Whenever I do my yearly predictions for the Packers, I center a lot of my definition of success around whether or not I think they can make it to the Divisional Round of the playoffs — and beyond.
Why? Because the Divisional Round is when the real playoffs start. It's when you get to see who's really a contender and who's just gotten lucky. And it's the point at which most of the teams who really shouldn't have been in the playoffs at all are already at home.
Consider last week's Wildcard Round. In the AFC, every higher-seeded team came out on top. The round played out exactly as expected. In the NFC, we did see two upsets, but I don't think either of them was a huge surprise. Everybody but Vikings fans knew they were as vulnerable as a team could be. In Tampa, even though the Buccaneers were seeded higher (and hosted the game as champions of their division), the Cowboys were the betting favorites. Is that really an upset? Other than the Cowboys being seeded lower, I don't think so.
The Divisional Round will be different, though. Every matchup looks like it has some real teeth, and we'll get to see the top-seeded teams in action, too. I really don't know any other way to put it than calling it the real playoffs, and I'm excited to see what happens.
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