Biggest Takeaways from NFL's Saturday Divisional Action
The first day of the divisional round is in the books and two teams fought hard to survive another day. The ultimate goal? A Super Bowl. There are 32 teams in the NFL spread out across the nation. After Saturday’s inspired action, only six teams remain eligible for the Lombardi Trophy.
The early game between the New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens proved that no lead is safe during postseason play. That contest is sure to end up an instant classic.
Later in the evening, two dangerous, young, dual-threat QBs led their teams with toughness, poise and impressive play from the pocket. The Seattle Seahawks ultimately proved that their defense is simply too dynamic and too talented in the end against the Carolina Panthers.
Here are the key takeaways from today’s playoff action.
Tom Brady Is on a Mission
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Tom Brady made his 27th career playoff appearance against the Ravens with definitive throws while spreading the ball out really well. On Saturday Brady passed Peyton Manning for the most pass yards in NFL postseason history, as per ESPN Stats and Info. He also passed Joe Montana with the most postseason TDs in NFL history with 46.
Throughout the game Brady was knocked down, sacked or pressured on nearly every pass play. He seemed to even get his left arm dinged up after being pile-driven into the grass midway through the second quarter.
In the final two minutes of the first half, Brady made a poorly executed throw down the middle of the field intended for Rob Gronkowski which ended up right in the chest of LB Daryl Smith underneath for the INT. This play was critical because the Patriots were in Ravens territory and in good position to take the lead before the half. Instead, the Ravens put together a quick drive and turned the pick into a TD. This turned out to be one of his only low-lights of the day.
In the second half, it was the quick passing game that really got the Patriots offense going. His go-ahead touchdown pass was probably the best throw of the day. He put the perfect touch on the ball to get it right over the defender and land perfectly into Brandon LaFell’s bread basket for 23 yards.
Through it all, Brady put on an impressive display of toughness, focus and poise that eventually won the day.
Tom Terrific finished the day leading his team to a comeback victory by throwing 4 total TDs and 367 yards on 33-of-50 passing as the Pats beat the Ravens 35-31.
Jamie Collins Is the X-Factor for Patriots D
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Jamie Collins is one of the most underrated players in the NFL, and one of the most versatile. He can rush the passer, play the run and just so happens to be one of the best linebackers in coverage in the NFL. The second-year athlete racked up four sacks, six quarterback hits and 16 quarterback hurries during the regular season, along with 52 total stops and two interceptions.
With the established star DE Chandler Jones going against the backup rookie left tackle James Hurst, many expected this to be a critical matchup in the game. One in which the Patriots could exploit throughout the game. However, Hurst surprised everyone with the way he neutralized Jones all day. His absence as a force on defense meant rising star Jamie Collins had to step his game up and make a significant impact, which is exactly what he did.
Against the Ravens, Collins displayed incredible balance, instincts and change of direction when making tackles in the open field.
Darrelle Revis was called for a costly holding penalty that negated the strip-sack and recovery by Jamie Collins, but he finished the game with a team-high 11 tackles and was highly effective as a pass-rusher and in coverage all day long. Collins is a budding superstar in this league and we have yet to see his best.
Patriots Couldn’t Stop the Run
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Offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak is famous for perfecting the zone-blocking running scheme. This is the foundation of his offense and is based on creating holes by stretching the defense as it moves laterally. The most surprising element to the offense all season has been the success of journeyman RB Justin Forsett, who led all RBs during the regular season, averaging 5.4 yards per carry.
Usually the strategy for most teams, including Baltimore, is to utilize the running game to set up the pass, especially when the game-time temperature is 20 degrees Fahrenheit at kickoff. However, the game plan for the Ravens seemed to be to set up the run with a pass-heavy start to the game.
The Ravens opened up the game looking fearless with a five-play 71-yard opening drive that finished with a TD pass to little-known wideout, Kamar Aiken. Flacco was the key to the drive. He completed four passes to four different receivers. Torrey Smith made one of the nicer catches on that drive but would pay a hefty price for it. He would go to the locker room to be evaluated for a concussion after taking a brutal hit in the back on that play but returned later in the first half.
After that, Forsett became a primary driving force for the Ravens offense. His first three carries of the game resulted in three first downs. He had 10 carries for 78 yards in the first half alone.
Baltimore was able to keep the Patriots front seven defense off balance as the 5’8” 197-pound running back slipped through openings and proved surprisingly difficult to bring down.
He finished the day with 129 yards on the ground in 24 carries.
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Flacco Understands Playoff Football
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Joe Flacco’s impressive postseason play throughout his career is not a fluke. Period. What he does during the pressure of the playoffs may not have a definitive answer, but it cannot be chalked up to random luck any longer.
This Super Bowl-winning quarterback seems to get more relaxed when more is riding on the outcome. In his last six playoff games he has thrown 17 TD passes and just two INTs. It was his second pick of the game that came with 1:39 left in the game that would eventually cost the Ravens.
On Flacco’s second drive of the day he pierced the Patriots’ flimsy defense for a 79-yard drive. During which, he completed nine of his 10 passes and had total command. The drive ended with a slant route to the ageless Steve Smith who beat Darrelle Revis for the TD.
Joe Flacco set a postseason career high with four TD passes, which is also a Ravens postseason single-game record. His day ended after he had completed 28-of-45 passes for 292 yards and thrown his first two picks in his last six playoff games.
Regardless of the loss, there’s no doubt Flacco played well and continues to prove he is one of the more dangerous postseason QBs in the NFL.
Russell Wilson Is the Ultimate Dual-Threat QB
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Russell Wilson did what he has always done since entering the league. He played patient football while waiting for the right opportunities to strike. His favorite target for a big play downfield against the Panthers was receiver Jermaine Kearse.
Kearse made a couple of sensational passes that helped the Seahawks to a hard-fought victory. He finished the day with 129 receiving yards and a TD on just three receptions.
On the ground Wilson had one of his more quiet games as the Panthers seemed committed to stopping this team’s ground attack. That meant Wilson was going to have to win with his arm. Like the clutch champion that he is, he gracefully accepted the challenge and even made some amazing throws in tight windows. This proved to be the one thing the Panthers couldn’t account for and ultimately helped the Seahawks overcome a tough opponent.
Where Wilson was most dominant was on third downs. All three of his TD passes came on third down and he was 8-of-8 passing on that down. That type of success during a critical down is demoralizing to the opposition and eventually starts to steal their spirit.
One of the best things Wilson shows us each week, which showed up against the Panthers, is his ability to avoid the turnovers and act as the perfect complement to a dominating defense.
He finished the day completing 15-of-22 passes for 268 yards three passing TDs and no INTs.
This game proved that Wilson is much more than a careful athlete who knows how to run and avoid mistakes. It showed us just how capable Wilson can be when he needs to make plays with his arm.
Legion of Boom Was Too Much
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Trying to get anything downfield against the Seahawks has to be one of the greatest challenges in sports these days. Seattle has allowed just 15.88 points per game all season and had allowed just 39 points in its last six games heading into the divisional round.
Richard Sherman was the first member of the L.O.B to impact the game. Newton lobbed an ill-advised pass up in Sherman’s direction and he did a great job catching it at its highest point. That was actually Sherman’s first career postseason INT.
Against the run, the secondary was seen playing up close to the line making numerous big stops against the running game of the Panthers. Nobody did this more than the violent, oversized safety Kam Chancellor, who had one of the biggest impacts of any player on the field.
Chancellor had 10 tackles one INT and nearly blocked two field goals by jumping over the line. What he also brought to the game was his trademarked big hits that really set the tone for this offense. The best example of that is when he crushed the bowling-ball RB Mike Tolbert.
Even Earl Thomas made an impact with a critical forced fumble that led to a TD on offense and nearly made a beautiful interception later on. Although he dropped the pick in the second half, he was still flying around the middle of the field breaking up passes on several occasions.
He finished with a total of 11 tackles on the day.
Whoever has to face this team next is going to have to dig deep to crack the code of this air-tight secondary.
Panthers Contained the Seahawks Ground Game
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The heart of Seattle’s offense is obviously their running game. Everything they do as far as the passing game goes is predicated on the success of a dominating ground attack. One of the major components that make this strategy so dangerous is that a great deal of their yards come by the legs of their quarterback Russell Wilson. Wilson led all QBs with a career-high 849 yards on the ground and six rushing TDs, the most since Mike Vick in 2006.
As a team, the Seahawks were held to just 100 net yards on the ground thanks in large part to the ultra-talented linebackers of the Carolina Panthers.
LB Thomas Davis had his second-straight big playoff performance leading his team with nine tackles and a sack against the Seahawks. Luke Kuechly also played well with eight tackles.
Marshawn Lynch was held to 59 yards on 14 carries and Wilson only had 22 yards on seven carries.
In terms of game-planning to stop the run, Carolina not only executed it well, but they did their part in keeping the game close throughout.
If it wasn’t for Wilson’s big plays with his arm, this game could have turned out differently when you look at how well the Panthers did containing such an unstoppable running game. Maybe the winner between the Packers and Cowboys will adopt the same strategy when they tee off against the Seahawks.
Cam Newton Is Growing Up
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As we were all well aware heading into this matchup, the task of beating the infamous Legion of Boom was not going to be easy. This was a defense that hadn’t allowed a single touchdown in the last 10 quarters heading into the game.
Last week Newton was inconsistent with his arm throughout the game but relied on an effective running game and a hefty dose of courage on his part. This week, Newton looked like a quarterback with a ton of confidence and one with a bright future ahead of him.
Although Newton made a couple of poor decisions, throwing the ball up for grabs against Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor, Newton was dialed in throughout the game and looked incredibly sharp in terms of accuracy and poise.
There have been several games throughout Newton’s career where his body language seemed dejected and frustrated. Against the Seahawks he displayed everything you look for in a leader.
Cam also showed off his unique combination of size and athleticism by evading defenders in the pocket or powering through Chancellor on 3rd-and-short.
His pocket presence was incredible on a few plays where he was forced to step up, slide laterally and deliver a rocket throw without taking his eyes off downfield.
Even when the Panthers were down by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter and the Seahawks had the freedom to tee off with the pass rush, Newton made some impressive passes to Kelvin Benjamin and Greg Olson.
But his costly pick-six in the red zone to Chancellor proved to be the final nail in Panthers’ coffin.
For the day he was 23-of-36 for 246 yards, two TDs and two INTs
Ryan Riddle is a former NFL player and currently writes for Bleacher Report
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