Breaking Down the AFC Playoff Bracket
We did it! The 2020-21 NFL Playoffs are here. Only 18 short weeks ago, the Kansas City Chiefs kicked off the season with a big win over the Houston Texans.
Now all the regular season games are over and the league has announced it's postseason schedule, what do you need to know about the other teams competing for an AFC championship?
On today's Roughing the Kicker podcast, I was joined by Arrowhead Report's Conner Christopherson and we broke down each game happening on Wild Card weekend this Saturday and Sunday and discussed which teams give us pause in the AFC.
While the NFC is a little bit of a let down in terms of quality of first-round games, the Chiefs' conference is full of good teams and interesting matchups. Here's what's on this weekend's slate.
No. 7 Indianapolis Colts at No. 2 Buffalo Bills (12:05 p.m., Jan. 9, CBS)
The Bills and quarterback Josh Allen have been playing good football as of late and I don't expect that to stop any time soon. The Colts do have a strong defensive line led by defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and former Chief Justin Houston. Buffalo opens up as 6.5 point favorites but if Indianapolis is to win, they would travel to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs in the divisional round. If the Bills come out on top, the Chiefs will have to wait for the last game of the weekend to conclude before they know who their opponent will be.
No. 5 Baltimore Ravens at No. 4 Tennesse Titans (12:05 p.m., Jan 10, ABC/ESPN)
This is the most intriguing matchup of the weekend regardless of conference. The Titans shocked the Ravens last season when they beat them in the divisional round to advance to the conference championship. Earlier this season, Tennessee outlasted Baltimore in an overtime contest. I expect this matchup to be much of the same. These two squads have improved since their meeting in November. If both the Bills and Steelers win their games, the winner of this game will play the Chiefs next week.
No. 6 Cleveland Browns at No. 3 Pittsburgh Steelers (7:15 p.m., Jan 10, NBC/peacock)
After playing in Week 17, the Browns and Steelers will go toe-to-toe in primetime to close out Wild Card weekend. In last week's game, Cleveland came out on top as Pittsburgh sat quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and other starters. With the win, the Browns made the playoffs for the first time in 18 years. With all their starters, Cleveland might not have enough in the tank to take down their long time divisional bully. If the Browns are able to pull off the upset, they will make the trek to Kansas City to play the Chiefs.
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