Rodgers leads Pack to top of NFC after draft disappointment
The NFC playoff field features the usual cast of quarterbacks in Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees and Russell Wilson. Now there’s also Tom Brady, who tormented the AFC field for two decades in New England.
The six-time Super Bowl champion left the Patriots for the Buccaneers last spring and led Tampa Bay to its first playoff berth since 2007.
In addition to Tampa Bay-Washington, the Rams visit the Seahawks on Saturday after splitting in the regular season, and the Saints visit Chicago on Sunday.
1. Green Bay Packers
• AP Pro32 Ranking: No.
2.
• Last Lombardi: Super Bowl 45, 31-25 over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Feb. 6, 2011, at Arlington, Texas.
• Last year: No. 2 seed, beat Seattle 28-23 in divisional round, lost 37-20 at San Francisco 37-20 in NFC championship.
Hope: Packers are NFL’s top-scoring team at 31.8 points per game behind Rodgers, who threw just five interceptions to go with his 48 TDs, and Adams, whose 18 TD catches led the league even though he missed two games (hamstring). The defense boasts one of the game’s premier cornerbacks in Jaire Alexander, pass rusher in Za’Darius Smith, who has 26 sacks since 2019, and a solid safety duo of Adrian Amos and Darnell Savage.
2. New Orleans Saints
• AP Pro32 Ranking: No.
4.
• Last Lombardi: Super Bowl 44, beat Indianapolis 31-17 on Feb. 7, 2010.
• Last year: No. 3 seed, lost to Minnesota Vikings 26-20 (OT) at home in wild-card round.
Hope: Brees, who turns 42 on Jan. 15, threw for 4,967 yards and 34 TDs with 12 interceptions. RB Alvin Kamara led the league with 21 TDs (16 rushing, five receiving) and tied an NFL record by scoring six times in his last start in Week 16. Kamara also had a career-best 83 receptions, tops among the league’s running backs. The Saints also sport one of the top defenses with a front that’s stout against the run and a playmaking secondary that tied for first in the NFL with 18 interceptions.
3. Seattle Seahawks
• AP Pro32 Ranking: No.
5.
• Last Lombardi: Super Bowl 48, 43-8 over the Denver Broncos on Feb. 2, 2014, at East Rutherford, N.J.
• Last year: No. 5 seed, beat Eagles 17-9 at Philadelphia in wild-card game, lost at Green Bay 28-23 in divisional round.
Hope: The Seahawks have spent the last two months relying on their run game and returning to their defensive roots. Over their last eight games they’ve allowed an average of just 16 points and they’ve held their last five opponents under 20, an astounding feat considering the 2020 NFL season featured the most points (12,692) and touchdowns scored (1,473) in a single season in NFL history.
4. Washington
• AP Pro32 Ranking: No.
16.
• Last Lombardi: Super Bowl 26, 37-24 over Buffalo Bills on Jan. 26, 1992, at Minneapolis.
• Last year: 3-13. First trip to the NFC playoffs since 2015.
Hope: The team with no name won the NFC East thanks to an improved defense led by No. 2 pick Chase Young and the stable control of veteran QB Alex Smith. The defense ranked second in the NFL overall and against the pass after several mediocre seasons and has the ability to take over games and torment opposing QBs.
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
• AP Pro32 Ranking: No.
8.
• Last Lombardi: Super Bowl 37, 48-21 over Oakland Raiders on Jan. 26, 2003, at San Diego.
• Last year: 6-10.
Hope: No one has a more dazzling postseason resume than Brady, 43, who piled up enough rings for each hand with the Patriots, who fell to 7-9 without him. Over his last eight quarters, Brady threw for 1,067 yards with 10 TDs and one interception. That’s the most passing yards over an eight-quarter stretch in the last 30 years. He’s surrounded by an All-Star cast of playmakers: WRs Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Antonio Brown, RBs Ronald Jones and Leonard Fournette, and TEs Rob Gronkowski and Cameron Brate. And Brady’s 40 TD passes were second only to Rodgers’ 48.