Buffalo Bills @ Houston Texans
19-22
After seeing the teams duke it out, I'm not sure what to think of Josh Allen anymore. He looks like nothing more than a glorified running back at this point, though we could likely blame part of Buffalo's collapse on the refs. The defense is there, but inconsistency on quarterback is hurting the team. Where are they to go from here? My guess is they'd start looking for a new quarterback; perhaps the lack of an offense around him is partially to blame, but that doesn't excuse some of the awful plays he makes. While perhaps the best QB they've had since Jim Kelly, he's not going to lead them to the promised land in spite of an amazing defense. Houston on the other hand did pretty well, Deshaun Watson is looking better with each game, his elusiveness, rushing, and passing attack were nothing to laugh at and after seeing him pull this against a stingy Bills defense, I'm a little nervous about seeing what he'll do to Kansas City's secondary.
Tennessee Titans @ New England Patriots
20-13
Wow, just wow. I wasn't expecting the Titans to just lay down and die against the Patriots, there was gonna be blood and a long, hard fought game between them, I just didn't expect Tennessee to be on the winning side of the ball. Derrick Henry was a beast, Ryan Tannehill played relatively well, and the defense did just enough to suffocate the Patriots offense. Ending the career of the greatest quarterback of all time on a pick six was painful to watch. New England was perplexing to say the least; over the past couple years, they seem to slump right around the end of the season and then what do they do? Dominate every single team in their path. They didn't do that this season, the offense was flat, the defense was okay at best, it just wasn't the Patriots team we all knew and loved (or hated). Was this the end of the dynasty? Perhaps, perhaps not. The Patriots are not like normal, mortal football teams. Tom Brady was unique even among quarterbacks. They might be done, they might not be, but that is for the football gods to decide. The Titans have done their part.
Minnesota Vikings @ New Orleans Saints
26-20
This game was perhaps the best reason as to why I should never bet on anything. I had picked the Saints to win the Super Bowl, and yet, they were booted out in the Wild Card round. Much like in the 2018 NFC Championship, you could likely blame their loss on the refs. It's almost like the football gods have a vendetta against Drew Brees and company. At least Kirk Cousins finally proved he could play well in games when it mattered most, though I don't think refball will be enough to help Minnesota against the Niners, but I've been proven wrong before, multiple times this postseason in fact. One question remains; will Drew Brees return next season or will the team officially belong to Teddy Bridgewater? It'd suck to see such a talented quarterback end his career on such a sour note, so I'd imagine we'll be seeing more of him next season, if just to protect his newly acquired touchdown pass record.
Seattle Seahawks @ Philadelphia Eagles
17-9
I suppose getting one out of four games right isn't all that bad. The result was expected, seeing as this Eagles team has been injured to hell and back, only squeaking into the playoffs on virtue of playing in an awful division. I wasn't really convinced on Seattle's performance, however. Russell Wilson only further confirmed that he was a god, but the rest of the team just seemed... stale. The offense wasn't really generating much against a broken Eagles defense, the ground game and passing game was flat; though considering the Seahawks have lost virtually every running back (except for Beast Mode, of course) on their roster, it was expected their ground game would be flat, but that doesn't excuse their poor play in the air. In the end, it was enough to put away a team that didn't deserve to be in the playoffs in the first place, now it's only time to see if Pete Carrol's team can repeat their success in Green Bay.
The Patriots: An End of a Dynasty?
This has been a question many people have been asking since their victory over Seattle in the Super Bowl, yet just when it seems the team was about to die, someone used necromancy to revive them. This year felt different, it feels like this was truly the end. Perhaps Tom Brady will return next season and prove everyone wrong by throwing for 6,000 yards and 60+ touchdowns or perhaps, he'll hang it up after an illustrious career, or maybe he'll be playing against New England rather than for them. The offense wasn't as sharp as it normally was, the defense on the other hand saved the team from missing the postseason entirely. Since Brady joined the team, there's been very few answers to New England's dominance; Peyton Manning occasionally showed up to steal AFC supremacy from him, Eli Manning somehow beat them twice, and every so often, the Steelers would slide past them.
Bill Belichick will likely be back next season (sorry, Giants fans), but with questions on their star quarterback, whether or not the offense will return to form, and if the defense will continue to play like they were leaves the team's future in question. With all this in mind, what should the Patriots do? In my opinion, it's time to hit the reset button. They've done something no other team in the history of American sports can claim; they've remained the very model of success and consistency over the past near 20 years. They've done what many teams can only dream of; while the Browns, Raiders, Redskins, and Lions have managed to find someway to make bad situations worse, the Patriots turned bad situations into AFC Championships or even Super Bowl Championships.
However, it's come to an end and it's time to New England to begin revamping the team. I doubt they'll be the joke of the NFL like they were deep into the 1990s, but I'm not expecting them to be consistent Super Bowl contenders like they've been since their first championship. The time to search for their new quarterback has started, the time to figure out to contend with conference heavy weights like Kansas City, Baltimore, and Houston has begun, and perhaps it's also time for them to start watching a new team to dominate the division they've owned; in this case, Buffalo will take their place as AFC East Champions for years to come. It's hard to deny how incredible what they've done is, Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are Hall of Famers without a doubt, and their incredible run will go down as one of the greatest dynasties in not just American sports, but in the history of sports itself.
Final Thoughts
So, over the past few days, we've seen some pretty crazy things. What are your thoughts on the Wild Card Weekend? Do you think any of the winners have a shot at taking their respective conference championship, or even the Lombardi Trophy itself? Do you think the Patriots will come back stronger next season or are they done? Let me know down below!
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