Saturday, Jan. 20, 4:30pm – Houston Texans at Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens have turned naysayers into believers over the course of the season. Baltimore clinched the top seed in the AFC prior to Week 18 and was able to rest some key starters. This means that Lamar Jackson and company have gotten two weeks to rest and prepare to host the Texans.

Houston continued its turnaround this season by dominating the Cleveland Browns in many ways. CJ Stroud and the offense was comfortable in the first half and the defense put the finishing touches on with two pick sixes. They will be tested in many ways against the Ravens’ offense.

Baltimore will enter as a big favorite as one of the league’s best defenses goes up against the eventual Offensive Rookie of the Year. Jackson is playing at an MVP level and getting all pass catchers involved. Of course, the run game is still there and is something that Baltimore prides itself on.

The Ravens have Super Bowl aspirations but no team can be overlooked once the playoffs begin. We already saw many examples of that during Wild Card Weekend.

Saturday, Jan. 20, 8:15pm – Green Bay Packers at San Francisco 49ers

There are not many who thought the Packers would be playing in this game. The seven seed went into Dallas and dominated the Cowboys at Jerry’s World. Now, the road gets tougher against the top seed in the NFC.

The San Francisco 49ers have remained healthy this season and enter with both sides of the ball intact. Brock Purdy has been able to use all weapons at his disposal and the list is endless. Deebo Samuel is playing like an All-Pro, Brandon Aiyuk has broken out, George Kittle remains a top-three tight end, Trent Williams is the best tackle in football. We can go on and on about the talent on this team.

Matt LaFleur will have his team ready once again like he did in Dallas. Green Bay came out firing like the underdog that they were and it allowed them to take full control of the game. It will be a difficult task to do the same against an elite defense in San Francisco with the likes of Nick Bosa and Fred Warner ready to do damage.

Jordan Love is playing his best football when it matters most. It will be interesting to see how Green Bay comes out as big underdogs once again and coming off an emotional win on Sunday.

Sunday, Jan. 21, 3:00pm – Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Detroit Lions

The Lions earned their first playoff win in over 30 years and there will be another game played in Detroit this weekend.

Detroit saw Matthew Stafford return to town with the Los Angeles Rams and pulled out a one-point win in what was the best game of the weekend. Dan Campbell has proved to be an incredible leader with two great coordinators leading both sides of the ball.

The opponent will be Tampa Bay during the Division Round and the question remains, which Bucs team will be showing up? Tampa Bay scored just nine points in a game against the Carolina Panthers in Week 18 to clinch the NFC South. On Monday night, the Bucs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 32-9 to advance.

The Bucs will go from playing a collapsing team in Philadelphia to one of the best there is this year.

Sunday, Jan. 21, 6:30pm – Kansas City Chiefs at Buffalo Bills

On paper, the game of the weekend will be the final one played. These two teams are not strangers but this time, the game will take place in a new location.

The Chiefs and Bills have squared off in the postseason before and it has taken place in Kansas City. Who can forget the insane game from 2022 that saw Patrick Mahomes lead the Chiefs to a game-tying field goal with less than 20 seconds remaining? The Chiefs took advantage of a shaky Miami Dolphin team in historically cold weather during Wild Card weekend and the competition will be stiffer this time around.

The Bills are arguably the hottest team in the league. Buffalo is playing its best ball at the right time, riding a six-game winning streak that includes a postseason win and Week 18 win over Miami to clinch the AFC East. Josh Allen has hit his stride, James Cook has emerged as a legitimate RB1, and the Bills defense is doing enough.

The weather will not provide an advantage with two cold-weather teams but the full-throated fans of Buffalo will be out and ready to help their Bills attempt to take down a. AFC rival.