The Divisional Round is here. Even with last weekend’s massive upsets and surprise rookie performances, is it fair to say that Mother Nature might have been the biggest X-Factor of them all?
With the field narrowed down to eight, and top seeds Baltimore and San Francisco entering the fray, let’s take a look at one x-factor for each game of the Divisional Round.
Zay Flowers, WR, Baltimore Ravens | vs. Texans
It’s not often you see a rookie wide receiver step in as the primary passing weapon right out of the gate, but Flowers is doing it with aplomb. He set a franchise rookie record with 858 receiving yards and five touchdowns on 77 catches this season — and on a run-first team, no less.
Four of those touchdowns came after the team lost star tight end Mark Andrews in Week 11. Andrews has been a full participant in practice all week and if he returns, Lamar Jackson will undoubtedly look towards his long-time tight end early and often. But Flowers has earned Jackson’s trust, racking up more receptions than fellow wideouts Nelson Agholor (35) and Odell Beckham Jr. (35) combined. In a game where rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud will rightly earn a lot of the attention, don’t sleep on Baltimore’s talented young wideout.
Deebo Samuel, WR, San Francisco 49ers | vs. Packers
It’s somewhat difficult to predict production from the 49ers, primarily because any one of the team’s offensive talents can blow up at any time. If any of Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, Brandon Aiyuk, or Deebo Samuel decide they want to take over a game, there’s not a lot that opposing defences can do to stop them.
Samuel’s role remains an intriguing one. Head coach Kyle Shanahan’s Swiss army knife turned in 892 receiving yards and seven touchdowns on 60 catches this season and while McCaffrey’s presence means he has run the ball far less than in years past, the receiver has still scored five touchdowns on the ground on 37 rushing attempts.
The Packers’ defence ranks near the bottom in a lot of categories, including 20th in passing yards allowed, 28th in rushing yards allowed, and 23rd in rushing yards allowed per attempt. So, look out for a lot of running plays from Samuel (and certainly McCaffrey as well) on Saturday.
Sam LaPorta, TE, Detroit Lions | vs. Buccaneers
After LaPorta went down in a somewhat meaningless Week 18 game, Lions fans feared the worst. The Iowa product turned out to be one of the league’s best rookies in a year littered with terrific performances, scoring ten touchdowns and tallying 889 receiving yards on 89 receptions.
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Luckily, LaPorta did play in the Wild Card round, the injury not as serious as initially thought, and he’ll be a player to watch Sunday against Tampa Bay. The Lions have often found success this year on the ground with running backs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, but the Buccaneers’ rush defence is no slouch, ranking fifth in total rushing yards allowed and eighth in rushing yards allowed per attempt.
LaPorta’s ability to run seam routes and get open in the middle of the field will be critical to take some pressure off both the run game and teammate Amon-Ra St. Brown through the air.
Sean McDermott, Buffalo Bills head coach | vs. Chiefs
McDermott may be the head coach of this team, but he’s getting the nod here because of his second job title: defensive coordinator.
He’s done an admirable job given the litany of injuries — the unit has been without cornerback Tre White and linebacker Matt Milano for most of the year, and last weekend lost cornerback Taron Johnson to a concussion while linebacker Terrel Bernard was carted off after twisting his ankle.
If those two, along with cornerback Christian Benford, linebacker Baylon Spector, and safety Taylor Rapp — all of whom have been day-to-day for most of the week — can’t go on Sunday, then McDermott is going to have the unenviable task of facing Patrick Mahomes without a lot of regulars.
On the flipside, the Chiefs’ offence has looked startlingly mortal for much of the season. Could this be McDermott’s opportunity to send the rowdy Bills Mafia off to the AFC Championship?
