Los Angeles Rams (10-6) at Seattle Seahawks (12-4)
The Rams reached the playoffs with a fairly convincing 18-7 win over the Cardinals but their QB situation makes it hard to trust them in the playoffs. Jared Goff is dealing with a thumb injury and they'll likely start John Wolford. Wolford does provide a dual-treat option for the Rams but it's a tough ask for him to beat the Seahawks in just his 2nd NFL start. But the Rams defence is their real strength and if they force Wilson into turnovers, they're a chance of an upset in what should be a low scoring game.
Seattle played well down the stretch as they enter the playoffs with 4 straight wins and 6 wins in their last 7. Wilson finished the regular season with 40 touchdown passes and should be in the MVP race. He'll look to continue his combination with Metcalf and Lockett in the passing game. Especially with the Rams possessing a great defence against the run.
While the Seahawks have been a tough team to beat at home, a divisional playoff matchup should mean that both sides know each other's strengths and weaknesses. Looking at the last meeting which was only a few weeks ago, the Seahawks came away with a 20-9 victory at this venue. At the moment, the Rams aren't scoring points at a high rate and Seattle's defence has improved since early on in the season. Ultimately, that should see a low scoring matchup with the Under saluting. The Under is 15-7 in this matchup and Seattle is 5-1 against the Under on their home turf.
Stadium Record
Seattle won 7 of 8 at home this season. The Rams have a poor record in Seattle with just 3 wins in 16 attempts.
Head to Head Record
Since 2016, the Rams hold a 6-4 head to head record but the Seahawks won 20-9 a few weeks ago in Seattle.
Best Bet
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (11-5) at Washington Football Team (7-9)
With Tom Brady in vintage form, the Bucs are a dangerous playoff team and they should be a confident team despite playing on the road. Brady and his Bucs offence has scored 40+ points in back to back thrashing over the Lions and Falcons. The only concern about that is the lack of competition before a playoff game. However, Brady has proven throughout his career that he's built for the playoffs and has a huge array of talent in the passing/running game. The Bucs also have a great defence against the run and that could be a massive problem for Washington, a team that doesn't have a great offence.
Washington sealed up the weak NFC East division with a controversial 20-14 win over the Eagles but it's hard not to root for this team. Alex Smith has made an incredible recovery and Ron Rivera's cancer battle is a motivational factor for his players. The key strength for Washington is their defence and that's going to be the key against Brady. They must pressure him in the pocket to make mistakes and that's pretty much their only chance of victory to be fair.
With this game being played in Washington, we do expect the home team to put up a fight despite the odds stacked against them. As we mentioned, the Bucs haven't played in a really tough game for about a month and they have lost 3 straight games against teams that reached the playoffs (Chiefs,Rams,Saints). Washington have a good enough defence to pressure Brady into interceptions/sacks so we're going to back the home underdog at the line here.
Stadium Record
Washington are 3-5 at home this season. Tampa Bay is 2-2 at this venue since 2009.
Head to Head Record
The last meeting was back in 2018 as the Bucs lost 16-3 at home. But since 2005, both sides have won 5 games apiece.
Best Bet
Chicago Bears (8-8) at New Orleans Saints (12-4)
It's fair to say the Bears had an interesting regular season which mainly included QB controversy and a 6 game losing streak. But with a 3-1 record to end the season, there's some hope for the Bears. The key to victory is getting the running game going with David Montgomery and the Saints have had recent troubles against the run. That will ease the pressure on Mitch Trubisky in the passing game. Defensively, the Bears allowed 35 points to the Packers last week and will need improvement if they're looking for an upset.
The Saints enter the playoffs on the back of easy wins over the Vikings 52-33 and Panthers 33-7. Their offence should also be boosted by the return of WR Michael Thomas. However, the status of RB Alvin Kamara will be one to watch as he returns from COVID protocols. He'll be a big loss if he misses but the Saints still have a number of weapons to continue their scoring ways against the Bears defence.
Chicago is an average team at this point but should take confidence in this season's 26-23 close loss against the Saints. We're not prepared to back an upset but this should be a high scoring playoff matchup. New Orleans are scoring 30 points per game and we're going to say Alvin Kamara will play in such an important game. Meanwhile, the Bears will probably need to chase quick points in the second half if the Saints get out to a big lead as expected, so that helps the chances of the Over saluting. The Over is 7-3 in the Saints last 10 home playoff games as a favourite and the Over is 5-1 in the Bears last 6 road games this season as well.
Stadium Record
The Saints went 6-2 at home this season. Chicago holds a poor 1-5 record in New Orleans.
Head to Head Record
In the last 2 seasons, the Saints have won 26-23 and 36-25 (both in Chicago).
Best Bet
Cleveland Browns (11-5) at Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4)
The Browns are in the playoffs! For the first time since 2002, Cleveland have reached the playoffs but it's not without extra challenges. Head Coach Kevin Stefanski has tested positive for Covid-19 and won't be able to coach his team in the Browns most important game in a long time. What impact that will have on this team is really unknown and makes this a tough game to bet on. We'd assume the players will stand up for their head coach though.
After an 11-0 start to the season, Pittsburgh enter the playoffs with plenty of question marks about whether they can compete with the likes of the Chiefs or Bills in the AFC. In fact, they could easily be 0-5 in their last 5 games despite a massive comeback win over the Colts. However, the key with this team will be their defence and stopping the running game and Big Ben finding his combination with 3 top receivers (Juju, Johnson and Claypool).
Due to Cleveland's Covid situation, the odds are really stacked up against them and winning a road playoff game against a divisional opponent is going to be tough. The problem for the Browns is their pass defence isn't great and the Steelers don't really have a strong running game (last in the NFL for rush yards). So Big Ben should get plenty of opportunity to put up points against a defence that allowed 26.2 points per game. On the flipside, the Browns key to victory is their running game through Nick Chubb. He didn't play in their 38-7 loss to the Steelers this year so that will ease the pressure on Mayfield, who threw 2 interceptions in that game. Ultimately, we do actually like the Over in this one because we're not really sure about the Browns defence. The Over has a nice 6-1-1 record in the Steelers last 8 home playoff games and the Browns are 4-1 against the Over in AFC North divisional matchups.
Stadium Record
The Steelers recorded a strong 7-1 home record this season. Cleveland is 0-5 at this venue since 2016.
Head to Head Record
Pittsburgh lost 24-22 last week to the Browns but that game didn't matter to them. Since 2016, they've won 7 of 9 meetings.
Best Bet
Other NFL Wildcard Tips
| Game | Best Bet |
|---|---|
| Colts at Bills | Colts +6.5 $1.94 |
| Ravens at Titans | Over 54.5 $1.89 |
