Expat Smoggie
Well-known member
Interesting note from last weekend’s frozen temperatures at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium for the Kansas City Chiefs-Miami Dolphins wild-card game left 15 fans hospitalized due to symptoms related to hypothermia and frostbite— talk about crazy fans!
Green Bay at 49ers (Saturday 5:15)
The weather predictions for San Jose, California Saturday is rain — lots of it, so this game could come down to who handles the predicted sloppy field situation the best.
The Niners have been resting up for the past few weeks so they’ll have all of their starters back for this one. The Packers meanwhile will be on an all time high after their demo job on the Cowboys, but don’t expect the Niners to allow the Packers to have their way in this one.
On the injury front the Packers have a major worry over cornerback Jaire Alexander who was a standout against the Cowboys.
Niners injury report has been released without too many concerns although Christian McCaffrey has only had around 2 weeks to recover from his calf issue so it’ll be intriguing how much he plays and if Mitchell subs him much during the game.
The Niners are the red hot favourites against the Packers but I think it’ll be interesting how Brock Purdy handles the layoff and the Packers defensive lineman who cover very well as they did v Dak Prescott last weekend.
Tampa Bay at Detroit (Sunday Noon)
Detroit beat Tampa Bay 20-6 in Week 5, Jared Goff threw for more than 350 yards and Amon-Ra St. Brown had 12 catches for more than 120 yards. The Lions did nothing in the run game, just 40 yards.
For the Bucs, Baker Mayfield will have his hands full against a very noisy Detroit dome who are experiencing something of a novelty with their team in the playoffs. The Lions held their nerve against a very strong La Rams team winning by a solitary point as time ran out on the Rams.
Most of the oddsmakers think the Lions should easily handle a Bucs team which the Lions beat convincingly in the regular season. However this is all or nothing now with the Bucs easily dispatching the Eagles last weekend and have been decent on the road this season so it could be difficult picking a winner here.
Houston at Baltimore (Saturday 1:30)
Baltimore beat Houston 25-9 in the season opener but Houston are probably one of the most improved teams in the NFL since that defeat, although you could say Baltimore are the most consistent team having the best record in the NFL.
Interesting stat from the first game was that the scores came from the ground game and with the weather predicted to be frigid, this game could also be very much decided on the ground.
So far CJ Stroud has been the surprise package of the NFL but he’ll up against a very strong Ravens defensive line and not forgetting fridge-like Baltimore conditions.
Maybe Texans Head coach Demeco Ryans has a different game plan for this one as well how to keep Ravens QB Lamar Jackson in the pocket?
Regardless the Ravens will be favourites to negotiate their opponents especially having an extra week of rest.
Kansas City at Buffalo (Sunday 3:30)
Buffalo won in Kansas City 20-17 six weeks ago as a dramatic Chiefs late go-ahead score on a lateral was called back when Kadarius Toney lined up offside— a decision which caused a lot of debate across the NFL analysts and heightened the need for a KC revenge mission in Buffalo.
Buffalo are a different proposition on their own turf going 7-1 in the regular season. However the problem for Buffalo going into this matchup that they’re really struggling with injuries with Buffalo defensive backs and their punter all expected to be missing against KC.
So the question is can QB Josh Allen keep Buffalo in this game in what could be a high scoring shootout?
Last weekend, Allen threw for three scores and ran for one more against the Steelers. He has more than 140 yards rushing in his past two games, averaging over six yards per carry but KC will be very wary of Allen’s abilities.
Patrick Mahones meanwhile seems to have got his mojo back after an indifferent season but KC QB will have to deal with a hostile crowd and perhaps some different formations from the Buffalo defense.
Weather-wise the game shouldn’t be too affected by any snow storms although the frozen temperatures could be in double digits by the time kick off comes around.
Green Bay at 49ers (Saturday 5:15)
The weather predictions for San Jose, California Saturday is rain — lots of it, so this game could come down to who handles the predicted sloppy field situation the best.
The Niners have been resting up for the past few weeks so they’ll have all of their starters back for this one. The Packers meanwhile will be on an all time high after their demo job on the Cowboys, but don’t expect the Niners to allow the Packers to have their way in this one.
On the injury front the Packers have a major worry over cornerback Jaire Alexander who was a standout against the Cowboys.
Niners injury report has been released without too many concerns although Christian McCaffrey has only had around 2 weeks to recover from his calf issue so it’ll be intriguing how much he plays and if Mitchell subs him much during the game.
The Niners are the red hot favourites against the Packers but I think it’ll be interesting how Brock Purdy handles the layoff and the Packers defensive lineman who cover very well as they did v Dak Prescott last weekend.
Tampa Bay at Detroit (Sunday Noon)
Detroit beat Tampa Bay 20-6 in Week 5, Jared Goff threw for more than 350 yards and Amon-Ra St. Brown had 12 catches for more than 120 yards. The Lions did nothing in the run game, just 40 yards.
For the Bucs, Baker Mayfield will have his hands full against a very noisy Detroit dome who are experiencing something of a novelty with their team in the playoffs. The Lions held their nerve against a very strong La Rams team winning by a solitary point as time ran out on the Rams.
Most of the oddsmakers think the Lions should easily handle a Bucs team which the Lions beat convincingly in the regular season. However this is all or nothing now with the Bucs easily dispatching the Eagles last weekend and have been decent on the road this season so it could be difficult picking a winner here.
Houston at Baltimore (Saturday 1:30)
Baltimore beat Houston 25-9 in the season opener but Houston are probably one of the most improved teams in the NFL since that defeat, although you could say Baltimore are the most consistent team having the best record in the NFL.
Interesting stat from the first game was that the scores came from the ground game and with the weather predicted to be frigid, this game could also be very much decided on the ground.
So far CJ Stroud has been the surprise package of the NFL but he’ll up against a very strong Ravens defensive line and not forgetting fridge-like Baltimore conditions.
Maybe Texans Head coach Demeco Ryans has a different game plan for this one as well how to keep Ravens QB Lamar Jackson in the pocket?
Regardless the Ravens will be favourites to negotiate their opponents especially having an extra week of rest.
Kansas City at Buffalo (Sunday 3:30)
Buffalo won in Kansas City 20-17 six weeks ago as a dramatic Chiefs late go-ahead score on a lateral was called back when Kadarius Toney lined up offside— a decision which caused a lot of debate across the NFL analysts and heightened the need for a KC revenge mission in Buffalo.
Buffalo are a different proposition on their own turf going 7-1 in the regular season. However the problem for Buffalo going into this matchup that they’re really struggling with injuries with Buffalo defensive backs and their punter all expected to be missing against KC.
So the question is can QB Josh Allen keep Buffalo in this game in what could be a high scoring shootout?
Last weekend, Allen threw for three scores and ran for one more against the Steelers. He has more than 140 yards rushing in his past two games, averaging over six yards per carry but KC will be very wary of Allen’s abilities.
Patrick Mahones meanwhile seems to have got his mojo back after an indifferent season but KC QB will have to deal with a hostile crowd and perhaps some different formations from the Buffalo defense.
Weather-wise the game shouldn’t be too affected by any snow storms although the frozen temperatures could be in double digits by the time kick off comes around.
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