National Football League
Wild Card preview: Ravens and Steelers duel again; welcome back, Dallas Cowboys
National Football League

Wild Card preview: Ravens and Steelers duel again; welcome back, Dallas Cowboys

Published Dec. 29, 2014 12:11 a.m. ET

The field is now set for the first round of the NFL playoffs. Here is a primer of those four matchups:

SATURDAY

Arizona (11-5) at Carolina (7-8-1), 4:35 pm ET, ESPN

It doesn't seem fair when a team that finished 3.5 games better than its first-round opponent must play on the road. But that's the case with this matchup because of a playoff system that rewards division winners with at least one home game no matter the difference in records. Carolina went 62 days without a victory earlier this season yet still managed to win the abysmal NFC South because of strong play down the stretch. The Panthers were 4-0 in December, securing the division crown with Sunday's 34-3 road rout of Atlanta.

ADVERTISEMENT

Running back Jonathan Stewart averaged 100.3 yards a game during that span to provide a much-needed boost to an offense being single-handedly carried by quarterback Cam Newton. The pass defense has improved significantly with none of Carolina's past five opponents netting more than 225 yards. Arizona's aerial attack has disintegrated following knee injuries to quarterbacks Carson Palmer and Drew Stanton. Ryan Lindley has lost both his starts and is coming off a three-interception performance in Sunday's 20-17 defeat at San Francisco. Injuries also may have finally caught up with Arizona's defense, which has surrendered an average of 155.7 rushing yards over the past six games.

Baltimore (10-6) at Pittsburgh (11-5), 8:15 pm ET, NBC

Another chapter in one of the NFL's hardest-hitting rivalries will be written when these two franchises meet in the playoffs for the third time in seven seasons. The Steelers avenged a 26-6 loss to Baltimore in the season-opener with their own 20-point home victory (43-23) in Week 9. Such give-and-take is nothing new. The Steelers and Ravens have split their past 14 meetings (including the postseason). Pittsburgh's offense would sustain a major blow if running back Le'Veon Bell is unable to play because of a hyper-extended knee suffered in Sunday night's 27-17 win over Cincinnati that clinched the AFC North title.

Bell left the game in the third quarter and didn't return after getting hit low by Bengals safety Reggie Nelson. At least the Steelers have a high-powered passing game that can compensate. Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger tied with New Orleans' Drew Brees for the NFL passing title at 4,952 yards while wide receiver Antonio Brown finished with 129 catches, which is the second-highest single-season total in league history. Baltimore's secondary is shaky, but the same can be said of Pittsburgh. Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco rebounded from a horrid performance in Week 16 against Houston with a strong fourth quarter in Sunday's 20-10 win against Cleveland. That victory got the Ravens into the playoffs as a wild card thanks to San Diego's loss to Kansas City.

SUNDAY

Cincinnati (10-5-1) at Indianapolis (11-5), 1:05 pm ET, CBS

This wasn't a good Sunday for Cincinnati. The Bengals conceded the AFC North title to Pittsburgh with a 27-17 road loss. They may have lost the services of star wide receiver A.J. Green to a concussion. And Cincinnati must now play on the road against a Colts team that handed the Bengals their worst defeat of the season in Week 7. Indianapolis outgained Cincinnati by a 506-to-135 margin in yardage while surrendering only eight first downs in that 27-0 shutout.

The Bengals have lost their opening game in the playoffs under quarterback Andy Dalton for three straight seasons. But one positive quality Cincinnati and Dalton have shown this season is resiliency by avoiding losses in consecutive games. The Bengals must do a better job generating pass rush than they did against Pittsburgh to affect Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, who is coming off his best NFL season with a franchise-record 4,761 passing yards and 40 touchdowns. Indianapolis has its own issues when it comes to pressuring opposing quarterbacks and rushing the football. The Colts also have lost to four division winners (Pittsburgh, New England, Denver and Dallas) so a first-round upset by the Bengals wouldn't be a stunner.

Detroit (11-5) at Dallas (12-4), 4:40 pm ET, FOX

Having missed out on the NFC North title and first-round bye with Sunday's 30-20 loss to Green Bay, the Lions will be on the road for a third straight weekend. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. All four of the Cowboys' losses have come at AT&T Stadium. Dallas capped the team's first perfect December (4-0) since 1993 with Sunday's 44-17 rout at Washington. A Lions run defense that surrendered 100 yards rushing to Green Bay's Eddie Lacy on Sunday must rebound to stop Dallas' DeMarco Murray, who reached that same total against the Redskins. Murray broke Emmitt Smith's single-season franchise rushing record in the process, finishing the year with 1,845 yards.

Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo is red-hot as well with 12 touchdowns and just one interception in his past four games. Lions quarterback Matt Stafford returns to his hometown with an 0-16 record in starts against teams that finished the regular season with winning records. The last time Detroit won a playoff game was at home in 1991 against the Cowboys. Detroit caught a break Tuesday when defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh won his appeal of a one-game suspension for stepping on the ankle of Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers in the Lions' final regular-season game. He'll be eligible to play after all.

share


Get more from National Football League Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more