Let’s Get Wild

01/13/2023

By: Jeff Yoder

Happy Friday 

It’s time for some playoff football, and we’re going deep into preview mode for each game on the schedule for Super Wild Card Weekend. Two AFC teams are without starting QBs and the Eagles and Chiefs are waiting in Round 2. Who can win 3-4 games in a row and capture the Lombardi Trophy? Let’s find out.

Letter Rip!

 

NFL PLAYOFFS

Let’s Get Wild

Previewing All 6 Games on the Schedule for Super Wild Card Weekend

 

It’s time. Are you ready? The NFL’s 18-week sprint to the postseason has concluded, and 14 teams are left standing at the gates of Super Bowl LVII. The new playoff format features byes for the 1-seeds — Eagles (NFC) and Chiefs (AFC) — while Super Wild Card Weekend trims the field from 14 to 8. The weekend ahead holds three inter-divisional rivalries with postseason flavor, and it concludes with Brady and the Bucs hosting the Cowboys. Does it get better than that? Let’s go deep into each playoff matchup with breakdowns, x-factors, odds, and more…

 

NFL Super Wild Card Weekend

 

#7 Seahawks (9-8) at #2 49ers (13-4)

Geno Smith and the underdog ‘Hawks snuck into the postseason in Week 18, but their consolation prize is a trip down the coast to San Francisco where the 49ers have won 10 straight games. Third-string QB Brock Purdy (1,374 yards, 13 TDs, 4 INTs) has stepped in and managed the 49ers efficiently while letting the offensive weapons and defensive juggernauts take over games. The addition of RB Christian McCaffrey — 10 TDs in 10 games — has lifted San Fran to new heights. The Niners won both regular-season meetings. Expect a quick rout in the Bay, but anything can happen.

 

Schedule: Saturday, 4:35 pm ET

Odds: 49ers (-9.5)

Our Prediction: 49ers def. Seahawks (27-13)

 

#5 Chargers (10-7) at #4 Jaguars (9-8)

The Chargers enter the playoffs winners in four of their last five, but they haven’t faced a tough opponent since before Thanksgiving. Meanwhile, the Jaguars ended the year with five straight wins as Doug Pederson and Trevor Lawrence have appeared to figure things out. Justin Herbert (4,739 yards, 25 TDs, 10 INTs) and Lawrence (4,113 yards, 25 TDs, 8 INTs) boast comparable numbers and team records, but Jacksonville blasted L.A. in their head-to-head matchup back in September (38-10). Lawrence threw for 3 TDs in the rout. The Chargers are the favorites, but it’s in Jacksonville. We like the upset here.

 

Schedule: Saturday, 8:15 pm ET

Odds: Chargers (-2.5)

Our Prediction: Jaguars def. Chargers (31-28)

 

#7 Dolphins (9-8) at #2 Bills (13-3)

The most lopsided matchup will take place in Buffalo where the Bills welcome the Dolphins to upstate New York in January weather. Without QB Tua Tagovailoa due to concussion protocols, Miami will turn to third-string rookie QB Skylar Thompson. The Bills are riding a nine-game win streak and the energy of Damar Hamlin’s recovery towards a storybook playoff run. QB Josh Allen (42 total TDs) has become a bonafide superstar in Year 5, and he has the Bills ready to explode in Round 1 of the postseason. We’re calling this an early no-contest.

 

Schedule: Sunday, 1:00 pm ET

Odds: Bills (-13.5)

Our Prediction: Bills def. Dolphins (37-10)

 

#6 Giants (9-7-1) at #3 Vikings (13-4)

The third entry of the NFC East stuttered into the postseason with a 2-5-1 record in the second half of the season. One of those losses came in Minnesota on a last-second field goal (27-24). The Vikings have been a great story all year long, but QB Kirk Cousins is 1-3 in his career in the playoffs — but that was before the emergence of WR Justin Jefferson — and the Giants will have RB Saquon Barkley getting his first taste of playoff football. Barkley had 133 yards and 1 TD against Minnesota’s suspect rush defense in December. We like another tight one with the Giants pulling off the game-winning field goal this time around.

 

Schedule: Sunday, 4:30 pm ET

Odds: Vikings (-3)

Our Prediction: Giants def. Vikings (23-20)

 

#6 Ravens (10-7) at #3 Bengals (12-4)

The third-hottest team to open the postseason resides in Cincinnati where Joe Burrow and the Bengals haven’t lost since October. Baltimore is still without QB Lamar Jackson who missed his third week of practice with a lingering knee injury. He’s unlikely for Sunday’s game, which gives Burrow and the Bengals all the juice at home. Burrow’s postseason pedigree speaks for itself after leading LSU’s title run and the Bengals to the Super Bowl last season in his second year. We’ve got Cincinnati by a wide margin.

 

Schedule: Sunday, 8:15 pm ET

Odds: Bengals (-8.5)

Our Prediction: Bengals def. Ravens (35-20)

 

#5 Cowboys (12-5) at #4 Buccaneers (8-9)

The most enticing game to pick this weekend falls on Monday where Tom Brady and the Bucs host America’s team. The Cowboys are the better squad with a defense that has turned heads in spurts this season, but their inconsistency brings question marks. The Bucs have been rocky all year. They’re the only team under .500 in the playoffs, but Brady in January needs no over-analysis. Dak Prescott (15 INTs) leads the NFL in interceptions this season despite missing multiple weeks. I don’t trust Dallas in the playoffs, especially in Bradyland. The Cowboys are favored, but we like the Bucs in a vintage Brady-comeback nail-biter.

 

Schedule: Monday, 8:15 pm ET

Odds: Cowboys (-2.5)

Our Prediction: Buccaneers def. Cowboys (24-23)

 

Get ready. Super Wild Card Weekend has arrived.

*All links to preview videos

 

Additional Storylines

SI: NFL Playoffs Preview: How All 14 Teams Can Reach the Super Bowl

CBS Sports: NFL Playoff Bracket: Predicting Every Game — Bills Top Eagles in SBLVII

FOX Sports: NFL Playoff Preview: Biggest Strengths, Question Marks for All 14 Teams

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NCAA

Countdown to March

Analyzing Who’s Who in the NCAA Race for the 1-Lines

 

As another week comes to a close, the NCAA Tournament is drawing near. Selection Sunday is just two months away, and we now have a clear picture of who’s who in college hoops. Here’s a look at the top four lines if the tournament brackets were revealed today, plus highlights from last night’s action.

 

NCAA Men’s Bracketology

1-Line: Houston, Kansas, Purdue, Alabama

2-Line: Tennessee, UConn, UCLA, Gonzaga

3-Line: Arizona, Texas, Kansas State, Xavier

4-Line: Virginia, Iowa State, Arkansas, Miami

 

NCAA Women’s Bracketology

1-Line: South Carolina, Stanford, Ohio State, UConn

2-Line: LSU, Indiana, Notre Dame, UCLA

3-Line: Maryland, Utah, NC State, Iowa

4-Line: Virginia Tech, Arizona, Iowa State, Duke

 

NCAA Men’s Highlights

#7 UCLA def. Utah (68-49)

#8 Gonzaga def. BYU (75-74)

#9 Arizona def. Oregon State (86-74)

 

NCAA Women’s Highlights

#1 S. Carolina def. Kentucky (95-66)

#5 LSU def. Missouri (77-57)

#6 Indiana def. #9 Maryland (68-61)

#7 Notre Dame def. Wake Forest (86-47)

Florida State def. #11 NC State (91-72)

 

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