NFL playoff round-by-round predictions, Super Bowl picks

The playoffs are here, and so are the questions: Will we get a Buffalo-Kansas City rematch in a neutral-site AFC Championship Game? Will Joe Burrow go from Super Bowl runner-up to Super Bowl champ? Can "Mr. Irrelevant" Brock Purdy take the 49ers to the big game? Is this Jalen Hurts and the Eagles' time? Does Tom Brady have another super run in him? 

Before we get those answers, here's Newsday's football writers' round-by-round playoff predictions:

JOE MANNIELLO'S PICKS

WILD-CARD ROUND

AFC:

Buffalo over Miami

Cincinnati over Baltimore

Jacksonville over L.A. Chargers

NFC:

San Francisco over Seattle

Giants over Minnesota

Tampa Bay over Dallas

DIVISIONAL ROUND

AFC:

Kansas City over Jacksonville

Cincinnati over Buffalo

NFC:

Philadelphia over Giants

San Francisco over Tampa Bay

AFC CHAMPIONSHIP

Cincinnati over Kansas City

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP

Philadelphia over San Francisco

SUPER BOWL LVII

Cincinnati 30, Philadelphia 27: Joe Burrow and the Bengals have been on a second-half surge, but it's almost as if no one talks about it. And this year's team appears to be better than last year's Super Bowl runner-up version. After beating Buffalo in the divisional round — the most difficult of these future games to predict — Cincinnati continues its mastery of Kansas City by winning the AFC Championship Game at Arrowhead for a second straight year. Then Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase hold off Jalen Hurts and the Eagles in a back-and-forth thriller in the desert. 

TOM ROCK'S PICKS

WILD-CARD ROUND

AFC

L.A. Chargers over Jacksonville

Buffalo over Miami

Cincinnati over Baltimore

NFC

San Francisco over Seattle

Giants over Minnesota

Dallas over Tampa Bay

DIVISIONAL ROUND

AFC

Buffalo over Cincinnati

Kanas City over L.A. Chargers

NFC

Philadelphia over Giants

San Francisco over Dallas

AFC CHAMPIONSHIP

Buffalo over Kansas City

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP

San Francisco over Philadelphia

SUPER BOWL LVII

Buffalo 27, San Francisco 21: The Bills have always been something of a provincially-based team nestled cozily in Western New York, but Damar Hamlin’s cardiac arrest and inspiring recovery have turned them into something bigger. They are the new America’s Team. Beyond being a great story, they’re also a really good football squad, don’t forget, and Josh Allen and his crew will bring Buffalo its first Lombardi Trophy with a healthy Hamlin on the sideline cheering for them.

AL IANNAZZONE'S PICKS

WILD-CARD ROUND

AFC

Buffalo over Miami

Cincinnati over Baltimore

L.A. Chargers over Jacksonville

NFC

San Francisco over Seattle

Giants over Minnesota

Dallas over Tampa Bay 

DIVISIONAL ROUND

AFC

Kansas City over L.A. Chargers

Buffalo over Cincinnati

NFC

Philadelphia over Giants

San Francisco over Dallas

AFC CHAMPIONSHIP

Buffalo over Kansas City

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP

San Francisco over Philadelphia

SUPER BOWL LVII

Buffalo 24, San Francisco 20: Bills Mafia will be jumping on and smashing through tables outside of State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona before the game and celebrating afterward. The Bills will end an emotional season by finally winning their first Super Bowl title with Josh Allen’s experience bringing home the MVP.

KIMBERLY JONES' PICKS

WILD-CARD ROUND

AFC

Buffalo over Miami

Cincinnati over Baltimore

Jacksonville over L.A. Chargers

NFC

San Francisco over Seattle

Giants over Minnesota

Dallas over Tampa Bay

DIVISIONAL ROUND

AFC

Kansas City over Jacksonville

Buffalo over Cincinnati

NFC

Philadelphia over Giants

San Francisco over Dallas

AFC CHAMPIONSHIP

Buffalo over Kansas City

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP

Philadelphia over San Francisco 

SUPER BOWL LVII

Buffalo 24, Philadelphia 22: It's not ALL about karma, but we need to see Damar Hamlin doing snow angels amid the confetti. Josh Allen, too. We forget the days when Allen was an underdog who couldn't get a major college scholarship. The Bills are a great team that hasn't been able to get past Kansas City when it's mattered most. This year, they do.