Outside the Bubble: NFL Playoffs
National Football League (NFL) fans everywhere tuned in this past weekend to watch the eight remaining teams in the playoffs become four as they vied yet again for the coveted Lombardi Trophy.
The night ended in celebration for some and heartbreak for others. Per the results, the New Orleans Saints will host the Los Angeles Rams at the Superdome in the NFC Championship while the Kansas City Chiefs will host the New England Patriots at Arrowhead Stadium for the AFC Championship Jan. 20.
The Chiefs yielded a victory over the Indianapolis Colts in a 31-13 win—a sweet reward for fans who anxiously awaited results outside the freezing stadium.
At home in Los Angeles, the Rams most notably conquered the Dallas Cowboys by exploiting their stunt-oriented defense with an ultimate final score of Rams 30 to Cowboys 22.
On the other side of the AFC bracket, the New England Patriots played the Los Angeles Chargers at home, cruising to a 41-28 win over the Chargers. The Patriots will now head onto Kansas City for their eighth consecutive AFC Championship appearance.
In the last game of the weekend, the New Orleans Saints eliminated the defending Super Bowl Champions, the Philadelphia Eagles, in a 20-14 win.
Senior Bella Hillman, an avid football fan, expressed her admiration for the Chiefs and her hope for Kansas City given the defeat of her own team, the Eagles. “I think [Patrick] Mahomes is an absolute beauty, and the Chiefs have had a great season, so I’d love to see if they can get to the Super Bowl,” she said.
On the other hand, Patriots fan and senior Juliana Merullo anticipates less hopeful prospects for the team. “I obviously don’t like the Chiefs, since we will be playing them [...] Patrick Mahomes is kind of nasty,” Merullo said.
Lower Nina Weeldreyer, a Cowboys fan, voiced her disappointment. “It was a shame to see them come as far as they did this season after so many seasons of being one of the worst teams in the league,” she said.
Merullo described her elation at the New England win. “Honestly, as a Patriots fan, you get a lot of hate, and I think that just comes from being the most consistently good team year in and year out,” she said.
Upper Zeb Tilton, who witnessed the Patriot victory in person at Gillette Stadium, described the stadium’s atmosphere as “excited but also anxious.” He expressed high hopes for the team, saying, “I never doubted that the Patriots would be able to pull off the win, especially in a cold January game at Foxboro with Brady.”
While Exonians may root for different teams, they agree that the high intensity games make NFL playoffs a fun and captivating watch. “Playoffs are great because every game could be the last, so the intensity is unmatched,” upper Josh Riddick said.
Tilton agreed, describing the NFL playoffs as “the best part of the year for football.”
Football fans are eagerly anticipating the Conference Championships this Sunday, guaranteed to include all the miracle plays, upsets, victories, losses, joy and heartache that is the NFL playoff season.