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The three-day playoff-opening salvo, which the NFL has dubbed the “Super Wild Card Weekend,” went as billed on Saturday.
The first half of the San Francisco 49ers’ third game of the season against the Seattle Seahawks may have been unexpectedly tight. It was definitely a surprise to Seattle that he led 17-16 at the break. But that was followed by a frenzied football of his four-quarters across the United States, from Santa Clara, California to Jacksonville, Florida. His second game against the host Jaguars and Los Angeles Chargers marked him one of the greatest comebacks in postseason history.
So many winners…and so many losers on Saturday alone:
winner
Brock Purdy: Wow. San Francisco 49ers Freshman Quarterback – “Mr. In breaking fashion he extended his record to 6-0. Purdy became the first rookie in NFL history to record four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) in his game in the playoffs, and LeBron also earned praise from James. Prior to Purdy, the last rookie to win a postseason game was Seattle’s Russell Wilson in 2012. It will be second on Sunday in Buffalo. Also on Saturday, Purdy joined Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers as the only rookie in league history to throw multiple TD passes in seven straight games, but Herbert’s run is entirely within the 2020 regular season. It was conducted.
Follow all games: Latest NFL Scores & Schedules
Buffalo Bills: They didn’t play until 1pm on Sunday, but had a big win on Saturday when they reunited with teammate Dumar Hamlin. It came just 12 days after teammate Dummer Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest on the Cincinnati field. Enough said.
Quarterbacks who made their playoff debuts: All four of Saturday’s QB1s (Purdy, Herbert, Seahawks’ Gino Smith and Jacksonville Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence) were in their first postseason games. On Sunday, Thompson, New York Giants’ Daniel Jones, Baltimore’s Ravens’ Tyler He Huntley (or Anthony Brown) will be joined by his trio.
Worse: The Jaguars pulled off a spectacular win on Saturday night, becoming the first team to win the playoffs this season after having the worst record in the league.
49ers offense: It was hardly all Purdy. His 505 yards for San Francisco gave him 51 more yards than his highest output during the regular season. RB Christian McCaffrey (136) and WR Deebo Samuel (165) were both over 130 yards out of scrimmage for a TD.
DK Metcalfe: All in all, he was the Seahawks offense, recording 10 receptions for 136 yards and two touchdowns, and a physical presence against the Niners’ top-ranked defense that the rest of his teammates couldn’t replicate. showed.
Charger tight end: They did their best to pick up the slack caused by WR Mike Williams’ injured back. Combined, Gerald Everett, Donald Parham Jr. and Tre McKitty had 12 receptions for 148 yards and a touchdown.
Robbie Gould: The San Francisco kicker made the conversion with four field goals and three extra points. In his 14 appearances in the postseason, he has never missed a kick. Twenty-five times he was perfect on all tries on FG, and in PATs he went 37-for-37.
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Travis Etienne Jr.: Etienne, the Jags’ “other” first-round pick (and Lawrence’s teammate at Clemson) in 2021, went on to have a great sophomore season. Chunk play variety that helped Jacksonville bounce back from a seemingly irreparable start.
Asante Samuel Jr.: The Chargers corner became the first player to pick three passes in the first half of a playoff game. If his dad was that good, the New England Patriots would have him 19-0 in 2007.
Sean Payton: Who will be the next Chargers coach? Rumors continued for weeks, and at some point Saturday night he appeared to be dead…and wasn’t.
Doug Pederson: The Jacksonville coach didn’t panic, nor did his team, who fought back steadily against the Bolts. Let’s not forget Pederson’s bold decision with 5:25 left and his team tied 30-26. This is the moment Lawrence used his 6-6 frame to convert with his 2-point try following his TD in his fourth for the team. It set up a game-winning field goal attempt on the final play of the night.
Second half Trevor Lawrence: Wow. 18 of his 23 throws found the mark, covering 211 yards and producing three touchdowns in the final two quarters. The 2021 Draft No. 1 pick’s performance spurred an unlikely comeback necessitated by his own incompetence in his first 28 minutes of the game, making the Jags a third in playoff history. It spurred him to a 31-30 win that marked the second biggest comeback (more info here). later). Jacksonville became the first team to overcome a sales deficit of at least 5 in a postseason record.
loser
First Half Trevor Lawrence: Boy Do Sunshine put his team into the well (27-0), passing all 77 yards and completing 10 of 24 passes. The last quarterback he contributed four of his INTs before halftime in a playoff game was Gary Danielson in 1983.
Brandon Staley: He was not guilty of Saturday’s questionable analytical play, and his team frustrated Lawrence with a first-half game plan that seemed good enough to set up another round against the Kansas City Chiefs in the divisional round. But the Chargers managed to score only three points in the second half and had to adopt a third-string left tackle, their defense collapsed and they lost their composure…and then Staley made it to third. We could have used Williams, who played pointlessly in Week 18. a fracture in his back. Bolt justifies keeping a good, if stubborn, second-year coach…and they would justify transferring too.
Herbert: Speaking of LA’s up-and-coming third-year superstar, yes, he didn’t have a favorite receiver or had enough protection on Saturday, was sacked three times, and struck out 10. , absorbed a hit from Jags rookie OLB Travon Walker. It flagged, but there was no retaliation from Herbert’s teammates. As much as it could be, he should have found a way to keep this game on ice.
Bossa Bowl: Nick Bosa, the presumed NFL Defensive Player of the Year, had a good day, making five tackles (one in one loss) and recovering a fumble in San Francisco’s victory. But older brother Joey had a tough night in Duval County – one tackle, one hit on Lawrence… enraged him with two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and an offside call, giving Lawrence a crucial run. Denied a third down sack and ended up in overtime instead, a drive that ended in Jacksonville’s second TD. So Nick keeps playing and Joey has to watch from his fancy box.
Seahawks offensive line: All of Seattle’s five penalties, not including a denied sixth penalty, most of which fell into the category of mental errors, were made against the front five. Smith was also fired three times.
Geno Smith: He wasn’t terrible given what was happening in front of him, but Smith turned the ball over twice and failed to become the first quarterback to make a playoff debut in 22 years. bottom. Now he’s waiting for Seattle to make a decision.
Detroit Lions: Had they not lost to the Seahawks in Week 4, Leos would have been in action on Saturday. And the way Dan Campbell’s crew ended the season, I suspect Detroit gave the Niners four quarters of hell, as opposed to the two Seattle managed.
Jonathan Abram: There’s a reason the Raiders’ 2019 first-round pick was named to the third team of the season (the Seahawks). In the case of Saturday, there is no reason for him to try to hurt his fellow player Samuel. bam. San Francisco, who scored 25 points in a row after dirty play, seems to be on fire too.
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Follow Nate Davis of USA TODAY Sports on Twitter @By Nate Davis.
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