Perhaps it was inevitable to get to this point, as the Chiefs and Eagles were the 2 best teams most of the season, in terms of record, outside of DET. Still, we got here.
Championship Sunday Recap
- Eagles Ran Over WAS – Yep, I knew the Eagles were better than WAS. I still had some level of belief that Jayden Daniels and the Commanders had one more element of magic. They actually did get the game close at a couple of points of the game. However, the Offensive and Defensive lines were just too much for the Commanders. It was not a good sign for WAS when Saquon Barkley’s first carry went for 61 yards to the house. Still, Barkley didn’t eclipse his rushing prop (118 yards rushing), but he did score 3 TDS, as did QB Jalen Hurts (20 for 28, 246 yards, 1 TD passing, 3 rushing TDs) who threw the ball. WR AJ Brown (6 catches, 96 yards, 1 TD) is still on the team. The Eagles rushed for 229 yards a full 130 more yards than the Commanders. I give WAS a lot of credit to play 4 straight road games and defy all odds, but they just ran into a buzz saw in the 55-23 loss. PHI goes back to the SB for the 2nd time in 3 years – if the O-Line can get healthy, they will be tough on February 9th.
- Chiefs Best Allen Again – I can speak personally, that I am over the Chiefs, but they played their best game of the year when it mattered most. KC actually built a 21-10 lead late in the 2nd Quarter without Travis Kelce being involved. In fact, Patrick Mahomes outrushed Josh Allen in this game (43 to 39) including 2 TDs. I thought BUF made a strategic mistake in the first half not running the ball more, but to their credit, they adjusted in the 2nd half to grab the lead going into the 4th Quarter, 22-21 mainly with RB James Cook – 13 carries, 85 yards, 2 TDs (plus 3 catches for 49 yards). They did miss not 1 but 2 – two point conversions, which proved important. Then, a couple of critical plays happened. BUF with the ball up 1 with 13 minutes to play went for a 4th and 1 – the spot looked short given Josh Allen’s body position, but the review confirmed that BUF did not get the first down. KC then went down the field to take the lead, 29-22. Allen took the Bills down the field to tie the game with 6:15 to play. KC responded with a deep drive to get a go ahead FG, 32-29 after another long completion to Rookie WR Xavier Worthy (6 catches, 85 yards, 1 TD). Finally, BUF was not able to answer, and KC forced an incompletion with a new blitz package from Spags to effectively win the game, 32-29. BUF fell short yet again, and the blame goes squarely on the Defense, 5 of 9 conversions on 3rd down for KC. Josh Allen probably made the key 4th down, but how much more can he do for this team. The Chiefs now go to their 3rd straight Super Bowl – no team has ever even gotten to the Super Bowl in that situation. The Chiefs may not be the best team statistically, but this team does not lose close games.
Predictions: All time bad on the spreads, 0-2 (2-9-1 this playoffs), S/U 1-1 (6-6), Totals 1-1 (5-7). Analytics be damned this season.
Super Bowl Early Preview
- Chiefs vs. Eagles (+2, 49.5 Total) – Sunday, 2/9 at 5:30 PM Central on FOX – They played in AZ just 2 years ago. The Eagles were favored in that game. The Books are tired of Patrick Mahomes as an underdog. I’ll die on the hill again here. PHI is the better team. It’s not even close, to be honest. They are better at every position except for QB. I do agree that Andy Reid is a better coach than Nick Sirianni, who despite the WAS win, he made a couple of questionable decisions in the game. However, the lines of PHI are really good. They should be able to slow down KC, a lot like HOU did in the Divisional Round. I also think the way to beat KC is on the ground, and we know PHI will not be shy to keep running the ball. DC Steve Spagnuolo will try to figure out a way to slow down the real MVP, Saquon Barkley. However, Barkley can beat you catching the ball, too. PHI has great weapons at WR and TE. I think in the Dome in New Orleans, they will put up points on the Chiefs. The question is, can the Chiefs keep up? I do not see it. I get it, the Chiefs are inevitable and on a historic run. Early lean is PHI +2. More next week on final predictions and props for the Super Bowl.
Enjoy the week off, unless you are dialed into the Senior Bowl and/or Pro Bowl.
Wegs
I agree that PHL is the better team BUT with #15 Mahomes as the ‘Wild Card’ KC is never out of it. I see PHL winning the trophy !!!!
BUFF should have tried a couple of other plays on their 4th down tries. EVERYONE in the stadium knew that Josh would try the sneak, BAD ‘O’ CALL !!
Josh needs a top flight #1 outside receiver ???