The Marathon Continues.

[Soapy]

NFL Wild Card Playoff Results
NE 0 - JAX 35 :: LAR 24 - CAR 10
BAL 31 - KC 28 :: DET 28 - DAL 21
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Players of the Week
QB Lamar Jackson (BAL): 25 of 33, 297 yards, 4 touchdowns.
QB Jared Goff (LAR): 22 of 40, 264 yards, 3 touchdowns, interception.
CB Cedrick Barker (BAL): 3 tackles, interception.
S Kenny Robinson Jr (DAL): 8 tackles, interception, touchdown.
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Wild Card Schedule
Baltimore Ravens (10-7) at Los Angeles Chargers (15-1)
Los Angeles Rams (12-5) at Arizona Cardinals (11-4-1)
Jacksonville Jaguars (12-5) at Miami Dolphins (11-3-2)
Detroit Lions (9-8) at New York Giants (11-5)
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Playoff Injuries
WR D.K. Metcalf (LAC): Season (chest)
CB Donovan Bigbh (LAC): 1 week (hip)
CB Taylor Cummins (MIA): Season (wrist)
C Creed Humphrey (MIA): 2 weeks (knee)
DE Alani Babineaux (DET): Season (chest)
CB Kai Harvey (LAR): Season (foot)
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Notable Transactions
Kansas City head coach Bill O'Brien retired

[Soapy]

NFL Divisional Round Preview: Baltimore Ravens
Record: 10-7, 1st AFC North

Team Leaders
Passing: Lamar Jackson (75% completion, 3819 yards, 38 TD, 13 INT, 112.7 rating)
Rushing: Dareon Sheppard (601 yards, 3.3 ypc, 5 TD)
Receiving: Marquise Brown (70 receptions, 877 yards, 8 TD)
Defense: Erroll Thompson (94 tackles, 4 TFL, 1.0 sack, INT)

Team Rankings
Total Offense: 14th
Total Defense: 4th
Points Per Game: 10th
Turnover Differential: T-30th

Injuries
None

Throughout the draft process, pundits kept comparing Will Castonzo to former Heisman winner Johnny Manziel but when asked about who he modeled his game after at the NFL Draft Combine, he named two guys: Houston's Deshaun Watson and Baltimore's Lamar Jackson. He's played Watson twice, splitting the series evenly. In his second matchup against Jackson, he hopes that doesn't become the case.

Lamar Jackson was able to throw for 347 yards but was kept in the pocket with no rushing yards and three interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown, another led to a field goal and his third came in the redzone in last year's game. The Chargers are down a man in the secondary as Donovan Bigby did not practice this week and with no D.K. Metcalf, the door has been cracked for a potential upset.

Baltimore Ravens Projected Starters
QB Lamar Jackson | 6'2", 212lbs | 98 ovr, 97 spd, 94 thp, 95 sac, 86 mac, 93 dac
HB Dareon Sheppard | 5'11", 194lbs | 78 ovr, 93 spd, 92 acc, 79 car, 84 elu
WR Marquise Brown | 5'9", 170lbs | 88 ovr, 98 spd, 94 acc, 88 cth
WR Dudley Dumas | 5'11", 199lbs | 92 ovr, 92 spd, 93 acc, 83 cth
WR Melvin York | 5'11", 195lbs | 71 ovr, 88 spd, 90 acc, 77 cth
TE Mark Andrews | 6'5", 253lbs | 80 ovr, 81 spd, 88 acc, 82 cth
LT Denard Wake | 6'7", 310lbs | 75 ovr, 88 str, 76 pbk, 71 rbk
LG Kalen Conway | 6'3", 305lbs | 75 ovr, 87 str, 78 pbk, 74 rbk
C J.D. Tucker | 6'4", 311lbs | 78 ovr, 85 str, 74 pbk, 85 rbk
RG Jeffrey Favorite | 6'2", 302lbs | 79 ovr, 91 str, 77 pbk, 72 rbk
RT Orlando Brown Jr. | 6'8", 345lbs | 84 ovr, 90 str, 78 pbk, 77 rbk
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EDGE Connor Graves | 6'4", 245lbs | 77 ovr, 84 spd, 84 str, 92 pmv, 77 bsh
EDGE Fletcher Cox | 6'4", 310lbs | 77 ovr, 76 spd, 89 str, 79 pmv, 80 bsh
DT Nate Newberry | 6'1", 297lbs | 74 ovr, 78 str, 87 pmv, 72 bsh
DT Sylvester Hilton | 6'3", 299lbs | 66 ovr, 86 str, 79 pmv, 72 bsh
LB Greg Washington | 5'11", 245lbs | 78 ovr, 85 spd, 88 acc, 87 tkl
LB Erroll Thompson | 6'1", 250lbs | 77 ovr, 83 spd, 84 acc, 85 tkl
CB Marlon Humphrey | 6'0", 197lbs | 85 ovr, 88 spd, 92 acc, 86 mcv, 77 zcv
CB Bennett Diggs | 5'9", 209lbs | 75 ovr, 90 spd, 89 acc, 85 mcv, 76 zcv
CB Cedrick Barker | 6'2", 182lbs | 74 ovr, 91 spd, 91 acc, 79 mcv, 63 zcv
S Denzel Hamilton | 5'9", 223lbs | 84 ovr, 87 spd, 96 acc, 85 mcv, 73 zcv, 78 tkl
S Jamarcus Brent | 5'10", 206lbs | 83 ovr, 87 spd, 92 acc, 88 mcv, 81 zcv, 82 tkl

[mvp]

tough matchup in this round. never know with lamar

[Soapy]

tough matchup in this round. never know with lamar

tell me about it lmao

[Soapy]

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BAL (10-8) | 7 | 14 | 3 | 3 || 27
LAC (16-1) | 0 | 14| 10 | 17 || 41
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Castonzo, A.J. Brown Outbest Jackson, Marquise Brown in Divisional Shootout
It took a 27-yard completion to Odell Beckham Jr. -- after he had dropped a wide open catch on third down on the previous drive -- on 3rd and 30 followed by a conversion on on 4th-and-2 from the Baltimore 40-yard line to help setup the Chargers first points of the game with 3:24 left in the second quarter. The Chargers offense never looked back after that.

Will Castonzo and the Chargers running attack was electric, the defense timely in the 41-27 comeback win over the Baltimore Ravens to advance to the AFC Championship Game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Chargers pricey acquisition of A.J. Brown paid for itself on Sunday. Brown found the endzone right before the end of the half following Lamar Jackson's quick strike to Marquise Brown to a 61-yard touchdown with 1:51 left in the half. Castonzo completed passes of 26 and 6 yards and after Brown drew a pass interference penalty on the Baltimore 10-yard line, he caught a slant across the middle to make it a seven point game heading into the half.

Brown scored once more to end the third quarter after both teams swapped field goals, tying the game at 24. The Chargers defense woke up, allowing just six points in the second half

Sean Butler made a crucial stop to start the fourth quarter, batting down a pass on 3rd and 4 to force a punt. It led to a nine play drive that took nearly six minutes off the clock as Castonzo found A.J. Brown in the corner of the endzone for perhaps his best throw of the night.

Castonzo finished the game with five touchdowns, his lone interception coming on an Hail Mary attempt before the half.

Baltimore responded with Marquise Brown catching a 50-yard bomb but the next two passes went incomplete and Jackson was sacked on third down, limiting them to a field goal.

Both Brown had a career night with Marquise catching ten passes for 233 yards and a score. A.J. had twelve catches for 156 yards and four touchdowns.

The Chargers had a nine play drive once more that finished with a field goal of their own and this time, the defense held Baltimore to zero yards in three plays, leading to a punt and eventual catch-and-run touchdown by A.J. Brown with 1:52 left in the game on 3rd and 3.

Baltimore sports radio will spend the entire offseason wondering if they abandoned the running game too early. Baltimore finished with 160 yards on the ground, including Jackson's 70-yard touchdown run on the offense's second possession. Jackson did not have another carry after that and with injuries pilling up in the backfield, the Ravens decided to stick with their passing attack.

By comparison, despite trailing for most of the game, the Chargers finished with 256 yard on the ground, picking up 26 first downs in the process and converting all four of their fourth down attempts. This allowed them to dominate the time of possession, controlling the ball for nearly forty minutes.

Baltimore converted just one third down attempt out of ten.
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Scoring Summary
Quarter 1
[BAL] L. Jackson, 70 Yd run (10:28)

Quarter 2
[BAL] D. Dumas 3 Yd pass from L. Jackson (9:16)
[LAC] O. Beckham Jr 4 Yd pass from W. Castonzo (3:19)
[BAL] M. Brown 61 Yd pass from L. Jackson (1:42)
[LAC] A. Brown 10 Yd pass from W. Castonzo (0:31)

Quarter 3
[LAC] M. Badgley, 40 Yd FG (11:58)
[BAL] J. Slye, 26 Yd FG (6:31)
[LAC] A. Brown 13 Yd pass from W. Castonzo (0:02)

Quarter 4
[LAC] A. Brown 13 Yd pass from W. Castonzo (9:48)
[BAL] J. Slye, 50 Yd FG (8:15)
[LAC] M. Badgley, 49 Yd FG (4:04)
[LAC] A. Brown 34 Yd pass from W. Castonzo (1:44)
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Los Angeles Chargers
Will Castonzo: 19 of 32, 252 yards, 5 touchdowns, interception, 3 carries, 21 yards.
Clinton McDonald: 11 carries, 84 yards.
Derrick Henry: 11 carries, 57 yards.
Tyron Floyd: 8 carries, 68 yards.
Juwan Stanford: 7 carries, 30 yards.
A.J. Brown: 12 receptions, 156 yards, 4 touchdowns.
Stephen Burke: 2 receptions, 36 yards.
Odell Beckham Jr: 2 receptions, 31 yards, touchdown.
Derwin James: 9 tackles.
Nick Steward: 7 tackles, tackle for loss, sack.
Rashard Keaton: 4 tackles, sack.
Christian Childs: 2 tackles, sack.
Jalen Ramsey: 4 tackles, interception.

Baltimore Ravens
Lamar Jackson: 19 of 32, 303 yards, 2 touchdowns, interception, 1 carry, 70 yards, touchdown.
Keiwone Sapp: 7 carries, 42 yards (left game with injury).
Ty Chandler: 7 carries, 37 yards (left game with injury).
Dareon Shepard: 1 carry, 6 yards (left game with injury).
Marquise Brown: 10 receptions, 233 yards, touchdown.
Erroll Thompson: 14 tackles, tackle for loss.
JaMichael Solomon: 7 tackles, 2 sacks.
Marlon Humphrey: 2 tackles, interception.

[Soapy]

Behind the Numbers: Breakdown of Chargers Divisional Round Win vs. Baltimore Ravens

Offensive Line Grades
LT Melvin McKinley: 77 snaps, 36 dropbacks, 41 rushes, 2 sacks allowed, 57.8 PFF grade.
LG Chauncey Truman: 77 snaps, 36 dropbacks, 41 rushes, 80.0 PFF grade.
C Austin Griggs: 77 snaps, 36 dropbacks, 41 rushes, 2 run stuffs allowed, penalty, 61.5 PFF grade.
RG Stephen Zeigler: 77 snaps, 36 dropbacks, 41 rushes, 2 penalties, 72.2 PFF grade.
RT Jerron Bowman: 77 snaps, 36 dropbacks, 41 rushes, sack allowed, 68.9 PFF grade.
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Grade Scale :: 80+ ELITE | 79-70 ABOVE AVERAGE | 69-60 AVERAGE | 59> BELOW AVERAGE

Defensive Grades
DE Christian Childs: 51 snaps, 2 tackles, sack, QB hurry, 64.8 PFF grade.
NT Cedric Darius: 23 snaps, 58.0 PFF grade.
DE Vincent Zellner: 46 snaps, 3 tackles, tackle for loss, QB hurry, 2 run stuffs, penalty, 73.1 PFF grade.
EDGE Joey Bosa: 49 snaps, 59.0 PFF grade.
EDGE Rashard Keaton: 51 snaps, 4 tackles, sack, 2 run stuffs, 66.4 PFF grade.
EDGE Willis Rayford: 15 snaps, tackle, sack, 63.3 PFF grade.
LB Layne Scott: 50 snaps, 6 tackles, tackle for loss, 2 run stuffs, 79.2 PFF grade.
LB DeAndre Bridge: 28 snaps, tackle, 67.2 PFF grade.
CB Jalen Ramsey: 53 snaps, 4 tackles, interception, 3 pass breakup, 3 catches allowed, TD catch allowed, 58.9 PFF grade.
CB Malik Truman: 59 snaps, 3 tackles, 5 catches allowed, TD catch allowed, 48.1 PFF grade.
CB Donovan Bigby: DNP.
S Samuel Fleming: 49 snaps, 7 tackles, pass breakup, run stuff, 3 catches allowed, 66.1 PFF grade.
S Derwin James Jr: 52 snaps, 9 tackles, 5 catches allowed, 61.3 PFF grade.
S Sean Butler: 59 snaps, 4 tackles, 2 pass breakups, 2 catches allowed, 68.4 PFF grade.
S Nick Steward: 46 snaps, 7 tackles, tackle for loss, sack, pass breakup, 79.0 PFF grade.
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Grade Scale :: 80+ ELITE | 79-70 ABOVE AVERAGE | 69-60 AVERAGE | 59> BELOW AVERAGE

Class of 2028 Report Card
EDGE Willis Rayford: 15 snaps, tackle, sack, 63.3 PFF grade.
S Nick Steward: 46 snaps, 7 tackles, tackle for loss, sack, pass breakup, 79.0 PFF grade.
TE Don Willson: 35 snaps.
FB Teryan Vanover: 26 snaps, 1 reception, 3 yards.

Injury Report
CB Donovan Bigby: Probable (hip)
HB Jamarcus Cherry: Questionable (abdomen)
WR D.K. Metcalf: Out (chest)
HB Felix Whittaker: Out (abdomen)

[Soapy]

NFL Divisional Round Playoff Results
BAL 27 - LAC 41 :: LAR 28 - ARI 25
JAX 28 - MIA 21 :: DET 28 - NYG 38
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Players of the Week
WR A.J. Brown (LAC): 12 receptions, 156 yards, 4 touchdowns.
HB Saquon Barkley (NYG): 19 carries, 142 yards, 2 touchdowns, 2 receptions, 43 yards.
OLB Jamichael Solomon (BAL): 7 tackles, 2 sacks.
DE Da'Shawn Hand (LAR): 7 tackles, sack.
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Conference Championship Schedule
Los Angeles Rams (13-5) at New York Giants (12-5)
Jacksonville Jaguars (13-5) at Los Angeles Chargers (16-1)
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Playoff Injuries
WR D.K. Metcalf (LAC): Season (chest)
HB Felix Whittaker (LAC): 3 weeks (abdomen)
LB Kenneth Murray (LAR): Season (knee)
CB Kai Harvey (LAR): Season (foot)

[Soapy]

AFC Championship Game Preview: Jacksonville Jaguars
Record: 12-5, 1st AFC West

Team Leaders
Passing: Tua Tagovailoa (72% completion, 3800 yards, 26 TD, 7 INT, 108.4 rating)
Rushing: Derrius Guice (971 yards, 3.9 ypc, 12 TD)
Receiving: Justyn Ross (82 receptions, 1068 yards, 8 TD)
Defense: Myles Jack (119 tackles, 14 TFL, 4.0 sacks)

Team Rankings
Total Offense: 6th
Total Defense: 2nd
Points Per Game: 9th
Turnover Differential: 15th

Injuries
None

When this team met back December, Los Angeles got the win but Jacksonville probably left feeling good about their chances given Tua's performance and quite frankly, the injury to D.K. Metcalf. A.J. Brown made a statement last week, can he do it again?

A chink was definitely shown in the armor of the Chargers offense last weekend as they were shut down for nearly an entire half and their defense gave up some big plays. When it came to winning time, however, the Chargers outscored Baltimore 27-6 in the second half.

Tua was able to be effective using his legs against the Chargers and last week as well, rushing for two touchdowns. With a healthy Donovan Bigby back into the fold, the Chargers should be more comfortable deploying more bodies in the box and perhaps getting after Tua. While Malik Truman and Jalen Ramsey gave up big plays last week to Marquise Brown, the Jaguars don't have a burner type that will be able to get behind them consistently like Marquise.

Jacksonville Jaguars Projected Starters
QB Tua Tagovailoa | 6'1", 218lbs | 83 ovr, 85 spd, 87 thp, 95 sac, 93 mac, 78 dac
HB Derrius Guice | 5'11", 225lbs | 77 ovr, 88 spd, 89 acc, 85 btk, 91 trk, 82 car
WR Justyn Ross | 6'4", 205lbs | 85 ovr, 91 spd, 89 acc, 91 cth
WR D.J. Chark Jr | 6'4", 198lbs | 77 ovr, 92 spd, 94 acc, 87 cth
WR Sage Surratt | 6'3", 215lbs | 72 ovr, 88 spd, 86 acc, 84 cth
TE Colby Parkinson | 6'7", 240lbs | 75 ovr, 78 spd, 79 acc, 82 cth
LT Enrique Miles | 6'7", 334lbs | 82 ovr, 91 str, 80 pbk, 83 rbk
LG Luke Barnes | 6'5", 330lbs | 75 ovr, 87 str, 81 pbk, 65 rbk
C Conner Elam | 6'1", 301lbs | 81 ovr, 80 str, 81 pbk, 74 rbk
RG Justin Jennings | 6'5", 325lbs | 73 ovr, 81 str, 72 pbk, 83 rbk
RT Tristan Wirfs | 6'5", 322lbs | 81 ovr, 96 str, 76 pbk, 76 rbk
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EDGE Josh Allen | 6'5", 262lbs | 81 ovr, 87 spd, 83 str, 88 fmv
EDGE Mustafa Johnson | 6'3", 295lbs | 76 ovr, 77 spd, 88 str, 86 pmv
DT Taven Bryan | 6'4", 291lbs | 70 ovr, 92 str, 76 bsh
DT Jaelin Abbott | 6'3", 312lbs | 69 ovr, 91 str, 75 bsh
LB Myles Jack | 6'1", 244lbs | 80 ovr, 83 spd, 88 acc, 76 tkl
S/LB Andy Ryan | 5'11", 199lbs | 70 ovr, 84 spd, 88 acc, 72 tkl
CB Tre Oldham | 5'10", 210lbs | 79 ovr, 92 spd, 91 acc, 61 mcv, 88 zcv
CB Cameron Dantzler | 6'2", 185lbs | 75 ovr, 92 spd, 89 acc, 68 mcv, 78 zcv
CB Paulson Adebo | 6'1", 189lbs | 73 ovr, 87 spd, 91 acc, 73 mcv, 77 zcv
S Alohi Gilman | 5'11", 201lbs | 73 ovr, 83 spd, 86 acc, 78 zcv, 78 tkl
S Ronnie Harrison | 6'3", 214lbs | 74 ovr, 87 spd, 89 acc, 70 zcv, 66 tkl

[Soapy]

-----------------------------------------------
JAX (13-4) | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 || 17
LAC (16-1) | 0 | 10 | 7 | 3 || 20
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Chargers Advance to Super Bowl Despite Castonzo Injury
The officials holding their whistle as quarterback Will Castonzo was tackled out of bounds, fracturing his ribs on the Chargers first drive jump started the AFC Championship Game. The officials blowing their whistle on a questionable pass interference call on the Chargers final drive ended it.

The 32-yard pass interference penalty on the Jaguars help setup Michael Badgley's 54-yard game winner, sending the Chargers to their second straight Super Bowl after finishing with the league's worst record just three seasons ago, doing so without their star QB.

Castonzo suffered an injury on the first offensive play for the Chargers as he was tackled while going out of bounds by Josh Allen. The landing fractured several of Castonzo's ribs according to reports, keeping him out of the game. Replacing Castonzo was former Super Bowl winning QB Russell Wilson in his 17th year. The veteran QB completed 18 of 22 passes for 100 yards and two touchdowns.

Without Castonzo, the Chargers amassed just 164 yards of total offense, converted just 25 percent of their third downs but with a +2 turnover differential, they were able to get the win behind the man they call The Money Badger.

Badgley was signed by the Los Angeles Chargers back during the 2018 season, breaking several Charger records such as longest field goal and field goal percentage during his first year. He struggled over the next few seasons, bouncing around the league before being brought back under the new regime in 2026. Since then, he's made 87 of his 90 attempted kicks and hasn't missed an extra point since his return.

Jacksonville had just completed a comeback of their own, converting a 3rd and 14 with 1:55 left in the game and scoring with just 33 seconds left. Like Pittsburgh learned last year, it was too much time for the Cardiac Chargers.

The Chargers will now have two weeks to get Castonzo healthy and ready to face the New York Giants in the Super Bowl.
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Scoring Summary
Quarter 1
[JAX] W. Lutz, 40 Yd FG (3:21)

Quarter 2
[LAC] M. Badgley, 43 Yd FG (13:37)
[JAX] J. Ross 28 Yd pass from T. Tagovailoa (3:58)
[LAC] S. Burke 3 Yd pass from R. Wilson (0:46)

Quarter 3
[LAC] A. Brown 2 Yd pass from R. Wilson (2:10)

Quarter 4
[JAX] D. Patton 3 Yd pass from T. Tagovailoa (0:30)
[LAC] M. Badgley, 54 Yd FG (0:00)
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Los Angeles Chargers
Russell Wilson: 18 of 22, 100 yards, 2 touchdowns, interception.
Will Castonzo: 1 carry, 22 yards.
Tyron Floyd: 14 carries, 50 yards.
Clinton McDonald: 5 carries, 9 yards.
Stephon Burke: 3 receptions, 34 yards, touchdown.
A.J. Brown: 3 receptions, 29 yards, touchdown.
Samuel Fleming: 12 tackles, tackle for loss.
Layne Scott: 9 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, sack.
Donovan Bigby: 9 tackles, sack, interception.
Jalen Ramsey: 6 tackles, tackle for loss, interception.
Nick Steward: 6 tackles, interception.

Jacksonville Jaguars
Tua Tagovailoa: 17 of 31, 195 yards, 2 touchdowns, 3 interceptions, 9 carries, 116 yards.
Willis Hunter: 16 carries, 26 yards.
Derrius Guice: 9 carries, 45 yards.
Colby Parkinson: 8 receptions, 60 yards.
D.J. Chark Jr: 4 receptions, 65 yards.
Justyn Ross: 3 receptions, 60 yards, touchdown.
Myles Jack: 8 tackles, sack.
Paulson Adebo: 7 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, sack.
Ronnie Harrison: 7 tackles, sack.

[djp73]