2024 Wildcard Weekend picks

Check out our picks and predictions for this week’s playoff games

This is it, kids. The NFL season is officially continuing today without the Carolina Panthers. After a season of downs, up, downs, up, and downs and much intrigue besides, Charlotte’s scrappy professional football team is not participating in the playoffs. I’ll allow you all a moment to grieve before we carry on with the somber task of watching football games contested between actually talented, well coached, and well managed teams and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

These games were hard to pick this week as much because the teams are good as because the weather is going to be a huge factor. Winter is hitting the country hard, with snow predicted in Buffalo and near-record low temperatures possible in Kansas City.

Even accounting for that, the majority of CSR staff have predicted the visiting Miami Dolphins to upset the Kansas City Chiefs. I’d have joined my staff in that prediction to make it unanimous without the weather factor. Kansas City might be the higher seed with the more playoff experience, but the Dolphins are a better team this season on a neutral field. I just couldn’t take them over the Chiefs when they are walking into a game that is expected to be played on a windy day with temps below zero. Not when they are coming from sunny Miami where recent highs have peaked into the upper 70s.

Thanks to a partnership between our friends over at Tallysight and the folks at DraftKings Sportsbook we can bring you a helpful widget* to keep track of the staff picks here at CSR for each game this season. Below are all of our staff picks for Sunday’s games.

*It’s just a table, but it’s a pretty table.