With the Wild Card round living up to its name, it’s time to take a look at the NFC divisional round matchups and make some predictions.
In the first versus seventh seed matchup, the first seed 49ers are set to play the seventh seed Packers.
Braeden’s Prediction:
This matchup brings some interesting dynamics to the table. The Packers first year starter Jordan Love sat for three years behind one of the all-time best quarterbacks, Aaron Rodgers. Love has struggled at times, but had a great regular season overall. He amassed an exceptional 4,159 yards and 32 touchdowns through the air. In his game against the Cowboys, he led the young squad to victory, throwing for an impressive 272 yards and 3 touchdowns against the Cowboys defense. The Packers receiving offense was mainly by committee throughout the season, with no specific players rising too far above the rest. Expect rookies Jadyn Reed and Dontavion Wicks to be major targets, with second year receivers Romeo Doubs and Christian Watson to chip in as well. On the ground, Aaron Jones has been a versatile weapon in both the pass and run games, so keep an eye out for him. The Packers defense has been average this year, with not much to call home about. The Packers defense won’t be terrible, but don’t expect game-changing plays out of this unit.
The 49ers have been by far the best team in the NFC this year, and there’s not much to dispute about the talent of this roster. Their offense is full of immense talent, even ending the season as the number two offense, and their quarterback, Brock Purdy is no slouch. Despite being last year’s “Mr. Irrelevant,” Purdy has played at near-mvp levels. He threw for 4280 yards and 31 touchdowns in 16 games, sitting out the last game to rest up for the playoffs. Christian McCaffrey has been the best running back in the NFL, amassing a league-leading 1,459 yards on the ground and 564 yards through the air. He is a huge weapon, also ending the regular season with an exceptional 21 touchdowns and will be a key player to watch. Brandon Aiyuk is on a reign of terror this season, totaling 1342 yards and 7 touchdowns as a big receiving threat. The always-dangerous George Kittle added 1020 yards as well, just further showing off the gauntlet that this team’s offense is. Deebo Samuel is a versatile threat to look out for as well. I would keep going, but you get the idea. The 49ers defense is just ridiculously full of talent as well. Cornerback Charvarius Ward had a great season, reaching the pro bowl, so look out for him to guard a top Packers receiver. Fred Warner reached another pro bowl and is the signal caller, so watch for him as someone to make key plays. Nick Bosa, last year’s defensive player of the year, is another key guy to look out for, as he should disrupt Jordan Love’s rhythm on the defensive front.
As you may have guessed with my language throughout, this game is not going to be close. The 49ers simply have too much talent for the Packers to have a chance. San Francisco is going to win by at least two touchdowns.
Lars’ Prediction:
The 49ers have one of, if not the most, talented teams in the NFL. They have offensive weapon, after offensive weapon. They bring an entire arsenal to the field every time they play. They can give you a good ol’ 8,000 yard run with Christain McCaffrey, they can run and pass with Deebo Samuel, they also have George Kittle–who practically never drops the ball. The 49ers are an incredibly formidable team.
Meanwhile, the Packers have been on a hot streak lately. They annihilated the Cowboys, what’s to say they won’t play equally as well against the 49ers? Well, first of all, the Cowboys have far more defensive and offensive weaknesses than the 49ers. The Cowboys also had an easy schedule. The lack of difficulty on the Cowboys schedule demonstrates, upon playing a fairly decent team such as the Packers, that they were ill equipped to create a decent playoff run. I will give this to the Packers, Jordan Love has been on fire the last few games. He hasn’t thrown a single interception in five straight games, and has 1,347 yards combined from all five of these games. Jordan Love knows what he’s doing, and he does it well.
The talent demonstrated by both teams offensively proves that this game is going to be one about defensive prowess. Whoever is better able to make it past the defense will run away with this one. Although the Packers have a lot going for them offensively, their defense may hold them back. Their defense allows an average of 20.6 points per game, which isn’t ideal against a team with so much talent. Furthermore the Packers had scored about 22.5 points per game this season, the 49ers have only allowed around 17.5 points per game. The Niners average about 28.9 points per game, the Packers tended to only score 22.5 points per game this season. This doesn’t bode well for the Packers, as the Packers will have to make sure the 49ers don’t explode on Saturday. It’s obvious the 49ers play rough and tumble football, focusing more heavily on defensive destruction as opposed to offensive output.
This game is going to be one of defensive annihilation. As opposed to the typical, “who can score more,” style game, this game will focus more on who can make the other team score less. Because the 49ers are experts in shortening the life-span of an offensive drive, it’s likely that the 49ers will beat the Packers in the divisional round. This matchup is going to be wild, it’s going to be fierce, and it’s going to be defense-heavy. There’s one thing this matchup won’t be, however, and that’s boring.
On the other side of the NFC, the third seed Detroit Lions look to dismantle the red hot fourth seeded Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Braeden’s Prediction:
I’ll keep this one short. The Lions have a ton of momentum, as they just secured their first playoff win in over 30 years. Offensive Coordinator Ben Johnson has all facets of their offense rolling. In the wild card game, Jared Goff amassed 277 yards through the air to go along with a tough running game led by David Montgomery. Receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown led the team in receiving yards, with 7 receptions and 110 yards in the hard-fought matchup. Their defense played well when it mattered, securing key pass breakups in big moments.
Shifting to the Buccaneers, they jogged through their wild card matchup, destroying the Eagles 32-9. Quarterback Baker Mayfield looked like his old self again, throwing for 337 yards and three touchdown passes. Main contributors include Chris Godwin, who secured a touchdown, Mike Evans, who didn’t have the best game, and Cade Otton. It’s likely that all three of these players will be big in this matchup. The Bucs defense shut down Jalen Hurts and the Eagles, including 3 sacks and various punts and turnovers on downs. They held Philadelphia to nine points, and even forced a safety. Despite their defensive prowess, I think the Lions have something going for them. The Lions’ run game mixed with their passing, along with home field advantage, will prevail. This will be a close one and should be decided by just a field goal.
Lars’ Prediction:
The Lions and Buccaneers are both playing on insane levels this season, and are hoping to prove themselves in the playoffs. The Lions have been heating up Detroit this time of year with the way they’ve been playing football. Meanwhile, in Tampa Bay, the Buccaneers are planning to sail the seven seas, looting the hopes and dreams of the Detroit Lions in the Divisional Round.
The Buccaneers have been doing really well lately.They crushed the Eagles in the Wild Card round with ease, and Baker Mayfield is playing on top-tier levels. The way Baker Mayfield is playing, the Buccaneers better re-sign him, because he is going nuts. In his game against the Eagles, Mayfield completed 22 passes for 337 yards and three touchdowns. Mayfield’s receivers are helping him out as well. Mike Evans had 1,255 yards this season, and is tied for first in touchdowns at 13 touchdowns on the season. Evans is playing at great levels. The Evans-Mayfield combo is proving to be wildly successful. It’s clear Baker Mayfield is showing the NFL what he’s made of, and he’s doing so with a fire inside.
The Lions, however, are also playing with a fire burning deep inside–a fire that hasn’t been lit for 30 years. The Lions won their first playoff game in thirty years last week, and are looking to continue their playoff run this season. However, they’re going to have to go through the Buccaneers. The Lions are fairly even-matched with the Bucs this season. Although the Bucs have scored more points per game, and have allowed less points per game than the lions, the Lions have a greater reason to carry on than the Buccaneers. While both teams have passion for this game, the Lions’ lack of playoff time for the past three decades has created even more motivation for the Lions to win. Although this game will be close, there’s going to be one clear factor that decides this game–who has the most motivation this playoff run.
While Baker Mayfield wants to prove himself following the Browns debacle, in which he was cut from the team and replaced by Deshaun Watson shortly thereafter, the Lions have a fierce intensity under Dan Campbell to win this postseason. Their passion for this postseason following a 30 year drought has the Lions poised to emerge victorious in this faceoff.
Once again, the NFL brings a great weekend to the divisional round. Teams in the AFC and the NFC are all very evenly matched, and looking forward to a great playoff run. Following this weekend will come the AFC and NFC Championship games, deciding who will go to this year’s Super Bowl in February.
