Super Wild Card Weekend
It’s the NFL playoffs, baby, and we at Fangirl Sports Network are VERY excited about it. Who’s playing, you ask? What time, you ask? Where can I watch them, you ask? Fangirl Nation, I got you. And don’t forget, we get a Monday Night Football playoff game.
Saturday
Las Vegas Raiders at Cincinnati Bengals, 4:30 pm ET/1:30 pm PT, NBC
New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills, 8:15 pm ET/5:15 pm PT, CBS
Sunday
Philadelphia Eagles at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1:00 pm ET/10:00 am PT, FOX
San Francisco 49ers at Dallas Cowboys, 4:30 pm ET/1:30 pm PT, CBS
Pittsburgh Steelers at Kansas City Chiefs, 8:15 pm ET/5:15 pm PT, NBC
Monday
Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams, 8:15 pm ET/5:15 pm PT, ABC/ESPN/ESPN+
Who’s In and Who’s Out for the Wild Card Games
- New England Patriots LT Isaiah Wynn (ankle/hip) is OUT for Saturday’s game against the Buffalo Bills.
- Tampa Bay will be without WR Cyril Grayson and RB Ronald Jones for Sunday’s match-up with the Philadelphia Eagles. RB Leonard Fournette and linebackers Shaq Barrett, Jason Pierre-Paul and Lavonte David will all be game-time decisions.
- Eagles’ RB Miles Sanders, who had hand surgery about three weeks ago, will play against the Bucs.
- Kansas City Chiefs’ RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire (shoulder) is OUT for Sunday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
- The Arizona Cardinals got DL J.J. Watt back at practice this week, but it is TBD as to if he’ll be available Monday night against the Los Angeles Rams.
NFL Head Coaching Vacancies
The Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins and Houston Texans all fired their head coaches this week.
Brian Flores and the Dolphins started the season 1-7 and then proceeded to win eight of their last nine games, but a deteriorating relationship with QB Tua Tagovailoa and others in the organization reportedly led to him being let go.
The Texans fired David Culley after one season, after essentially setting him up to fail. Houston finished the season 4-13 but started to play decent football late in the season with a roster that was less than stellar.
With Flores and Culley out of jobs, the NFL has one Black head coach (Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers). That is one out of 32. That, my friends, is unacceptable.
AP NFL 2021 All-Pro Team
The picks are in for the Associated Press 2021 NFL All-Pro Team and they are as follows:
OFFENSE: QB — Aaron Rodgers, Packers; Running Back — Jonathan Taylor, Colts; Tight End — Mark Andrews, Ravens; Wide Receivers — Davante Adams, Packers; Cooper Kupp, Rams; Deebo Samuel, 49ers; Left Tackle — Trent Williams, 49ers; Right Tackle — Tristan Wirfs, Buccaneers; Left Guard — Joel Bitonio, Browns; Right Guard — Zack Martin, Cowboys; Center — Jason Kelce, Eagles
DEFENSE: Edge Rushers — T.J. Watt, Steelers; Myles Garrett, Browns; Interior Linemen — Aaron Donald, Rams; Cam Heyward, Steelers; Linebackers — Darius Leonard, Colts; Micah Parsons, Cowboys; De’Vondre Campbell, Packers; Cornerbacks — Trevon Diggs, Cowboys; Jalen Ramsey, Rams; Safeties — Kevin Byard, Titans; Jordan Poyer, Bills
SPECIAL TEAMS: Placekicker — Justin Tucker, Ravens; Punter — A.J. Cole, Raiders; Kick Returner — Braxton Berrios, Jets; Punt Returner — Devin Duvernay, Ravens
Getting Drafty
The National Champion Georgia Bulldogs are losing two of their running backs to the 2022 NFL Draft.
Junior Zamir White, who was the Bulldogs’ leading rusher with 856 yards and 11 touchdowns this season, announced the news on Friday, while senior James Cook, who has one season of eligibility remaining, announced earlier this week.
Georgia defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide, 33-18, Monday night to become national champions for the first time since 1980.