Aaron Rodgers, Connor Cook among top story lines of wild-card weekend
We asked the USA TODAY Sports NFL staff the following question: What is the top story line of wild-card weekend? Their responses:
Jarrett Bell
What can be a bigger story line than the matchup between two Super Bowl MVP quarterbacks dueling on the frozen tundra? Well let's just say I'm intrigued by the X-factor of the least-compelling matchup of the weekend. Connor Cook, the emergency sub for the Raiders, will become the first rookie quarterback during the Super Bowl era to have his first NFL start come in a playoff game. To make the challenge tougher, he'll have to face the NFL's top-ranked defense at Houston. Long odds and some serious chess match disguises from D-coordinator Romeo Crennel loom for Cook. Maybe the fourth-round pick -- who started more than 40 games in a pro-style offense at Michigan State and has a Big Ten Championship Game MVP award on his resume -- will surprise us. Surely, he'll need all the help he can get from the Raiders massive line, Latavius Murray and the rest of the running backs and a receiving corps headlined by Amari Cooper. Running heavy is the ticket, but to win a playoff game it figures that at some point the quarterback needs to make a throw. One piece of advice: Avoid Jadeveon Clowney at all costs.
Nate Davis
The most interesting contest has to be the Giants-Packers rematch in Lambeau Field on Sunday. Aaron Rodgers may not have done quite enough in sum to be league MVP in 2016, but he’s certainly been the most outstanding player the last six weeks. Watching him try to solve a loaded New York defense that caused him problems back in October should be fun. But this game has plenty of other notable sidebars. Can the Giants run the ball? Can the Packers run the ball, for that matter? Will single-digit weather wreak havoc? Perhaps most importantly, how will a battered Green Bay secondary fare against a deep and talented group of Giants receivers, not to mention a playoff-proven quarterback in Eli Manning? As hot as the Packers have been lately, Rodgers has had to overcome his own defense on more than one occasion in the last month and a half.
NFL DRAFT HUB: Latest NFL Draft mock drafts, news, live picks, grades and analysis.
Lindsay H. Jones
Sure, it was impressive that the Green Bay Packers were able to follow through on Aaron Rodgers’ prediction that they could “run the table” to the NFC North title. Now it’s time for Rodgers and Co. to prove they are legitimate threats in the NFC. Of course, the Packers chances start and end on Rodgers, whose stock steadily rose this year, from having people question whether he was in significant decline in October, to trendy MVP pick by late December. That Rodgers (and by extension, the Packers offense) is playing like vintage Rodgers now, should scare the rest of the NFC, starting with the Giants.
NFL wild-card matchups to watch: Can Giants secondary tame Rodgers?
Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Starting the weekend off with a quarterback matchup of Connor Cook and Brock Osweiler brought a collective groan from fans, but there's a lot of potential for volatility between the two. In becoming the first quarterback of the Super Bowl era to make his starting debut in the playoffs, Cook might be tasked with a caretaker role for the Raiders' offense. But the fourth-round rookie could never shake his gunslinger tendencies at Michigan State, and Oakland might need him to make plays downfield if Houston builds an early lead. Osweiler, meanwhile, as a rare shot at redemption after being benched late in the year. A Raiders defense that is second in the league with 30 takeaways, however, could be his undoing. These are both teams that had aspirations of much deeper playoff runs, and the losing quarterback will likely have a prominent role in the early exit.
Tom Pelissero
Can third-string quarterback Connor Cook help the Oakland Raiders save their season in his first NFL start? Cook shouldn't have to do it alone. The Raiders have talent around him. It's on coaches to devise a plan to keep the game off the rookie's shoulders against a Houston Texans defense that gave up fewer yards than anybody in the NFL this season. Still, Cook will need to make some plays -- and he's capable. There are reasons he fell to the fourth round in April's draft, but talent isn't one of them. Some GMs and scouts told me before the draft Cook might end up being the best QB in his class. Not the easiest time to show it. Pressure's on.
Lorenzo Reyes
This is a QB league, so I’m going to go with QB play – especially from the AFC teams who need their backup plans to step up in a big way. The Raiders turning to Connor Cook, the Dolphins going with Matt Moore, and the Texans reverting back to Brock Osweiler – can those passers make enough plays to get them through to the divisional round? And in Miami’s case, can Moore keep the Dolphins in the playoffs long enough for starter Ryan Tannehill to return from a knee sprain? Problem is it may not matter because of those guys named Brady and Roethlisberger in New England and Pittsburgh.