NFL Playoff Takeaways: Divisional Round

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You can watch TV shows to get all of the QB #discourse you desire, or you can read this, which will simply go over the games themselves.

Your call, really.

Chiefs defeat Texans 23-14

The Texans had more yards than the Chiefs. They had the ball longer than the Chiefs. They never turned the ball over.

They still lost.

And big reasons for that, are just the little things.

Missed field goals. Backbreaking sacks.

The Texans just aren’t at that “true contender” level yet, and that’s ok.

But it is the reality.

Commanders defeat Lions 45-31

Let’s get the first thing out of the way.

Jayden Daniels is straight up unbelievable. This may be the best rookie season from a quarterback I’ve seen in a long time.

But this game is about the Lions.

I had a feeling the injury bug would bite them, and it did.

But I didn’t think coaching would be as big of a problem as it was.

Two plays in particular stood out.

The first was when the Commanders faced a 4th down. A Lions stop here would be huge for their chances, as the score was 31-28 Commanders.

It’s 4th and 2. It’s a crucial down.

And the Lions get caught with too many men in the huddle.

A crucial mistake, which led to a Commanders touchdown.

The other was while they were down 38-28 with over 10 minutes left in the game.

It’s first down, and the Lions are averaging almost 10 yards per carry.

So, what’s the play call?

How about a wide receiver reverse pass where Jameson Williams carelessly throws an interception.

Huh???

I’m not saying those two plays are why the Lions loss. The Commanders were moving the ball very well.

But it sure as hell made things harder, and that’s disappointing to see from a coaching staff I had a lot of belief in.

Eagles defeat Rams 28-22

Jalen Hurts took too many dumb sacks. Nick Sirianni had some insanely weird play calls. Jake Elliott missed not one, but two extra points.

The Eagles, once again, did not look like anything special.

But the Eagles, once again, won.

And that’s because of their defense, who was absolutely massive even though they were missing star rookie cornerback Quinyon Mitchell.

Vic Fangio, take a bow.

Bills defeat Ravens 27-25

I had a feeling this was going to be Mark Andrews last season in Baltimore.

He’s about to be 30 in a position that takes a lot of hits, he’s going to cost about 7 million a year, and Isaiah Likely has become a good option at tight end for Baltimore.

Heading into the final year of his contract, he did feel like a cap casualty.

And if he is, Sunday night was a terrible way to go out.

People will remember the 2 point conversion drop to tie the game late.

People will remember the fumble after a big gain while down 24-19.

But what people may not remember is that Andrews had a crucial drop right before the Lamar Jackson fumble with the game tied at 7 in the first half.

It was a disastrous game for Andrews, and it came at the worst time, because the Bills wanted the Ravens to win.

Some of the second half play calling from Buffalo was atrocious.

A 3rd and 5 screen to Dawson Knox? Running Josh Allen out of the gun on 3rd down from the 1 to ice the game?

This was expected to be the game of the weekend.

Two great teams with MVP level quarterbacks at the peak of their powers, and I don’t think either played particularly well.

Allen was great in the first. Jackson great in the second.

But in the end, both teams tried their hardest to lose.

The Ravens just dug their hole earlier on.