There will be a familiar feel to the NFL playoffs next weekend: Every divisional-round game will be a rematch from the regular season, the first time that’s happened in six years.
In the NFC, it’s the Green Bay Packers at the Dallas Cowboys, and the Seattle Seahawks at Atlanta. In the AFC, it’s the Houston Texans playing as huge underdogs at New England, and the Pittsburgh Steelers at Kansas City.
The first times around, Dallas beat Green Bay 30-16 in Week 6 , Seattle beat Atlanta 26-24 in Week 6 , New England beat Houston 27-0 in Week 3 with Jacoby Brissett at quarterback, and Pittsburgh beat Kansas City 43-14 in Week 4 .
Not that those results necessarily mean much now, especially because none was more recent than October.
The Steelers know how much things can change.
After all, they lost to the Dolphins by 15 points during the regular season, then advanced Sunday with a 30-12 victory over Miami in the wild-card round, their eighth victory in a row.
“We’re not trying to settle vendettas and things of that nature. They beat us fair and square in Week 6. You tip your cap to them for that performance,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said. “Today was today. And it’s going to be the same going forward. What happened during the regular season is of little importance.”
Here’s a closer look at next weekend, when each game features one starting QB who has won the Super Bowl (Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers, Seattle’s Russell Wilson, New England’s Tom Brady, Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger):
TEXANS at PATRIOTS, Saturday, 8:15 p.m., CBS (opening line: Patriots, -16)
New England is one of the biggest betting favorites in a playoff game, and here’s why: Bill Belichick’s Patriots have outscored protege Bill O’Brien’s Texans by a combined 54-6 in their past two head-to-head games.
As good as Houston’s top-ranked defense has been — Jadeveon Clowney’s interception set the tone for a 27-14 win over Oakland in the wild-card round — there is a world of difference between facing a rookie QB making his first NFL start (Oakland’s Connor Cook) and a three-time Super Bowl MVP (Brady). And Belichick will surely dream up some schemes to bedevil Texans QB Brock Osweiler.