NFL playoffs: Keys to victory in divisional matchups

jeudi 12 janvier 2017

Often called the best weekend of the year in the NFL, the divisional playoffs feature four games with a wide range of storylines. 

Can Brock Osweiler take down the big, bad Patriots? How is Ben Roethlisberger's knee? Can Aaron Rodgers keep running the table? How will the Cowboys' rookie tandem fare in their playoff debut?

Unlike last weekend's wild-card games — all blowouts — this weekend should be full of entertainment.

Saturday's games:

Seattle at Atlanta, 4:25 p.m. ET

Seahawks: The once-vaunted Seattle secondary is going up against the best offence in the NFL, and in order to keep points to a minimum, they need to do one thing — shut down Atlanta's Julio Jones.

Arguably the best wide receiver in the league, Jones is a one-man wrecking crew when he's left to make plays. Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman needs to play lights out so that the rest of the defence is available to slow down the two-headed monster of Tevin Coleman and Devonta Freeman at running back.

Falcons: Getting pressure on Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson will be the most important thing for the Falcons, who have the NFL's sack leader in linebacker Vic Beasley.

Going up against the high-powered Falcons offence, Seattle will likely be forced to throw to keep up. Heavy pressure on Wilson and his bum knee should cause trouble for the Seahawks, who already have one of the worst offensive lines in football.

Houston at New England, 8:15 p.m. ET

Texans: In order to keep up with Tom Brady and the Patriots, Houston is going to need to find points somewhere, and that somewhere needs to be on defence and special teams.

Thinking Texans QB Brock Osweiler has any chance to match Brady is cute, so Houston needs to be able to score a special teams or defensive touchdown — or two — to compensate for their low-voltage offence.

Patriots: New England needs to not get in their own way, which for them should be pretty easy.

Although the Houston defence led the NFL in yards allowed per game, they are not the dominant force that some other top defences have been. New England will generate enough points to win and as long as they don't turn the ball over, advancing to the AFC championship game should be a walk in the park.

Sunday's games:

Pittsburgh at Kansas City, 1:05 p.m. ET

Steelers: With QB Ben Roethlisberger's health a question mark, Pittsburgh needs to ride RB Le'Veon Bell for as long as they can.

He's arguably the biggest offensive threat in the entire league and is going up against a defence that ranked 26th against the run (121.1 yards per game).

Chiefs: Kansas City needs to do its best to keep the score close. An early deficit of 10 or more points would spell trouble for an offence that tends to play it safe.

If the Chiefs can avoid getting into a shootout, their probability of winning increases significantly because of their tendency to avoid mistakes and play a short, ball-control offence.

Green Bay at Dallas, 4:40 p.m. ET

Packers: The ideal start for Green Bay would be to open up a lead and force the Cowboys to throw more than they planned.

QB Aaron Rodgers is the hottest player in the league, but he can't afford a slow start like last week against the Giants. Stopping the Cowboys' running game for 60 minutes is almost impossible, so capitalizing early and forcing the Cowboys to divert even slightly from their game plan plays into Green Bay's favour.

Cowboys: The NFC's best team should focus on one thing — keeping Rodgers off the field.

RB Ezekiel Elliott led the NFL in rushing, and behind the best offensive line in the league, he needs to keep doing what he's done all season and churn out first downs. Keep Green Bay's defence on the field and take control of the time-of-possession game.

A game controlled by Dallas' run-game would make it very hard for the Packers to get into any kind of offensive rhythm. 

Let's block ads! (Why?)

NFL playoffs: Keys to victory in divisional matchups

0 commentaires:

Enregistrer un commentaire