NFL Playoff Schedule 2014-15: Bracket Predictions, TV Info and More

Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers are part of an NFC South that ruined the 2014-15 NFL playoffs.

Maybe that is not entirely fair, but the Panthers are in the playoffs with a losing record. Two of the three divisions that send multiple teams this year—the NFC North and AFC North—were lucky enough to play all four teams out of the NFC South.

Thanks, NFC South.

Hey, the playoffs will still be a great time. Storylines, controversy and coveted showdowns abound. The bracket is no March Madness sort of ordeal, but some of the possibilities later down the line are juicy.

Given what is ahead, now is the time to brush up on important factors to consider this weekend.

2014-15 NFL Playoffs Bracket

Wild Card Weekend Predictions and Viewing Info

Date	Time	Matchup	Watch	Stream	Pick
Saturday, Jan. 3	4:35 p.m. ET	Arizona at Carolina	ESPN	Watch ESPN	CAR
Saturday, Jan. 3	8:15 p.m. ET	Baltimore at Pittsburgh	NBC	NBC Sports Live Extra	PIT
Sunday, Jan. 4	1:05 p.m. ET	Cincinnati at Indianapolis	CBS	CBSSports.com	IND
Sunday, Jan. 4	4:40 p.m. ET	Detroit at Dallas	FOX	Fox Sports Go	DAL

Wild Card X-Factors to Watch

Matthew Stafford, QB, Detroit Lions

No quarterback seems to get away with his struggles more than Matthew Stafford of the Detroit Lions.

For a quarterback with Calvin Johnson at his disposal, Stafford is painfully bad when it matters, as Josh Katzenstein of The Detroit News explains:

With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that Detroit's losses this year came at the hands of Carolina, Buffalo, Arizona, New England and Green Bay.

Now the Lions head to Dallas for an encounter with the Cowboys, a situation that may turn into a shootout early on in the game. The league's second-ranked rushing attack will have an easy time moving up and down the field thanks to DeMarco Murray.

More pressure than ever goes on Stafford's arm if his defense struggles to contain the owner of 1,845 rushing yards and 13 scores. Calvin Johnson, Golden Tate and Reggie Bush are healthy, but it matters little if the Georgia product shrinks when it matters yet again.

There is nowhere to hide for Stafford next weekend. His backs combine to let the offense rank 28th in rushing. His receivers are known commodities, but cannot throw to themselves. The Cowboys secondary ranks 26th, meaning Stafford will find himself in a predictable attack in a somewhat favorable situation.

Sunday is either a career-changing performance or business as usual.

Baltimore Secondary

Nick Wass/Associated Press

The focal point of a third AFC North encounter between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers is the latter's Le'Veon Bell. 

Fair enough. Bell may miss the game with an injury, which is a pretty big deal considering he has 1,361 yards and eight scores on the year. Never mind the fact he played a minimal role in both prior encounters with Baltimore this year.

A bigger spotlight needs to go on the dynamic that is Ben Roethlisberger against the shaky Baltimore secondary. Wins are not a quarterback stat, but as ESPN Stats & Info notes, Big Ben plays a big part in his team's successful postseason resume:

Just last week, Big Ben shook off the flu to take down the Cincinnati Bengals and claim the AFC North crown thanks to 317 yards and a pair of scores.

“Hopefully the journey’s not over,” Roethlisberger said, per ESPN.com's Scott Brown. “I think that we are getting better, and that was always the goal. We said that we have to get hot at the right time. I don’t think we’re hot, but we’re playing pretty good football and we just have to keep getting better.”

How about a kicker? Big Ben threw six touchdowns against the 24th-ranked Baltimore secondary in their last encounter, a 43-23 Pittsburgh win.

The first time around, Baltimore held him to 217 yards and an interception—in Baltimore.

Things are in Pittsburgh once again and whether or not the Baltimore secondary can show up and play at a high level will decide the game outright. Thanks to the injury to Bell, the Steelers may come out with a one-dimensional offense, too.

Time to show up or go home.

Cam Newton, QB, Carolina Panthers 

Scott Cunningham/Getty Images

Newton is a man possessed.

A few weeks removed from a scary car accident, Newton has led the team to a pair of wins to close the season. He threw for 114 yards and registered two total touchdowns in an easy 34-3 road triumph against the Atlanta Falcons to win the NFC South in Week 17.

Without getting into the whole "elite" discussion, Newton's performance Sunday transcends a single game's outcome—he is flirting with Andy Dalton territory when it comes to postseason performances.

Newton needs that first playoff win to get folks off his back, so it should come as music to his ears that the opponent is the Arizona Cardinals—a team with big names such as Patrick Peterson, but ranks 29th against the pass.

Of course, it is versatility that makes Newton so dangerous as of late. He has a minimum of 49 rushing yards in each of his last four outings with three rushing scores in that span.

Ball control is the way to go against the Cardinals, regardless of whether it is Drew Stanton or Ryan Lindley under center. Newton showed last week that the Panthers could win that way, albeit against an easier opponent.

The stars seem to align for Newton and the Panthers. All he has to do is make his career December and January form (14 wins in last four seasons) show up for at least one more game.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com. Advanced metrics via Pro Football Focus (subscription required).