NFL wildcard weekend predictions: Allen can carry Bills – if he can handle the pressure
The NFL playoffs kick off with ground-game battles, QB duels and a high-stakes edition of the Packers v Bears rivalryWhat the Rams need to do to win Hold on to the ball,Across five regular-season defeats, Matthew Stafford gave the ball away seven times with six interceptions and a fumble,In the Rams’ worst loss of the season, to the Panthers in November, Stafford held his team back from taking a commanding lead with two picks in the first quarter,Keep it tight,What the Panthers need to do to win The Panthers are massive underdogs but hold an advantage in the vital experience of having already upset the Rams.
An ultra aggressive approach highlighted by two touchdowns on long passing plays from fourth down won the day.Head coach Dave Canales needs to deliver a sequel on par with Paddington 2 to take the Rams out again.More gobsmacking, all-in playcalling can shred LA’s confidence quickly.Key player Puka Nacua, WR, Rams.If Skynet made pass catchers.
A relentless, open even when he’s not, one-handed catch machine.Pro Football Focus’s offensive player of the year, he earned the highest grade ever given to a wideout by their gurus (since records began in 2006) when he dominated the Cardinals in week 14.He led the NFL in receptions (129), yards per game (107.2), receiving first downs (80), 20+ yard receptions (27) and yards after catch for a receiver (666).Prediction Rams over PanthersWhat the Packers need to do to win Suck the life out of Chicago’s big-play defense.
Give them absolutely nothing to work with – or at least as little as possible.Run the ball down their throats, let the frustration creep and creep, even if trailing by a few points.As the mental fog descends, completely let it rip with Jordan Love unleashing Christian Watson’s punishing deep threat.Taking too many early shots downfield risks playing to a major Bears strength.What the Bears need to do to win Take a history lesson.
Beating the Packers in the playoffs is possible.George Halas’s Bears thrashed the Packers 33-14 on 14 December 1941, the week after the attacks on Pearl Harbor, in Chicago’s only postseason win over their division rivals.The key to victory that day was George McAfee, Norm Standlee and Bob Swisher combining for more than 200 yards rushing and three touchdowns.If the tribute act of D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai can recreate that stunning display it would take a heap of pressure off the shoulders of Caleb Williams.Let the young quarterback grow into his first playoff appearance slowly.
Key player Kevin Byard, S, Bears.The 32-year-old is the leader of Chicago’s turnover factory that topped the NFL in interceptions (23) and total takeaways (33).He contributed seven picks in a mighty return to form from his early years with the Titans.Prediction Bears over PackersWhat the Bills need to do to win Protect Josh Allen.A thread runs through Buffalo’s five regular-season defeats: Allen feeling intense pressure, taking sacks and giving the ball away.
Houston: eight sacks, two picks,Atlanta: four sacks, two picks, two fumbles,Miami: three sacks, one pick, one fumble,New England: one sack, one pick, one fumble,Jacksonville will be acutely aware this is the route to stymying Allen.
The offense needs to be ready to beat back or help the QB escape the wave of pressure heading his way from kick-off.What the Jaguars need to do to win “You don’t make the playoffs without being a strong defense able to take away something,” said Jaguars OC Joe Brady.Jacksonville needs to keep the success rolling by stopping James Cook.The matchup against the running back is a tough one; Cook owns the 2025 rushing title with 1,621 yards and 12 touchdowns while the Bills as a whole are first in the NFL in rushing yards per game (160).The Jaguars will not be fazed.
They sit at the top of the tree in allowing the fewest yards per game on the ground (86) and 100+ yard games (five).In the seven previous playoff matchups between the No 1 rushers and run stoppers, the defense is 4-3.Key player Josh Allen, QB, Bills.He’s the most talented player on either roster playing at the most influential position.In what feels like the biggest coin-flip game of the weekend, having a totem of Allen’s stature could be pivotal.
Prediction Jaguars over BillsWhat the 49ers need to do to win Play to their massive strength in running back Christian McCaffrey.Run the ball, control the clock, then make it count in the red zone.A regular dose of McCaffrey will keep Vic Fangio’s defense honest as they also have to protect the deep pass from Brock Purdy.The 49ers absolutely need to lean into Purdy’s irrepressible downfield throwing if and when the defense triggers too far in McCaffrey’s direction as the quarterback boasts 35 passes of 20+ air yards and is No 1 in success rate in the NFL.If Purdy targets Adoree’ Jackson, the lame duck in Philadelphia’s secondary, his numbers could really pop.
What the Eagles need to do to win Keep the faith in Jalen Hurts’ legs,The quarterback has shone when given designed running plays down the stretch especially in do-or-die situations,This tactic could be highly effective against a corps of sub-par linebackers,Some eye-catching gains will be money in the bank to remind the quarterback and his offense of the power they can still generate even in a down year,That power demolished Purdy’s 49ers 31-7 in the NFC championship game in 2023.
Key player Trent Williams, LT, 49ers,With Williams the 49ers have been an offensive juggernaut,Without the stellar pass protector they scored only three points when needing a win over the Seahawks,Fortunately for San Francisco he has returned to practice after a hamstring injury and looks likely to start,Prediction Eagles over 49ersWhat the Chargers need to do to win Justin Herbert needs to get rid of the ball quickly.
The Chargers have used 25 different offensive line combinations in 17 games and as such the amorphous blob in front of the quarterback have allowed the most hits in the NFL (129).New England’s strong pass rushing duo of Milton Williams and Christian Barmore are going to blow Herbert up if he holds on to the ball any longer than necessary.What the Patriots need to do to win New England have found great success when using jumbo packages to power the running game.Over the course of the season, they’ve had six linemen on the field for 66 rushing attempts, and they’re second in the NFL with 6.7 yards per carry when using that setup.
In the four games since their bye week in December the Patriots leaned into the strategy with outstanding results as 47 of those 66 runs garnered 8.3 yards per attempt.The Chargers have a sound defense but one that will probably still be overmatched by the power of Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson running behind the six pack.Key player Drake Maye, QB, Patriots.The likely MVP’s impressive ball security will be as important as his explosive production, which topped the charts among starting quarterbacks in yards per attempt (9), against a Chargers defense that recorded the NFL’s third-most interceptions (19).
Prediction Patriots over ChargersWhat the Texans need to do to win Keep up the improvements in red zone efficiency.The Texans have struggled inside the 20-yard line this season ranking 29th in scoring at a rate of 46.3%.They did boost their number to 60% in their final three games showing promise for what will be a tough encounter with the Steelers.Pittsburgh are the seventh-best red zone defense giving up scores on 50.
9% of trips by the opposition.You can bet your house that head coach Mike Tomlin will have his Steelers playing above that level on Monday night.The Texans need to be ready with a bag of tricks to overcome it.What the Steelers need to do to win They need the hottest of starts to try to catch the mighty Texans defense on their heels.Win the toss, receive possession and throw everything to gain the scoreboard advantage with a view to never letting it go.
The added bonus will be rallying one of the NFL’s loudest and enthusiastic home crowds around the team and Tomlin.Boos could be heard again when the Steelers were struggling against the Ravens but it just about worked out.Now that Tomlin has steered their rickety team to the playoffs he may have full support.If not then an early lead will help ease the tension.Key player Will Anderson Jr, DE, Texans.
Houston are a menace,It starts with a stifling secondary that paralyses the opposition quarterback,It finishes with a sack in the tumbling embrace of Anderson,Aaron Rodgers is in for a hellish night regardless of the outcome,Prediction Texans over Steelers
NHS staff face ‘national emergency’ as patient violence hits 285 incidents a day
Nurses, doctors and paramedics are reporting tens of thousands of violent and sexual assaults by patients every year, amid warnings that the abuse of NHS staff has become a national crisis.More than 295,000 incidents of physical violence and aggression by patients against staff were recorded by 212 NHS trusts in England between 2022 and 2025, freedom of information requests by the Guardian found.Healthcare unions warned of a spike in assaults on staff over Christmas and the New Year. A man attacked and injured six staff and patients with a crowbar in Newton community hospital in Merseyside last week. He has been arrested and detained under the Mental Health Act, according to Merseyside police
Labour should ‘buy the supply’ of housing from landlords | Letters
My heart obviously breaks for distressed buy-to-let landlords (Are UK buy-to-let landlords dying out – and should we care?, 5 January) but, if some landlords are feeling the pinch, a policy I have long pestered the government about is, by chance, tailor-made to help them. We need to replenish our decimated social housing stock, and part of the answer is what I call “buy the supply”.For years, I have called for funding to help councils increase the number of homes they can buy into their housing supply. Whether that is buying back right to buy homes, or snapping up suitable houses that are put on the market, this can achieve immediate, construction-risk-free social homes near existing schools, parks and health services.We need as many new council homes as possible, and we know we cannot rely solely on the existing sluggish model of finding land and building new apartments, most of which are too small for families
Could egg defect breakthrough help stop the ‘horrible IVF rollercoaster’?
It is a rollercoaster of emotional extremes that will be familiar to many who have gone through IVF treatment: hope and joy turns to despair and back again. This is especially true for women over 35, the age when IVF success rates decline steeply and for whom the only real way to improve the odds is to keep trying.While there has been huge progress in IVF in the past decades, including the advent of genetic testing, egg freezing and techniques to overcome male infertility, the primary cause of age-related female infertility – egg quality – has not been directly addressed.Now, groundbreaking research presented at the Fertility 2026 in Edinburgh this week, suggests progress is on the horizon. Scientists from a leading lab in Germany say they have been able to reverse a common age-related defect in eggs in an advance that they predict could be transformative
Dame Sarah Anderson obituary
When King Charles made a personal visit to Sarah Anderson to confer her damehood two days before her death from cancer at the age of 69, she characteristically did not let slip the opportunity to ask him to help The Listening Place, the suicide prevention charity she founded a decade ago in the belief that sustained, in-person support was vital to save many people in crisis.Anderson had been a Samaritans volunteer in central London for 37 years, but parted company with the charity in 2015 over its then policy, since partially reversed, of no longer offering meetings with an identified counsellor. With the support of a group of other disaffected volunteers including her husband, Terrence Collis, whom she had met at Samaritans, she set up The Listening Place the following year to provide free, face-to-face support for people with suicidal thoughts. Today, the charity offers more than 4,000 appointments a month across four bases in London and has to date received more than 40,000 referrals, the great majority via the NHS.The drive that Anderson showed in developing her charity was equally evident in other parts of her life
Alzheimer’s therapies should target a particular gene, researchers say
New therapies for Alzheimer’s disease should target a particular gene linked to the condition, according to researchers who said most cases would never arise if its harmful effects were neutralised.The call to action follows the arrival of the first wave of drugs that aim to treat Alzheimer’s patients by removing toxic proteins from the brain. While the drugs slow the disease down, the benefits are minor, and they have been rejected for widespread use by the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice).In searching for alternative therapies, scientists at UCL say drug developers should focus on two risk-raising variants of a gene named Apoe. Therapies designed to block the variants’ impact have “vast potential” for preventing the disease, they claim
Thousands of offenders in England to get health support at probation meetings
About 4,000 offenders in England will get targeted healthcare sessions during their probation appointments as part of a new pilot scheme.Offenders are far more likely to have poor physical or mental health or addiction issues, which increases the likelihood of reoffending.A recent report by the chief medical officer for England, Chris Whitty, found that half of offenders on probation smoked, many had drug or alcohol addiction issues and a majority had poor mental health. They were also less likely to receive screening for prostate, breast, lung or cervical cancers.Many offenders do not receive timely care because they are not registered with a GP, meaning often they seek help for any physical or mental health problems only when their symptoms have become acute, turning to A&E
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