The 2024 NFL Season Part 3 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Los Angeles Chargers

The Houston Texans, one of four NFL teams who had not been to a Super Bowl, won the AFC South and were seeded fourth (the four teams are Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars, Cleveland Browns and Houston Texans). The Los Angeles Chargers came second in the AFC West with 10-7. The game was characterised in the first half by punts and turnovers. The Chargers scored a couple of field goals in the first quarter and the Texans responded with a late touchdown and field goal in the second quarter to take a 10-6 lead into halftime. They repeated the same scoring pattern in the third quarter.

The Chargers scored the first touchdown in the fourth quarter but the extra point was blocked, D'Angelo Ross caught the ball and ran into the Chargers' endzone for a defensive two-point conversion (this was the ninth extra point returned for a score since the rule change in 2015). In the 2024 regular season, the Eagles scored this way against Tampa Bay but this was the first time it had happened in a playoff). The Texans then scored another touchdown and field goal to win comprehensively 32-12, the first NFL game to end with this scoreline.

Answer: Pittsburgh Steelers

At one stage in the regular season, the Steelers were 10-3, two games ahead of the Ravens at 8-5. However, the Steelers faded badly and lost their last four (10-7) whereas the Ravens won their last five to finish 12-5 and the division and were given the third seed. The Steelers had done enough to earn the sixth seed.

Baltimore scored a touchdown on their opening drive and never surrendered the lead for the entire game. By halftime, the game was over when the Ravens led 21-0. The Steelers fought back briefly to score two touchdowns in the third quarter but the Ravens scored another touchdown to lead 28-14 and that was the final score after a scoreless last quarter. The Steelers' Wilson (20/29, 2 TD, 0 Int) outpointed his more fancied counterpart, Lamar Jackson (16/21, 2 TD, 0 Int.) but the Steelers could only manage 29 rushing yards. In contrast, Derrick Henry set a Ravens franchise record with 186 rushing yards in a postseason game and two touchdowns. Jackson himself rushed 81 yards in a team total of 300 yards.

The Steelers have never had a losing season under Mike Tomlin but in the 2024 playoffs, they were one and done again.

Answer: Denver Broncos

The Denver Broncos had a disastrous season in 2023 but in 2024 under rookie quarterback Bo Nix (the sixth quarterback picked at the twelfth position in the first round of the draft), they did well and went 10-7 in the regular season and earned the last seed spot on on the last regular match of the season.

The Broncos surprised everybody with a touchdown on their opening drive but apart from the extra point, they did not trouble the scorers again. The Bills hit back with a field goal on their opening drive then got the ball back after a quick three and out to start a 15 play 86 yard touchdown that went into the second quarter to score the only TD and indeed only score of the second quarter After that they scored a TD and a field goal in each of the last two quarters with a two-point conversion successful on the third quarter TD. Final score Bills 31 Broncos 7

Answer: Green Bay Packers

The Packers who went 11-6 in the regular season, and could only manage third place in their division behind the Lions and the Vikings, but it was enough for them to to earn the seventh seed spot. They had met the Eagles in a regular season match in Brazil where the Eagles won 34-29.

This was not a pretty match to watch. After the kickoff, the Eagles scored a field goal and a touchdown in the first quarter followed by a scoreless second quarter to take a 10-0 lead at halftime. In the third quarter, the Packers kicked a field goal but the Eagles responded with a Dallas Goedert touchdown (with a missed extra point). The Packers scored a touchdown early in the fourth quarter to come within six points of the Eagles but they potted two more field goals to finish 21-10 winners.

Answer: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Not many would have predicted that the Commanders would make the playoffs with a rookie quarterback but Jayden Daniels led his team around the park with confidence and, with a 12-5 record they earned sixth seed.

The Buccaneers won the NFC South in the last game of the regular season so earned the hometown advantage. They had the only score of the first quarter when they scored a field goal on their opening drive. In the second quarter, the Commanders levelled with a field goal of their own plus a 9-minute, 17-play drive leading to a TD and extra point. The Buccs responded with a TD of their own with a 1-yard pass to Mike Evans, to make it 10-10 at halftime.

In the second half, the Commanders took the lead with a field goal but on their next drive a Bucky Irving TD gave the lead back to the Buccs 17-13. The Commanders' 67-yard 12-play drive came unstuck when they failed at 4th down and three, but Buccs QB Baker Mayfield turned the ball over on the next play. Four plays later the Commanders were again 4th down and short but this time they converted to lead 20-17. Tampa Bay responded with a field goal to tie the game again at 20-20 with 4:41 left on the clock. Daniels then led his team down the field to put Gonzalez in the frame to kick a 37-yard field goal. The ball hit the post but good giving the Commanders a three-point win.

Answer: Minnesota Vikings

Coming into the last game of the season both the Vikings and the Detroit Lions were 14-2 and they had to play each other. The winner would be the top seed for the NFC the loser would be seeded fifth.

The Lions won convincingly 31-9 and Minnesota's 14-3 made them the first team to be seeded as low as five with 14 wins. The Rams were also not convincing winning NFC West with 10-7 the same as the Seahawks. The Rams won the tiebreaker on Strength of Victory.

The Vikings were never in the match, The Rams scored a touchdown on their first drive and potted a field goal in the first quarter. The Vikings didn't score until the second quarter with a field goal but the Rams scored two more TDs, one from a Vikings' fumble to take a formidable 24-3 lead into halftime. The second half was an arm wrestle with the only score being a Vikings TD in the third quarter (missed two-point conversion) and a Rams field goal. Rams were convincing winners 27-9.

Answer: Houston Texans

The Kansas City Chiefs at 15-2 were seeded first, so this was their first playoff match. The Texans, as the lowest remaining seed were their opponent. The Texans kept pace with the Chiefs and at the end of the third quarter, after each team had scored a touchdown and two field goals, the Chiefs led by a single point. 13-12 (The Texans missed an extra point and also two field goals - which were all costly).

However, in 2024 the Chiefs were 11-0 in games decided by one score or less. They were the ultimate game management team and in the last quarter, they strangled the Texans with effective defence whilst scoring a converted touchdown and a field goal themselves. They only conceded a safety to run down the clock. Final score Chiefs 23, Texans 14. The Texans would have to wait at least one more year to make their first Super Bowl appearance.

Answer: Detroit Lions

At the start of the season, few would have thought this game at the end of the 2024 season would have been likely. Detroit made the NFC Championship game last season losing narrowly to the 49ers. The Commanders went 4-13 and came 14th in the NFC. this game was arguably the best game of the 2024 season playoffs in the Wild Card and Divisional Rounds.

Both teams started nervously but the Lions scored a touchdown and the Commanders narrowed the lead with a field goal. Late in the first quarter, Lions quarterback, Jared Goff was sacked and fumbled. This led the Commanders in a 13-play drive that crossed into the second quarter and yielded a touchdown which gave Washington the lead 10-7. This started a scoring frenzy that saw six touchdowns scored (Washington 4-2) in the second quarter including a Commanders' pick-six. The Commanders lead 31-21 at halftime. The 42 points scored was the highest second-quarter score in NFL history.

The Lions scored an 11-play six-minute touchdown as the only score of the third quarter but the Commanders held the ball for the rest of the quarter on their way to scoring a touchdown early in the last quarter to maintain a ten-point lead 38-28. The Lions turned over the ball resulting in another Commanders' TD. (The Lions turned over the ball five times in this game - a season-high). With four minutes remaining and the Commanders leading 45-28, the Lions could only manage a field goal to make the final score 45-31 and gave the Commanders their first NFC Championship Game in 33 years.

Answer: Los Angeles Rams

This was the fourth playoff meeting between two stalwart clubs with the Rams winning two. Both teams scored touchdowns on their opening drives with the Eagles potting two field goals in the same quarter to take a 13-7 lead before heavy snow came in like a blizzard. The Rams managed to cut the lead to three with a field goal being the only score in the second quarter.

The second half became a defensive battle to not give up territory nor turnover the ball. The third quarter was a slugfest with a field goal apiece but the Eagles conceded a safety to cut the lead to a single point. In the final quarter, the Eagles scored two field goals and a touchdown (missed extra point) to take a 28-15 lead. With four minutes left, it looked all over but the Rams marched down the field for a seven-pointer then got the ball back quickly and had just over two minutes to score a converted TD for a win. They got as far as the Eagles' 13-yard line but QB Stafford was sacked on third down, and the fourth down was an incomplete pass. The Eagles had edged out the Rams 28-22.

Answer: Baltimore Ravens

This was only the second playoff meeting between these two teams with the Bills winning the 2020 AFC Divisional game. In the 2024 regular season, the Bills suffered their heaviest loss to the Ravens 35-10.

Both teams scored touchdowns on their opening drives. Jackson threw an uncharacteristic interception (He threw two in the match. The Bills did not score from it but Jackson fumbled the ball when sacked in the Raven's next drive which resulted in the Bills recovering the fumble and getting the ball back to the Baltimore 24 where Bills QB Josh Allen scored a rushed TD. The Ravens managed a field goal but the Bills scored another TD in the second quarter to lead 21-10 at halftime. The Ravens kicked a field goal early in the third quarter to cut the lead to just eight, 21-13. Derrick Henry scored a TD on the next Ravens drive but missed the two-point conversion. 21-19 at the three-quarter time break. In the fourth quarter, the Bills potted two field goals to lead 27-19 with 3:29 remaining. The Ravens then covered 88 yards in eight plays to score a touchdown. Needing a two-point conversion to tie the score, Mark Andrews fumbled Jackson's pass in the end zone. The Bills then wound down the clock to win 27-25. It was a close game worthy of two high-quality teams. The Ravens had 416 offensive yards to the Bills' 273 yards, but three uncharacteristic Raven turnovers were costly.