Good Boy Picks: A staff member and his dog’s predictions for the upcoming NFL divisional round

The NFL Playoff divisional round has led to fans constantly attempting to make predictions and bets for them. Unless you’re Marty McFly from “Back to the Future Part II,” your odds of a 100% completion rate are lower than Will Levis’. So, I’ve brought in the help of my dog Frito to pick the winners of each game this weekend.

For the first game, the Houston Texans face off against the Baltimore Ravens in a highly anticipated matchup. Their week one game ended in a Ravens’ victory with a score of 25 – 9. This is quarterback C.J. Stroud’s rookie year in the NFL, and he has shown incredible improvements throughout the season.

When it comes to statistics, C.J. has Ravens’ quarterback Lamar Jackson beat in several categories this season, such as passing attempts, completion rate, interceptions and total yards, leading me to believe the Texans will end up on top today. Yet Frito is still unconvinced, and not only is the Ravens’ record of 13-4 preferable for the victory, but he quickly picked the Ravens clearly keeping in mind their phenomenal defensive scheme as well as their 33-19 victory over fellow number one seed San Francisco 49ers.

The 49ers matchup against the Green Bay Packers that very same day, with Packers’ quarterback Jordan Love coming off a strong victory over the Cowboys — a team that had the number one ranked defense in the NFL yet still lost in the wildcard round to Love. Frito and I both have faith in running back Christian McCaffery’s ability to execute in the playoffs as well as quarterback Brock Purdy’s consistency, not just in passing but in overall runs, which lead us to favoring the 49ers over the Packers. 

This Sunday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers take on the Detroit Lions in Detroit, and with Lions head coach Dan Campbell’s determination and the number two seed, it’ll be hard for Tampa Bay to pull out a victory. Frito calls for the upset, seeing quarterback Baker Mayfield’s improvements during the season as well as the wildcard victory over the Philadelphia Eagles last week, channeling his inner Uncle Rico. Mike Evans and Tampa Bay’s other wide receivers are showing great promise, and Frito claims he’s not barking up the wrong tree, though I still believe the Lions have it in them to win. 

Finally, our very own Kansas City Chiefs face off against the Buffalo Bills in western New York. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes is known to have consistency in the playoffs, but with two Super Bowls under his belt, Frito questions his drive to win compared to Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen, who has yet to play in a Super Bowl, making him much more motivated to win. 

Frito once again goes for the favored pick, as do I, leaving the Bills continuing on to the conference championship, and having the Chiefs going back to KC to prepare for next season. As the Bills have already beat the Chiefs in a controversial win in their week 14 skirmish on December 10. 

Frito’s choice of the favored picks, besides Tampa Bay, matches up with most if not all statistical outlooks on the games, so fans will see if he earned his treats this weekend.