document_title: 2017–18 NFL playoffs

question_text: who plays in the nfl wild card games

question_tokens: who plays in the nfl wild card games

text: 2017–18 NFL playoffs

text: Participants[edit]

text: Within each conference, the four division winners and the two wild card teams (the top two non-division winners with the best overall regular season records) qualified for the playoffs. The four division winners are seeded 1 through 4 based on their overall won-lost-tied record, and the wild card teams are seeded 5 and 6. The NFL does not use a fixed bracket playoff system, and there are no restrictions regarding teams from the same division matching up in any round. In the first round, dubbed the wild-card playoffs or wild-card weekend, the third-seeded division winner hosts the sixth seed wild card, and the fourth seed hosts the fifth. The 1 and 2 seeds from each conference then receive a bye in the first round. In the second round, the divisional playoffs, the number 1 seed hosts the worst surviving seed from the first round (seed 4, 5 or 6), while the number 2 seed will play the other team (seed 3, 4 or 5). The two surviving teams from each conference's divisional playoff games then meet in the respective AFC and NFC Conference Championship games, hosted by the higher seed. Although the Super Bowl, the fourth and final round of the playoffs, is played at a neutral site, the designated home team is based on an annual rotation by conference.

text:
Playoff seeds

Seed
AFC
NFC

1
New England Patriots (East winner)
Philadelphia Eagles (East winner)

2
Pittsburgh Steelers (North winner)
Minnesota Vikings (North winner)

3
Jacksonville Jaguars (South winner)
Los Angeles Rams (West winner)

4
Kansas City Chiefs (West winner)
New Orleans Saints (South winner)

5
Tennessee Titans (wild card)
Carolina Panthers (wild card)

6
Buffalo Bills (wild card)
Atlanta Falcons (wild card)

text: Bracket[edit]

text:
Jan 7 – Mercedes-Benz Superdome

Jan 14 – U.S. Bank Stadium

  5
  Carolina
  26

  4
  New Orleans
  24

  4
  New Orleans
  31

Jan 21 – Lincoln Financial Field

  2
  Minnesota
  29

NFC

Jan 6 – Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  2
  Minnesota
  7

Jan 13 – Lincoln Financial Field

  1
  Philadelphia
  38

  6
  Atlanta
  26
NFC Championship

  6
  Atlanta
  10

  3
  LA Rams
  13

Feb 4 – U.S. Bank Stadium

  1
  Philadelphia
  15

Wild card playoffs

Divisional playoffs

Jan 7 – EverBank Field
 N1
  Philadelphia
  41

Jan 14 – Heinz Field

 A1
  New England
  33

  6
  Buffalo
  3
Super Bowl LII

  3
  Jacksonville
  45

  3
  Jacksonville
  10

Jan 21 – Gillette Stadium

  2
  Pittsburgh
  42

AFC

Jan 6 – Arrowhead Stadium
  3
  Jacksonville
  20

Jan 13 – Gillette Stadium

  1
  New England
  24

  5
  Tennessee
  22
AFC Championship

  5
  Tennessee
  14

  4
  Kansas City
  21

  1
  New England
  35

text:
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text: Schedule[edit]

text:
Away team
Score
Home Team
Date
Kickoff
(EST / UTC–5)
TV

Wild card playoffs

Tennessee Titans
22–21
Kansas City Chiefs
January 6, 2018
4:35 p.m.
ABC/ESPN

Atlanta Falcons
26–13
Los Angeles Rams
January 6, 2018
8:15 p.m.
NBC

Buffalo Bills
3–10
Jacksonville Jaguars
January 7, 2018
1:05 p.m.
CBS

Carolina Panthers
26–31
New Orleans Saints
January 7, 2018
4:40 p.m.
Fox

Divisional playoffs

Atlanta Falcons
10–15
Philadelphia Eagles
January 13, 2018
4:35 p.m.
NBC

Tennessee Titans
14–35
New England Patriots
January 13, 2018
8:15 p.m.
CBS

Jacksonville Jaguars
45–42
Pittsburgh Steelers
January 14, 2018
1:05 p.m.

New Orleans Saints
24–29
Minnesota Vikings
January 14, 2018
4:40 p.m.
Fox

Conference Championships

Jacksonville Jaguars
20–24
New England Patriots
January 21, 2018
3:05 p.m.
CBS

Minnesota Vikings
7–38
Philadelphia Eagles
January 21, 2018
6:40 p.m.
Fox

Super Bowl LII
U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Philadelphia Eagles
41–33
New England Patriots
February 4, 2018
6:30 p.m.
NBC

text: Wild card playoffs[edit]

text: Saturday, January 6, 2018[edit]

text: AFC: Tennessee Titans 22, Kansas City Chiefs 21[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Titans
0
3
7
12
22

Chiefs
14
7
0
0
21

text: at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

text:
Date: January 6, 2018
Game time: 4:35 p.m. EST/3:35 p.m. CST
Game weather: Sunny, 33 °F (1 °C)
Game attendance: 73,319
Referee: Jeff Triplette
TV announcers (ABC/ESPN): Sean McDonough (play-by-play), Jon Gruden (color commentator), Lisa Salters (sideline reporter)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

KC – Kareem Hunt 1-yard run (Harrison Butker kick), 7:07. Chiefs 7–0. Drive: 6 plays, 81 yards, 2:56.
KC – Travis Kelce 13-yard pass from Alex Smith (Harrison Butker kick), 2:15. Chiefs 14–0. Drive: 5 plays, 76 yards, 3:24.

Second quarter

TEN – Ryan Succop 49-yard field goal, 1:55. Chiefs 14–3. Drive: 8 plays, 48 yards, 4:02.
KC – Demarcus Robinson 14-yard pass from Alex Smith (Harrison Butker kick), 0:03. Chiefs 21–3. Drive: 9 plays, 79 yards, 1:52.

Third quarter

TEN – Marcus Mariota 6-yard pass from Marcus Mariota (Ryan Succop kick), 6:31. Chiefs 21–10. Drive: 15 plays, 91 yards, 8:29.

Fourth quarter

TEN – Derrick Henry 35-yard run (pass failed), 14:08. Chiefs 21–16. Drive: 6 plays, 62 yards, 3:17.
TEN – Eric Decker 22-yard pass from Marcus Mariota (pass failed), 6:06. Titans 22–21. Drive: 11 plays, 80 yards, 5:09.

Top passers

TEN – Marcus Mariota – 19/31, 205 yards, 2 TD, INT
KC – Alex Smith – 24/33, 264 yards, 2 TD

Top rushers

TEN – Derrick Henry – 23 rushes, 156 yards, TD
KC – Kareem Hunt – 11 rushes, 42 yards, TD

Top receivers

TEN – Delanie Walker – 6 receptions, 74 yards
KC – Tyreek Hill – 7 receptions, 87 yards

text: The Tennessee Titans overcame an 18-point halftime deficit to defeat the Kansas City Chiefs 22–21 and won their first playoff game since the 2003 season.

text: Kansas City opened the scoring on their second possession of the game. After Alex Smith connected with Tyreek Hill for 45 yards and Travis Kelce for a 27-yard completion, Kareem Hunt ran in for a one-yard touchdown. On their next drive the Chiefs drove 76 yards in five plays, with Smith completing a 26-yard pass to Hill and an 18-yard pass to receiver Albert Wilson. Following an 18-yard run by Hunt, Smith hit Kelce for a 13-yard touchdown. Smith finished the quarter with 154 passing yards, a career high.

text: In the second quarter, Tennessee advanced to Kansas City's 21-yard line before Marcus Mariota was intercepted by Marcus Peters, who returned the ball 28 yards to the Chiefs' 37-yard line. Following a punt, tight end Delanie Walker's 22-yard reception sparked a drive to the Chiefs' 22-yard line; but on third-and-4, linebacker Derrick Johnson sacked Mariota and forced the team to settle for a 49-yard Ryan Succop field goal. The Chiefs increased their lead to 18 points by the end of the half, however, with a nine-play, 79-yard drive that culminated in a 14-yard pass from Smith to Demarcus Robinson with three seconds left in the half. Kansas City went into halftime with a 21–3 lead, with more total yards (284 to 127) and more first downs (16 to 3).[3] Kelce did not return to the game due to an injury, while catching a 12-yard pass on the final drive.

text: Tennessee opened the second half with a 15-play, 91-yard drive that consumed 8:29 off the clock. On a third-down play from the Kansas City 6-yard line, Mariota attempted a pass, which was deflected by Darrelle Revis, back to Mariota, who promptly ran it in for a touchdown, making him the first quarterback to complete a touchdown pass to himself in a postseason game.[4] The Chiefs were forced to punt on their next drive, but Adoree' Jackson muffed the catch and Keith Reaser recovered for Kansas City. They were unable to capitalize on the turnover, however, as they lost two yards over their next three plays and Harrison Butker hit the upright from a 48-yard field goal attempt. Tennessee took the ball back and drove 62 yards in six plays, scoring on a 35-yard run by Derrick Henry on the second play of the fourth quarter to cut the score to 21–16 after a failed two-point conversion.

text: Again forcing a Kansas City punt, Tennessee drove 81 yards in 11 plays to take their first lead of the game. Mariota converted three third downs on the drive, completing a 9-yard pass to Walker on third-and-3, scrambling 17 yards for a first down on third-and-8, and then connecting a 10-yard pass to tight end Jonnu Smith on third-and-2. Eventually, Mariota finished the drive by throwing to Eric Decker for a 22-yard touchdown, giving Tennessee a 22–21 lead following another failed two-point conversion with 6:06 remaining. Kansas City then drove into Tennessee territory, but Alex Smith was sacked on third down by Derrick Morgan and then missed a pass to Wilson on fourth down with 2:09 left. On the second play of Tennessee's drive, Johnson recovered a Henry fumble and returned it 56 yards for a touchdown, but Henry was ruled down by contact upon review. One play later, Kansas City had one last chance to get the ball back on a third-and-10 situation. Mariota handed the ball off to Henry, who started to run to the middle, but then switched direction and ran to the left. Aided by a key block from Mariota against linebacker Frank Zombo, Henry raced 22 yards down the left sideline for a game-clinching first down, and the Titans ran out the rest of the clock,[5] having held the Chiefs to 41 yards and three first downs in the second half.

text: Alex Smith finished as the leading passer with 264 yards and two touchdowns, but only 110 yards after the first quarter. Mariota threw for 205 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in his first playoff start; his self-caught touchdown pass made him the first player since at least 1950 ever to throw and catch a touchdown pass in the same playoff game.[4] Henry gained 156 yards on 23 carries and 191 total yards from scrimmage, while Hunt, the league's leading rusher during the regular season, gained just 42 yards on 11 carries. Chiefs coach Andy Reid faced criticism for not relying on Hunt to protect their lead in the second half, as Hunt only carried the ball five times after halftime.[3]

text: Tennessee became the first road team to erase an 18-point deficit to win a postseason game since the 1972 playoffs. The loss was Kansas City's sixth consecutive home playoff loss, extending a league record.[6]

text: NFC: Atlanta Falcons 26, Los Angeles Rams 13[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Falcons
6
7
6
7
26

Rams
0
10
0
3
13

text: at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

text:
Date: January 6, 2018
Game time: 8:15 p.m. EST/5:15 p.m. PST
Game weather: Cloudy, 62 °F (17 °C)
Game attendance: 74,300
Referee: Ed Hochuli
TV announcers (NBC): Al Michaels (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (color commentator), Michele Tafoya (sideline reporter)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

ATL – Matt Bryant 29-yard field goal, 7:13. Falcons 3–0. Drive: 4 plays, 6 yards, 1:27.
ATL – Matt Bryant 51-yard field goal, 1:23. Falcons 6–0. Drive: 9 plays, 57 yards, 4:12.

Second quarter

ATL – Devonta Freeman 3-yard run (Matt Bryant kick), 11:34. Falcons 13–0. Drive: 8 plays, 32 yards, 4:41.
LAR – Cooper Kupp 14-yard pass from Jared Goff (Sam Ficken kick), 2:34. Falcons 13–7. Drive: 7 plays, 79 yards, 3:05.
LAR – Sam Ficken 35-yard field goal, 0:03. Falcons 13–10. Drive: 6 plays, 67 yards, 1:12.

Third quarter

ATL – Matt Bryant 25-yard field goal, 6:45. Falcons 16–10. Drive: 16 plays, 76 yards, 8:15.
ATL – Matt Bryant 54-yard field goal, 0:19. Falcons 19–10. Drive: 10 plays, 45 yards, 4:52.

Fourth quarter

LAR – Sam Ficken 32-yard field goal, 10:49. Falcons 19–13. Drive: 9 plays, 67 yards, 4:30.
ATL – Julio Jones 8-yard pass from Matt Ryan (Matt Bryant kick), 5:48. Falcons 26–13. Drive: 8 plays, 83 yards, 5:01.

Top passers

ATL – Matt Ryan – 21/30, 218 yards, TD
LAR – Jared Goff – 24/45, 259 yards, TD

Top rushers

ATL – Devonta Freeman – 18 rushes, 66 yards, TD
LAR – Todd Gurley – 14 rushes, 101 yards

Top receivers

ATL – Julio Jones – 9 receptions, 94 yards, TD
LAR – Robert Woods – 9 receptions, 142 yards

text: This was the first NFL postseason contest held in Los Angeles since the end of the 1993 season, when the Raiders defeated the Denver Broncos in an AFC Wild Card game at the Coliseum. The win was the Falcons' first road playoff victory since 2002.

text: Atlanta got an early scoring opportunity when Blake Countess muffed a punt that Falcons linebacker LaRoy Reynolds recovered on the Rams' 17-yard line, leading to Matt Bryant's 29-yard field goal. Then, after a punt, Atlanta receiver Julio Jones caught a 27-yard pass and rushed for 13 yards on an end-around play as the team drove 57 yards in nine plays to go up 6–0 on Bryant's 51-yard field goal. Damontae Kazee forced a fumble from Pharoh Cooper on the ensuing kickoff, which Kemal Ishmael recovered for Atlanta on the Rams' 32-yard line. This time, the Falcons were able to take the ball to the end zone, scoring on a 3-yard touchdown run by Devonta Freeman as a result of center Alex Mack literally dragging him across the goal line.

text: Late in the second quarter, the Rams finally managed to get on the board, sparked by a 26-yard run by Todd Gurley. Jared Goff finished the drive with passes to Cooper Kupp, the first for 15 yards, and the second a 14-yard touchdown completion that made the score 13–7. The next time they had the ball, only 1:15 remained in the half, but they were able to convert a 38-yard completion from Goff to Robert Woods into a 35-yard Sam Ficken field goal, making the score 13–10 at halftime.

text: The Falcons took up more than half the third quarter with their opening drive, moving the ball 76 yards in 16 plays. Freeman carried the ball six times for 42 yards, while quarterback Matt Ryan converted a fourth-and-1 with a 1-yard sneak. Bryant finished the possession with his third field goal, this one from 25 yards, increasing their lead to 16–10. After a Rams punt, Ryan's completions to Jones for gains of 12 and 16 yards set up Bryant's fourth field goal, a 51-yard kick, to put the team up 19–10. The Rams quickly struck back, with Gurley rushing twice for gains of 14 and 33 yards, along with Goff completing an 18-yard pass to Woods. Ficken's 32-yard field goal at the end of the drive cut the deficit to 19–13 with just over 10 minutes left. However, Atlanta came back with an eight-play, 83-yard drive featuring a 52-yard completion from Ryan to Mohamed Sanu. On the last play, Ryan's 8-yard touchdown pass to Jones put his team up 26–13. The Rams responded with one last drive to try and get back in the game, moving the ball to a third-and-goal situation on Atlanta's 5-yard line. Goff then threw a touchdown pass to tight end Tyler Higbee, but the call was reversed by a review, as replays showed the ball hit the ground as Higbee was going to the turf. On the next play, Goff threw an incomplete pass, causing a turnover on downs with 2:05 left. The Rams received the ball one more time, but this resulted in another turnover on downs.[7]

text: Ryan completed 21 of 30 passes for 213 yards and a touchdown, while Jones caught nine passes for 94 yards and a touchdown. Goff finished the day 24-for-45 for 259 yards and a touchdown. His top target was Woods, who caught nine passes for 142 yards. Gurley was the game's top rusher with 101 yards on 14 carries, while also catching four passes for 10 yards.

text: Sunday, January 7, 2018[edit]

text: AFC: Jacksonville Jaguars 10, Buffalo Bills 3[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Bills
0
3
0
0
3

Jaguars
0
3
7
0
10

text: at EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Florida

text:
Date: January 7, 2018
Game time: 1:05 p.m. EST
Game weather: Sunny, 53 °F (12 °C)
Game attendance: 69,442
Referee: John Hussey
TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz (play-by-play), Tony Romo (color commentator), Tracy Wolfson and Jay Feely (sideline reporters)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

No scoring plays.

Second quarter

BUF – Stephen Hauschka 31-yard field goal, 1:49. Bills 3–0. Drive: 18 plays, 71 yards, 8:06.
JAX – Josh Lambo 44-yard field goal, 0:02. Tied 3–3. Drive: 6 plays, 27 yards, 0:38.

Third quarter

JAX – Ben Koyack 1-yard pass from Blake Bortles (Josh Lambo kick), 0:42. Jaguars 10–3. Drive: 15 plays, 86 yards, 8:52.

Fourth quarter

No scoring plays.

Top passers

BUF – Tyrod Taylor – 17/37, 134 yards, INT
JAX – Blake Bortles – 12/23, 87 yards, TD

Top rushers

BUF – LeSean McCoy – 19 rushes, 75 yards
JAX – Blake Bortles – 10 rushes, 88 yards

Top receivers

BUF – LeSean McCoy – 6 receptions, 44 yards
JAX – Dede Westbrook – 5 receptions, 48 yards

text: This was the Jaguars' first playoff appearance since 2007, and their first home playoff game since the 1999–2000 AFC Championship, which they lost to the Tennessee Titans. It was also Buffalo's first playoff game since they also lost to the Titans in the same season, ending the longest playoff drought among any team in the four major professional leagues in North America. In the lowest scoring NFL postseason game since the 1997 season, Jacksonville's 15-play, 86-yard touchdown drive in the third quarter was enough to propel them to victory.

text: Every drive in the first quarter ended in a punt. Early in the second quarter, Jacksonville got a chance to score when Aaron Colvin intercepted a pass from Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor on the Buffalo 35-yard line. However, the team lost three yards over the next three plays and decided to punt rather than risk a long field goal. From there, Buffalo took up nearly all the remaining time in the quarter, driving all the way to the Jaguars' 1-yard line. However, an offensive pass interference penalty against receiver Kelvin Benjamin pushed them back 10 yards and they ended up settling for a 31-yard Steven Hauschka field goal to take a 3–0 lead with 1:49 left in the half. After an exchange of punts, Jacksonville got the ball on their own 47-yard line with 40 seconds left,and quarterback Blake Bortles scrambled twice for gains of 20 and 12 yards to set up Josh Lambo's 44-yard field goal, tying the score at halftime.

text: On the Jaguars' second possession of the second half, they drove 86 yards in 15 plays to take a 10–3 lead. The key player of the drive was running back Leonard Fournette, who carried the ball eight times for 33 yards and caught a pass for 12 yards. Eventually the team faced fourth-and-goal on the 1-yard line, and decided to go for the touchdown, which paid off as Bortles threw a pass to tight end Ben Koyack for the score with 42 seconds left in the third quarter. Jacksonville's defense then locked the Bills down in the fourth quarter, forcing three punts and an interception by Jalen Ramsey on the Jaguars' 48-yard line with 26 seconds left.[8]

text: Bortles completed only 12 of 23 passes for 87 yards and a touchdown, but was also the game's leading rusher with 88 yards on the ground. Bills running back LeSean McCoy rushed for 75 yards and caught six passes for 44 yards.

text: NFC: New Orleans Saints 31, Carolina Panthers 26[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Panthers
0
9
3
14
26

Saints
7
14
3
7
31

text: at Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

text:
Date: January 7, 2018
Game time: 4:40 p.m. EST/3:40 p.m. CST
Game weather: Played indoors (domed stadium)
Game attendance: 73,186
Referee: Tony Corrente
TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck (play-by-play), Troy Aikman (color commentator), Erin Andrews and Chris Myers (sideline reporters)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

NO – Ted Ginn Jr. 80-yard pass from Drew Brees (Wil Lutz kick), 1:46. Saints 7–0. Drive: 2 plays, 80 yards, 0:18.

Second quarter

CAR – Graham Gano 27-yard field goal, 14:12. Saints 7–3. Drive: 6 plays, 66 yards, 2:34.
NO – Josh Hill 9-yard pass from Drew Brees (Wil Lutz kick), 9:04. Saints 14–3. Drive: 9 plays, 75 yards, 5:08.
CAR – Graham Gano 39-yard field goal, 2:47. Saints 14–6. Drive: 12 plays, 54 yards, 6:17.
NO – Zach Line 1-yard run (Wil Lutz kick), 0:43. Saints 21–6. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 2:04.
CAR – Graham Gano 58-yard field goal, 0:00. Saints 21–9. Drive: 5 plays, 35 yards, 0:43.

Third quarter

CAR – Graham Gano 29-yard field goal, 10:58. Saints 21–12. Drive: 9 plays, 64 yards, 4:02.
NO – Wil Lutz 57-yard field goal, 6:05. Saints 24–12. Drive: 10 plays, 36 yards, 4:53.

Fourth quarter

CAR – Greg Olsen 14-yard pass from Cam Newton (Graham Gano kick), 12:47. Saints 24–19. Drive: 8 plays, 68 yards, 3:45.
NO – Alvin Kamara 2-yard run (Wil Lutz kick), 5:08. Saints 31–19. Drive: 5 plays, 62 yards, 3:02.
CAR – Christian McCaffrey 56-yard pass from Cam Newton (Graham Gano kick), 4:09. Saints 31–26. Drive: 3 plays, 75 yards, 0:59.

Top passers

CAR – Cam Newton – 24/40, 349 yards, 2 TD
NO – Drew Brees – 23/33, 376 yards, 2 TD, INT

Top rushers

CAR – Jonathan Stewart – 11 rushes, 51 yards
NO – Alvin Kamara – 10 rushes, 23 yards, TD

Top receivers

CAR – Greg Olsen – 8 receptions, 107 yards, TD
NO – Michael Thomas – 8 receptions, 131 yards

text: This was the first postseason meeting between the Panthers and Saints. This was also the Panthers' first loss in the Wildcard Round, as they were previously 3–0 in this round. The Saints last appeared in the 2014 playoffs, where they lost to eventual Super Bowl XLVIII champions, the Seattle Seahawks,[9] while it was the Panthers' first playoff appearance since losing in Super Bowl 50.

text: Carolina had a chance to score on their second possession of the game, driving to a third-and-goal on the Saints' 7-yard line. But over the next two plays, Kaelin Clay dropped a potential touchdown catch in the end zone and then Graham Gano missed a 25-yard field goal attempt. On the second play after the missed field goal, New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees threw a deep pass down the middle of the field to Ted Ginn Jr., who evaded a tackle attempt by James Bradberry and ran all the way to the end zone for an 80-yard touchdown reception. This gave New Orleans a 7–0 lead with less than two minutes left in the first quarter.

text: Carolina responded on their next drive, converting a 22-yard completion from Cam Newton to Greg Olsen and a 39-yard pass interference penalty against defensive back Ken Crawley into a 27-yard Gano field goal that cut the score to 7–3. However, New Orleans responded immediately, with Brees completing passes to Michael Thomas for gains of 19, 8, and 13 yards, as well as passes to running backs Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara for gains of 13 and 10 yards. On the last play of the drive, Brees put the Saints up 14–3 with a 9-yard touchdown pass to tight end Josh Hill. Carolina struck back, with Newton completing a 19-yard pass to Brenton Bersin and converting a fourth-and-1 with a quarterback sneak. Gano finished the 54-yard drive with a 39-yard field goal to make the score 14–6 with 2:47 left in the half. Brees responded by completing 4 of 6 passes for 67 yards on the way to a 1-yard touchdown run by fullback Zach Line, increasing the Saints' lead to 21–6. Taking the ball back with just over 40 seconds left, Newton completed a 24-yard pass to Devin Funchess. A few more plays moved the ball to the Saints' 40-yard line, where Gano barely managed to squeeze a 58-yard field goal inside the left upright, tying the NFL record for the longest field goal in postseason history.

text: The Panthers continued to chip away at their deficit with their first drive of the second half, as they moved the ball 64 yards in nine plays on a possession that featured a 29-yard run by Jonathan Stewart. Gano finished the drive with his fourth field goal, making the score 21–12. But New Orleans was able to respond, with Ginn catching two passes for 30 yards on a 36-yard drive that ended with Wil Lutz kicking a 57-yard field goal, bringing their lead back up to 24–12. With less than two minutes left in the third quarter, the Panthers started a 68-yard drive in which Olsen caught three passes for 54 total yards, the last one a 14-yard touchdown catch that cut the score to 24–19 after the two-point conversion failed.

text: Following a few punts, Brees' 46-yard completion to Thomas gave the Saints a first down on the Carolina 5-yard line, where they went on to score with Kamara's 2-yard touchdown run and go up 31–19 with 5:08 left. On the third play of the Panthers' next drive, Newton completed a short pass to running back Christian McCaffrey, who raced 56 yards for a touchdown, cutting the score to 31–26. New Orleans took the ball back and drove to a fourth-and-2 situation on the 47-yard line at the two-minute warning. Deciding to go for the first down, Brees threw a pass that was intercepted by safety Mike Adams, giving the ball back to the Panthers, though Adams' decision to intercept the ball instead of knocking the pass down ended up costing his team 16 yards. Carolina then drove to the Saints' 21-yard line. On second down, Newton was flagged for intentional grounding while throwing a pass to avoid a sack, bringing up third-and-23. Then after an incompletion, safety Vonn Bell sacked Newton, forcing a turnover on downs with four seconds left.

text: Newton finished the game 24-of-40 for 349 yards and two touchdowns, along with 37 yards on the ground. His top target was Olsen (eight receptions for 107 yards and a touchdown), who was one of four players in this game to have over 100 receiving yards. The others were McCaffrey (six for 101 yards and a touchdown), Thomas (eight receptions for 131 yards) and Ginn (four receptions for 115 yards and a touchdown). Brees was 23-of-33 for 376 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Bell had nine tackles – seven solo – and a sack.

text: Divisional playoffs[edit]

text: Saturday, January 13, 2018[edit]

text: NFC: Philadelphia Eagles 15, Atlanta Falcons 10[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Falcons
3
7
0
0
10

Eagles
0
9
3
3
15

text: at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

text:
Date: January 13, 2018
Game time: 4:35 p.m. EST
Game weather: Sunny, 32 °F (0 °C)
Game attendance: 69,596
Referee: Bill Vinovich
TV announcers (NBC): Al Michaels (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (color commentator), Michele Tafoya (sideline reporter)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

ATL – Matt Bryant 33-yard field goal, 9:05. Falcons 3–0. Drive: 11 plays, 59 yards, 5:32.

Second quarter

PHI – LeGarrette Blount 1-yard run (kick failed), 10:28. Eagles 6–3. Drive: 14 plays, 86 yards, 6:44.
ATL – Devonta Freeman 6-yard pass from Matt Ryan (Matt Bryant kick), 5:41. Falcons 10–6. Drive: 4 plays, 18 yards, 1:50.
PHI – Jake Elliott 53-yard field goal, 0:00. Falcons 10–9. Drive: 5 plays, 37 yards, 0:46.

Third quarter

PHI – Jake Elliott 37-yard field goal, 0:11. Eagles 12–10. Drive: 12 plays, 74 yards, 5:42.

Fourth quarter

PHI – Jake Elliott 21-yard field goal, 6:02. Eagles 15–10. Drive: 14 plays, 80 yards, 7:57.

Top passers

ATL – Matt Ryan – 22/36, 210 yards, TD
PHI – Nick Foles – 23/30, 246 yards

Top rushers

ATL – Tevin Coleman – 10 rushes, 79 yards
PHI – Jay Ajayi – 15 rushes, 54 yards

Top receivers

ATL – Julio Jones – 9 receptions, 101 yards
PHI – Alshon Jeffery – 4 receptions, 61 yards

text: Philadelphia's defense recorded three sacks, held Atlanta to 281 yards – 83 below their season average – and stopped the Falcons on four consecutive plays after a first-and-goal on their own 9-yard line in the final minutes to preserve a 15–10 win.

text: The Eagles seemed primed to score on their opening drive when a 42-yard pass interference penalty on Falcons defensive back Brian Poole gave them the ball on the Falcons' 33-yard line. But on the next play, Ricardo Allen forced a fumble from Jay Ajayi that was recovered by safety Keanu Neal. Atlanta then drove 59 yards in 12 plays to score on Matt Bryant's 33-yard field goal, giving them a 3–0 lead. After the teams exchanged punts, Ajayi rushed four times for 26 yards on one drive and receiver Nelson Agholor ran for 21 yards on an end-around play as the team drove to a fourth-and-goal on the Atlanta 1-yard line. On the next play, LeGarrette Blount finished the 86-yard drive with a rush for the touchdown, putting the team up 6–3 with 10:28 left in the half; Jake Elliott hit the upright on his extra point attempt.

text: Atlanta had to punt on their next drive, but the ball bounced into Eagles blocker Bryan Braman and was recovered by Falcons linebacker LaRoy Reynolds on the Philadelphia 18-yard line, where they went on to go up 10–6 with Matt Ryan's six-yard touchdown pass to running back Devonta Freeman. Following a punt from each team, Philadelphia got the ball on their own 28-yard line with 46 seconds left in the half. Quarterback Nick Foles then completed passes to Corey Clement, Torrey Smith and Alshon Jeffery for gains of 7, 20 and 15 yards, setting up Elliott's 53-yard field goal, which cut the score to 10–9 at halftime.

text: With just under six minutes left in the third quarter, the Eagles got the ball on their own 7-yard line due to a 39-yard punt by Matt Bosher. From there, Foles completed 5 of 7 passes for 70 yards – Jeffery caught three of them for 46 – on a 74-yard, 12-play drive to take the lead at 12–10 with Elliott's 37-yard field goal. Elliott's ensuing kickoff went out of bounds, giving Atlanta good field position on their own 40-yard line. On the next play, the last of the third quarter, Ryan was sacked for a 10-yard loss by safety Rodney McLeod. The Falcons ended up going three-and-out, and their defense was soon back on the field trying to contain another long Eagles drive. This one went for 14 plays and 80 yards, 32 of them on a reception by Ajayi, taking 7:57 off the clock. Desmond Trufant managed to end the drive on the Falcons' 3-yard line by tackling Clement a yard short of a first down on third-and-3. However, Elliott kicked his third field goal on the next play, giving Philadelphia a 15–10 lead with 6:02 remaining. Atlanta took the ball back and drove to a first down on the Eagles' 9-yard line, featuring a 20-yard reception by Julio Jones on fourth-and-6. After throwing incomplete passes on the next two plays, Ryan threw a seven-yard pass to Jones on the 2-yard line. Then with 1:05 left, Ryan tried to connect with Jones in the end zone, but the pass went just through his hands, enabling the Eagles to get the ball and run out the clock.

text: Filling in for injured starter Carson Wentz, Foles completed 23 of 30 passes for 246 yards.[10] Ajayi rushed for 54 yards and caught three passes for 44 yards. Ryan completed 22 of 36 passes for 210 yards and a touchdown. Jones caught nine passes for 101 yards, and rushed for 21 yards, while Tevin Coleman was the top rusher of the game with 10 carries for 79 yards,[10] while also catching a pass for 14 yards.

text: With the win, the Eagles won their first playoff game and advanced to their first NFC Championship appearance since 2008, and their first at home since 2004.

text: AFC: New England Patriots 35, Tennessee Titans 14[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Titans
7
0
0
7
14

Patriots
0
21
7
7
35

text: at Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

text:
Date: January 13, 2018
Game time: 8:15 p.m. EST
Game weather: Clear and cold, 24 °F (−4 °C)
Game attendance: 65,878
Referee: Ronald Torbert
TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz (play-by-play), Tony Romo (color commentator), Tracy Wolfson and Jay Feely (sideline reporters)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

TEN – Corey Davis 15-yard pass from Marcus Mariota (Ryan Succop kick), 1:14. Titans 7–0. Drive: 11 plays, 95 yards, 5:17.

Second quarter

NE – James White 5-yard pass from Tom Brady (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 13:18. Tied 7–7. Drive: 7 plays, 73 yards, 2:56.
NE – James White 6-yard run (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 9:20. Patriots 14–7. Drive: 6 plays, 48 yards, 1:56.
NE – Chris Hogan 4-yard pass from Tom Brady (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 1:52. Patriots 21–7. Drive: 16 plays, 91 yards, 5:18.

Third quarter

NE – Brandon Bolden 2-yard run (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 4:02. Patriots 28–7. Drive: 9 plays, 56 yards, 4:20.

Fourth quarter

NE – Rob Gronkowski 4-yard pass from Tom Brady (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 10:22. Patriots 35–7. Drive: 15 plays, 90 yards, 6:58.
TEN – Corey Davis 11-yard pass from Marcus Mariota (Ryan Succop kick), 1:55. Patriots 35–14. Drive: 16 plays, 80 yards, 3:53.

Top passers

TEN – Marcus Mariota – 22/37, 254 yards, 2 TD
NE – Tom Brady – 35/53, 337 yards, 3 TD

Top rushers

TEN – Marcus Mariota – 4 rushes, 37 yards
NE – Dion Lewis – 15 rushes, 62 yards

Top receivers

TEN – Eric Decker – 6 receptions, 85 yards
NE – Danny Amendola – 11 receptions, 112 yards

text: New England racked up eight sacks, 438 yards, and 31 first downs as they advanced to their seventh consecutive AFC Championship game.[11]

text: Midway through the first quarter, Tennessee drove 95 yards in 11 plays, featuring a 36-yard completion from Marcus Mariota to tight end Delanie Walker. Mariota finished the drive with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Corey Davis, who made a running one-handed catch in the back corner of the end zone to put the Titans up 7–0. However, the Patriots stormed right back, with Tom Brady completing five consecutive passes for 67 yards, the longest a 32-yard completion to Dion Lewis and the last a five-yard shovel pass to James White for a touchdown that tied the score. After a Tennessee punt, Brady completed three consecutive passes for 28 yards as the team drove 48 yards in six plays to go up 14–7 on White's six-yard touchdown run with 9:20 left in the half.

text: The next time New England got the ball, they had to punt after three plays, but a neutral zone infraction penalty on Titans defensive back Brynden Trawick gave them a first down. Taking advantage of their second chance, they ended up driving 91 yards in 16 plays to take a 21–7 lead on Brady's six-yard touchdown pass to Chris Hogan. Tennessee then drove to the Patriots' 46-yard line; on fourth-and-1, Derrick Henry tried to run for a first down, but defensive backs Malcolm Butler and Stephon Gilmore tackled him for no gain. With 17 seconds left, the Patriots were able to get to the Titans' 35-yard line with time remaining, but Stephen Gostkowski missed a 53-yard field goal attempt as time expired. In the first half alone, Brady completed 21 of 31 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns.

text: In the third quarter, Brett Kern's 40-yard punt from his own 16-yard line gave the Patriots good field position on their 44-yard line. On the next play, Brady completed a 27-yard pass to tight end Rob Gronkowski, and the team went on to increase their lead to 28–7 with Brandon Bolden's two-yard touchdown run. The next time New England got the ball, they went on a 15-play, 90-yard drive in which they only faced two third downs. Brady completed seven passes for 78 yards on the drive, the longest a 25-yard throw to Danny Amendola, and finished it off with a four-yard touchdown toss to Gronkowski, making the score 35–7 with 10:22 left. Before the end of the quarter, the Titans were able to make it 35–14 with Mariota's 11-yard touchdown pass to Davis on fourth down at the end of an 80-yard, 16-play drive.

text: At 40 years, 163 days, Brady became the oldest quarterback ever to lead his team to victory in a postseason game, finishing the day 35-of-53 for 337 yards and three touchdowns.[10] Amendola caught 11 passes for 112 yards, while also returning three punts for 18 yards. Lewis rushed for 62 yards, caught nine passes for 79 yards, and returned a kickoff for 27 yards.[10] Linebacker Geneo Grissom and defensive tackle Deatrich Wise Jr. each had two sacks for New England.[10] Mariota completed 22 of 37 passes for 225 yards and two touchdowns.

text: This game set the NFL postseason record for largest the age difference between opposing quarterbacks: Brady was 40 and Mariota was 24.[12]

text: Sunday, January 14, 2018[edit]

text: AFC: Jacksonville Jaguars 45, Pittsburgh Steelers 42[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Jaguars
14
14
0
17
45

Steelers
0
14
7
21
42

text: at Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

text:
Date: January 14, 2018
Game time: 1:05 p.m. EST
Game weather: Sunny, 18 °F (−8 °C)
Game attendance: 64,524
Referee: Brad Allen
TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle (play-by-play), Dan Fouts (color commentator), Evan Washburn (sideline reporter)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

1st quarter

JAX – Leonard Fournette 1-yard run (Josh Lambo kick), 10:40. Jaguars 7–0. Drive: 8 plays, 66 yards, 4:20.
JAX – Leonard Fournette 18-yard run (Josh Lambo kick), 5:26. Jaguars 14–0. Drive: 1 play, 18 yards, 0:05.

2nd quarter

JAX – T. J. Yeldon 4-yard run (Josh Lambo kick), 11:31. Jaguars 21–0. Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 4:36.
PIT – Antonio Brown 23-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Chris Boswell kick), 8:20. Jaguars 21–7. Drive: 6 plays, 64 yards, 3:11.
JAX – Telvin Smith 50-yard fumble return (Josh Lambo kick), 2:20. Jaguars 28–7.
PIT – Martavis Bryant 36-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Chris Boswell kick), 0:25. Jaguars 28–14. Drive: 7 plays, 51 yards, 1:55.

3rd quarter

PIT – Le'Veon Bell 19-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Chris Boswell kick), 9:09. Jaguars 28–21. Drive: 10 plays, 77 yards, 5:51.

4th quarter

JAX – Leonard Fournette 3-yard run (Josh Lambo kick), 10:34. Jaguars 35–21. Drive: 5 plays, 61 yards, 2:10.
PIT – Antonio Brown 43-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Chris Boswell kick), 9:05. Jaguars 35–28. Drive: 5 plays, 75 yards, 1:29.
JAX – Tommy Bohanon 14-yard pass from Blake Bortles (Josh Lambo kick), 4:19. Jaguars 42–28. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 4:46.
PIT – Le'Veon Bell 8-yard run (Chris Boswell kick), 2:18. Jaguars 42–35. Drive: 12 plays, 75 yards, 2:01.
JAX – Josh Lambo 45-yard field goal, 1:45. Jaguars 45–35. Drive: 4 plays, 9 yards, 0:33.
PIT – JuJu Smith-Schuster 4-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Chris Boswell kick), 0:01. Jaguars 45–42. Drive: 10 plays, 75 yards, 1:44.

Top passers

JAX – Blake Bortles – 14/26, 214 yards, TD
PIT – Ben Roethlisberger – 37/58, 469 yards, 5 TD, INT

Top rushers

JAX – Leonard Fournette – 25 rushes, 109 yards, 3 TD
PIT – Le'Veon Bell – 16 rushes, 67 yards, TD

Top receivers

JAX – T. J. Yeldon – 3 receptions, 57 yards
PIT – Antonio Brown – 7 receptions, 132 yards, 2 TD

text: Jacksonville built up a 28–7 first-half lead and held off a second-half Steelers comeback to win the fourth highest scoring NFL playoff game.[13]

text: The Jaguars drove 66 yards in eight plays on their opening drive, with Blake Bortles completing passes to tight ends Ben Koyack and James O'Shaughnessy for gains of 21 and 19 yards on the way to a one-yard fourth-down touchdown run by Leonard Fournette. Later in the first quarter, linebacker Myles Jack intercepted a pass from Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger on the Pittsburgh 18-yard line, and Fournette increased Jacksonville's lead to 14–0 with a touchdown run on the next play. The Steelers responded with a drive to the Jacksonville 21-yard line, but on fourth-and-1, running back Le'Veon Bell was tackled by Jalen Ramsey and Malik Jackson for a four-yard loss. The Jaguars then drove 75 yards in 11 plays and scored on T. J. Yeldon's 4-yard touchdown run, increasing their lead to 21–0 with just over 11 minutes left in the half.

text: This time, the Steelers responded with a 64-yard scoring drive, featuring a 21-yard run by Bell and ending on Roethlisberger's 23-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Brown. But the next time Pittsburgh got the ball, Roethlisberger lost a fumble while being sacked by Yannick Ngakoue. Linebacker Telvin Smith recovered the ball and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown, making the score 28–7 with less than two minutes left until halftime. However, the Jaguars were penalized 15 yards for excessive celebration, and then Cameron Sutton returned the ensuing kickoff 22 yards to the Jacksonville 49-yard line. Pittsburgh went on to drive 51 yards and cut their deficit to 28–14 on Roethlisberger's 36-yard touchdown completion to Martavis Bryant with 25 seconds remaining.

text: The Steelers drove 77 yards in 10 plays on their opening drive of the second half, cutting their deficit to 28–21 with Roethlisberger's 19-yard touchdown pass to Bell. Early in the final period, the Steelers got the ball on the Jaguars' 48-yard line due to a deflected punt, but ended up turning the ball over with an incomplete pass on fourth-and-1. On the ensuing Jacksonville drive, Bortles' 45-yard completion to Keelan Cole put them on the Steelers' 3-yard line, and Fournette ran the ball in for a touchdown on the next play, giving the Jaguars a 35–21 lead. This was the start of a scoring run from both teams, cumulatively totaling 38 points in the fourth quarter. After Fournette's score, Roethlisberger started the next drive with a 21-yard completion to Brown, and eventually ended it with a 43-yard touchdown pass to Brown that cut the score to 35–28. Jacksonville stormed right back, moving the ball 75 yards in eight plays, one of them a 40-yard completion from Bortles to Yeldon on third-and-5. Fullback Tommy Bohanon caught a 14-yard touchdown pass from Bortles with 4:19 left, giving the Jaguars a 42–28 lead. The Steelers responded by moving the ball 75 yards in 12 plays, the longest a 22-yard reception from Bell. Bell finished the drive with an eight-yard touchdown run, reducing his team's deficit to 42–35 with 2:19 to play. However, Pittsburgh failed to recover their ensuing onside kick attempt, resulting in Jacksonville getting the ball back on the Steelers' 36-yard line and leading to a 45-yard Josh Lambo field goal that put the Jaguars up 45–35. Pittsburgh then drove 75 yards in 10 plays, including a 42-yard completion from Roethlisberger to Brown. He ended up throwing a four-yard touchdown pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster, but by then, one second remained.

text: Bortles completed 14 of 26 passes for 214 yards and a touchdown. Fournette was the top rusher of the game with 25 carries for 109 yards and three touchdowns, along with two receptions for 10 yards. Setting several franchise playoff records,[14] Roethlisberger completed 37 of 58 passes for 469 yards – the second highest total in NFL postseason history, behind Bernie Kosar's 489-yard tally,[14] from January 1987 – with five touchdowns and an interception. Bell rushed for 67 yards and a touchdown, while also catching nine passes for 88 yards, while Brown caught seven passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns. Tight end Vance McDonald also went over 100 yards receiving, making 10 receptions for 112 yards. The Steelers lost despite gaining 545 yards of total offense, the most yards gained by a losing team in a playoff game (this record would later be surpassed by the Patriots in Super Bowl LII).

text: NFC: Minnesota Vikings 29, New Orleans Saints 24[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Saints
0
0
7
17
24

Vikings
10
7
0
12
29

text: at U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, Minnesota

text:
Date: January 14, 2018
Game time: 4:40 p.m. EST/3:40 p.m. CST
Game weather: Played indoors (domed stadium)
Game attendance: 66,612
Referee: Gene Steratore
TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck (play-by-play), Troy Aikman (color commentator), Erin Andrews and Chris Myers (sideline reporters)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

MIN – Jerick McKinnon 14-yard run (Kai Forbath kick), 9:45. Vikings 7–0. Drive: 8 plays, 55 yards, 4:15.
MIN – Kai Forbath 20-yard field goal, 4:42. Vikings 10–0. Drive: 7 plays, 79 yards, 2:27.

Second quarter

MIN – Latavius Murray 1-yard run (Kai Forbath kick), 9:58. Vikings 17–0. Drive: 12 plays, 58 yards, 6:08.

Third quarter

NO – Michael Thomas 14-yard pass from Drew Brees (Wil Lutz kick), 1:18. Vikings 17–7. Drive: 12 plays, 80 yards, 6:40.

Fourth quarter

NO – Michael Thomas 3-yard pass from Drew Brees (Wil Lutz kick), 13:09. Vikings 17–14. Drive: 6 plays, 30 yards, 3:00.
MIN – Kai Forbath 49-yard field goal, 10:12. Vikings 20–14. Drive: 7 plays, 44 yards, 2:57.
NO – Alvin Kamara 14-yard pass from Drew Brees (Wil Lutz kick), 3:01. Saints 21–20. Drive: 4 plays, 40 yards, 2:20.
MIN – Kai Forbath 53-yard field goal, 1:29. Vikings 23–21. Drive: 9 plays, 40 yards, 1:32.
NO – Wil Lutz 43-yard field goal, 0:25. Saints 24–23. Drive: 11 plays, 50 yards, 1:04.
MIN – Stefon Diggs 61-yard pass from Case Keenum (run failed), 0:00. Vikings 29–24. Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 0:25.

Top passers

NO – Drew Brees – 25/40, 294 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT
MIN – Case Keenum – 25/40, 318 yards, TD, INT

Top rushers

NO – Alvin Kamara – 11 rushes, 43 yards
MIN – Latavius Murray – 19 rushes, 50 yards, TD

Top receivers

NO – Michael Thomas – 7 receptions, 85 yards, 2 TD
MIN – Stefon Diggs – 6 receptions, 137 yards, TD

text: Vikings quarterback Case Keenum's 61-yard pass to Stefon Diggs on the game's final play sent them to the NFC title game for the first time since the 2009 season and marked the first time in the NFL postseason that a game was won with a touchdown on the final play of regulation. The game has been referred to as the "Minneapolis Miracle."[15][16]

text: Minnesota dominated the first half, building up a 17–0 lead. The Saints had to punt on their opening drive, and Marcus Sherels returned the ball 19 yards to the Vikings' 45-yard line before being tackled by punter Thomas Morstead. The Vikings then drove 55 yards in eight plays, including a 22-yard catch by Jarius Wright on third-and-3, to score on Jerick McKinnon's 14-yard touchdown run. The next time they got the ball, two pass interference penalties on defensive back Ken Crawley gave the Vikings 54 yards on a 79-yard drive that ended with Kai Forbath's 20-yard field goal, increasing their lead to 10–0. Following two more possessions, Vikings safety Andrew Sendejo intercepted a pass from Drew Brees, giving Minnesota the ball on their own 42-yard line with 1:06 left in the first quarter. Keenum went 5-of-7 for 54 yards on a 58-yard drive that ended with Latavius Murray's one-yard touchdown run, giving the Vikings a 17–0 lead.

text: New Orleans responded with a drive to the Vikings' 14-yard line, but lost their chance to score when Brees threw a pass that was tipped at the line by Everson Griffen and intercepted by linebacker Anthony Barr. Then after a punt, Brees led the team to the Minnesota 30-yard line. But after two incompletions, Brees was sacked by safety Harrison Smith for a 10-yard loss, and Wil Lutz missed a 58-yard field goal attempt with 26 seconds left in the half. The Vikings would also get a field goal try before halftime, which resulted in Forbath missing from 49 yards out.

text: Minnesota took the opening kickoff and drove to the Saints' 30-yard line. However, in what turned out to be a crucial turning point, Keenum was sacked by Sheldon Rankins for a 10-yard loss on third down, pushing the team out of field goal range. New Orleans took the ball back and drove 80 yards in 12 plays, featuring a 23-yard reception by receiver Michael Thomas. Brees finished the drive with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Thomas, putting New Orleans on the board at 17–7. Then on the first play after the kickoff, Keenum threw a pass that was intercepted by rookie safety Marcus Williams, who returned it 12 yards to the Vikings' 30-yard line. New Orleans then drove for another touchdown, scoring on Brees' three-yard pass to Thomas that narrowed the gap to 17–14 with 13:09 left in the game.

text: Minnesota responded with a seven-play, 44-yard drive that included a 27-yard completion from Keenum to Wright and ended on Forbath's 49-yard field goal that increased the Vikings' lead to 20–14. Furthermore, Saints coach Sean Payton lost two timeouts on the drive as a result of failed replay challenges. After forcing the Saints to punt, the Vikings ran the clock under six minutes before having to kick the ball back to New Orleans. Saints lineman George Johnson blocked the punt, enabling his team to take over on the Vikings' 40-yard line. From there, Brees completed four consecutive passes, the last one a 14-yard touchdown completion to running back Alvin Kamara, giving them their first lead of the game at 21–20 with 3:01 left. Undaunted, the Vikings stormed back, mainly on the strength of a 24-yard Adam Thielen reception, moving the ball to the Saints 35-yard line, where Forbath made a 53-yard field goal that gave the team a 23–21 lead with 1:29 remaining. Brees was able to answer, throwing an 18-yard pass to tight end Josh Hill, an 11-yard pass to Ted Ginn Jr. and a 13-yard completion to Willie Snead on fourth-and-10. Minnesota eventually halted the drive on their own 25-yard line, where Lutz kicked a 43-yard field goal.

text: The Vikings were now down 24–23 with 25 seconds and one timeout left. After a touchback and a false start penalty put the ball on the 20-yard line, Keenum completed a 19-yard pass to Diggs on the 39-yard line, where the team promptly called their last timeout. Following two incomplete passes, they faced third-and-10 with 10 seconds left.[17] On the next play, Keenum threw a deep pass to Diggs near the right sideline, who made a leaping catch near the Saints' 35-yard line. Williams was in front of Diggs when he made the catch, but while trying to make a tackle, he completely missed Diggs and instead collided with Crawley, leaving the receiver with no one around him. Diggs nearly fell over at this point, but was able to stay on his feet by using his off-hand and stay in bounds as he ran all the way to the end zone for a 61-yard touchdown completion to give the Vikings a 29–24 win. After several minutes of pandemonium, the Vikings knelt on the extra point try to close out the victory.[18]

text: Keenum completed 25 of 40 passes for 318 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Diggs was the game's leading receiver with six receptions for 137 yards and a touchdown. Like Keenum, Brees also finished the game 25-of-40, but for 294 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. Kamara rushed for 43 yards, while also catching six passes for 72 yards and a touchdown.

text: Conference championships[edit]

text: Sunday, January 21, 2018[edit]

text: AFC Championship Game: New England Patriots 24, Jacksonville Jaguars 20[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Jaguars
0
14
3
3
20

Patriots
3
7
0
14
24

text:
Date: January 21, 2018
Game time: 3:05 p.m. EST
Game weather: Clear and cool, 48 °F (9 °C)
Game attendance: 65,878
Referee: Clete Blakeman
TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz (play-by-play), Tony Romo (color commentator), Tracy Wolfson and Jay Feely (sideline reporters)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

NE – Stephen Gostkowski 31-yard field goal, 9:21. Patriots 3–0. Drive: 10 plays, 62 yards, 5:39.

Second quarter

JAX – Marcedes Lewis 4-yard pass from Blake Bortles (Josh Lambo kick), 14:15. Jaguars 7–3. Drive: 7 plays, 76 yards, 3:36.
JAX – Leonard Fournette 4-yard run (Josh Lambo kick), 7:06. Jaguars 14–3. Drive: 10 plays, 77 yards, 6:07.
NE – James White 1-yard run (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 0:55. Jaguars 14–10. Drive: 6 plays, 85 yards, 1:07.

Third quarter

JAX – Josh Lambo 54-yard field goal, 10:23. Jaguars 17–10. Drive: 9 plays, 39 yards, 4:37.

Fourth quarter

JAX – Josh Lambo 43-yard field goal, 14:52. Jaguars 20–10. Drive: 11 plays, 66 yards, 4:49.
NE – Danny Amendola 9-yard pass from Tom Brady (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 8:44. Jaguars 20–17. Drive: 8 plays, 85 yards, 3:19.
NE – Danny Amendola 4-yard pass from Tom Brady (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 2:48. Patriots 24–20. Drive: 5 plays, 30 yards, 2:10.

Top passers

JAX – Blake Bortles – 23/36, 293 yards, TD
NE – Tom Brady – 26/38, 290 yards, 2 TD

Top rushers

JAX – Leonard Fournette – 24 rushes, 76 yards, TD
NE – Dion Lewis – 9 rushes, 34 yards

Top receivers

JAX – Allen Hurns – 6 receptions, 80 yards
NE – Danny Amendola – 7 receptions, 84 yards, 2 TD

text: New England overcame a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to earn the franchise's 10th Super Bowl appearance.

text: On the opening drive of the game, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady completed a 31-yard pass to Brandin Cooks and a 20-yard pass to wide receiver Danny Amendola on fourth-and-1 as the team drove 62 yards in 10 plays to score on Stephen Gostkowski's 31-yard field goal. Following a pair of punts, Jacksonville quarterback Blake Bortles completed two passes to running back Corey Grant for 44 total yards as the team drove 76 yards in seven plays to take a 7–3 lead on a four-yard touchdown pass to tight end Marcedes Lewis on the second play of the second quarter. The next time they got the ball, Bortles completed all four pass attempts for 47 yards, one of them a 27-yard completion to Allen Hurns, as the team drove 77 yards in 10 plays to score on Leonard Fournette's four-yard touchdown run, increasing their lead to 14–3.

text: On the Jaguars' next drive, they moved the ball to a third-and-7 on the Patriots' 47-yard line. Bortles completed a 12-yard pass to Lewis that would have picked up a first down, but the team was flagged for a delay of game and Bortles was sacked by Adam Butler on the next play. New England got the ball on their own 15-yard line with 2:02 left in the half, and proceeded to drive 85 yards in six plays – 47 yards from Jaguars penalties – to score on James White's 1-yard touchdown run, cutting the score to 14–10. However, Jacksonville safety Barry Church delivered a helmet-to-helmet hit on Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. Church drew a 15-yard penalty, and Gronkowski was escorted off for medical testing that determined that he had suffered a concussion.[19] Jacksonville got the ball back with 55 seconds and all three timeouts remaining, but chose to run out the clock and go to halftime, a choice that would later earn them criticism, as no team had deliberately run the first half clock out with more than 50 seconds left during the season.[20]

text: Jacksonville received the second half kickoff and drove 39 yards in nine plays, with 20 yards from a reception by fullback Tommy Bohanon. Josh Lambo finished the drive with a 54-yard field goal, increasing his team's lead to 17–10. Later in the period, the Jaguars advanced 66 yards in 11 plays, including 18 yards on a completion from Bortles to Marqise Lee on third-and-3. On the second play of the fourth quarter, Lambo scored with a 43-yard field goal, making the score 20–10. The game seemed to be slipping away from New England, particularly on their ensuing drive when linebacker Myles Jack forced and recovered a fumble from Dion Lewis on a trick play in which Amendola completed a forward pass to Lewis on the Jacksonville 33-yard line. However, the New England defense rose to the occasion and forced a three-and-out. Taking the ball back on the Patriots' 15-yard line, Brady started the drive with an 18-yard pass to Cooks, and then converted a third-and-18 with a 21-yard completion to Amendola on the 46-yard line. From there, Brady completed passes to Phillip Dorsett for 31 yards and Amendola for 14 yards before finishing the drive with a nine-yard touchdown pass to Amendola, making the score 20–17.

text: Following a pair of punts, Ryan Allen's 35-yard kick pinned the Jaguars back at their own 10-yard line. The Jaguars lost one yard over their next three plays, and then Amendola returned Brad Nortman's 41-yard punt 20 yards to the Jacksonville 30-yard line with 4:58 left. From there, New England drove 30 yards in five plays, scoring on Brady's four-yard touchdown pass to Amendola to take a 24–20 lead with 2:48 left. After taking the ball back, Bortles' 29-yard completion to Dede Westbrook gave the Jaguars a first down on the Patriots' 38-yard line. But over the next two plays, Bortles threw an incompletion and then fumbled the ball while being sacked by linebacker Kyle Van Noy. Jacksonville tackle Cam Robinson recovered the fumble, but the team lost nine yards on the play, bringing up third-and-19. After a four-yard pass to James O'Shaughnessy, Bortles' next pass was swatted away by Stephon Gilmore, causing a turnover on downs with 1:47 left. New England got a key first down on third-and-10 with an 18-yard run by Lewis that let them run out the clock.

text: Brady completed 26 of 38 passes for 290 yards and two touchdowns, Cooks was the top receiver of the game with six receptions for 100 yards, while Amendola caught seven passes for 84 yards and two touchdowns, and also returning two punts for 24 yards. Van Noy had nine tackles – including five solo tackles – a sack and a forced fumble. Bortles completed 23 of 36 passes for 293 yards and a touchdown, while Fournette was the leading rusher of the game with 76 yards and a touchdown and Hurns was the Jaguars' leading receiver with six receptions for 80 yards.

text: NFC Championship Game: Philadelphia Eagles 38, Minnesota Vikings 7[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Vikings
7
0
0
0
7

Eagles
7
17
7
7
38

text:
Date: January 21, 2018
Game time: 6:40 p.m. EST
Game weather: Cloudy, 47 °F (8 °C)
Game attendance: 69,596
Referee: Ed Hochuli
TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck (play-by-play), Troy Aikman (color commentator), Erin Andrews and Chris Myers (sideline reporters)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

MIN – Kyle Rudolph 25-yard pass from Case Keenum (Kai Forbath kick), 10:14. Vikings 7–0. Drive: 9 plays, 75 yards, 4:46.
PHI – Patrick Robinson 50-yard interception return (Jake Elliott kick), 6:26. Tied 7–7.

Second quarter

PHI – LeGarrette Blount 11-yard run (Jake Elliott kick), 13:37. Eagles 14–7. Drive: 12 plays, 75 yards, 6:20.
PHI – Alshon Jeffery 53-yard pass from Nick Foles (Jake Elliott kick), 1:09. Eagles 21–7. Drive: 7 plays, 76 yards, 2:07.
PHI – Jake Elliott 38-yard field goal, 0:00. Eagles 24–7. Drive: 4 plays, 60 yards, 0:29.

Third quarter

PHI – Torrey Smith 41-yard pass from Nick Foles (Jake Elliott kick), 10:05. Eagles 31–7. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 4:55.

Fourth quarter

PHI – Alshon Jeffery 5-yard pass from Nick Foles (Jake Elliott kick), 14:10. Eagles 38–7. Drive: 12 plays, 92 yards, 7:11.

Top passers

MIN – Case Keenum – 28/48, 271 yards, TD, 2 INT
PHI – Nick Foles – 26/33, 352 yards, 3 TD

Top rushers

MIN – Jerick McKinnon – 10 rushes, 40 yards
PHI – Jay Ajayi – 18 rushes, 73 yards

Top receivers

MIN – Jerick McKinnon – 11 receptions, 86 yards
PHI – Zach Ertz – 8 receptions, 93 yards

text: This was the first time a Super Bowl host team had appeared in the conference championship. Although the Vikings scored with their opening drive, they were soon buried by Philadelphia, who racked up 456 total yards and 38 unanswered points. Meanwhile, the Vikings' seven drives after their game-opening touchdown would result in three punts, two interceptions, two turnovers on downs, and one lost fumble.

text: Minnesota drove 75 yards in nine plays on their first possession, taking a 7–0 lead with Case Keenum's 25-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kyle Rudolph. The Eagles had to punt on their next drive, but after moving the ball to the 43-yard line, Keenum threw a pass that was intercepted by cornerback Patrick Robinson and returned 50 yards for a touchdown. Following a Vikings punt, Philadelphia drove 75 yards in 12 plays to take a 14–7 lead. Jay Ajayi started the drive with two carries for 20 yards, while Nick Foles converted a third-and-10 with an 11-yard completion to Zach Ertz and LeGarrette Blount finished the drive with an 11-yard rushing score on the third play of the second quarter. Later on, the Vikings drove to a third-and-5 on the Eagles' 16-yard line. But on the next play, Derek Barnett forced a fumble while sacking Keenum and defensive end Chris Long recovered the ball. Philadelphia then drove 76 yards in six plays, scoring on Foles' 53-yard touchdown pass to Alshon Jeffery to go up 21–7 with 3:16 left in the half. Following a punt, the Eagles got the ball on their 20-yard line with 29 seconds on the clock. Foles started the drive with an 11-yard pass to Ajayi, who managed to get out of bounds, before throwing a 36-yard completion on Ertz on the Vikings' 33-yard line. On the next play, Foles' 13-yard completion to Ajayi moved the ball to the 20 yard line with four seconds left, where Jake Elliott kicked a 43-yard field goal, making the score 24–7 at halftime.

text: The Eagles increased their lead to 31–7 less than five minutes into the second half, scoring with Foles' 41-yard touchdown pass to Torrey Smith on a flea-flicker play. The Vikings responded with a drive to a first-and-goal on the Eagles' seven-yard line. After three incomplete passes, Keenum threw a pass to Adam Thielen that was initially ruled a touchdown, but overturned to an incomplete pass after replays showed the ball had hit the ground, causing a turnover on downs. The Eagles took over and drove 92 yards in 12 plays, including a 42-yard completion from Foles to Nelson Agholor on third-and-5. Foles finished the drive with a five-yard touchdown pass to Jeffery on the second play of the fourth quarter, making the score 38–7. The Vikings had only two drives on the final period, one of them ending with a turnover on downs and another with an interception by Eagles defensive back Corey Graham.

text: Foles completed 26 of 33 passes for 352 yards and three touchdowns, Ertz was the leading receiver of the game with eight receptions for 93 yards, while Jeffery caught five passes for 85 yards and two touchdowns. Ajayi rushed for 73 yards and caught three passes for 26 yards. Keenum finished the game 28-of-48 for 271 yards and a touchdown, with two interceptions, while Jerick McKinnon was the Vikings' leading rusher with 40 yards, and their leading receiver with 11 receptions for 86 yards.

text: Super Bowl LII: Philadelphia Eagles 41, New England Patriots 33[edit]

text:
1
2
3
4
Total

Eagles
9
13
7
12
41

Patriots
3
9
14
7
33

text:
Date: February 4, 2018
Game time: 6:30 p.m. EST/5:30 p.m. CST
Game weather: Played indoors (domed stadium)
Game attendance: 67,612
Referee: Gene Steratore
TV announcers (NBC): Al Michaels (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (analyst), Michele Tafoya (sideline reporter)
Recap, Game Book

text:
[show]Game information

First quarter

PHI – Jake Elliott 25-yard field goal, 7:55. Eagles 3–0. Drive: 14 plays, 67 yards, 7:05.
NE – Stephen Gostkowski 26-yard field goal, 4:17. Tied 3–3. Drive: 9 plays, 67 yards, 3:38.
PHI – Alshon Jeffery 34-yard pass from Nick Foles (kick failed, wide right), 2:34. Eagles 9–3. Drive: 3 plays, 77 yards, 1:43.

Second quarter

PHI – LeGarrette Blount 21-yard pass from Nick Foles (pass failed), 8:48. Eagles 15–3. Drive: 6 plays, 65 yards, 3:05.
NE – Stephen Gostkowski 45-yard field goal, 7:24. Eagles 15–6. Drive: 5 plays, 48 yards, 1:24.
NE – James White 26-yard run (kick failed, wide left), 2:04. Eagles 15–12. Drive: 7 plays, 90 yards, 2:57.
PHI – Nick Foles 1-yard pass from Trey Burton (Jake Elliott kick), 0:34. Eagles 22–12. Drive: 7 plays, 70 yards, 1:30.

Third quarter

NE – Rob Gronkowski 5-yard pass from Tom Brady (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 12:15. Eagles 22–19. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 2:45.
PHI – Corey Clement 22-yard pass from Nick Foles (Jake Elliott kick), 7:18. Eagles 29–19. Drive: 11 plays, 85 yards, 4:57.
NE – Chris Hogan 26-yard pass from Tom Brady (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 3:23. Eagles 29–26. Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 3:55.

Fourth quarter

PHI – Jake Elliott 42-yard field goal, 14:09. Eagles 32–26. Drive: 8 plays, 51 yards, 4:14.
NE – Rob Gronkowski 4-yard pass from Tom Brady (Stephen Gostkowski kick), 9:22. Patriots 33–32. Drive: 10 plays, 75 yards, 4:47.
PHI – Zach Ertz 11-yard pass from Nick Foles (pass failed), 2:21. Eagles 38–33. Drive: 14 plays, 75 yards, 7:01.
PHI – Jake Elliott 46-yard field goal, 1:05. Eagles 41–33. Drive: 4 plays, 4 yards, 1:04.

Top passers

PHI – Nick Foles – 28/43, 373 yards, 3 TD, INT
NE – Tom Brady – 28/48, 505 yards, 3 TD

Top rushers

PHI – LeGarrette Blount – 14 rushes, 90 yards, TD
NE – James White – 7 rushes, 45 yards, TD

Top receivers

PHI – Nelson Agholor – 9 receptions, 84 yards
NE – Rob Gronkowski – 9 receptions, 116 yards, 2 TD

text: Television coverage[edit]

text: All playoff games were broadcast nationally on network television.

text: ABC and ESPN simulcast 1 AFC Wild Card game, while CBS broadcast all other AFC playoff games. Coverage of the NFC Wild Card and Divisional rounds was split between Fox and NBC, with each network having coverage of one game in each of those two rounds. CBS had exclusive coverage of the AFC Championship Game. Fox had exclusive coverage of the NFC Championship Game. NBC had exclusive coverage of Super Bowl LII.[21]

text: Playoff games TV ratings[edit]

text:
Rank
Game
Date
Matchup
Network
Viewers (millions)
TV rating[22]

1
Super Bowl LII
February 4, 2018, 6:30 ET
Philadelphia Eagles
41–33
New England Patriots
NBC
103.4
43.1

2
AFC Championship
January 21, 2018, 3:05 ET
Jacksonville Jaguars
20–24
New England Patriots
CBS
44.1
24.3

3
NFC Championship
January 21, 2018, 6:40 ET
Minnesota Vikings
7–38
Philadelphia Eagles
Fox
42.3
21.7

4
Divisional Round
January 14, 2018, 4:40 ET
New Orleans Saints
24–29
Minnesota Vikings
35.6
19.3

5
Divisional Round
January 14, 2018, 1:05 ET
Jacksonville Jaguars
45–42
Pittsburgh Steelers
CBS
31.4
18.3

6
Wild Card Round
January 7, 2018, 4:40 ET
Carolina Panthers
26–31
New Orleans Saints
Fox
31.2
17.5

7
Divisional Round
January 13, 2018, 4:20 ET
Atlanta Falcons
10–15
Philadelphia Eagles
NBC
27.1
15.5

8
Divisional Round
January 13, 2018, 8:15 ET
Tennessee Titans
14–35
New England Patriots
CBS
26.7
14.5

9
Wild Card Round
January 7, 2018, 1:05 ET
Buffalo Bills
3–10
Jacksonville Jaguars
25.3
15.2

10
Wild Card Round
January 6, 2018, 8:15 ET
Atlanta Falcons
26–13
Los Angeles Rams
NBC
22.8
12.8

11
Wild Card Round
January 6, 2018, 4:20 ET
Tennessee Titans
22–21
Kansas City Chiefs
ABC/ESPN
22.2
13.0


document_title: Noh

question_text: the most important figure in the history of japanese nō theatre is

root

text: Noh

text: History[edit]

text: Origins[edit]

text: The word Noh means skill, craft, or the talent particularly in the field of performing arts in this context. The word Noh may be used alone or with gaku (fun, music) to form the word nōgaku. Noh is a classical tradition that is highly valued by many today. When used alone, Noh refers to the historical genre of theatre originated from sarugaku in the mid 14th century and continues to be performed today.[4]

tag: p

text: Noh and kyōgen "originated in the 8th century when the sangaku (ja:散楽) was transmitted from China to Japan. At the time, the term sangaku referred to various types of performance featuring acrobats, song and dance as well as comic sketches. Its subsequent adaption to Japanese society led to its assimilation of other traditional art forms."[3]

text: Various performing art elements in sangaku as well as elements of dengaku (rural celebrations performed in connection with rice planting), sarugaku (popular entertainment including acrobatics, juggling, and pantomime), shirabyōshi (traditional dances performed by female dancers in the Imperial Court in 12th century), and gagaku (ancient music and dance performed in the Imperial Court beginning in 7th century) evolved into Noh and kyōgen.[1]

text: Studies on genealogy of the Noh actors in 14th century indicate they were members of families specialized in performing arts; they had performed various traditional performance arts for many generations. Sociological research by Yukio Hattori reveals that the Konparu School (ja:金春流), arguably the oldest school of Noh, is a descendant of Mimashi (味摩之), the performer who introduced gigaku, now-extinct masked drama-dance performance, into Japan from Kudara Kingdom in 612.[4]

text: Another theory by Shinhachiro Matsumoto suggests Noh originated from outcastes struggling to claim higher social status by catering to those in power, namely the new ruling samurai class of the time. The transferral of the shogunate from Kamakura to Kyoto at the beginning of Muromachi period marked the increasing power of the samurai class and strengthened the relationship between the shogunate and the court. As Noh became the shogun's favorite art form, Noh was able to become a courtly art form through this newly formed relationship. In 14th century, with strong support and patronage from shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, Zeami was able to establish Noh as the most prominent theatre art form of the time.[4]

text: Kan'ami and Zeami[edit]

text: Kan'ami Kiyotsugu and his son Zeami Motokiyo brought Noh to what is essentially its present-day form during the Muromachi period (1336 to 1573).[5] Kan'ami was a renowned actor with great versatility fulfilling roles from graceful women and 12-year-old boys to strong adult males. When Kan'ami first presented his work to 17-year-old Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, Zeami was a child actor in his play, around age 12. Yoshimitsu fell in love with Zeami and his position of favor at court caused Noh to be performed frequently for Yoshimitsu thereafter.[4]

text: Tokugawa era[edit]

text: During the Edo period Noh continued to be aristocratic art form supported by the shogun, the feudal lords (daimyōs), as well as wealthy and sophisticated commoners. While kabuki and joruri popular to the middle class focused on new and experimental entertainment, Noh strived to preserve its established high standards and historic authenticity and remained mostly unchanged throughout the era. To capture the essence of performances given by great masters, every detail in movements and positions was reproduced by others, generally resulting in an increasingly slow, ceremonial tempo over time.[4]

text: Modern Noh after Meiji era[edit]

text: The fall of the Tokugawa shogunate in 1868 and the formation of a new modernized government resulted in the end of financial support by the government, and the entire field of Noh experienced major financial crisis. Shortly after the Meiji Restoration both the number of Noh performers and Noh stages greatly diminished. The support from the imperial government was eventually regained partly due to Noh's appeal to foreign diplomats. The companies that remained active throughout the Meiji era also significantly broadened Noh's reach by catering to the general public, performing at theatres in major cities such as Tokyo and Osaka.[6]

text: In 1957 the Japanese Government designated nōgaku as an Important Intangible Cultural Property, which affords a degree of legal protection to the tradition as well as its most accomplished practitioners. The National Noh Theatre founded by the government in 1983 stages regular performances and organizes courses to train actors in the leading roles of nōgaku. Noh was inscribed in 2008 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO as Nôgaku theatre.[3]

text: Although the terms nōgaku and Noh are sometimes used interchangeably, nōgaku encompasses both Noh and kyōgen.[7] Kyōgen is performed in between Noh plays in the same space. Compared to Noh, "kyōgen relies less on the use of masks and is derived from the humorous plays of the sangaku, as reflected in its comic dialogue."[3]

text: Jo-ha-kyū[edit]

text: The concept of jo-ha-kyū dictates virtually every element of Noh including compiling of a program of plays, structuring of each play, songs and dances within plays, and the basic rhythms within each Noh performance. Jo means beginning, ha means breaking, and kyū means rapid or urgent. The term originated in gagaku, ancient courtly music, to indicate gradually increasing tempo and was adopted in various Japanese traditions including Noh, tea ceremony, poetry, and flower arrangement.[8]

text: Jo-ha-kyū is incorporated in traditional five-play program of Noh. The first play is jo, the second, third, and fourth plays are ha, and the fifth play is kyū. In fact, the five categories discussed below were created so that the program would represent jo-ha-kyū when one play from each category is selected and performed in order. Each play can be broken into three parts, the introduction, the development, and the conclusion. A play starts out in a slow tempo at jo, gets slightly faster at ha, then culminates in kyū.[9]

text: Performers and roles[edit]

text: Actors begin their training as young children, traditionally at the age of three. Historically, Noh performers had been exclusively male, but daughters of established Noh actors have begun to perform professionally since the 1940s. In 2009, there were about 1200 male and 200 female professional Noh performers.[10]

text: Training[edit]

text: Zeami isolated nine levels or types of Noh acting from lower degrees which put emphasis on movement and violence to higher degrees which represent the opening of a flower and spiritual prowess.[11]

text: In 2012, there are five extant schools of Noh acting called Kanze (観世), Hōshō (宝生), Komparu (金春), Kongō (金剛), and Kita (喜多) schools that train shite actors. Each school has its own iemoto family that carries the name of the school and is considered the most important. The iemoto holds the power to create new plays or modify lyrics and performance modes.[12] Waki actors are trained in the schools Takayasu (高安), Fukuou (福王), and Hōshō (宝生). There are two schools that train kyōgen, Ōkura (大蔵) and Izumi (和泉). 11 schools train instrumentalists, each school specializing in one to three instruments.[13]

text: The Nohgaku Performers' Association (Nōgaku Kyōkai), to which all professionals are registered, strictly protects the traditions passed down from their ancestors (see iemoto). However, several secret documents of the Kanze school written by Zeami, as well as materials by Konparu Zenchiku, have been diffused throughout the community of scholars of Japanese theatre.[13]

text: Roles[edit]

text: There are four major categories of Noh performers: shite, waki, kyōgen, and hayashi.[14]

text:
Shite (仕手, シテ). Shite is the main protagonist, or the leading role in plays. In plays where the shite appears first as a human and then as a ghost, the first role is known as the mae-shite and the later as the nochi-shite.

Shitetsure (仕手連れ, シテヅレ). The shite's companion. Sometimes shitetsure is abbreviated to tsure (連れ, ツレ), although this term refers to both the shitetsure and the wakitsure.
Kōken (後見) are stage hands, usually one to three people.
Jiutai (地謡) is the chorus, usually comprising six to eight people.

Waki (脇, ワキ) performs the role that is the counterpart or foil of the shite.

Wakitsure (脇連れ, ワキヅレ) or Waki-tsure is the companion of the waki.

Kyōgen (狂言) perform the aikyōgen (間狂言), which are interludes during plays. Kyōgen actors also perform in separate plays between individual Noh plays.
Hayashi (囃子) or hayashi-kata (囃子方) are the instrumentalists who play the four instruments used in Noh theatre: the transverse flute (笛, fue), hip drum (大鼓, ōtsuzumi) or ōkawa (大皮), the shoulder-drum (小鼓, kotsuzumi), and the stick-drum (太鼓, taiko). The flute used for noh is specifically called nōkan or nohkan (能管).

tag: ol

text: A typical Noh play always involves the chorus, the orchestra, and at least one shite and one waki actor.[15]

text: Performance elements[edit]

text: Noh performance combines a variety of elements into a stylistic whole, with each particular element the product of generations of refinement according to the central Buddhist, Shinto, and minimalist aspects of Noh's aesthetic principles.

text: Masks[edit]

text: Noh masks (能面 nō-men or 面 omote) are carved from blocks of Japanese cypress (檜 "hinoki"), and painted with natural pigments on a neutral base of glue and crunched seashell. There are approximately 450 different masks mostly based on sixty types, all of which have distinctive names. Some masks are representative and frequently used in many different plays, while some are very specific and may only be used in one or two plays. Noh masks signify the characters' gender, age, and social ranking, and by wearing masks the actors may portray youngsters, old men, female, or nonhuman (divine, demonic, or animal) characters. Only the shite, the main actor, wears a mask in most plays, even though the tsure may also wear a mask in some plays to represent female characters.[16]

text: Even though the mask covers an actor's facial expressions, the use of the mask in Noh is not an abandonment of facial expressions altogether. Rather, its intent is to stylize and codify the facial expressions through the use of the mask and to stimulate the imagination of the audience. By using masks, actors are able to convey emotions in a more controlled manner through movements and body language. Some masks utilize lighting effect to convey different emotions through slight tilting of the head. Facing slightly upward, or "brightening" the mask, will let the mask to capture more light, revealing more features that appear laughing or smiling. Facing downward, or "clouding" it, will cause the mask to appear sad or mad.[9]

text: Noh masks are treasured by Noh families and institution, and the powerful Noh schools hold the oldest and most valuable Noh masks in their private collections, rarely seen by the public. The most ancient mask is supposedly kept as a hidden treasure by the oldest school, the Konparu. According to the current head of the Konparu school, the mask was carved by the legendary regent Prince Shōtoku (572-622) over a thousand years ago. While the historical accuracy of the legend of Prince Shōtoku's mask may be contested, the legend itself is ancient as it is first recorded in Zeami's Style and the Flower written in the 14th century.[16]

text: Stage[edit]

text: The traditional Noh stage has complete openness that provides a shared experience between the performers and the audience throughout the performance. Without any proscenium or curtains to obstruct the view, the audience sees each actor even during the moments before they enter (and after they exit) the central "stage". The theatre itself is considered symbolic and treated with reverence both by the performers and the audience.[9]

text: One of the most recognizable characteristic of Noh stage is its independent roof that hangs over the stage even in indoor theatres. Supported by four columns, the roof symbolizes the sanctity of the stage, with its architectural design derived from the worship pavilion (haiden) or sacred dance pavilion (kagura-den) of Shinto shrines. The roof also unifies the theatre space and defines the stage as an architectural entity.[9]

text: The pillars supporting the roof are named shitebashira (principal character's pillar), metsukebashira (gazing pillar), wakibashira (secondary character's pillar), and fuebashira (flute pillar), clockwise from upstage right respectively. Each pillar is associated with the performers and their actions.[17]

text: The stage is made entirely of unfinished hinoki, Japanese cypress, with almost no decorative elements. The poet and novelist Tōson Shimazaki writes that "on the stage of the Noh theatre there are no sets that change with each piece. Neither is there a curtain. There is only a simple panel (kagami-ita) with a painting of a green pine tree. This creates the impression that anything that could provide any shading has been banished. To break such monotony and make something happen is no easy thing."[9]

text: Another unique feature of the stage is the hashigakari, a narrow bridge at upstage right used by actors to enter the stage. Hashigakari means "suspension bridge", signifying something aerial that connects two separate worlds on a same level. The bridge symbolizes the mythic nature of Noh plays in which otherworldly ghosts and spirits frequently appear. In contrast, hanamichi in Kabuki theatres is literally a path (michi) that connects two spaces in a single world, thus has a completely different significance.[9]

text: Costumes[edit]

text: Noh actors wear silk costumes called shozoku (robes) along with wigs, hats, and props such as the fan. With striking colors, elaborate texture, and intricate weave and embroidery, Noh robes are truly works of art in their own right. Costumes for the shite in particular are extravagant, shimmering silk brocades, but are progressively less sumptuous for the tsure, the wakizure, and the aikyōgen.[9]

text: For centuries, in accordance with the vision of Zeami, Noh costumes emulated the clothing that the characters would genuinely wear, such as the formal robes for a courtier and the street clothing for a peasant or commoner. But in the late sixteenth century, the costumes became stylized with certain symbolic and stylistic conventions. During the Edo (Tokugawa) period, the elaborate robes given to actors by noblemen and samurai in the Muromachi period were developed as costumes.[18]

text: The musicians and chorus typically wear formal montsuki kimono (black and adorned with five family crests) accompanied by either hakama (a skirt-like garment) or kami-shimo, a combination of hakama and a waist-coat with exaggerated shoulders. Finally, the stage attendants are garbed in virtually unadorned black garments, much in the same way as stagehands in contemporary Western theatre.[6]

text: Props[edit]

text: The use of props in Noh is minimalistic and stylized. The most commonly used prop in Noh is the fan, as it is carried by all performers regardless of role. Chorus singers and musicians may carry their fan in hand when entering the stage, or carry it tucked into the obi (the sash). The fan is usually placed at the performer's side when he or she takes position, and is often not taken up again until leaving the stage. During dance sequences, the fan is typically used to represent any and all hand-held props, such as a sword, wine jug, flute, or writing brush. The fan may represent various objects over the course of a single play.[9]

text: When hand props other than fans are used, they are usually introduced or retrieved by kuroko who fulfill a similar role to stage crew in contemporary theatre. Like their Western counterparts, stage attendants for Noh traditionally dress in black, but unlike in Western theatre they may appear on stage during a scene, or may remain on stage during an entire performance, in both cases in plain view of the audience. The all-black costume of kuroko implies they are not part of the action on stage and are effectively invisible.[6]

text: Set pieces in Noh such as the boats, wells, altars, and bells, are typically carried onto the stage before the beginning of the act in which they are needed. These props normally are only outlines to suggest actual objects, although the great bell, a perennial exception to most Noh rules for props, is designed to conceal the actor and to allow a costume change during the kyōgen interlude.[16]

text: Chant and music[edit]

text: Noh theatre is accompanied by a chorus and a hayashi ensemble (Noh-bayashi 能囃子). Noh is a chanted drama, and a few commentators have dubbed it "Japanese opera". However, the singing in Noh involves a limited tonal range, with lengthy, repetitive passages in a narrow dynamic range. Texts are poetic, relying heavily on the Japanese seven-five rhythm common to nearly all forms of Japanese poetry, with an economy of expression, and an abundance of allusion. The singing parts of Noh are called "Utai" and the speaking parts "Kataru".[19] The music has many blank spaces (ma) in between the actual sounds, and these negative blank spaces are in fact considered the heart of the music. In addition to utai, Noh hayashi ensemble consists of four musicians, also known as the "hayashi-kata", including three drummers, which play the shime-daiko, ōtsuzumi (hip drum), and kotsuzumi (shoulder drum) respectively, and a nohkan flutist.[9]

text: The chant is not always performed "in character"; that is, sometimes the actor will speak lines or describe events from the perspective of another character or even a disinterested narrator. Far from breaking the rhythm of the performance, this is actually in keeping with the other-worldly feel of many Noh plays, especially in those characterized as mugen.

text: Plays[edit]

text: Of the roughly 2000 plays created for Noh that are known today, about 240 make up the current repertoire performed by the five existing Noh schools. The current repertoire is heavily influenced by the taste of aristocratic class in Tokugawa period and does not necessarily reflect popularity among the commoners.[4] There are several ways to classify Noh plays.

text: Subject[edit]

text: All Noh plays can be classified into three broad categories.[6]

text:
Genzai Noh (現在能, "present Noh") features human characters and events unfold according to a linear timeline within the play.
Mugen Noh (夢幻能, "supernatural Noh") involves supernatural worlds, featuring gods, spirits, ghosts, or phantasms in the shite role. Time is often depicted as passing in a non-linear fashion, and action may switch between two or more timeframes from moment to moment, including flashbacks.
Ryōkake Noh (両掛能, "mixed Noh"), though somewhat uncommon, is a hybrid of the above with the first act being Genzai Noh and the second act Mugen Noh.

tag: ul

text: While Genzai Noh utilizes internal and external conflicts to drive storylines and bring out emotions, Mugen Noh focuses on utilizing flashbacks of the past and the deceased to invoke emotions.[6]

text: Performance style[edit]

text: Additionally, all Noh plays may be categorized by their style.

text:
Geki Noh (劇能) is a drama piece based around the advancement of plot and the narration of action.
Furyū Noh (風流能) is little more than a dance piece characterized by elaborate stage action, often involving acrobatics, stage properties, and multiple characters.[4]

text: Theme[edit]

text: All Noh plays are divided by their themes into the following five categories. This classification is considered the most practical, and is still used today in formal programming choices today.[4] Traditionally, a formal 5-play program is composed of a selection from each of the groups.[6]

text:
Kami mono (神物, god plays) or waki Noh (脇能) typically feature the shite in the role of a deity to tell the mythic story of a shrine or praise a particular god. Many of them structured in two acts, the deity takes a human form in disguise in the first act and reveals the real self in the second act. (e.g. Takasago, Chikubushima)[4][6]
Shura mono (修羅物, warrior plays) or ashura Noh (阿修羅能) takes its name from the Buddhist underworld. The protagonist appearing as a ghost of a famous samurai pleads to a monk for salvation and the drama culminates in a glorious re-enactment of the scene of his death in a full war costume. (e.g. Tamura, Atsumori)[4][6]
Katsura mono (鬘物, wig plays) or onna mono (女物, woman plays) depict the shite in a female role and feature some of the most refined songs and dances in all of Noh, reflecting the smooth and flowing movements representing female characters. (e.g. Basho, Matsukaze)[4][6]
There are about 94 "miscellaneous" plays traditionally performed in the fourth place in a five-play program. These plays include subcategories kyōran mono (狂乱物, madness plays), onryō mono (怨霊物, vengeful ghost plays), genzai mono (現在物, present plays), as well as others. (e.g. Aya no tsuzumi, Kinuta)[4][6]
Kiri Noh (切り能, final plays) or oni mono (鬼物, demon plays) usually feature the shite in the role of monsters, goblins, or demons, and are often selected for their bright colors and fast-paced, tense finale movements. Kiri Noh is performed the last in a five-play program.[4] There are roughly 30 plays in this category, most of which are shorter than the plays in the other categories.[6]

text: In addition to the above five, Okina (or Kamiuta) is frequently performed at the very beginning of the program. Combining dance with Shinto ritual, it is considered the oldest type of Noh play.[6]

text: Some famous plays[edit]

text: The following categorization is that of the Kanze school.[12]

text:
Name
Kanji
Meaning
Category

Aoi no Ue
葵上
Lady Aoi
4 (misc.)

Aya no Tsuzumi
綾鼓
The Damask Drum
4 (misc.)

Dōjōji
道成寺
Dōjō Temple
4 (misc.)

Hagoromo
羽衣
The Feather Mantle
3 (woman)

Izutsu
井筒
The Well Cradle
3 (woman)

Matsukaze
松風
The Wind in the Pines
3 (woman)

Sekidera Komachi
関寺小町
Komachi at Seki Temple
3 (woman)

Shōjō
猩々
The Tippling Elf
5 (demon)

Sotoba Komachi
卒都婆小町
Komachi at the Gravepost
3 (woman)

Takasago
高砂
At Takasago
1 (deity)

Yorimasa
頼政
Yorimasa
2 (warrior)

tag: table

text: Influence in the West[edit]

text: Many Western artists have been influenced by Noh.

text: Theatre practitioners[edit]

text:
Eugenio Barba – Between 1966 and 1972, Japanese Noh Masters Hideo Kanze and Hisao Kanze gave seminars on Noh at Barba’s Theater Laboratory of Holstebro. Barba primarily studied the physical aspects of Noh.[20]
Samuel Beckett[20] – Yoshihiko Ikegami considers Beckett's Waiting for Godot a parody of Noh, particularly Kami Noh, in which a god or a spirit appears before a secondary character as the protagonist. Ikegami argues that "the dramatic conflict which was much in evidence in Yeats is so completely discarded that Beckett's theatre (where 'nothing happens') comes to look even closer to Noh than Yeats's did."[21]
Bertolt Brecht – According to Maria P. Alter, Brecht began reading Japanese plays during the middle twenties and have read at least 20 Noh plays translated into German by 1929. Brecht's Der Jasager is an adaptation of a Noh play Taniko. Brecht himself identified Die Massnahme as an adaptation of Noh play.[22]
Peter Brook – Yoshi Oida, a Japanese actor with training in Noh, began working with Brook in their production of The Tempest in 1968. Oida later joined Brook's company.[23]
Paul Claudel[20] – According to John Willet, Paul Claudel learned about Noh during the time he served as French Ambassador to Japan. Claudel's opera Christophe Colomb shows an unmistakable influence of the Noh.[24]
Jacques Copeau – In 1923, Copeau worked on a Noh play, Kantan, along with Suzanne Bing at Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier without ever having seen a Noh play. Thomas Leabhart states that "Jacques Copeau was drawn instinctively by taste and tendency to a restrained theatre which was based in spirituality." Copeau praised Noh theatre in writing when he finally saw a production in 1930.[25]
Jacques Lecoq[20] – Physical theatre taught at L'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq founded by Lecoq is influenced by Noh.
Eugene O'Neill[20] – O'Neill's plays The Iceman Cometh, Long Day's Journey Into Night, and Hughie have various similarities to Noh plays.[26]
Thornton Wilder[20][27] – Wilder himself expressed his interest in Noh in his "Preface” to Three Plays and his sister Isabel Wilder also confirmed his interests. Wilder's work Our Town incorporates various elements of Noh such as lack of plot, representative characters, and use of ghosts.[28]

text: Composers[edit]

text:
William Henry Bell – An English composer Bell wrote music for modern presentation of several Noh plays, including Komachi (1925), Tsuneyo of the Three Trees (1926), Hatsuyuki (1934), The Pillow of Kantan (1935), and Kageyiko (1936).[29]
Benjamin Britten[20] – Britten visited Japan in 1956 and saw for the first time Japanese Noh plays, which he called "some of the most wonderful drama I have ever seen." [30] The influences were seen and heard in his ballet The Prince of the Pagodas (1957) and later in two of the three semi-operatic "Parables for Church Performance": Curlew River (1964) and The Prodigal Son (1968).[31]
David Byrne – Byrne encountered Noh when he was on tour in Japan with Talking Heads and he was inspired by the highly stylized practices of Noh, completely different from its Western counterparts that focus on naturalism.[32] According to Josh Kun, "Japanese Noh theatre inspired him to design the oversize business suit that became a visual staple of Talking Heads live shows."[33]
Alan Watts – 20th century philosopher, the liner notes from his third song off the 1962 album 'This is IT' state "Watts in a Japanese no-noh."
Harry Partch – Partch called his work Delusion of the Fury "a ritualistic web". Kate Molleson wrote for 'The Guardian that "the narrative is a bleary mix of Japanese Noh theatre, Ethiopian folk mythology, Greek drama and his own wacky imagination".[34] Will Salmon cites Partch himself writing, "Noh has been for centuries a fine art, one of the most sophisticated the world has known." Delusion of the Fury incorporates two Noh plays, Atsumori by Zeami and Ikuta by Zenbō Motoyasu, into its story.[35]
Karlheinz Stockhausen – The essentially plotless libretto of Stockhausen's grand operatic cycle Licht ("Light") is based on "a mythology drawing on multiple cultural traditions, from Japanese Noh theatre to German folklore".[attribution needed][36]
Iannis Xenakis – Xenakis "admired Noh, the venerable theatrical form known for its ritualistic formality and gestural complexity."[37] Electronic Music Foundation presented Xenakis & Japan in March 2010, "a dance/music event highlighting Xenakis' lifelong interest in Japanese music and theatre". The event featured a female Noh performer Ryoko Aoki.[38]

text: Poets[edit]

text: William Butler Yeats[20][39] – Yeats wrote an essay on Noh titled "Certain Noble Plays of Japan" in 1916. As much as he tried to learn Noh, there were limited resources available in England at the time. The lack of complete understanding of Noh led him to create innovative works guided by his own imagination and what he fantasized Noh to be.[40] Yeats wrote four plays heavily influenced by Noh, using ghosts or supernatural beings as the central dramatis personæ for the first time. The plays are At the Hawk's Well, The Dreaming of the Bones, The Words upon the Window-Fane, and Purgatory.[21]

text: Aesthetic terminology[edit]

text: Zeami and Zenchiku describe a number of distinct qualities that are thought to be essential to the proper understanding of Noh as an art form.

text:
Hana (花, flower): In the Kadensho (Instructions on the Posture of the Flower), Zeami describes hana saying "after you master the secrets of all things and exhaust the possibilities of every device, the hana that never vanishes still remains." [9] The true Noh performer seeks to cultivate a rarefied relationship with his audience similar to the way that one cultivates flowers. What is notable about hana is that, like a flower, it is meant to be appreciated by any audience, no matter how lofty or how coarse his upbringing. Hana comes in two forms. Individual hana is the beauty of the flower of youth, which passes with time, while "true hana" is the flower of creating and sharing perfect beauty through performance.
Yūgen (幽玄, profound sublimity): Yūgen is a concept valued in various forms of art throughout Japanese culture. Originally used to mean elegance or grace representing the perfect beauty in waka, yūgen is invisible beauty that is felt rather than seen in a work of art. The term is used specifically in relation to Noh to mean the profound beauty of the transcendental world, including mournful beauty involved in sadness and loss.[9]
Rōjaku (老弱): Rō means old, and jaku means tranquil and quiet. Rōjaku is the final stage of performance development of the Noh actor, in which he eliminates all unnecessary action or sound in the performance, leaving only the true essence of the scene or action being imitated.[9]
Kokoro or shin (both 心): Defined as "heart," "mind," or both. The kokoro of noh is that which Zeami speaks of in his teachings, and is more easily defined as "mind." To develop hana the actor must enter a state of no-mind, or mushin.
Myō (妙): the "charm" of an actor who performs flawlessly and without any sense of imitation; he effectively becomes his role.
Monomane (物真似, imitation or mimesis): the intent of a Noh actor to accurately depict the motions of his role, as opposed to purely aesthetic reasons for abstraction or embellishment. Monomane is sometimes contrasted with yūgen, although the two represent endpoints of a continuum rather than being completely separate.
Kabu-isshin (歌舞一心, "song-dance-one heart"): the theory that the song (including poetry) and dance are two halves of the same whole, and that the Noh actor strives to perform both with total unity of heart and mind.

text: Existing Noh theatres[edit]

text: Noh is still regularly performed today in public theatres as well as private theatres mostly located in major cities. There are more than 70 Noh theatres throughout Japan, presenting both professional and amateur productions.[41]

text: Public theatres include National Noh Theatre (Tokyo), Nagoya Noh Theater, and Osaka Noh Theater. Each Noh school has its own permanent theatre, such as Kanze Noh Theater (Tokyo), Hosho Noh Theater (Tokyo), Kongo Noh Theater (Kyoto), and Nara Komparu Noh Theater (Nara). Additionally, there are various prefectural and municipal theatres located throughout Japan that present touring professional companies and local amateur companies. In some regions, unique regional Noh such as Ogisai Kurokawa Noh have developed to form schools independent from five traditional schools.[9]

text: Audience etiquette[edit]

text: Audience etiquette is generally similar to formal western theatre—the audience quietly watches. Surtitles are not used, but some audience members follow along in the libretto. Because there are no curtains on the stage, the performance begins with the actors entering the stage and ends with their leaving the stage. The house lights are usually kept on during the performances, creating an intimate feel that provides a shared experience between the performers and the audience.[6]

text: At the end of the play, the actors file out slowly (most important first, with gaps between actors), and while they are on the bridge (hashigakari), the audience claps restrainedly. Between actors, clapping ceases, then begins again as the next actor leaves. Unlike in western theatre, there is no bowing, nor do the actors return to the stage after having left. A play may end with the shite character leaving the stage as part of the story (as in Kokaji, for instance)—rather than ending with all characters on stage—in which case one claps as the character exits.[12]

text: During the interval, tea, coffee, and wagashi (Japanese sweets) may be served in the lobby. In the Edo period, when Noh was a day-long affair, more substantial makunouchi' bentō (幕の内弁当, "between-acts lunchbox") were served. On special occasions, when the performance is over, お神酒 (o-miki, ceremonial sake) may be served in the lobby on the way out, as it happens in Shinto rituals.

text: The audience is seated in front of the stage, to the left side of the stage, and in the corner front-left of stage; these are in order of decreasing desirability. While the metsuke-bashira pillar obstructs the view of the stage, the actors are primarily at the corners, not the center, and thus the two aisles are located where the views of the two main actors would be obscured, ensuring a generally clear view regardless of seating.[6]