As we await the Lions’ Divisional Round matchup, let’s take a closer look at Saturday’s games and pick some winners.
Last week’s Wild Card games brought us mostly blowouts, but some interesting upsets and finally an epic close victory for the Detroit Lions . This week’s Divisional matchups should be even more exciting. Saturday kicks off with a matchup between a young and exciting Houston Texans team, who will have their hands full on the road against the hottest team in the NFL in the Baltimore Ravens . And then you have the San Francisco 49ers hosting the Green Bay Packers Saturday night, which I’m sure many Lions fans will be paying close attention to.
Here are the matchups, times and channels for today’s matchups:
Texans @ Ravens — 4:30 p.m. EST — ESPN/ABC/ESPN+
Packers @ 49ers — 8:15 p.m. EST — FOX
Today’s Question of the Day is…
Which teams will win their Divisional round games on Saturday?
My answer: I am taking the points in both of these games because I think they will both be a lot closer than the lines are suggesting. In the afternoon game, the Ravens are currently favored by 9.5 points, but I think the Texans have a real shot here. C.J. Stroud has had a phenomenal year and looked amazing against a very tough Browns defense last week. I expect them to put up some points again today, but I don’t think it will be enough to beat the Ravens at home. I have the Ravens winning a close one.
I see the night game happening in a similar way, where a hot Packers team come into a hostile environment and perform well and keep things close, but the 49ers are just too good and have been in this situation too many times before. I can see the 49ers having to shake off the rust from having most of their starters on three weeks of rest, but in the end I think they will pull it out and send the Packers packing. This one should be a very close one, despite the 49ers being favored by 10 points.
Let’s hear from you. Let us know what you think in the comments below.