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Five plays that explain Wild Card Weekend

Each week, the Around The NFL crew will choose the plays that defined the weekend's action:

Tony Romo had one of his worst games of the season through three-plus quarters, but on the game-winning drive, he made plays to get the Cowboys over the hump. This touchdown throw combined great protection (finally) with vintage Romo improvisation connecting with Terrance Williams, who stopped on a dime to get open. -- Kevin Patra

The flag that wasn't, which sparked a controversy. Regardless of how you view the play, it wasn't why the Lions lost. Fact. End of story. -- Kevin Patra

The Panthers' linebackers define Carolina's peaking defense. If Thomas Davis isn't heat-seeking running backs or making big plays, Luke Kuechly is doing it instead. Everyone will remember Carolina's win Saturday as the "Ryan Lindley game" with good reason, but the matchup turned into a nightmare for Arizona because they were facing the best linebacker duo in the league. Kuechly's interception extinguished any hopes the Cardinals had. -- Gregg Rosenthal

While Bengals fans are painfully aware of Andy Dalton's ceiling under center, Colts followers -- after being graced for years with Peyton Manning -- know anything is possible with Andrew Luck. His 376 passing yards in Sunday's wild-card romp over Cincy was capped by this glorious 36-yard touchdown strike to Donte Moncrief. Need we say more? -- Marc Sessler

After beating the Steelers, Ravens coach John Harbaugh joked that he tossed Terrell Suggs the game ball, but then he dropped it. Seriously, though, from start to finish, this play was perfect. We begin with coordinator Dean Pees' extraordinary blitz that Suggs is the centerpiece of. He seamlessly drops back into coverage and secures a game-changing interception with his thighs. That's playoff football. -- Conor Orr

The latest Around The NFL Podcast recaps every Wild Card game and looks ahead to the Divisional Round. Find more Around The NFL content on NFL NOW.

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