Neil Reynolds: What next for Tom Brady, why the 49ers so impressed on Super Wild Card Weekend, and why Kirk Cousins should not be blamed for the Vikings’ loss | NFL News
What next for 45-year-old, seven-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback Tom Brady after his Tampa Bay Buccaneers were knocked out of the playoffs?
What a weekend that was. Super Wild Card Weekend indeed!
The first game saw the San Francisco 49ers have to fight to get past the Seattle Seahawks, and then we were treated to four absolute thrillers over the rest of the weekend, with only Monday night’s match-up – a win for the Dallas Cowboys over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers – proving not to be hugely competitive.
It was a thoroughly enjoyable weekend, and now I’m going to work through all six of the wild card clashes, starting with Monday night’s road win for the Dallas Cowboys over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers…
Prescott delivers for Dallas, but what next for Brady?
NFC: (5) Dallas Cowboys 31-14 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4)
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Highlights of the Dallas Cowboys’ clash with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Super Wild Card Weekend in the NFL playoffs
The final game of Super Wild Card Weekend was all about Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott. He came into the game having thrown at least one interception in seven-straight contests; he had a league-leading 15 interceptions in the regular season; while he can and probably did shut out the outside noise, they must have been demanding more of him from inside that Cowboys building.
Prescott then produced one of the greatest displays of his career, throwing four touchdown passes, it was also the greatest quarterback outing in Cowboys playoff history. This is a team that has won five Super Bowls and 36 playoff games!
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A look at Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott’s best plays from a near-perfect Super Wild Card performance against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
There are ups and downs with Prescott, but he showed us on Monday night the class he has when his confidence is up. Given Tampa Bay’s failings on offense, there was simply no way they could keep pace.
And so now we go on ‘Tom Brady watch again’. Last year, after being knocked out of the playoffs, he retired for 40 days before ultimately coming back to the Bucs.
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NFL legend Tom Brady says he is ‘grateful for the respect’ shown towards him as he weighs up his playing future
He is going to be 46 years old when he next plays in the NFL, should he wish to do so. He will, though, have numerous suitors in the offseason. Will he retire? Will he go back to the Bucs? Or will he find his way onto a new team, like the Las Vegas Raiders, or even the 49ers?
Brady’s decision is one for us all to keep an eye on.
Bengals survive Ravens scare to book divisional date in Buffalo
AFC: (6) Baltimore Ravens 17-24 Cincinnati Bengals (3)
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Highlights of the Baltimore Ravens against the Cincinnati Bengals on Super Wild Card Weekend in the NFL playoffs
Much like the Buffalo Bills and their earlier win over the Miami Dolphins, the Bengals also faced a divisional foe who wouldn’t go away quietly. Cincinnati had a real scare before ultimately recording a 24-17 win over Baltimore on Sunday night. The Bengals now travel into Buffalo for the divisional round next weekend and both teams will need to raise their games.
This game was so dramatic, intense – and the game-winning touchdown simply summed up the incredible nature of Super Wild Card Weekend. Ravens QB Tyler Huntley was down at the one-yard line for Baltimore, jumped up and reached for the goal line but the ball was slapped back by Logan Wilson and caught by defensive lineman Sam Hubbard… and away he goes, 98 yards for the longest fumble-return TD in playoff history.
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Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Sam Hubbard scores on a 98-yard fumble return touchdown – an NFL record for the postseason
That said, the Ravens might have tied the game up right at the end, with James Proche almost coming down with a ‘Hail Mary’ catch in the end zone.
It was another reminder that you just never know what the NFL is going to serve up. It was great entertainment from start to finish.
Don’t blame Cousins; Vikings defense at fault for Giants loss
NFC: (6) New York Giants 31-24 Minnesota Vikings (3)
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Highlights of the New York Giants’ trip to the Minnesota Vikings on Super Wild Card Weekend in the NFL playoffs
This was one game I wasn’t surprised to see go right down to the wire. That’s the world these two teams have lived in all season long, always involved in dramatic games.
I was a little bit more shocked, however, to see just how good Daniel Jones looked for the Giants. He only threw 15 touchdown passes in 16 regular-season games this year, but this was the best I’ve ever seen him play during his time in New York.
Daniel Jones put in his best career game for the New York Giants in their Super Wild Card win over the Minnesota Vikings
He looked comfortable, but also really dangerous. He threw for 301 yards and two touchdowns, rushing also for 78 yards on 17 carries on the ground.
Admittedly, the above happened against the second-worst ranked defense in the NFL, and that’s ultimately where the blame lies for the Vikings this season and in this game.
Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins, on the final play of the game, checked the ball down to TJ Hockenson, short of the sticks, and so when he got tackled it was game over. There has been a huge amount of criticism of Kirk based on that play… which I think is unfair. He has been the reason this team even made the playoffs – he led the team on eight game-winning drives this year, the most of any QB in the NFL.
If you’re criticising Kirk, you’re barking up the wrong tree. Minnesota’s defense is the issue and it needs fixing in a major way.
Bills claw their way into divisional round after Dolphins scrap
AFC: (7) Miami Dolphins 31-34 Buffalo Bills (2)
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Highlights of the the Miami Dolphins’ clash with the Buffalo Bills on Super Wild Card Weekend in the NFL playoffs
The first game on Sunday wasn’t supposed to be a contest. The Dolphins were being led by a third-string, rookie quarterback in Skylar Thompson; they were the biggest wild card underdogs in playoff history – the Bills were favoured by 13 points by the bookmakers.
And yet, the Bills – who could still prove to be the Super Bowl representative from the AFC – had to fight, scrap and claw their way into the divisional round.
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Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen says the team need to improve in their next game as they edged out the Miami Dolphins in a close Super Wild Card game
Miami threw the kitchen sink at Bills quarterback Josh Allen, sacking him seven times and intercepting him twice. It almost worked, they almost got the win.
Had Thompson been helped out a little bit more by his receivers, Miami might have shocked the world – but they were undone by some drops from key performers, especially Jaylen Waddle.
Allen, meanwhile, is still a superstar. He literally took everything the Dolphins could throw at him and yet still threw for 352 yards and three touchdowns. In among those stats were some truly incredible throws.
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The Buffalo Bills got off to a perfect start as Josh Allen went deep to Stefon Diggs before Dawson Knox latched onto a sensational TD
Buffalo survived, and I think they can raise their game in the next round.
‘Caged lion’ Lawrence leads Jags to epic comeback win
AFC: (7) Los Angeles Chargers 30-31 Jacksonville Jaguars (4)
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Highlights of the game between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Jacksonville Jaguars on Super Wild Card Weekend in the NFL playoffs
What a game for the ages it was on Saturday night! The Jaguars came back from 27-0 down against the Chargers to ultimately win 31-30.
I could not have been more disappointed for Trevor Lawrence, and deflated about what the Jags were doing in that awful first half – things were just unravelling before their eyes.
They needed the leadership of head coach Doug Pederson to bring them back. He changed the approach, got Lawrence completing some easy throws and his quarterback grew into the game.
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A look back at a rollercoaster game for Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence as he followed up four first-half interceptions with a four-TD display
The touchdown to end the first half was important, but it was more about the fact that Lawrence kept slinging the football, kept coming, that was so impressive. The whole time, he was walking up and down the sideline as if he knew he was going to deliver the win – like a caged lion.
There was no room for error. Down 27-0, the Jags had only five possessions to follow in the remainder of the game – Lawrence, who had thrown four first-half interceptions, had four touchdown passes in a row and then led the team on the game-winning drive, capped by a Riley Patterson field goal in the final seconds.
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Jacksonville Jaguars’ Riley Patterson knocks through the game-winning field goal to cap a stunning comeback win over the Los Angeles Chargers
It was just brilliant; the third-largest playoff comeback in history. What a game, what a night; a coming-out party for Lawrence and the Jags.
Purdy’s star-studded 49ers look primed for Super Bowl run
NFC: (7) Seattle Seahawks 23-41 San Francisco 49ers (2)
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Highlights of the Seattle Seahawks’ clash with the San Francisco 49ers on Super Wild Card Weekend in the NFL playoffs
I could not have been more impressed with the 49ers in their 41-23 victory over the Seahawks on Saturday.
Brock Purdy continues to look assured at quarterback, and anything but a rookie, as he threw for 332 yards and three touchdowns.
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A look at San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy’s best plays from his debut playoff game
He can pull off structured plays, but he also does so well when improvising and making stuff up on the fly. The vast array of weapons he has at his disposal certainly helps – Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle. They all made plays. As did defensive-player-of-the-year-shoo-in Nick Bosa on the defensive side of the ball.
This was a star-studded performance from a team that can go all the way to the Super Bowl. The 49ers have won 11 in a row and it’s hard to see how they can be stopped.
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