Happy New Year everyone and buckle up for what should now be a wild ride down the finishing straight towards Super Bowl 59! There are just 14 teams remaining on the road to New Orleans, the city that will host the title game on February 9.
Saturday and Sunday saw the final games of the regular season play out and there was drama across the board as the last playoff spots were filled and the seedings for the knockout tournament were cemented.
And the final regular season game of this campaign sent a reminder to the rest of the NFL that the Detroit Lions may be injured, but they are not resting and taking time to lick their wounds. Dan Campbell's men secured the number one seed in the NFC with an emphatic 31-9 win over the Minnesota Vikings, who now fall to the five seed in the conference.
Detroit's injuries, particularly on the defensive side of the ball, have been well documented. So surely defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn would play it safe and back off; making sure not to give up big plays to Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison?That sounds like a sensible plan. But it doesn't sound very much like the Lions, does it? The Lions are always in attack mode, so they sent pressure after pressure in the direction of Sam Darnold, leaving defenders isolated in man coverage on the back end.
And it worked! Logically, it should have failed; but it didn't! It worked to near-perfection on a dominant night for the Lions.
Detroit limited Darnold to 166 passing yards and no touchdowns. Jefferson caught three passes for 54 yards, Addison one for zero yards. Minnesota's high-octane attack was held to three Will Reichard field goals and the Lions reminded the rest of the NFC playoff field that they remain the class of the conference and, quite likely, the entire league.
Offensively, Detroit have many ways to beat an opponent and on Sunday night the plan centred around Jahmyr Gibbs, who rushed for 139 yards and three touchdowns, while also adding a receiving score. The loss of David Montgomery may yet prove hurtful to the Lions, but they appear to be just fine with one explosive running back leading the way instead of two.
That dominance on the ground allowed Jared Goff to throw two interceptions in what would never be described as one of his better performances of the 2024 campaign. But that's the beauty of these Lions – they have multiple weapons and a gusty belief that they can always get the job done.
Big challenges lie ahead and there is a lot of football to be played, but the Lions are now just three wins from lifting the Vince Lombardi Trophy as Super Bowl champions. And if they can do that with the injury list they have been forced to work through this season, it will be one of the greatest achievements in NFL history.
Who's Hot…
Baker Mayfield… It took a late rally against a stubborn New Orleans Saints team, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers eventually took the NFC South with a 27-19 win that was powered by Baker Mayfield's second half performance. With a career record of 0-41 in games where he has trailed by 10 points, Mayfield might have felt stressed heading into the third quarter. But he once again showed that his job as quarterback of the Bucs is about much more than completing passes. Mayfield had some key runs that lit a fire under his team. And then he reminded us all why he was a first overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft with an absolute laser-strike of a touchdown pass to rookie wide receiver Jalen McMillan to give the Bucs their first lead of the day in the fourth quarter. Baker has been sensational this season, completing more than 71 percent of his throws for 4,500 yards and 41 touchdowns. He is just the third player in NFL history to reach those particular aerial landmarks in a season, but Sunday's win was about his spirit and his ability to inspire those around him. That makes him a very dangerous quarterback and the Bucs a team to watch as we head into the playoffs.
Bo Nix… It may only have been against Kansas City's backups, but rookie quarterback Bo Nix was at his action-packed best as Denver booked their playoff spot with a 38-0 thrashing of the Chiefs. Nix was wearing 10 in Denver's throwback uniforms, but it might as well have been seven. He looked a lot like the great John Elway on Sunday, lasering passes all over the field and frustrating defenders with some key runs. Nix threw just three incompletions compared to four touchdown passes and amassed 321 yards through the air and 47 on the ground. It capped an impressive first regular season campaign in which Nix accounted for 34 offensive touchdowns – third-most for a rookie in NFL history. Denver have shown real signs of progress under Sean Payton and Nix now gives them hope for the future as they have ended a barren run with their last playoff visit coming in their Super Bowl-winning season of 2015.
Justin Herbert… Other quarterbacks around the NFL get more attention but only an elite few boast the same physical skills as Justin Herbert, of the Los Angeles Chargers. And while he has always been a very good player, Herbert is hitting the playoffs in top form and that could prove to be bad news for the rest of the AFC field. In delivering LA's 11th win of the season on Sunday, Herbert threw for 346 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. Over the past three games, Herbert has thrown for 911 yards and seven touchdowns. Not the gaudiest of numbers but he has most definitely been the key man in wins over the Raiders, New England and Denver – a run of games that has seen the Chargers rise to fifth in the AFC seedings. The Chargers are well coached, they are tough and they have one of the best passers in the game. That makes them a dark horse to watch when the AFC playoffs begin on Saturday night with their game in Houston against the Texans.
Who's Not…
The Pittsburgh Steelers… That beeping sound you can hear is the Steelers reversing into the playoffs. They are just the third team in league history to go into the postseason tournament off the back of four straight defeats. And the issues seem to be on the offensive side of the ball. Over the past month, the Steelers have scored just 13, 17, 10 and 17 points in their four-game losing streak. Russell Wilson has gone off the boil but has also not been helped by some key drops from his targets. Head coach Mike Tomlin insists that his team "better learn from this." He also said that his team was a victim of "not enough routine play-making." It feels like halting this slide will be too hard for the Steelers, but they will at least know their playoff opponent inside and out in the Baltimore Ravens, who they beat in mid-November. They, of course, have a puncher's chance, but there is not a great deal of power in Pittsburgh's blows at this stage of the year.
The Green Bay Packers… This time last year, the Packers were about to become a very feisty team in the NFC playoffs as they marched into Dallas and hammered the Cowboys, before giving the San Francisco 49ers a real scare in the Divisional Round. After a strong start to this season, the shine has slightly come off the latest edition of the Packers as they have dropped back-to-back games to Minnesota and Chicago. The loss to the Bears didn't end up changing their playoff seeding, but it did feature injuries to quarterback Jordan Love and wide receiver Christian Watson. And I just don't have the same feeling about this team in the early days of 2025. Green Bay have beaten those you would expect them to beat this season, but they have also lost to quality opponents whenever they have faced them. The Philadelphia Eagles fall into the 'quality opponent' bracket and will be expected to take care of business on Sunday. Between now and then, all eyes will be on the injury reports coming out of Green Bay.
The Fast Five (Six)…
- Within hours of Sunday's games finishing, two teams quickly parted with their head coaches as New England fired Jerod Mayo and Jacksonville ended Doug Pederson's tenure with the team after three years. Pederson, I find easier to understand because he was given time to build a contender and with the exception of the 2022 campaign, there were not enough wins and way too many close losses. Mayo committed the ultimate sin of calling his players soft after a London loss to Pederson's Jags, but he has a right to feel somewhat aggrieved. He was given just one year and very little talent to work with. More will follow across the league, that we can be sure of.
- The Bucs worked hard inside the final minute to get Mike Evans past 1,000 receiving yards for the 11th time, stretching his own NFL record to start a career. They could have taken a couple of kneel-downs to secure victory and a playoff spot, but Todd Bowles was willing to risk a throw – albeit a safe one – to get his man to the milestone. And you could see what it meant to Evans and the entire Tampa Bay team. It was the right thing to do for a player who has been a selfless and wonderful servant during his entire time with the Buccaneers.
- The Atlanta Falcons needed a Tampa Bay loss and a victory over the Carolina Panthers to make the playoffs. But they ran into a Panthers squad that was inspired by Bryce Young and it was Carolina who won a thriller 44-38 in overtime. Young has been looking good in the second half of a season that has seen the Panthers make real progress with five wins under Dave Canales. He threw three touchdown passes and ran in two scores. Now, a big offseason awaits. Surround the young quarterback with as much talent as possible.
- Aaron Rodgers became just the fifth quarterback in NFL history to throw 500 regular-season touchdown passes and it was tight end Tyler Conklin who became the answer to a future trivia question. Rodgers looked very good in a 32-20 win over the Miami Dolphins and now attention turns to his NFL future. Was this his last game? I'm not so sure. Even if the Jets don't want him, I reckon Aaron has one more good season in him somewhere.
- The Los Angeles Rams rested key players such as quarterback Matthew Stafford, running back Kyren Williams and receivers Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp on Sunday and slipped from the NFC's three seed down to four with a 30-25 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. You might suggest they got what they asked for and now face a tougher first-round game against Minnesota instead of Washington. But all teams in the NFC are dangerous on their day and Sean McVay obviously felt the health of his roster would be more beneficial in the long run. I didn't have a problem with the Rams' approach.
- Tyreek Hill wants out of Miami and while it is never a good look for a player to pull himself out of a game – which Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel suggested his star receiver did against the Jets on Sunday – can we really blame the Pro Bowler for eyeing pastures new? The Dolphins appear to be in limbo. They are going nowhere at the moment and their bold moves of recent years only brought some nice stats, frustrating losses and two first-round playoff exits. I say free Tyreek Hill. This is also a big offseason for the Dolphins. They simply must find a way to become physically and mentally tougher.
Fact of the Week
In guiding the Baltimore Ravens to the AFC North title with Saturday's 35-10 win over the Cleveland Browns, Lamar Jackson became the first player in NFL history with more than 4,000 passing yards (4,172) and 900+ rushing yards (915) in the same season. He also ended the year with 41 touchdown passes and four interceptions, becoming the first player in league history to top 40 TD passes with fewer than five interceptions.
Final Thought…
After 18 weeks of league play, the knockout tournament now begins. Win and you advance along the road to Super Bowl 39, lose and you're done. Seasons can end so quickly. A turnover here, a dropped pass there! The finality and pressure is immense, which is why some of the biggest and most famous plays in NFL history have come in the playoffs. The intensified stakes raises the profile of the plays. Who will step forward and become a part of NFL legend? I feel like the race is wide open, especially in the AFC where there are three genuine powerhouses in Kansas City, Buffalo and Baltimore. There are also some very dangerous teams in the NFC if their quarterbacks get hot, which can happen at this time of the year. Just ask the likes of Nick Foles and Joe Flacco. The regular season has been so much fun this year, but now things get serious. And we get to sit back and enjoy the show!
