Hill's return to Arrowhead, Stafford vs. Goff among Wild Card Weekend revenge games on TSN
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With the 2023 National Football League's regular season in the rear-view mirror, teams saddle up for Wild Card Weekend on TSN with eyes on a ticket to Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas.
The weekend will not be without drama as the stage is set for homecomings and chances at revenge after bitter endings.
Stroud-led Texans host Browns
Saturday's slate of games begins with Joe Flacco and the Cleveland Browns heading to NRG Stadium to take on the Houston Texans.
Under rookie head coach DeMeco Ryans, the AFC South champion Texans have been led by rookie sensation quarterback C.J. Stroud - their first top five pick at the position since Deshaun Watson in 2017.
Watson played four seasons for the Texans, earning Pro Bowl nominations in his final three campaigns before he and the Texans parted ways, sending the Clemson product to the Browns for draft compensation.
Stroud has had an electric first season, with the Ohio State product finishing eighth in passing yards (4,108).
Saturday's game will not feature Watson, as he was placed on injured reserve with a shoulder injury. Flacco has stepped in and had a career resurgence with the Browns – a team he once battled as a member of the Baltimore Ravens (2008-18).
In five games as the Browns’ starter, the 38-year-old veteran has a 4-1 record and has thrown for 1,616 yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Hill returns to Arrowhead
For Tyreek Hill and the Miami Dolphins, losing in Week 18 cost them a home playoff game. Now Hill heads back to familiar territory to take on Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.
Watch the Dolphins vs. the Chiefs at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on TSN1/3, TSN.ca, and the TSN App.
A Super Bowl champion with Mahomes as his top target in 2019, Hill spent six seasons Pro-Bowl (2016-21) and All-Pro (2016, 2018, 2020) seasons in Kansas City before being traded to the Fins.
Upon landing in Miami, Hill ruffled some feathers after proclaiming his new quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was one of the league's most accurate quarterbacks.
The Chiefs' offence has struggled since Hill's departure with in-house replacements Kadarius Toney, Justin Watson, and rookie Rashee Rice not being able to fill the void ‘Cheetah’ left behind.
Hill, on the other hand, has shown no sign of slowing down as he had a career year with the Dolphins, going for 1,799 yards and 13 touchdowns on 119 receptions.
McCarthy goes toe-to-toe with Packers
Mike McCarthy was synonymous with the Green Bay Packers for more than a decade and a Super Bowl champion with them in 2010.
But now as a coach of the Dallas Cowboys, McCarthy will have to go through his former team in Jerry World to advance.
McCarthy was fired from the Packers after 13 seasons in 2018 and joined the Cowboys in 2020 following a season-long hiatus.
Saturday's game will be the first meeting between the two teams since Aaron Rodgers and the Packers beat McCarthy and the Cowboys 31-28 in overtime during his return to Lambeau Field in Week 10 of last season.
"This game’s about our commitment. It doesn't matter who we're playing – and it really doesn't," McCarthy said Monday ahead of the matchup.
"I answered the questions honestly in here last year about my experience up there. It just will not help us win. So if it doesn't help us win a game, I'm not interested in it."
Stafford comes home
A franchise record holder in every passing category, Matthew Stafford is set for his Detroit Lions homecoming as a member of the Los Angeles Rams.
Watch the Rams vs. Lions at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT LIVE on TSN4/5, TSN.ca, and the TSN App.
The former No. 1 pick out of Georgia in the 2009 draft spent 12 seasons in the Motor City trying to get the Lions back to relevancy and the postseason.
The furthest Stafford was able to take the Lions was to a trio of Wild Card exits in 2010, 2014, and 2016.
Both parties embarked on a fresh start in 2021 as the Lions traded Stafford to the Rams in exchange for fellow quarterback Goff and draft compensation.
The deal has seemingly worked out for both teams thus far. Stafford quarterbacked the Rams to a Super Bowl title in 2021, bolstering his campaign for a Hall of Fame jacket, while Goff has led the Lions to their first division title since 1993.
Sunday is also a bid at revenge for Goff, a former No. 1 pick himself, as the Rams gave up on him following a 3,952-yard, 20-touchdown season in 2020 and a Super Bowl LVII appearance against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.