One more round down. Three more to go, including this weekend’s much anticipated Divisional Round. And nope, the Kansas City Chiefs are not part of the playoffs anymore. They got Andy Reid-ed again. In any case, there’s a good mixture of experienced and dark horses left in contention for the Super Bowl title. Let’s now take a look at what this writer thinks of this weekend’s games.
Expert Picks and Predictions for the NFL Divisional Round Weekend Games of the 2017-18 Season Playoffs
Atlanta Falcons (-3) vs Philadelphia Eagles (+3) : Saturday Jan 13 (4:35 PM EST)
By now, you might have heard plenty of people explain why the Eagles remain a dangerous opponents even without Carson Wentz. No matter how much they break it down, though, Nick Foles is still who Philly has under center. If Atlanta can silence the Los Angeles Rams’ offense – which the Falcons did last week – then they are very much capable of doing that to a Foles-led Eagles. Matt Ryan just has too much advantage in playoffs experience to let Atlanta down in this game.
Prediction: Atlanta wins, 24-21.
Tennessee Titans (+13.5) vs New England Patriots (-13.5) : Saturday Jan 13 (8:15 PM EST)
Marcus Mariota was still watching Spongebob Squarepants or whatever cartoons were on the tube back in the early 2000s when Tom Brady began destroying teams in the playoffs. Sure the Titans beat the favored Kansas City Chiefs in the wild-card round, but unlike the Chiefs, the Patriots are not coached by Andy Reid. The Patriots are going to have full control of this game from start to finish. Brady and the Pats’ offensive line will have to be wary of the Titans’ pass rushers, though.
Prediction: New England wins, 28-17
Jacksonville Jaguars (+7) vs Pittsburgh Steelers (-7) : Saturday Jan 14 (1:05 PM EST)
Whether you believe Blake Bortles is trash or not, the fact of the matter is that the Jaguars are still alive and in contention for the Super Bowl. That’s largely because of their defense, however, with some help of course from the marginally improved play of Bortles. Ben Roethlisberger threw five interceptions in a loss to Jacksonville back in the regular season, which speaks volumes about how deadly the Jags’ stop unit is. Still, the Steelers are a team capable of coming back stronger in a rematch. They still have a deadly offense powered by Antonio Brown, whom the Jags weren’t able to solve in the first meeting.
Prediction: Pittsburgh wins, 21-14.
New Orleans Saints (+3.5) vs Minnesota Vikings (-3.5) : Sunday Jan 14 (4:40 PM EST)
For some reason, Drew Brees does not get enough recognition this season. He does not care, though. All he wants for now is to beat the Vikings, whose defense will have its hands full against Brees, who dissected the Carolina Panthers’ stop unit for 376 yards and two touchdowns in the wild-card round. Case Keenum has done an admirable job of directing the Vikings’ offense, but it looks the Vikings are going home early.
Prediction: New Orleans wins, 25-21.
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