Yesterday, the NFL playoffs kicked off, and boy, did they kick off with a bang!!

In the first Matchup, division rivals Seattle Seahawks, and San Francisco 49ers faced off for the third time this season. And while the game was very competitive in the first half, with Seattle leading 17-16 at halftime, the 49ers came out in the 2nd half and scored 25 unanswered points to put the game away. Rookie QB Brock Purdy was 18-30 for 332 yards, 3 TDs, and 1 rushing TD! He is the first rookie QB to win a playoff game since Russell Wilson did it with the Seahawks in 2012. The 49ers won 41-23.

In the night game, history was all over the place. Asante Samuels Jr. Set a playoff record for interceptions in your playoff debut with 3, all in the first half. Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence had a wild tale of 2 halves. Lawrence threw four first-half Interceptions leading to his team being down 27-0 in the first half. When Lawrence threw a short touchdown to Evan Engram with 24 seconds left in the first half, It was a sign of things to come! 

The Jaguars set out on their historic comeback in the second half and began to make the game interesting.  Lawrence flipped a switch unlike many that have been flipped in history!! After scoring a TD in the 4th quarter late, the Jaguars went for a crucial 2-point conversion. This opportunity came when Joey Bosa was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that basically allowed Lawrence to stretch his arm out to convert the 2. This made the score 30-28. A punt by San Diego with under 4 minutes left the door open for the Jaguars. 

After making some amazing plays, the Jaguars left it up to their kicker with 2 seconds left on the clock. After a timeout by the Chargers to prevent the inevitable, the kick went up and through, and the Jaguars had completed the 3rd largest comeback in NFL Playoff history! 31-30. Jaguar QB Justin Lawrence became the first QB in over 40 years to throw 4 Interceptions and 4 TD in a playoff game. 

The loss by the Chargers has many pundits believing that was Brandon Staley’s last screwup as their coach. And since Sean Payton gets first dibs on any job that opens, Most believe the Chargers job has the best roster of all the teams expected to have an opening. And with a superstar QB in the making like Justin Herbert, it’s going to be hard for Payton to turn that job down. It’s going to be an interesting off-season for the Chargers.

The Jaguars most likely advance to face the potent offense of Patrick Mahomes and the KC Chiefs. It will be the up-and-comer vs. the juggernaut. The NFL and our fans can’t ask for much more than that.