NFL Today, Divisional Playoffs
SCOREBOARD
Sunday, Jan. 15
Green Bay (11-6) at Dallas (13-3), 4:40 p.m. EST, FOX. This marks the eighth meeting in the playoffs for the storied franchises, with the Cowboys leading 4-3. Aaron Rodgers has been unbeatable on a seven-game run that carried Green Bay to the divisional round, and he plays at the home of the Cowboys for the first time since winning his only Super Bowl following the 2010 season. Meanwhile for Dallas, the No. 1 seed in the NFC, Dak Prescott and NFL rushing champion Ezekiel Elliott will try to become the first rookie QB-RB tandem to win a playoff game in the Super Bowl era.
Pittsburgh (12-5) at Kansas City (12-4), 8:20 p.m. EST, NBC. The game, originally scheduled for 1:05 p.m. EDT, was changed to a night game because of an expected ice storm. It's the teams' second postseason meeting, and first since the Chiefs beat the Steelers 27-24 in the wild-card round on Jan. 8, 1994 - and Kansas City hasn't won a home playoff game since. The teams played in October, when Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers scored 22 first-quarter points, led 36-0 before the Chiefs finally scored and proceeded to route the eventual AFC West champions 43-14.
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STARS
Passing
- Matt Ryan, Falcons, threw for 338 yards and three touchdowns, finishing 26 of 37 in Atlanta's 36-20 victory over Seattle.
- Tom Brady, Patriots, tossed two touchdown passes in New England's 34-16 win over Houston.
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Rushing
- Lamar Miller, Texans, rushed for 73 yards on 19 carries in Houston's 34-16 loss at New England.
- Devonta Freeman, Falcons, ran for a touchdown in Atlanta's 36-20 win over Seattle.
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Receiving
- Julian Edelman, Patriots, caught eight passes for 137 yards in New England's 34-16 win over Houston.
- Julio Jones, Tevin Coleman and Mohamed Sanu, Falcons. Each caught a touchdown pass from Matt Ryan in Atlanta's 36-20 victory over Seattle.
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Special Teams
- Dion Lewis, Patriots, had the first postseason kickoff return for a touchdown in franchise history with a 98-yarder in the opening quarter of New England's 34-16 win over Houston.
- Matt Bryant, Falcons, kicked two field goals and made all four extra-point attempts in Atlanta's 36-20 win over Seattle.
- Devin Hester, Seahawks, had five kickoff returns for 194 yards, including a 78-yarder, against his former team in Seattle's 36-20 loss at Atlanta. His longest play, an 80-yard punt return, was wiped out by a penalty.
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Defense
- Logan Ryan, Patriots, had seven total tackles, a sack and an interception in New England's 34-16 win over Houston.
- Jonathan Babineaux, Ricardo Allen and Deion Jones, Falcons, each had a sack in Atlanta's 36-20 victory over Seattle.
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STREAKS & STATS
The New England Patriots advanced to their sixth straight conference championship game, the longest streak since the 1970 merger. ... Atlanta is headed to the NFC championship game for only the fourth time in its 51-year history. ... New England's Bill Belichick and Tom Brady advanced to their 11th conference championship game together. No other head coach/starting QB duo since 1970 has gone to more than six. ... Atlanta's Matt Ryan became the only player with 300 or more yards passing, three or more TD throws and no INTs against the Seahawks since Pete Carroll has been coach (since 2010). The last quarterback to accomplish that against the Seahawks was Baltimore's Anthony Wright in Week 12 of the 2003 season with 319 yards, four TDs 0 INTs.
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MILESTONES
New England's Dion Lewis became the third player in the Super Bowl era with both a TD catch and a kickoff return for a score in a postseason game, joining Jacoby Jones and Dante Hall. He also is the first in NFL postseason history to have a rushing TD, receiving TD and kickoff return for a TD in a single game. ... New England's Julian Edelman has 81 career playoff receptions, ranking him seventh in NFL history - and first in Patriots history. ... Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski made an extra point in the first quarter to pass Jerry Rice and move into third place on the league's career postseason scoring list. It was Gostkowski's 133rd postseason point, breaking a tie with the San Francisco 49ers receiver.
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SIDELINED
Seattle lost cornerback DeShawn Shead to what looked like a serious left knee injury in a 36-20 loss at Atlanta. The Falcons lost defensive end Adrian Clayborn with a biceps injury on Seattle's opening drive.
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SPEAKING
"I was able to make some plays, but I've got to still clean up some things. When they trust me to give me the ball that much, I can't put it on the ground." - New England's Dion Lewis, who scored TDs on a run, a catch and a kickoff return, but was critical of his two fumbles - including one he lost - in the Patriots' 34-16 win over Houston.
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"It was pretty cool considering the circumstances, too, with the game in hand. That's got to be as loud as it's ever been in here." - Atlanta's Matt Ryan, who heard chants of "MVP! MVP!" from the Georgia Dome crowd at the end of a 36-20 victory over Seattle.
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