Wild Card Wrap-Up
Jan. 12th, 2026 11:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mayhap(5) Los Angeles Rams defeated (4) Carolina Panthers, 34-31 — The Panthers actually got a little feisty and made this game entertaining, good for them. It's much more fun to watch a patented Matthew Stafford game-winning drive than a blowout. Still, teams with losing records GTFO of the playoffs.
(2) Chicago Bears defeated (7) Green Bay Packers, 31-27 — What an epic choke job by the Packers. How are you going to dominate the beginning of a game like that and just let your cheese get absolutely grated in the fourth quarter. Very annoying to me that Caleb Williams advances, but I dislike the Packers and seven seeds, so it's not all bad.
(3) Buffalo Bills defeated (3) Jacksonville Jaguars, 27-24 — Not only not the result I wanted but Tony Romo was almost unlistenable during this game. He seemed drunk or otherwise out of it aside from being unhealthily fixated on Josh Allen, although he did refrain from calling him "Mr. January" for once. Maybe someone reminded him that the Super Bowl is played in February, or maybe he meant to but he was just so trashed that he forgot. Trevor Lawrence threw too many Molotov cocktails and now he has different problems, like what to do in Cancun.
(6) San Francisco 49ers defeated (3) Philadelphia Eagles, 23-19 — What a relief that I never have to watch this soi-disant "offense" ever again. RIP George Kittle. Not sure how much farther the 49ers can go with these injuries, but they've made it this far somehow, so who knows?
(2) New England Patriots defeated (7) Los Angeles Chargers, 16-3 — The Chargers got absolutely laughed back out of the building but the Patriots also looked pretty underwhelming. The score, low as it is, is deceptively respectable thanks to a late Pats touchdown—for most of the game, if I hadn't already known which of these teams was the seven seed, I would have struggled to tell you. I'm not saying the Patriots definitely can't do anything in the playoffs, but thus far, they do indeed appear to be schedule merchants.
(5) Houston Texans defeated (4) Pittsburgh Steelers, 30-6 — Unless you actually watched this game, you would not believe how close it legitimately was, and how possible it seemed that either team might win it, and how little said team would have deserved to win, until the Texans defense finally took over scoring as well. It was great that they had this game on Monday night, because it's always entertaining to see the Mannings reacting viscerally to bad quarterback play in real time and this game had so, so much of it. Since the Steelers couldn't knock out the Texans for me, Aaron Rodgers not only losing but getting thoroughly clowned was a good consolation prize.
Saturday afternoon, Bills at Broncos on CBS — This is going to be insufferable. Please can a meteor take them all out, very much including Tony Romo.
Saturday evening, 49ers at Seahawks — A matchup of division rivals, good storyline, looking forward to this.
Sunday afternoon, Texans at Patriots — Yikes.
Sunday evening, Rams at Bears — Need the Rams to do me a solid here.
(2) Chicago Bears defeated (7) Green Bay Packers, 31-27 — What an epic choke job by the Packers. How are you going to dominate the beginning of a game like that and just let your cheese get absolutely grated in the fourth quarter. Very annoying to me that Caleb Williams advances, but I dislike the Packers and seven seeds, so it's not all bad.
(3) Buffalo Bills defeated (3) Jacksonville Jaguars, 27-24 — Not only not the result I wanted but Tony Romo was almost unlistenable during this game. He seemed drunk or otherwise out of it aside from being unhealthily fixated on Josh Allen, although he did refrain from calling him "Mr. January" for once. Maybe someone reminded him that the Super Bowl is played in February, or maybe he meant to but he was just so trashed that he forgot. Trevor Lawrence threw too many Molotov cocktails and now he has different problems, like what to do in Cancun.
(6) San Francisco 49ers defeated (3) Philadelphia Eagles, 23-19 — What a relief that I never have to watch this soi-disant "offense" ever again. RIP George Kittle. Not sure how much farther the 49ers can go with these injuries, but they've made it this far somehow, so who knows?
(2) New England Patriots defeated (7) Los Angeles Chargers, 16-3 — The Chargers got absolutely laughed back out of the building but the Patriots also looked pretty underwhelming. The score, low as it is, is deceptively respectable thanks to a late Pats touchdown—for most of the game, if I hadn't already known which of these teams was the seven seed, I would have struggled to tell you. I'm not saying the Patriots definitely can't do anything in the playoffs, but thus far, they do indeed appear to be schedule merchants.
(5) Houston Texans defeated (4) Pittsburgh Steelers, 30-6 — Unless you actually watched this game, you would not believe how close it legitimately was, and how possible it seemed that either team might win it, and how little said team would have deserved to win, until the Texans defense finally took over scoring as well. It was great that they had this game on Monday night, because it's always entertaining to see the Mannings reacting viscerally to bad quarterback play in real time and this game had so, so much of it. Since the Steelers couldn't knock out the Texans for me, Aaron Rodgers not only losing but getting thoroughly clowned was a good consolation prize.
Saturday afternoon, Bills at Broncos on CBS — This is going to be insufferable. Please can a meteor take them all out, very much including Tony Romo.
Saturday evening, 49ers at Seahawks — A matchup of division rivals, good storyline, looking forward to this.
Sunday afternoon, Texans at Patriots — Yikes.
Sunday evening, Rams at Bears — Need the Rams to do me a solid here.
