Our NFL Divisional Round Recap
Mahomes Injured as Chiefs Escape Jacksonville
Every Kansas City Chiefs fan was holding their breath and constantly refreshing Twitter for updates on Patrick Mahomes’ ankle after he went down hard in the first quarter. Reports are saying he has a high ankle sprain but will be able to play in the AFC Championship game against Cincinnati. Hopefully he is close to 100% because no one (except Bengals fans) wants a bad, blow out game due to an injury.
When Mahomes did sustain his injury, the Chiefs had to turn to back up quarterback, Chad Henne. No one was expecting anything other than maybe a couple short throws and a lot of handoffs to Pacheco and McKinnon. Instead, Henne lead the Chiefs on a 98-yard touchdown drive, capped off with pass to Travis Kelce for what would be his second of the day. That drive further cemented Andy Reid’s legacy as one of the greatest offensive minds in the history of the league. He used every tool he had available to pick apart a defense with a 37-year-old quarterback. No offense to Henne, but he has more career interceptions than touchdowns. The fact Reid was able to guide him like he did was an amazing representation of just how dominant he is.
Jacksonville put up a good fight, but two ill-timed turnovers ended their Super Bowl hopes. They were only down seven in the fourth quarter with the ball at the Chiefs 9 before Jamal Agnew coughed up the rock. The Jaguars’ defense was able to force a three and out on Kansas City’s next possession giving Jacksonville another chance. Their next drive only lasted for two plays before Trevor Lawrence threw an interception. It’s a tough loss, especially given the fact Mahomes was limping the entire game. The Jaguars have a lot to be hopeful about though. Lawrence is finally looking like a top-10 quarterback. Doug Pederson is an excellent coach, and they have good, young pieces up and down their roster. They’ll be back in this spot soon enough.
Philadelphia Reminded Us How Good They Are
This was a playoff beatdown I haven’t seen since the Seahawks beat the Broncos by 35 in Super Bowl XLVIII. The media and Twitter are going to come down hard on Jones for his performance, but it has to be put into context. From Weeks 1-16 (before the injury bug bit them), Philadelphia had the second best defensive DVOA. They were only a few sacks away from the all-time season record. The Eagles’ opponent was an offensive line that had given up the 5th most sacks in the regular season. Daniel Jones was running from the pressure all game long and the Giants offense suffered because of it.
Before the game, Jalen Hurts was quoted as saying his shoulder still wasn’t 100%. Nothing about that statement seemed factual on Saturday night. He started off the game with a 40-yard bomb to DeVonta Smith and followed it by going 7/7 with two passing touchdowns before the end of the first quarter. He proved why, before the injury, he was the MVP frontrunner. When Hurts is on his game, this offense can keep up with any team in the league.
I wrote last week about how Daniel Jones probably secured a contract extension with his win over Minnesota. I still think this is true. He’s obviously not worth 40+ million a year, but I think he knows that. In today’s day and age, it is near impossible to win unless you have one of two things. Either an elite, top-5 quarterback or an above average quarterback, on a cheap deal, providing you cap space to stack the roster around him. The Giants already have a lot of great pieces on this roster thanks to good draft picks. If they can keep Jones and sign him to a deal in the vicinity of 4 years at 120 million, I think they remain relevant. The last thing they want to do is ditch Jones or franchise tag him. However, if Jones tries to get too much money the Giants have to resist. The best thing for everyone involved is a team (or roster) friendly deal.
Burrow Shined While Allen Disappointed
Finally, the Bengals won a playoff game without the other team handing it to them. They dominated the Bills and Josh Allen for four quarters. I don’t know of any word other than embarrassing that can describe the Bills’ performance. The defense was gashed by both of the Bengals’ “Joes” (Mixon and Burrow). The offense was held to their lowest scoring output all year. Josh Allen completed less than 60% of his passes for only 265 yards, 0 touchdowns and one interception. The Bills have the weapons on the outside necessary to be great, but their lack of a run game bit them again. Singletary and Cook combined for just 37 yards on 11 carries. That’s not going to get it done in the playoffs.
Where do you go from here if you’re the Bills? Should Sean McDermott be on the hot seat? What has he done with this roster everyone agrees is top-5 in the NFL? I understand it’s a tough time to be in the AFC with Mahomes and now Burrow being a tough, two-headed monster blocking the door to the Super Bowl but still. The farthest the Bills have advanced in the playoffs under his tenure is the AFC Championship game where they lost by two touchdowns. In a league where we haven’t witnessed a defensive-minded coach win a Super Bowl in almost 5 seasons, it might be time to put McDermott out to pasture.
With this win, the Bengals are headed to Arrowhead for another playoff showdown against the Chiefs. As I said in the first paragraph, I hope Patrick Mahomes’ ankle can heal up well enough to make this game competitive. If it’s not, there’s a very high likelihood the Bengals could be going to their second straight Super Bowl.
49ers Beat Dallas in a Defensive Battle
San Francisco advances to the NFC Championship game with a 19-12 win over Dallas. Neither offense really looked in sync all game, but I think that’s primarily because of how well both defenses played. Dak Prescott continued to be plagued with turnovers, throwing 2 more interceptions. His first interception gave the 49ers the ball at the Dallas 21 which led to a quick three points from San Francisco. Dak’s next interception came late in the second quarter inside the 49ers Red Zone. Dallas was 18 yards away from leading the game going into halftime. They should’ve at least come away with a field goal, still giving them a 9-6 lead heading into the intermission. Instead, Dak gifted it to Fred Warner and San Francisco capitalized with another field goal right before half, giving themselves instead a 9-6 lead. The 49ers never trailed in this game and will now move on to a big showdown with Philadelphia next week.
After Tony Pollard went down with a severe ankle injury in the first half, Dallas’ offense was never the same. Zeke only managed 26 yards on 10 carries. By the time Pollard went down, he had already rushed for 22 yards on just 6 carries. It’s still not a great number, but it’s a lot better than Zeke. No Pollard meant Dak had to put the offense on his back and the Cowboys never win when that’s the case. It’s a tough look for one of the highest paid quarterbacks in the league. It will be interesting to see what Dallas does with Tony Pollard this offseason. He is set to be a free agent and after two seasons of proving he’s better than Zeke, the Cowboys can’t afford to lose him. The Cowboys can get out of Elliot’s contract this offseason with only 11 million in dead cap money and that is probably what they’ll do unless Pollard takes a very friendly team deal.
Brock Purdy didn’t shine in this game like he has so far this season, but he made big throws when it counted. The 49ers did not have a run game to speak of until late in the second half, so the majority of the yardage gained was due to him and some spectacular plays made by his wide receivers. George Kittle had 5 receptions for 95 and none were bigger than this one right here. That is what makes San Francisco so dangerous and why Jimmy Garoppolo was able to succeed for so long. There are so many playmakers on this offense it’s impossible to guard them all. The showdown with Philadelphia next week is shaping up to be a game for the ages.
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