Wildcard weekend started with a bang featuring on Saturday with an AFC doubleheader. The first matchup had an interesting subplot of Chargers Head Coach John Harbaugh returning to NRG Stadium in Houston, where he won the NCAA National Championship last year to play the Texans in the pro league. The night-cap featured the AFC North rivalry matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, who were now meeting for the third time this season. Pittsburgh won the first contest, while Baltimore evened the score in week 16, which allowed them to take control of the division. So, how would these games unfold? In this article, we will break down how the Texans and Ravens marched into the divisional round with dominant home wins.
Chargers 12-Texans 32
This game was a reminder that the momentum of playoff football can change instantly. The Chargers were in charge of this game early in the first quarter, with two field goals that failed to end up in the end zone. From that point, Houston outscored Los Angeles 32-6 to throttle the opposition. The key for the Chargers was their defense, which recorded four sacks and four interceptions. Justin Herbert struggled 14 of 32 for 242 yards, one touchdown, and one of the four interceptions was returned for a touchdown. The critics will point to Herbert’s struggles because he recorded more interceptions(4) in this game than in the regular season (3). He is now 0-2 in the playoffs and will face more scrutiny in the postseason after this massive letdown. The Chargers will want to flush this game, but one bright spark was Ladd McConkey, who tallied nine catches for 197 yards and a touchdown. In the process, McConkey set a new rookie playoff record. For the Texans, Joe Mixon was brilliant by tallying 25 carries, 106 yards, and a touchdown. The Texans have won back-to-back home playoff games in consecutive seasons, but they will want to extend their season next week as the underdog against the upper-echelon teams in the conference.
Steelers 14-Ravens 28
The Steelers ended the regular season on a four-game losing streak, and they were heavy underdogs on the road against their divisional rivals. The team was in struggling defensively by allowing 27 points per game and scoring only 16 points per game in that span. The team’s struggles were highlighted in the very first play of the game when Pat Freiermuth dropped an easy pass from Russell Wilson. The Ravens never punted in the first half racking up a 21-0 lead in the first half. In the second half, the Steelers showed some fight by scoring back-to-back possessions to crawl back into the game 28-14. However, it was too late because the Ravens shut down the Steelers in their final two possessions. The intricate read option made life difficult for Pittsburgh, with Derrick Henry tallying 26 carries, 186 yards, and two touchdowns. The Ravens’ defense stifled Pittsburgh by sacking Wilson 4 times and holding to 60 yards in the first half. It proved to be a comeback that was too much for the Steelers. The future of the Steelers will be murky because Mike Tomlin is 0-5 inhis last five playoff games and has not won a postseason game since 2016. The team will need to decide how it will proceed at quarterback with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields now free agents. As for the Ravens, they will march into the next round where they will go on the road or even play at home if the Broncos upset the Bills.