The Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions seemed to be on a collision course to Super Bowl LIX all season long. And of course, the Chiefs would first have to beat the Buffalo Bills in what is sure to be an epic AFC Championship game.

This is what many predicted before the start of the regular season. This is what the entire NFL world seems to be expecting.

Yawning.

When was the last time the NFL playoffs went exactly how everyone expected? When was the last time the best teams in the regular season ended up in the Super Bowl? When was the last time the postseason was completely predictable? (Note: Please do not pay attention to 2022).

It’s better to ignore the “chalk” predictions, because no one really wants that. What makes the NFL playoffs so exciting is that we expect the unexpected. It’s the up-and-coming teams that make runs that really provide the thrills. The surprising stars, the shocking moves, the powerful underdogs – that’s what makes the playoffs great.

With that in mind, put the chalk back in the box and prepare for the surprises – like these five bold NFL playoff predictions that I guarantee will come true:

1. Regime change

The Kansas City Chiefs will NOT reach the Super Bowl this year.

This has only happened once in the last five years, but it will happen again. This might be the most vulnerable 15-2 team in NFL history. They’ve been playing with fire all season. The fact that 11 of their 15 wins have come by a point difference or less shows how close they were to 4-13 instead. I mean, they don’t even have a Pro Bowl quarterback anymore.

They’re lucky they’re in the AFC and didn’t have to live in, say, the NFC North this season. But the AFC playoffs will still present them with some difficulties. There’s a good chance they’ll reach the AFC Championship Game, as they’ll only need one measly win to get there. But there their reign will end. They will likely face the Baltimore Ravens or the Buffalo Bills. Each of them is capable of ending the Chiefs dynasty once and for all.

Or at least until next year.

2. Midnight in Minnesota

It’s fitting that the Minnesota Vikings’ first playoff game ends around midnight (at least Eastern Time) on Monday, because that’s when Sam Darnold’s Cinderella season ends and he turns back into a pumpkin. The Vikings may have gone 14-3 this season and are top seed in the NFC, but they will lose their first-round game to the Rams in Los Angeles.

The seeds were planted Sunday night in Detroit when Darnold, in arguably the biggest performance of his career, had his worst game since his famous “Seeing Ghosts” game with the Jets. He completed 43.9 percent of his passes and honestly, if his receivers hadn’t constantly bailed him out, that percentage would have been 30 percent.

Rams coach Sean McVay will make sure his defensive coordinator Chris Shula takes a lesson from this film and finds a way to keep the Ghost Lightning rolling. Darnold is having a fantastic season — an MVP-caliber year — but he hasn’t suddenly turned into Patrick Mahomes (I mean, pre-2024 Mahomes). He’s still a limited quarterback. And in a big game – his first-ever playoff game as a starter – we’ll all see why.

3. A command performance

Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels will lead the Commanders to the franchise’s first playoff win in 19 years.

Typically, facing rookie quarterbacks in the NFL playoffs is a pretty safe bet. They often don’t feel well and don’t get very far. In fact, only five have ever led a team to a conference championship, and none have ever reached a Super Bowl as a starter. Daniels likely won’t be the first in the Super Bowl, but don’t rule out that conference championship game.

At the very least, he’ll continue his outstanding regular season with a standout performance and win in Tampa on Sunday night. Bucs coach Todd Bowles is known for his creative defensive strategies that can confuse young quarterbacks, but Daniels has really grown beyond that. Not only is he great at reading the right lyrics, but he was also brilliant at improvising on his own. He’s already one of the top five two-way quarterbacks in the game.

That’s enough for at least one win. And don’t be surprised if he gives the Lions quite a scare in the divisional round too.

4a. Bills are always due

If the Buffalo Bills lose – and they will lose – it will happen in agonizing fashion. At some point toward the end of the game, their fans will see the light at the end of the tunnel. Victory seems to be within reach. You might even look ahead and see a clear path to that elusive championship. And then either a gust of wind blows their game-winning field goal just a little bit off, or their opponent finds a way to go 99 yards in 14 seconds for a game-winning touchdown, or maybe…

…You know what? This happens to the Bills all the time. Everyone in Western New York expects it. And I said there are no “chalk” predictions, so let me try #4 again.

4b. Harbaugh Bowl, 2.0

Did you enjoy the first Harbaugh Bowl in Super Bowl XLVII? Did you find out everything you always wanted to know about your extended family back then? Well, it’s been 11 years and many of those stories have been overshadowed by the power outage at the Superdome that evening, so it’s probably time we all took a refresher course on the First Family of Football (coaching department).

John’s Ravens and Jim’s Chargers (wait, maybe it’s the other way around?…no, that’s right) meet in the AFC Championship Game. It won’t be easy. John’s Ravens must win a divisional game on the road in Buffalo and Jim’s Chargers must defeat the two-time defending champion Chiefs in Kansas City. But they will, because who has it better than the Harbaughs? That’s right. No one.

In fact, the Ravens have a team perfectly built to win in Buffalo, with a tough running game that works even in the snow. The Chargers have the more difficult task, but although they have lost to the Chiefs twice this season, both games were by one score – 17-10 and 19-17. There is no doubt that the third time will be a charm.

As for who Harbaugh will emerge victorious… Well, John won the Super Bowl and bragging rights for the family many years ago.

5. As I told you over the summer…Eagles-Ravens in LIX.

I wasn’t wrong then, and I’m not wrong now. Super Bowl LIX pits the Baltimore Ravens against the Philadelphia Eagles, with the Ravens winning 27-24.

After the Ravens defeated the Chargers in the AFC Championship Game and the Eagles defeated the Lions in the NFC Championship Game, New Orleans is preparing to face teams led by the two best running backs in football. And after a year of debate about the true value of running backs and whether it’s wise to pay them, Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry will be the focus.

In fact, they will even dominate the game. They will combine for more than 400 yards and four rushing touchdowns. The Ravens will even end the game with a nine-minute, time-consuming drive filled entirely with Henry runs. When it’s over, Henry will have more rushing yards than Lamar Jackson has passing yards, but Jackson will still win the MVP because we all know it’s a quarterback award.

Ralph Vacchiano is an NFL reporter for FOX Sports. He has spent the last six years reporting on it Giants and Jets for SNY TV in New York and before that covered the Giants and the NFL for 16 years for the New York Daily News. Follow him on Twitter at @RalphVacchiano.

---

---