Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
For fans of 14 teams in the NFL, it is now the most stressful time of the year — the playoffs. Thankfully, I’m a Patriots fan so I just get to kick back and relax as the best teams in the league duke it out to see who gets to hoist the Lombardi Trophy.
0. The Kansas City Chiefs
Don’t let that blowout loss against the Broncos fool you, this Chiefs team is still going to three-peat. They only took that loss to lock down the No. 1 seed and keep a surging Bengals team out of the playoffs. This column will continue to feature the Kansas City Chiefs at rank 0 since the NFL appears to currently be rigged for the Chiefs to win it all. I will continue to refuse to have them take up a spot on the list of best teams in the league until they — by some miracle — don’t win a Super Bowl.
13. The Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers have disappointed me. I thought this team finally had it all put together for the first time since Big Ben’s prime. Instead, they skidded into the playoffs with four straight losses right into a matchup with their division rival — the Baltimore Ravens — who blew them out three weeks ago. This team still has a stout defense, and if Russell Wilson can connect on a few deep passes, they might just pull off the upset.
12. The Houston Texans
It would take a miracle for the Texans to pull off a win. Full stop. After putting up just 2 points on Christmas against the Ravens followed by a somehow close game against the first-overall pick-wielding Titans, this Texans team is grateful to be in the dance. That said, a healthy Nico Collins could be the difference-maker in their showdown with the Chargers.
11. The Denver Broncos
I don’t know what to make of the Broncos. On one hand, they absolutely obliterated the second-string defense that the Chiefs marched out last week. On the other hand, they failed twice at securing a playoff berth and were relying fully on the Chiefs to rest their starters to let them into the playoffs. If Zach Allen and the rest of this Broncos defense can put the clamps on Josh Allen like no other team has this season, they might just be able to avoid being bounced out in the first round.
10. The Green Bay Packers
The bad news for this Packers team is that Christian Watson is out for the rest of the season following an ACL tear in Week 18. The good news is that this team has more talented receivers than just him. The Packers have the opportunity to repeat the feat they pulled off last year and stun another NFC East team in the first round of the playoffs, considering that they are facing a seemingly hobbled Eagles team.
9. The Los Angeles Rams
The Rams should not have rested their starters last week. While they had their playoff spot secured, their loss to the Seahawks has them staring down a Vikings team looking to let out some frustration following last Sunday. This team has an amazing defense that has been holding opponents to single-digit scores the last few weeks to match their high-flying offense spearheaded by Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp. Hopefully resting them all means they’ll be ready to fire on all cylinders in their game against Minnesota.
8. The Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers have a lot to prove. This team has the opportunity to put their reputation of being notorious chokers of playoff games behind them with a dominant win over Houston. J.K. Dobbins is healthy and back in the mix at running back, adding a dimension to their offense that has been missing since Week 12. As long as they hold onto their lead once they get it, they should be a lock for the divisional round — and a rematch against the Chiefs.
7. The Washington Commanders
Jayden Daniels should win Offensive Rookie of the Year after dragging this Commanders team to the playoffs. In back-to-back weeks they completed a comeback against the Eagles and beat both the Falcons and the refs to secure their wild card spot. This team is putting it all together at the right time and could do some serious damage against the Buccaneers.
6. The Minnesota Vikings
This Vikings team is not going to hold anything back in the playoffs. After falling flat against the Lions to close out the season, they have to travel to the neutral site of Arizona to play the Rams who have already beat them once. All that seems to be on this team's mind is steamrolling whoever is in their way to get a rematch with the Lions. If they play like they did the first 17 weeks of the season, I don’t think the Rams stand a chance of beating them.
5. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers
I have been high on Tampa Bay all season, even when they weren’t in control of their division. This team has been playing good football all season despite injuries to multiple cornerstones of their team, and for the first time in forever, their offense has more dimension than just launching the ball downfield to Mike Evans. Bucky Irving has given this offense an added leg to stand on as they head into what looks to be the most entertaining matchup of the weekend against the Commanders.
4. The Philadelphia Eagles
This Eagles team has me scared heading into the playoffs. Following a close win against the Giants where they rested most of their starters, I wasn’t sure if Jalen Hurts was going to be playing in their matchup against the Packers. Since he and the rest of this dominant offense appear to be healthy and starting in their wild card matchup, I have no reason to believe this team won’t win their game against the Packers.
3. The Baltimore Ravens
I don’t think there’s a way the Ravens can lose this week. They’ve essentially played four games to close out the regular season that have served as tune-up games for the playoffs. Now they get to play against the Steelers — a team the Ravens blew out three weeks ago — to start the playoffs. Unless the Ravens have one of the most catastrophic chokes in NFL history, they’re almost guaranteed to be playing the Bills next week.
2. The Buffalo Bills
Similar to the Ravens, I almost feel like there’s no way the Bills can lose. They’re playing at home against a Broncos team that only managed to get into the playoffs due to the Chiefs marching out their B-team in Week 18. Josh Allen is an MVP front-runner for a reason, I see almost no scenario in which the Bills don’t roll the Broncos en route to the divisional round.
1. The Detroit Lions
The Lions aren’t playing this week after locking up the No. 1 seed and home field advantage throughout the playoffs, but I still think this is the team that will win it all. A week of rest is exactly what this team needed, and as more players return from injured reserve into their postseason run, their defense will only continue to get stronger after its dominant showing against the Vikings. It is my opinion that not only will the Lions play in the first Super Bowl in their franchise history, but they’ll be hoisting the Lombardi trophy unless the wheels fully come off the bus.
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