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NFL Playoffs 2021: Contenders and pretenders with all 14 teams

By Leigh Oleszczak

Green Bay Packers running back Aaron Jones (33) runs for a gain against Chicago Bears inside linebacker Roquan Smith (58) during their football game Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021, at Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill.Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-WisconsinApc Packvsbears 0103210201djp
Green Bay Packers running back Aaron Jones (33) runs for a gain against Chicago Bears inside linebacker Roquan Smith (58) during their football game Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021, at Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill.Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-WisconsinApc Packvsbears 0103210201djp /
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NFL: Contenders and pretenders for all 14 playoff teams
Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

Who are contenders and who are pretenders in the 2021 NFL playoffs?

The 2021 NFL Playoffs begin on Saturday, Jan. 9 and, for the first time ever, there will be six Wild Card games played due to the addition of two more playoff teams this season. This generates more revenue for the NFL but it also makes the road to the Super Bowl tougher for several teams.

But hey, it could also make things more exciting — and definitely more hectic — for fans at home with a tripleheader on both Saturday and Sunday on Wild Card Weekend.

With that said, let’s take a look at whether each team is a contender or a pretender in the 2021 NFL playoffs. We’ll start with two easy ones.

2021 NFL Playoffs Contender: Green Bay Packers

The Packers made it all the way to the NFC Championship Game last year but fell just short of the Super Bowl because they couldn’t stop the 49ers’ run game. This season, their run defense is ranked in the top half when it comes to rushing yards allowed per game, which shows the team improved on their greatest weakness.

As long as Aaron Rodgers is playing good football, the Packers are in a prime position to make the Super Bowl for the first time since the 2010 season. Rodgers is playing like a true MVP candidate, Davante Adams is playing some of the best football of his career, and the defense is getting hot at the right time. The Packers are most definitely a contender.

2021 NFL Playoffs Pretender: Chicago Bears

Packers fans are really going to love this first slide, as I’m praising the Packers and bashing the Bears. Look, what the Bears were able to accomplish this season despite their extreme ups and downs is impressive, but making the Super Bowl is a near-impossible task for them.

Mitchell Trubisky might have saved his job with his performance in the final month of the season and despite backdooring their way into the postseason, Matt Nagy and his staff appear safe for another year as well. The Bears are the No. 7 seed in the playoffs with an 8-8 record and have to play three straight road games to get to the Super Bowl. It just isn’t a favorable situation for a team that has been very inconsistent in the 2020 season.

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