Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda — three words that echo throughout the playoffs. If the Vikings woulda run the ball more, they might have spared themselves the shame of being eliminated at home. The Chargers coulda easily advanced if, during the offseason, they had improved their defense a little more. The Bucs shoulda shored up their weak offensive line. If they had, then maybe, Tom Brady would have had more than two seconds to throw — and maybe Tampa would not have ranked last in the league in rushing!
 
The National Parity League is notorious for fleeting success and quick change. Last year, when the Rams and Bengals played in the Super Bowl, I commented that it was quite reasonable to expect that neither team would be there next year. Change happens fast. In San Francisco, the starship Brock Purdy has landed, and there are now two quarterbacks delegated to backup status (and that's unsustainable). In New York, Daniel Jones is now the face of the Giants franchise. We're moving at light speed.
 
In September, I said I was keenly interested to see how the best running quarterbacks would fare (Sept. 9, “See How They Run”).  Scramblers routinely sustain debilitating injuries but, paradoxically, running QBs who try to switch to pocket QBs often cause their teams to underperform. Two famous injured runners, Lamar Jackson, and Kyler Murray saw their teams pay dearly. They are poster kids for the slogan: ‘no country for old men’. Despite Brady’s record-setting run, the legendary 45-year-old shoulda retired two years ago — and gone out on top. Aaron Rogers (age 39), Matt Ryan (37), and Andy Dalton (35) should also retire — whether on top or not.
 
Several other brand-name QBs — Derrick Carr (age 31), Jimmy Garoppolo (31), Nick Foles (33), Russell Wilson (34), Matt Stafford (34), Kirk Cousins (34), and Ryan Tannehill (34) — are all unwilling to run much any more (or they're just poor at it). They are all very good passers and field generals but should at least consider retiring — while they are healthy. And even if they want to keep playing, their teams might be wise to move on. Jameis Winston (28), has been banged up a lot and is in a passing slump, but he may be able to turn it around. Tua Tagovailoa is just 24 but should retire before the concussions mount up.

Young guns Josh Allen and Joe Burrow lead two teams that also possess defenses that are at least competent. The Bills and Bengals shoulda won in Wild Card weekend — and they did. Now, they face each other in a long-awaited showdown. What should happen in the divisional round? Here are the matches — and my picks.
 
Jaguars at Chiefs                     Chiefs              Sat.
Giants at Eagles                      Eagles              Sat.
 
Bengals at Bills                        Bills
Cowboys at 49ers                   49ers
 
My record last weekend was 4-2. It's possible all four divisional matches could go the other way. So, we should have our beer and snacks ready (maybe some antacids, too). Enjoy!