#7 Green Bay Packers (9-8) AT #1 San Francisco 49ers (12-5)
The Green Bay Packers shocked the NFL world last weekend with a dominating win over the Dallas Cowboys. Every aspect of the Packers team played well in this blowout. QB Jordan Love had a historic playoff debut with 272 passing yards and 3 touchdowns with a 99.3 (out of 100) QBR – which is the highest QBR in playoff history, Love also tied fifth in the highest passer rating in playoff history with 157.2.
Another star who shined for Green Bay was second-year wide receiver Romeo Doubs, who grabbed 6 receptions for career-high 151 yards and a touchdown. The Packers’ run game, which is led by Aaron Jones, had a 3 touchdown day in Dallas. The Packers’ defense shut down Dak Prescott the Cowboys’ offense by getting 2 takeaways, one being an interception by Jaire Alexander in the first quarter, and another being a pick-six at the end of the half by Darnell Savage.
The San Francisco 49ers are coming off of their bye week and are looking to start strong and get a lead early since they are a different team when down. The 49ers have the most pro bowlers in the NFL with 9 on their team, so talent is not something they lack. All-Pro and Pro Bowl linebacker Fred Warner said on his podcast (“The Warner House”), “This is going to be a huge test this weekend, I’m not going to take [Jordan Love] lightly, I’m not going to take the Packers lightly. We are going to put a great week of preparation and it’s going to be one for the ages.”
A superstar in the backfield for the 49ers is Christian McCaffrey, who leads the league in rushing yards, is ranked second in total carries, and fourth in rushing touchdowns, McCaffrey is looking for a big day against the NFL’s 28th-rated run defense. San Francisco’s quarterback, Brock Purdy was the best statistic quarterback in the league this season, and is looking for his third playoff win as a starter for the 49ers.
The Packers are big underdogs this week (+9.5) but Packers’ head coach Matt LaFleur has the best win percentage as an underdog (17-12) in the Super Bowl era and the 49ers are 0-37 when trailing by 8+ points in the 4th quarter since coach Kyle Shanahan got the job in San Francisco.
#4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-8) AT #3 Detroit Lions (12-5)
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming off a wild card win over the Philadelphia Eagles, but now they have to go up north to Detroit to face the Lions. Tampa Bay’s quarterback, Baker Mayfield, who was listed as questionable coming into the game, is coming off a great outing where he went for 337 passing yards and 3 passing touchdowns to 3 different receivers (David Moore, Trey Palmer, Chris Godwin). However, the Eagles’ defense was one of the worst defenses in the NFL, and now Baker is going to have to step up and play just as well this week against a solid Lions defense.
One thing about the Buccaneers’ offense is the weapons they have in their wide receiver core, Chris Godwin and Mike Evans: both had over 1000+ receiving yards in the regular season. Tampa’s defense held the Eagles to 9 points and only let up 250 passing yards and 42 rushing yards.
The Detroit Lions beat the Los Angeles Rams in a nail-biter finish last Sunday, which was their first playoff victory since 1992. Quarterback Jared Goff had a solid day by throwing for 277 yards and a touchdown to Amon-Ra St Brown, but the run game was not particularly successful, only getting 79 yards total yards on the ground. The Lions’ defense is not a top 10 defense, but is not a bottom 10 either: they held the Rams to 23 points and are ranked 19th in the NFL, but they let up 367 yards and 2 touchdowns through the air. Head Coach Dan Campbell gave the game ball to Brad Holmes, who is the GM and Vice President of the Lions.
“Ever since this guy took his role in 2021 he had a vision,” Campbell said, to which Holmes added, “I love everybody in this room right now. The dark shaped up.”
The conversation suggests how connected this team is – how ride-or-die they are for each other.
On Sunday, we will see if the Lions‘ historic season can continue and make it an NFC Championship game appearance, or whether the Buccaneers will steal the last spot.