The National Football League playoffs for the 2014 season began on January 3, 2015. The postseason tournament concluded with the New England Patriots defeating the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX, 28–24, on February 1, at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
Participants
Bracket
Schedule Round Away team Score Home team Date Kickoff(ET / UTC-5) TV Viewers (millions) TV Rating Wild-card round Arizona Cardinals 16–27 Carolina Panthers January 3, 2015 4:35 p.m. ESPN 21.7 12.5 Baltimore Ravens 30–17 Pittsburgh Steelers 8:15 p.m. NBC 27.9 15.8 Cincinnati Bengals 10–26 Indianapolis Colts January 4, 2015 1:05 p.m. CBS 28.3 17.0 Detroit Lions 20–24 Dallas Cowboys 4:40 p.m. Fox 42.3 23.6 Divisional round Baltimore Ravens 31–35 New England Patriots January 10, 2015 4:35 p.m. NBC 34.1 19.6 Carolina Panthers 17–31 Seattle Seahawks 8:15 p.m. Fox 31.0 17.2 Dallas Cowboys 21–26 Green Bay Packers January 11, 2015 1:05 p.m. 44.4 24.9 Indianapolis Colts 24–13 Denver Broncos January 11, 2015 4:40 p.m. CBS 41.8 23.3 Conference championships Green Bay Packers 22–28 Seattle Seahawks January 18, 2015 3:05 p.m. Fox 49.8 27.4 Indianapolis Colts 7–45 New England Patriots January 18, 2015 6:50 p.m. CBS 42.1 22.5 Super Bowl XLIX New England Patriots 28–24 Seattle Seahawks February 1, 2015 6:30 p.m. NBC 114.4 47.5
Wild-card round
Saturday, January 3, 2015
NFC: Carolina Panthers 27, Arizona Cardinals 16
Carolina's defense forced three turnovers and held Arizona to an NFL playoff record low of 78 total yards as they advanced to their first postseason win since the 2005 season.
Short punts by Drew Butler on Arizona's first two drives gave the Panthers excellent field position from the Cardinals' 48-yard line and their own 43-yard line on their first two possessions, which they converted into ten points: A 48-yard Graham Gano field goal and a 13-yard touchdown run by Jonathan Stewart. The Cardinals had to punt again on their next drive, but Panthers receiver Brenton Bersin muffed the kick and Justin Bethel recovered the ball for Arizona on the Carolina 30-yard line. A 15-yard roughing the passer penalty on defensive end Charles Johnson and a 14-yard reception by Larry Fitzgerald moved the ball to the 1-yard line, where Ryan Lindley finished the drive with a touchdown pass to tight end Darren Fells on the first play of the second quarter, cutting the score to 10–7.
Carolina responded by moving the ball to the Cardinals' 25-yard line, but came up empty when Gano missed a 43-yard field goal attempt. Later in the quarter, Antonio Cromartie intercepted a pass from Cam Newton and returned it 50 yards to the Panthers' 17-yard line. Three plays later, the Cardinals took their first lead of the game, 14–10, on a 1-yard touchdown run by rookie running back Marion Grice. Grice lost the ball as he went into the end zone, and the play was initially ruled a fumble recovered by the Panthers. But after a replay review, the call was reversed on grounds that Grice crossed the goal line before the ball came out of his hands. The Panthers struck back with a 59-yard drive, including Newton's 23-yard completion to receiver Corey Brown, to score on Gano's 39-yard field goal, making the score 14–13 at the end of the half.
In the second half, the Panthers completely took over the game, holding Arizona to just 12 yards from scrimmage. Early in the third quarter, Butler's 31-yard punt gave Carolina the ball on the Cardinals' 39-yard line. On the next play, running back Fozzy Whittaker caught a screen pass from Newton and raced all the way to end zone to retake the lead for his team at 20–14. Then Melvin White forced a fumble from Cardinals kick returner Ted Ginn Jr., which Kevin Reddick recovered for Carolina on the Arizona 3-yard line. Two plays later, Newton's 1-yard touchdown pass to fullback Mike Tolbert increased their lead to 27–14.
At this point, 4:04 remained in the third quarter, but the Panthers defense would shut out Arizona's offense for the rest of the game. In the fourth quarter, the Cardinals had a chance to get back in the game when linebacker Sam Acho forced a fumble while sacking Newton, which safety Rashad Johnson picked up and returned 30 yards to the Panthers' 8-yard line. But on the next play, Lindley was intercepted by linebacker Luke Kuechly. Later on, they got another scoring chance when Panthers punter Brad Nortman fumbled a snap and was forced out of bounds at the Panthers' 47-yard line. But once again the Cardinals lost a turnover, this time an interception by safety Tre Boston. Arizona would not score again until Nortman deliberately downed the ball in the end zone for a safety with three seconds left on the clock, making the final score 27–16.
Lindley, filling in for injured starter Carson Palmer and injured backup Drew Stanton, completed 16 out of 28 passes, but for just 82 yards and two interceptions. Newton threw for 198 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, while also rushing for 35 yards. Stewart was the top rusher for the game with 123 yards and a touchdown, and Charles Johnson had 2½ sacks. This was the second time in NFL history that a team made the playoffs with a losing record and still won their first game.
This was the second postseason meeting between the Cardinals and Panthers. Arizona won the prior meeting 33–13 in the 2008 NFC Divisional playoffs.
AFC: Baltimore Ravens 30, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
Baltimore forced three turnovers and scored on 6-of-9 possessions to defeat Pittsburgh on the road for the first time in franchise playoff history.
The Steelers scored first with a 43-yard drive, including a 22-yard completion from Ben Roethlisberger to Martavis Bryant, that ended on a 45-yard Shaun Suisham field goal. Baltimore responded with a 9-play, 80-yard drive that gave them a 7–3 lead on Bernard Pierce's 5-yard touchdown run with 12:28 left in the second quarter. Roethlisberger struck back with an 18-yard completion to Antonio Brown and a 30-yarder to tight end Heath Miller that set up Suisham's 22-yard field goal. Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco countered with a 23-yard pass to Steve Smith Sr. and a 19-yard completion to Owen Daniels on the way to a 28-yard field goal by Justin Tucker, making the score 10–6. With 42 seconds left in the half, Suisham kicked a 47-yard field goal that cut the score to 10-9 going into halftime.
On the Ravens' opening drive of the second half, Flacco completed a 17-yard pass to Torrey Smith on third and 12, allowing the team to hang onto the ball and drive to a 45-yard field goal by Tucker. Then after a Steelers punt, Flacco hooked up with Smith Sr. for a 40-yard completion before throwing an 11-yard touchdown pass to Smith, increasing the team's lead to 20–9.
Early in the fourth quarter, Pittsburgh defensive end Stephon Tuitt recovered a fumble from running back Justin Forsett on the Ravens' 45-yard line. Roethlisberger completed a 44-yard pass to Brown on the next play, and eventually got the ball into the end zone with a 6-yard toss to Bryant. Their two-point conversion attempt failed, but the Steelers had cut their deficit to one score at 20–15. However, they would get no closer. Baltimore responded with a 23-yard reception by Daniels that set up Tucker's 52-yard field goal. Then linebacker Terrell Suggs intercepted a pass from Roethlisberger, and Flacco increased the Ravens' lead to 30–15 with a 21-yard touchdown pass to tight end Crockett Gillmore on the next play. The Steelers responded with a drive to the Baltimore 14-yard line, but came up empty when safety Darian Stewart picked off a pass from Roethlisberger in the end zone. Pittsburgh did manage two more points when Shamarko Thomas blocked Sam Koch's punt, knocking the ball through the end zone for a safety. But after the free kick, Stewart put the game away by recovering a fumble from Miller.
Roethlisbeger finished the day 31-for-44 for 334 yards and a touchdown, with two interceptions. His top target was Brown, who caught nine passes for 117 yards. Flacco was 18-for-29 for 255 yards and two touchdowns, while Smith Sr. was the Ravens top receiver with five receptions for 101 yards.
The win gave the Ravens their first postseason victory over the Steelers in four tries, having previously lost to them in 2001, 2008, and 2010, all at Heinz Field. It is the Steelers' first loss in the playoffs against a division opponent since losing to the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1947 NFL Eastern Division playoff, and first-ever postseason loss to an AFC Central/AFC North rival since the 1970 merger. For the first time in eight tries, a Baltimore-based major professional sports team defeated its Pittsburgh counterpart in that sport's postseason tournament.The previous seven confrontations were the 1971 and 1979 World Series, the 1975, 1976, 2001 and 2010 AFC Divisional Playoffs, and the 2008 AFC Championship Game
This was the fourth postseason meeting between the Ravens and Steelers. Pittsburgh won all three prior meetings at home, including 31–24 in the 2010 AFC Divisional playoffs.
Sunday, January 4, 2015
AFC: Indianapolis Colts 26, Cincinnati Bengals 10
The Colts scored on their opening drive, advancing the ball 71 yards in nine plays, including a 27-yard burst by Dan Herron, on the way to Herron's 2-yard touchdown run. After an exchange of punts, an 18-yard run by Bengals running back Jeremy Hill and Andy Dalton's 26-yard completion to Rex Burkhead sparked a 74-yard, 9-play drive that tied the game with Hill's 1-yard score.
In the second quarter, Colts quarterback Andrew Luck completed a 30-yard pass to T. Y. Hilton that set up Adam Vinatieri's 38-yard field goal, putting the team back in front at 10–7. Then after a punt, Luck completed a 45-yard pass to Hakeem Nicks, leading to another Vinatieri field goal that made the score 13–7. The Bengals were subsequently forced to punt again, but with just under two minutes left in the half, cornerback Darqueze Dennard forced a fumble from Herron that safety Reggie Nelson recovered and returned six yards to the Cincinnati 41-yard line. Dalton then led the team to the Colts' 39-yard line, where Mike Nugent made a 57-yard field goal, the second longest kick in NFL playoff history, cutting the score to 13-10 going into halftime.
The Colts' defense dominated the Bengals in the second half, forcing them to a three-and-out on their first four drives. On the opposing side, Luck threw a 36-yard touchdown to rookie receiver Donte Moncrief with 7:48 left in the third quarter. Then after a punt, the Colts drove 57 yards and scored on Vinatieri's 22-yard field goal, bringing the score to 23–10. On their next possession, Vinatieri made his fourth field goal of the day, a franchise playoff record 53-yard kick, giving the Colts a 26–10 lead. Meanwhile, the Bengals' following three possessions would result in another punt, a lost fumble by Dalton, and time expiring in the game.
Dalton finished the game 18-for-35 for 155 yards, along with 34 yards on the ground. Luck completed 31 of 44 passes for 376 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for 18 yards. Hilton was his top target, with six catches for 103 yards. Herron had 56 rushing yards and ten receptions for 85 yards.
The game marked another round of dismal postseason milestones for the Bengals, who have not won a playoff game since the 1990 season, the longest active streak in the NFL. They became the first team in NFL history to lose in the opening round of the playoffs for four consecutive seasons, while coach Marvin Lewis tied Jim E. Mora for the worst coaching record in playoff history (0–6). The Bengals have now lost seven consecutive playoff games, the second highest total ever behind the Detroit Lions and Kansas City Chiefs' record of eight.
This was the second postseason meeting between the Bengals and Colts. The then-Baltimore Colts won the prior meeting 17–0 in the 1970 AFC Divisional playoffs.
NFC: Dallas Cowboys 24, Detroit Lions 20