him if the Packers lose. But, as good as Rodgers is this is more about how the Green Bay defense does in slowing down Jimmy Garapolo, Deebo Samuel and company on the Niners. The Packers had a Top-1o defense this year. They need to step up if the Packers are to advance. Expect San Fran to keep it close, but the Packers will ink it out. PICK: PACKERS 29, 49ers 23 – overtime.
Los Angeles Rams (13-5) @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers (13-5) – 3:00 – NBC. For some odd reason, the Rams have had the Bucs number the past two years. They beat Tampa Bay down in Florida last season with Jared Goff under center, and beat them again earlier this year with Matthew Stafford. The problem probably relates to the pressure the Rams can create up front. Aaron Donald and Von Miller are two of the games best pass rushers. A lot of people love the Rams this week because of the injuries the Bucs have sustained in recent weeks. There are questions about the health of Bucs center Ryan Jensen and guard Tristin Wirfs, and there are questions whether running back Ronald Jones II and receiver Breshard Perriman will be able to play. That’s not even covering the guys who are out: Chris Godwin and Leonard Fournette. The key factor is if the Rams can frustrate Tom Brady enough, and keep the game close they will have a chance. At the same time, can we really trust Matthew Stafford to win another playoff game? He was great against the woeful Cardinals. This is step up in class against the Bucs, who are much healthier on the defensive side of the ball. Expect a major turnover to decide this one. PICK: BUCCANEERS 24 – RAMS 21.
Buffalo Bills (12-6) @ Kansas City Chiefs (13-5) – 6:30 p.m. – CBS. The Game of the Week. Josh Allen vs. Patrick Mahomes. Is this the next great QB rivalry that we will see for years and years, ala Peyton Manning vs. Tom Brady? Eh, maybe not, but the Bills would love nothing better than to get even against the Chiefs for last year’s AFC Title Game. The Bills do have something going for them, and it isn’t their offense which put up 47 points last week, it’s their defense. The Bills have the number 1 ranked D in the league. And that same defense already frustrated Mahomes once already this year. However that was a different Kansas City team. The Chiefs defense has been just as good. They went from giving up 32 points a game in the first half of the year to 16 points per game in the second half. Not to mention, Mahomes and company have dialed it up offensively over the last month. Remember KC scored 42 points on the Steelers last week, so if the Bills want to get into a track meet, the Chiefs would be a willing participant. PICK: Would love to see Buffalo take it, but gotta see it to believe it. CHIEFS 34 – BILLS 31.
