Ranking the best Wild Card Weekend matchups

Get your popcorn ready.

Wild Card Weekend is upon us, and this year, it'll feature several must-watch matchups that include highly anticipated revenge games, two of the league's most popular teams squaring off, great comeback stories, and much more.

Here's how each wild-card bout stacks up this season:

6. Bills vs. Steelers

On paper, this is far from the most exciting playoff matchup, which is why it gets the last spot on our rankings. But that doesn't mean this game doesn't have the potential to be fun and worthwhile.

In reality, the meeting between the Bills and Steelers represents the AFC's two hottest teams coming to blows. Buffalo has won five in a row to reach the No. 2 seed, while Pittsburgh has somehow ripped off three straight wins with Mason Rudolph under center to improbably take the final wild-card spot.

Yes, Rudolph versus Josh Allen is as lopsided of a quarterback battle as you can get, but the former has a passer rating above 112 in all three of his starts. It should also be entertaining to see Allen - one of the NFL's best dual-threat passers - take on a Steelers defense that'll be missing T.J. Watt but should have Minkah Fitzpatrick back.

Oh, and don't forget there's a possibility of windy weather and perhaps even snow, which is always a welcome addition to any playoff game.

5. Buccaneers vs. Eagles

Tampa Bay and Philadelphia meet again in a wild-card clash after the Bucs eliminated the Eagles 31-15 in the same round back in January 2022. A lot has changed for both teams, though, as Tom Brady was still under center for the NFC South club, and Jalen Hurts was in his first season as Philly's starter. Now an established NFL signal-caller, Hurts will face former No. 1 pick Baker Mayfield on the other side.

Both the Buccaneers and Eagles should feel good about the wild-card bout; these are arguably the most vulnerable playoff teams at the moment. Tampa Bay enters this postseason as the only division champion without double-digit wins and the only NFC team with a below-average scoring offense. To make matters worse, Mayfield - who revived his career in his first year with the Bucs - is dealing with ankle and rib injuries.

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The Eagles have been dealing with their own injury issues, as Hurts and star receiver A.J. Brown are banged up following Week 18. Philadelphia currently doesn't look anything like the team that started the season 10-1. Nick Sirianni's outfit has since lost five of its last six games, showing no answers to its problems on both sides of the ball. In Week 3, Philly amassed 472 total yards - a team high this season - and defeated the Buccaneers 25-11.

4. Texans vs. Browns

This bout would feature Deshaun Watson facing his former team, but the Browns quarterback is sidelined with a shoulder injury. In at quarterback for Cleveland is Joe Flacco, one of this season's best storylines. The former Super Bowl MVP has had turnover issues, with eight interceptions in five starts, but has also provided the Browns with the offensive spark this team and its premier defense needed to become a real threat in the AFC. The 38-year-old - whose last playoff start dates back to 2015 - has averaged 323 yards per game with Cleveland.

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Awaiting Cleveland's top-ranked pass defense is C.J. Stroud, the No. 2 overall pick who's expected to be named Offensive Rookie of the Year after leading the NFL in passing yards per game. By also topping the league in TD-INT ratio, the Ohio State product joined Joe Montana and Tom Brady as the only QBs ever to top the sport in both categories in the same campaign. The 2023 Browns haven't faced a quarterback like Stroud, so it'll be fascinating to watch how the all-time great rookie matches up with the league's No. 1 defense. Cleveland defeated Houston 36-22 three weeks ago, but that was one of two games Stroud missed due to a concussion.

The age difference between Flacco and the 22-year-old Stroud will be the biggest between two starting QBs in a postseason game that doesn't feature Brady.

It'll also be interesting to see the battle between arguably this season's two most impressive coaching staffs. Injuries have sidelined Nick Chubb since Week 2 and forced Kevin Stefanski and Co. to start four different quarterbacks. Meanwhile, rookie coach DeMeco Ryans and his staff led the Texans to the playoffs after the team won only three games in 2022.

3. Chiefs vs. Dolphins

It's going to be a cold night in Kansas City.

Saturday night's prime-time game between the Chiefs and Dolphins is forecasted to feature frigid temperatures, with the possibility of it being the coldest game either franchise has ever participated in, according to CBS' John Breech.

But that's not even close to the biggest reason to glue your eyes to this game. Because for the first time since the Chiefs traded him to the Dolphins, Tyreek Hill will return to Arrowhead Stadium on Saturday night.

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Hill has put up back-to-back 1,700-plus-yard campaigns since leaving the Chiefs, proving that he wasn't just a product of Patrick Mahomes' greatness. It's actually Kansas City who misses him, as the team's wide receivers have struggled to establish themselves outside of Rashee Rice. Hill will have a grand opportunity to remind the Chiefs what they're missing.

Even though a matchup featuring the likes of Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Andy Reid going up against Tua Tagovailoa, Hill, and Mike McDaniel should be full of fireworks, that might not be the case. The Chiefs have struggled scoring all year, while the Dolphins haven't exceeded 22 points in three straight games. Still, it wouldn't shock anyone if both offenses flipped a switch under the bright lights.

2. Cowboys vs. Packers

One of the weekend's most interesting games will take place at AT&T Stadium between Dallas and Green Bay, teams that have faced each other in the playoffs eight times, including some remarkable matchups. Between the Ice Bowl in 1967, Dez Bryant's non-catch in 2014, and Aaron Rodgers' sideline dagger to Jared Cook in 2016, there's a lot of history behind this matchup.

The 2023 versions of the Cowboys and Packers have a lot to offer, too. Dallas is led by Mike McCarthy, who coached the Packers for 13 years and won a Super Bowl with the team. The Cowboys will be under a lot of pressure, as they have won just one playoff game since 2019. It feels like this could be the year for McCarthy's outfit after it ranked first in points scored and fifth in points allowed during the regular season. The club's offense is led by Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb, football's hottest duo at the moment. Defensively, Micah Parsons is a DPOY contender again, and DaRon Bland led the NFL in interceptions and set the single-season record with five pick-6s.

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On the other side is a promising Packers squad that's shown a lot of flashes this season, especially in the second half of the campaign. It's been an encouraging year for the NFC North club as it transitions to the post-Rodgers era. Granted, Green Bay may lack consistency, but the offense has been sharp lately, largely thanks to Jordan Love, who's thrown for 18 touchdowns against just one interception in his last eight games.

How will Love fare in his playoff debut? Can the Cowboys finally meet expectations early in the playoffs? Is Matt LaFleur ready to win in the playoffs without Rodgers? There'll be a lot at stake on Sunday.

1. Lions vs. Rams

It doesn't get any better than this.

Matthew Stafford returning to Detroit to take on his former team in its first home playoff game in 30 years. For the Rams quarterback and Lions fans, the storyline writes itself. Franchise legend leaves, wins the Super Bowl, and now comes back to the city where he built his craft and stands between them and a long-awaited playoff run.

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But as much as Stafford's return will pull on heartstrings, it's a different story on the other side. Lions quarterback Jared Goff, who was traded away by the Rams for Stafford, has a chance to serve a cold dish of revenge to his former franchise.

There's a lot at stake here for everyone involved. Even if you're not a fan of the dramatics, this should be a must-watch game on the field. Both teams own top-10 scoring offenses and defenses that are in the bottom half of the league in points allowed, meaning this marquee matchup should live up to its five-star billing.

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