Tag: 2023 nfl playoffs

Pro Ducks are prevalent through out the 2023 NFL playoffs

The NFL playoffs begin this weekend and there are plenty of former Ducks who will be on the field.

The Oregon Ducks football season may be over, but Oregon fans can still watch their favorite former Ducks in the NFL playoffs starting this weekend.

It all starts with 49ers hosting the Seahawks on Saturday and Arik Armstead and Deommordore Lenoir headlining the San Francisco defense.

But in reality, the majority of Duck fans will be watching former quarterback Justin Herbert’s first potential playoff run as he leads the Chargers against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Saturday night.

There’s a total of 10 former Ducks who will be participating in the playoffs with the hope of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy Feb. 12 after Super Bowl LVII. Here are the 10 Pro Ducks in the NFL postseason.

Ranking all 14 teams in the NFL playoffs by who you should be rooting for the most

From a team living a Hollywood script to a few tortured fanbases, here’s a rooting guide to this postseason.

If history is any indication, we’re about to witness quite a whirlwind month of football.

With the Wild Card round kicking off festivities for the 2023 NFL playoffs, we’re bound to witness more than a few Herculean efforts, mind-boggling comebacks, and emotional on-field (and off) moments we won’t soon forget.

But how do you pick a team to root for and get invested in if your squad is one of the 18 on the outside looking in? Or, if your favorite playoff team is likely to have a quick exit and they bring you no joy, only frustration — who do you pick then? Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered.

From a redemption story in the Pacific Northwest to another team quite literally living a five-month-long epic drama, here’s For The Win’s rooting guide — ranking all 14 teams by best choice — for the 2023 NFL Playoffs.

NFL fans reminisced about David-Goliath QB playoff battles ahead of Dolphins’ backup facing Josh Allen

Allen vs. an overmatched backup isn’t the first time a vastly inferior QB had to try and pull off an upset.

The Buffalo Bills are about to have the challenging task of slowing down one … Skylar Thompson?

That’s right. Since Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa has officially been ruled out of the team’s third matchup with Buffalo this season in the AFC Wild Card Game, Thompson gets the daunting task of trying to beat juggernaut Buffalo on the road. With Human Terminator Josh Allen as the opposing quarterback. Woof. Good luck, young man.

On paper, this massive “David vs. Goliath” QB battle had FanSided’s Matt Verderame wondering about other noteworthy postseason signal-caller mismatches where the lesser player won. Of course, no one expects Thompson to beat, let alone come close to Allen and the Bills.

But you never know in the playoffs:

This got NFL fans thinking: What other massive underdogs successfully pulled off upsets over established superstars behind center? In a deep dive of modern NFL history, the answers do not disappoint.

Bills OL Dion Dawkins hilariously compared playing Dolphins for a third time to a third date

“Hopefully, we can take ‘em home.”

When the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins square off in the AFC Wild Card Game this Sunday, the division rivals will have the unique mark of having played each other for the third time this season. The two AFC contenders split both previous regular season matchups, with the home team prevailing on each occasion.

Anyone who follows the NFL on a regular basis knows that games born out of a division rivalry can sometimes make for some unpredictable chaos. Even if the Dolphins will be without starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, anything can happen in a playoff battle when two squads know each other intimately.

This was a reality not lost on Bills offensive lineman Dion Dawkins.

While describing the prospects of the third game between Buffalo and Miami this season, Dawkins made a hilarious comparison to a third date in the early stages of getting to know someone. It’s absolute gold:

I mean, look at that setup. The man came ready for his media availability, clearly prepared to answer a question about playing a team three times in one year.

Here’s a video of this wonderful exchange:

I don’t know if Dawkins actually knows what kind of drink the Dolphins prefer. Because, you know, you have to go on a real date for that. But he’s certainly not someone who lacks for words as a crucial player on one of the Super Bowl 57 favorites.

The Dolphins only have themselves to blame for what the Bills are about to do to them

Tua Tagovailoa might have been available for the playoffs if Miami had taken better care of him.

The short-term appeal of an undefeated run to begin the regular-season was all too tempting for the Miami Dolphins to do the right thing and bench Tua Tagovailoa after he was very obviously concussed in their Week 3 win over the Buffalo Bills (even if it was never reported as a concussion).

The long-term repercussions will be devastating.

Tagovailoa will have to deal with the effects of likely suffering three concussions in a span of three months. The Dolphins will have to deal with the Bills again, this time without Tagovailoa, who was officially ruled out for their Wild Card playoff meeting to no one’s surprise.

Buffalo is a 13-point favorite over the Dolphins, who only have themselves to blame for the carnage that’s about to take place Sunday.

Miami’s +550 odds to win at BetMGM are by far the longest of any team in the Wild Card round.

The Dolphins had one of the most explosive offenses of the early regular-season. Had they simply viewed 2022 through the bigger lens of postseason possibilities — if not the humane view of Tagovailoa’s health — they would have seen the quarterback as worth preserving and trusted the early success to be replicable once he was more equipped to play.

That was too much to expect from a team with all of two playoff appearances in the last 20 years and none since 2016, though. Prosperity was unfamiliar.

So, when Tagovailoa came up wobbled after a hit in the second quarter of that Week 3 game, they labeled it a back injury and threw him back out in the second half to win a game that gave them a 3-0 record. Whoop-de-freaking-do!

Then, with 4-0 a possibility, they put him back on the field just four days later, where he took another vicious blow to the head. This time Tagovailoa was officially diagnosed with a concussion, even as it was hard to believe he was completely over the previous one. Concussion expert Chris Nowinski said Tagovailoa should have never been out there.

Thankfully, the Dolphins did rest him the next couple of weeks, but the damage was already done. A third head injury would all but end his season, and that’s precisely what happened on Christmas when he slammed his head against the ground again (and still finished the game).

Tagovailoa hasn’t played since that day, and he’ll be lucky to live a normal life without lingering effects, let alone continue his career. In his place, the Dolphins are preparing to start rookie Skylar Thompson, who has one touchdown in 105 pass attempts and none in his previous two starts. They’ll be lucky not to lose by 20 points.

They can thank themselves for present circumstances. If only they had taken better care of their quarterback, maybe things would be different.

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How Dak Prescott can overcome the worst stretch of his career for the playoffs

The Cowboys will go as far in the playoffs as Dak Prescott can take them. Doug Farrar goes to the tape to figure out how Dak can turn it around.

Well, that didn’t work.

Last week, I wrote a detailed tape piece about the multiple reasons behind Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott’s unusual interception stretch in the month of December. Prescott threw eight interceptions to 12 touchdowns in five games last month, though he seemed to believe he had that issue on the run in time for the regular-season finale against the Washington Commanders on January 8.

Why is Dak Prescott throwing so many interceptions?

“I don’t worry about that,” Prescott said after the Cowboys’ 23-17 Week 17 win over the Tennessee Titans, in which he threw two interceptions — both to safety Kevin Byard. Now, the questions were about this affecting his team in the playoffs.

“I don’t sit there and think of that, ‘Oh, this is going to continue to happen.’ As much as anything I have got to fix the ones on my end and I’ve just got to make sure the receivers and everybody that may take part in them are focused and understand that we don’t have a lot of opportunities as we move forward these last games and all these playoff games. Every drive matters, and we have to play every play, every drive, like it is to win the game and that’s the reality of it when you get to the postseason. So, it is just heightening our focus, and understanding, for me, the risk versus the reward, rather it is a tight window or not. Everybody being on the same page understanding the magnitude of each play.”

Well, nobody is on the same page at this point. In Dallas’ 26-6 Sunday loss to Washington, Prescott completed just 14 of 37 passes for 128 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and a passer rating of 45.8.

This marked Prescott’s seventh straight game with an interception; the most for any Cowboys quarterback since 2004. when Vinny Testaverde (!!!) threw picks in nine straight games for Dallas… at age 41. Prescott tied with Houston’s Davis Mills for the NFL’s most interceptions with 15, and the most pick-sixes with three — and Prescott only played in 12 games in the regular season. All three of Prescott’s pick-sixes have come since Week 15, including one against the Commanders that could have easily happened twice.

Since Week 12, when this interception festival really started? Well, it’s not just the interceptions. Among quarterbacks with at least 100 passing attempts over that span of time, Prescott ranks 17th in passer rating (88.0), and 12th in EPA (-0.99),

In that Commanders loss, the Cowboys went three-and-out on 12 of their 17 drives. This is obviously not a recipe for playoff success.

Prescott, who has been asked about these issues all along, was more frank about them following the regular-season finale.

“For me, shi**y, not to use the language but simple as that. Defense I thought gave us a chance, did enough. I mean, obviously put them in some bad positions, us and special teams did. But to hold them to a field goal, get a touchdown. I gave a touchdown on an interception, so defense did enough obviously. For offense, just completely not who we are. I don’t think I’ve seen us like that in damn sure the last two years. Something that as much as you want to burn the tape and move forward, there’s a lot we can learn from and get better and use this tape.”

Now, the Cowboys have to travel to Tampa to face a Buccaneers team that beat them 19-3 in Week 1. In that game, Prescott completed 14 of 29 passes for 134 yards, no touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 47.2. He suffered a thumb injury in the fourth quarter that cost him the next five games, and outside of fits and starts through the season, Prescott has struggled to string together the kinds of performances we’ve expected from him throughout his career.

In my prior piece on Prescott, I did my best to detail everything that’s wrong with Dallas’ offense, and its quarterback. Now, with Prescott set to take the field against his Week 1 nemesis, it’s time to look at how any of this can be corrected.

(All advanced metrics courtesy of Football Outsiders, Pro Football Focus, and Sports Info Solutions unless otherwise indicated). 

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NFL Power Rankings Wild Card Weekend: Where all 32 teams stand as the playoffs and offseason begin

Let’s take stock of the entire league before the chaos of the postseason begins.

And so, the playoffs begin.

This weekend, roughly 40 percent of the NFL will begin a hopefully extended postseason journey during Wild Card Weekend. At the same time, the other approximately 60 percent of the league is already well into the 2023 offseason, hoping to lay the bricks of a foundation to play well into mid-January and soon.

In five weeks’ time, we’ll have a new Super Bowl champion crowned in Arizona. And when everyone’s done celebrating — the precise moment they’re done celebrating, and we are not exaggerating this — we’ll already have our eyes on what’s next or who’s next in this oh so silly league. That’s just the way this dramatic cookie crumbles.

As the playoffs start for one side of the NFL and a vital offseason kicks off for the other, here are For The Win’s Power Rankings for 2023 Wild Card Weekend.

4-Down Territory: Secret superstars, unfair playoff seeds, draft changes, play or sit?

In this week’s “4-Down Territory,” Doug Farrar and Luke Easterling discuss secret superstars, playoff seeds, the changing draft, and coaching decisions.

Every week in “4-Down Territory,” Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar and Luke Easterling of Bucs Wire and Draft Wire go over the things you need to know about, and the things you need to watch, in the NFL right now. With the regular season in the books, and the Super Wild-Card round on tap, there’s a lot to discuss!

00:00 – Which under-the-radar player needs to be a Secret Superstar for their team to advance?

04:52 – Is it time to reseed the playoffs for a more fair result?

09:36 – How does the new draft order shift in the top of the draft for quarterback-needy teams?

15:13 – Where do you stand on the subject of resting your starters for the playoffs?

You can watch this week’s episode of “4-Down Territory” right here:

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1 burning question for every AFC Wild Card team, from Trevor Lawrence’s ascension to Lamar Jackson’s health

Is Lawrence ready for his playoff moment? Will Jackson even play for the Ravens? There’s a lot to unpack in the AFC Wild Card round.

This weekend will see the start of a time-honored annual January tradition: The NFL playoffs. With the entire 14-team field set, we’ll soon know who is worthy of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl 57 in Arizona next month and who, well, should probably be trying harder in the NFL Draft.

The first stop on that winding postseason journey is Wild Card Weekend this Saturday, Sunday and Monday. And there’s an important question every team playing this weekend must consider and ask itself before potentially making it to the next round.

Take the Jaguars, for example.

They’re one of the brighter and younger teams in pro football. Will the face of the franchise in Trevor Lawrence shine or wilt under the playoff lights? In Baltimore, after the Ravens backed into the postseason — will Lamar Jackson even play, and do the Ravens even have a shot without him?

One thing’s for sure: The suspense of playoff football is terrible to some. I, meanwhile, hope it lasts. Let’s break down one burning question for every AFC Wild Card team (and check out our questions for the NFC side)

Former Michigan State football players in the 2023 NFL playoffs

Check out which former Spartans will be suiting up in the 2023 NFL playoffs:

The 2022-23 regular season has commenced in the National Football League and the league is gearing up for the 2023 playoffs. In 2022, Spartan Nation got to see former offensive lineman Brian Allen win a Super Bowl ring with the Los Angeles Rams, the fanbase hopes they will get to see another Michigan State alum do the same in 2023.

Take a look at all of the former Spartans that will be participating in the 2023 NFL playoffs:

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on Twitter @Cory_Linsner.