Confidence rankings for straight-up picks in the Divisional Round

The 2021 NFL Playoffs got off to a fun start last weekend. We had some snoozers, but we had some upsets and a fun Bills-Colts game. Both No. 3 and No. 4 seeds were knocked out, although the fifth seeded Titans and Bucs were road favorites in their respective matchups.

This weekend, we’ve got Rams-Packers and Ravens-Bills on Saturday, followed by Browns-Chiefs and Bucs-Saints on Sunday. Last weekend, I offered straight-up picks for all six games and walked away with a 3-3 mark.

I’m back this week ready to take another stab at picking the four-game slate. Here are my picks for the Divisional round in the 2021 NFL Playoffs, listed in order of how confident I am that the pick will work out.

Chiefs over Browns: Give Andy Reid a bye week and he can do wonders. Even with some second half struggles, it was hard not to be impressed by what the Browns did. That being said, the Chiefs offense is going to give the Browns serious problems. Cleveland has to play a near perfect game on offense and I just don’t see it happening.

Packers over Rams: Aaron Donald is playing through a rib injury and Jared Goff is shaky at best. The Rams have impressed for stretches this season, but I just don’t see them having the consistency to hang with Green Bay. I’m particularly interested to see how the Packers attack Donald and that defensive front.

Bucs over Saints: Washington gave the Bucs some fits while the Saints rolled Chicago in the second half. I think the Bucs defense got a sufficient wake-up call and will give the Saints trouble. This one is going to come down to a field goal either way.

Bills over Ravens: This is a tough one to figure out. I could see either team rolling to a double digit victory or I could see this coming down to the last second. The Marcus Peters injury is one to watch and if he is limited, that could be a difference-maker.

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