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NFL Divisional Playoffs - late games
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Fearless Rick & Coin Flip NFL Divisional Playoffs - Late Games
All times Eastern
Sunday, January 18
Houston Texans at New England Patriots (-3, 41) 3:00 pm (ESPN) - The Patriots shocked everybody this season, winning the AFC East and getting the #2 overall seed with a 14-3 record. In the wild card round, the defense stepped up big time, stuffing the Chargers for a stout, 16-3 victory. Having home field helped, playing the Chargers, a team which seems to always fade late season and in the playoffs, didn’t hurt.
Houston also had the good fortune of playing a team that had lost six straight playoff games going into Wild Card Weekend, and they dusted the Steelers off in the fourth quarter, turning a close game into a 30-6 rout. Notably, Pittsburgh never found the end zone, what might have been Aaron Rodgers’ last pass as an NFL quarterback ended with a pick-six and Steelers’ head coach Mike Tomlin called it quits a day later.
The Texans played a pretty sloppy game, especially QB C.J. Stroud, who was chasing the ball around his own backfield on numerous occasions. Whatever issue was prevailing there, the Texans will surely clean it up before they take the field in Foxboro.
This game may be the closest of the weekend, though, in the end, Houston’s recent playoff experience, and the fact that they’re riding a 10-game winning streak will prevail over the youthful exuberance of the Patriots. New England and QB Drake Maye have a bright future, but Houston’s defense and experience should carry the day.
Coin Flip: Houston
Fearless Rick’s Pick: Texans 23 Patriots 20
While the Rams had to contest with Seattle and San Francisco, the Bears found a way to finish on top of Detroit, Green Bay, and Minnesota, all of which were supposed to finish better than Chicago. The Bears did split with the Vikings and Packers and lost twice to the Lions, though their Week 18, 19-16, loss was of little consequence, having already secured the division.
The Bears come into this contest with loads of enthusiasm and one of the brightest new stars of the league in QB Caleb Williams, whose ability to use his arm, legs and uncanny field vision to pull out some of the more dramatic wins of the season.
One can say that the Bears played a light schedule and the one game they played against the NFC West, they lost, though it was at San Francisco and the final was 42-38, but they are home for this one, the Rams struggled in their 34-31 win at Carolina, and they have considerable upside. For all the offense the Rams bring to this encounter, the Bears have enough going for them to win this in the fourth quarter in what figures to be a very chilly environment.
Coin Flip: Los Angeles Rams
Fearless Rick’s Pick: Bears 31 Rams 27
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