Dutch Lion’s 2023-24 NFL Playoffs Preview

Dutch Lion’s 2023-24 NFL Playoffs Preview

The 2023 NFL Playoffs have finally arrived! It’s January 13, 2024. Remember years ago when the NFC/AFC Championship games were played in mid-January? For example, 38 years ago, the Chicago Bears famously destroyed the Patriots in Super Bowl XX 46-10, on January 26, 1986 (’85 Bears D held the Patriots to 12 1st Downs and 123 total yards). Their previous game was on January 12, 1986, at home in Soldier Field in the NFC Championship Game when they shut out the Los Angeles Rams 24-0 (’85 Bears D held the Rams to 9 1st downs and 130 total yards). Their NFC Divisional game was in Soldier Field a week earlier on a brutally cold day, as they shut out the New York Giants 21-0 on January 5, 1986 (’85 Bears D held the Giants to 10 1st downs and 181 total yards). For the record, in those three Playoff games the ’85 Bears allowed only 10 total points (3.3 ppg), a total of 31 1st downs (10.3 per game), and 434 total yards (144.7 yards per game). And by the way, those ten points were allowed because of Walter Payton’s early fumble in Bears territory in which the Pats kicked the field goal, and then in 4th quarter garbage time when Irving Fryar caught a TD pass against the Bears backups. So basically the ’85 Bears D allowed nothing, zero points!, over three playoffs games. Wowsers! Anyone who claims a different defense was the greatest of all-time doesn’t know what they’re thinking. Honestly, I think less of a person’s football acumen if they have a different claim.

Nowadays, the NFL has pushed back the schedule so far that weather plays a factor in the NFC/AFC Wild Card weekend. You may have heard that tomorrow’s Pittsburgh Steelers/Buffalo Bills game has already been postponed until Monday because of inclement weather. Well duh, NFL…. what did you think was gonna happen when you pushed back the last week of the regular season to Sunday, January 7? Just think, the famous Ice Bowl was played in Green Bay’s Lambeau Field on New Year’s Eve, Sunday December 31, 1967. That was the NFL (future NFC) Championship game, played in December. And don’t forget to throw in this little known nugget. A week prior to the Ice Bowl, the Green Bay Packers hosted the Los Angeles Rams in the first ever NFL Western Conference Championship, held on Saturday, December 23, 1967. And the game was held in Milwaukee’s County Stadium. Interesting to say the least.

Oh how the times have changed. Now we’re pushing the regular season back three full weeks from the 1960s, and about two weeks back from the 1980s schedule. So yeah, weather is more likely to be a factor.

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Anyway, let’s get to Dutch Lion’s NFL Playoff Preview and Predictions.

NFC Playoff Seeds

1. San Francisco 49ers (12-5) – NFC West Champs (BYE)
2. Dallas Cowboys (12-5) – NFC East Champs
3. Detroit Lions (12-5) – NFC North (Norris) Champs
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-8) – NFC South Champs
5. Philadelphia Eagles (11-6) – Wild Card
6. Los Angeles Rams (10-7) – Wild Card
7. Green Bay Packers (9-8) – Wild Card

NFC Wild Card Round

#2 Dallas OVER #7 Green Bay – Dallas will smoke Green Bay by 20 points.

#3 Detroit OVER #6 L.A. Rams – The storyline is the quarterbacks as they were traded for each other a few years ago. Can you imagine the agony for Detroit fans should Stafford prevail? It’s actually so sad I sincerely hope this does not happen. Not to worry… Jared Goff gets the better of Matt Stafford in this one.

#5 Philadelphia OVER #4 Tampa Bay – The Eagles have been playing so poorly that it’s hard to pick them to win A game right now, much less a Playoff game. But does Tampa strike fear into opponents? Not at all. This is an example of how watered down the NFL’s playoffs are currently with seven teams making it per conference.

NFC Divisional Round

#1 San Francisco OVER #5 Philadelphia – Last year’s NFC Championship Game was supposed to be so fantastic, and then QB Brock Purdy was hurt at the beginning of the contest. It turned out he tried to play through it but he had a torn UCL in his elbow, requiring an “internal brace repair”, close to but not quite Tommy John surgery. He could only launch passes up to about ten yards, making this game the most disappointing game of last season. It was SAD!

#2 Dallas OVER #3 Detroit – Detroit is good but Dallas is better, and they’re at home in the comfy confines of Jerry World.

NFC Championship

#2 Dallas OVER #1 San Francisco – Shades of rivalry games past, can Dallas get over the hump on the road in San Francisco? It doesn’t seem probable, but that’s what’s so great about sports. We’re taking QB Dak Prescott and the Cowboys to spoil the Niners season. This is Dallas’s best team since their Super Bowl 30 triumph in 1995.

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AFC Playoff Seeds

1. Baltimore Ravens (13-4) – AFC North Champs (BYE)
2. Buffalo Bills (11-6) – AFC East Champs
3. Kansas City Chiefs (11-6) – AFC West Champs
4. Houston Texans (10-7) – AFC South Champs
5. Cleveland Browns (11-6) – Wild Card
6. Miami Dolphins (11-6) – Wild Card
7. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7) – Wild Card

AFC Wild Card Round

#2 Buffalo OVER #7 Pittsburgh – The Bills will dominate this game, winning by 20 points, no matter what day it’s held. Pittsburgh just isn’t a very good team. They shouldn’t even qualify for the Playoffs but, you know.

#3 Kansas City OVER #6 Miami – All the talk is about the frigid weather. It’s truly important. The Hawaiian-raised, Alabama-trained, Miami-living Tua Tagovailoa will probably struggle in ice-cold K.C.

#5 Cleveland OVER #4 Houston – The Browns defense is awesome. QB C.J. Stroud is making his NFL Playoff debut. Meanwhile, Browns QB Joe Flacco has played in the same number of NFL Playoff games (10-5 in 15 games) as Stroud has played in NFL regular season contests (9-6 in 15 games).

AFC Divisional Round

#1 Baltimore OVER #5 Cleveland – Baltimore is just sitting back waiting for anyone to challenge them. Can John Harbaugh join brother Jim in winning the Championship in the same year? Father Jack has got to be the proudest papa on the face of the Earth.

#2 Buffalo OVER #3 Kansas City – This game would be incredible! These AFC rivals have history, great QB’s, and great coaches. They also have underrated defenses because all anyone talks about is the quarterbacks Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes. Ultimately, Von Miller, Leonard Floyd, Greg Rousseau, Ed Oliver and company will be too much for Mahomes to beat on a cold day in Buffalo, NY.

AFC Championship

#2 Buffalo OVER #1 Baltimore – If my predicted matchups come true, I will be super excited to watch these games. Can the Ravens stop Josh Allen? Can the Bills stop Lamar Jackson? Ever since Roquan Smith was stupidly traded by the Bears to Baltimore, the Ravens defense has moved to the top of the class in the world’s best defenses competition. Somehow, some way, we’re picking Buffalo to upset the Ravens in Baltimore.

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Super Bowl LVIII (58) – Sunday February 11, 2024 – Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas, NV

Buffalo Bills OVER Dallas Cowboys – As a huge fan of both Dallas and Buffalo, this would be a dream matchup for the Dutch Lion. But it would be both fantastic and heartbreaking. Either way, I’d be personally ecstatic. For others, I think this storyline would be incredible too.

Most older NFL fans know the Buffalo Bills history. They are known for losing four straight Super Bowls in the early 90s, two of them to the Dallas Cowboys. Buffalo lost the Super Bowl to close out the 1990, ’91, ’92, and ’93 seasons. They never won it all. They never made it back…. until now.

This is the year the Buffalo Bills overcome their history and cast out the demons of seasons past. Similar to the Kansas City Chiefs winning Super Bowl 54, exactly 50 years after winning their only Super Bowl appearance in SB IV, the Bills will make their mark in history. Leading the Bills is none other than MVP Josh Allen. So much adversity has befallen the city of Buffalo: Damar Hamlin, weather, 13 seconds in Kansas City, Scott Norwood, a stadium issue in Orchard Park, NY. It’s time for the Bills to knock the door down in triumph.

Our 2023 NFL Champion will be….. the Buffalo Bills!