WHAT TO LOOK FOR – WILD CARD WEEKEND
FROM WILD CARD TO SUPER BOWL: Winners in the Wild Card round have won the Super Bowl nine times, including each of the past three seasons. At least one Super Bowl participant in seven of the past eight years played a Wild Card game.
The Baltimore Ravens won four playoff games last year to win Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans. In 2011, the NFC No. 4 seed New York Giants claimed four playoff victories to win their second championship in five seasons. In 2010, the Green Bay Packers won four playoff games to become the second No. 6 seed to win a Super Bowl, defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV.
The Wild Card participants to win the Super Bowl:
SEASON
TEAM
SUPER BOWL RESULT
1980
Oakland
Defeated Philadelphia in Super Bowl XV, 27-10
1997
Denver
Defeated Green Bay in Super Bowl XXXII, 31-24
2000
Baltimore
Defeated New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV, 34-7
2005
Pittsburgh
Defeated Seattle in Super Bowl XL, 21-10
2006
Indianapolis
Defeated Chicago in Super Bowl XLI, 29-17
2007
New York Giants
Defeated New England in Super Bowl XLII, 17-14
2010
Green Bay
Defeated Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XLV, 31-25
2011
New York Giants
Defeated New England in Super Bowl XLVI, 21-17
2012
Baltimore
Defeated San Francisco in Super Bowl XLVII, 34-31
-- WILD CARD WEEKEND --
FAMILIAR FOES: This Sunday, San Francisco (Wild Card) will travel to play Green Bay* *(NFC North Champions) as part of Wild Card Weekend. It marks the seventh postseason meeting between these teams, tying for the fourth-most all-time (49ers vs. Giants, 8; Bears vs. Giants, 8; Cowboys vs. Rams, 8). It is the third meeting between the 49ers and Packers on Wild Card Weekend.
The Packers lead the playoff series (4-2) and of those six games, the winning team reached the Super Bowl three times, winning once.
The playoff games between San Francisco and Green Bay:
SEASON
ROUND
WINNING TEAM
SCORE
RESULT
2012
Divisional
San Francisco
45-31
Lost Super Bowl XLVII
2001
Wild Card
Green Bay
25-15
Advanced to Divisional Round
1998
Wild Card
San Francisco
30-27
Advanced to Divisional Round
1997
NFC Championship
Green Bay
23-10
Lost Super Bowl XXXII
1996
Divisional
Green Bay
35-14
Won Super Bowl XXXI
1995
Divisional
Green Bay
27-17
Advanced to NFC Championship
The 49ers-Packers matchup will mark the 21st time that Green Bay hosts a playoff game. Already boasting the highest home winning percentage in postseason history (.800), Green Bay looks to extend that mark against San Francisco.
The teams with the highest home winning percentage all-time in the postseason (minimum 10 games):
TEAM
RECORD
HOME WINNING PERCENTAGE, POSTSEASON
Green Bay
16-4
.800
Oakland
19-5
.792
New England
14-4
.778
Buffalo
10-3
.769
Denver
13-4
.765
Washington
13-4
.765
-- WILD CARD WEEKEND --
NO. 1's: This weekend, Kansas City will travel to Indianapolis in a Wild Card matchup featuring starting quarterbacks who were selected as No. 1 overall picks in the NFL Draft. Kansas City quarterback ALEX SMITH, who is in his first season with the Chiefs, led the team to an 11-5 record. Smith was the first overall selection of San Francisco in 2005. Indianapolis quarterback ANDREW LUCK was the Colts first selection in the 2012 NFL Draft and has led the team to playoff appearances in consecutive seasons.
When Kansas City and Indianapolis play this weekend, it will mark the fifth time in postseason history that the opposing quarterbacks are both former first overall selections.
The playoff games featuring opposing quarterbacks who were first overall selections:
SEASON
ROUND
MATCHUP
RESULT
2011
NFC Championship
Alex Smith (SF) vs. Eli Manning (NYG)
NYG defeated SF 20-17 (OT)
1999
Wild Card
Jeff George (MIN) vs. Troy Aikman (DAL)
MIN defeated DAL 27-10
1998
AFC Championship
John Elway (DEN) vs. Vinny Testaverde (NYJ)
DEN defeated NYJ 23-10
1994
Wild Card
Vinny Testaverde (CLE) vs. Drew Bledsoe (NE)
CLE defeated NE 20-13
2013
Wild Card
Andrew Luck (IND) vs. Alex Smith (KC)
???
-- WILD CARD WEEKEND --
AWESOME AARON: Green Bay quarterback AARON RODGERS passed for 423 yards in his first playoff start in the 2010 playoffs against Arizona on Wild Card Weekend. With another 400-yard passing performance this Sunday against San Francisco, Rodgers can join DREW BREES(three), PEYTON MANNING(two) and Pro Football Hall of Famer DAN MARINO (two) as the only quarterbacks in NFL history to accomplish the feat in multiple playoff games.
-- WILD CARD WEEKEND --
PLAYOFF BREES: New Orleans quarterback DREW BREES enters this weekend's Wild Card matchup against Philadelphia with a 104.2 rating in his postseason career, the second-best mark in NFL history. His 67.0 completion percentage in the postseason is the highest mark ever.
Through nine career postseason games, Brees has five 300-yard passing games, the third-most in NFL history. With 300 passing yards on Wild Card Weekend, Brees would join PEYTON MANNING (eight), TOM BRADY (six), KURT WARNER (six) and Pro Football Hall of Famer JOE MONTANA (six) as the only quarterbacks to have at least six 300-yard passing games in NFL postseason history.
The quarterbacks with the most 300-yard passing games in the playoffs:
PLAYER
TEAM(S)
GAMES PLAYED
MOST 300-YARD PASSING GAMES
Peyton Manning*
Indianapolis, Denver
20
8
Tom Brady*
New England
24
6
Joe Montana**
San Francisco, Kansas City
23
6
Kurt Warner
St. Louis, Arizona
13
6
*Drew Brees
New Orleans
9
5
Dan Fouts**
San Diego, New Orleans
7
5
*Active
**Pro Football Hall Famer
Brees also enters the weekend with a streak of three consecutive 300-yard passing games in the playoffs, the second-longest in history. With 300 yards passing on Saturday against Philadelphia, Brees would tie Pro Football Hall of Famer DAN FOUTS (four) for the most consecutive 300-yard passing games in NFL postseason history.
The quarterbacks with the most consecutive 300-yard passing games in the playoffs:
PLAYER
TEAM(S)
SEASONS
MOST CONSECUTIVE 300-YARD PASSING GAMES
Dan Fouts**
San Diego
1979-81
4
Jim Kelly**
Buffalo
1989-90
3
Warren Moon**
Houston
1991-93
3
Drew Brees
New Orleans
2010-11
*3
*Current streak
**Pro Football Hall Famer
-- WILD CARD WEEKEND --
FIRST-TIMER: Philadelphia quarterback NICK FOLES will make his first-career postseason start on Wild Card Weekend. Foles helped the Eagles, winners of seven of their last eight games, clinch the NFC East. The second-year signal-caller led the league in passer rating (119.2) and had 27 touchdowns while only throwing two interceptions, the best touchdown-interception ratio in NFL history.
The players with the most passing yards in their first career postseason start:
PLAYER
TEAM
SEASON
ROUND
PASSING YARDS
Kelly Holcomb
Cleveland
2002
Wild Card
429
Aaron Rodgers
Green Bay
2009
Wild Card
423
Randall Cunningham
Philadelphia
1988
Divisional
407
Kurt Warner
St. Louis
1999
Divisional
391
Neil Lomax
St. Louis
1982
Wild Card
385
