NFL Playoff Predictions 2015: Expert Consensus Wild-Card Picks

The NFL's second season has begun.

On Saturday afternoon, the march toward Glendale, Arizona, and Super Bowl XLIX begins in earnest. Thirty-two teams began the quest, and now only 12 remain. Of course, we have some questions:

• Can the Pittsburgh Steelers advance past their archnemesis from Baltimore?
• Can the Cincinnati Bengals and Detroit Lions deliver their long-suffering fanbases their first playoff win since the Bush administration? That's George H.W. Bush. The older one.
• Can the Arizona Cardinals become the first team in NFL history to win a playoff game without a quarterback?

Well, the National Lead and Division Lead Writers here at Bleacher Report have gathered to answer those questions and more by offering up their takes on how Wild Card Weekend will unfold.

Gather round. It's knowledge-dropping time.

Roll Call/Standings

Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

The beginning of the NFL's second season marks the start of a second season of sorts for our panelists as well. After 17 weeks of selecting games, it's time to crown the Bleacher Report 2014 Consensus Picks champion.

NFL Analyst Chris Simms, who led the way for most of the season, was one of three writers who went 13-3 in Week 17, but a slide over the last month of the season knocked the former quarterback from the top spot.

NFC East Lead Writer Brad Gagnon, who took the lead from Simms, went a respectable 11-5 a week ago, but that mark wasn't good enough either. Neither was the 12-4 week put forth by NFL National Lead Writer Matt Miller, who entered Week 17 a single game off the pace.

That single game was all it took, as another writer entered Week 17 tied with Gagnon, only to post the same 12-4 mark as Miller. Add that up, and it equals a one-game lead for this year's regular-season champion: Gary "Hey That's Me" Davenport.

Also, given that the aggregate picks finished only two games off our best individual, and higher than the majority of our writers, I guess the old adage is true: Sixteen heads are better than one.

Matt Bowen: NFL National Lead Writer 11-5 (169-86)

Gary Davenport: NFL Analyst 12-4 (174-81)

Mike Freeman: NFL National Lead Writer 12-4 (163-92)

Erik Frenz: AFC East Lead Writer 11-5 (154-101)

Brad Gagnon: NFC East Lead Writer 11-5 (173-82)

Andrea Hangst: AFC North Lead Writer 11-5 (155-100)

Christopher Hansen: AFC West Lead Writer 12-4 (160-95)

Zach Kruse: NFC North Lead Writer 11-5 (163-92)

Rivers McCown: AFC South Lead Writer 13-3 (146-109)

Matt Miller: NFL National Lead Writer 12-4 (173-82)

Ty Schalter: NFL National Lead Writer 11-5 (157-98)

Michael Schottey: NFL National Lead Writer 12-4 (167-88)

Chris Simms: Former NFL Quarterback, NFL Analyst 13-3 (170-85)

Brent Sobleski: NFC South Lead Writer 11-5 (161-94)

Mike Tanier: NFL National Lead Writer 13-3 (159-96)

Sean Tomlinson: NFC West Lead Writer 10-6 (150-73)

Aggregate: 13-3 (172-83)

Arizona Cardinals (5) at Carolina Panthers (4)

John Cordes/Associated Press

The Pick: Carolina Panthers (12-4)

Back in Week 13, the Carolina Panthers were a 3-8-1 dumpster fire, losers of six straight games. The Arizona Cardinals, on the other hand, were 9-3 despite losing quarterback Carson Palmer to an ACL tear.

Since then, the Panthers have reeled off four straight wins to "capture" the pathetic NFC South. The Cardinals have gone 2-2, but the team hasn't won a game since backup Drew Stanton joined Palmer on the shelf with a knee injury of his own.

An examination of Stanton's knee last week revealed an infection that required arthroscopic surgery, making it highly unlikely he will be able to return Saturday afternoon in Charlotte. However, Bruce Arians insisted to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN that Stanton has yet to be ruled out against the Panthers, saying, "He’s progressing and nothing’s really changed. We’ve got our fingers crossed that, possibly, he could go later in the week. It’s still going to be down to the wire. Mentally, he’ll be ready to go."

Stanton may be mentally ready to rock, but his knee's another story altogether. Ryan Lindley played better in last week's loss to the San Francisco 49ers, but the third-year pro threw three interceptions—the sort of turnovers that will absolutely kill a team in the playoffs.

Add in the Redbirds facing another mobile quarterback in Cam Newton after being carved to pieces on the ground by Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick in successive weeks, and you have the makings of a short playoff run for one of the NFL's feel-good stories of 2014.

Cardinals: Frenz, Hansen, McCown, Simms

Panthers: Bowen, Davenport, Freeman, Gagnon, Hangst, Kruse, Miller, Schalter, Schottey, Sobleski, Tanier, Tomlinson

Baltimore Ravens (6) at Pittsburgh Steelers (3)

Gene Puskar/Associated Press

The Pick: Pittsburgh Steelers (16-0)

There are certainly no shortage of storylines heading into Saturday's matchup between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers. After all, it's a game featuring two AFC North teams who don't like one another even a little bit.

However, the biggest story hovering over the game early in the week involves a player who probably won't even be on the field. As Adam Schefter and Scott Brown of ESPN.com reported, an MRI on the injured knee of Pittsburgh running back Le'Veon Bell didn't reveal any ligament damage, but the AFC's leading rusher will have to play through "considerable pain" in order to face the Ravens.

Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger told Brown he remains hopeful Bell will play. "I know if there is a chance he can be out there he's going to be," Roethlisberger said, "because that's how he is."

The loss of Bell would be a huge blow, but AFC North Lead Writer Andrea Hangst thinks Pittsburgh can win this game without its second-year star:

"

The Steelers will likely be without their leading rusher, Le'Veon Bell, on Saturday night, but this may be the one playoff matchup they can thrive in without him. Baltimore's biggest weakness is its secondary, which means the Steelers can lean on quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and uncoverable receiver Antonio Brown.

Pittsburgh's big weakness is also its secondary, but the Ravens' weapons in the passing game don't present the same threat as the Steelers' do. This is going to be a fight—how can it not be, with two divisional rivals trying to stay alive in the postseason—but the talent scales tip in the Steelers' favor this week.

"

Somewhat surprisingly, the panel is unanimous in its agreement with her.

Ravens: It seems at least once a week this season we've had an overwhelming pick fall flat, so buck up Baltimore backers.

Steelers: Bowen, Davenport, Freeman, Frenz, Gagnon, Hangst, Hansen, Kruse, McCown, Miller, Schalter, Schottey, Simms, Sobleski, Tanier, Tomlinson

Cincinnati Bengals (5) at Indianapolis Colts (4)

AJ Mast/Associated Press

The Pick: Indianapolis Colts (12-4)

Here we go again.

For the fourth straight year, Cincinnati is in the playoffs. For the fourth straight year, the Bengals will try to win their first postseason game in over two decades. Cincinnati's Week 17 setback against the Pittsburgh Steelers cost the team more than the AFC North title and the right to host a playoff game.

Rather than face a Ravens team in Cincinnati that the Bengals have beaten twice in 2014, Cincy must now make the short journey to Indianapolis to take on a Colts team that blasted the Bengals 27-0 back in Week 7. Then, as Matthew Glenesk of the Indianapolis Star reports, there's Andy Dalton's less-than-stellar career numbers in the playoffs:

"

Dalton is 0-3 in the playoffs with just one touchdown compared to six interceptions as the Bengals have been one-and-done each of the last three postseasons. In Dalton's three playoff starts, the Bengals have scored 10, 13 and 10 points.

"

Rookie running back Jeremy Hill, who leads the NFL in rushing since Week 8, gives the Bengals a puncher's chance, especially since Andrew Luck and the Colts can't score without the ball. However, no team in the NFL had fewer sacks than the Bengals in 2014 (20).

If they can't pressure Luck, it's hard to envision Dalton and Co. keeping pace with the MVP candidate and an Indy offense averaging over 28 points per game this year.

Bengals: Gagnon, McCown, Simms, Tanier

Colts: Bowen, Davenport, Freeman, Frenz, Hangst, Hansen, Kruse, Miller, Schalter, Schottey, Sobleski, Tomlinson

Detroit Lions (6) at Dallas Cowboys (3)

Rick Osentoski/Associated Press

The Pick: Dallas Cowboys (16-0)

The last time the Detroit Lions played the Cowboys in the playoffs, they blasted Dallas 38-6. It marked the last time the Lions won a game in the postseason. It also happened in January 1992.

You might think there would be some optimism regarding the Lions' chances this time around among Motown scribes. After all, Detroit possessed the No. 2 defense in 2014. Well, in the case of Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press, you'd be just slightly off:

"

A Lions victory in Jerry's World is as likely as Jim Harbaugh taking the defensive coordinator job at Michigan State. Better? The Lions reaffirmed two things with their loss (last) Sunday at Green Bay: They can't beat good teams and they especially can't beat them on the road. Dallas is a good team.

In fact, they're probably the most balanced team in the NFC after the Seattle Seahawks. They're peaking at the right time, they've won four straight, six of their past seven games and have outscored their past two opponents, 86-24. Want a silver lining? OK, fine. The Cowboys are only 4-4 at home this year, including a loss to Colt McCoy-led Washington.

"

Maybe Bleacher Report NFL National Lead Writer Ty Schalter has some hopeful words for the Honolulu Blue faithful:

"

Detroit has pulled off a couple of amazing escapes against Dallas in Matthew Stafford’s time—even in Dallas, as this game will be. With how poorly the QB has been playing, though, it’s difficult to see Stafford and Calvin Johnson keeping pace with Tony Romo and Dez Bryant, let alone DeMarco Murray.

The Lions defense is significantly better than the Cowboys unit, but to win in Dallas it will need to get two or three more turnovers than its own offense gives away. That’s not likely to happen, given the way Romo is playing.

"

See? That's better, right? And according to ESPN.com, "Defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh had his one-game suspension overturned by appeals officer Ted Cottrell on Tuesday." 

OK, now let's take a look at how many writers picked the Lions to...

Oh. OK then.

Lions: This just doesn't look like the collapsible Cowboys of seasons past. Sorry, Detroit.

Cowboys: Bowen, Davenport, Freeman, Frenz, Gagnon, Hangst, Hansen, Kruse, McCown, Miller, Schalter, Schottey, Simms, Sobleski, Tanier, Tomlinson