NFL Divisional Reactions & NFL Conference Championship Predictions!
First published: Sunday January 22nd, 2023
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NFL Divisional Recap
Great games this weekend, here are my takes
1. The Divisional round kicked off on Saturday and featured the Jacksonville Jaguars as heavy underdogs against the Kansas City Chiefs. Nothing major to this game, other than maybe Patrick Mahomes' ankle injury that had him out of the game for a little bit. In the end, the Chiefs were able to get it done, and win 27-20. The Chiefs will now play in their 5th consecutive AFC championship game, but it depended on the Sunday game between Buffalo and Cincinnati. (If the Bengals win, the AFC championship will be in Kansas City, if the Bills win, the AFC championship will be in Atlanta.) This scenario was derived from the Damar Hamlin incident to ensure fairness for the Bills. But I also wanted to congratulate the Jaguars on such a turnaround season. Their expectations were not high, but they came in strong winning the division, and even shocking the Chargers in a crazy 31-30 win.
2. The second game on Saturday was the Eagles against the Giants. Personally, I expected the game to be a lot closer and more intense, but the Eagles absolutely dominated, and won the game 38-7. The Eagles are looking like one of the strongest teams in football, and will now host the NFC championship game. The Giants had a great Wild card game against the Vikings, and also had a great improbable season, but couldn’t get it done against the heavily-favored Eagles.
3. The first game on Sunday featured a highly-anticipated matchup between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Buffalo Bills. As I said before, this game would determine where the AFC championship would be played. But I must admit I was very surprised of how the game went. The Bengals proved everyone wrong and won the game 27-10, while it was snowing. The Bills had a monster season, and quite possibly had the most potential out of every team this year. But the Bengals’ defense shut them down, and will now face Kansas City in the AFC championship. Great job to the Bills in an exciting year, and it’s sad to see their season end this way.
4. The final game of the Divisional round was between the Cowboys and the 49ers. This was the game I was most looking forward to, and it didn’t disappoint. Both teams’ defenses did a spectacular job, making the game low-scoring. But it was San Francisco’s two interceptions that helped the 49ers edge out Dallas 19-12. Another disappointing season end for Dallas, but they had a great year, even beating Tom Brady in the playoffs.
What were your reactions to these games?
Conference Championship Predictions!
Both games will occur on Sunday, January 29
The NFC championship comes on first, featuring the San Francisco 49ers at the Philadelphia Eagles,
And the AFC championship will be after, featuring the Cincinnati Bengals at the Kansas City Chiefs (a rematch of last year!)
I’m excited to see how these next games turn out! The Super Bowl is approaching, so I need to know your predictions! Have they changed since the beginning of the playoffs? Let me know!