Latest NFL Divisional Round Winners

The Divisional Round of the 2021 NFL season continues this Sunday with two games that will define the crossings to the Conference Finals and we have you covered with everything you need to know for the second weekend of the playoffs. Our NFL Nation reporters share with us the most important keys of each game, a risky prediction of each game and, of course, their prediction of the final score.

They give us an important stat to know for each game and our “Football Power Index” (FPI) looks at the numbers rating the games (on a scale of 1 to 100) and a protection of the game and Kevin Seifert tells us everything we need to know about the officials. Everything you need to know is here in one place to help you stay informed for a loaded weekend of playoff soccer.

On Saturday, the Cincinnati Bengals and San Francisco 49ers sealed their tickets after wins over the Tennessee Titans and Green Bay Packers, respectively. The action will conclude with an exciting game this Sunday night between the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs, which has the makings of one of the best games of the entire season.

Rams at Buccaneers
What we should watch: The Rams have had little depth in the defensive secondary, but the Bucs could be playing without All-Pro right tackle Tristan Wirfs, who suffered an upper ankle sprain last week against the Philadelphia Eagles. That’s a tough blow for Tampa Bay against arguably the most devastating quarterback pressure in the league. The Buccaneers may need to rely more on their defense, which nearly pulled off a shutout last week against the Eagles, but allowed 331 air yards and four touchdowns to Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford and company in the Week 3 matchup between the two teams (a 34-24 win for Los Angeles).

Long shot: Stafford and Tampa Bay quarterback Tom Brady will each throw three touchdown passes in a game that will be decided in the final minutes. The Rams acquired Stafford with the belief that the veteran quarterback would play a key role in propelling them to the Super Bowl to be played in their stadium. Stafford will have a chance to prove he is that guy against a seven-time Super Bowl winner. He knows he will have to get his team to the diagonals very often to counter Brady and the Tampa Bay offense; Brady’s 32 touchdown passes in 16 Divisional Round games are 14 more than any other quarterback has thrown. So expect extraordinary numbers from the quarterbacks. — Lindsey Thiry

Stat to consider: Will Rams corner Jalen Ramsey overshadow Tampa Bay wide receiver Mike Evans? Evans saw Ramsey in front of him on just 18 percent of his routes in the Week 3 regular-season matchup, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. And in two games against the Rams in the last two years, Evans caught eight of 10 passes for 101 yards when facing another defensive back. Against Ramsey he caught five of nine throws for 54 yards.

What we should know about the officials: Referee Shawn Hochuli’s regular-season crew threw the third-most penalties (15.5 per game), yet the Rams and Buccaneers were among the league’s 10 least-punished teams in 2021. The Rams ranked No. 3 (92), and the Buccaneers finished No. 9 (107). Hochuli’s squad scored 57 penalties for holding the offense (third most in the league), but Rams and Buccaneers were punished just 16 and 20 times for that, respectively (both ranked in the bottom seven in the NFL).

Bills at Chiefs
What we should watch: The Bills did a great job of slowing down big plays when they faced Patrick Mahomes in Week 5, limiting the Chiefs to one pass of 20-plus yards. For their part, Buffalo connected on four passes of at least 30 yards with two ending in touchdowns. The Chiefs have to find a way to win — or at least keep up with the Bills — in this category, or they could experience another outcome like that 18-point thrashing.

Risky Forecast: Bills quarterback Josh Allen will rush for at least 50 yards and throw at least three touchdown passes on Sunday. The Bills offense has rushed for 110 yards and averaged at least 4.0 yards per carry in six consecutive games, the second-longest streak in the NFL this year (Eagles). That streak has coincided with Allen being used more as a running back, which will continue against the Chiefs. He had 59 yards on 11 carries in their previous matchup this year. In addition, the offensive line will keep him clean, extending his catchless streak to five games and allow him to build on a five touchdown pass performance in a Divisional Round matchup that will be much closer.

Stat to consider: Mahomes leads the NFL in career rushing touchdowns, while Allen ranks second. Both quarterbacks have passer ratings in the top 10 in the league in run deception plays, as well. However, the defensive side of the game could be important. The Bills have allowed the lowest passer rating on opponents on run deception passes, while the Chiefs’ defense has allowed the highest in the NFL.

What we should know about the officials: Referee John Hussey’s regular-season crew called the third-fewest penalties per game (12.1), yet he was assigned to lead two of the league’s most penalized teams. The Bills ranked No. 29 (139) and the Chiefs ranked No. 24 (129). The Chiefs were penalized 36 penalties for holding the offense, the third most in the NFL, while Hussey’s squad scored 40, the sixth highest among all officiating crews. Hussey’s crew scored the second-most penalties for taunting/provoking the opponent (seven), but issued the fewest handkerchiefs for illegal contact, defensive holding penalties and defensive pass interference combined (18).