High action games continue to be produced by the NFL as the league nears the Super Bowl. As this season took one step closer to its conclusion, four more teams were eliminated during this weekend’s shenanigans. While the Ravens dominated the Texans, the other three games came down to the closing minutes.
Here is everything that went down during this season’s divisional round of the NFL:
Saturday
Houston Texans 10 – Baltimore Ravens 34
For three quarters of this matchup, the underdogs looked to be putting up a fight. That was until 17 points in the final quarter was enough for the Ravens to fly past the Texans and advance to their fifth AFC championship game. They were led by quarterback Lamar Jackson who made himself a clear MVP candidate. He tossed two touchdowns and earned two rushing touchdowns along with 100 rushing yards. Quarterback CJ Stroud failed to throw a touchdown and totaled 175 passing yards for Houston. He was unable to match Jackson’s abilities.
The game’s biggest play was earned by Texans’ receiver Steven Sims, who completed a 67 yard punt return in the second quarter for a touchdown. The Texans were hurt by a loss of 70 yards amongst 11 penalty flags, while Baltimore was only penalized 15 yards. Each team converted four of their 12 third downs, but the Ravens dominated the first down scene with 12 more. Neither team had a turnover. These sides have now played 14 times in history, with 12 going Baltimore’s way. It will look to continue its dominance next week as it hosts the Chiefs.
Green Bay Packers 21 – San Francisco 49ers 24
The 10th postseason matchup between these sides in history saw the winning drive with less than two minutes to spare. Both sides led, with Green Bay looking to be the superior team late. Things changed when running back Christian McCaffrey found the end zone for his second touchdown of the game in its closing minutes. The final drive saw Packers’ quarterback Jordan Love toss his second interception of the game, ultimately handing the win to San Francisco. Love also tossed two touchdowns, but was unable to come up big in the final act. Quarterback Brock Purdy threw a touchdown and 252 yards for San Francisco, but it was McCaffrey who made the difference. He totaled 98 rushing yards on the day along with his two touchdowns.
Green Bay finished the game with one more first down than its opponents and held the ball 30 seconds longer. It also earned one penalty to the 49ers’ six, where they lost 83 total yards. Each side converted over half of their third downs while the only fourth down attempt of the game was a failure by Green Bay. Each teams’ kicker missed one field goal. Of those 10 postseason games between each team, six have now gone San Francisco’s way. It will prepare to play the Lions in its third AFC championship in a row.
Sunday
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 23 – Detroit Lions 31
Whenever one team scored during this game, it was the others turn to do the exact same right after. It remained that way for three quarters until two touchdowns in the final frame sealed the deal for the Detroit Lions. Their final touchdown was thrown into the endzone by quarterback Jared Goff, who finished the day with two touchdown passes and 287 passing yards. Running back Jahmyr Gibbs also put on a show for the Lions with his rushing touchdown and 74 rushing yards across nine carries. Tampa Bay had the chance to come back in the closing minutes until its quarterback Baker Mayfield tossed his second interception of the game on the team’s final drive.
Mayfield finished the day with three touchdown passes but will ultimately be haunted by his mistakes. Only three more first downs were earned by the Lions, but they held the ball four minutes longer. Despite the loss, Tampa Bay finished with 17 more offensive yards than its opponents. The loss came down to Mayfield’s interceptions, as well as a missed kick from Buccaneers’ kicker Chase McLaughlin. The Lions will meet the 49ers in the NFC Championship. They have only defeated San Francisco once in the last 12 matchups.
Kansas City Chiefs 27 – Buffalo Bills 24
Bills’ kicker Tyler Bass booted the ball wide right in a chance to tie the game for his team which instead sent them right into the offseason. That was the only missed field goal attempt of the game. Bass opened the scoring for his team, but failed to help it in the closing minutes. Buffalo led at halftime but was held to only one touchdown in the second half. That play was led by quarterback Josh Allen who tossed the ball to receiver Khalil Shakir for a touchdown pass. Allen finished the game with two rushing touchdowns and led the team in rushing yards. As for the Chiefs, quarterback Patrick Mahomes tossed two touchdowns and completed 17 of 23 pass attempts.
Running back Isaiah Pacheco led the Chiefs in rushing yards with 97, as he also scored a rushing touchdown. The only turnover of the game saw Chiefs’ receiver Mecole Hardman lose the ball during a fourth quarter fumble. It did not lead to any points for Buffalo. Six more first downs were earned by the Bills while they also converted seven of their 14 third downs. The Chiefs only had one third down completion and held the ball 15 minutes less than Buffalo. In a game decided by a missed field goal, the Bills faced a pre-Super Bowl playoff elimination for the fifth season straight. A cold M&T Bank Stadium awaits the Chiefs next weekend as they have defeated the Ravens in four of their last five games.
