Welcome back, ladies!
It’s Vinisha again, your resident NFL expert back with another Girl’s Guide to the 24-25 NFL season. Today, we will recap the highlights of weeks 9-11 of the NFL season. We are over halfway done with the 18-week season! Post-season playoffs are just around the corner and each team is fighting relentlessly for a spot to compete in Super Bowl LVIII.
With that, let’s get into our NFL Lesson of the Day — the NFL Playoffs!
nFL LESSON OF THE DAY
The NFL playoffs consist of four rounds with the winner hoisting the coveted Lombardi trophy. The top fourteen teams (7 from the NFC and 7 from the AFC) qualify for the playoffs. The playoff format can be hard to understand on first listen, so bear with me!
Each conference has four divisions made up by four teams each. The top four teams from each conference that make it to the playoffs are the four divisional winners meaning the team with the highest record in each division. The divisional winning teams’ records are them compared to rank the teams from the first seed to the fourth seed. A team’s best bet at making the playoffs is winning their division.
But this isn’t fair! What if my division is far more competitive and stronger than another division? Don’t fret! There are three spots left for other teams, known as wild card teams, in each conference. The remaining three spots are awarded to three non-division winning teams with the best records in the conference.
This is a ranked list of the teams from each conference that qualify for the playoffs.
1) Best record in the NFC or AFC (otherwise known as the divisional winner with the best record)
2) Division winner — second-best record
3) Division winner — third-best record
4) Division winner — fourth-best record
5) Best record for Wild-Card teams
6) Second-best record for Wild-Card teams
7) Third-best record for Wild Card teams
Now that we know which teams qualify for the playoffs, let’s talk about the postseason game format. In order, here is the sequence of playoff rounds:
- Wild Card Round
- Divisional Round
- NFC & AFC Conference Championship Round
- Super Bowl
The first-seed team in both conferences has a major advantage; they get an automatic bye and free pass to the second round of the playoffs. The wild card round consists of games played between the 2nd vs. 7th seed, 3rd vs. 6th seed, and 4th vs. 5th seed with the higher seeded team having home-field advantage.
After the wild card round, four teams are left in each division. The lowest remaining seed will play the highest seed with the two middle ranked teams playing each other. The winner of those games will match up in the conference championship. Lastly, the two winners of each conference championship will play in Super Bowl LVIII this year in New Orleans.
Now that we know what to look forward to after the regular season, let’s jump into some game recaps!
WEEK 9
New York Jets vs. Houston Texans
21-13, Jets
Despite the Texans’ hot start to the season, they have been struggling for the past three weeks, and this game didn’t show otherwise. With Texans QB C.J. Stroud getting sacked eight times, the offensive line did not give their key players room to get the offense going. The Texans shot any chance of a victory down to the ground with kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn missing two key field goal attempts. While the Jets had a terrible first half, unable to put up any points, they turned the page by scoring on three consecutive touchdown drives. It appears that the Jets’ new acquisition WR Davante Adams whom they acquired from a trade with the Las Vegas Raiders is starting to pay off.
Buffalo Bills vs. Miami Dolphins
30-27, Bills
The Bills narrowly scraped by with a win on the backs of their kicker Tyler Bass who drilled a 61-yard field goal just as time expired. With both teams exchanging touchdowns and field goals, the game came down to the last few minutes of the fourth quarter. For Miami, RB De’Von Achane and WR Tyreek Hill led the balanced offensive effort against Bills QB Josh Allen and his arsenal of offensive weapons. Unfortunately, Miami’s efforts fell short after Jalen’s Waddle touchdown giving the Bills the ball back with 1:38 left in the fourth quarter.
Carolina Panthers vs. New Orleans Saints
23-22, Panthers
After blowing out two teams in the first few weeks, the Saints look to be the opposite team they were at the beginning of the season. This was Saints’ QB Derek Carr’s first game back after a few weeks off dealing with an oblique injury, and he struggled immensely. It didn’t help that Saints star Chris Olave left the field with an apparent concussion during the first quarter. On the other side, panthers QB Bryce Young and RB Chubba Hubbard connected well throughout the game including on the game-winning touchdown. The Saints have since fired their coach Dennis Allen after losing seven consecutive games.
WEEK 10
Cincinnati Bengals vs. Baltimore Ravens
35-34, Ravens
For the second time this season, these divisional rivals went head-to-head in a fierce battle. The Bengals came out with a convincing lead causing the Ravens to tail by 21-7 in the third quarter. Ja’Marr Chase had a sensational game receiving for 264 yards and 3 touchdowns. However, this deficit did not keep Ravens QB Lamar Jackson from leading his team to a win. Connecting with Mark Andrews and Rashod Bateman on touchdown passes, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens took the lead. While the Bengals scored a last-minute touchdown, they failed to score on a two-point conversion that would have sent the game to overtime.
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Denver Broncos
16-14, Chiefs
The Broncos’ defense put the Chiefs’ offense to the test by limiting the Chiefs to only scoring one touchdown. Broncos rookie QB Bo Nix had a stellar first half throwing for two touchdowns. However, the Chiefs’ defense held them scoreless for the rest of the game.
Remember when I told you special teams were important? The Chiefs were about to lose as the Broncos stepped up to convert a field goal at the end of the 4th quarter that would secure them a win. However, defender Leo Chenal came up big to block the field goal, ensuring the Chiefs remained undefeated for another week. This win was unsettling for the Chiefs – showing them how injured and incomplete their offense is.
Philadelphia Eagles vs. Dallas Cowboys
34-6, Eagles
For the first time since 2017, the Eagles defeated the Cowboys in Dallas. With Cowboys QB Dak Prescott out after undergoing season-ending hamstring repair surgery, the team looked even more disorganized. With backup QB Cooper Rush racking up five turnovers for the Cowboys, QB Trey Lance was put into the game instead and neither QB provided results for the team. Meanwhile, the Eagles, led by QB Jalen Hurts, looked like a well-oiled offensive machine. This win officially put the Eagles at the top of the NFC East.
At one point during the game, Cooper Rush threw the ball to WR CeeDee Lamb in the end zone for a touchdown. Lamb missed the wide-open pass. When asked about the missed catch post-game, Lamb expressed that he couldn’t see the ball due to the sun’s glare coming from the floor-to-ceiling windows in AT&T stadium. When asked about covering the windows, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones furiously responded, “Well let’s tear the stadium down and build another one?” The Cowboys organization from top to bottom seems to be in shambles.
49ers vs. Buccaneers
23-20, 49ers
CMC is back!!! After 10 weeks of dealing with Achilles tendinitis, 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey finally made his season debut. Despite CMC’s return, the 49ers were in disarray. After 49ers kicker Jake Moody missed three straight field goals, WR Deebo Samuel and a few special teams members got into a sideline scuffle. Bucs QB Baker Mayfield had a rather lackluster game throwing for a mere 116 yards and one touchdown. With injuries to TE Mike Evan and WR Chris Godwin, the Buccaneers seemed to have lost their offensive momentum. Despite the tension on the sidelines, the 49ers QB Brock Purdy connected with TE George Kittle for a touchdown allowing the 49ers to narrowly scrape by with a win.
WEEK 11
Kanas City Chiefs vs. Buffalo Bills
30-21, Bills
And for the first time this season, the Chiefs are taken down! Whether in the regular season or the playoffs, a Chiefs vs. Bills game is always filled with fun, angst, and lots of screaming. Still feeling the effects of injuries to notable players including RB Isaiah Pacheco, WR Rashee Rice, and WR Hollywood Brown, the Chiefs took on a rather healthy Bills team riding a lot of momentum. The Bills defense completely shut down the run game by limiting the Chiefs to only 78 rushing yards. While WR Xavier Worthy and TE Noah Gray stepped up to the plate combining for three touchdowns, it wasn’t enough to stop the Bills. Led by powerhouse QB Josh Allen, WR Khalil Shakir, and WR Curtis Samuel, the Bills tired out the Chiefs defense. The Bills might have won this game, but I look forward to these teams potentially matching up in the playoffs.
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Baltimore Ravens
18-16, Steelers
In a fierce divisional matchup, the Steelers cement their place this week at the top of the AFC North leaderboard. The Steelers defense was lights out! Between forcing Ravens RB Derrick Henry to fumble the ball for the first time in over 500 carries and forcing penalties/miscues, the Ravens could not seem to get their offense going. The Ravens’ defense ultimately kept them in the game by intercepting the ball in the end zone against Steelers QB Russell Wilson and forcing field goals. Ravens kicker Justin Tucker continues his streak of misfortune as he missed two consecutive field goals. Despite Tucker not converting the field goals, the Ravens had a chance to tie the game at the end of the fourth quarter with a two-point conversion. However, the Steelers’ defense held them off and won – putting them two games ahead of the Ravens in the standings.
Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears
20-19, Packers
Coming off of a divisional loss to the Lions, the Packers were looking to defeat another divisional opponent. With QB Jordan Love connecting with WR Christian Watson for a few big-time plays, the Packers were able to keep the Bears at arm’s length. Rookie QB Caleb Williams for the Bears still put on a show. Despite the noted tension that Williams has had with his offensive coordinators, he seemed confident in his ability to command the field going for fourth down plays in tricky situations. However, like the Chiefs did last week, the Packers held off the Bears by a blocked field goal.
Two weeks in a row of blocked game-winning field goals… oh I can’t wait for what the next half of the NFL season will bring! Next time, we will look at playoff standings and what teams are likely to make it to the postseason.
Till next time,
Vinisha