A Mouthwatering Weekend NFL Action as the Super Bowl Draws Closer
Author:
Roy Brindley
Eight teams remain in the race for the Super Bowl. Staged on February 13th at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, it will be a lucky date for one franchise. But seven teams still need to be eliminated – four will be culled this weekend.
With the wildcard week complete, the sport has reached the divisional round of this year’s NFL season. It is win or go home as the race to this year’s Super Bowl is now cut-throat.
Aaron Rodgers plans to lead his Green Bay Packers team past a tricky San Francisco 49ers this weekend. ©GettyImages
During the weekend there are four mouthwatering matchups for fans and punters to feast on. The first is on Saturday night when the shock number one seeds, the Tennessee Titans, face another surprise package, the Cincinnati Bengals.
A Fresh Titan to Return?
Having contested only three Super Bowl finals between them, these two franchises will be desperate to reach the sport’s biggest stage in California in three weeks.
The Titans, courtesy of a bye last weekend, will be fresh going into this pivotal contest. They could potentially welcome back Derrick Henry, the league’s most feared running back. Having needed what appeared to be season-ending surgery in week eight, the then runaway league-leading rusher may return just in time for the game.
Cincinnati has some stars of its own. They include this year’s standout rookie Ja’Marr Chase. The wideout’s partnership with former college quarterback Joe Burrow has been nothing short of sensational this season. The pair had previously won a National Championship together at Louisiana State University.
Can Green Bay Go Five From Eight?
Aaron Rodgers, who will likely win the league MVP for a second consecutive year, will be looking to lead his Green Bay Packers team past a tricky San Francisco 49ers side in the second of Saturday’s games.
The Packers – another team that enjoyed a bye week last weekend – secured number one seed status several weeks ago. The current Super Bowl favorites will still need their A-game if they want to advance to their fifth Conference Championship appearance in the last eight years.
The 49ers have been in playoff mode for the last month. They took their biggest scalp of the year last weekend when knocking out the Dallas Cowboys in their own stadium. Finding form at just the right time, they are lively playoff contenders.
Tampa at the Double?
On Sunday, attention turns to Tampa Bay as Tom Brady hopes to make a staggering 15th Conference Championship appearance courtesy of a victory over the LA Rams.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers posted a very-impressive 13-3 record during the regular season and are seeking back-to-back Super Bowl victories. It is difficult to make a strong case as to why they cannot.
A resounding win over the Philadelphia Eagles in the wildcard round on Sunday stands them in good stead for what will surely be a strong playoff push.
Having most recently secured a comfortable 34-11 win over a decent Arizona Cardinals team, the Rams are likely to put up a far stronger challenge to the Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium this weekend than the Philadelphia Eagles did last weekend.
The Rams went ‘all-in’ on free agency this season and are in a win-now mode having spent a lot of money and draft capital on the best veteran stars that were available. At 5/4 they are outsiders in this confrontation but certainly not huge underdogs.
The Toughest Task
The Kansas City Chiefs started the season ‘three and four’ and simply making the playoffs looked unlikely. But having then won their next eight games, the Chiefs are now in the postseason as one of the big favorites.
An impressive win over the Pittsburgh Steelers last weekend in the wildcard round brought further encouragement but it may be short-lived. In what is probably the toughest draw of the round, they will need to get by a Buffalo Bills side who are finding their stride at the right time.
Having hammered the New England Patriots 47-17 last weekend, the Bills will have high hopes of snatching a road win in Arrowhead Stadium. The Bills and the Chiefs are two of the best teams in the NFL. Whoever comes through this contest will be a very worthy favorite in the AFC Championship. The best sports betting sites online today list Kansas as 7/4 favorites for the division, Buffalo follow at 9/4.
