NFL Wild Card Weekend is in the Books | Nasser Erakat

For the first time in NFL history all four road teams won. There was some strange finishes. First we had the Bengals melt down against the Steelers and then the chip shot field goal missed by the Vikings. The Houston Texan's didn't belong in the Playoffs, losing 30-0 showed that. We saw the Green Bay Packers offense show up. The Divisional round 

will show which teams will make a run for the Super Bowl. All these teams that made it so far were the better teams. I am going to make a prediction about who is going to be in the NFC and AFC Championship Games. Arizona Vs. Carolina and New England Vs. Denver. That's my opinion. Even though Kansas City Chiefs won 30-0 there was a little bit for concern. They were leading 13-0 at the half with 4 turnovers and a Kickoff return on the first play of the game. If a decent team played instead of the Houston Texans, the game could have turned out different. Not taking anything away from KC but New England is not Houston.

NFL Wild Card Weekend is in the Books | Nasser Erakat

NFL Power Rankings: Packers rising after Wild Card Weekend

RANK 1

15-1 PANTHERS

 

No movement for the top-ranked Panthers this week, yet there is one rather large development: Ron Rivera says Jonathan Stewart is set to suit up for practice on Wednesday. Who, with a season full of bumps and bruises under the belt, wants to tackle a fresh version of this hard-charging 235-pounder -- in weather that could get a bit nippy? Me neither. Welp, he's back, after missing the final three games of the regular season with a sprained foot. Stewart was the unheralded star in Carolina, a workhorse who at one point in the season posted eight straight games of 20-plus carries. His 989 rushing yards in 13 games, and physical style of play, were integral to thePanthers' success this season.

RANK 2

13-3 CARDINALS

It was a well-deserved week off for the Cardinals, and perhaps an opportunity to lick their wounds from the shellacking they took at the hands of the Seahawks in Week 17. In fairness, Bruce Arians did start pulling players in the second half (most notably, Carson Palmer), but you can't tell me that the embarrassing defeat isn't lingering in some players' heads.

On Saturday night, the Packers come to town for the second time in three weeks. Yes, Arizona whooped 'em 38-8 in Week 16. No, this doesn't look like the same Green Bay club that laid down in that game. (The reigning MVP kinda looked like the reigning MVP on Sunday.)

RANK 3

12-5 CHIEFS

Hard to not be impressed with the manner in which the Chiefs are playing football right now. It feels like they could beat a team full of Brett Favres. Jeremy Maclin's high-ankle sprain is a major concern, but how can you not move this team up after that resounding 30-zip road victory? As Bill Belichick said Sunday, per the Kansas City Star, there really is no blueprint for beating the team on an 11-game win streak: "The fact they haven't lost in so long, it's not like you can go to a game and say, 'Here's how this team has defeated them.' ... That just doesn't exist." Full Article

NFL Wild Card Weekend is in the Books | Nasser Erakat

Ben Roethlisberger has torn ligaments in shoulder

Ben Roethlisberger's status for Sunday's Divisional Round game is very much in doubt.

The Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback revealed during a radio interview Tuesday that he has torn ligaments in his throwing shoulder in addition to a sprained AC joint.

Roethlisberger said he is "definitely sore" and has yet to test the shoulder since Saturday's wild-card win over the Bengals.

"I'll go in tomorrow with the intent to see what I can do," Roethlisberger told KDKA-FM in Pittsburgh. "I honestly don't know. I haven't tried to throw a football since the game, and maybe that's not even the right thing to do right away. Full Article