Fires Ignite as NFL Playoffs Eliminate all but Elite

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It was exciting to witness the humiliation of pretenders, but now the fires truly ignite in the NFL Playoffs. Only the elites remain and no one is getting run over.

Prepare for the intense sports debate that only sibling rivalry can conjure. Seesaw Sports, where Dan Salem and Todd Salem throw down on the NFL, MLB, NBA and more. Only on BuzzChomp. Two brothers from New York yell, scream and debate sports.

 

The wildcard round of the NFL playoffs was a bonafide dud. Houston blew out Cleveland. Kansas City easily handled Miami. Green Bay waxed Dallas. Buffalo took care of Pittsburgh and last but not least, Tampa Bay put Philadelphia out of its misery. Humiliation is probably not a strong enough word to describe just how bad these teams lost, and most entered their games as favorites!

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The only good game of the weekend saw Detroit narrowly edge out Los Angeles thanks to a questionable no-call on the Rams’ final drive. That was a fun game for sure, with both offenses trading haymakers in the first half, Puka Nacua making history, each defense clamping down in the second, and Jared Goff converting in the clutch. But other than that, nothing from wildcard weekend was exciting in terms of competitiveness. That means only the truly elite teams remain and the fires can now ignite!

 

NFL Playoffs: Elites Start the Fire

 

Todd Salem: Finally Some Good Eats

Focusing on the lopsided scores, we fall into completely unexpected conversations regarding the divisional round. We assumed the Texans would just be happy to make the playoffs. Now, riding a high, do they actually stand a chance against Baltimore? Realistically, probably not, especially with the game in Baltimore and the Ravens getting to rest up. However, the Ravens lost to the Browns in the second half of the regular season. It at least makes it interesting that Houston was able to handle said Browns so easily in round one.

The same conversation plays into Green Bay facing San Francisco. Both Saturday games see home teams laying more than a touchdown. The Packers are interesting here because of the way they demolished the Cowboys. The vaunted Dallas defense was nowhere to be seen. With Jordan Love being one of the hottest quarterbacks going right now, can the Pack hang with San Fran too? We can’t rule it out.

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Detroit has the majority of my attention. I want to see how the Lions build off their victory, especially since they have a lot of work left to do. The offense was pristine in the first half of round one and then disappeared. Jared Goff can make every play in a clean pocket, and thanks to an elite offensive line, he gets clean pockets rather often. But the second pressure gets to him, he freaks.

The Detroit defense is also a shaky group. What does that say about the Lions’ actual ceiling in this postseason? That’s not to say the Lions are a shoe-in to advance another round. I just can’t imagine the Buccaneers winning multiple postseason games. Let’s just say I’m granting them no big victory points by dispatching the pitiful Eagles.

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The real gem of the second round is Kansas City at Buffalo. These two teams aren’t the cream of the crop anymore necessarily, but this is the rematch we all wanted to see. The Chiefs are actually a defensive squad now, but with the hammer of trotting out Patrick Mahomes on offense. Buffalo feels the same as ever, with Josh Allen determining the highs and lows of the team with his big chances. We aren’t likely to see the fireworks of the 2022 playoff game again, but this matchup still feels like the determination of the AFC king. 

It seems stupid to say that since Baltimore is better than both of them. Maybe a better analogy is like an epic college basketball game between Duke and North Carolina…during a season in which Virginia wins the ACC. Even if the winner of this one doesn’t represent the AFC in the Super Bowl, this is the matchup of the 2024 postseason.

 

 

Dan Salem: Mega Excitement Gets More Mega

I disagree that the only exciting thing about the Wildcard round was Detroit versus Los Angeles. It was quite exciting to see the upstart Texans demolish a disgraceful franchise with a rookie quarterback and rookie head coach. Sorry not sorry Joe Flacco. It was equally exciting to witness the final destruction of the Miami Dolphins, who still can’t seem to play well late in the season, or is it just against winning teams? The follow-on demise of the Dallas Cowboys was also exciting, especially in such humiliating fashion. Ditto for the Eagles receiving their final pie in the face. All in all, it was pretty awesome!

I’m not sure the upcoming divisional round of the NFL Playoffs will actually turn out to be better, because we can’t top all of those humiliating outcomes! If we’re solely considering competitive games, I’m still not sure we’ll get more than one in the upcoming round. The truth is, none of the teams in the Wildcard Round were dominant. They either looked vulnerable many times during the season, collapsed in the final quarter of play, or are simply prone to highs and lows. Take Houston for example. Did they actually beat a good team in Cleveland? Didn’t the New York Jets demolish them? Why will they suddenly play well against the best team in the AFC?

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Baltimore will take care of its business and maybe we’ll get a good game out of it. Houston is certainly happy to be here in the divisional round. Green Bay is in the same boat. We can anticipate a competitive game after witnessing their fireworks last week, but San Francisco is still the best team in the NFC. They are on top for a very good reason. The Packers, just like Houston, have proven all they needed and wanted to prove this season.

Our remaining two NFL Playoffs matchups are a bit of an enigma. Detroit keeps scraping by and I have no idea what Buccaneers team will show up this week. Kansas City and Buffalo were supposed to be here, but they both have looked very vulnerable this season. Playing one another should be good football, but nothing has played out according to expectations. In fact, the only thing that has played out accordingly this season is that the conference championships will likely be all chalk. Baltimore/Houston versus Kansas City/Buffalo and San Francisco/Green Bay versus Detroit/Tampa Bay. Assuming you recognized the Lions continued improvement, this is pretty on the nose.

 

Meet our Writers:

Dan Salem is Lead Editor and Co-owner of BuzzChomp. He’s an award winning Actor, Director and Producer. Visit M Square Productions for his film work, or get lost in his old-school comedy on Pillow Talk TV. You can follow him on X, TikTok and Instagram. His latest film ‘Alone’ is now on Amazon.

Todd Salem is a Staff Writer and Contributing Editor at BuzzChomp. He’s also a champion of fantasy football and fantasy baseball, dominating leagues for over two decades. Comment below on his unfiltered opinions.

NFL Playoffs Photo Credits: cnn.com and oratoryprepomega.org via Getty Images

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