Conference Championship games 2018

   Super Bowl LII is set and I am not amused. The Patriots survived the Jaguars in a close one that few expected and the Eagles crushed the Vikings in a game also few expected. So what the hell happened?

   The Jaguars played really good defense the first 3+ quarters of the game but they needed to play excellent defense. By having two 15 yard penalties that allowed the Patriots to score late a TD  just before halftime ended hurting them more than the final 2 TDs in the fourth quarter. It wasn't a surprise that the Patriots came back from the half adjusting their defense to stop the run more effectively, by doing so they made things way more difficult for Blake Bortles to score more TDs. I would have preferred he exchanged some of those 36 pass attempts he threw for in the game and instead turned them into running attempts, he could have extended some drives if he had scrambled in a few plays. They had a chance to take a field goal at the end of the game but they just gave up to many points and it ended up not being an option. The Jaguars couldn't get the job done in the fourth quarter losing their 10 point lead giving the New England Patriots a chance to get another Lombardi trophy.

   Not to downgrade the Eagles offense but the Vikings defense disappointed in a big way. Nick Foles played good and had big plays that made the the best defense in the league look really bad. Philadelphia forced two first half turnovers by Case Kenum and took advantage of them scoring two TDs, then received the ball to open up the third quarter and scored again. There was little the Vikings could do to pull another miracle in that situation, the vikings offense went into desperation mode but didn't have enough skill players to really pull that big of an upset against a good Eagles defense.

   

   The Eagles accomplished what the Jaguars didn't, take the lead and never look back. It tells you how well organized and coached the Patriots are, again and again they come back from adversity being a game or a season, they can be beat but you really have to earn it and play it until the last second. 

   The Patrots will do what they always do, play their game until it doesnt work to then adjust. The Eagles and Jaguars are similar teams with a good running game and good defense, the difference will be if Foles can keep elevating his game and play better than what Bortles showed which was good but not great. Foles will have to be great again to give his team a chance and his coaches have to give him the game plan to do so, before and during the game, until the last second.

   Honestly, I am having a really though time digesting this Super Bowl. I am tired of the Patriots showing up to Super Sunday although its not their fault that the rest of the AFC cant get as good as an organization as them especially the dreadful AFC East, its like having an automatic pass to the playoffs because its almost a given they will win the division. The Eagles have another shot to win their first Super Bowl, as a team I got no ill will against them but their fandom is another thing and they showed how bitter they can get when they hosted the Vikings fans last weekend, but I know its not all of them and there is a fan group in every team that just doesnt get it, however this Eagles group has made a name for themselves and I just hope that if they get to celebrate a win by their team they dont make an ass of themselves tainting even more the strong fanbase they have.

 

Divisional games 2018

   The Patriots did what KC couldn't do by erasing the Titans form the playoffs, flat out dominating them so much that the Titans management lost their minds. The other three games did the same to their fans. All three came to the wire but they couldn't be more different from each other in how the games unfolded.

   Its impressive what Jacksonville did to Pittsburgh by going offensively toe to toe with them, Pittsburgh really missed Ryan Shazier. Although the Steelers scored 42 point on six TD's, four of them the receiver had a DB all over him and one was a hail mary type of pass to end the first half, so the Jags D had pressure on them all game especially rushing Ben Roethlisberger who got little help from his O-line, they just simply got out-schemed and had to play catch up which nobody expected. Blake Bortles did enough, he still showed some erratic throws but was able to managed the game, made plays when needed and didn't turn the ball over once, which was key.

   Same thing with Nick Foles, he didn't wow anybody but did look sharp most of the game. Atlanta was sloppy once again and Foles almost gave the game away, but Keanu Neal had other ideas and instead of picking off a lobbed pass, he did his best impression of Sagat's tiger knee and hit it back to an open Torrey Smith for the first down, the drive ended in a FG which would help the Eagles go to half time on a one point deficit. Atlanta struggled mighty from there on out getting stomped by the Eagles D and themselves with some questionable play calls. Until the fourth quarter they got close enough for a FG but it was to late, they needed a TD which Julio Jones let slip through his hands.

   I have to give kudos to the offensive minds on the Jaguars and Eagles teams, they game planned for their QBs and gave them a chance to help their offence by keeping the defense on their toes with short passes, option and trick plays backed up by a strong running scheme.

   Last but definitely not least, the Vikings-Saints game couldn't be more nerve wrecking. It looked like the Vikings where going to cruise to an easy victory with a 17-0 halftime lead against the #2 offense in the league. The Saints scored their first TD with little more than a minute left in the third quarter but then they scored three game minutes later. With five and a half minutes remaining the Vikings where going to punt it back to the Saints with a 20-14 lead and this is where it all went bananas. The punt got blocked which gave Drew Brees and the offense great field position, four plays later they score a TD with three minutes remaining, so you go OH NO that's too much time left! indeed you were correct, because 8 plays later the Vikings get into FG range and make it retaking the lead, but wait! there is a minute and half left that should be plenty for the second best offense to come back, right? Well yes you're were right again, 10 plays later they re-retake the lead with a FG with only 25 seconds left and no timeouts for the Vikings, leaving us thinking... Something incredibly amazing has to happen for the Vikings to get to FG range and have a chance... Well in all honesty something really amazing did happen, but it was more amazingly stupid.When Case Keenum lobbed the ball to Stefon Diggs who leaped to pluck it out of the sky, instead of getting tackled inside the field by rookie Marcus Williams who was right there beside Diggs even before he touched the ground, he only needed to wrap him up and take him down but instead lunged into him with his head for the big hit and whiffed completely not even touching him at all, Diggs almost runs out of bounds by himself but manages to regain his balance and take it for the winning TD. I really don't know what Williams was thinking because it even looked like he tried to avoid him maybe with the fear he would have hit Diggs before the catch but he could have stopped and adjusted, it didn't look like he was going full steam. Watching it closely, the Saints would have won this game if Williams makes this one play, sadly for him this one play eliminated his team from the playoffs, but well he is a rookie and hes got a long way to go and learn form it.

   The Jaguars will need every ounce of confidence they can gather to take on the Patriots on their turf. I believe Jacksonville's defense is the real deal and Leonard Fournette is a top 10 RB who could take advantage of the cold weather which could slow down the Patriots offense a bit. The question has always been Bortles, will he and his coaching staff be ready to make adjustments when needed? The only way i see the Jags upsetting the Patriots is if they keep them from scoring no more than 24 points and don't play catch up, if they go score by score with them then they have a shot. But I will have to go with the reigning champs on this one just because they have been here more often than not.

   The Eagles will be in front of their loud home crowd once more in what should be a really low scoring game. Foles will have to repeat his performance against the Falcons in this game counting less on his luck, going against the best defense in the league.  The Eagles squad isn't far behind which will not be easy to beat. These teams are very similar and will be decided on which team will have the ball last to try and score for the win ending with the defense shutting them down even if it's Keenum to Diggs. I'll go with the Vikings just because Keenum has proven himself more this year than Foles.

Wild card games 2018

   Anyone that had the Titans winning was lying to themselves, what a horrible second half for the chiefs getting just three first downs. The Chiefs defense showed just how bad they got from the start of the season to this game, Marcus Mariota got lucky on that batted ball that got deflected to himself for the score but that is what you need to come out with the upset I guess. This game was the only surprise for me, I expected the Saints, Jags and Falcons to win but could have gone the other way and wouldn't be shocked, the Chiefs should have one this game just didn't knew how to finish it. Looked like the loss of Travis Kelce to a concussion hit hard on their plan and didn't find the way to adjust.

   So now we have the Titans go into Foxborough against the Patriots for their utter destruction. Some say they can win by running the ball like they did against the Chiefs, I'm not gonna say they wont be able to run the ball but I don't believe the Patriots will get a second half slump so the Titans would need to outscore them and I don't think there will be enough Mariota to Mariota connections to get it done.

   The Jaguars ended up being the lesser bad playoff team by beating the Bills. Now the go visit the Steelers that will be at all cylinders with the return of Antonio Brown. Ben Roethlisberger will be trowing the ball mercilessly against a good Jaguars secondary and a better pass rushing front seven, they could limit the Steelers to a low scoring match but I don't think the Jaguars have enough offensively to win this game with Blake Bortles at the helm.

   The Falcons got lucky with two fumbles by the Rams rookie returner Pharoh Cooper, there is no sure thing they win that game without those turnovers happening. But they did take those opportunities and turned them into points, so they have that going for them. Now they might just have the fortune to go against a shaky Eagles team with Nick Foles at QB and he hasn't been looking so hot, just because of that this can go either way. I'm pick the Falcons to get another shot at the Superbowl... if not for the winner of the other NFC game.

   Drew Brees showed the Panthers who they really are, even without their two headed rushing tandem. Now they take that talent up north against a very prepared and confident Vikings team. The NFC Superbowl representative will come out of this game and I'm going with the better defense which I believe its the Vikings unit.

Bears 4rd qrt 2017 season

   The season is over for the Bears, finishing with a disappointing 5-11 record that resulted in John Fox getting fired. His decision of giving Dowell Loggains the play calling duties is what cost both of them their jobs. Now begins Ryan Pace's quest to find the right person for the HC position so they can start retooling the roster for next season.
   The game against the Bengals was the last sighting of the bears effective running game. The last three games against Detroit, Cleveland and Minnesota, Jordan Howard got stuffed regularly and Tarik Cohen got limited to less than 4 carries a game. The defense played hard and kept the games in range for the offense to catch up against the Lions and Vikings but with a depleted injured O-line and just bad play calling, they really had no shot.
   Mitchell Trubisky got hot and cold and i can understand the results he ended having being his first year, showing he can become a good QB in time. Its disappointing that he didn't have a comeback win in some chances he had, that would have been a big step forward for him. In his first game against Minnesota he forced a pass resulting in an interception , against the Packers after one 1st down it was 4 and out, against the Lions the first time around he got them into field goal range to force OT but the kick was wide right. Offensively they couldn't score in their final position to prevent the 49er's to have the comeback win.
   The three interception game against Detroit is concerning, the first interception was a big play from the DB, the second one in the end zone it can be called a rookie mistake and the third one was a miscommunication but this one is the one that bothers me the most. It was just like the Saints game in almost the same field position where the pass is thrown behind the receiver for an interception, I can consider this something that needs fixing or just needs to understand his receivers better. If either of these was his last game it would be demoralizing, although the final game against the Viking wasn't the best scenario either.
   The Bears got shutdown almost the entire game, but had two possessions drives that got to the red zone at the end of the game but just couldn't find the way to do it on four tries getting them 0 points. Another potential drive got killed by a personal foul and ended in the only 3 offensive points scored. Lack of discipline, bad play calling and shaky execution started and ended the season for the Bears, thus the firing of Fox being understandable.

   Leaving the bitterness of the result of this season behind, its time to evaluate the roster and see what group got better and which needs help.

   The QB position has a future in Trubisky installed and needs all the attention of the organization to back him up and get him better and ready for next season. Pace's job is on the line with the hiring of the next HC. Of the list of candidates I have seen, I incline more for the present DC of the vikings George Edwards or Vic Fangio. I am of the people who would rather have a offensive mined coach to get the job,  but with what these to men have done for their teams is amazing and players respect them. The offensive candidates on the list I don't like because of personality or lack of experience (to not say they are young) for the HC job, but for OC is another story. The necessity to have the right person to improve Trubisky is priority and if this means that to get this coach means to give him the HC job, well so be it. As Trubiskys backup, and i cant believe I'm writing this, they should consider re-sign Mark Sanchez to maintain someone familiarity for Trubisky at the QB position, to maintain a veteran presence that can contribute to his improvement. Connor Shaw should be back as well so that drafting someone else should not be a necessity.

   RB position is set with Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen, although in the last couple of years the RBs coming off the draft have been very impressive and the Bears could do better by selecting someone with the skill set of a Fournette or Elliott, but the team can't be using a high pick on a position that is solid with holes to be filled elsewhere.

   WR is the group that has been criticized to be the number one priority position to get better talent, but with the return of Kevin White and the positive progress of Cameron Meredith from injury, one can debate that it's really not that crucial. It does depend on if White is an injury prone player and if Meredith didn't loose a step due to his injury. Being positive i believe that the team is one player missing, they need speed at the position that Marcus Wheaton and White haven't shown. There are some FA to be this year that can bring that needed speed. Dontrell Inman and Kendall Wright should be considered to return to the team. Josh Bellamy can be let go and Wheaton can be considered a liability or maybe have him take a pay cut.

   TE is set even if I don't count the return of Zach Miller, its not that I think that Miller is not good enough but his history of injuries, especially his last one, and the talent already on the roster for next season, i don't see him returning as a starter or getting paid what he deserves. With a full preseason as the number one TE, Adam Shaheen should get the job done along with Dion Sims and Daniel Brown. With Ben Brauneker still on the team for depth, this position can be overlooked.

   OL is the group that really needs to be evaluated thoroughly. The OT position is above average at best, Bobby Massie has moments that question his stability at RT and Charles Leno Jr. is serviceable but the Bears can do better and should if possible for Trubiskys sake. Josh Sitton and Kyle Long are solid but one is getting old and the other has a long injury history that is getting concerning if it will begin to hit on his game. Cody Whitehair is solid as well but needs to get better with shotgun snaps. What is worrisome is the backups, where aside from the return of Erick Kush and maybe Tom Compton at guard, there is no one else who showed that deserves to be back on the team, so that leaves the OT and C positions in a critical state.

   DL is practically solid, lead by Akiem Hicks and Eddie Goldman and with increased play by Johnathan Bullard and Roy Robertson-Harris. The aging Mitch Unrein will become a FA that could be re-signed for depth along with John Jenkins, but I would like to see the team getting someone better at Free Agency or the draft.

   ILB needs Christian Jones back with Jerrell Freeman getting cut. With Danny Trevathan paired with Jones or Nick Kwiatkoski backed up by someone already on the team like John Timu or Jonathan Anderson or get someone else, this group looks ready and shouldn't be considered a critical need.

   OLB needs to get younger and give a partner to Leonard Floyd. Willie Young and Pernell McPhee are serviceable veterans and Sam Acho or Lamar Houston can be re-signed for depth but there is a need for speed in this position.

   DB position can take a break in the searching for S with Adrian Amos and Eddie Jackson set for next season backed up by Deon Bush and Deiondre Hall. They can invest the time to get the CB position in order by first signing Kyle Fuller ASAP so they can have one side filled and worry what to do at the other side by maybe re-signing Prince Amukamara or buy hard for the best one at free agency because you cant trust Marcus Cooper with it, he can still be a backup although the Nickel should be Bryce Callahan to lose followed by Cre'von LeBlanc. Sherick McManis should be re-singed simply because of his great ST play and leadership.

   K position is open but Mike Nugent should get re-singed because he is healthy and made all his kicks except one that was blocked. They can bring someone else to try out.

   P can be filled by re-signing Pat O'Donell if there is no one better.

   So the Bears will pick 8th in the first round of 2018 and if possible hey should trade down depending on how they do on free agency filling their needs. If they stay put I prefer they go for a rushing OLB like Bradley Chubb , Clelin Ferrell or maybe Arden Key if they like him. They can also go OL with Mike McGlinchey or even Nelson if the worries of Sitton or Long are real. If WR is the decision of need which I don't value this high, then Courtland Sutton or Calvin Ridley should be the choice, the one that is faster should get picked.