As we close in on the NFL playoffs, I thought I’d give my two cents on who I think is going to Vegas and who I believe is walking away with the Lombardi Trophy. I’d love to say the Bengals are winning it all but following disastrous losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Kansas City Chiefs, the Bengals were eliminated from playoff contention.
The teams who clinched a playoff spot in the AFC are the (1) Baltimore Ravens, the (2) Buffalo Bills, (3) the Kansas City Chiefs, (4) Houston Texans, (5) the Cleveland Browns, (6) the Miami Dolphins, and (7) the Pittsburgh Steelers.
In the NFC, the San Francisco 49ers hold the top spot followed by (2) the Dallas Cowboys, (3) the Detroit Lions, (4) the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, (5) the Philadelphia Eagles, the (6) Los Angeles Rams, and (7) the Green Bay Packers.
The teams I believe that won’t make it past the wildcard round are the Steelers, the Texans, the Dolphins, the Packers, the Rams, and the Eagles. The Eagles have for the most part played well this year but have lost some recent games to highly underperforming teams. To me, this shows that they are a beatable team for anybody in the league, even the Bucs.
That leaves the Bills, Browns, Chiefs, Ravens, Cowboys, Lions, Buccaneers, and the 49ers to play in the divisional round.
The matchups for the divisional round have obviously not been determined, so what teams will make it to the conference championship is somewhat dependent upon who plays who. However, I will still make my predictions.
The Browns have been plagued with injuries, heading into the playoffs with their fourth-string quarterback, Joe Flacco. Flacco has had somewhat of a magical run since returning to the league in November but I don’t believe they have enough healthy players to make it to the championship.
In recent years I would say otherwise, but with Kansas lacking the same explosive offense they had in years prior, I find it unlikely that we will be able to overcome the divisional round.
The Baltimore Ravens have been Superbowl contenders and are currently the AFC favorite to make it to the Superbowl. They led the conference giving them a bye week. The Ravens have appeared unstoppable this year especially taking into account the fact that they play in the most competitive division in the league. Without a doubt in my mind, the Ravens are advancing past the divisional.
The Bills had a rocky start to the season but as the weeks progressed they were able to pull together and successfully make a playoff push. The Bills’ resolve has made me believe they have what it takes to make it to the AFC Conference Championship.
But the championship is where I believe the Bills’ success will die. The Bills have a good football team, no doubt, but the Ravens are blatantly the better of the two. I expect it to be a close game but the Ravens will be on the side of the victors.
In the divisional round of the NFC, I believe it won’t be as competitive. The Lions have had an outstanding season in comparison to past seasons. But, the Lions haven’t faced the toughest schedule this year, with most of their wins coming off of teams under .500. The Lions have had a good season but I don’t see this as the year they go to the Super Bowl.
If the Bucs can manage to knock off the Eagles I firmly believe they will lose in the conference round.
That leaves the Conference Championship at 49ers Vs. the Cowboys. Both teams are very good and I could see either team making it to the Superbowl but I believe that the 49ers have the edge on the Cowboys.
In the Super Bowl matchup, I see the Ravens winning. They have had to face some of the best during the regular season and looked like the best team in the NFL during the regular season. It’s up to Lamar Jackson and the Ravens to prove it.