The greatest time of the year is upon us! After 17 weeks of grueling and intense games during the regular season, we have the final 12 teams who will battle for the Lombardi Trophy. The regular season means nothing as the playoffs are a different atmosphere, and teams must play each game like it’s their last. The arduous journey to Super Bowl L (50) at Levi’s Stadium starts this weekend so sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.

In the AFC (American Football Conference), we have the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots, who have earned a bye this week due to being the top two seeds. Also in the mix, bitter division rivals Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers are back in the playoffs this year and will play to see who the true kings of the AFC North are. The Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs are new faces in the playoffs this season and will try to defy the odds. In the NFC (National Football Conference), the top two seeds with byes this week are the Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals. Also, the Minnesota Vikings and Washington Redskins won their divisions for the first time since 2009 and 2012, respectively, and have returned to the playoffs. To round it out, the Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers are the NFC’s wild card teams. Don’t count them out though, as Seattle is probably the hottest team in football right now and Green Bay is full of experience.

Anything can happen over the course of the next month, and first we need to see what teams will advance past this round and play in the divisional round. Here’s who I and fellow Lion Tales reporters Noel Ramirez and Mahad Hangol think will move one step closer towards the Super Bowl:

Predictions:

Saturday, January 9th (AFC)

Houston Texans (#4 seed, 9-7) vs. Kansas City Chiefs (#5 seed, 11-5)

(1:35 P.M., NRG Stadium, Houston, TX)

• Juan De Anda: This game includes two of the league’s top defenses as of late, but the Chiefs do such a good job of taking care of the ball & forcing the other team to turn it over, and Houston’s quarterback situation worries me. Kansas City’s defense is getting linebacker Justin Houston back this week, so that adds another weapon to the already stacked defense. If the Chiefs can shut down Houston’s only weapon in DeAndre Hopkins, they can win this game. Both teams don’t have electric offenses, so this game will be decided by whose offense will step up to the occasion, and I feel it will be the Chiefs: Chiefs 23 – 10 Texans.
• Mahad Hangol: In this match-up it’s the battle of the defenses, with the powerful duo of JJ Watt and Jadeveon Clowney vs. the Chiefs secondary with rookie cornerback Marcus Peters and safety Eric Berry. Even though the Chiefs lost their MVP Jamaal Charles to an ACL tear mid-season, they still have that deadly passing game with Maclin and Kelce. Texans will come out & win this game with their young elite wide-out DeAndre Hopkins. Hopkins & the Texans are unstoppable as of late and the Chiefs won’t stop them in this match-up. Texans are looking for revenge after the first loss to the Chiefs in the season opener at home: Texans 24 – 18 Chiefs.
• Noel Ramirez: With the league’s top defensive teams going at it, this game will be a very low scoring affair. With J.J. Watt’s dominance for the Texans and Chiefs rookie cornerback Marcus Peters, this game will be determined by whose offense can dominate each other’s defense. Which will come down to the quarterbacks of Brian Hoyer and Alex Smith. With Alex Smith’s mobility and accuracy, he will lead the Chiefs to their 11th straight victory: Chiefs 27 – 17 Texans.

Cincinnati Bengals (#3 seed, 12-4) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (#6 seed, 10-6)

(5:15 P.M., Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, OH)

• JD: I had a tough time picking this one. The Steelers offense can put up big points on any defense, but they just so happen to be playing the defense that gives up the second least amount of points. This had the potential of being a complete shootout, but the fact that Cincinnati isn’t getting Andy Dalton back, I feel AJ McCarron will have trouble in his first career playoff start keeping up with Ben Roethlisberger and company: Steelers 33 – 17 Bengals.
• MH: This game will be the most fun and high scoring game out of all the games being played. With the elite combination of Big Ben and Antonio Brown leading Pittsburgh’s offense, you better believe Big Ben is going to have a great game. With Andy Dalton out with a thumb injury and AJ McCarron replacing him, I don’t think the young QB can handle the pressure, so I have to go with the Steelers. Steelers 35 – 21 Bengals.
• NR: If you love high scoring games, then this is the game for you. No one can stop the tandem of Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown, not even the 11th ranked defense of Cincinnati. And with Andy Dalton being sidelined with a fractured right thumb, it is obvious that Pittsburgh takes this: Steelers 37 – 24 Bengals.

Sunday, January 10th (NFC)

Minnesota Vikings (#3 seed, 11-5) vs. Seattle Seahawks (#6 seed, 10-6)

(10:05 A.M., TCF Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, MN)

• JD: I love the Vikings so of course I’m picking Minnesota! Yes, Seattle destroyed the Vikings 38-7 earlier in the season, but Minnesota was nowhere near being healthy. The top defensive play-makers for Minnesota were out for that game. I feel Seattle will have trouble scoring with the weather predicted to be around 0ºF. The league’s leading rusher in Adrian Peterson will redeem himself & have a big game, leading Minnesota to a victory: Vikings 20 – 17 Seahawks.
• MH: This is going to be a very cold game and a very low scoring game but a very intense and interesting game. With Minnesota having AP back and him doing great this season I expect him to have a great game on the ground. With Seattle being considered the biggest threat in the NFC and having Marshawn Lynch back after missing the last 7 games it’s come down to who can run the ball better at the end of the day and I feel like Minnesota is going to do it better. Vikings 14 – 10 Seahawks.
• NR: This is a no brainer of a decision as the Seahawks are too much of a team for the Minnesota Vikings to handle. With the amount of weapons on offense and defense for the Seahawks and being ranked in the leagues top 5 offense and defense, the Seahawks will pull out the win in a tightly contested match-up: Seahawks 27 – Vikings 21.

Washington Redskins (#4 seed, 9-7) vs. Green Bay Packers (#5 seed, 10-6)

(1:40 P.M., FedExField, Landover, MD)

• JD: I initially had Washington winning this game, but after seeing how they played versus playoff teams, I reconsidered. They lost to the Patriots & Jets, who should be in the playoffs but aren’t because of how silly it’s set up, by at least 14 points. Also, the Panthers smoked them by 28 points. They ended the season really well, but had good match-ups. Concerning the Packers, I have one word for you: R-E-L-A-X. Relax! Yes, the offensive line is horrific, but I have a feeling Head Coach Mike McCarthy will figure out their problems, resulting in the team advancing to the Divisional Round, especially with him taking back the role of play caller on offense: Packers 27 – 17 Redskins.
• MH: This is going to be a very fun and high scoring game. I have to go with the Packers on this one. Aaron Rodgers never disappoints especially when his team needs him the most. The Redskins have a horrible secondary so that means Rodgers is going to have a great game through the air. Packers 35 – 28 Redskins.
• NR: I don’t like Green Bay due to their horrific offensive line causing Aaron Rodgers to go down 13 times for the past 2 weeks and being chased out of the pocket countless times. Meanwhile, Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins has been dominate at home with a 6-2 record with 15 touchdowns and zero picks. After completing a historic comeback overcoming a 24-point deficit against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cousins shouted to reporters, “You like that?! You like that?!” as he headed to the locker room. And after the game on Sunday, Green Bay is not going to like the score as the Redskins will advance to the Divisional Round: Redskins 34 – 20 Packers.