Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, Matt Stafford star on wild-card weekend

Josh Allen and the Buffalo Payments pitched a near-perfect recreation of their playoff victory towards the New England Patriots.

The Payments grew to become the primary workforce in NFL historical past to attain touchdowns on their first seven drives of a playoff recreation, earlier than kneeling down on the ultimate possession of a 47-17 win over New England.

Allen, Kansas Metropolis’s Patrick Mahomes and Matthew Stafford of the Rams all supplied large passing days to focus on wild-card weekend.

The Payments grew to become the primary workforce ever to go a complete recreation with out a punt, a discipline purpose, a turnover or getting stopped on fourth down, whereas scoring essentially the most factors ever towards a protection coached or coordinated by Invoice Belichick.

Allen went 21 for 25 for 308 yards, 5 TDs and rushed for 66 yards, becoming a member of Kurt Warner (2009 season towards Inexperienced Bay), Tom Brady (2007 season towards Jacksonville), Peyton Manning (2003 season towards Denver) and Daryle Lamonica (1969 season towards Houston) as the one beginning QBs with extra TD passes than incompletions in a playoff recreation.

Mahomes supplied his personal highlights, throwing 5 TD passes in a 42-21 win over Pittsburgh to affix Lamonica and Kurt Warner as the one QBs ever to throw at the least 5 landing passes in two playoff video games.

Mahomes’ throws got here in a span of simply 11:31 of recreation time, the quickest anybody has thrown that many touchdowns in playoff historical past, based on the Elias Sports activities Bureau. The earlier mark was held by Tom Brady, who did it in 24:56 towards Denver within the 2011 playoffs.

Stafford additionally had a robust playoff debut for the Rams, going 13 for 17 for 202 yards, two TDs and a 154.5 ranking in a 34-11 win over Arizona that delivered Stafford his first playoff victory in 13 NFL seasons.

Stafford joined Allen (157.6 ranking) and Mahomes (138.2 ranking) with large performances. The one different postseason when three beginning QBs posted a ranking of 135 or higher in a recreation was in 1982 when Joe Theismann (towards Detroit), David Woodley (towards New England) and Lynn Dickey (towards St. Louis) all did it.

LOPSIDED WEEKEND

Wild-card weekend didn’t present a number of drama, with three of the six video games determined by greater than 20 factors and one other one by 16.

The typical margin of victory within the six video games was 17.2 factors per recreation, making this the fourth-most lopsided wild-card weekend because the playoffs expanded to 12 groups in 1990. Solely 2016 (19 ppg), 1996 (17.5 ppg) and 2005 (17.3 ppg) had bigger common scoring margins.

The wins by at the least 20 factors for Buffalo, Kansas Metropolis and the Rams depart this season two shy of the 2002 season for essentially the most playoff video games determined by at the least 20 factors.

DUAL THREATS

Travis Kelce and Odell Beckham Jr. confirmed off their arms in addition to their catching abilities.

Sooner or later after Kelce grew to become the primary participant in NFL historical past to throw a landing go, catch a TD go and have at the least 100 yards receiving in a playoff recreation in Kansas Metropolis’s win over Pittsburgh, Beckham confirmed off his dual-threat abilities.

Beckham threw a 40-yard go to Cam Akers within the Rams’ win over Arizona on Monday night time, turning into the primary participant in NFL historical past to have a catch and a go for at the least 30 yards in the identical playoff recreation.

BYE BYE, BIG BEN

Ben Roethlisberger doubtless made the ultimate look of his NFL profession in Pittsburgh’s playoff loss to Kansas Metropolis.

Roethlisberger joined Dan Marino and Andrew Luck as the one QBs since at the least 1950 to make a playoff begin as a rookie and of their ultimate seasons, based on the Elias Sports activities Bureau.

The 17-year hole between his first and final playoff begin is the second largest to Brady’s 20-year hole.

Roethlisberger will end his profession with 5,972 yards within the playoffs, trailing solely Brady (12,720) and Manning (7,339). His 36 TD passes are seventh most.

BIG MAN TDS

Even the massive guys obtained within the act of scoring touchdowns in wild-card weekend.

Kansas Metropolis offensive lineman Nick Allegretti and Buffalo offensive lineman Tommy Doyle each had TD catches, marking the second time because the merger that two offensive linemen had landing catches in a single postseason. The opposite time it occurred was within the 2014 season when New England’s Nate Solder and Seattle’s Garry Gilliam did it.

The one different offensive lineman with a TD catch within the playoffs since 2000 was Tennessee’s Dennis Kelly within the 2019 season.

PLAYOFF DROUGHTS

The Bengals snapped the longest energetic drought with out a playoff win after they beat Las Vegas 26-19 at residence, however some others are nonetheless ongoing.

The Raiders now have the third-longest drought since their final playoff win on Jan. 19, 2003, with solely the Lions (Jan. 5, 1992) and Dolphins (Dec. 30, 2000) going longer.

The Cowboys have gone 11 straight playoff appearances with out reaching a convention title recreation, the longest streak by any workforce in NFL historical past.

The Bengals stay one in every of two groups by no means to win a highway playoff recreation, together with the Houston Texans. Cincinnati is 0-7 in highway playoff video games heading into Saturday’s recreation at Tennessee.