The NFL season is nearly finished after a wild season with many unexpected teams missing the playoffs and moving on to try to get to the Super Bowl.
Week 18 started with two playoff spots remaining, starting with the Buccaneers and Panthers playing to win the division. Even though the Bucs won, the Falcons beat the Saints, causing a three team tiebreaker in which the Panthers had the best record, punching their ticket to the playoffs.
The other playoff spot was between the Steelers and Ravens, who were also playing to win the division. After a very intense shootout in the fourth quarter from QBs Aaron Rodgers and Lamar Jackson, Chris Boswell missed an extra point to keep the Steelers lead to two. The Ravens drove down the field, but Tyler Loop missed a 44 yard field goal and lost the game.
“I’m very glad Aaron Rodgers made it into the playoffs one last time,” sophomore Mikey Hemme said.
The Steelers miracle run ended quickly as the Texans beat the Steelers 30-6 in a lopsided game on Monday night. It was the first home Monday night loss for the Steelers since 1991.
The Texans phenomenal defense gave Rodgers not much time to throw, and despite WR DK Metcalf returning from suspension, nobody on the Steelers offense was making plays. This could have been Rodgers last game of his career and even coach Mike Tomlin’s final game with the Steelers.
The Wild Card round started with the Rams and Panthers. The Rams were heavily favored and are favored to win the Super Bowl, but the Panthers nearly pulled off an upset before QB Mathew Stafford led the Rams on a game winning drive to end the game 34-31.
The next Wild Card game was an NFC North showdown between the Packers and Bears. The Packers started off the game amazing, winning 21-3 at halftime. Unfortunately, the Packers crumbled in the second half, with Brandon McManus missing an important extra point and field goal.
The Bears scored 25 points in the fourth quarter and ended up beating the Packers 31-27. It was another brutal playoff game for the Packers, who have had a big history of special teams disasters in the playoffs.
“I’m very disappointed about the Packers game,” sophomore Beckett Lisowski said. “I think the Packers should release Brandon McManus.”
The first Wild Card game on Sunday was the Bills and Jaguars. The Jaguars came into the playoffs as the hottest team in the NFL, and QB Trevor Lawrence was also playing at an MVP level to end the season, but Bills QB Josh Allen once again shined and went on a game winning drive to beat the Jaguars.
The 49ers and Eagles were the next Wild Card game on Sunday. The 49ers, who have dealt with an insane amount of injuries, somehow still beat the Eagles. The last score of the game was a trick play, where 49ers receiver Jauan Jennings tossed a touchdown to Christian McCaffery.
Then the Eagles couldn’t move the ball all the way into the endzone and came up short. The 49ers also lost TE George Kittle to a torn Achilles, another brutal injury that could affect their Divisional Round matchup.
“It is incredible that the 49ers are still winning despite all of their injuries,” Lisowski said. “Kyle Shanahan is a very good coach and Christian McCaffery has carried the team all season.”
Sunday night finished off the day with the Patriots and Chargers. The Chargers, having the worst offensive line in the league, gave up 6 sacks and lost 16-3 in a low scoring matchup. QB Drake Maye led the Patriots to a 14-3 record and now has won his first playoff game. QB Justin Herbert was visibly rattled all game from all the hits he took, and he now falls to 0-3 in playoff games in his career.
