2017 NFL PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS | FULL BRACKET! | YOU WON"T BELIEVE WHO I HAVE WINNING SUPER BOWL 51!
The first game on the NFL playoff schedule Saturday is the one that probably has the least flash and intrigue of the four on the schedule.
As a matter of fact, the Wild Card game between the Oakland Raiders and the Houston Texans might as well be the "Pity Bowl," because both teams could feel sorry for themselves as they limp into the playoffs.
The Raiders were having a brilliant season as they got ready to play in Week 16 against the Indianapolis Colts. They would win that game, but they suffered a huge blow when quarterback Derek Carr broke his fibula.
Backup quarterback Matt McGloin injured his trapezius in the finale against the Denver Broncos, and rookie quarterback Connor Cook will make his first start in this playoff game.
Cook, who was a star at Michigan State, was drafted in the fourth round last spring. He didn"t play at all this year until he came on in relief of McGloin and completed 14 of 21 passes against the Broncos.
Wild Card Weekend Oakland (5) at Houston (4) Jan. 7 4:35 p.m. ESPN/ABC Detroit (6) at Seattle (3) Jan. 7 8:15 p.m. NBC Miami (6) at Pittsburgh (3) Jan. 8 1:05 p.m. CBS N.Y. Giants (5) at Green Bay (4) Jan. 8 4:40 p.m. FoxCBSSports.com
The pressure on a rookie quarterback making his first start normally shouldn"t be too great, but Cook will get no benefit of the doubt. It"s win or go home in the playoffs, and he has to figure out a way to get the Raiders a victory.
The Texans are in the same position they were a year ago, when they made the playoffs as the AFC South winners and hosted an AFC West team in the Wild Card round. That did not go well for them, as they dropped a 30-0 decision at home to the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Texans will try to avoid that fate with Brock Osweiler at quarterback. They had signed Osweiler during the offseason and had high hopes that he would become the elite quarterback the franchise has needed for years.
But Osweiler could not rise to the occasion and was replaced by Tom Savage late in the season. However,Savage suffered a concussion in Week 17 against the Tennessee Titans, so that means the Texans must turn back to Osweiler for this game.
Divisional Playoff Scenario NFC No. 3, 4 or 5 seed at Atlanta Jan. 14 4:35 p.m. Fox AFC No. 4, 5 or 6 seed at New England Jan. 14 8:15 p.m. CBS AFC No. 3, 4 or 5 at Kansas City Jan. 15 1:05 p.m. NBC NFC No. 4, 5 or 6 at Dallas Jan. 15 4:40 p.m. FoxCBSSports.com
While neither team"s quarterback situation is ideal, it appears the Raiders may be in better shape at the position. Cook is an unknown who is getting his opportunity in a big game. He does not have a track record of failure like Osweiler. Cook really doesn"t have a track record at all.
He will forge the first part of his NFL identity here, and all he has to do is help his team win the game to be branded as a success. He doesn"t have to throw for 275 yards and three touchdowns. He just has to hold up to the pressure, read defenses, hand the ball off and throw a few short passes for his team to have a good chance at surviving and advancing.
Cook said he would go back to his college days with the Spartans when he led his team to memorable victories over power schools like Ohio State and Michigan to help prepare himself for his postseason start.
We played in some big-time games there. Going to try to take whatever I did there and put it to use on Saturday, Cook told Lindsay H. Jones of USA Today.
The other side of the AFC bracket will see the Miami Dolphins try to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers for the second time this season.
The first time came in Week 6, when the Dolphins pulled off the 30-15 upset at home. Winning in South Florida in October is one thing, but winning in Western Pennsylvania in January is quite another. Especially when the Steelers have Ben Roethlisberger, Le"Veon Bell and Antonio Brown.
The NFC Wild Card games include the Detroit Lions going to CenturyLink field to play the Seattle Seahawks Saturday night and the Green Bay Packers hosting the New York Giants Sunday afternoon.
The Seahawks still carry a dangerous reputation because they won Super Bowl XLVIII and then nearly defended their title the following year against the New England Patriots. However, they fell short in that game, and Pete Carroll"s team hasn"t been quite the same since. They may have enough to beat the slumping Lions, who have lost three games in a row, but don"t expect them to go much further.
The final game of the weekend stacks up to be the most memorable. The Giants won the Super Bowl following the 2007 and 2011 seasons, and in both of those years, they won playoff games at Green Bay.
Eli Manning was at the helm for the Giants in both of those games, and he gets another opportunity here. Manning has a fine postseason pedigree with two Super Bowl rings to his credit, but the reason the Giants made the playoffs this season was the improvement in their defense, which ranked dead last a year ago in yards allowed.
Newcomers Damon Harrison, Olivier Vernon and Janoris Jenkins have been stellar, and so has strong safety Landon Collins, who leads the team with 125 tackles.
The New York defense will have to be at or near its best if the Giants are going to slow down Aaron Rodgers and Co.
Green Bay comes into the game riding a six-game winning streak, and their offense is functioning at a high level.
The overtime rules in the playoffs are similar to the regular season, because each team"s offense must get a chance to possess the ball unless the first team to get it scores a touchdown.
However, the only difference is that a playoff game cannot end in a tie. If a regular-season game is tied after a 15-minute overtime period, the game is over and goes into the record book as a tie.
In the postseason, an overtime game will go on until a winner is determined. Any score, ofcourse, will suffice after each team has had a possession.
The Miami Dolphins and the Kansas City Chiefs played the longest game in NFL history following the 1971 season. Miami edged the homestanding Chiefs 27-24 on Garo Yepremian"s 37-yard field goal in the second overtime period.
The game was the last played in Kansas City"s Municipal Stadium and was one of the most memorable in NFL history.
Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2685604-nfl-playoffs-2017-overtime-rules-bracket-and-postseason-format
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