Against The Wild
Parents need to know that Against the Wild features two tweens who are lost in the wilderness after their small plane crashes in the woods. With just their faithful husky, the siblings face harsh terrain and dangerous animals as they struggle to survive. The family-friendly film has no swearing or anything else that may alarm parents, though small kids may be frightened at the sight of other children threatened by a bear.
Against The Wild
Zach (CJ Adams) and Hannah (Erin Pitt) are lost in the woods after their small plane crashes en route to visit their dad, the supervisor at a remote mine. The pilot is injured in the accident, and the kids set off to find help with only their dog, Chinook, for protection in AGAINST THE WILD. While the kids find themselves threatened by both the elements and some dangerous wildlife, their parents organize a search party and must come to terms with the fact that two young kids are hard to find in a very large forest.
Zach and Hannah are appealing characters, and Chinook is a beautiful beast, and, let's face it, it's nearly impossible to watch two kids lost in the wilderness without feeling some kind of emotion. But all that's not enough to make Against the Wild an entertaining film. The acting is stiff, the dialog is hokey, and the children make one rookie survival mistake after another. There are so many gaping plot holes not to notice -- at one point Hannah is too injured to walk, but moments later is seen running and jumping.
Suddenly something charges toward the children, Chinook gets up and barks wildly, Hannah screams in terror as a flock of quail blast past the children, scaring them half to death. Chinook chases the quail into the woods, Zach and Hannah take deep breaths of relief, when Hannah suddenly hears something. The sound of a distant chopper can be heard. The children run into the woods and try to get the helicopters attention with a flashlight. They are not seen and the chopper flies off.
As the No. 5 seed in the NFC Playoffs, the Dallas Cowboys will travel to Tampa Bay to face the fourth-seed Buccaneers on Monday, Jan. 16 at 8:15 p.m. ET, capping off NFL Super Wild Card Weekend. The matchup at Raymond James Stadium will be a rematch of the regular season opener when the Buccaneers dealt the Cowboys a 19-3 domineering victory at AT&T Stadium. In the Week One clash, Leonard Fournette powered the Bucs' offense with 127 yards on the ground, Devin White sparked the defensive effort with two sacks and Antoine Winfield Jr. recorded an interception of Dak Prescott, who suffered a thumb injury that caused him to be sidelined for five games. Entering the first-round of the playoffs, both teams have evolved and will strive to keep their larger ambition alive with a tally in the win column. Monday night's game will provide Dallas the opportunity to defeat Tom Brady, who is undefeated against the Star. The Washington Commanders handedly beat the Cowboys in a 26-6 trouncing last weekend and the club will look to bounce back against the Buccaneers, who won their second-consecutive division title. There are many matchups and individual performances that could weigh heavily on the outcome of the Cowboys-Bucs showdown in the Wild Card Round. Here is an in-depth look at five Buccaneers to observe on Monday Night Football.
Since his return from a thumb injury that sidelined him for five games, quarterback Dak Prescott has led the team to new heights. With Prescott under center, Dallas jumped to an average of 35.1 points per game (first), a 56% rate on third down (first) and a red zone touchdown efficiency rate of 78.0 (third). An area where Prescott has been vulnerable is turnovers. He has accumulated 15 interceptions in 2022, tied for the NFL lead. Prescott has been picked off at least once in the previous seven outings. The inability to achieve a balanced attack for Dallas has put an added emphasis on the passing game, which has resulted in pressing and missteps in pass protection. The NFL's average on first-down runs is 4.43 yards this year per run and the Cowboys rank 24th (4.04). Without stout run blocker Terence Steele in the lineup alongside Zack Martin, the Cowboys have fallen to a 31st ranking in first-down runs with 2.91 per carry since Week 14. Whether in run support near the line of scrimmage or blitzing, safety Antoine Winfield Jr. will have a large role on Monday night. The Bucs' Swiss Army Knife and hybrid safety/nicker corner picked off Prescott in Week One. Winfield plays like his hair is on fire and can cover a lot of ground with speed. His angles to the ball are effective against the run or pass. Winfield is highly instinctive, and his recognition of play designs puts himself into prime positioning. He can play in the slot, over the top or come down to set the edge against the run. Winfield has 4.0 sacks in 13 games this season and if Todd Bowles' dials up creative blitzes with Winfield coming from the slot, he and Prescott will battle. This could turn into a cat-and-mouse game between the two football junkies.
There is no question mark about the availability of cornerback Carlton Davis, who has missed the last two games due to a shoulder injury, for Monday night's Wild Card matchup against the Cowboys. "He's good to go," said Head Coach Todd Bowles of Davis after practice on Thursday. Davis effectively jams and blankets receivers, solidifying the Bucs' secondary. Davis signed a new, three-year contract extension in March, a representation of the corner's value as the Bucs work towards hoisting another Lombardi Trophy. In 2022, he may not flash on the stat sheet in terms of interceptions (one), but Davis has disrupted passing lanes with 12 passes defensed and has been a force against the run with 65 tackles. Davis can play the high or low side of the route and his combination of size and length make him a nuisance for receivers. On Monday, he will face CeeDee Lamb, who has emerged as the Cowboys' unquestioned No. 1 receiver after the offseason trade of Amari Cooper. Lamb put on a show between the hash marks in 2022, accumulating 107 catches for 1,359 yards and nine touchdowns. A lot of Lamb's damage has come out of the slot; however, he plays nearly half of his slots out wide. When he is split out to the right, he will go up against Davis. Lamb is explosive in the open-field, is sudden in-and-out of breaks and is proficient at finding soft spots in a zone. With an elite catch radius, ability to adjust to the ball and a precise route tree, Lamb will be a challenge.
Devin White is No. 1 since 2019 in the NFL in sacks (20.5) and quarterback hits (55) for an inside linebacker. With rare closing speed, White is the centerpiece of blitz packages for Tampa Bay. White reads plays quickly and covers a lot of ground in zone. On quick dump passes to the flat, White explodes into the ball-carrier and is adept at making tackles in space. With instinctual play, he puts himself in position to make plays. In Week One against Dallas, White spearheaded the defense with 2.0 sacks. He was effective in creating opportunities for teammates as well, as they accounted for White as the expected blitzer. On a crossing pattern with Lavonte David, as both overlapped to rush up the A-gap and B-gaps, Anthony Nelson got home on a sack. Or White blitzed through the A-gap, providing the opportunity for Mike Edwards to sneak over and collapse the pocket as the running back chipped White. Todd Bowles is a pressure master and how the Cowboys' respond will be critical. Forcing Dallas to become one-dimensional will be vital for Tampa Bay. The Cowboys have struggled to run the ball effectively as of late, which has amplified miscues in pass protection and execution down the field. Steele formed a domineering complement with Zack Martin on combo/reach blocks and since his injury, they have struggled to achieve the same level of success. The Cowboys will try to reinvigorate their run game with explosive slash back Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott, the power back through tackles. White will play a key role in limiting yards if the rushers break to the second level and in keeping Dak Prescott off-kilter with pressure.
The NFL playoffs' wild-card round schedule for the 2022 season is stacked with great matchups, and we've got you covered with what you need to know for games on Sunday and Monday. The 49ers and Jaguars won on Saturday, but there are still a few more games to go. Our NFL Nation reporters bring us the biggest keys to every game and a bold prediction for each matchup.
Bold prediction: Joe Burrow won't throw a touchdown pass. Burrow threw a franchise-record 35 touchdown passes this season, recording at least one in every game. But he totaled only two TD passes in two meetings against the Ravens, who have allowed the second-fewest touchdown passes (13) since Week 3. -- Jamison Hensley
Betting nugget: Tampa Bay was a league-worst 4-12-1 against the spread this season. It is the second-worst regular-season ATS mark of any playoff team in the Super Bowl era. Read more.
Bowen's game-plan key: Jones needs to attack the perimeter of this Minnesota defense. He was 11-of-15 throwing outside the numbers in Week 16 against the Vikings (115 yards), and there is an opportunity there to hit some explosive plays. Read more at ESPN+.
Betting nugget: New York was a league-best 13-4 against the spread this season, including 7-1 against the spread on the road. New York has covered four straight games -- and four straight road games. Read more at ESPN+.
What to watch for: The season series was split between the Bills and Dolphins, but the Dolphins are going into this meeting injured in a big way. Not only has quarterback Tua Tagovailoa been ruled out with rookie Skylar Thompson preparing to start, but running back Raheem Mostert will also not play after undergoing surgery on a broken thumb Monday. Mostert ran for 136 yards against the Bills when the teams played in Buffalo last month. With a banged-up offense, the Dolphins will likely have a tough time matching the No. 2 home scoring offense in the NFL. -- Alaina Getzenberg 041b061a72