The Road to Miami: Well it’s Tuesday. And like the dairy farmer said to his delivery guy, I’d better churn something out. It was a hell of an entertaining weekend in the NFL and it’s time to break it down. Big Ben is here to help dissect and digest a delightful divisional round.
Giants Tangent
Before we get to the games, let’s talk some quick G-men. Like most Giants fans, I was horrified to see the Panthers swoop in and steal Rhule. They snuck up behind Gettleman and totally pants-ed him. But I gotta admit, I was pretty impressed by Joe Judge’s press conference. I know you can’t take much from a presser, but this is a guy with a plan who looks like he can lead men. After it was over I went upstairs and made my bed. But can we agree that we don’t need any more puns with the word “judge” ever again? We’ve gotten ten lifetimes worth with Aaron. Can we please get confirmation from the NY Post?
Chiefs and Texans
Now to the games. Man, what more can be said about the Chiefs firestorm of a comeback. Has an NFL game ever gone from “this game is almost out of reach” for one team to “this game is almost out of reach” for the other team so freaking quickly? Before you could even finish saying “welp, Andy Reid choked again” a 24-point deficit turned into a 17-point lead. Those of us you who had started talking about a Texans home championship game sure must have felt dumb.
0:59, 0:23, 1:25, 2:03, 3:36, 3:55, and 1:32. Those are the times of possession of the seven Chiefs TD drives, which took 2, 3, 3, 8, 7, and 6 (29 total) plays. Kaboom. I haven’t seen anything that impressive since Andy Reid’s childhood punt, pass, and kick performance. You can talk about Derrick Henry controlling the ball all you want but I reckon Tennessee is going to need to put up some points to win the next one.
I’m not sure if a momentum swing ever felt more palpable in just a few plays. When O’Brien sent out the field goal unit on fourth and one up 21-0 after having to take the time out, you could see that he knew he was making the wrong decision. I don’t blame him for trying the fake punt a little later. He could feel the worm turning and it almost worked.
Niners and Vikings
During the Niners Vikings game they were talking about how the bye week rejuvenates a team. The Niners also got some key pieces on D back and this one was a bloodbath. Other than the CB who gave up the long TD to Diggs and had a penalty that set up the FG, that one would have been over by the second quarter instead of the third. Dalvin Cook was bottled up and sent home.
I know the Niners didn’t need to throw it, but they sure put the reins on Jimmy G after he threw that bad pick. A chain is as strong as its weakest link, Niners fans. Well, unless you have the Ravens 2000 D, then you can get by if your weakest link is Trent Dilfer.
Ravens and Titans
Speaking of the Ravens, they sure didn’t look rejuvenated from the bye week. They got behind and started panicking.
During the season they were a perfect eight for eight on fourth and ones, but got stuffed twice on two of them on Saturday. If they had converted, it could have been a different game.
Packers and Seahawks
It was smart of Matt LaFleur to be aggressive on that last drive. It might seem obvious as DangerRuss Wilson and the ‘Hawks O was on fire and had a good chance to score, but a lot of coaches would have handed it off and punted there. A lot of coaches don’t have A-Rodg (but can we limit the State Farm commercials to 700 per weekend?).
It’s too bad the officials blew that spot on the Jimmy Graham catch. It would have been fourth and a half yard from about the 36 and a half yard line. They probably wouldn’t have kicked a FG or punted from there. We got gypped out of a fun fourth down play.
Super Bowl Prediction
We’re headed for a Niners Chiefs Super Bowl folks. Forget that I was sure for about two months that we were headed for a Ravens Chiefs showdown. Live in the now people.
I think the Titans have a shot, but if the Chiefs can get their big interior run stuffing lineman Chris Jones back, I think they’ll slow down Henry enough. Scoring points wont be an issue.
In the NFC, I think the Pack is headed for another rough one in Cali. I just don’t think they have an answer for the D-front of the Niners.
There you have it. Come back tomorrow for a guy who will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger, and you will know his name is Angry Ward. Wait, what’s that? He’s on hiatus this week after the Vikings were eliminated? Okay. Then come back tomorrow for insufferable Chiefs fan, Cam James. Follow us on Twitter at @BenWhit8, @MeetTheMatts, @Matt_McCarthy00, Instagram @MeetTheMatts and like our Facebook page, Meet The Matts.
