The AFC's top team is the Baltimore Ravens (14-2 in regular season) and they are riding a 12-game winning streak as they prepare to face the Tennessee Titans this Saturday. Tennessee knocked off the New England Patriots, 20-13 on the road last week. Meanwhile, the Kansas City Chiefs (12-4 and number-two seed) will host the Houston Texans, who staged a comeback from a 16-0 deficit to defeat the Buffalo Bills, 22-19 in overtime during last week's wild card round.
The Ravens and Chiefs are no doubt pretty heavy favorites, but keep in mind the Texans did beat the Chiefs during the regular season, so it's no given that K.C. will have an easy time to advance to their second straight AFC Championship Game.
The Ravens had the top scoring offense in pro football this season, led by quarterback Lamar Jackson and a strong running attack that set a new NFL team record for single season rushing yardage. The Titans can pound the rock as well and they have Derrick Henry, who led the entire league in rushing this season and also piled up 182 yards on 34 carries with a touchdown against New England last week.
Over in the NFC, the San Francisco 49ers (13-3) are the top team while Green Bay (13-3) is the second seed. The 'Niners will host the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday while the Packers will face the Seattle Seahawks in Lambeau Field on Sunday.
The Seahawks beat the Philadelphia Eagles, 17-9 on the road in last week's wild card round while Minnesota toppled the New Orleans Saints, 26-20 in overtime for the road win to get them to the divisional round.
San Francisco boasts a strong defense and the offense has steadily improved with a balanced attack led by quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. The Vikings have a balanced offensive attack as well with QB Kirk Cousins and running back Dalvin Cook, who had two rushing touchdowns in last week's victory. The Vikings also play solid defense and held a high powered Saints offense in check last week, especially in crunch time to get the win.
The game between Green Bay and Seattle should be another episode like the other matches they have had in past playoff games. The Packers beat Seattle back when Brett Favre was still their quarterback and most recently when these two teams met in the 2014 NFC title game, the Seahawks pulled out an overtime win against the Packers, led by QB Aaron Rodgers.
Both teams have solid offenses, with Green Bay running back Aaron Jones having his best season in 2019 and he finished the regular season on a roll while Rodgers has been his usual steady self this year and the passing game is always to be feared. The Seahawks defense isn't the one they have been used to from years past when they would dominate opponents, especially in the post-season. But they likely will give Rodgers and company a battle to keep things close in this game.
Offensively, the Seahawks have league MVP candidate Russell Wilson at quarterback and he and wide receiver DK Metcalf were the big difference last week in the victory over the Eagles.
The Seattle running game has been decimated by injuries in recent weeks and it will be up to backs Marshawn Lynch, Travis Homer and Robert Turbin to help balance the load on offense so Wilson doesn't have to be a one-man show against an improving Packers defense.
All in all, these games should be competitive and the call here is for hard fought battles with three of the four top teams from each conference advancing.
The Heftyinfo picks for the divisional playoff games . . . . . . . (Home teams are listed in bold)
Saturday, January 11
San Francisco over Minnesota
Baltimore over Tennessee
Sunday, January 12
Kansas City over Houston
Seattle over Green Bay
Last Week's Record - 2-2
Playoff Record - 2-2
REGULAR SEASON RECORD - 171-84-1
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