Every postseason, there are a few shockers, and we got our first Sunday.
The Green Bay Packers destroyed former coach Mike McCarthy and his Dallas Cowboys, snapping their 16-game home-winning streak with a 48–32 victory in the NFC wild-card round.
The Packers will now face the top-seeded San Francisco 49ers next weekend in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs.
In the nightcap, Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams will face a hostile environment Sunday night at Ford Field, with thousands of screaming Detroit Lions fans, who used to adore Stafford and have been waiting three decades for a home playoff game.
Come Monday, the matchup between the Buffalo Bills and Pittsburgh Steelers was postponed due to poor weather conditions. Buffalo will now host Pittsburgh at 4:30 p.m. ET Monday.
Finally, coach Nick Sirianni will get an opportunity to quiet the noise regarding his job status, as the Philadelphia Eagles head to Florida to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football.
Sunday
Packers 48, Cowboys 32
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- What it means for Cowboys: Could this be the end for Mike McCarthy in Dallas? The Cowboys have reached the playoffs each of the past three years under the former Packers' coach, and they’ve won a grand total of one postseason game. This year’s showing was the worst, with Dallas getting blown out at AT&T Stadium to become the first No. 2 seed to ever lose in the wild-card round. If owner Jerry Jones decides to make a move, perhaps he considers a record-setting check for Bill Belichick. Additionally, the Cowboys have to consider a litany of offseason questions now, including whether to retain Tony Pollard, Tyron Smith, Stephon Gilmore, Jayron Kearse, Jourdan Lewis and others. The upcoming months won’t be quiet in Dallas.
- What it means for Packers: For Green Bay, this season has been a wild success based on reaching the playoffs, and the production of Jordan Love. Now, it’s a fever dream. The Packers went into Dallas, where the Cowboys had won 16 consecutive games, and dominated throughout. Love was spectacular with 272 passing yards and three touchdowns, while the defense picked off Dak Prescott twice, including a pick-six from Darnell Savage. The long-term takeaway is Green Bay has a phenomenal pairing of Matt LaFleur and Love for the next decade. The short-term storyline is the Packers are playing without pressure and a team enjoying the moment, leading to terrific results.
Saturday
Chiefs 26, Dolphins 7
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- What it means for Chiefs: Patrick Mahomes might have found his new No. 1 wide receiver after the sensational performance rookie Rashee Rice delivered against the Dolphins. Rice often moved the chains for the Chiefs and got things started with an 11-yard touchdown catch. Rice finished with eight catches for 130 yards, while Travis Kelce contributed seven receptions for 71 yards. The Chiefs also had a balanced attack with Isiah Pacheco, who scored on a three-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to extend the advantage to 19 points. Kansas City’s defense shut down the Dolphins’ explosive offense after allowing a 53-yard touchdown to Tyreek Hill in the second quarter. Now the Chiefs will wait for the results of the Bills-Steelers matchup to find out whether Mahomes will play his first road playoff game.
- What it means for Dolphins: Miami didn’t do much after Hill’s downfield touchdown in the first half. The Dolphins’ short-handed defense forced Mahomes & Co. to settle for four field goals in the red zone. But Tua Tagovailoa struggled to ignite the offense, going 20-of-39 for 199 yards, with one touchdown and one interception. Running back Raheem Mostert and wide receiver Jaylen Waddle were cleared to play, but had quiet performances against the Chiefs’ stout defense. The Dolphins will now go into the offseason with a looming contract dilemma with Tagovailoa, the league’s regular-season passing leader. The organization will likely pay Tagovailoa, but will need to make adjustments to Mike McDaniel’s speedy offense, which faded after a strong start to 2023.
Texans 45, Browns 14
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- What it means for Texans: Houston broke the game open after two pick-sixes in the third quarter—one for 82 yards from cornerback Steven Nelson and the other for 36 yards from linebacker Christian Harris. The Texans’ pass rushers forced Joe Flacco into killer mistakes with frequent hits and pressure. C.J. Stroud also did his part with a sensational first half, including three touchdown passes. The Browns’ secondary had no answers for Stroud and wide receiver Nico Collins. Stroud finished 16-of-21 for 274 yards and no turnovers, and Collins recorded six catches for 96 yards and one touchdown. The surging Texans will play in the divisional round for the first time since 2019, when they blew a 24–0 lead to the Kansas City Chiefs.
