It’s time for the playoffs! There are some interesting match-ups this weekend and the Free-For-All contest is back for the NFL Wild Card games!
There will be four games played this weekend, so let’s take a look at the contenders.
Oakland Raiders at Houston Texans
The Raiders had everything going for them up until two weeks ago. They were 12-2 and in position to secure a bye week in the opening round of the playoffs – and even vie for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Then, their new star quarterback, Derek Carr, was injured and his season was over. The Raiders lost their two remaining games, they lost their division to the Kansas City Chiefs, and now they’re playing a road game against the Houston Texans to stay alive.
In their last game, the Raiders played both backup quarterbacks and struggled to move the ball. They couldn’t convert 3rd downs, they turned the ball over three times, and they managed to score only six points. Their defense gave up over 140 yards rushing to the Broncos and Denver was able to control the clock, having possession for over 35 minutes.
The Texans have struggled all season long on offense, but they’re fairly strong in the running game. Brock Osweiler will be getting the start against Oakland, despite being benched late in the season after struggling with efficiency and decision-making. Houston also has one of the top defenses in the league, which is what they rely on for most of their wins.
With a Raiders offense that’s missing its MVP, the game will come down to whether or not Oakland and their rookie quarterback, Connor Cook, can demonstrate that they’re capable of throwing the ball down the field. They still have two great receivers in Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper. If Cook can deliver the ball accurately to them, they’ll have a great shot at stealing this game. But if Houston can shut down the Oakland ground game and force Cook to throw into or over safety coverage all game long, the Raiders’ season will likely be over.
Detroit Lions at Seattle Seahawks
This should be a pretty straightforward match-up. Both teams have not been very good running the football this season, but both have excellent, experienced quarterbacks. The winner will be decided based on quarterback play – which means the advantage almost certainly goes to Seattle.
The Seahawks will be playing at home. It’ll be cold and rainy. They’ll have their loud fans. And they’ll have their typical defense...except one vital piece is still missing from it: their standout safety, Earl Thomas, who was lost to a season-ending injury last month. The Seahawks have a fantastic home record, but their last and only home loss was to the Arizona Cardinals just two weeks ago – when Thomas was out of the line-up. The Seahawks gave up several big plays, including an 80-yard touchdown pass.
Seattle still has one of the best quarterbacks in the league and some great receivers that can stretch the field. This should work well in their favor, as the Lions have really struggled on defense – giving up 73 points in the last two games alone. Detroit has lost three straight games, including a home loss to the Green Bay Packers on New Year’s Day.
If Matthew Stafford can handle the ball well in the cold and rain, he certainly has the potential to exploit the Seattle defense and put pressure on the Seahawks to score. But if the weather proves to be too much, the Lions don’t have a running game to make up for it, and things could get ugly very quickly.
Miami Dolphins at Pittsburgh Steelers
This might be the closest game to a “sure bet” this weekend. The Steelers have won seven straight games and have been quite dominant on offense. Their star running back, Le’Veon Bell, has looked amazing down the stretch when carrying the football. He has almost 1900 yards of offense this season and averages nearly five yards per carry. Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown have continued stretching defenses and putting a lot of points on the scoreboard.
Meanwhile, the Dolphins haven’t been too impressive on offense or defense, but they’ve been finding ways to win. Running back Jay Ajayi, at times, has looked rather spectacular, with three 200-yard rushing games this season. But he has also appeared pretty lackluster, rushing for less than 61 yards in five of the Dolphins’ last six games – and having an average of less than three yards per carry in three of those games. Ryan Tannehill has looked pretty good passing the ball this season, but he’ll be sitting out this week due to injury, which leaves Matt Moore as the starter. He has played well as a starter over the last three games, but the Dolphins suffered a 35-14 home loss to New England in his last outing, as the Dolphins were mostly unable to come up with any big plays downfield.
Roethlisberger and the Steelers offense shouldn’t have much trouble moving the ball against the Dolphins defense. On the other side of the ball, the Steelers defense should feel comfortable enough to take plenty of chances and will likely be able to get after Moore and Ajayi. Even if this game turns into a shootout, the advantage has to go to the home team for this one, with the more experienced and proven trio of Roethlisberger, Bell, and Antonio Brown.
New York Giants at Green Bay Packers
The final game of the weekend will be a classic match-up between two storied franchises and two great post-season quarterbacks.
The Giants haven’t played great on offense this year, but their defense has made up for it. Eli Manning has played well in the latter half of the season, other than the three interceptions he threw against the Eagles in week 16. However, the Giants haven’t had much production from their running backs this season and this has put a lot more pressure on Manning in the passing game. The Giants defense has played much better, but with Jason Pierre-Paul injured and likely out for this game and with Owamagbe Odighizuwa banged up, the Giants may struggle to put pressure on Aaron Rodgers.
On the other side of the field, the Packers have struggled on defense – sustaining a lot of injuries this season – but have made up for it on offense down the stretch. They come into this game with a six-game winning streak that includes wins against three other playoff teams (Houston, Detroit, and Seattle). Aaron Rodgers has been on fire, throwing 18 TDs and zero interceptions in his last seven games. He leads the NFL in touchdown passes with 40 and is in the top five in yards, completions, and QB rating. In addition to the passing production, Rodgers has another 369 yards rushing and an average of 5.5 yards per carry.
It’s going to be a cold game at Lambeau Field, with the high temperature forecast to be 14 degrees. This could be an NFL playoff classic...or it could be a Packer blowout. I’m leaning towards the latter.
Statistical Categories for the Free-For-All Contest
There will be five statistical categories for the four games this weekend. They are listed below, with current stats for each selection. Some numbers have been rounded for game accuracy. Statistics with decimal places can have game results with decimal places.
1. Houston Texans, QB Brock Osweiler, QB Rating: Season average is 72.2.
2. Seattle Seahawks, WR Doug Baldwin, Receiving Yards: Season average per game is 71.
3. Pittsburgh Steelers, RB Le’Veon Bell, Total Yards of Offense: Season average per game is 157.
4. Green Bay Packers, QB Aaron Rodgers, Passing Yards: Season average per game is 277.
5. Total Combined Turnovers by All Teams: Combined total per game for all eight teams is 10.
PLEASE NOTE: Accuracy matters! If a game statistic can have a decimal place, guessing closest to that decimal number can result in an outright win, rather than a tie and a split reward. On the other hand, it can also result in missing out on the tie and any potential rewards.
How to Play and Win
In a comment on this post, submit your predicted results in the order that they appear above. You can number your selections (1–5) as they are above or not, but if not, I will assume that they are in the correct order and the results will be checked in that order. ONLY ONE COMMENT SUBMISSION PER USER, PER CONTEST.
Once your comment is submitted, I will confirm it after the deadline for entering the contest. The deadline for submission this week is 12:00PM NEW YORK TIME (UTC -5) ON SATURDAY AFTERNOON. After submissions are confirmed by me, any new entries or edits to comments will automatically disqualify you from the contest. So make sure that you have accurately submitted your numbers before the deadline.
There will be one winner for each statistic. The winner will be the contestant closest to the actual final statistics from the game. There is no limit to the number of stat categories that you can win. Contestants can potentially win one or all of the categories.
The contest is funded with an initial minimum pot of 15 STEEM Dollars. Additional rewards will be determined after post payout. The total pot distribution will be divided evenly between the five statistical categories. Each category winner will receive 20% of the total pot. In the event of a tie, the pot will be split between the tying contestants for that category.
Do you think any of these teams will make it to the Super Bowl? Comments and game predictions are welcomed!
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Good luck!
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