It’s playoff time in the NFL! Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas is within sight and the stakes have never been higher. We guide you through the latest news, views, features and stats from a hectic week ahead of a huge Wild Card line-up…

Editor’s note…

Phew. Quite the week. The drama, the twists, the chaos. The NFL NFL’d hard – coupled with a college tinge – before a pass being thrown or a catch being made.

Pete Carroll departed his post as Seattle Seahawks head coach after 14 years to move into an advisory role, Nick Saban retired at Alabama as college football’s most successful head coach, and Bill Belichick parted ways with the New England Patriots after 24 years and six Super Bowl victories from nine Super Bowl appearances – all within the space of 24 hours. Just like that, three of the modern era’s most influential football minds, responsible for some of football’s greatest ever teams, move on to raise the curtain on a new era for football.

Even before then, Mike Vrabel was fired as Tennessee Titans head coach amid one of the wildest and most high-profile coaching hiring cycles in recent memory. Large-scale change has arrived, and a frantic scramble to land A-lister candidates is officially under way.

Off-field business will take a back-seat for now, though, as the NFL playoffs officially commence with a bumper Super Wild Card weekend.

The league is in the business of marketable storylines, and hits the jackpot on Sunday evening when Matthew Stafford leads out the Los Angeles Rams while returning to face the Detroit Lions, who will host a playoff game for the first time in 30 years after finishing as the NFC’s No 3 seed.

For 12 seasons Stafford poured his all into trying to guide the Lions to success, only to manage just three win-less playoff appearances amid years of heavy physical punishment and shortcomings. He was granted a trade to the Rams in 2021 in a bid to win a long-awaited Championship – his wait for which ended within a season when he led Sean McVay’s side to victory over the Cincinnati Bengals at Super Bowl LVI.

Stafford’s trade to Hollywood had seen Jared Goff move in the opposite direction amid an effort to revive his own career after the former No 1 overall pick had fallen at the final hurdle with the Rams in defeat to the New England Patriots at Super Bowl LIII. Revive it he has, Goff having since flourished within Ben Johnson’s explosive Lions offense to take Detroit to their first NFC North division title since 1993 and lay the foundations for a new chapter of contention under Dan Campbell.

It beckons as the first playoff matchup in NFL history between starting quarterbacks that previously played for the other team. A healthy Stafford has been among the stories of the 2023 campaign while spinning magic within a youthful Rams offense written off in most pre-season projections, while Goff has answered doubts over his ability to sustain success as the pilot to one of the league’s most dynamic and innovative attacks.

From a big reunion to a big freeze, the Miami Dolphins head to Arrowhead to take on the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs in what has the potential to become one of the coldest NFL games on record, with temperatures of minus-five degrees Fahrenheit expected.

Wrap up, buckle up. All of the above.

Around the league…

• The NFL announced this week that the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings will play home games at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2024, while the Jacksonville Jaguars return to Wembley Stadium; the Carolina Panthers are the designated home team to play in Munich, Germany.
• After 24 years and six Super Bowl victories, Bill Belichick and the Patriots parted ways this week following the team’s 4-13 finish to the campaign; the Patriots have since promoted inside linebackers coach Jerod Mayo as Belichick’s successor, making him the NFL’s youngest head coach.
• The Seahawks announced that Pete Carroll will step away from his role as head coach and move into an advisor role in Seattle after 14 seasons, during which he recorded 11 winning records while winning a Super Bowl.
• Black Monday saw Arthur Smith fired as Atlanta Falcons head coach and Ron Rivera fired as Washington Commanders head coach, before Mike Vrabel became a shock departure in Tennessee later in the week.

• The Ravens designated Mark Andrews to return to practice this week, with the tight end having been sidelined with an ankle injury since Week 11.
• The Titans are to interview interim Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce for their vacant post following the firing of Vrabel.
• The Steelers ruled out 19-sack TJ Watt ahead of their playoff meeting with the Bills as their star edge rusher recovers from a Grade 2 MCL sprain.
• The Jaguars fired defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell, while defensive coordinator Wink Martindale parted ways with the Giants.
• The Commanders are set to hire 49ers assistant general manager Adam Peters as the organisation’s new GM.

What to watch…

Saturday, 9.30pm – Cleveland Browns @ Houston Texans: A 38-year-old Joe Flacco threw for 368 yards and three touchdowns while Amari Cooper made 11 catches for 265 yards and two scores as the Browns beat the Texans 36-22 on Christmas Eve. This time, they meet Houston’s superstar rookie quarterback CJ Stroud, who missed December’s matchup while in concussion protocol. While Flacco eyes a miracle playoff run, Stroud has plans to springboard a new era for the Texans with an unlikely postseason charge. Awaiting the No 2 overall pick is a Myles Garrett-led Browns defense ranked first in total yards and passing. Stroud is ranked fourth by NextGen Stats in intended air yards per pass, just behind third-ranked Flacco; get ready for some dunk-on-them deep shots.

Sunday, 1am – Miami Dolphins @ Kansas City Chiefs: Fireworks are to be expected every time these two go toe-to-toe. Steve Spagnuolo’s defense starred as the Chiefs edged the Dolphins in Frankfurt earlier this season, Trent McDuffie and L’Jarius Sneed, in particular, both doing an outstanding job in limiting Tyreek Hill. The same will be required again should Patrick Mahomes and his Chiefs offense continue to hobble. For Miami, Christian Wilkins and Zach Sieler are poised to play decisive roles as Vic Fangii’s defensive continues to try and compensate for the loss of its chief pass rushers Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb – voids they seeked to address further this week by signing veterans Justin Houston and Bruce Irvin.

Sunday, 6pm – Pittsburgh Steelers @ Buffalo Bills: This might be the perfect test for the Bills, one dripping in banana-skin potential as they look to ensure their drastic season turnaround does not come undone against a team that scraped into the playoffs. Pittsburgh have shown improvement under third-string quarterback Mason Rudolph (it couldn’t get any worse), but arrive without their talisman TJ Watt. A clean, composed Josh Allen performance sees Buffalo steamroll their way into the Divisional Round. With that said, Orchard Park is readying itself for 65 mph winds and at least a foot of snow! Brace yourself for some old-fashioned pound-the-rock football.

Sunday, 9.30pm – Green Bay Packers @ Dallas Cowboys: Jordan Love is primed for his biggest test on the biggest stage of his young NFL career yet when he tries to decipher whatever Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn decides to cook up for the Packers quarterback. Love has dazzled with his imagination and creative arm angles both in and out of the pocket this season, but comes up against a Dallas defense known for its single-high safety tendencies that will dare Aaron Rodgers’ successor to take on throws outside the numbers. Quinn loves to supplement the blitz with stunts up front in a bid to cause confusion, led by Micah Parsons. How will Love fare?

Monday, 1.15am – Los Angeles Rams @ Detroit Lions: Rookie weapons have been among the leading themes of 2023 for both the Rams and Lions. Wide receiver sensation Puka Nacua broke two records in the space of a minute on the final day of the regular season when he recorded the most single-season receiving yards and most single-season receptions by a rookie in NFL history, capping his introduction as a perfect fit to McVay’s rejuvenated offense. Elsewhere in Detroit, the Lions are waiting anxiously over the health of Sam LaPorta, who broke the record for most receptions by a rookie tight end in history before suffering a knee injury in Week 18’s win over the Minnesota Vikings. LaPorta, who led all tight ends with 10 touchdown catches this year, is said to be optimistic over his chances of facing the Rams.

Tuesday, 1.15am – Philadelphia Eagles @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Is it a good or bad time to play a wobbling Eagles team? Baker Mayfield, Todd Bowles and the Bucs are about to find out. Philadelphia have lost five of their last six, their offense has fallen stale and a defense that led the NFL in sacks on the way to the Super Bowl last year has been drained of ferocity. There has been a glaring drop-off in play-speed since defensive play-calling duties were handed from Sean Desai to Matt Patricia, the word of the week being ‘simplicity’ as they look to return to a more tailored system that allows the likes of Haason Reddick and Josh Sweat to do what they do best and attack the edge. For Baker, it is another opportunity to continue his admirable comeback.

Playoff picture

Play the Super Bowl Challenge!

Time to rub your crystal ball, because the NFL’s Super Bowl challenge is back! Make your playoff predictions as we reach the home stretch on the path to Super Bowl LVIII…

Best quotes

Bill Belichick’s opening statement at his farewell press conference: “I haven’t seen this many cameras since we signed (Tim) Tebow!”

Stafford on his return to face Detroit: “I understand what the people of Detroit and the city of Detroit meant to me in my time and my career, what they meant to my family. I hope they feel that back, but at the same time I’m not a stranger to the situation and understanding that I’m the bad guy coming to town.”

Tyreek Hill on his return to face the Chiefs at Arrowhead: “I haven’t texted Mahomes since they beat our ass. I texted Kelce but haven’t heard back. Those guys are too famous for me now I guess.”

Micah Parsons on head coaching buzz surrounding Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn: “It could possibly be my last ride with Q, and if it is, we’re gonna make sure it’s a damn good one.”

Aaron Donald on Lions quarterback and former Rams teammate Jared Goff: “We had a good relationship. We were cool, proud of what he’d been accomplishing. Reached out to him and told him I’m proud of him. So I feel like we have a good relationship.”

Chiefs head coach Andy Reid when asked about the prospect of retiring: “I haven’t even thought about that. I’m thinking about one thing. I figured that would come up when you guys were asking these questions because I’m old, but not that old.”

The stats

• Rams receiver Cooper Kupp needs two touchdown catches against the Lions to become the third player in NFL history to record multiple touchdown receptions in three straight postseason games behind Larry Fitzgerald and Ernest Givins
• A win on Saturday would see Browns quarterback Joe Flacco overtake Tom Brady (seven) for most road playoff wins by a starting quarterback in NFL history
• Since the Patriots hired Bill Belichick as head coach in 2000, the other 31 teams between them have gone through 162 different head coaches
• Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce need just one touchdown connection on Saturday to tie Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski (15) for the most postseason touchdowns between a quarterback-receiver duo in history
• Jayden Reed (64 catches, 793 yards) is the first Packers rookie to lead the team in receptions and receiving yards since Sterling Sharpe in 1988
• CeeDee Lamb set new Cowboys franchise single-season records with 135 catches and 1,749 receiving yards in 2023; he needs 10 catches on Sunday to become the second player ever behind Michael Thomas to record at least 10 receptions in eight-or-more games in a season (including playoffs)

Essential reading:

Belichick’s Patriots: The end of an era for the NFL

Against all the odds and villainous portrayals, contrary to bleak expectations and gloomy projections… Bill Belichick once dressed as a pirate to a Randy Moss-led roller-skating Halloween party with the New England Patriots.

Not the odds-and-expectations-clobbering Super Bowl tale you were thinking of, huh? Not the evil genius masterplan you were anticipating, huh?

We look back on Bill Belichick’s historic reign with the Patriots as the iconic head coach moves on after 24 years…

NFL playoffs 2023: Meet the final 14 teams

The 2023 NFL playoffs are here! The Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers enter their bye week as the respective No 1 seeds, the Kansas City Chiefs resume the defence of their crown against the Miami Dolphins on Saturday night, CJ Stroud leads the Houston Texans into the postseason amid his sparkling rookie campaign and Matthew Stafford is primed for an emotional return to Detroit.

Here is your quick guide to the final 14 teams as we enter Super Wild Card weekend – every game of which you can watch live on Sky Sports NFL…

Inside the Huddle: Winston’s ‘cowardly’ play

Join Neil Reynolds and Jeff Reinebold as they give their opinions on the controversial final play between the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons, while making their predictions ahead of Super Wild Card weekend…

Her Huddle: The coaching carousel heats up

Hannah Wilkes is joined by Liz and Ash to look discuss a busy week of coaching moves, including the shock Pete Carroll news in Seattle…

Watch the Miami Dolphins face the Kansas City Chiefs on wild card weekend live on Sky Sports NFL from 1am Sunday; the Buffalo Bills then face the Pittsburgh Steelers from 6pm Sunday, followed by the Green Bay Packers at the Dallas Cowboys and Matthew Stafford’s return to Detroit.