The NFL Divisional Round is complete, with four teams advancing for a shot at going to the Super Bowl. Four other teams went home disappointed. It was far from the incredible, tense weekend of football that the Wild Card Round was, but there were still plenty of really good games. Two went to overtime, while the other two ended in much less dramatic fashion. Here’s how it went down.
What happened in the NFL Divisional Round of the playoffs?
Saturday
Saturday’s slate of games began with the Denver Broncos hosting the Buffalo Bills. The Bills had squeaked by against the Jacksonville Jaguars and now faced the number one seed Denver Broncos in Mile High Stadium. Denver had the bye week. Surprisingly, rest didn’t seem to play much of a role in this one, as it went to overtime, with the Broncos eking out a win, 33-30.
Controversy ensued on this one. A huge pivot point was an overtime throw from Josh Allen to Brandin Cooks. Cooks appeared to have caught the ball and was going to the ground, but Broncos DB Ja’Quan McMillian ripped it away for an interception. The play was reviewed, and because Cooks didn’t survive the ground with the ball, it was a turnover.
Still, that didn’t stop many players and fans from erupting. Sean McDermott even commented after the game, ripping that decision. He was fired on Monday morning after another disappointing exit from the playoffs. That one call was one turnover, but the Bills also turned it over four other times, including a boneheaded play by Allen. He tried to lateral before half, and it gave the Broncos an extra field goal, which ended up being the margin of victory.
The next game was far less dramatic. The Seattle Seahawks were coming off the bye, and the San Francisco 49ers had stolen a road win from the Philadelphia Eagles. They were supremely injured, even losing George Kittle last week. Despite Sam Darnold’s injury causing concern before the game, the Seahawks rolled to a 41-6 win. They returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, giving them the only seven points they would actually need.
Sunday
Sunday’s action began with the New England Patriots hosting the Houston Texans. The Patriots got an ugly win over the Los Angeles Chargers, and the Texans demolished the Pittsburgh Steelers with two defensive touchdowns. Lost in that was C.J. Stroud’s five-fumble (two lost), one-interception game, but his turnovers reared their ugly head again in this one.
Despite getting a really strong game from his own defense, the Texans QB had no answers for the Patriots’ D. Stroud was picked off four times in the first half. One was returned for a touchdown. Overall, the Texans had five turnovers, so it didn’t matter that the Patriots had three. Stroud now faces questions about his future after having one of the most excellent rookie seasons just two seasons ago.
Sunday’s nightcap, and the finale of the NFL Divisional Round, was perhaps the best game of all. The Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Rams were slow-moving in the frigid temperatures and snow, but they ended up with one of the most fun games of the year. The Bears continued to unsuccessfully go for it on fourth downs, including one on goal-to-go that would’ve tied it.
They still got the ball back and marched down to tie it with 18 seconds left. Caleb Williams danced back to around midfield to avoid pressure before heaving it to the end zone for the touchdown. Ben Johnson opted not to go for the win with a two-point conversion. He opted to tie and play in overtime. That would backfire, as the Rams ended up winning.
However, Williams and Johnson looked poised to at least get into range for a winning field goal when Williams was picked off near the red zone. Kamren Curl made a nice play on the ball, and it appeared DJ Moore didn’t run his route the way Williams expected. Either way, the Rams marched down after that. Despite their previous special teams struggles, they kicked their own winning field goal to conclude the NFL Divisional Round.
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