Kirk served as quarterback C.J. Stroud’s primary option throughout as alpha wide receiver Nico Collins drew lockdown shadow coverage from standout corner Joey Porter Jr. That role only grew in the fourth quarter following Collins’ departure due to a concussion, an ailment that has a good chance of keeping him sidelined through the team’s Divisional Round matchup against the Patriots next weekend. Jayden Higgins will likely step into the primary perimeter role in the absence of Collins after catching 3-of-4 targets for 39 yards against the Steelers, while Xavier Hutchinson and Jaylin Noel split WR3 duties.

The curtain call season from the veteran signal caller was far from pretty but he still managed to get the team into the postseason, a run that ended with a pitiful offensive showing against the league’s top defense. The Steelers went just 2-for-14 on third down and gained only 175 yards of total offense. Even so, the Steelers entered the fourth quarter down by only one point as their defense generated three turnovers to keep the team in the game. Rodgers is uncertain about his future (what’s new?) but has continued to hint that this would be his final season in the league. His 21-year professional career could be over after amassing 66,274 yards, 527 touchdowns, and a 1.4% interception rate. The yards and touchdowns each rank in the top five in NFL history while his interception rate goes down as an NFL record. It certainly appears likely that the final pass attempt of Rodgers’ career will go down as a pick-six during Pittsburgh’s seventh straight playoff loss.

Collins was unable to brace himself as he went to the ground on a catch attempt at the end of the third quarter, appearing to contact the frozen ground with the forehead area of his helmet. Clearly disoriented following the play, Collins had to be redirected towards the sideline after attempting to rejoin the huddle. He would then be seen hunched over on the sideline before even making it into the medical tent. Collins was eventually carted to the locker room with a towel over his head for further evaluation. It certainly appears as if his night is over after catching just 3-of-7 targets for 21 yards.

Per Hughes’ report, the loser of the sweepstakes would then land Kevin Stefanski. Not a bad consolation prize. Harbaugh is “No. 1" on the Giants board, per Hughes, which jives with all the reporting we’ve seen so far on the situation. The Falcons have played things closer to the vest as they worked on settling their ridiculously-named “president of football” situation, but appear to be a team to monitor in the Harbaugh sweepstakes as well.

Parsons is recovering from a torn ACL. He plans to be back on the field as early as September. The 26-year-old EDGE told reporters Week 1 is his optimistic target return date, while Week 3 is the more realistic target return date. Either way, Parsons doesn’t anticipate beginning next season on injured reserve, which is a significant development for the Packers.

Gonzalez suffered a concussion in the second half of the Patriots Wild Card game victory over the Chargers on Sunday. The 23-year-old cornerback was having an excellent game with no catches allowed and two pass breakups on five targets in 27 coverage snaps. Gonzalez will have to clear concussion protocol sometime this week to be available for the Divisional matchup against the Texans or Steelers. It would be a big loss for the Patriots defense if his injury lingers.

Stafford is dealing with a sprain on his right index finger. The 37-year-old quarterback suffered the injury early in the win over the Panthers in the Wild Card round. He never came out of the game. The Rams will go as far in these playoffs as Stafford can take them. His finger injury doesn’t appear to be a serious impediment at this point.

The Packers have made it known through various reports in the last week that they intend to discuss a new contract with LaFleur after the season. The tenor of those potential discussions likely hasn’t changed much, despite outside noise after the Packers lost in all-too-familiar fashion in the playoffs once again. Green Bay doesn’t want LaFleur, who has one year left on his contract, to enter next season as a lame-duck. The Packers can somewhat afford to play hardball with LaFleur in contract negotiations now. The organization isn’t known for paying coaches top tier money and LaFleur may not be in position to ask for that anymore, despite a 76-41-1 record. Upgrading from LaFleur to someone like John Harbaugh would be even less cost-effective for the Packers. Teams around the league with head coaching vacancies are keeping tabs on LaFleur in case these negotiations fall apart as he’d be a top candidate if he were to become available.

The Patriots’ pass rush pressured Herbert from start to finish. It was an unfortunately fitting end to the Chargers’ season. Herbert lost two-time Pro Bowl LT Rashawn Slater to a season-ending patellar tendon injury in August. Third-year OT Joe Alt successfully switched from right tackle to left tackle following Slater’s injury, but Alt missed time after suffering a high-ankle sprain in Week 4. He aggravated it in Week 9 and was forced to undergo season-ending surgery. Chargers backup offensive linemen suffered consequential injuries as well, leading to a career-high 54 sacks for Herbert in his age-27 season. Despite the pass-protection issues, Herbert completed 340-of-512 passes for 3,727 yards, 26 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, and rushed 83 times for 498 yards and two touchdowns. Both his rushing attempts and rushing yardage sums are career highs. He finishes as the QB10 in fantasy scoring and can again be treated as a mid-tier QB1 in 2026, hopefully, with improved offensive line health.

All three of Henry’s receptions registered as explosive, 15-plus-yard pass plays. He impressively retained possession of the football on a corner route despite taking a hard hit from Chargers S Tony Jefferson on the Patriots’ sixth drive. He hauled in a critical 19-yard pass on 3rd-and-13, from the Patriots’ 12-yard line on the seventh drive, and scored the Patriots’ only touchdown of the day by beating Chargers S Derwin James for a 28-yard touchdown on the eighth drive, leaving James in the dust, going through his cuts on a corner route. The Patriots face the winner of the Texans-Steelers game tomorrow night.