After a blowout round of wildcard games, it is time for the games to get intense. That’s right, it is time for the divisional playoffs. With both the Oakland Raiders and Miami Dolphins losing, it is the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Houston Texans facing the New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs. The winners of each game will advance and battle for the AFC Crown. But who will that be? Let’s take a look!
Pittsburgh Steelers VS Kansas City Chiefs
The Steelers looked dominant last week against the dolphins. The passing game took off strong and that created just more openings for the run. Ben Rothlisberger will look to lead his team to do the same against the Chiefs. However, Big Ben will have to be more careful against turnovers. WR Antonio Brown and RB Le’Veon Bell will look to have big games. Last week Bell ran for over 160 yards and 2 touchdowns. If he can even get near that, the Steelers will be in a great position to win. There was a concern of Big Ben having hurt his ankle in last week’s game, but he has shed his boot and practiced without any problems. The Steelers defense will have to contain WR Tyreke Hill on returns. They will look to have a repeat performance just like last week.
The Chiefs are fresh after a bye week. They are one of the most balanced teams left in the playoffs. Boasting a top defense and an offense that can move the ball, they are aided by a strong special teams lead by Hill. QB Alex Smith is one of the few other QB’s in the playoffs that has experience in the postseason but has yet to go all the way. The Chiefs are primed to with a strong game to take it the distance, but in the end, they just don’t have the tools to stop Bell and Brown.
Predictions – Steelers 31 to Chiefs 24
Houston Texans Vs New England Patriots
The last time these two teams met early in the season, it was a complete blowout. That was with a backup QB. Now they are facing the GOAT, QB Tom Brady. We did see glimpses of greatness from Jadeveon Clowney last week, but that was against a rookie 3rd string QB. That defense will have to step up its game against the Patriots. QB Brock Osweiler started to look like an NFL Starter last week to the end of the game. He will have to bring that into this week to have a chance to lead his team to the conference game.
The Patriots are the odds-on favorite to win the Super Bowl. Tom Brady has been on a revenge tour after missing 4 games to start the year. After leading an MVP candidate worthy season, he is looking to take the show deep into the preseason. Look for him to use TE Martellus Bennett, WR Julian Edelman and WR Michael Floyd often. Aided by the running game, lead by RB LaGarrette Blount and Dion Lewis, they will look to further gash the Texans. It shouldn’t be to hard to contain Osweiler, which will stop WR DeAndrea Hopkins. They do need to keep an eye on RB Lamar Miller.
Prediction – Patriots 35 to Texans 21
Enjoy the games!
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