Wild Card Weekend is in the books, and we are off to the divisional round. The No. 1 seeds, who got the week off, are still the favorites to win Super Bowl LIX, but each wild-card winner gave us a reason to believe why they, too, could make a run.
The Houston Texans upset the Los Angeles Chargers, the Baltimore Ravens certainly look motivated to make the Super Bowl and the Washington Commanders won their first playoff game since the 2005 season! Which one of these teams can shock the NFL world? Below, we will list one reason why each team moving onto the next round is capable of playing February football in New Orleans.
Houston Texans: Defense
C.J. Stroud and Nico Collins probably headline the Texans, but Houston upset L.A. this past weekend because of the defense. According to CBS Sports Research, the Texans are the first team since the Ravens in Super Bowl XXXV to allow a sub-45% completion percentage while recording four interceptions and four sacks in a playoff game. Justin Herbert threw a whopping four interceptions in one game after throwing just three in the entire regular season. Maybe it shouldn't come as a surprise, since the Texans led the NFL in completion percentage allowed (59%) and ranked second in interceptions (19) during the regular season. DeMeco Ryans has this defense playing well, and they can really turn some heads if they shut down Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs this week.
Baltimore Ravens: Rushing attack
The Ravens were double-digit favorites over the rival Pittsburgh Steelers, and they indeed covered the spread with a 28-14 victory. Baltimore outrushed Pittsburgh 299-29. It was the third-best rushing yards differential (+270) in a playoff game all time.
Derrick Henry rushed 26 times for 186 yards and two touchdowns, while Lamar Jackson picked up 81 yards on 15 carries. Henry set an NFL record with his third playoff game recording 175 rushing yards, passing Terrell Davis of the Denver Broncos, and it took him just one game to set a Ravens franchise record for the most rushing yards in a playoff game.
Henry isn't your typical running back. He actually gets better as the season goes on. In 2019, he carried the Tennessee Titans to an AFC Championship appearance. Henry ended the Tom Brady New England Patriots dynasty with 182 rushing yards and a touchdown in the wild-card round, then upset the No. 1-seed Ravens on their home field with 195 rushing yards and a passing touchdown. Now that he's paired with Jackson and this Baltimore defense, the Ravens absolutely could make a "run."
Buffalo Bills: Efficient, multi-faceted offense
The Bills showed us on Sunday how they finished the regular season ranked top 10 in both rushing offense and passing offense. In the first half vs. the Broncos, the Bills leaned on the ground game, rushing for 126 total yards -- 78 of which came from James Cook. In the second half, we saw more of the passing attack, as Josh Allen threw two touchdowns, and racked up 203 of his 272 passing yards.
The Bills dominated time of possession, 41:43 to 18:17, because the Broncos defense couldn't get them off the field. On third and fourth downs, Allen completed 7 of 8 passing attempts for 143 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for five first downs on third and fourth downs in the first half. It was the most rushing first downs by any player in the first half of any game over the last 30 years.
Philadelphia Eagles: Defense
Let's be real: Jalen Hurts looked rusty in his return to the field on Sunday. A.J. Brown made just one catch, and even had time to read his "chicken soup for the soul" literature on the sideline. The Eagles defeated the Green Bay Packers thanks to their stingy defense.
Philly is the first team to allow 10 or fewer points in three straight home playoff games since the 2000-02 Eagles. Jordan Love threw three interceptions and zero touchdowns, while the Packers went 1 of 3 in the red zone. Green Bay's drive chart in the first half was comical: opening kickoff fumble, three-and-out, another punt, interception, missed field goal and then another interception.
Hurts, Brown and Saquon Barkley can pop off at any time, but when they are struggling, this Eagles defense can support them. Although, the loss of linebacker Nakobe Dean is a notable one.
Washington Commanders: Jayden Daniels
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft doesn't look very much like a rookie, does he? Jayden Daniels' Commanders became just the third team in NFL history to punt zero times while committing zero turnovers in a playoff game. In fact, Daniels already has more games in his career where his team punted zero times while committing zero turnovers (three games) than the combined careers of Tom Brady, Joe Montana, Peyton Manning and Mahomes (two games). Again, this is a first-year player we're talking about.
Daniels gives Washington a shot to make a legitimate run, not just because he's a dynamic playmaker but also because he comes up clutch in crunch time. Daniels has six total fourth-quarter comebacks, which is the most by a rookie quarterback since 1950. Just look at his fourth-quarter splits from this season:
| Daniels | First quarter-Third quarter | Fourth quarter/Overtime |
|---|---|---|
Completion percentage | 68% | 72% |
Passing TDs/INTs | 14/6 | 13/3 |
Yards per attempt | 7.2 | 8.1 |
Sack percentage | 10% | 5% |
Los Angeles Rams: An emerging defense
I say "emerging" because we are going to have to see more of this. The experienced Matthew Stafford gives the Rams their best shot at a Super Bowl, but if this defense is going to play like this, watch out. Against the Minnesota Vikings, the Rams tied an NFL playoff record with NINE sacks of Sam Darnold. This young defensive front didn't just have Darnold seeing ghosts, they had him locked up in the Haunted Mansion. Kobie Turner had two sacks, Neville Gallimore and Byron Young each had a sack and a half, Jared Verse got in on the action with a fumble recovery touchdown and defensive backs Ahkello Witherspoon and Cobie Durant were studs. Witherspoon recorded a sack and a forced fumble, and Durant had a sack plus an interception.
This unit will now have the opportunity to avenge its lackluster outing against the Eagles earlier this season, when the Rams allowed 481 yards of total offense and 314 rushing yards -- 255 of which came from Barkley. If the defense plays like they did on Monday night, the Rams could be NFC Championship-bound.
