This is in 2 threads. The full version covers all 14 teams (here: https://theramshuddle.com/topic/playoffs-week-1-wild-card-round/ )

from Albert Breer’s 2025 NFL Playoffs Preview, and Why Each Team Can Win the Super Bowl…Executives and coaches weigh in on the 14-team field, including input on X-factors, fatal flaws, under-the-radar players and big unknowns for every team: https://www.si.com/nfl/albert-breer-2025-nfl-playoffs-preview-why-each-team-can-win-super-bowl

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Los Angeles Rams (12–5)
Division finish: Second, NFC West

Why they’ll win it all: Because they might be the best team, and Sean McVay, Matthew Stafford and Chris Shula were there when the Rams last won a Super Bowl four years ago. L.A. can beat teams through the air, on the ground and with a ferocious defensive front that might be the NFL’s most complete.

X-factor: The team’s tight end room. Colby Parkinson, Davis Allen and rookie Terrance Ferguson have all been factors, and grizzled veteran Tyler Higbee is back after an ankle injury sidelined him since November. McVay has played chessmaster with that crew, and having that sort of depth and versatility has allowed him to dictate the rules of engagement to defenses, forcing certain opposing personnel onto the field and then making them cover. It’s a nightmare for other teams to deal with, and it helps to take pressure off and coverage away from Puka Nacua.

Fatal flaw: The talent level at corner. The Rams telegraphed their concern at the position with the midseason trade for Roger McCreary. He has worked with the team’s long-term reclamation projects, Emmanuel Forbes Jr. and Ahkello Witherspoon, and homegrown Cobie Durant. Jared Verse, Kobie Turner and the team’s pass rush have helped cover up bad matchups, but that doesn’t mean there’s no anxiety there. “They do a great job hiding it with the pass rush,” said a rival exec. “They just have a very sound team coverage in the secondary. You can see Shula’s really good, because they rarely bust.”

Under-the-radar player: Tutu Atwell. I understand where people might think this is a weird choice, given that Atwell came into Week 18 with only five catches on the season. But when he’s out there with all of those tight ends, and a dominant possession receiver in Nacua, his big-play potential does a lot to keep defenses honest.

Big unknown: How the team’s pass protection will hold up week to week. The Rams’ loss on Monday night exposed some cracks. When L.A. is running it, the scheme is so good that Stafford usually gets rid of the ball fast enough for any of those cracks to show. But if you can get the Rams into long yardage and force the veteran quarterback to hold it longer than he wants to, you give yourself a chance.

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Carolina Panthers(8–9)
Division finish: First, NFC South

Why they’ll win it all: Because there’s some magic to what Dave Canales has pulled off in Charlotte, I suppose. The reality is that it’s hard to envision a team that would’ve told you in September that they were a year away from making a real run at the whole thing. But if Bryce Young gets hot, Rico Dowdle and the run game show their teeth, a young defense comes together, then I guess anything is possible.

X-factor: Tetairoa McMillan was a polarizing figure in the weeks leading up to the draft. Some coaches and scouts thought that he was a top-10 prospect, and some believed he wasn’t a first-rounder. Seventy catches, 1,014 yards and seven touchdowns later, any doubt has evaporated. “I didn’t like him coming out,” said one prominent AFC offensive assistant, “and he’s proved me wrong.” McMillan has given Young a big target to throw to, and one that he’s become increasingly reliant on, and rightfully so. McMillan basically kept Carolina in the game against the Buccaneers on Saturday.

Fatal flaw: Consistency in the passing game. McMillan has given the Panthers a true No. 1 to rely on, but Carolina doesn’t have another receiver with over 400 yards, or a tight end that’s consistently been a threat. The backs, Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard, may be the most significant problems for defenses in the passing game aside from McMillan. And Young, again, has had a very up-and-down 2025.

Under-the-radar player: Dowdle. Tough as nails and now with over 1,000 yards, the former Cowboy went from Hubbard’s backup to the bona fide heart and soul of the Carolina offense. “When he’s fresh,” said one veteran NFC coach, “he runs so hard, he’s like [Chiefs RB Isiah] Pacheco, he’s trying to kill people.” And that bruising style has become part of what this Panthers team has become.

Big unknown: Which version of Young shows up? The third-year man had five games with passer ratings under 65, which is absolutely atrocious. He also had four with 100 passer ratings, three of which came over the season’s final seven weeks. And there are no patterns there, either. The past few of those big games were against the Bucs and Rams. One of the eggs laid was against the Saints. So it’s tough to say what version of Young will surface in the playoffs.

Zooey wrote:

Any day but Monday, please

Sarah Barshop@sarahbarshop
The Rams will play at the Carolina Panthers on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. PT.

Seattle Seahawks vs San Francisco 49ers Game Highlights | 2025 NFL Season Week 18

Dan Orlovsky@danorlovsky7
What offense/QB has played well against this elite Seattle defense?

Rams
Baker and TB early in season.

J.B. Long@JB_Long
Gentle nudge for MVP voters weighing a tough decision: Two weeks ago, Matthew Stafford put 457 & 3 TD on this elite Seahawks defense, without Davante Adams, in Seattle.

Mina Kimes@minakimes
Trent Williams is out-—talked a bit on Friday about how his absence affects SF vs Seattle’s excellent, deep DL.

Field Yates@FieldYates
The 3 points is the fewest points the 49ers have scored in any game coached by Kyle Shanahan.

Just an unbelievably dominant performance by the Seahawks defense.

Colin Cowherd@colincowherd
There is nothing Brock Purdy could have done tonight. Seattle is too deep and athletic to beat when your roster is short handed. A Seahawk 3.5 hour flex.

Mina Kimes@minakimes
Circling back here—Seattle didn’t play a single snap in base. All nickel/dime vs SF’s 21 personnel, and they held CMC to under 3 yds a pop.

Just a perfectly built defense for modern football.

zn wrote:

8:50 pm

Tampa wins.

Albert Breer@AlbertBreer
Panthers and Buccaneers finish the regular season at 8-9. That means …

• If the Falcons beat the Saints, the Panthers win the South.

• If the Saints beat the Falcons, the Bucs win the South.

Show. Your. Work.@ChadMPKirvan
As a Saints fan, I have to ask: is there any way we can make nobody win the division?

8:50 pm

Tampa wins.

Seattle scores first.