NFL Snapshots: Super Wild Card Weekend (2023)

I don’t care if the #7 seed is winless since the NFL expanded the playoffs to seven teams, I enjoy having six playoff games to watch on wild card weekend, rather than four.

It’s like an elongated appetizer course, before we get the entrée, known as the divisional round.

Baltimore Ravens (Lost at Bengals, 24-17)
Tyler Huntley tried to go over the top on a QB Sneak from the 1-yard line, which resulted in a fumble return touchdown for the Bengals. After the game, J.K. Dobbins expressed his frustrations over not getting the ball in the red zone. He said Huntley should’ve never been put in that position. He’s not wrong.

Buffalo Bills (Won vs. Dolphins, 34-31)
No one thought the Bills would lose, but no one thought they’d only win by 3 points, either. Never mind the fact that they gave up 31 points to a team starting their 3rd string rookie quarterback. However, the sky is not falling in Buffalo. The Dolphins were very opportunistic in how they scored their points, which means if the Bills can clean up their turnovers, they’ll be okay. Hopefully, they got them out of their system because the Bengals are coming to town.

Cincinatti Bengals (Won vs. Ravens, 24-17)
The Bengals had a hard time moving the ball against the Ravens, but won the game with Sam Hubbard’s 98-yard fumble-return touchdown. Now, they get the Bills, which could be the game of the weekend.

Dallas Cowboys (Won at Buccaneers, 31-14)
It was basically a squash match on Monday night. Brett Maher missing four extra points in a row was a strange subplot.

Jacksonville Jaguars (Won vs. Chargers, 31-30)
Trevor Lawrence threw 4 interceptions in the first half and it reminded me of myself playing Madden. Despite that, and a 27 point deficit, the Jaguars came back to win. They aren’t going to go into Arrowhead this week and defeat the Chiefs – even though Lawrence is undefeated on Saturdays – but it’ll be a great learning experience for them.

Kansas City Chiefs (Bye)
I’m sure the Chiefs know everything the Jaguars run on offence and defence, so I fully expect them to come out firing early. Don’t be surprised if it’s 21-0 at the end of the 1st quarter. Arrowhead is going to be loud, especially since Trevor Lawrence said he doesn’t expect it to be that much louder than Jacksonville. He poked the bear.

Los Angeles Chargers (Lost at Jaguars, 31-30)
Ohhh, so this is the Chargers everyone was concerned about. Got it. They blew a 27-0 lead, which should never happen. These teams need to stop being so timid on offence when they have a big lead. Throw the ball – go score more points.

Miami Dolphins (Lost at Bills, 34-31)
This game took about 4 hours to play. Sorry, I just wanted to get that in there. I think the Dolphins and their fans could be proud of the game they played, given the circumstances.

Minnesota Vikings (Lost vs. Giants, 31-24)
The Vikings are who we thought they were.

New York Giants (Won at Vikings, 31-24)
Daniel Jones controlled the game and the Vikings defence didn’t put up much resistance. The Giants get the Eagles in the division round, who they aren’t going to be intimidated by.

Philadelphia Eagles (Bye)
The fact that Jalen Hurts wasn’t on the injury report this week is a good sign. If the Eagles can fall back into who they were for the first 15 weeks of the season, they’ll be just fine.

San Francisco 49ers (Won vs. Seahawks, 41-23)
It feels like everyone is just waiting for Brock Purdy to throw three interceptions, have a bad game, and finally fit the description of the last pick in the draft. He remains undefeated and has thrown at least 2 touchdowns in every game since taking over.

Seattle Seahawks (Lost at 49ers, 41-23)
Well, now they need to decide if they’re going to commit to Geno Smith, or find another quarterback.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Lost vs. Cowboys, 31-14)
I don’t know why this team couldn’t get on the same page this year. Maybe I’m putting too much stock in name value. If Tom Brady plays next season, I’d say there’s about a 0.2% chance it’s with the Buccaneers.

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