NFL Midweek Update: Playoff bracket set for Super Wildcard Weekend

New England and Green Bay missed the chance to clinch their spots on the 2022-23 playoff schedule after agonising Week 18 losses, leaving Miami and Seattle to take the final berths.

Philadelphia and Kansas City claimed the number one seed positions in their respective conferences, though it is worth noting that any Chiefs vs Buffalo Bills AFC title game would be played at a neutral site. That ruling came down after the decision not to resume the Bills vs Bengals game postponed after the cardiac arrest suffered by Damar Hamlin.

Speaking of Damar, there was terrific news coming out of Cincinnati last week with the Bills safety now awake in hospital with his neurological function intact, and speaking to his team-mates. It was incredibly welcome after a few days where football mattered little in the grand scheme of things.

NFL Injury Report

Pro football is a brutal game, played by powerful athletes at devastating speed. Not surprisingly the injuries which inevitably result have a massive impact on a team’s eventual success.

Here are some of the major injuries to hit the headlines in Week 18, with a particular eye on how they affect the post-season games:

Lamar Jackson (QB, Baltimore Ravens): This is not new, but it might be the most important injury storyline heading into Super Wildcard Weekend. Jackson missed the final five games of the regular season with a knee injury, and there is still no clarity on whether he will start this weekend at Cincinnati. It’s a massive few weeks for the former league MVP, who has yet to agree a contract extension with the Ravens.

Gus Edwards (RB, Baltimore Ravens): Edwards left Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati with a head injury and did not return. This could put his status for this weekend’s rematch in Cincy in doubt. Not what a struggling Ravens offense needs right now.

Mike Williams (WR, Los Angeles Chargers): The sight of Williams being carted to the locker room during Sunday’s loss in Denver had to be a horrific sight for Chargers fans. The good news though is that he ‘only’ suffered a contusion and should be available for Saturday’s post-season trip to Jacksonville to face the Jaguars.

Tua Tagovailoa (QB, Miami Dolphins): Tua has been in concussion protocol for more than two weeks now, and at the time of writing had still not been cleared to return to action. The Dolphins offense has been terrific with him at the controls in 2022, but clearly his long-term health is more important here and his status for the playoff trip to Buffalo must be in huge doubt right now.

Raheem Mostert (RB, Miami Dolphins): Mostert is another major doubt for the trip to Buffalo after breaking his thumb during Sunday’s playoff-clinching win over the New York Jets. He was terrific in Miami’s recent close loss to the Bills, and would be a big miss this weekend.

Brandon Shell (RT, Miami Dolphins): The Fish have problems up front too, with LT Terron Armstead currently battling through four (FOUR) listed injuries. So doubts around the availability of Shell for this weekend are extremely unwelcome. He suffered a knee injury during the win over the Jets.

Mike Evans (WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers): Evans was the main reason Tampa clinched the NFC South title in that win over Carolina in Week 17, but he missed the season-ending trip to Atlanta after coming down with a bug sweeping the team facility. He will be vital to the Bucs’ hopes of beating the Cowboys this weekend, so Tom Brady and co will be hoping his recovery is swift and full.

Leighton Vander Esch (LB, Dallas Cowboys): LVE should return this week from the pinched nerve which forced him to miss the final four games of the regular season. His presence will be key for a Dallas defense which struggled down the stretch after looking elite earlier in 2022.

Tyler Biadasz (C, Dallas Cowboys): Another Cowboy set to return is starting center Biadasz, who missed the Week 18 loss in Washington due to a high ankle sprain. A potent Dallas running game has run out of gas in recent weeks, and getting a key OL starter back might help to fix that in Tampa on Monday night.

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Here are just some of the performances which really caught the eye in Week 18, again very much with an eye to what lies in store for the post-season games:

Trey Hendrickson (DE, Cincinnati Bengals): Everybody in Cincy had to be ecstatic to see Hendrickson back in top form and wrecking the Baltimore backfield during Sunday’s 27-16 win over the Ravens. Now recovered from a recent broken wrist, he racked up two sacks and two hurries from only 14 pass-rushing snaps.

Josh Allen (QB, Buffalo Bills): Allen seemed like a lock for NFL MVP early in the 2022 season, but had his struggles down the stretch. He was stellar last weekend in the win over New England though, passes for 254 yards and three scores - including some incredible highlight-reel throws. That bodes well for what Buffalo hopes will now be a Super Bowl run.

Kadarius Toney (WR, Kansas City Chiefs): If the Chiefs claim a Super Bowl title in Arizona next month, mid-season trade acquisition Toney could be a huge reason. He has tantalising potential in a role similar to 49ers superstar Deebo Samuel. He is tough to bring down in any situation and the Chiefs are showing they will find a ton of ways to get the ball into his hands.

Brock Purdy (QB, San Francisco 49ers): This seems incredible to say, but in a month’s time we could have a rookie ‘Mr Irrelevant’ (the very last pick in the NFL Draft), leading his team to a Super Bowl title from the game’s most important position. Purdy has shown remarkable poise since stepping in to replace Jimmy Garoppolo and was terrific again in Sunday’s win over Arizona. Yes the Kyle Shanahan scheme helps any QB, but the man under center still has to execute. Right now Purdy is doing a fine job of that, now for the bigger tests to come.

Joey Bosa (OLB, Los Angeles Chargers): Bosa left Sunday’s game in Denver early after spending 12 weeks on the sidelines already through injury in 2022. But in just eight pass-rush snaps against the Broncos he registered a sack and four pressures. He is vital to the Chargers’ hopes of a deep playoff run, and they had better hope he is fully healthy for this weekend’s trip to Jacksonville.

NFL Playoff Scenarios

The regular season is complete and the NFL playoff bracket is set.

These are the teams who will be in post-season action:

AFC

1. Kansas City Chiefs 14-3
2. Buffalo Bills 13-3
3. Cincinnati Bengals 12-4
4. Jacksonville Jaguars 9-8
5. Los Angeles Chargers 10-7
6. Baltimore Ravens 10-7
7. Miami Dolphins 9-8

NFC

1. Philadelphia Eagles 14-3
2. San Francisco 49ers 13-4
3. Minnesota Vikings 13-4
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 8-9
5. Dallas Cowboys 12-5
6. New York Giants 9-7-1
7. Seattle Seahawks 9-8

NFL Super Wildcard Weekend Schedule

Kansas City and Philadelphia both get first-round byes, but everybody else is in action as the road to Super Bowl LVII in Arizona next month starts in earnest:

Saturday January 14, 2023

• Seattle Seahawks @ San Francisco 49ers (9.30pm (UK)
• Los Angeles Chargers @ Jacksonville Jaguars (1.15am Sunday UK)

Sunday January 15, 2023

• Miami Dolphins @ Buffalo Bills (6pm UK)
• New York Giants vs Minnesota Vikings (9.30pm UK)
• Baltimore Ravens vs Cincinnati Bengals (1.15am Monday UK)

Monday January 16, 2023

• Dallas Cowboys @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1.15am UK Tuesday)

NFL Game Of The Week: Dallas Cowboys @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tom Brady is 7-0 all-time vs the Cowboys, while Dallas has gone 27 years without even reaching an NFC title game. Something has to give in Florida on Monday night.

Brady and the Bucs have struggled to hit any sort of consistency all season, while the Cowboys looked worryingly out of sorts in a miserable Week 18 loss in Washington.

All of a sudden a potent Dallas running game is struggling, Dak Prescott is throwing picks with alarming regularity and the Cowboy secondary appears ripe to be picked apart by TB12.

Dallas is a 2.5-point favourite on the road but that number is gradually shrinking. Can the Cowboys get back on track, or will it be one and done again in the playoffs for ‘America’s Team’?

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