By: Danny Cox
(Credit, Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
The first round of this year’s NFL playoffs is in the books, and there was only one “upset,” even though the result may not have shocked everyone. Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks went into Washington and took down RG3 and the Redskins after one hell of a comeback. This game also went a long way in showing which rookie quarterback had the edge over the other.
Seattle’s 24-14 victory came by way of 24 unanswered points from the Seahawks after the Redskins had raced out to a quick 14-0 lead. It appeared as if the rout was on and it was going to be Robert Griffin III leading his team to the second round of the playoffs to face the Atlanta Falcons.
A re-injured right knee for RG3 really hindered the way he was able to lead his team, and it put a complete halt on the Redskins’ offense. There was just no coming back from it, and the Seahawks finally found the way to break past the Washington defense.
Sunday, Jan. 13, 2013 at 1:00 p.m. – Seattle Seahawks at Atlanta Falcons
The first NFC playoff game saw the Green Bay Packers avenge a loss to those same Minnesota Vikings in the regular season finale. It was the rubber game that belonged to Aaron Rodgers as he led the Pack to a convincing 24-10 victory over the exhausted Vikings.
Minnesota wasn’t exactly the same team that went into Lambeau Field the week before though. Quarterback Christian Ponder’s triceps injury kept him from ever stepping foot on the field, and Joe Webb simply got overwhelmed by Clay Matthews, Charles Woodson, and the entire Packers’ defense.
Saturday, Jan. 12, 2013 at 8:00 p.m. – Green Bay Packers at San Francisco 49ers
In the first AFC game of the Wild Card round, the Cincinnati Bengals were just run over by Arian Foster and the Houston Texans. Let’s not forget that J.J. Watt pretty much was able to swat away every single pass that Andy Dalton tried to get to one of his Bengals’ receivers. With that, the Texans defeated the Bengals 19-13.
Foster ran all on top of the Bengals for 140 yards. Shayne Graham kicked four field goals for the Texans. Matt Schaub completed 29-of-38 passes for 262 yards. The Houston Texans’ defense racked up two sacks and one interception on Dalton to complete a dominating performance to advance.
Sunday, Jan. 13, 2013 at 4:30 p.m. – Houston Texans at New England Patriots
The second AFC game saw the luck of rookie Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts finally run out. No pun intended. Ray Lewis enjoyed the final home game of his prolific NFL career by amassing an awesome 13 tackles and showing the home crowd his pre-game dance just one more time.
He wasn’t the only Raven having an incredible performance though.
Wide receiver Anquan Boldin set a franchise record with 145 receiving yards, and that included the clinching touchdown in a 24-9 win over the Colts. It was a better performance for the Ravens’ offense than the defense, which is not the norm, but that can only help them as the playoffs progress.
Saturday, Jan. 12, 2013 at 4:30 p.m. – Baltimore Ravens at Denver Broncos
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Danny Cox knows a little something about the NFL, whether it means letting you know what penalty will come from the flag just thrown on the field or quickly spouting off who the Chicago Bears drafted in the first round of the 1987 draft (Jim Harbaugh). He plans on bringing you the best news, previews, recaps, and anything else that may come along with the exciting world of the National Football League. His work can be found on Examiner.com.
