The Greatest Bowl of Them All: Super Bowl LII

This column should just be called “Tom Brady is back. Again. SIGH.” The NFL has a long history of quarterbacks leading dynasties, from Sammy Baugh to Otto Graham and Johnny Unitas, Bart Starr and Roger Staubach, to Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana and Troy Aikman, and now Tom Brady. No matter what, the success and the blame every season is aimed at the quarterback. The Browns went 0-16 because they lack a franchise QB, and well, talent. Meanwhile the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles are complete teams, and it really sucks that Carson Wentz is injured, although hurray for Nick Foles getting a shot to shine, again.

Look its Brady at the helm, again, and as long as he is playing, the Pats have a shot at winning. Again. Death, taxes, and Tom Brady in the Super Bowl are three regular events, even if Brady is old, and even if the refs and good old luck also helped get him there. Meanwhile the Eagles got here not only because of Foles and a good solid run game, but because of their defense. However, the Pats defense is pretty good in its own right, and I feel the two units off set each other. Also the Pats have solid backs, and Brandin Cooks might be the best wideout out of the two squads. Alshon Jeffery is pretty darn good himself, and Bears fans have to feel a bit upset their franchise did not retain him.

What also is interesting about both teams is each has a tight end that is highly important to their squads. Rob Gronkowski is often Brady’s safety blanket, while Zach Ertz is (no longer) quietly one of the best in the league. I think that Ertz will give the Pats some trouble on Sunday, yet it is Corey Clement that is a key X factor for the Eagles. Danny Amendola is my X factor for the Pats, as he is a good possession receiver who teams often overlook. What should worry Eagles fans is that the Pats play largely mistake free football, and they always believe they have a chance to win. I have to go with the more experienced squad.

Patriots 23, Eagles 20. Stephen Gostkowski kicks the game winning field goal, and everyone depairs. I hope I am wrong.

I agree, Grumpy Cat. I agree.

The Greatest Bowl of Them All: Super Bowl LI

Due to work and general laziness this post is coming only a day before the big game. As a result I’ll just skip most of what is sure to be already said on every site and sports channel in America. That said I’ll pull a clickbait move and leave my prediction at the end of the article. Just like everybody else does.

Now the Patriots sport one of the best defenses in the NFL, while the Falcons are known for their high flying offense. I remember when I picked the Broncos over the Seahawks, only to regret that choice when Seattle used their defense to slam the door on Denver and limit Peyton Manning’s opportunities. Keeping this in mind I have to go with the more experienced and favored team: the New England Patriots. Tom Brady doesn’t have Gronk this time but he does have a great rushing attack built to keep opposing squads on the field. In fact LeGarrette Blount might be one of the best running backs the Pats have ever had, and will be more leaned on than people realize come tomorrow night. That said the Falcons counter with Devonta Freeman, who is underrated mostly due to his size; they might focus more on the run game if the Pats cover Julio Jones really well.

My X factors for this game are pretty obvious: Chris Hogan and Dion Lewis for the Patriots and Trevor Coleman and Mohamed Sanu for the Falcons. I don’t really think either team’s tight ends will figure heavily in this contest, although Martellus Bennett has done fairly well for the Patriots and was a good pickup in the off season. As for defense, well I don’t know how much of that we will see, as both teams are capable of putting up 30 points easily. However I think that the Falcons will suffer from some early game nerves and that Matt Ryan will have to dig the team out of a hole midway through. My final game score is Patriots 28, Falcons 23. I might be skipping the halftime show and I also wonder if we will see any play as mystifying as the Seahawks not running it with Marshawn Lynch. Hopefully this game isn’t as awful as last year’s contest.

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL: Conference Title Game Edition

Overall Record: 6-2. Last Week 3-1

Patriots over Broncos
Panthers over Cardinals

The Greatest Bowl Of Them All: Super Bowl XLIX

Post Season Picks Record: 8-2 (Last Week 2-0)

This will be an annual event from now on, as last year was the first time I covered the Super Bowl on my blog. This year’s coverage will focus once again on key matchups, who will win (important of course) and on some of the major players.

Matchup #1: Tom Brady vs Russell Wilson

Sure the two will not actually face each other on the field. Yet they very well might determine the game and who wins, as both are the field generals of their respective teams. Brady is a legend while Wilson is forging his own legacy although Wilson has been compared to Brady already in terms of being well known for post season success rather than stats. Never mind both put up plenty of quality numbers. I’ll give the edge to Brady based on past experience although Wilson is actually mobile and has a knack for hitting his wide outs. It is exciting to see how this matchup, which many felt was going to happen a season or two ago, turns out.

Matchup #2: Legion of Boom vs Bend or Break

Although New England has what could be its best defense in years they are known for fielding a unit that is aimed at keeping defenses honest even if it doesn’t seem impressive, although its led by stalwarts Jamie Collins, Vince Wilfork and Darrelle Revis, a legend already. Brandon Browner has already gone on record as saying he wants the Patriots to go after any injured Seahawks players, a message that could end up being a motivation for Seattle. Meanwhile the Seahawks defense is ridiculous, as its headlined by Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor, plus Bobby Wagner. I have to give the edge to a Seahawks defense that is arguably the league’s best and also made Peyton Manning look silly last season in the Super Bowl.

Matchup #3: Pete Carroll vs Bill Belichick

One future Hall of Fame coach versus another potential HOFer. Both are Super Bowl winners and are known for never losing. Belichick may have the edge in terms of repeating yet Carroll is no stranger to going back to back in title games even though that was in college. It’s worth noting that Belichick replaced Carroll as head coach of the Patriots after New England fired Carroll. That’s a storyline that will be mentioned plenty of times on Sunday.

Matchup #4: The Patriots offense vs the Seahawks offense

Losing Golden Tate and trading away Percy Harvin midseason hurt Seattle a bit yet they still have Marshawn Lynch and Doug Baldwin. Plus Jermaine Kearse is a great X factor for them as is Luke Wilson, an underrated tight end capable of big plays. Also Wilson can run really well and doesn’t make too many mistakes. Now the Patriots offense has Rob Gronkowski who is arguably the best tight end in the league and wide outs Brandon LaFell and Julian Edelman, both which are really good pass catches. The Patriots have LeGarrette Blount as their running back but also have several other backs they can roll out. Their X factor is Shane Verreen who can catch passes as well as run for touchdowns. Edge goes to the Patriots here based on Gronk alone.

Final Prediction:

Despite being the Patriots being the favorite I have the Seahawks winning instead. They have a better defense and Russell Wilson has a winning record against Super Bowl quarterbacks. This will be a hard fought and close game that could have a fantastic conclusion. My final score is Seattle 23 New England 20. And I really wish the game would finally go into overtime. No Super Bowl ever has.

PLAYOFFS?!: Conference Title Game Edition

Now for the NFL Conference title game picks (last week’s record: 3-1)

*Seattle Seahawks over Green Bay Packers (35-17)

Look I want to pick the Packers. But I can’t and I won’t. Aaron Rodgers is banged up and so is Eddie Lacy. While Marshawn Lynch may not have played well last game he will burn GB’s defense just like DeMarco Murray did. Also Russell Wilson is a duel threat QB and the Packers are facing him at home. Not even my own bias can’t change my mind.

*New England Patriots over Indianapolis Colts (37-20)

Poor Andrew Luck is 0-3 against the Pats. That’s unlikely to change as the Colts were run over by NE last time the two met in the playoffs. Also Gronk is a beast and seems unstoppable. I foresee the Patriots pulling away late at home as Tom Brady returns to the Super Bowl.

PLAYOFFS? PLAYOFFS?! Divisional Round

Time for more NFL fun this weekend (last weekend’s record: 3-1):

*Seattle Seahawks over Carolina Panthers (27-13)

Sure Carolina will put up more of a fight than expected. Yet Seattle has a great home crowd and hasn’t lost at home in a long time. The Panthers got this far but I just can’t see them stopping Russell Wilson or Marshawn Lynch.

*New England Patriots over Baltimore Ravens (35-20)

Unlike the Steelers the Patriots are not banged up and Tom Brady is looking to get revenge on Baltimore for knocking him out of the playoffs two seasons ago. Look for NE’s underrated run game to make a difference.

*Green Bay Packers over Dallas Cowboys (27-24)

This is destined to be a classic. And a really hard fought game as both teams have great offenses and quality defenses. Aaron Rodgers vs Tony Romo is a fantastic matchup. I’m heavily biased so take this entire post lightly. Eddie Lacy might be the X factor for the Packers.

*Denver Broncos over Indianapolis
Colts (31-26)

Peyton Manning outlasts Andrew Luck in a battle that ends up being decided by a couple of C.J. Anderson touchdowns. The Colts defense will keep some of Denver’s wideouts in check but it won’t be enough.

Followup: The Aaron Hernandez Story

Well on June 22 I made a blog post about one Aaron Hernandez. Little did I know that he would be accused of first degree murder, and that apparently he is suspected of committing more than one murder. Actually he is suspected of a double homicide in addition to the suspicious death of a room mate when he was a player at the University of Florida. Holy crap. So really what was originally a case where an NFL player was originally accused of gun charges and obstruction of justice has turned into a full blown murder trial. Whoa.

If you thought that previous trials involving athletes was compelling television, well I think this one has them beat save for perhaps the O.J. Simpson trial. And hey O.J. was accused of merely a double homicide, not the killing of three, four, possibly even more people. Hernandez probably does not have a dream team of attorneys to get him off, and his mug shot literally made everyone think “Thug Life.” I can’t believe how fascinating in a horrible way this case is, or that I’m actually responding with a blog post that is a cousin to the previous entry I made merely a week ago.

Now is the man guilty? All evidence points to Aaron Hernandez being absolutely guilty of at least something, and that something is more than likely murder or at least aiding in the killing of a man or multiple persons. That’s really messed up and shocking. I can’t remember any pro athlete standing trial for being a mass murder, which makes this case unprecedented really. It also makes me wonder if there were others who committed such crimes and got away with it. I doubt we will ever know for certain, however if Aaron is found somehow innocent I do know this much: the Bengals and the Raiders will sadly offer him a spot on their rosters. Actually the Raiders seem to be shaping up so the Bengals is the most likely spot. Well there is still the Cowboys, with their sad ugly history….

White Bronco Legacy and Aaron Hernandez

Back in 1994 I was viewing the NBA Finals when breaking news interrupted, telling everyone that O.J. Simpson had decided to run instead of surrendering to the police. His vehicle of choice was a famous white Bronco, and the cameras followed it up to the dramatic conclusion, where O.J. finally gave himself up. I think of that also because athletes getting into trouble with the law still happens, and its happened recently with one Aaron Hernandez, the TE for the New England Patriots. I don’t know if he is guilty of murder, but he is suspected of obstructing evidence, which is still a crime last time the law and myself checked.

This brings to mind the sad multiple stories of athletes who got in trouble with the law and threw their lives away for rather stupid reasons. Its a rather long list, and while some of them managed to get off rather easy or not face any jail time us “Regular Folks” ponder why someone with money, fame, and a great job would risk all of that for nothing and in the process destroy everything they had already built. Perhaps its arrogance or hubris, the idea that they are famous and so their lawyers will always bail them out-and there is sad precedent for thinking that way.

Yet considering that so many of these players have families and people who love them, some who are dependent on them, its tragic and odd that some of these athletes engage in risky and stupid behavior. I do hope that whatever the outcome Hernandez’s tale serves as a cautionary lesson to players and even non-athletes. With that in mind, I’ll unfortunately be expecting the next case involving a star athlete or celebrity to happen fairly soon. Probably by tomorrow.