NFL: 10 stories to watch in the first round of the playoffs

Forget Christmas! Forget summer vacation! This weekend marks the start of the most magnificent time of the year with the start of the NFL playoffs. The Chargers and Texans will kick off hostilities on Saturday (4:30 p.m.) in Houston, followed by the Steelers and Ravens in Baltimore (8 p.m.). Sunday, the Bills host the Broncos in Buffalo (1 p.m.), while the Packers visit the Eagles in Philadelphia (4:30 p.m.) and the Commanders will be at the Buccaneers in Tampa in the evening (8 p.m.). The Vikings and Rams will close the first round on Monday in Los Angeles (8 p.m.). To whet your appetite, here are 10 stories to watch.

1) Lamar and his demons

It hurts my heart to look back on Lamar Jackson’s poor performances in the playoffs because he has become quite the quarterback, who continues to improve, since his resounding arrival in the NFL in 2018. The fact remains that The Ravens pivot’s failures during the annual January tournament are not an urban legend. In six career playoff games, his record is two wins and four losses. He’s obviously not single-handedly responsible for the losses or wins, but his nine turnovers don’t help his cause. Only once, last year against the Texans, did the Ravens score more than 20 points under his leadership. Only three times did he complete at least 55% of his passes. He conceded 26 quarterback sacks.

2) Beautiful parity

Of the 14 teams taking part in the playoffs, eight have won at least one Super Bowl since 2000. However, we should not believe that the candidates are always the same, year after year. On the contrary, again this year, we realize that parity in the NFL means that we can quickly knock on the door. Two bottom teams last year, the Commanders and Chargers, were drafted in the top 5 in the spring and are already in the playoffs. Moreover, in 21 of the last 23 seasons, at least one team that chose in the top 5 of the draft found itself in the playoffs a few months later. Over the past 35 years, at least four teams have earned a playoff berth after being left out the previous season. So the merry-go-round is still running!

3) Spotlight on young people

Two rookie quarterbacks will be making their first playoff start. They are Jayden Daniels with the Commanders, against the Buccaneers, as well as Bo Nix, from the Broncos, who will face the Bills. Although it is not easy to win a playoff match with the lack of experience displayed by the rookies, know that both will evolve on the road. In playoff history, only three rookie quarterbacks have won their first start on the road. The most recent was Russell Wilson with the Seahawks in 2012. So it’s a 12-year drought that continues. The other two before him were Joe Flacco, with the Ravens, in 2008, and Mark Sanchez, with the Jets, a year later.

4) The bad luck of the Vikings

The rules being what they are, the division champions in each conference are the hosts of the games, regardless of the record of the teams involved. This is why the Vikings, despite their excellent record of 14 wins and three losses, must still take the road to Los Angeles, even if they have four more wins than the Rams. The Mauves finished behind Detroit in the strongest division. If you think this isn’t significant, think again. In history, only seven times has a team had to visit another after having signed four more victories. In five cases, it was the host team, with the worst record, which won. Consolation for the Vikings, the 2022 Cowboys and the 2020 Buccaneers were the last two teams to experience this situation and are the only two to have won.

5) The year of a great first?

The Super Bowl has been the NFL’s championship since the 1966 season and its 59th^e edition, there are still 12 teams who have not experienced the great honor of winning the ultimate match. This year, five of these teams are in the running for the Vince Lombardi Trophy: the Bills, Chargers, Texans, Lions and Vikings. All but the Lions are in action in the first round. The Texans, born in 2002, have never set foot there. The Bills experienced four Super Bowls in a row, from 1990 to 1993, but have been patient since. The Chargers followed after the 1994 season, but were demolished by the 49ers. The Vikings, like the Bills, were defeated four times in the big game, at the end of the seasons of 1969, 1973, 1974 and 1976.

6) It’s hard to be a quarterback!

Quarterbacks are very often judged by their performance in the playoffs. However, very few of them experience success on a sustained basis. Of the 14 quarterbacks participating in the big dance this year, only two have winning records. Patrick Mahomes, whose Chiefs are enjoying a reprieve in the first round, is flying around the world with a 15-3 record. The only other with a positive performance is Russell Wilson (Steelers), who built a 9-7 record during his years in Seattle and will be in his first playoff game since. Josh Allen (5-5), Jared Goff (4-4), Matthew Stafford (4-4), Baker Mayfield (2-2), Jordan Love (1-1), CJ Stroud (1-1), Jalen Hurts (2-3), Lamar Jackson (2-4) and Justin Herbert (0-1) prove that postseason life is often cruel. Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix and Sam Darnold will be making their first start.

7) Nightmare, bad luck…

50 years ago, Robert Charlebois launched his success Nightmare, in which he said he started drinking because of the omnipresence of his mother-in-law. Nowadays, his tune “Nightmare, bad luck” could apply to the teams that have just faced the Lions. Indeed, clubs that have played against Detroit this season are 6-10 the following week, with a point differential of -108. It goes to show that a match against the Lions saps a lot of energy! Three of the six wins recorded after games against the Lions were against the poor Patriots, Bears and Cowboys. Remember that the Lions’ last opponents last week, to close the season, were the Vikings, who are playing this week…

8) Who will surprise?

In the playoffs, you have to expect the unexpected. Obviously the teams that benefit from a better ranking in their conference, in this case the Chiefs and the Lions, have a more favorable path. Over the past four years, half of the number one teams have reached the Super Bowl, but only one, the 2022 Chiefs, has taken home the top honors. Last year’s Chiefs were champions even though they were third in their conference. In 2021, the Rams won everything even though they were fourth. The year before, the Buccaneers were fifth before winning it all. Who will cause the surprise this year among the first round teams?

9) No thugs!

Often in the past, teams that finished the season with only seven, eight or nine wins managed to sneak into the playoffs by winning a weak division, lamely. This time, we can say: out, the thugs! Indeed, for the first time since 2012, all qualified teams claim at least 10 victories. It’s also nice to see some ghosts again. The Broncos have not been in the table since their last Super Bowl, in 2015. The Commanders have signed 12 victories, a first since 1991. The Chargers are in the playoffs for only the third time in 11 years.

10) A great divisional rivalry

The Steelers will face the Ravens in what is the fiercest rivalry in the NFL. This will be the fifth elimination duel between these two sworn enemies of the Northern division. Moreover, the Steelers have become regulars over time in playoff games against division rivals, having experienced 12 in their rich history, showing a sparkling 10-2 record in these games. Against the Ravens, to date, their playoff record is 3-1, with victories in 2001, 2008 and 2010. The Ravens won the most recent shock, in 2014. The duel will take place in Baltimore, where the Steelers have won six of the last eight regular season duels.