After 18 weeks of a regular season that was full of action, drama, and concerningly many quarterbacks injured, the NFL Playoffs are upon us. 14 teams have a dream to lift the Vince Lombardi Trophy at the Super Bowl in Las Vegas. 6 of those teams’ dreams will end this weekend. But, what happened in Super Wild Card Weekend, and how will it affect the rest of the playoffs?
Let’s review the Wild Card weekend of the 2023 NFL Playoffs.
AFC
Cleveland Browns @ Houston Texans
The playoffs opened with the AFC South champions the Houston Texans facing the wildcard Cleveland Browns. Both of these teams have quarterbacks at completely different stages of their careers. Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud is playing in his first-ever playoff game, while Joe Flacco has been here many times before. Who would advance into the divisional round?
The Browns had the opening possession of the game, but they would be unable to do anything with this possession, and quickly punted to the Texans. In reply to this, the Texans would also struggle on the opening drive, and punted back to Cleveland.,
This would occur for a few drives and was broken by the Texans. This drive started from the Browns’ 45-yard line, and the Texans offense, led by quarterback C.J Stroud, would be able to advance down into the Browns’ red zone and then to the 2-yard line. They would not be able to go any further than this, which set up a 21-yard field goal attempt from Texans’ kicker Kaimi Fairbairn. He would be successful with this, and the Texans have the early lead.
The Browns would immediately strike back. On a drive that started on their 25-yard line, the Browns offense, led by the surprise returning quarterback of the year, Joe Flacco, quickly made their way into Houston’s territory and then deep into the red zone at the one-yard line. From here, Kareem Hunt would find the endzone for a one-yard rushing touchdown to hand the Browns the lead.
Embed from Getty ImagesOn the next drive of the game, the Texans would find the endzone. It took C.J. Stroud and company 4 plays to move down the field to reach the Browns’ 15-yard line. Here, Stroud would find Nico Collins for a 15-yard touchdown pass.
The scoring would continue in reply to the previous touchdowns. The Flacco-led offense quickly made their way into the Texans’ red zone and to the 11-yard line. Flacco would find Kareem Hunt for an 11-yard touchdown pass to return the lead to the Browns.
The Texans would have the ball next, and would immediately find the endzone, continuing the game’s streak of drives ending in touchdowns. The Stroud-led offense started the drive from their 24-yard line. From here, Stroud would find Jordan Brevin for a 76-yard touchdown pass, to hand the lead back to Houston.
Cleveland would have the next possession of the game, and the streak of touchdown-scoring drives would end. But the Texans would return to finding the endzone a few drives later. Starting from their 39-yard line, the Texans offense would be able to find their way down to the Browns’ 37-yard line. From here, Stroud would find Dalton Schultz for a 37-yard touchdown pass to add to the Texans lead before both sides returned to the locker rooms.
This meant at halftime, the Texans would have a 24-14 lead over the Browns.
The Texans would have the opening possession of the second half, but would be unable to do anything with this possession, and would hand the ball over to the Browns.
Cleveland’s next drive would start well. The Flacco-led offense would be able to make it down to the Texans’ 34-yard line. Here a mistake would happen. Flacco would throw a deep pass that would be intercepted by the Texans defense who would return the ball into the endzone for a pick 6 touchdown.
Joe Flacco and company would want to shake off their previous mistake and have a drive that ended in a touchdown for the Browns to stay in the game. This drive would end in a touchdown, but not for the Browns. Cleveland would set up an important 4th down attempt from their 33-yard line. Flacco would throw another inception to the Texans who would again return to ball to the endzone to not only add to their score but to put the game out of reach for the Browns.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Browns would have one more attempt to find the endzone to score what would be described as a consolation touchdown. Starting from their 25-yard line, the Flacco-led offense would very slowly make their way down to the Texans’ 37-yard line. This took 15 plays. The 16th play was a fourth down conversion attempt, which failed.
This handed the ball to the Texans, who would be able to score one more touchdown. Starting from the 50-yard line, the Stroud-led offense would be able to make their way down to the Browns 19-yard line. From here, Devin Singletary would find the endzone for a 19-yard rushing touchdown to all but seal the Texans’ place in the Divisional round of the playoffs.
Houston would be able to fend off any final attempt from the Browns to get into the red zone. As time ran out, what we had known for a while became official.
The Houston Texans had defeated the Cleveland Browns 45-14.
This was a very strong performance from both the Texans’ offense and their defense. The two consecutive pick-six touchdowns cemented the victory, but the strong performance of Texans quarterback C.J Stroud, like it has all season long, allowed the Texans to claim victory. Stroud is now the youngest quarterback to win a playoff game, and a performance like this could make this Texans side dangerous. As for the Browns, they were completely outplayed. After a strong first half, they collapsed in the second and their season ends here.
Miami Dolphins @ Kansas City Chiefs
Both the Miami Dolphins and the Kansas City Chiefs have been entertaining us all year. These two teams met in Germany for what was the most entertaining international game this season. The Chiefs would win this game. This rematch would be in conditions that were completely alien for the Dolphins. The game was held on a Saturday night in Kansas City, where the temperature was -20°c. So, who will win this game in incredibly cold conditions?
The Chiefs had the opening possession of the game, and they would be able to get the opening score of the game from this. On a drive that started from their 31-yard line, the Chiefs’ offense, led by quarterback Patrick Mahomes would be able to make their way down to the Dolphins’ 11-yard line. From here, Mahomes would find Rashee Rice for an 11-yard touchdown pass, giving the Chiefs the early lead.
In reply to this, the Dolphins struggled on their opening drive and would quickly punt the ball back to the Chiefs.
On their next drive, the Dolphins would have some success on offense, but this would be short-lived. On a drive that started from their 11-yard line, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa would move the offense down to their 40-yard line. However, Miami would make a mistake here. Tagovailoa would throw a deep pass that was intended for Jaden Waddle. However, this pass would be intercepted by the Chiefs’ defense.
This mistake would be costly for the Dolphins. Taking advantage of their new possession, Kansas City would slowly advance down the field. Mahomes and company would be able to reach the Dolphins 10-yard line, but not any further as their drive had stalled. This set up a 28-yard field goal attempt for Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker. Butker would be successful with this kick, and the Chiefs’ lead would be extended.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Dolphins would have the ball next, and Tagovailoa hoped to not repeat the mistakes from his previous drive. This drive started from their 38-yard line, and Tagovailoa would be able to move the offense to the 47-yard line in one play. The Dolphins would find the endzone on the next play. From the 47-yard line, Tagovailoa found Tyreek Hill for a 53-yard touchdown pass to bring the Dolphins back into this game.
Kansas City had the next possession of the game, and would immediately respond to the score from the Dolphins with one of their own. On a drive that started on the Chiefs’ 20-yard line, the Mahomes-led offense would slowly make their way down the field to the Dolphins’ 8-yard line. From here, Mahomes would find Rice for an 8-yard touchdown pass. However, there would be a penalty against the Chiefs on this play, so the touchdown was taken off the hoard and the Chiefs had to move back 10 yards. Kansas City would be able to return to the 8-yard line soon after, but it would be too late to score a touchdown. Butker would kick a 26-yard field goal instead.
Just before halftime, the Chiefs would kick another field goal. Their drive stalled at the Dolphins’ 14-yard line, which set up a 32-yard field goal for Butker, which increased Kansas City’s lead.
This meant that at halftime, the Chiefs would have a 16-7 lead over the Dolphins.
The Dolphins would have the opening possession of the second half, and like the majority of their drives on the game so far, the offense would struggle to get anything going and punted to the Chiefs.
Embed from Getty ImagesIn reply to this, the Chiefs would start this half with another slow-moving drive. The Mahomes lead offense would make their way down to the Dolphins’ 3-yard line. Here, they would have 3 chances to score a touchdown, but all of these attempts would be unsuccessful. This set up a 21-yard field goal attempt from Butker, which would be successful, increasing the Chiefs’ lead over the Dolphins.
The Chiefs would be able to add to this lead from their next drive. As they did with their previous drive, Kansas City would be able to make it down to the Dolphins’ 3-yard line. From here, Mahomes would find Isaiah Pacheco for a 3-yard touchdown pass to fully cement the Chiefs’ victory.
For the rest of the game, the Dolphins would struggle on offense and the Chiefs knowing that they had won would take their foot off the gas until the final play of the game.
As the time ran out on this game, the Kansas City Chiefs had defeated the Miami Dolphins 26-7
This victory tells us that maybe the Chiefs have finally regained their strong form at the right time and will be a serious contender for the Super Bowl. However, the weather conditions massively aided the Chiefs in this victory. The defeat for the Dolphins ends a season of two contrasts. This side was able to dominate the poor-performing teams, but they would be unable to defeat the tougher teams. This is something that they will need to improve on next year.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Buffalo Bills
This game was originally meant to be played on Sunday at 1 pm ET. But, in typical Buffalo weather, there would be heavy snow in the area. There was so much that the Governor of New York State had to postpone the game for public health reasons. So, now on Monday afternoon, the Buffalo Bills faced the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Bills seemed to struggle to begin the year but ended strongly to win the AFC East title. The Steelers made the playoffs on the final day, and have struggled this season. Could we see another upset on wildcard weekend?
The Steelers would have the opening possession of the first half, but they would not be able to get anything on this possession, and would quickly punt the ball away to the Bills.
In reply to this, the Bills would be able to get the opening score of the game. Starting from their 20-yard line, the Bills offense, led by quarterback Josh Allen, would be able to slowly advance down to the Steelers’ 9-yard line. From here, Allen would find Dawson Knox for a 9-yard touchdown pass to take the lead.
After two drives that ended in punts, the Steelers would have the ball, but they would not have it for long. On the opening play of the drive at the Steelers’ 18-yard line, Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph threw an incomplete pass. However there was a challenge on the play, and the call on the play was overruled. Instead of an incomplete pass, Rudolph had now fumbled the ball, which was then scooped up by the Bills’ defense.
This mistake would be costly for the Steelers. On the first play of their short drive, Allen would find Dalton Kincade for a 29-yard touchdown pass to extend the Bills lead over Pittsburgh.
Embed from Getty ImagesA couple of drives later, the Steelers would have the ball again. But they would nearly lose it on the first play of the drive. Rudolph would throw a deep pass to Pat Freiremuth, who would then fumble the ball out of play. The Steelers would then be able to advance down the field and reach the Bills’ 4-yard line. But here, another mistake would occur. On this occasion, Rudolph threw a pass that was intended for Diontae Johnson. However, it would be intercepted by the Bills’ defense instead, denying Pittsburgh an opportunity to score.
This interception would prove costly for the Steelers. In response to this, Allen and company would advance down to the Bills’ 48-yard line. Allen would then scramble for 52 yards before finding the endzone for a 52-yard rushing touchdown to extend Buffalo’s lead.
The Bills would then nearly add points on their next drive. Starting from their 21-yard line, the Bills offense would be able to advance down to the Steelers’ 31-yard line. However, they would not go any further setting up a 49-yard field goal attempt from Bills kicker Trevor Bass. Bass would be unsuccessful with this kick as the Steelers blocked the kick and returned the ball to the Bills’ 33-yard line.
Pittsburgh would then be finally able to put some points on the board. Starting from the 33-yard line, Rudolph and company would be able to make their way down to the Bills’ 10-yard line. From here, Rudolph would find Johnson for a 10-yard touchdown pass.
This meant that at halftime the Bills would have a 21-7 lead over the Steelers.
The Bills would have the opening possession of the second half, but would be unable to do anything with it and would have to punt to the Steelers.
In reply, the Steelers would be able to find some points. On a drive that started on their 40-yard line, the Rudolph-led offense would advance down the field and reach the edge of the Bills red zone at the 22-yard line. However, the drive would stall here. This set up a 40-yard field goal attempt from Steelers kicker Chris Boswell, which he would be successful with.
After the field goal from the Steelers, the Bills would then make one of their own. Starting from their 25-yard line, the Bills would be able to make it down to the Steelers’ 27-yard line, before Bass successfully made a 45-yard field goal.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Steelers would have the ball next with the hope of making it a one-possession game going into the final quarter. On a drive that started on their 25-yard line, Rudolph’s offense would make their way down to the Bills’ 7-yard line. From here, Rudolph would find Calvin Austin for a 7-yard touchdown pass. This made the game a one-possession game. The Steelers had to stop the Bills from scoring to keep them in the game. Would they do this?
The Bills would start their drive from their 30-yard line. Then, Josh Allen’s offense would make their way down to the Steelers’ 17-yard line, aided by a few penalties against Pittsburgh’s defense. From here, Allen would find Khalil Shakir for a 17-yard touchdown pass to give Buffalo a 14-point lead.
For the rest of the game, neither team would score. The Bills would come close with a 27-yard field goal attempt, but this would miss. In the end, that would not have a massive effect on the results, as the Buffalo Bills had easily defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-17.
Good things come to those who wait. The delayed game had no impact on the Bills, who played strongly against a Steelers side who were lucky to be here. After the game, some questions were raised about Mike Tomlin’s future, but he has said that he will be staying in Pittsburgh for another season. The Bills playoff run continues next week, and the opposition will get a lot harder.
NFC
Green Bay Packers @ Dallas Cowboys
The Green Bay Packers are lucky to be in the playoffs. They won the number 7 seed in the NFC on the last day as results went their way. Their reward for this feat was to face the NFC East champions, the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington. All season long, the Cowboys have turned AT&T Stadium into a fortress of high-scoring. Could the Cowboys continue this form into the playoffs and begin their quest for their first Super Bowl since the ’90s?
The Packers had the opening drive of the game, and from this would be able to get the opening score of the game. This drive started on their 25-yard line and the Packers offense, led by quarterback Jordan Love, would be able to slowly advance down into the Cowboys red zone and then to the 3-yard line. This would be aided by a few penalties against the Cowboys’ defense. Then, from the 3-yard line, Aaron Jones would find the endzone to record a 3-yard rushing touchdown to give the Packers the early lead.
In response to the opening score, the Cowboys would be unable to do anything with the ball on their opening drive. But a few drives later, Dallas would make a massive mistake.
The Cowboys’ offense, led by quarterback Dak Prescott would be on their 13-yard line. Prescott would then throw a pass that was intended for Brandin Cooks. However, this pass was intercepted by the Packers defense.
This mistake would prove costly for the Cowboys. Now with possession, the Packers’ offense would be able to make their way down to the Cowboys’ one-yard line. From here, Jones would again find the endzone to score a one-yard rushing touchdown, his second touchdown of the day.
Embed from Getty ImagesOn their next drive, the Packers lead would be extended even further. This drive started on their 7-yard line. Love and company would then be able to move down the field and make their way to the Cowboys’ 20-yard line. From here, Love threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Dontayvion Wicks. However, the Packers’ PAT attempt would be missed. But, this still gave Green Bay an impressive 20-point lead.
The Cowboys would have the ball next and hoped to shake off their previous mistakes and get something going on their offense. Unfortunately for the Cowboys, this would not be the case. Prescott and company would start the drive strong, being able to move down to the Packers’ 40-yard line. But, here the Cowboys would make another mistake. Prescott would throw another interception. The Packers would then immediately return the ball to the endzone for a pick-6 touchdown to give the Packers an unbelievably strong lead.
On the final drive of the half, we would finally see the Cowboys’ offense being like they were for the majority of the regular season. The Prescott-led offense would very slowly make their way down to the Packers’ one-yard line. Then, on the final play of the half, Prescott found Jake Fergurson for a one-yard touchdown pass to give the Cowboys something to cling to.
This meant that at halftime, the Packers would have a 27-7 lead over the Cowboys.
The Cowboys had the opening possession of the second half. They would be able to get something from this. The drive started from the Cowboys’ 24-yard line with Prescott and company being able to make it down to the Packers’ 16-yard line, where this drive would stall. This set up a 34-yard field goal attempt for Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey. The usually successful Aubrey would be successful with this kick.
The Packers would quickly reply to this score. They would be able to make their way down to the Cowboys’ 9-yard line and Aaron Jones would find the endzone for his third touchdown of the game to extend the Packers’ already large lead.
Dallas would continue the scoring streak on the next drive. After struggling all game, their offense had now woken up. The Cowboys would start this drive on their 12-yard line. They were able to advance down the field and reach the Packers’ one-yard line. From here, Tony Pollard would find the endzone for a one-yard rushing touchdown.
Embed from Getty ImagesBut Green Bay would find the endzone soon after. On this occasion, Love would throw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Luke Musgrave to again increase the Packers’ strong lead.
The Packets would extend their lead even further on their next drive. The Green Bay offense would be able to make it down to the Cowboys’ 2-yard line. Then, on a 4th down attempt, Love found Raheem Dobbs for a 2-yard touchdown pass.
The Cowboys were well and truly out of this game. But that did not stop them from scoring two late touchdowns. First, Prescott would find Fergurson for a 7-yard touchdown pass which then included a successful two-point conversion. Then, Prescott would find Fergurson again this time for a 14-yard touchdown pass.
But, these were not enough, and the Green Bay Packers had recorded a 48-32 victory over the Dallas Cowboys.
This was by far the upset of the wildcard round. No one expected the Green Bay Packers to make the playoffs and yet they are here, facing a Dallas Cowboys side who have destroyed their opponents at home. We’ve seen those all season, but not when it matters. The Cowboys were completely outplayed, and their hunt for another Super Bowl continues. As for Green Bay, could they go all the way?
Los Angeles Rams @ Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions have made the playoffs for the first time since 2016. The Lions have not won a playoff game since 1992 when they defeated the Dallas Cowboys in the Divisional round. They faced the Los Angeles Rams this week. The Rams have had a mixed season but were strong enough to make the playoffs. In a revenge game for both Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford, who would come out on top, and will the Lions’ postseason win drought continue?
The Lions would have the opening possession of the game and they would be able to find the endzone from this. On a drive that started on the Lions’ 25-yard line, the Lions’ offense, led by former Rams quarterback Jared Goff, would be able to drive down the entire field to reach the Rams’ one-yard line. From here David Montgomery would find the endzone to score a one-yard touchdown to take the early lead in the game.
In reply to this, the Rams’ first drive of their game was also successful. This drive would start on the Rams’ 25-yard line. Then, the Rams’ offense, led by former Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, would drive down the field, and reach the Rams’ 6-yard line, before their drive would stall. This set up a 24-yard field goal attempt from Rams kicker Brett Maher. Maher would be successful with this, and the Rams would put themselves on the board.
The Lions would respond immediately to this score. On an offensive drive that was aided by a large penalty against the Rams’ defense, Detroit would be able to quickly reach the Rams’ 10-yard line. From here, Jahmyr Gibbs would find the endzone for a 10-yard rushing touchdown, which added to the Lions lead.
But the scoring would not stop here. On the Rams’ next drive, Stafford and company would make it to the 50-yard line. Then, Stafford would throw a deep pass to Puca Nacua, who would then find the endzone for a 50-yard touchdown pass.
Embed from Getty ImagesWe would then see another touchdown from the Lions. On this occasion, the Goff-led offense would be able to make it deep into the Rams’ red zone, at the 2-yard line. From here, Goff would find Sam LaPorta for a 2-yard touchdown pass to extend their lead to 2 touchdowns.
Every drive in the game so far had ended in a point score, with all bar one ending in a touchdown. The next drive from Los Angeles would continue this trend. Starting from their 25-yard line, the Stafford-led offense would be able to quickly advance down to the Lions’ 38-yard line. From here, Stafford would find Tutu Atwell for a 38-yard touchdown pass to again close the Lions’ lead.
But the scoring streak that had started on the first drive of the game would be broken by the next drive from the Lions. It is worth mentioning that they were able to reach the Rams’ 45-yard line, before stalling just outside field goal range.
This would mean that at halftime after a high-scoring first half, the Lions would have a 21-17 lead over the Rams.
The Rams would have the opening possession of the second half, and unlike what we saw in the whole first half, they would struggle to move the ball and would punt to the Lions.
In reply to this, it seemed like the Lions’ offense was in the same form as they were in the first half. Their drive would start on their 20-yard line, and from here, Stafford would lead his offense down to the Rams’ 36-yard line but not a yard further. This set up a 54-yard field goal attempt from Lions kicker Michael Badgley. Badgley would be successful with this kick, extending the Lions’ lead.
The Rams would have the next possession and would be able to match what the Lions did. Starting from their 25-yard line, the Rams offense would make it down to the Lions’ 12-yard line. Here they would be lucky to retain possession. Nacua would fumble the ball here, but the ball would roll out of possession before any defenders could get to it. After this, Los Angeles would find the 9-yard line before the drive stalled. This set Maher up with a 27-yard field goal attempt, which he would be successful with.
Embed from Getty ImagesFor the majority of this time, the Lions had a 4-point lead. But as the fourth quarter began, this lead would drop to its lowest it had been all game. On a drive that started on the Rams’ 10-yard line, Matthew Stafford would be able to move his offense down into the Lions’ red zone and then down to the Lions’ 11-yard line. Here the drive would stall and a 29-yard field goal attempt would be set up for Maher. The kick would be successful, and the Rams would now only trail the Lions by one point. Could they come back to win this game?
The Rams would have one more attempt to find the endzone. This drive started from their 8-yard line. Stafford and company would slowly drive the ball up the field before reaching the Lions’ 44-yard line. Here an extremely important 4th down attempt would occur. But, the Rams did not know this as there were over 4 minutes left on the clock and they were sure that they would be able to get the ball back. The Rams would put the ball and would never get it back.
The Lions would hold onto the ball for the last 4 minutes of the game. This would mean that the Detroit Lions had defeated the Los Angeles Rams 24-23
This finally gives us the answer to the question that we have been asking ever since the Lions made the playoffs. The Lions had won their first playoff game since 1992. But it was not a blowout victory like the majority of wins this weekend. The Rams came close, but their journey is over. It should be classed as a successful season for Los Angeles, having made the playoffs after a poor season last year. So, can the Lions win another playoff game? We’ll find out next week.
Philadelphia Eagles @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
If you look up “bottle job” in the dictionary, a picture of the Philadelphia Eagles may appear. The Eagles looked like they were going to easily win the NFC East. But, the Eagles lost 5 of their last 6 games, including a large defeat to the New York Giants on the final day, to deny them the title. They are also the reigning NFC champions, who began the defense of their conference against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who won the NFC South. Could the Eagles return to their early season form, or would they lose another big game?
The Buccaneers would have the opening possession of the game and would be able to get the game’s opening score. Starting from their 25-yard line, the Buccaneers offense, led by quarterback Baker Mayfield, would be able to make their way down to the Eagles’ 10-yard line, before the drive would stall. This set up a 28-yard field goal attempt from Buccaneers kicker Chase McLaughlin. McLaughlin would be successful with this kick, handing Tampa Bay the early lead. In reply, the Eagles could not do anything with their possession, and would quickly punt back to the Buccaneers.
This punt would be costly, as with the next possession, the Buccaneers would find the endzone from the subsequent drive. Starting from their 21-yard line, the Buccaneers would move back to their 16-yard line due to a penalty against them. But, from here, Mayfield and company would be able to advance down to the Eagles’44-yard line due to a large penalty against the Eagles’ defense. Then, Mayfield would find David Moore for a 44-yard touchdown pass to extend the Buccanneers’ lead. Again, the Eagles would respond to this touchdown with a punt.
Tampa Bay would then be able to extend their lead on their next drive. Starting from their 24-yard line, the Mayfield-led offense would drive down the field to the Eagles’ 36-yard line, before the drive stalled. This set up a 54-yard field goal for McLaughlin, which he would make.
The Eagles offense then finally woke up. Led by quarterback Jalen Hurts, the Eagles offense would be able to advance down to the Buccaneers’ 30-yard line, but no further. This would set up a 47-yard field goal attempt for Eagles kicker Jake Elliot, who would be able to make the kick, handing Philadelphia their first points of the game.
Embed from Getty ImagesBut, the Buccaneers would respond to this field goal with another one of their own. Tampa Bay would stall at the Eagles’ 30-yard line, and McLaughlin would score the 48-yard field goal.
The Eagles then finally found the endzone in one of the final drives of the first half. Starting from their 25-yard line, Hurts and Company would quickly make it down into the Tampa Bay red zone and then down to the 5-yard line. From here, Hurts would find Dallas Goedert for the 5-yard touchdown pass. The Eagles then attempted a two-point conversion, but this would be unsuccessful.
This meant that at halftime, the Buccanneers would have a 16-9 lead over the Eagles. While they were completely outplayed in the first half, the Eagles were still in this game. Could the second half be any different?
The Eagles would have the first possession of the second half, but they would struggle to get anything on offense and would punt to Tampa Bay. In reply to this, the Buccaneers would do the same.
This began a period of football that was heavily defensive. The first 4 drives would end in punts. Then, the Eagles would have possession for a drive which would begin at their 10-yard line. They would be able to make it up to their 14-yard line. But then, a massive mistake would be made by Philadelphia. On the play, Hurts would be penalized for intentional grounding. That is normally a 20-yard penalty against the offense. However, the Eagles could not move back the full 20-yard, so a safety would be awarded, giving the Buccanneers 2 points.
Tampa Bay would then increase their lead on the next drive. It would take Baker Mayfield 2 plays to do this. First, the Buccaneers would be able to move down from their 38-yard line to their 44-yard line. Then, Mayfield would fine Trey Palmer for a 56-yard touchdown pass.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Eagles would need to score a touchdown on their next drive to stay in the game. The Hurts-led offense would be able to make it down to the Buccaneers’ 22-yard line, where the drive would stall. This set up Elliot with a 40-yard field goal attempt, which he would make. However, there was a penalty against the Buccaneers on the kick, removing the score from the board, but allowing the Eagles to have a vital 4th down attempt. They were given a lifeline. Hurts had to find 5-yards or their chances of winning would become near impossible. Hurts would throw an incomplete pass, and Tampa Bay would be handed possession.
To add further insult to injury, the Buccaneers would find the endzone one more time. From their 17-yard line, Mayfield and company would advance down to the Eagles 23-yard line. From here, Mayfield would find Chris Godwin for a 23-yard touchdown to seal the victory for the Buccaneers.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had defeated the reigning NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles 32-9
This may have been a massive upset in any other year. Tampa Bay outplayed the Eagles to add to the chaos of Super Wildcard weekend. However, not taking anything away from the Buccaneers, but the Eagles were in terrible form. This is a downfall that will haunt the Eagles for some time, considering that they did have a 10-1 record and were the favorite to win the Super Bowl. Additionally, for some odd reason, Eagles coach Nick Siriani, who has lost 6 of his last 7 games, will still have a job.
So, that was Super Wild Card Weekend. It could easily be renamed “Chaotic Wild Card Weekend” as we saw many upsets. The Dallas Cowboys, Cleveland Browns, and Philadelphia Eagles were all demolished, and their Super Bowl dreams are now over.
Next week, the divisional round awaits us, as the number one seeds The Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers enter the fray. The road to the Super Bowl has taken a strange turn, but it will only make it more exciting.
Image Credit: Deposit Photos
