Browns VS Texans
Final Score: Texans 45 Browns 14
Story going into the game:
Joe Flacco, Quarterback for the Cleveland Browns, was having a phenomenal few games leading up to the postseason. He happens to be the Baltimore Raven’s old QB, and if the Browns end up beating the Texans, he’d have to make his way to Baltimore to play his former team in the playoffs.
Not only is Flacco the old Ravens QB, but Deshaun Watson is the former Texans QB who ended up being traded to the Browns. Ultimately, he was going against his old team in the playoffs, like Flacco.
CJ Stroud, the new Texans QB, has the opportunity to become the youngest QB in NFL history to win a playoff game!
Adding on to the Texans, DeMeco Ryans will be coaching his first playoff game as a head coach.
Recap:
With the game starting, the Houston Texans were the first to put a score on the board. They unfortunately didn’t get a touchdown, but instead settled for a field goal making it 3-0 in the first quarter.
As soon as the Browns got possession of the ball after the field goal, they ended up leading the score by getting the first touchdown of the game, making it 7-3.
After CJ Stroud got possession of the ball again he ended up leading his team to a touchdown by the end of the first quarter, putting the Texans on top with 10-7.
The Browns had the ball at the beginning of the second
quarter. Joe Flacco made an outstanding throw leading his team to another touchdown.
As soon as the Texans got possession of the ball back, he threw it to Brevin Jordan which ran the ball 76 yards for a touchdown!
The Texans ended up holding the Browns offense, not allowing them to score
on their drives. The Texans got the ball back with less than 3 minutes of the second quarter left and Stroud ended up throwing a 37-yard touchdown to Dalton Schultz.
After halftime, the Browns got the ball back. After getting their downs, Flacco throws a pick-six to Nelson, which leads the Texans to yet another touchdown, making the score 31-14.
As soon as Flacco gets ahold of the ball again, he throws another pick-six to Harris, leading them to another touchdown. The Texans were then dominating the Browns, leaving the score at 14-38.
By the end of the game, the Texans managed to hold the Browns defensively and capitalized enough to score one last touchdown. The final score was 45-14.
Chiefs VS Dolphins
Final Score: Chiefs 26 Dolphins 7
The story going into the game:
Tyreek Hill, the new wide receiver for the Dolphins, helped lead his team to the playoffs.
Ironically after being traded from the Kansas City Chiefs, his first playoff match was against them.
After letting Hill go, the Chiefs offense has been heavily struggling, which could’ve potentially put them in danger in their upcoming match.
The match was at Arrowhead Stadium where the temperature dropped to -4 degrees Fahrenheit, causing it to be the coldest playoff match at Arrowhead Stadium in history.
Recap of game:
The Kansas City Chiefs receive the ball in the beginning of the game, and without hesitation, they make their way down the field and score the first touchdown 5 minutes into the first quarter.
With the score 7-0 at the end of the first quarter, Tagovailoa, Dolphins QB, throws an interception to Edwards.
The Chiefs ended up keeping the ball until the beginning of the second quarter and scored a field goal making the score 10-0.
The Dolphins get the ball back and Tagovailoa throws a 53-yard touchdown to Hill, the score is now 10-7.
The Chiefs gain possession of the ball again and continue to capitalize on drives.
With it being 4th and 4, Mahomes looks for a pass but ultimately runs the ball, getting the first down and a handful of extra yards.
After, Mahomes made a pass to Rice and he ended up in the endzone. The play ultimately got called back, and the Chiefs went for a field goal, making the score 13-7.
The Chief’s defense ends up holding the Dolphins, which gives the ball back to the Chiefs. Mahomes throws the ball to Rice, which gets them to the 27-yard line.
They couldn’t capitalize on their runs but they went for a 32-yard field goal, making the score 16-7 going into halftime.
The Chief’s defense continues to hold the Dolphin’s offense, and by the end of the game, the Chiefs score another touchdown and field goal, making the final score of this game 26-7.
Cowboys VS Packers
Final Score Packers 48 Cowboys 32
Story going into the game:
Mike McCarthy, head coach for the Cowboys, was the former head coach for the Packers from 2006-2018.
The last time the Packers and Cowboys played in the playoffs together was in 2017, when the Packers won 34-31. This game fundamentally caused the Infamous rivalry between the two teams.
Former Cowboys WR, Dez Bryant made a catch that was ruled incomplete which led them to lose the game.
Some say it was a catch, while others hotly debated that it wasn’t. This play ultimately led to a changed rule in the NFL playbook as to what the true definition of a catch is.
Recap of the game:
The Green Bay Packers got the ball at the beginning of the game, allowing Jordan Love to capitalize on plays.
On 3rd and 2, Love passed the ball to Jones, who got the first touchdown of the game, making the score 7-0.
The Cowboys got the ball shortly after, but couldn’t follow through on their plays, which made them punt the ball back to Green Bay.
After not scoring on their drive, the Cowboys got the ball back.
On 3rd and 5, Prescott throws an interception to Alexander, which gets them to the 19-yard line.
Meanwhile, Love continues to find connections with his players. On 2nd and goal, he hands the ball to Jones who ran the ball to the endzone, making the score 14-0.
The Cowboys get the ball back and get their downs, but on 3rd and 5, Prescott gets sacked by Keisean Nixon.
Next, The Packers get the ball back, and Love throws it deep to Doubs. Love makes another long throw to Wicks, which gets the Packers another touchdown. The score is now 20-0 with 5 minutes left in the second quarter.
Dak Prescott gets the ball back, and on 2nd and 2 he throws a pick-six to Savage. The Packers dominate with the score being 27-0.
Right before halftime, however, the Cowboys get the ball and get their first touchdown, making it 27-7 going into halftime.
After returning from halftime, the Cowboys gain possession of the ball. Following through on their drives, they get a 34-yard field goal, earning a new score of 27-10.
The Packers get repossession of the ball, and Love throws a touchdown to Jones, which extends their lead to 34-10.
During the 3rd quarter, each team managed to make phenomenal plays allowing each to put points on the board.
Going into the 4th quarter, the score is 41-16. Doubs made a touchdown in the 4th quarter, making the score 48-16.
Prescott ultimately leads his team to get 2 more touchdowns, and get their 2 point conversions making the score 48-32.
The Cowboy’s offense unfortunately didn’t capitalize after that, making the final score 48-32, advancing the Packers and kicking out the Cowboys.
Lions VS Rams
Final Score Lions 24 Rams 23
Story going into the game:
Matthew Stafford, Rams QB, went into this playoff match going against his former team, the Detroit Lions, for whom he played 12 seasons.
What’s even more ironic? The Lion’s new QB Jared Goff was the Ram’s old QB and played 4 seasons with them.
Goff and the Rams head coach, Sean McVay, have had tension between one another since Goff left the team. As soon as the 2020-2021 NFL season was over, McVay traded Goff for Stafford.
McVay didn’t feel like Goff could get him a title, and as the 2021 NFL season started, Stafford led the Rams to the Superbowl and was able to help them gain their 2nd ring.
The Lions are going into this playoff match hosting the game at their home stadium. It is the team’s first time winning NFC North.
Recap of the game:
The Lions got possession of the ball at the beginning of the first quarter and, Goff was able to find connections with his players, leading them down to the 2nd-yard line.
On 2nd and goal, Goff handed it off to Montgomery, who scored the first touchdown of the game. This made the score 7-0 at the beginning of the first quarter.
The Rams get the ball, and Stafford ends up getting a field goal on 4th and goal, making the score 7-3.
Before the 1st quarter ends, Goff gets another touchdown; passing it to Gibbs. Advancing in the lead, the score now stands 14-3.
The Lions have possession of the ball going into the 2nd quarter, and Stafford throws it deep to Nacua who ultimately scores a touchdown. 14-10 is now the score.
As soon as the Lions regain the ball, they make passes and run it to the 4th-yard line. They get to 4th and 1 and end up going for a touchdown, instead of opting for a field goal. Goff throws the ball to LaPorta, who scores in the endzone, bringing the score to 21-10.
Stafford gets the ball back and throws it to Atwell who runs 38 yards for a touchdown. The score going into halftime is 21-17.
The Rams get the ball after halftime ends and can’t capitalize on their plays.
The Lions get possession of the ball once more, and they go for a 54-yard field goal attempt and succeed. A new score 24-17 stand.
The Rams gain repossession, and they also go for a field goal. Just like the Lions, they succeed, making it a close 24-20 game.
The Rams get the ball again in the 4th quarter and get another field goal.
At the end of the game, the Lions come out with a victory, with a score of 24-23.
Bills VS Steelers
Final Score Bills 31 Steelers 17
Story going into the game:
The Bills and Steelers match was supposed to be played at 1 pm ET on Sunday, January 14th, but due to weather conditions, the game got postponed to January 15th at 4:30pm ET.
The weather was so poor, that the seats in the stadium were completely covered in snow. Due to this, fans were able to choose where they got to sit. This was only allowed because so many people did not attend the game that there was a ‘free range’ of seats.
Recap of the game:
At the beginning of the first quarter, the Steelers get possession of the ball but can’t capitalize on their plays, which leads them to punt the ball to the Bills.
As soon as the Bills get the ball, Josh Allen can find good connections with his players and get the ball to the 9-yard line. On 2nd and 7, Allen throws the ball to Hopkins and he scores the first touchdown of the game.
With a score of 7-0, the Steelers get the ball back but end up fumbling, so the Bills regain the ball.
Allen leads his team to another touchdown by throwing a 29-yard pass to Kincaid, extending their lead to make it 14-0.
The Steelers get the ball back and run it down to 2nd and goal. Rudolph ends up throwing an interception in the endzone to Elam.
The Bills get the ball back and Josh Allen runs 52 yards to score another touchdown.
This puts the Bills in the lead by 21 points. At the end of the 2nd quarter, the Bills go for a field but the Steelers block the ball and regain possession.
With this, Mason Rudolph gets his team to 2nd and 7 and throws the ball to Diontae Johnson who scores their first touchdown. This makes the score 21-7 going into halftime.
The Bills get the ball at the beginning of the 3rd quarter but they don’t capitalize on their plays, which makes them give the ball back to the Steelers.
The Steelers end up making a 40-yard field goal, putting them back on the board with the score being 21-10.
Bill gets the ball and ends up going for a 45-yard field goal and succeeding, giving them their first points back on the board since halftime.
As soon as the Steelers get their ball back, Rudolph leads them to 2nd and goal. He throws it to Austin III who scores a touchdown, making the score 24-17. Bills get the ball back and on 2nd and 9,
Allen throws it to Khalil Shakir, who gets them another touchdown. By the end of the game, the
score was 24-17 making the Bills the winner and kicking the Steelers out of the playoffs.
Buccaneers VS Eagles
Final Score Buccaneers 32 Eagles 9
Story going into the game:
Last year, the Eagles were able to beat the Buccaneers in the playoffs and got to advance. Not only did they beat the Buccaneers, they beat them when Tom Brady was still their QB. This upcoming game will be a rematch without Tom Brady. It’s also Jason Kelce’s last season before he retires.
Recap of the game:
The Buccaneers get possession of the ball first in the first quarter, then end up getting a 28-yard field goal attempt. This makes them the first to put points on the board, having the score be 3-0.
Eagles get the ball, but Jaire Alexander Hurts doesn’t find good connections with his players leading them to return the ball back to the Buccaneers.
Mayfield throws the ball to Moore, who runs the ball to the endzone. This extends the Buccaneers lead to 10-0.
At the beginning of the 2nd quarter, the Buccaneers go for a 54-yard field goal attempt and succeed, this allows them to extend their lead to 13-0.
Eagles get the ball and they end up going for a 47-yard field goal attempt and they make it. This gives them some points on the board, now having the score 13-3.
Buccaneers get possession of the ball back and run the ball to field goal range. They go for a 48-yard field goal attempt and the kick ends up being good. Making them lead the Eagles 16-3 with less than 6 min left of the 2nd quarter.
Eagles get the ball again and Hurts throws a 63-yard pass to DeVonta Smith getting them to the 5-yard line. Hurts passes the ball to Goedert who scores their first touchdown of the night. Unfortunately, they go for the 2-point conversion and miss, making the score 16-9 going into halftime.
With 2 minutes left in the 3rd quarter, the Eagles get a flag for Intentional Grounding allowing the Buccaneers to get to a safety. This gives them 2 more points, making the score 18-9.
The Buccaneers get possession of the ball and on 2nd and 4, Mayfield passes the ball to Palmer who runs it 56 yards for another touchdown. This makes the score 25-9 going into the 4th quarter.
The Eagles get possession of the ball but can’t capitalize on their plays so they’re forced to give the ball back to the Buccaneers.
Mayfield leads his team to 3rd and 7 and throws the ball 23 yards to Godwin who scores them another touchdown.
The final score of the game was 32-9, allowing the Buccaneers to advance and the Eagles to get kicked out.
