This past weekend, the NFL kicked off their playoffs with the Wild Card round, and it did not disappoint. We got to watch six games over the course of the weekend, and into Monday night. There were two games on Saturday, three more on Sunday, and one for Monday Night Football.

It all started on Saturday afternoon with the Los Angeles Rams heading across the country to face the Carolina Panthers. Early on it looked like the Rams were going to run away with it after they jumped out to a 14-0 lead as Puka Nacua caught a touchdown pass from 14-yards out, and ran one in from 5-yards out. Halfway through the 2nd quarter, the Panthers got on the board with a touchdown of their own as Chuba ran one in, and they snatched another right before half after an LA field goal, as the teams went to the break with the Rams up 17-14. Each team exchanged field goals in the 3rd quarter. The 4th quarter was full of action as the two teams went back and forth. The teams got two touchdowns each, but it was Matthew Stafford and the Rams who punched one in last on a 19-yard TD connection from Stafford to Parkinson to send Los Angeles to the next round 34-31.

The Saturday night game gave us a Wild Card Division rivalry matchup as the Green Bay Packers went into Chicago to take on the Bears. This was a tale of two halves. The Packers dominated the first half and looked like they were going to run away with it. At halftime GB was up 21-3. They would only score 6 more points in the entire rest of the game, and that wouldn’t come until the 4th quarter. The Bears on the otherhand woke-up in a big way. They scored the only points of the 3rd quarter via a field goal. Then, the 4th quarter came and they put up 25 points alone in the final quarter to put a finish to the Green Bay season 31-27.

Our first Sunday game was the matchup of two great Quarterbacks as Josh Allen and his Buffalo Bills went on the road to face Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars. This was another great, one score game. It was a back and forth defensive battle for three quarters. The Bills converted a field goal in the first quarter and a Josh Allen rushing touchdown in the 2nd quarter, and the Jaguars got in the end zone themselves in the 2nd to go to halftime down 10-7. The 3rd quarter saw the teams each get a successful field goal as Buffalo led 13-10 heading into the 4th quarter. That is when the offenses for both sides came alive. The Jags started the final quarter first by getting into the end zone to take the lead 17-13, and Buffalo responded with a TD of their own to retake the lead. Jacksonville punched back with their second toudown of the quarter to retake the lead again, this time 24-20. Then Josh Allen went to work and masterfully moved his Bills team down the field before pounding his way in from 1-yard out again, to send the Jaguars home for the year 27-24.

Next up gave us the San Francisco 49ers flying all the way across the country to play the Philadelphia Eagles. Both teams opening drives ended in touchdowns, but the Eagles missed their extra point attempt to keep the Niners up 7-6 early in the first. The defending champion Eagles went into the 2nd quarter and capped off a 16-play, 94 yard, 9:00 minute drive before tossing a touchdown pass to Dallas Goedert, his second, and first one through the air. This time the extra point was good to give Philly their first lead of the game 13-7. SF converted a FG in the quarter to make the halftime score 13-10 Eagles. The 3rd quarter gave us nothing but a Philadelphia field goal to make it 16-10. In the 4th quarter, SF scored 13 points to Philly’s 3 to knock off the Eagles 23-19, and assure there will be a new Super Bowl Champion this year. This game was a hard watch, neither team looked good. Nonetheless, the Niners are moving on.

Other Notable Notes:

• The New England Patriots defeat the Los Angeles Chargers 16-3 in Foxboro on the Sunday Night Game of the Week to move to the Divsional Round.
• Texans beat the Steelers in Pittsburgh with a dominant defensive effort 30-6.