Matchups For NFL Divisional Round 2024 - Ranked Worst To Best

January 19, 2024

Tony Camino ranks the four Divisional Round matchups in the NFL. Which game is the best and which playoff game is the worst?

Only three weekends of NFL football left, and after a Wild Card Weekend that included just one game decided by one possession, hopefully we get some more entertaining football this weekend. The AFC features three MVP candidate quarterbacks and a rookie on fire, while the NFC has more underdog stories at quarterback.

Despite mostly blowouts, two Vegas underdogs came away with wins last weekend. The top seeds Baltimore and San Francisco are starting their playoff runs, and each stands as a nine-point favorite. Detroit is favored by six against the Buccaneers, and the Chiefs are three-point underdogs at Buffalo.

What games will be the best this weekend? Let's go through all four Divisional Round matchups ranked from worst to best.

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4. Buccaneers at Lions

The Lions won their first playoff game in 30 years in the most thrilling match against the Rams last weekend, but it isn't Matthew Stafford's return to Detroit this week. Instead, Baker Mayfield and the Bucs come to town after dismantling the broken Eagles. In terms of quarterback play, it's a battle of two comeback stories in Mayfield and Jared Goff, and neither typically makes game-changing plays routinely.

This matchup earlier in the season saw Tampa Bay struggle to just six points while the Lions overwhelmed them all game. The Bucs have a solid defense that can keep them in the game, but their offense might be the worst unit left in the playoffs. Both defenses could give each other issues on the run, and the passing game could be forced into the picture. Each quarterback has shown they can heat up, but the potential of Goff and Mayfield being forced into 40 throws each isn't the recipe for a great game.

3. Packers at 49ers

Green Bay stormed into Dallas and embarrassed the Cowboys, and Jordan Love continues to look more like the next great Packers quarterback every week. Their offense tore apart the Cowboys' single-high defense, and a few Dak Prescott pick-sixes made this one uncompetitive fast. This will be the 10th-ever Packers-Niners postseason meeting, and the Niners took them down 13-10 in their last game in 2022.

San Francisco's offense was unstoppable almost all year, and their violent pass rush wreaks havoc against other quarterbacks. Most would expect the Niners to win this game pretty easily, but it will be interesting to see the young Packers get another chance when nobody believes in them. San Francisco can play a wider variety of coverages than the Cowboys, and their dominant offense probably lets the 49ers pull away at the end.

2. Texans at Ravens

C.J. Stroud continues to light it up in his rookie campaign with a 45-14 blowout of the Browns. Heading into Baltimore, the challenge is entirely different against a team who will play far less man defense than Cleveland. The Ravens looked unbeatable all year, and their new offense under Todd Monken seems to finally hit its full stride.

Baltimore is another tough defense for Houston, with talent at every level to make plays against the young quarterback. The Texans have one of the worst rushing attacks in the league, and they will need Stroud to have a big day to advance. Lamar Jackson has never made an AFC Championship game, and the battle between an established MVP and fast-rising rookie should make for must-see TV, even if the Texans can't get the upset.

1. Chiefs at Bills

The newest great quarterback rivalry in the NFL is Josh Allen versus Patrick Mahomes with a rematch from the amazing overtime playoff game in 2022. The Bills have only won two of the six meetings between these two star quarterbacks, but they did win 20-17 at Arrowhead earlier this season. Even better for the Bills, they will host the Chiefs for the first time in this matchup since Allen's rookie year, and it's the first time Mahomes will go on the road for a playoff game.

This will also be the first time ever where Mahomes is an underdog in a playoff game, and Buffalo is playing some of the best football in the NFL right now. Kansas City has the best defense they've had in recent years, but the receiving core has made them beatable as they struggle with drops and creating separation. If Allen plays a clean game, the Bills should end the Chiefs' streak of five straight AFC title games. Regardless, another installment of a historic rivalry in the making is the best matchup of the Divisional Round.

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