At the end of the Divisional Round there are two real cracker games. In Tampa Bay, the Rams claim the champion. Will Tom Brady and Co. prevail despite injury worries? This is followed by offensive fireworks between Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen in Kansas City.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (13-4, #2) – Los Angeles Rams (12-5, #4) (So., 21 Uhr LIVE on DAZN)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Road to the Divisional Round
With the exception of two bankruptcies against division rivals from New Orleans, the Bucs played a convincing regular season, the victory in the NFC South was bagged early, and in the end Tom Brady’s team even moved up to second place in the NFC. Tampa Bay also made short work of the visiting Eagles in the Wild Card Round: The hosts took a 31-0 lead in the third quarter, making the class difference between the two teams even clearer than the final result of 31:15 would suggest would.
Los Angeles Rams: The Road to the Divisional Round
With seven wins from the first eight games of the season – including a 34:24 win over the Bucs – the Rams started the season red hot, but three losses in a row caused a few worry lines in November – especially because quarterback Matthew Stafford suddenly got old Pattern with too many errors fell behind. However, with five wins in a row, Los Angeles fought back to the top of the NFC West and maintained the division win despite a loss in Week 18. The Rams also put on a dominant performance in the wild card round: the team went against the Cardinals led by head coach Sean McVay shortly after the break with 28:0, in the end it was a never really endangered 34:11 victory over the division rivals.
The current situation of the Buccaneers
The Bucs may have paid dearly for defeating the Eagles in the Wild Card Round: After Tampa Bay lost two of its top three receivers in the regular season, Chris Godwin (ruptured cruciate ligament) and Antonio Brown (sacked), they were injured in the first playoff -Round also two more central offensive linemen, Ryan Jensen and Tristan Wirfs. During the week, both top performers could not train, especially if Werfs were to drop out, the reigning champion would be hit really hard. Ronald Jones II, Cyril Grayson and Breshad Perriman are also in danger of missing the Rams clash. After all, the defense is almost at its best, and Leonard Fournette is supposed to celebrate his comeback this weekend.
The current situation of the Rams
The Rams also have to replace what is probably their best and most important offensive lineman after advancing in the last round: Andrew Whitworth injured his knee and was unable to train this week. The left tackle won’t be able to play against the Bucs. In addition to Whitworth, Taylor Rapp is also in danger of dropping out. If the Rams lack safety again, veteran Eric Weddle would probably have to play a few more snaps for Raheem Morris’ defense.
Buccaneers vs. Rams: Players to watch
Mike Evans (Wide Receiver, Buccaneers):
Godwin, Grayson and Perriman? All hurt. Brown? Dismiss. So there’s a good chance Evans will lead a wide receiver group made up of himself, Scotty Miller, Tyler Johnson and Jaelon Darden against the Rams. Evans should have a correspondingly large responsibility. One problem: It is quite conceivable that the Rams star cornerback Jalen Ramsey will use Evans to take the hosts’ last remaining top receiver out of the game. In the first meeting between the two teams, Evans played big with eight catches for 106 yards. If he doesn’t perform like that this weekend, it could be a difficult task for the Bucs to enter the NFC Championship Game.
Aaron Donald (Defensive Tackle, Los Angeles Rams):
Donald is the most dominant and consistent defensive lineman in the NFL. The 30-year-old can win games against both the pass and the run, and in the divisional round against the Cardinals he almost single-handedly destroyed their pass protection. Against Brady, whose play against pressure through the middle is one of his few weaknesses, another performance in this form by Donald would be worth its weight in gold. The three-time Defensive Player of the Year clearly has the class to keep Brady under constant pressure in the pocket, weakening the Bucs’ offense. A Jensen bet, which would face Donald directly in many snaps, would therefore be immensely important for the Bucs.
Buccaneers vs. Rams: That’s what matters
The Bucs should again rely heavily on the quick-passing game against Los Angeles’ pass rush with Donald, Von Miller and Leonard Floyd – especially if Wirfs and Jensen should actually fail. With their receiving corps depleted, Tampa Bay could use its tight ends even more to attack the middle of the field. Los Angeles is vulnerable there, especially if Rapp has to pass again due to injury. With their run game, the hosts could also slow down the opposing pass rush a little and thus take some pressure off Brady’s shoulders. Fournette’s return should help here, but without Jensen the Bucs could run into problems against Donald and Co. through the middle.
Meanwhile, many pairs of eyes are once again turning to Matthew Stafford for the Rams. The quarterback undoubtedly has the class to attack the Bucs through the air, and in the teams’ first meeting Stafford delivered perhaps his best game of the season with 343 yards and four touchdowns. However, the 33-year-old is also prone to blunders. Against Tampa Bay, Stafford will have to reduce turnover as much as possible in order not to jeopardize his team’s progress. In addition, the duel on the line of scrimmage should be decisive: Los Angeles’ offensive line was one of the best in the NFL this season, but without Whitworth the unit could falter. The Bucs’ pass rush also appears to be regaining its stellar form from last season just in time for the playoffs.
Buccaneers vs. Rams: Prognose
In Tampa Bay, we can look forward to a very exciting and, on paper, extremely close encounter that could well be decided in the end by the injury question marks on both sides. Without Wirfs and Jensen, the failures on the Bucs offense seem to be one size too big – but you should never write off Brady’s offense completely. 30:31 Rams.