Wild Card Weekend is in the books, with six NFL teams advancing to the divisional round of the playoffs and another six heading home for an early start to the 2025 offseason. Plenty of the remaining clubs register as Super Bowl-worthy, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have questions still to answer.
Here are the most pressing queries we have for the teams still alive in the hunt for NFL glory:
Lamar Jackson exorcised an AFC North demon this season by beating the rival Pittsburgh Steelers, an occasional Kryptonite for his superstar ability, not once but twice, including in the wild-card round. He’s MVP material. The next hurdle is bigger: outdueling Josh Allen (again) to reach the AFC title game.
Routing the Denver Broncos and their rookie quarterback at home was one thing. Beating Lamar Jackson and, potentially, Patrick Mahomes in back-to-back matchups will be a much taller task for Josh Allen, even though he’s as capable as anyone of playing Superman. Leaning on James Cook is an underrated key.
The Lions are an all-star powerhouse on offense, and an overachieving group on defense. An NFC title-game loss in 2023 didn’t break them; it made them stronger. Which begs the question: Is any conference foe capable of seizing Ford Field for itself? Jayden Daniels will be the next dynamic playmaker to try.
C.J. Stroud was the magic centerpiece of their surprise run to the playoffs a year ago. This time around, DeMeco Ryans’ tenacious defense is the reason they’re still hanging around. Unless Stroud comes to life amid a battle-weary supporting cast, they could be hard-pressed to outlast the rest of the field.
The Chiefs have mostly won on the margins the last few seasons, relying heavily on crunch-time theatrics from Patrick Mahomes, plus timely suffocation from Steve Spagnuolo’s defense, to claim trophies. Andy Reid’s attack finally showed juice late in 2024, though, with Marquise Brown integrated out wide.
Believe it or not, this Rams team started 1-4. But that was in part because Matthew Stafford barely had a healthy receiving corps at his disposal, and somewhat miraculously avoided an injury of his own. When they’re on, they’re on. But streakiness has been an issue. Will the firepower meet renewed expectations?
The Eagles responded to outside noise about a sluggish stretch of aerial action earlier this season by airing it out on the Steelers. They haven’t really torched a team as a passing offense since then, with Jalen Hurts just returning from injury in the wild-card round. Their run game and defense are legit, but to go the distance, they may well need to utilize their elite perimeter targets more.
Jayden Daniels is a one-man band for Kliff Kingsbury, carrying a lackluster backfield with his smooth mobility and carving up opposing defenses with his snappy arm. Getting some more help from Kingsbury’s ball carriers or red-zone play sheet might enable the Commanders to extend their surprisingly hot run.
