Eagles Stop Falcons at Home
The Philadelphia Eagles made history as the first top seed in NFL Playoff history to be the underdogs heading into the game, but that only fueled them against the Atlanta Falcons. Behind backup quarterback Nick Foles, the Eagles turned to their defense and stopped the Falcons on fourth-and-goal late in the fourth to seal a 15-10 win in the Divisional Round. Matt Ryan's throw went through the hands of Julio Jones in the corner of the end zone, which ended the Falcons' season. Jake Elliott overcame missing an extra point on a LaGarrette Blount touchdown by making three field goals, helping his team to a home NFC Championship Game next week. It was the first playoff victory for Philadelphia since 2008, as they held Matt Ryan to 210 yards passing and a touchdown. The Falcons as a team finished with just 281 total yards, which lead to them being unable to capitalize on two Eagles turnovers. After beating the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card Round last week, Atlanta will not get the chance to avenge blowing a 28-3 lead in last year's Super Bowl loss to New England. In his first playoff start, Foles finished 23-of-30 passing for 246 yards and no turnovers. Philadelphia will play host to either the New Orleans Saints or Minnesota Vikings, who will battle in Minneapolis on Sunday afternoon.
Patriots Roll Past Titans at Home
The recent rumors regarding controversy surrounding the relationship of Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and Robert Kraft seems to not be distracting the team on the field. The New England Patriots returned after a bye week and cruised past the Tennessee Titans, 35-14, in the Divisional Round on Saturday night. Tom Brady threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Patriots to their seventh consecutive AFC Championship Game. They will play host to either the Pittsburgh Steelers or Jacksonville Jaguars next week. Brady found James White, Chris Hogan, and Rob Gronkowski in the end zone in what was his 10th career postseason game with at least three scoring passes. That number moves him past Joe Montana for most in NFL history. James White also ran in for a score and Danny Amendola caught 11 passes for 112 yards in the win. The Titans did take an early 7-0 lead in the first quarter, but New England scored 35 unanswered points to end Tennessee's season. Marcus Mariota finished 22-of-37 for 254 yards and two touchdowns just one week after leading his team to a big Wild Card win in Kansas City against the Chiefs. The Jaguars and Steelers will go at it in Pittsburgh in their Divisional Round matchup on Sunday afternoon.
Warriors Edge DeRozan, Raptors North of the Border
The Golden State Warriors' Eastern Conference road trip has not been the easiest of schedules, but they are proving why they are once again favorites to win it all this summer. After taking care of the Greek Freak on Friday night, the Warriors overcame DeMar DeRozan's 42-point effort in a 127-125 win over the Toronto Raptors on Saturday. Steph Curry returned from a two-game absence due to an ankle injury and scored 24 points, while Klay Thompson led the way with 26 for the Warriors, who shot 58 percent from the floor. That included Golden State putting up 81 points on 71.1 percent shooting in the first half alone. Kevin Durant had 25 points, while Draymond Green had 14 to help lead their team to their 12th straight road victory. Their 19 road wins on the season is the most in the NBA. Toronto rallied from a 19-point deficit to make things close late, but fell for just the third time in the past 18 home games. OG Annunoby scored 19 points and Serge Ibaka added 14 to help support DeRozan's big night. Although, a 16-2 run late in the fourth helped keep the Warriors ahead, as a Durant jumper with 22.2 seconds left put them up three, and they would never look back. After falling to the Los Angeles Clippers at home earlier this week, the Warriors have won two in a row and will visit LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in another chapter for that rivalry on MLK Day. The Raptors will be in Philadelphia to battle the 76ers Monday afternoon.
The Philadelphia Eagles made history as the first top seed in NFL Playoff history to be the underdogs heading into the game, but that only fueled them against the Atlanta Falcons. Behind backup quarterback Nick Foles, the Eagles turned to their defense and stopped the Falcons on fourth-and-goal late in the fourth to seal a 15-10 win in the Divisional Round. Matt Ryan's throw went through the hands of Julio Jones in the corner of the end zone, which ended the Falcons' season. Jake Elliott overcame missing an extra point on a LaGarrette Blount touchdown by making three field goals, helping his team to a home NFC Championship Game next week. It was the first playoff victory for Philadelphia since 2008, as they held Matt Ryan to 210 yards passing and a touchdown. The Falcons as a team finished with just 281 total yards, which lead to them being unable to capitalize on two Eagles turnovers. After beating the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card Round last week, Atlanta will not get the chance to avenge blowing a 28-3 lead in last year's Super Bowl loss to New England. In his first playoff start, Foles finished 23-of-30 passing for 246 yards and no turnovers. Philadelphia will play host to either the New Orleans Saints or Minnesota Vikings, who will battle in Minneapolis on Sunday afternoon.
Patriots Roll Past Titans at Home
The recent rumors regarding controversy surrounding the relationship of Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and Robert Kraft seems to not be distracting the team on the field. The New England Patriots returned after a bye week and cruised past the Tennessee Titans, 35-14, in the Divisional Round on Saturday night. Tom Brady threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Patriots to their seventh consecutive AFC Championship Game. They will play host to either the Pittsburgh Steelers or Jacksonville Jaguars next week. Brady found James White, Chris Hogan, and Rob Gronkowski in the end zone in what was his 10th career postseason game with at least three scoring passes. That number moves him past Joe Montana for most in NFL history. James White also ran in for a score and Danny Amendola caught 11 passes for 112 yards in the win. The Titans did take an early 7-0 lead in the first quarter, but New England scored 35 unanswered points to end Tennessee's season. Marcus Mariota finished 22-of-37 for 254 yards and two touchdowns just one week after leading his team to a big Wild Card win in Kansas City against the Chiefs. The Jaguars and Steelers will go at it in Pittsburgh in their Divisional Round matchup on Sunday afternoon.
Warriors Edge DeRozan, Raptors North of the Border
The Golden State Warriors' Eastern Conference road trip has not been the easiest of schedules, but they are proving why they are once again favorites to win it all this summer. After taking care of the Greek Freak on Friday night, the Warriors overcame DeMar DeRozan's 42-point effort in a 127-125 win over the Toronto Raptors on Saturday. Steph Curry returned from a two-game absence due to an ankle injury and scored 24 points, while Klay Thompson led the way with 26 for the Warriors, who shot 58 percent from the floor. That included Golden State putting up 81 points on 71.1 percent shooting in the first half alone. Kevin Durant had 25 points, while Draymond Green had 14 to help lead their team to their 12th straight road victory. Their 19 road wins on the season is the most in the NBA. Toronto rallied from a 19-point deficit to make things close late, but fell for just the third time in the past 18 home games. OG Annunoby scored 19 points and Serge Ibaka added 14 to help support DeRozan's big night. Although, a 16-2 run late in the fourth helped keep the Warriors ahead, as a Durant jumper with 22.2 seconds left put them up three, and they would never look back. After falling to the Los Angeles Clippers at home earlier this week, the Warriors have won two in a row and will visit LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in another chapter for that rivalry on MLK Day. The Raptors will be in Philadelphia to battle the 76ers Monday afternoon.
