And just like that, the regular season is over and the playoffs will kick off this weekend. Who will be the most important player in the postseason?
If Joe Flacco can take the next step, then perhaps the Ravens can do the same. He's won a road playoff game each of his first three seasons; he does it again this year and Baltimore will be in the Super Bowl.
In the past, Flacco's playoff wins have centered on the defense and the run game, and the quarterback has largely been along for the ride. But he's been very good at home his entire career, and he will play his first home playoff game in two weeks.
If the Ravens are going to out-duel an offensive juggernaut like the Pats, Saints or Packers, Flacco will have to make big plays with consistency. Baltimore went 6-0 in the best division in football, the AFC North, and is battle tested.
Quality quarterback play could put them over the top.
Tom Brady is unquestionably the most important player in the postseason. The Patriots' fate rests squarely on his shoulders due to his ability to hide their defensive deficiencies with his extraordinary play. He is the reason the Patriots are one of the league's most explosive offensive units and he must play well for the team to make a deep run.
If he is off his game in the slightest, the Patriots could be one and done in the playoffs.
There is no definitive answer, but I'll cast my ballot for Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford. It's the first playoff appearance for the Men from Motown since 1999, but they are not just satisfied to get in. They will now ask their young QB to elevate what has already been a splendid season.
Prior to the season, I opined that if Stafford played nearly a full season, they would contend for a playoff spot. He came through with a year that was Pro Bowl-worthy. Now, can he match Drew Brees throw-for-throw, point-for-point, in the Dome?
For the Lions to advance, that is Stafford's mission. He will accept the challenge and take his best shot.
Of all the players who have to come up big, I've got to single out Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco. If he limits his mistakes and plays like he can, the Ravens are a very dangerous team. If he gets the yips as he's prone to do, they could be one and done.
The Ravens positioned themselves to play at least one home game and Flacco has played much better at home, which is a plus. We've also seen how good Baltimore is when offensive coordinator Cam Cameron mixes a nice dose of Ray Rice into the game plan. At some point, though, it's going to come down to Flacco.
Nobody is going to question the viability of Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers, Eli Manning, Drew Brees or even Matthew Stafford and Matt Ryan. Houston and Denver could be on borrowed time because of their quarterback situations. About the only other wild-card at quarterback is San Francisco's Alex Smith, but he's been such a solid caretaker of the ball. To me, Smith is lesser of a question mark than Flacco.
In the ultimate team game, no individual can really win a playoff game, but the quarterback obviously is the most important player on the field. With the reality that the Saints will have to go on the road to win the NFC and get to the Super Bowl, I would say the most important player may be Drew Brees.
Brees is awesome and leads a scoring machine in New Orleans. He will have to have his greatest game to beat the Packers in Green Bay.
I know it seems like I threw this name out just for the sake of being different... but you can bet the Patriots will be rooting hard for rookie T.J. Yates (and possibly the old timer Jake Delhomme?) to fall on his/their face against Cincy in the wild-card round this weekend. If the Texans can't take care of business at home, the Patriots will have a gimme against the 8-8 Bengals before a likely title game matchup against the bad-on-the-road Ravens. If Houston wins, the Pats probably get the Steelers, who dominated them in Pittsburgh a couple months ago. What's more, having the Ravens and Steelers play their usual beat-the-hell-out-of-each-other game in the divisional round would presumably leave the survivor battered and bruised as they head into Foxboro.
Then again, maybe Timmy Tebow will beat the Steelers and throw my whole hypothetical scenario out the window. Just make sure you open that window... I don't think Timmy throws it hard enough to break the glass.