# NFL Playoffs - 2018 Edition **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [December 31, 2018, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008 "2018-12-31T22:47:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2019, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/21 "2019-01-05T23:59:09Z")
> [@jaycat](#): > > Is there an announcer anywhere with a worse case of motormouth than “Booger” McFarland? I like Boog! ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/22 "2019-01-06T00:03:28Z")
John Madden and Chris Berman spring immediately to mind ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/23 "2019-01-06T00:49:15Z")
So is it set in stone that the Colts must now travel to Foxboro and beat B&B? Or is there some other combination of outcomes based on the results of tomorrow’s games that has the Colts going to Arrowhead? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/24 "2019-01-06T00:51:08Z")
I thought the Colts were the #6 seed, which means they’re definitely going to KC to play the Chiefs. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/25 "2019-01-06T00:58:10Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > I thought the Colts were the #6 seed, which means they’re definitely going to KC to play the Chiefs. Yeah, [NFL.com](http://NFL.com) says they go to KC ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/26 "2019-01-06T01:13:20Z")
The #1 seed will play against the lowest remaining seed (that’s the advantage of being #1 over #2 which plays the highest remaining seed). Since #6 is the lowest seed in the playoffs, with a Colts win they will play KC no matter what else happens. The same way that if the Eagles win, they will go to New Orleans no matter what else happens. ---
**Author:** ![borschevsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/97f17d/32.png) [@borschevsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/borschevsky)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/27 "2019-01-06T01:20:35Z")
And similarly if the Bears win, they play the Rams next for sure. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/28 "2019-01-06T01:50:07Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > The #1 seed will play against the lowest remaining seed (that’s the advantage of being #1 over #2 which plays the highest remaining seed). Since #6 is the lowest seed in the playoffs, with a Colts win they will play KC no matter what else happens. > > The same way that if the Eagles win, they will go to New Orleans no matter what else happens. The Chargers have to like this outcome if they manage to get past Baltimore. I think that they’d prefer NE and they now have a chance of a home game in the Conference Championship. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/29 "2019-01-06T02:27:50Z")
I like watching great defensive teams impose their will on NFL offenses. But this Cowboys/Seahawks game is much more solid defenses containing mediocre offenses. Ugly to watch. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/30 "2019-01-06T03:59:05Z")
Anyone have any paint they need watched until its dry? ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/31 "2019-01-06T04:16:56Z")
I sort of figured the Seahawks couldn’t finish when they lost their only kicker. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/32 "2019-01-06T06:41:23Z")
Just got back from the Cowboys game. Yes it was mostly a dreary slog. And the noise was ear-rattling. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/33 "2019-01-06T16:50:15Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > I sort of figured the Seahawks couldn’t finish when they lost their only kicker. They really lost their “only” kicker? What happened? What did they do? Is this a common way to organize your roster, to have no backup at the kicking position? My knowledge of football isn’t especially strong… ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/34 "2019-01-06T17:04:50Z")
> [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](#): > > They really lost their “only” kicker? What happened? What did they do? > Is this a common way to organize your roster, to have no backup at the kicking position? > > My knowledge of football isn’t especially strong… Yes, it’s rare to have more than 1 kicker, because roster size is limited and kickers are very rarely injured. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/35 "2019-01-06T17:25:00Z")
A team normally has 1 placekicker and 1 punter, in addition to a long snapper. The punter and placekicker are normally each other’s backups, and do practice each other’s trades during practice, but just aren’t as good at it. The Seahawks punter, Chris Dickson, is an Australian-rules veteran who turned out hadn’t practiced placekicking at all adequately, so the loss of Sebastian Janikowski to a hamstring pull substantially limited Seattle’s strategy for the rest of the game. They had to go for it on every fourth down instead of trying the field goal, go for two on every conversion, and accept Dickson’s inability to kick onside at the end. The guy did the best he could, of course, he just hadn’t grown up kicking an American football like most players at his position. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/36 "2019-01-06T17:48:15Z")
I didn’t watch the entire second half, but I think that Seattle really didn’t miss not having a kicker until the onside kick. They converted a couple of fourth down attempts, and also converted both their two-point conversion attempts. But the onside kick after their last touchdown was quite possibly the weakest effort I’ve ever seen. As **Elvis** noted, it’s not something that their punter has practiced very much, if at all. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/37 "2019-01-06T18:21:11Z")
I’m excited to watch the games today. The Ravens defense is playing great, and watching to see if they can contain Rivers, Gordon, and Allen should be interesting. But Lamar Jackson makes that Raven’s offense pretty one dimensional (0 games with more than 210 yards passing), and the Chargers defense has some playmakers. Should be fun. The Eagles/Bears game should be a ton less interesting. Unless Trubisky sucks horribly or Foles has another magic trick up his sleeve, it should be a boring win for the Bears. Their defense is pretty special. ETA: Jackson has put the ball on the ground twice already, but got lucky bounces. ETAA: Edward’s is not as lucky. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/38 "2019-01-06T18:39:07Z")
Chargers have 2 FGs based solely on defense and special teams. Offense isn’t doing anything, but Baltimore keeps giving it to them in range. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/39 "2019-01-06T19:07:34Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Chargers have 2 FGs based solely on defense and special teams. Offense isn’t doing anything, but Baltimore keeps giving it to them in range. Kind of like last week. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2019, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008/40 "2019-01-06T19:30:07Z")
I was away from the TV and missed the Hurns injury yesterday. I just caught it now on a web replay :eek: I much preferred the state of having missed it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-playoffs-2018-edition/827008.md?page=3)