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NFL divisional playoffs primer: Get ready for Baker Mayfield vs. Jared Goff

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NFL divisional playoffs primer: Get ready for Baker Mayfield vs. Jared Goff

They have experienced their share of NFL ups and downs, but at the moment, these onetime No. 1 picks are riding high.

Quarterbacks Jared Goff of Detroit and Baker Mayfield of Tampa Bay will meet in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs.

The Buccaneers advanced to the second round Monday night by knocking off Philadelphia 32-9 a day after Goff’s Lions beat the Rams — his former team — to keep their Super Bowl dreams intact. (Mayfield, too, had a brief stint with the Rams last season.)

In the divisional round, Houston will play at Baltimore on Saturday, followed by Green Bay at San Francisco. On Sunday, the Buccaneers play at the Lions, followed by Kansas City at Buffalo.

It was a fizzling finish for Philadelphia, defending NFC champion, which lost five of its final six games in the regular season. Conversely, behind the strong play of Mayfield, the Buccaneers won five of their final six regular-season games.

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Goff was the No. 1 overall pick by Los Angeles in 2016, and Mayfield was taken first by Cleveland two years later.

By beating the Rams, the Lions snapped a nine-game postseason losing streak and collected their second playoff victory in club history — and first in 32 years. They are one of four NFL teams who have never played in a Super Bowl, along with Cleveland, Jacksonville and Houston.

The Lions posted a 20-6 victory at Tampa Bay this season in Week 6. The Lions improved to 5-1, winning their fourth straight game for the first time since 2016 and four straight by double digits for the first time since 1991.

Although Green Bay and San Francisco did not face each other this season, the franchises have a rich rivalry in the playoffs.

Since winning their last Lombardi Trophy in the 1994 season, the 49ers have made 12 trips to the playoffs. In 10 of those — counting this season — they have played the Packers.

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San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy will face the Green Bay Packers defense in the NFC divisional playoffs.

(Alex Brandon / Associated Press)

San Francisco won five of those past six meetings, most recently a 13-10 victory at Green Bay in the divisional round two years ago.

Still, these current teams don’t know each other well. 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy hasn’t faced the Packers, and Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love has not played San Francisco.

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The Packers began the season with the NFL’s youngest roster, and the 49ers are among the league’s oldest teams.

Twice this season, the 49ers looked to be running on fumes. They lost three consecutive games around midseason, and stumbled a bit at the end of the year.

Kyle Shanahan rested his starters at the end of the season, plus his players were spectators for wild-card games, so many last played a meaningful game on New Year’s Eve. This game should be a good indicator if that rest paid off.

When Houston plays at top-seeded Baltimore, the game will pit quarterbacks likely to be accepting big awards at NFL Honors. The Texans’ C.J. Stroud is the leading candidate for offensive rookie of the year, and Lamar Jackson of the Ravens is in line to win his second most valuable player award.

Neither quarterback played especially well when Houston and Baltimore met in their 2023 season opener, with Jackson’s passer rating (79.5) only slightly better than Stroud’s (78.0).

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The Ravens won that game, 25-9, but Baltimore coach John Harbaugh predicted at the time that the Texans were headed for a big season: “I’ve said this before about certain teams early in the season — ‘They’re going to win a lot of football games this year.’ Mark it down. You’ll see. That’s a good, young football team.”

Ravens rookie Zay Flowers had nine catches in that game, but the offense largely looked out of sync under new coordinator Todd Monken. Still, Baltimore pulled away in the second half and kept the Texans out of the end zone.

Both teams look markedly different now.

“From there to where we are now, we’ve definitely grown,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans told reporters. “[We are a] completely different team. They are a completely different team.”

One aspect of the NFL that has remained consistent in recent years is that Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes versus Buffalo’s Josh Allen has been a marquee quarterback matchup.

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Their teams met in the divisional round in Kansas City two years ago, and Mahomes led the Chiefs to a 42-36 overtime victory.

In that game, Kansas City won the coin toss to start the extra period and Mahomes threw a touchdown pass to Travis Kelce on the opening drive. It was such an abrupt ending that it helped prompt a rules change. The NFL tweaked its overtime rules for the postseason to ensure each team gets a possession.

This year marks the first time since the 1993 AFC Championship Game that the Bills have played host to the Chiefs in the postseason.

Buffalo has reached at least the divisional round in each of the past four seasons and has won a home playoff game in each of those. The Bills routed Pittsburgh on Monday 31-17 with the game postponed for a day because of a snowstorm.

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Taylor Swift shows up to support Travis Kelce for possible final home game

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Taylor Swift shows up to support Travis Kelce for possible final home game

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Taylor Swift showed up to Arrowhead Stadium Thursday night to watch fiancé Travis Kelce in what could be his final home game with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Swift, wearing a red leather jacket, was shown on the Amazon Prime Video broadcast hugging a friend. 

The pop star has mostly been out of the NFL spotlight after the Chiefs lost the Super Bowl to the Philadelphia Eagles in February and the two announced their engagement.

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Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift kiss after the AFC championship game against the Buffalo Bills in Kansas City, Mo., Jan. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File)

But it was a special night for Kelce as he mulls his NFL future.

Amazon Prime Video aired an interview between him and Chiefs legend Tony Gonzalez before the game began.

“I think I’m still searching for those answers. I think, obviously, the way this one ended with a sour taste in my mouth, I feel motivated, but I got to make the right decision for me,” he told Gonzalez. “I’ve got to hope that, you know, if I do want to come back, the Chiefs are willing to bring me back.

2025 NFL WEEK 17 BUZZ: PACKERS’ JOSH JACOBS CLEARED; RAVENS QB JACKSON DOUBTFUL

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Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is introduced before a game against the Denver Broncos Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

“So it’s a two-way street on that, but, at the same time, man, I am, at this point in this year, I’m just trying to finish out and give Chiefs Kingdom everything I got and go out there and do it with some of that flair that you said I play with.”

Chiefs head coach Andy Reid was asked what it meant that it could be Kelce’s last game at home.

“I don’t know if it is or not. I haven’t talked to him,” Reid said. “I think his numbers and personality and the person, I think, speak for themselves. Phenomenal person (and) great for the community. He’s everything you want from a player representing an organization.”

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The Chiefs were taking on the Denver Broncos in the Week 17 matchup. Kansas City has already been eliminated from playoff contention.

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Lakers’ Austin Reaves will not return vs. Rockets because of calf soreness

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Lakers’ Austin Reaves will not return vs. Rockets because of calf soreness

Lakers guard Austin Reaves will not play in the second half against the Houston Rockets because of left calf soreness, the team announced Thursday.

Reaves missed three games with a left calf strain before coming back to play at Phoenix on Tuesday night. He scored 17 points off the bench in the Lakers’ loss to the Suns.

Against the Rockets at Crypto.com Arena, Reaves started and played 15 minutes in the first half, scoring 12 points on five-for-eight shooting.

With Reaves out, the Lakers struggled in the third quarter, giving up 29 points to trail 92-74 heading into the fourth. The Lakers are trying to avoid losing three consecutive games for the first time this season.

Reaves entered Thursday averaging 27.3 points per game, ranking him 11th in league scoring.

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Lakers coach JJ Redick said earlier this week that Reaves wasn’t on a minutes restriction, but the team would monitor his workload “in real time.”

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NFL’s Christmas games lose major star power as key quarterbacks sidelined with injuries

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NFL’s Christmas games lose major star power as key quarterbacks sidelined with injuries

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On paper, Netflix had great divisional matchups on Christmas Day for Week 17 when the season began.

Of course, the NFL season never goes as planned, and the three matchups scheduled for the holiday are not what anyone had planned.

The reason? Star quarterbacks won’t be playing in each game.

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Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott walks off the field after the team’s NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens in Arlington, Texas, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeffrey McWhorter)

Christmas Day’s first kickoff will be an NFC East battle between the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders, with both teams already eliminated from playoff contention.

And while Dak Prescott and company are looking to finish the season strong, the Commanders shut down Jayden Daniels, their second-year quarterback who led them to the NFC Championship Game in his rookie season just a year ago, after reaggravating his elbow injury.

In fact, the Commanders won’t even see Marcus Mariota, Daniels’ backup who has had to start eight games this season, as he’s dealing with an injury as well. It will be veteran Josh Johnson making the start in Landover, Maryland, on Christmas Day for a 4-11 Commanders squad that hoped to at least make the playoffs after a fantastic finish in 2024.

CHIEFS ANNOUNCE RELOCATION TO KANSAS BY THE 2031 NFL SEASON WITH NEW DOME STADIUM

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“When you do circle those matchups, that’s exactly what you’re thinking: This is going to be cool. How it’s all laid out — division games right here at the end between two games of Philadelphia with a Dallas game in between,” Commanders head coach Dan Quinn said.

“Playing these division games, they still mean a lot.”

Unfortunately for both squads, it will only be for bragging rights.

Jayden Daniels of the Washington Commanders looks on from the sidelines after leaving the game during the second half against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium on Dec. 7, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Ellen Schmidt/Getty Images)

In the 4:30 p.m. ET slate, the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings, a storied NFC North rivalry, the home team in Minneapolis will be without its own second-year signal caller — J.J. McCarthy.

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McCarthy suffered an injury in the win over the New York Giants last week, and it will be Max Brosmer having to start again for Kevin O’Connell’s group.

The Minnesota product’s first career start didn’t work out too well in Seattle, as the Seahawks had their way on defense against Brosmer. Perhaps a home crowd will do him and the Vikings’ offense better, but the Lions at least still have something to play for.

Detroit heads into this game following a tough loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, where a game-winning touchdown was called back after Amon-Ra St. Brown was penalized for offensive pass interference, negating Jared Goff flying into the end zone after a pitch-back from the star receiver.

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes chews his mouth guard during warmups before an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024 in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann, File)

The Lions need to win their remaining two games, while also needing the Green Bay Packers to lose their last two games to secure the final NFC wild card spot.

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Finally, and perhaps the biggest disappointment for Netflix, is the Kansas City Chiefs not having Patrick Mahomes on the field this holiday season.

Mahomes suffered a torn ACL, which he quickly had surgery to repair, following a loss that knocked them out of playoff contention two weeks ago. The Chiefs were hoping that his backup, Gardner Minshew, could finish out the season, but he tore his ACL last week in a loss to the Tennessee Titans.

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That leaves USF alum Chris Oladokun, who filled in for Minshew last week, starting against Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos — a 12-3 squad who already clinched their playoff berth. Denver will still be playing hard, as they’re competing for the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC, which would ensure home games throughout the playoffs.

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These games were supposed to be potential division/playoff clinching matchups, but the NFL and its fanbase will be hoping these games are not as lopsided as some believe they could turn out to be.

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