Month: January 2020

There will be millions of words written to analyze the upcoming Super Bowl in the coming days.

But let’s make it easy for you if you want understand why the Chiefs are going to win.

They have the better quarterback.

That’s it.

There are times in the Super Bowl when the quarterback is a wash when two Hall of Famers face each other like Bradshaw vs. Staubach and Montana vs. Elway.

There are times when neither quarterback is a Hall of Famer like Trent Dilfer vs. Kerry Collins.

But when one team has the edge at quarterback, it wins. This dates back to the early years when Bart Starr beat Daryle Lamonica, Joe Namath topped Earl Morrall and Len Dawson beat Joe Kapp in the second, third and fourth Super Bowls.

And note that Tom Brady won six of them but except for beating Hall of Famer Kurt Warner with the help of poor coaching by Mike Martz, he beat five quarterbacks who have combined to win one ring.

They are Jake Delhomme, Donovan McNabb, a young Russell Wilson, who threw that ill-fated pass which was a bad call by the coaching staff, Matt Ryan, handicapped by Kyle Shanahan’s poor coaching, and Jared Goff.

So, the choice in this Super Bowl is Patrick Mahomes over Jimmy Garoppolo.

The 49ers may have the better team but they’re not going to beat the Chiefs with Jimmy G. throwing eight passes the way he did against the Packers.

Mahomes will put points on the board and eventually Jimmy G is going to counter and while he may one day be a top quarterback, he isn’t there now.

That means the obvious choice is to go with Mahomes.

Case closed.

1. If Patrick Mahomes makes the Hall of Fame one day, his highlight reel will include his 27-yard touchdown run down the left sideline that spurred the Chiefs to the come-from-behind victory over the Titans. It was aided by some shoddy Titans’ tackling, but showed Mahomes is more than just a prolific passer. He may be the best quarterback in the game right now.

2. It wasn’t exactly a Joe Namath guarantee but Frank Clark of the Chiefs raised some eyebrows before the game when he talked about how it’s not hard to hit Derrick Henry. Earl Thomas had said similar things the previous week and then was stiff armed by Henry on one of his big runs. But the Chiefs held Henry in check with 69 rushing yards although it helped that the Chiefs got ahead and forced the Titans to go to the passing game. Clark talked the talk and then walked the walk.

3. Jimmy Garoppolo passed for only 77 yards and completed just two passes in the second half in the 49ers easy win over the Packers. Coach Kyle Shanahan said they stuck with the running game because it was working but the New York Times brought up the possibility that Garoppolo isn’t completely healthy after turning his ankle in the win over the Vikings. One thing is certain. He has to throw for more yards in the Super Bowl if the 49ers are to win.

4. Even though he was cut by six teams, Raheem Mostert refused to give up and was rewarded for his determination when he ran for 220 yards – the second most rushing yards in a playoff game since at least 1950 — as the 49ers demolished the Packers with their ground game. Mostert was helped by the fact the 49ers’ line opened gaping holes for him to run in.

5. Andy Reid has a glittering coaching record except for his playoff record. He’s only made it to one Super Bowl. Even after the victory, he is only 14-14 in the playoffs and 2-5 in conference title games. But now he gets a second chance to win that first Super Bowl.

6. Aaron Rodgers said after the loss that Green Bay’s championship window is still open. But after being routed by the 49ers twice in the same season, you have to wonder if Rodgers will never win another one.

1. The Titans upset the Chiefs in the regular season matchup, but it not surprising the Chiefs are favored. The Titans were at home and it was Patrick Mahomes first game back from his injury. This time, the Titans are on the road and Mahomes is at the top of his game after overcoming a 24-0 deficit in one quarter against the Texans.

2. The Titans have been outgained in yardage in both of their surprising road playoff wins. Both times they were aided by mistakes or turnovers by the Patriots and Texans. If the Chiefs don’t turn the ball over the way the Ravens did four times, the Titans may be hard pressed to pull off another upset.

3. The four coaches in the conference title game have one thing in common. They haven’t won a Super Bowl. But except for Andy Reid, they’re young coaches who are also making their first appearance in the conference title games. That is why Reid has the most at stake. He’s 1-5 in conference title games and lost his lone Super Bowl appearance. The lack of a Super Bowl is a glaring hole in his resume.

4. Derrick Henry has been the workhorse for the Titans, but Ryan Tannehill will be the key to the Titans chance for an upset. The Chiefs are going to put points on the board, which may make it difficult for the Titans to stick with their ground and pound offense built around Henry. They need Tannehill to counter Mahomes if they fall behind.

5. Aaron Rodgers is the only one of the four quarterbacks who has played and won in Super Bowl. And he’s the underdog facing a better team. But don’t look for Rodgers to repeat his poor showing against the 49ers in the regular season when he passed for only 104 yards, lost a fumble and was 0-for-13 on third down in a 37-8 loss. Look for Rodgers to make it close against the tough 49er defense and it wouldn’t be surprising if he pulls off an upset.

6. It is not surprising the two home teams are favored in the conference title games so a Chiefs-49ers Super Bowl is the chalk. But it would be fitting in the NFL’s 100^thseason for it to end with a Packers-Chief Super Bowl. That was the matchup for the first Super Bowl before it was called the Super Bowl as the Packers won for their fourth title in their five-title run in the 1960s.

1. The mark of a great player is showing up great in big games. Patrick Mahomes did that against the Texans. His first two drives were stopped when receivers dropped third down passes and the Chiefs fell behind 24-0. But he then led the Chiefs on seven consecutive touchdown drives to win easily. By halftime, he had turned a 24-0 deficit to a 28-24 lead and he kept going in the second half.

2. Bill O’Brien is not considered a good coach. And his decisions to kick a field goal on fourth and short while up 21-0 and then to go for a fake punt on his own territory had the Texans fans calling for his head. But it wasn’t the Texans strategy that was the problem. It was the way his defense prepared or didn’t prepare to stop Mahomes. They had no idea on how to stop him.

3. If the TV networks are going to have a yellow line to mark where a team needs to get for a first down, it should be accurate. Many fans were confused why Green Bay got the first down that clinched the game because the receiver didn’t get to the yellow line. The problem was that the yellow line was past the first down marker. Meanwhile, the Seahawks not only didn’t make a stop, but they punted on fourth and 11 with 3:22 left, taking the ball out of Russell Wilson’s hands. Will Pete Carroll ever win another Super Bowl after being a yard away from winning two in a row and then throwing a pass a few years back. And they were in Green Bay in the first place when they botched things from the one-yard against San Francisco in the regular season finale.

4. Did the Ravens make a mistake resting Lamar Jackson and several key players in the season finale? The Ravens have to wonder if the 20-day layoff was a reason for their mistake prone game in the loss to the Titans.

5. Aaron Rodgers is the only quarterback left who has won a Super Bowl, which means he has a shot at joining the ranks of the quarterbacks who’ve won two or more Super Bowls. The Packers will be the underdog against San Francisco but Rodgers gives them a chance to pull an upset.

6. Kirk Cousins will again get the flak for not winning the big ones after the loss to San Francisco. But the Vikings were simply overmatched against the 49ers and had the disadvantage of playing a bye team on a short week after a wild card victory. Cousins never really had a chance against the dominant 49ers defense.

1. It is not unusual for a rookie to lose his first playoff game. That is what happened to Lamar Jackson last year when he struggled in his playoff debut against San Diego. Now he’s back in the playoffs against the Titans as the season MVP and the top seed. He says he is using last year’s showing as motivation. He says he is treating every game like the Super Bowl because a loss means he’s doesn’t make it to the big game. Now the spotlight is on Jackson to take the next step.

2. The Patrick Mahomes-Deshaun Watson playoff duel was likely destined to happen after they were both snubbed on the first round in 2017 when the Bears took Mitch Trubisky and both were picked by AFC teams. And it likely won’t their last playoff duel. The winner likely faces Lamar Jackson in the AFC title game.

3. Ryan Tannehill’s job against the Patriots was not to make any mistakes as the Titans protected a one-point lead in the second half. But that won’t be enough against the Ravens. They can’t win just running Derrick Henry. Tannehill has to make plays and put points on the board to keep up with Lamar Jackson to give the give the Titans have a shot at an upset.

4. Kirk Cousins showed last week he could win a big game and win in the playoffs. But that just leads to another big game against the 49ers. The pressure will be on him to have another big game. And the game brings back memories of two memorable playoff games the two teams had in 1987 and 1988. The Vikings won the first in an upset when, according to the book Blindside, the 49ers didn’t have a left tackle to block Chris Doleman in a game that featured Bill Walsh pulling Joe Montana for Steve Young. The next year, the 49ers did block Doleman and won.

5. Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson will duel in a battle of two quarterbacks who have won Super Bowls when the Seahawks play at Green Bay. Both are in quest of that elusive second one. One of them will advance to the NFC title game.

6. Jimmy Garoppolo once backed up Tom Brady. Now Brady is out of the playoffs and Jimmy G. has a shot at advancing to the NFC title game when he duels Kirk Cousins.

1. It is now obvious that age is catching up with Tom Brady. But what is Bill Belichick’s excuse? How could he not get Brady better weapons this year? The Titans were obviously convinced that as long as they didn’t make a mistake, the Patriots’ offense couldn’t pull the game out. So, they ran the ball and punted the entire second half with a one-point lead. Whether Brady stays or leaves, Belichick has to rebuild the offense if the Patriots are going to win another Super Bowl anytime soon.

2. The Saints have now lost in the playoffs on the final play three years in a row? They actually had a shot at three Super Bowls in a row. Or at the very least one. And they wound up with zero and have to wonder if their Super Bowl window is closing since the future of Drew Bree’s is up in the air.

3. Jadeveon Clowney should have been called for a penalty for the helmet hit that knocked Carson Wentz out of the Eagle-Seahawk game and virtually ended any chance the Eagles had of winning. The official said Wentz didn’t give himself up, which he should have done, but two wrongs don’t make a right. Even though it was a bang-bang play, Clowney could have avoided hitting him in the helmet. They can’t say they are serious about protecting the QB and avoiding concussions if they don’t penalize that paly.

4. The NFL should end its ill-fated attempt to make pass interference reviewable. Kyle Rudolph obviously got away with pushing of on his game winning touchdown catch even though director of officials Al Riveron said they were hand fighting. If they aren’t going to make that reviewable, kill the rule. For Viking fans, it was a makeup call for Drew Pearson getting away with pushing off on the 1975 Roger Staubach Hail Mary.

5. Kirk Cousins, who has lived with the tag of not being able to win the big one, got that monkey off his back by leading the Vikings to the victory over the Saints. He came in 6-30 against winning teams and 0-9 in MNF. But there is always a big game the next week unless he wins the Super Bowl. Next up is a trip to San Francisco.

6. The wild-card round featured exciting games. But did it make any difference which teams won. The teams that had a bye have won six consecutive Super Bowls. If the Ravens, Chiefs, Packers or 49ers win it all this year, it will be seven in a row. If all four win this week – and all four are favored – the streak will continue.

1. The New England Patriots obviously aren’t the team they once were and they probably blew a chance to get to the Super Bowl when they cost themselves the bye while losing to Miami last Sunday. That means they will likely have to win two road games – probably against the Chiefs and Ravens – to make the Super Bowl. The Patriots have never won the Super Bowl when they haven’t had a bye. But they’re home this weekend against the 9-7 Titans and they’re favored so it won’t be a surprise if this isn’t Tom Brady’s last game in a New England uniform. If the Titans pull off an upset, it may be his last game as a Patriot because for the first time in his career, he is heading into the offseason without a contract.

2. Both road quarterbacks Saturday – Josh Allen of the Bills and Ryan Tannehill of the Titans – will be starting their first playoff game. It is not surprising that Allen be making his first playoff start in his second season. But somewhat surprising that a veteran like Tannehill never made the playoffs in Miami before jump starting his career with the Titans. Since replacing Marcus Mariota, he’s 7-3 as a starter. But the odds are against Allen and Tannehill this weekend. According to walterfootball.com, the last 37 quarterbacks to make their first start won only 15 times. Carson Wentz will be in the same situation Sunday when the Eagles host Seattle.

3. How does Seattle bounce back from the loss to San Francisco at home Sunday night as they face a cross country trip to play at Philadelphia? The Seahawks were inside the one in the last half-minute against the 49ers and inexplicably got a delay of game penalty that helped cost them the division title and relegated them to a Wild Card status. It was a devastating setback for the Seahawks and a case of déjà vu since they were within a yard of beating the a Patriots in the Super Bowl a few years back. Now they have to try to rebound against the Eagles, who are slight underdogs in playoffs for sixth time since 2016. They are 4-1 in those games including a Super Bowl victory. So they can’t be overlooked despite 9-7 record.

4. The Texans declined to put J.J. Watt on the injured reserve list and kept him on the active roster after he went down on Oct. 27 with a torn pec muscle. The move paid dividends because he will return against the Bills. But the big question is how long can he play and how effective will be?

5. Despite Watt’s return, the Texans have a shaky defense so the task for Allen will be to outscore Deshaun Watson and DeAndre Hopkins, who figure to put points on the board even though Buffalo has a solid Buffalo defense.

6. The Vikings may have the toughest assignment of the weekend, going to New Orleans to face Drew Brees. And the Saints have a lot of motivation after being bounced from the playoffs two years in a row in games they probably should have won. And then there’s the Kirk Cousins factor. He is not noted for coming up big games. A Viking victory would be a major upset.

The two teams that needed to win to get the final two playoff berths – Philadelphia and Tennessee – both did.

The Eagles beat the Giants to eliminate the Cowboys, who beat Washington. The Titans beat the Texans, who were resting their starters, to eliminate the Steelers and Raiders, but they both lost anyway.

The real drama was in the battle for the byes. San Francisco got the top seed in the NFC when Seattle imploded after getting within inches short of the victory. Green Bay got the second seed with the victory over Detroit at the buzzer.

In the AFC, the Patriots lost to Miami and that cost them the second seed when the Chiefs beat the Chargers. That means the Patriots will be a wild card team, and they’ve never won a Super Bowl without getting a bye. Baltimore had already wrapped up the top seed and rested Lamar Jackson but still beat the Steelers.

Positives

—San Francisco needed help from the Seahawks botching the final half minute but the 49ers have the top seed and a shot at their sixth Super Bowl victory and first since 1994. Jimmy Garoppolo gets a chance to join Joe Montana (4) and Steve Young (1) as quarterbacks who have led the 49ers to the Super Bowl. Both are in the HOF and Montana was named one of the ten best ever.

—Green Bay nailed down the second seed by beating the Lions on Mason Crosby’s field goal at the buzzer. Green Bay beat the Lions twice this year while trailing the entire game except when time expired. They now get a bye and at least one playoff game on the frozen tundra. –It was a surreal scene in Kansas City when the fans were cheering late in the fourth quarter even though they had the victory in hand over the Chargers. They were excited because Miami beat the Patriots, handing the Chiefs the bye.

—The Titans nailed down the wild card spot with the victory over the Texans and they let Derrick Henry stay in the game to beat out Nick Chubb for the league rushing title. Ryan Tannehill saved their season and is due for a big payday next year but fell eight yards short of the 2750 passing yards he needed to get a $250,000 bonus. The Titans should give it to them anyway.

—Drew Brees threw three touchdown passes in the easy 42-10 victory over the Panthers. The frustrating thing for them is that they still didn’t get a first-round bye and will likely have to win two road playoff games to get to the Super Bowl if they win the first one at home. Brees finished with 547 touchdown passes, six ahead of Tom Brady, whose career at New England may be nearing its end.

Negatives

—When will Seattle get it right when it has the ball near the goal line in the final minute in a big game. They were inside the one against the 49ers after a Russell Wilson spike with three downs to put it in the end zone. But they got called for delay of game and Wilson’s fourth down completion was inches the goal line. Coach Pete Carroll blamed miscommunication for the mishap. Another word for it is inexcusable.

—Is the Patriot dynasty over? It sure looked like it when they lost to Miami, which cost them a first-round bye. And Tom Brady seems to have stayed a year too long. He should have retired on top last year the way John Elway did.

—The Steelers and Raiders needed victories to have a playoff shot if the Titans lost. The Titans won but they both lost anyway. The Steelers lost to a Baltimore team that rested Lamar Jackson and the Raiders lost to the Broncos 16-15 when Jon Gruden decided to go for the win rather than take the tie and go into overtime. But Derek Carr’s pass was deflected and the Raiders lost their last game as the Oakland Raiders.

—The Rams won their finale beating the Cardinals as Jared Goff threw three touchdown passes but it was a frustrating season for the Rams, who didn’t make the playoffs after losing the Super Bowl last year. Facing cap problems and the loss of two first round picks for Jalen Ramsey, the Rams window may be closing as they move into a new stadium next year.

—What is the future for the Bucs’ Jameis Winston? He threw a Pick Six in overtime against the Falcons to become the first play to throw 30 touchdown passes and 30 picks. Are the Bucs or any other team going to give him a big contract? Can he fix the interception problem? Stay tuned.