Biggest Takeaways from NFL's Saturday Wild-Card Action
The Wild Card Round is upon us, and home-field advantage was not enough to generate a win in at least one game today. Head coach Mike Tomlin’s Pittsburgh Steelers failed to advance in the playoffs despite having the best offense in the NFL, losing to the Baltimore Ravens in a physical battle, 30-17.
The Arizona Cardinals and Carolina Panthers opened up today's action as two teams trending in completely opposite directions.
Ron Rivera notched his first playoff win as an NFL head coach, and Cam Newton finished off an up-and-down game with a big smile. Cam and his dominant defensive counterparts guided the Panthers to a 27-16 victory, advancing them to the divisional round.
Here are some of the biggest takeaways from both Wild Card Games from Saturday.
Special Teams Provided Hope and Took It Away in Cardinals vs. Panthers
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The first 41 points scored in the game between the Cardinals (11-5) and the Panthers (7-8-1) came on just 224 yards of net offense. Arizona made 47 total yards generate two TDs in the first half.
In a game with very little generated on offense for either team, special teams kept the Cardinals in the game early in the first half but would ultimately cost them dearly. Their punter Drew Butler’s first five punts were all less than 35 yards, and none of them were coffin-corner punts. This continued to give the Panthers favorable field position.
Panthers punt returner Brenton Bersin went down to his knees to retrieve a bouncer and let the ball deflect off of his leg before being recovered by a Cardinals defender. This blunder led to the Cardinals’ first TD of the day.
Then in the third quarter, kick returner Ted Ginn Jr. fumbled a kickoff that the Panthers recovered inside their own 5-yard line. Newton eventually turned that turnover into a touchdown. This ended up being one of the more costly plays of the day.
It seemed trivial at the time, but Rivera's decision to punt and back the Cards up changed the outlook of this game.
The Panthers' special teams weren't any more impressive on the day. They missed a field goal in a defensive battle, allowed a nice return by Ginn and botched a punt that gave Arizona good field position in the fourth quarter.
Arizona’s Defense Misses Too Many Tackles to Be Dominant
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No team has given up more yards after the initial hit than Arizona, according to Mike Tirico during the ESPN broadcast of the playoff game.
The Arizona Cardinals' run defense struggled throughout the game, largely because of missed tackles that led to huge game-changing moments for the Panthers.
A TD run by Jonathan Stewart and a 40-plus-yard scamper by Fozzy Whittaker that saw him reverse field, both involved multiple missed tackles by the Cardinals defense.
Stewart finished the game with 123 yards rushing and a touchdown on 24 carries. The back is known for his ability to break tackles, but against the Cardinals he provided Carolina with a consistent option when little else was working.
Meanwhile, the Panthers’ success on the ground still didn’t stop them from tossing 21 passes in the first half. Considering their success running the ball, they should have focused more on their pair of talented backs, especially with Newton’s inconsistencies with accuracy and his two turnovers.
Newton’s Accuracy Inconsistent, but He Played Inspired Football
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Newton had been playing well lately, with a 96.9 passer rating in the last three games heading into the contest.
Offensively the Panthers started off with a nice game plan that did a great job balancing the run and pass. Newton looked locked in early on, but his decision-making and poise faded as the first half wore on. He opened up the game targeting the four-time All-Pro CB Patrick Peterson and connected on a few short routes underneath.
On the other hand, the former No.1 overall pick had a couple of off-target throws in the first half toward wide open receivers. He later launched a costly interception into the hands of veteran CB Antonio Cromartie which led to Arizona's second score of the day.
After Newton threw a pick in the second quarter, the Panthers turned their focus to the legs of Stewart and Newton himself. But when they returned to the air for the two-minute drill to end the half, Newton activated the laser sighting on his rifle arm. The drive would fall short and ended with a field goal thanks to a receiver drop and a well-timed blitz by the Cardinals on a 3rd-and-7.
One of Newton's best throws in the first half came midway through the second quarter where he side-armed a perfect throw in a tight window to one of his favorite targets, Greg Olsen. However, that drive later ended on a bad pass by Newton on a 3rd-and-5 at midfield.
But his most inspiring play of the day was when he took of on a 3rd-and-forever with no chance to get a first down but bulled his way through a pair of converging defenders across the first-down marker. When he got to his feet, you could see by the look on his face that he was in some pain. Newton's sacrifice on that play was just what the team needed at the time.
Considering the marginal talent Newton has for a receiving corps, there's little margin for error in terms of his accuracy. He needs to maximize every opportunity this limited group affords him, or the Panthers will be going home in a week.
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Offensively the Cardinals Had Nobody They Could Turn To
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Offensively the Cardinals were limited to just 78 total yards of offense in a playoff game.
Throughout the game they trotted out some obscure players more reminiscent of the fourth quarter in a preseason game. The replacement Cardinals played valiantly, but in the end there was only so much we could expect from these guys in a playoff game (even against a team with a losing record).
Wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald seemed like the obvious star power you turn to in a game like this, but Fitz is not a special playmaker after the catch, which means his production was at the mercy of Ryan Lindley’s arm. With that said, Fitzgerald showed tremendous effort in the first quarter with the ball in his hands down in the red zone.
Lindley had a great look at Fitzgerald in the end zone at the end of the first quarter but missed him. He would immediately go back to No. 11 on the next play with an underneath route. After the catch Fitzgerald was in rare form, refusing to go down.
Bruce Arians outcoached the Panthers in the first half by avoiding plays that would result in a costly mistake and by putting marginal players in the best position to succeed. Arians did this by wisely countering the expectations of the defense.
In the first half, the Panthers looked like the more capable team on both sides of the ball, holding the Cards to just 65 total yards on offense compared to Carolina’s 208 yards. Arians managed to escape with a one-point lead by doing a great job taking advantage of the two Panthers turnovers.
For the game, the Cardinals offense totaled just 78 yards, and eventually the team's lack of playmakers on offense caught up with it. The Cards converted just eight first downs on the day.
Thomas Davis and Luke Kuechly Were All over the Field
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Carolina's defense has undergone quite the turnaround, going from 27th in the league in Week 7 to 10th by season’s end.
On defense the Panthers showed that their front seven can hold up against the Cardinals. They forced four three-and-outs in the first half.
Thomas Davis and Luke Kuechly were flying all over the field, leading and inspiring this unit to a dominating performance on that side of the ball.
Thomas made some big plays early in the third quarter with some beautiful tackles for loss against Cardinals running back Kerwynn Williams.
Kuechly, on the other hand, made plays throughout the game, but none more important than his red-zone interception in the early portion of the fourth quarter.
Later, he tipped a Lindley pass (intended for Fitzgerald) that resulted in an INT by Tre Boston and sealed the game. He finished with a game-high 10 tackles, while Davis had seven tackles.
Without Le’Veon Bell, This Was an Even Matchup
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The Ravens entered the game with 18 players on injured reserve. On the other sideline, the Steelers only had three guys on injured reserve. This may seem like a disadvantage for Pittsburgh, but not when you consider what Bell brings to the Steelers offense.
Steelers decided to go with Ben Tate early as their primary running back. He had 19 yards on five carries. His fourth carry turned into a fumble that was alertly picked up by Antonio Brown. After the fumble, the Steelers brought in undrafted rookie Josh Harris to replace Tate, and the running game never recovered.
Without a viable running game, the Steelers couldn’t survive a potent Baltimore pass rush teeing off because the Ravens were unafraid of the running game.
When defenses fear the Le’Veon Bell effect, they taper down the heavy pass protection on all levels of the defense and are forced to consider the run and pass threat equally. This balance has been the reason why the Steelers have been the most complete offensive threat in the NFL all season long.
Take the threat of Bell away and they become one-dimensional and predictable, which obviously makes them much easier to defend. This is how the significantly inferior Baltimore secondary was able to bring the Steelers’ receiving production to a halt.
But you can only shut down a combination of playmakers like Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown and Martavis Bryant for so many consecutive downs before they break loose and do some damage. However, their production was not enough to carry the Steelers to victory.
The Patriots’ Offensive Line Is Going to Struggle Against the Ravens
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Baltimore did a great job limiting the Steelers offense in the first half by pressuring the pass and stuffing the run after the Ben Tate fumble. The depleted Ravens secondary held up nicely considering the Steelers' pass-heavy strategy and potent weapons available on the outside—and there is a reason why.
The return of Haloti Ngata from his suspension paid dividends for the Ravens early in the game. He recorded a sack in the first quarter and prevented Roethlisberger from stepping up in the pocket as much as he’d like to. With Ngata manning the interior line, Baltimore’s defensive front is unquestionably dominant.
Baltimore‘s outside pass-rush combination of Elvis Dumervil and Terrell Suggs gave Big Ben fits all game long. This is nothing new for the QB, but it seems a bit worse with Le’Veon Bell’s absence allowing the pass rushers to tee off more.
Dumervil finished with two sacks while Suggs had a critical interception that put the Ravens up 30-15. Suggs then forced a holding call on the offense tackle that brought back a potential touchdown that could’ve made it a one-score game.
Steelers right tackle Marcus Gilbert simply cannot block Dumervil. Dumervil now has five sacks in the last three games against Pittsburgh.
These Teams Only Play Violent Football
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When the Steelers and the Ravens meet in a playoff game there are always a few things you can expect: The hits will be loud, the bruises big and the yards hard-fought. Running with the ball in this game quickly becomes a hazard to that person’s health.
This was exactly how the game was played from start to finish. The trenches were densely packed with some of the most physically imposing men in the entire league. We’re talking names like Haloti Ngata, Brandon Williams, Daniel McCullers and many more.
The fumble forced on Justin Forsett was caused by outside linebacker James Harrison beasting the blocker backward right into the unsuspecting lap of the runner.
Evidence of this violent style of football was prevalent throughout the game, but perhaps no more so than in the fourth quarter when multiple guys started going out with head injuries. Roethlisberger was punished all night long, but the sack in the fourth quarter that sent him out for a play probably had him groggy enough to force the INT in the red zone a few plays later.
Later on, in garbage time, Heath Miller, who was hit hard enough to come off the field earlier, fumbled the ball on Pittsburgh’s last possession of the game.
Even with less than two minutes remaining and a comfortable lead, Ravens safety Will Hill punished Steelers receiver Markus Wheaton.
Hopefully the Ravens won't be too beaten up from the win when they head to New England to face the Patriots on January 10.
Ryan Riddle is a former NFL player and writes for Bleacher Report
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