The most closely followed month on the American sports calendar is finally here.
After a chaotic season that included tweaks to the postseason format after Bills safety Damar Hamlin’s scary injury in Week 17, the NFL has its 14-team playoff field. It includes old faces, like Buccaneers quarterback and elder statesman Tom Brady, and new blood, like the upstart Jaguars and Giants.
Here is one trend to keep an eye on in this weekend’s six wild-card games.
Seahawks at 49ers: Which unlikely playoff quarterback will come up big?
“They wrote me off, I ain’t write back though,” Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith memorably said in September after kicking off the best season of his well-traveled NFL career. Unbelievably, Smith might have the less compelling quarterback story in this game, as the 49ers are riding the final pick of the 2022 draft in Brock Purdy. In rainy Northern California conditions, which signal-caller rises to the occasion will decide this one.
Chargers at Jaguars: Los Angeles hoping to overcome Staley’s folly
Chargers coach Brandon Staley’s baffling decision to play his starters against the Broncos last week has already had cataclysmic consequences, as Los Angeles lost wide receiver Mike Williams for two to three weeks with a back fracture. Deprived of his top target this season by yardage, Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert will need to get creative against a hungry Jacksonville team.
Dolphins at Bills: Injuries will affect both teams in different ways
If both teams had healthy, normal 2022 seasons, this would rank as a high-quality divisional showdown. But the Dolphins are missing quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and the scepter of Hamlin’s collapse still looms around Buffalo. The Bills showed resolve by beating the Patriots last week on an emotional afternoon. Miami, meanwhile, will pin its hopes on seventh-round rookie quarterback Skylar Thompson.
Giants at Vikings: Who is “real”?
Prove-it games for both teams are relatively rare in the NFL playoffs, but both New York and the Vikings have dealt with questions this season. Minnesota has been discussed nearly as much for its -3 point differential as its 13-4 record in thinking fan circles; the Vikings had a better point differential last season (-1) when they went 8-9. The Giants, on the other hand, will look to validate their faith in quarterback Daniel Jones after the best season of his career.
Ravens at Bengals: High-octane offense versus stifling defense
The Ravens hired defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald away from Michigan in the offseason and got immediate results; they finished third in the NFL in points allowed and held steady without quarterback Lamar Jackson. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, however, has been his usual excellent self for most of 2022. Baltimore, relatively speaking, held him in check last week — can it repeat the feat in a more meaningful setting?
Buccaneers at Cowboys: Can Dallas shed its postseason monkey?
30 years have lapsed since the Cowboys won a playoff game on the road, in the 1992 NFC Championship against San Francisco. Their reward for a sensational 12-5 season is a trip to Florida to meet 8-9 Tampa Bay. Brady has vexed Dallas over the years — if quarterback Dak Prescott returns to form after an injury-marred season, the Cowboys could mount a deep playofff run.
