2022-23 NFL Playoffs: AFC Wild Card Quiz

Answer: Asante Samuel Jr.

Asante Samuel Jr. was born in 1999 and he was selected in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Chargers. His three interceptions in the first half of the Wild Card game against the Jaguars were just one less than the four interceptions he had in the first 29 games of his NFL career. Asante Samuel Jr. is the son of Asante T. Samuel Sr. who played in the NFL for 11 seasons, had 51 career interceptions, made it to four consecutive Pro Bowls and won two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots.

Answer: Trevor Lawrence

Trevor Lawrence was born in Knoxville, TN in 1999 and he was selected by the Jaguars with the first overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Lawrence struggled during his rookie season as he threw more interceptions than touchdowns, but his sophomore season in the NFL was a success as he led his team to a division title and threw for over 4,000 yards.

In his first playoff game, the Wild Card matchup against the Chargers, Lawrence threw for four touchdowns and four interceptions en route to a one point victory, 31-30.

Answer: Doug Pederson

The 2022 NFL season was the first one in which Doug Pederson was the head coach of the Jaguars. The team started their first 10 games with a paltry 3-7 record but they finished strong with a final record of 9-8 and a division title. The Jaguars quickly trailed 27-0 in the Wild Card game before they became more aggressive on defense and started executing better on offense. A critical moment in the game came when Doug Pederson made a bold decision to go for a 2-point conversion after a touchdown to cut the deficit to two points. The decision paid off and eventually the Jaguars won the game on a last second field goal.

Doug Pederson was previously the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles when they won Super Bowl LII during the 2017 NFL season.

Answer: Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins started Skylar Thompson after their top two quarterbacks were ruled out with a concussion and a finger injury. Thompson had some moments of solid play against the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card game but he threw two costly interceptions, completed just 18 of 45 passes and the Dolphins receivers dropped several passes.

Answer: Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis

The quarterback of the Bills, Josh Allen, feasted against the defense of the Dolphins as he was consistently able to complete passes downfield. His wide receivers, Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis, combined for 13 catches, 227 receiving yards and a touchdown.

The Dolphins utilized aggressive blitzes against the Bills that forced three turnovers but the strategy also gave up several big passing plays. Dolphins lost 31-34.

Answer: Matt Milano

Matt Milano was born in 1994 and he was a fifth round draft pick of the Buffalo Bills in 2017. In the Wild Card game against the Dolphins, Milano made several key plays including stopping a run by Salvon Ahmed for no gain on a 3rd and 1 play late in the 4th quarter.

Answer: Joe Burrow

Joe Burrow was born in 1996 and he played college football at LSU where he won a National Championship. Burrow was the first overall pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2020 NFL Draft and he was selected to his first Pro Bowl for his stellar season in 2022.

In the AFC Wild Card game against the Ravens, Burrow struggled to make big plays but he played smart, possession football and did not have any turnovers.

Answer: Evan McPherson

Evan McPherson was born in 1999 and he was drafted in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Bengals. McPherson had an incredible rookie season in which he set NFL records for making 12 field goals of 50+ yards (regular season and post season combined) and he went 14 out of 14 on field goals in the playoffs.

His second season (2022-23) wasn't quite as prolific, but he connected on 82.8% of his field goals during the regular season which is still solid. However, McPherson surprisingly missed four extra points in the regular season as well as one in the Wild Card game.

Answer: Fumble recovery

Sam Hubbard was born in 1995 in Cincinnati and fittingly he played in college at Ohio State and was drafted by the Bengals in the 3rd round of the NFL Draft in 2018. Early in the fourth quarter the Ravens had the ball at the 1-yard line on 3rd and goal.

Their quarterback, Tyler Huntley, tried to jump over the line for a touchdown but he was blocked and fumbled. Hubbard recovered the fumble and ran 98 yards for a touchdown setting an NFL postseason record for the longest fumble return touchdown.

Answer: 3-0

The Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals and Jacksonville Jaguars finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th in the AFC based on their records and winning their divisions. This entitled them to a home game for their Wild Card matchups and they all would win in a close game.