With the NFL’s divisional round set and the Super Bowl fast approaching, here are five things to watch this weekend:
Rushing battle to watch
It truly will be a case of an unstoppable force versus an immovable object Sunday in the matchup of the Panthers’ rushing offense against the Seahawks’ No. 1-ranked run defense.
Including the playoffs, Carolina has rushed for 100 or more yards in an incredible 29 consecutive games. That includes 135 rushing yards in Seattle in Week 6, when the Panthers pulled off a 27-23 upset in the NFL’s most difficult road environment.
Carolina’s rushing attack figures to be even more fearsome this weekend with the expected return of leading rusher Jonathan Stewart (989 yards) from a foot injury that has sidelined him since Week 14.
The Panthers will need every bit of that firepower against a Seattle defense that has relocated its groove when it comes to shutting down the run.
Not only did the Seahawks hold league rushing champ Adrian Peterson to 45 yards on 23 carries in Sunday’s 10-9 NFC wild-card victory, but Seattle has allowed more than 94 yards on the ground just once in its past eight games.
Rematch to watch
Aaron Rodgers and the Packers have a chance at some payback Saturday for the 36-6 beating they took from the Cardinals less than three weeks ago.
But rematches in the playoffs have not been kind to Rodgers, at least when it comes to opponents outside his division.
Rodgers has not won a same-season rematch against a team outside the NFC North since 2010, accomplishing that feat just twice overall in his first six playoff trips as the Packers’ starting quarterback.
Rodgers is just 2-5 as a starter in the postseason in non-division rematches, riding a three-game losing streak into Glendale, Ariz., this weekend after rematch losses to the 49ers in 2012 and 2013 and last year’s rematch defeat at the hands of the Seahawks.
Resiliency to watch
The Giants were unseated as the NFL’s most injury-plagued team by the Patriots, turning New England’s 12-4 finish and No. 2 AFC playoff seed from something expected by the defending Super Bowl champions to something truly remarkable.
The Patriots, who play host to the Chiefs on Saturday in the divisional round, had players miss a combined 245 games this season. That was nine more games than the Giants, who had been the league’s most-injured team each of the previous two seasons.
The quality of those player-games lost was even more severe for Bill Belichick’s crew. According to an analysis by mangameslost.com based on information from Pro Football Reference, key players missed enough games to cost the Patriots the equivalent of 3,914 victories this season.
Of course, there’s only one New England injury situation that matters this week — the intensity of Tom Brady’s high ankle sprain.
Another early exit to watch?
It’s too late in his career for Peyton Manning to put his reputation as a playoff choke artist to rest, but he can at least make it less of a topic with a victory over the Steelers on Sunday.
For now, though, the Broncos’ star will have to listen to the numbers every bit as wince-inducing as many of his interceptions this season.
Not only is Manning just 11-13 in the postseason overall, but he also has an astounding nine “one-and-dones” — the most in league history for a starting quarterback — after adding yet another to his total last January at home against the Colts in the division round.
Sure hands to watch
While the Chiefs certainly aren’t helpless without Jeremy Maclin, his production isn’t the only thing Kansas City will miss if its leading receiver can’t play Saturday due to a high ankle sprain.
Maclin’s big-play skills and ability to stretch the field are well-documented, but it’s his sure hands — and the peace of mind they bring quarterback Alex Smith — that don’t get nearly enough attention.
Not only did Maclin catch 87 of the 124 passes thrown his way (70 percent) in his first season with the Chiefs, but the former Eagle also is working on a streak of seven consecutive games with a catch rate of 67 percent or better.
That includes a two-TD performance in a Week 13 win over the Raiders in which Maclin caught a remarkable nine-of-10 targets.