Hello readers! Another week of National Football League action is coming upon us yet again. Last week's Wild Card action is in the books and the survivors of those games will go onto the next round: the Divisional round. It is personally my favorite weekend in the NFL calendar. It always tends to produce the best football. For example, the Bills-Chiefs contest last year. In this post I'll do my picks for the games. Let's get to work!
Divisional Round Picks
Note: All game times are in US Eastern. TW is me and CV is Cardinal Viking, my former roommate.
Jacksonville @ Kansas City (NBC; 4:30 pm): TW: Chiefs; CV: Chiefs
The Jaguars beat the Chargers last week and the Chiefs had the bye last week. Divisional round kicks off with an intriguing matchup. The red hot Jaguars come into this contest overcoming a 27-0 deficit against the Chargers. Kansas City won't be as giving about letting the Jaguars roll over them. Kansas City doesn't really need that much of an in-depth look as its really Patrick Mahomes and a stud of an offense. The Chiefs defense would be questionable but when you have Mahomes, you don't need a lot of defense. Defensively the Chiefs are one of the better rush defenses and if they can shut down Travis Etienne then the Jaguars will have a harder time in moving the ball. I'll take the Chiefs.
Postseason series: 1st meeting; Series is 0-0
NY Giants @ Philadelphia (FOX; 8:15 pm): TW: Giants; CV: Giants
The Giants beat the Vikings and the Eagles had the bye last week. The classic I-95 rivalry returns. New York comes into this game getting a huge upset win against the Vikings. They played a really good game on both sides of the ball. The defense shut down the potent Vikings passing game and the Giants offense ran amok. Last time the Eagles played was against this same Giants team, minus the starters. They beat them by a fair margin but it wasn't a blowout. The game will come down to the health and stability of Jalen Hurts. Sure the quarterback is not terribly injured and he has had a week of rest. New York has the offense that can keep the Eagles offense at bay on the sideline. They just can't be that cocky and have a giveaway. It seems like a bit of a outside shot but I'll take the Giants.
Postseason series: 5th meeting, Series tied 2-2
Cincinnati @ Buffalo (CBS; 3:15 pm): TW: Bills; CV: Bills
The Bengals beat the Ravens and the Bills beat the Dolphins last week. The game that we never got. Hopefully Damar Hamlin will be in attendence for this game. As well as all of Buffalo for sure. The game itself looked like a dandy to watch. Both teams are very similar in what they do on both sides of the ball. Joe Burrow would be the more of a pocket passer while Josh Allen is more of a scrambler or a running quarterback. It seems like cliche but the team that can control and/or penatrate the trenches can really take control of this game. Buffalo seems to be the lesser of the pass rushing teams of the two with Von Miller out for the rest of the year. It'll be a challenge for Buffalo but I think they will eke out a close win at home.
Postseason series: 3rd meeting; Bengals lead series 2-0
Dallas @ San Francisco (FOX; 6:30 pm): TW: 49ers; CV: 49ers
The Cowboys beat the Buccaneers and the 49ers beat the Seahawks last week. The classic Cowboys-49ers rivalry renews for the 9th time. An all-time mark by the way. Both teams are coming off great wins. The team that has to feel like they're on cloud nine would be Dallas. Beating a bad team but beating Tom Brady has to be a confidence booster for them. Dak Prescott and the offense finally had one of their best games. San Francisco had a rough start against Seattle as the Seahawks had a lead at halftime. Granted the lead they had wouldn't last long in the 2nd half. One question that I will have in this game is the composure of Brock Purdy against the Dallas defense. I can't recall if he has faced a defense like the Cowboys which can put forth a lot of blitzes. Purdy does have a plethora of weapons that he can utilize like George Kittle and Christian McCaffrey. I think the game will be an interesting one but I'll stay with the home team winning theme.
Postseason series: 9th meeting, Cowboys lead series 5-3
2022 Pick ‘Em Records
My record:
Week 1: 8-7-1
Week 2: 8-8
Week 3: 5-11
Week 4: 11-5
Week 5: 10-6
Week 6: 8-6
Week 7: 9-5
Week 8: 12-3
Week 9: 11-2
Week 10: 8-6
Week 11: 8-6
Week 12: 10-6
Week 13: 11-3-1
Week 14: 7-6
Week 15: 8-8
Week 16: 9-7
Week 17: 12-3
Week 18: 11-5
Wild Card Weekend: 4-2
Total: 170-105-2
Cardinal Viking's record:
Week 1: 6-9-1
Week 2: 11-5
Week 3: 5-11
Week 4: 6-10
Week 5: 9-7
Week 6: 9-5
Week 7: 8-6
Week 8: 9-6
Week 9: 9-4
Week 10: 8-6
Week 11: 8-6
Week 12: 9-7
Week 13: 8-6-1
Week 14: 9-4
Week 15: 13-3
Week 16: 10-6
Week 17: 9-6
Week 18: 11-5
Wild Card Weekend: 3-3
Total: 160-115-2
Previous Picking Records:
2017: 167-89
2018: 156-98-2
2019: 151-104-1
2020: 163-92-1
2021: 167-104-1
2019: 161-94-1
