Who will turn heads in the divisional round?

On By Littum

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After a somewhat lackluster opening slate of games, the NFL playoffs could produce some more excitement in the divisional round.

Aside from the Washington Commanders’ last-minute victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the wild-card round was short on excitement, with the home team securing comfortable wins in five of the six matchups. But with just eight teams remaining, this weekend’s lineup could feature a little more fireworks. And with the Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions in action after sitting out the first round as the top seeds in their respective conferences, all eyes will be on whether the conference championship games end up being a battle between established heavyweights or include a surprise entrant .

With that in mind, here are our bold predictions for the divisional round:

Travis Kelce will christen the playoffs with a 100-yard breakout game

It’s that time of year. The Chiefs are on the runway for a mission to become the first three-peat Super Bowl champion, which means their star tight end — and Taylor Swift’s boyfriend — is ready to take his game to the next level in the divisional playoff against the Texans .

Kelce caught 97 passes during the regular season, which was about on par with the 99.6 receptions he has averaged over the past seven seasons. But his impact hardly measured up to the standard he has set for many years. He had career lows in receiving yards (823), touchdowns (3) and yards per catch (8.5) while posting his fewest 100-yard games (1) in a decade. Doesn’t matter. It’s a new season. Remember last year’s Super Bowl trip? Kelce had just two 100-yard games during the 2023 campaign, but came alive during the postseason as his 8-catch average for 88.8 yards included a monster game (11 catches, 116 yards, 1 TD) in AFC title tilt in Baltimore. That suggests he’s in for another statement game. And perhaps his last outing, in a Week 17 rout at Pittsburgh, provided a Christmas premiere (8 catches, 84, 1 TD). Keep an eye on Kelce. That will surely be the MO of his friend, Patrick Mahomes and of, well, Swifties.

— Jarrett Bell

Jayden Daniels leads game-winning drive to upset No. 1 Lions

Jayden Daniels has one last game-winning drive in him, and it’s his biggest yet. This time he helps take down no. 1 seed Detroit Lions and end a magical season in Motown while sending Washington to the NFC Championship Game for the first time since the 1991 season (when they coincidentally beat the Lions in the conference title game).

Even 18 games into his career, Daniels has a sense of inevitability when he takes snaps in the fourth quarter. Call him Thanos. Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn has served as a Michelin-starred chef cooking in a Manhattan apartment kitchen, and he could (should) be rewarded with a head coaching position in a few weeks. But he’s never had to fry a cut like Daniels, who completed 24 passes to six different receivers in Washington’s 23-20 wild-card win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Head coach Dan Quinn has teased his team for nearly a year to excel when the games are in the balance — clearly a part of his game he vowed to improve in his second head coaching stop after his Atlanta Falcons team left something to wish i. that area. His first Commanders squad has answered the bell almost every time, and their last five wins have all come down to the final game. The reaction — or lack thereof — from Daniels after kicker Zane Gonzalez’s 37-yarder in Tampa Bay said it all: Nothing surprises the Offensive Rookie of the Year.

– Chris Bumbaca

Derrick Henry steals the spotlight in Buffalo

Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen garner most of the pregame headlines. The two MVP candidates will take center stage on Sunday. But Derrick Henry will steal the show.

I predict the Ravens running back will rush for 175 yards and two touchdowns, 100 yards coming in the second half. Henry’s two touchdowns will tie his best single-game playoff total. The Ravens will make a concerted effort to highlight Henry, especially while Zay Flowers continues to nurse a knee injury. Henry’s downhill bruising running style is going to wear on Bill’s defense. Buffalo gave up 199 rushing yards and two total touchdowns to Henry when these two teams met in Week 4.

Henry’s compiled 918 career postseason rushing yards, including a postseason record of four games with 150 or more rushing yards. His performance on Sunday will make him the seventh player ever with at least 1,000 career postseason rushing yards and he will have a fifth 150-plus rushing yard game on his resume.

– Tyler Dragon

All four games will be decided by one score

From an entertainment perspective, it’s hard to see the wild-card weekend as anything other than a letdown — though that would require having high hopes for what seemed like a lopsided set of matchups. Maybe it’s the optimist in me, but I have to believe there will be a reward in the upcoming pair of doubleheaders.

The game that seems most likely to threaten this prediction is the Detroit Lions facing the Washington Commanders. A battle-tested top seed with the league’s highest-scoring offense seems like a natural mismatch for a group already ahead of his schedule and led by a rookie quarterback. But if Jayden Daniels can keep his composure again a week after the Washington offense didn’t turn the ball over or punt, then the Commanders could at least stay within striking distance of the Lions. And while the Kansas City Chiefs handled the Houston Texans three weeks ago, DeMeco Ryan’s defense at least has a chance to throw Patrick Mahomes out of the game with edge rushers Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr.’s relentless pursuit.

— Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz