Divisional Playoff Roundup

Another week of the NFL Playoffs, and another week of going 2-2 in my picks. We got some interesting games and a few fantastic finishes. Let's take a minute to look back at the results and see what we can learn.

Philadelphia Eagles 15, Atlanta Falcons 10
About: Heading into the Wildcard Round, people didn't take the Falcons seriously enough. Coming into the Divisional Round, people seemed to take things too seriously. The Falcons were three point favorites in Philadelphia. The Eagles are the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and that was a lot of disrespect. I noted that, despite missing Carson Wentz, the Eagles went 2-1 down the stretch and finished the season 7-1 at home. The Eagles were a good team all season, and especially on defense. The Falcons, meanwhile, weren't the same team that won the NFC last season, especially on offense. But after a cool, confident win last weekend, it seemed like people overlooked that, myself included. I got sucked up because I just didn't believe in Nick Foles. And Foles wasn't great. He finished with 246 yards, no TDs or INTs (though he could have had at least one INT if it wasn't dropped). The Eagles offense wasn't great, putting up a touchdown and three field goals in the game. But their defense was good enough, and the Falcons' offense just wasn't good enough. The Falcons have too much talent to be this mediocre offensively, and it's something they'll have to address this off-season. For now, the Eagles move on and will prepare to host the Vikings in another game where they will be, and should be, underdogs. We'll see how it goes.

New England Patriots 35, Tennessee Titans 14
About: This went about like you'd expect. The Patriots were the better team, and they cruised to a 21-point win at home. The Patriots under Bill Belichick have been great at taking away the thing you most want to do, and they did that here, limited Derrick Henry to 28 yards on 12 carries. But if you want to be encouraged about the future for the Titans, Marcus Mariota looked much better in two playoff games than he did during the regular season. That's a positive sign. And rookie Corey Davis had a break out game, catching five passes for 63 yards and two touchdowns. That bodes well for the future. For the Patriots, there's not much more to take away from this game than they are the better team and should be on to the Jaguars, a game they also get to host at home.

Jacksonville Jaguars 45, Pittsburgh Steelers 42
About: While I picked the Falcons to win and they didn't, I thought that would be a close game that could go either way. I wasn't surprised when the Eagles pulled it out. The true surprise of the Divisional Round was in Pittsburgh, where the Steelers came out flat and the Jaguars looked like a world beater. The team that managed just 10 points at home against Buffalo scored 45 points on the road against an allegedly good defense in Pittsburgh. The Steelers earlier lost to the Jaguars 30-9 at home thanks to a collapse from Ben Roethlisberger, who threw five interceptions. Ben didn't collapse here, and Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown were good, with both scoring two TDs. But the Jaguars were better. The Steelers started slow, possibly owing to sitting starters in Week 17 and having a first round bye. And though they scored 42 points, it wasn't enough. Hail the Jaguars. As a Broncos fan, I know the feeling of getting caught at home by a Jaguars team in the Divisional Round when you have Super Bowl aspirations. For the Steelers, this begins a long off-season where they'll have to ask hard questions. Will Ben return? Will the Steelers re-sign Bell? Can this team win a title? But that's for later. For now, let's reflect on the fact that Ben threw for nearly 500 yards and five touchdowns, and the Steelers' offense posted six touchdowns, and it wasn't enough. The Jaguars jumped out to a 21-0 lead and made it hold up. Blake Bortles wasn't great, and the defense wasn't impenetrable, but the Leonard Fournette made his mark, T.J. Yeldon helped, and this team made plays when they had to. Now we have a week to ponder whether or not they can do the same in New England. I hope they can.

Minnesota Vikings 29, New Orleans Saints 24
About: There are few things crueler than the walk off touchdown, especially in the playoffs. As a Broncos fan, I've experienced both sides of that. I remember a Divisional Round home game against the Ravens when Joe Flacco got one over the defense. I also remember a Wildcard game against the Steelers when Tim Tebow found Demaryius Thomas and ended the game. For the Saints, it will be an off-season of wondering what if. The team was down 17-0 at the half, on the round, and then came all the way back to take a 24-23 lead with 25 seconds left. With 10 seconds left, they still held that lead and hope was dim for the Vikings. Then Case Keenum connected with Stefon Diggs, the Saints defense missed the tackle, and 61 yards later we had a fantastic finish. I thought these were the two best teams left in the NFC, and this game certainly bore that out. Either of these teams would be tough to take in the Super Bowl, and I think this would have been a great NFC Championship. But that's the way the chips fall. Now the Vikings have a road game in Philadelphia and, with a win, they'll come home to be the first home team to try and win a Super Bowl. Call me crazy, but I'm starting to believe.