5 Bold NFL Predictions For the Divisional Round

The AFC is where all the best defenses play, but the NFC has a monopoly on craziness. Buckle up those seatbelts, people!

Seahawks and 49ers Go Under the 45.4 it Opened At

Mike Macdonald and Aden Durde oversaw the stingiest defense in the league. Seattle allowed just 17.2 points per game.

Robert Saleh’s defense has been without Fred Warner, Nick Bosa and Mykel Williams for large parts of the season, but they rank 13th for the number of points they conceded during the regular season.

While San Francisco was a top 10 scoring offense in the regular season, and only two teams scored more than Seattle, this won’t be a points-fest.

When the two teams played in Santa Clara two weeks ago, it ended 13–3 to the Seahawks. That’s a long way from 45 points!

Rams and Bears Score 24 points in the Fourth Quarter

The Cardiac Bears simply refuse to play a game that doesn’t involve an unbelievable fourth-quarter comeback. Ben Johnson’s side leads the league with 9.6 points on average in fourth quarters!

The Rams are sixth in that statistic, though. They average 8 points in fourth quarters themselves.

Chicago shouldn’t need to make a remarkable comeback in this one. The Rams made hard work of a very ordinary Panthers team last week, and after travelling 6,851 miles in about nine days, they’ll be exhausted.

Where there’s a Puka, there’s a wa, though. This promises to be the wildest game of the weekend.

Texans Win in Foxborough

This may not seem bold after the Texans' defense smothered Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers on the road. The Patriots open as three-point favourites, though!

Josh McDaniels has become a master of making in-game adjustments that allow Drake Maye to shred defenses. His opposite number in Matt Burke, had to adapt his plan against the Steelers in the Wildcard round.

Making the quickest and most effective changes will decide this game. As much as the Steelers slowly ground to a halt in Pittsburgh, they got off to a start that startled the Texans.

Aaron Rodgers led Pittsburgh on a seven-play drive that gobbled up 58 yards in less than three minutes. But Burke’s alterations prevented the Steelers from gaining more than 23 yards on a drive for the rest of the game.

The Chargers gave the Patriots a rough start in Foxborough during the Wildcard game; it took New England three quarters to open up a six-point lead.

Once the Patriots went 9–3 ahead, the wheels really came off for the Chargers. If the Texans can keep the game close until late in the second half, this one will be a nail-biter.

And don’t forget, the Texans' defense scored more touchdowns than the Patriots' offense in the Wildcard round!

Christian McCaffrey Goes Over 56.5 Rushing Yards

Last time they played, all the way back in Week 18 (so about a fortnight ago), McCaffrey only carried the ball eight times as Kyle Shanahan refused to show Mike Macdonald any of his cards.

The teams also met in Week 1 when CMC racked up 69 yards on the ground. The very large difference between those games is Trent Williams; he lined up at left tackle in the first week of the season but was out with a hamstring injury.

McCaffrey will be key to the 49ers' hopes of winning and taking Kyle Shanahan to a fifth NFC Championship game. The 29-year-old averages 4.4 yards per carry on third downs and 9.4 yards per reception on third downs!

The Seahawks have the best third-down defense in the league, allowing a 32.1% conversion rate. However, they allow a 51.1% conversion rate on fourth downs, so if the 9ers can create a fourth and manageable from their third downs, the odds will be in their favour.

Long drives are going to be key too, not just to fatigue the Seattle defense (who rely heavily on eight core guys), but also to allow the San Francisco defense to rest on the sideline.

In the first game this season, the Niners possessed the ball for 37 minutes and 57 seconds; they won that game 17–13. When they lost the return game, Shanahan’s offense only held the ball for 22 minutes and 12 seconds, punting the ball away four times and throwing a pick!

Conspiracy theorists (like me) believe the Week 18 debacle was more a result of Shanahan not wanting to give the Seahawks much film to study before they met in the playoffs.

Macdonald and Durde now have a whole game’s worth of film from Philadelphia, so Shanahan will need to up his play-design game if McCaffrey is going to match his 71 rushing yard playoff average this week.

The Bills at Broncos Becomes a Kicking Duel

Matt Prater spent seven years as a Broncos kicker, but he is dealing with a quadriceps injury. The 41-year-old went 5 from 5 in Jacksonville, but was unable to take the kickoffs.

For the Broncos, 31-year-old Will Lutz is only making 87.5% of his field goal attempts this season, but he has only missed two at home all season.

This one has got heartbreak for the Bills written all over it!