Solely 4 groups stay within the AFC playoffs. We expect these gamers will likely be crucial to their staff’s success on this weekend’s divisional spherical.
Baltimore Ravens | Derrick Henry | RB
Derrick Henry was so good in opposition to the Payments in Week 4 that Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson wanted simply 18 passes (13 completions) to steer Baltimore previous Buffalo. Henry began the day with an 87-yard landing run on the staff’s first offensive play, hitting a max pace of 21.29 mph, in accordance with Next Gen Stats, and completed the day with a season-high 199 yards on 24 carries.
Coming off a 186-yard, two-score efficiency in opposition to the Steelers in final week’s wild-card recreation, Henry will get one other shot on the Payments this week, this time at Highmark Stadium the place recreation day temperatures ought to be within the single-digits with potential snow.
Simply think about how gamers like security Damar Hamlin and linebacker Dorian Williams, Buffalo’s main tackler, should really feel about bringing down a 6-foot-2, 247-pound working again like Henry in these circumstances.
Per pro-football-reference.com, Henry led the NFL with 42 damaged tackles and 909 yards after contact within the common season and ought to be nice in opposition to a Payments protection that held Denver working backs to 35 yards final weekend.
Buffalo Payments | James Cook dinner | RB
The Payments gained’t hold Henry out of the top zone if they’ll’t hold him off the sphere. Cook dinner ought to keep busy after dashing for a season-high 123 yards on 23 carries with a rating in a 31-7 victory over the Broncos within the staff’s wild-card matchup.
With Cook dinner’s assist, Buffalo held the ball for practically 42 minutes, working 72 performs whereas Denver ran solely 42. Together with the playoffs, Cook dinner now has six touchdowns in his final 5 video games and will do higher than the 39 yards he had in opposition to Baltimore in Week 4.
Houston Texans | Danielle Hunter | LB
The Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes is not prone to throw 4 interceptions just like the Chargers’ Justin Herbert did in opposition to Houston final week, however the Texans have an opportunity if they’ll get to Kansas Metropolis’s quarterback.
Mahomes took a career-high 36 sacks this season, together with one within the Chiefs’ 27-19 victory over the Texans in Week 16. Hunter didn’t get to Mahomes that day however led Houston with 12 sacks and 17 tackles for a loss within the common season.
Solely Joe Burrow (652) and Aaron Rodgers (584) had extra passing makes an attempt than Mahomes (581) this 12 months and the Chiefs will certainly look to air it out in opposition to the Texans. Houston blitzed with Hunter 46 instances final season however solely eight instances in 2024. Count on him to be far more energetic on Saturday.
Kansas Metropolis Chiefs | Isiah Pacheco | RB
Mahomes is superb however goes to want assist from the staff’s pedestrian working recreation in some unspecified time in the future. After dashing for 84 yards per recreation and 4.7 yards per carry over the previous two seasons, Pacheco has averaged 32.7 yards per recreation and three.1 yards per carry since coming back from a fractured fibula in Week 14.
The 25-year-old working again sat out the staff’s final common season recreation with a rib damage however expects to play on Saturday. As a member of the 2022 NFL Draft class, Pacheco grew to become eligible for a contract extension final week. An enormous recreation in opposition to Houston’s fifth-ranked protection will definitely assist the staff and his backside line.
