Let the Playoff Chase Begin . . .
With the Chiefs finally losing this weekend, the 1972 Miami Dolphins are still the only National Football League team to win the Super Bowl with a perfect season. Go ahead and pop the champagne boys!
This was a great weekend of football and the pressure of making the playoffs is in full effect. I went 11-3 this week and got the score of the Giants vs. Packers game exactly right at 27-13. The 3 big games this weekend were great and lived up to the hype. Let's take a look:
Broncos 27, Chiefs 17
This was a battle for first place in the AFC West and the Chiefs trying to stay undefeated. I was impressed with Kansas City even though they lost. Their defense held down the Denver offense for big portions of the night and allowed the Chiefs to hang around for most of the game. Like I said in my prediction, Alex Smith couldn't match what Peyton Manning did during the night and Jamaal Charles didn't so very much, so the offense was stagnant causing the Chiefs to suffer their first loss of the season. The Broncos made some big plays on offense and their defense really stepped up and played like a Super Bowl contender defense should. The Broncos offensive line played well against the great front four of the Chiefs and that allowed Manning to stand comfortable in the pocket and complete passes to his receivers. Denver has so many ways to beat teams, it's next to impossible to stop them the whole night. The running game with Moreno is really balancing the offense nicely and adding more problems to opposing defenses. The Broncos have 2 tough games coming up, at New England this Sunday Night then at Arrowhead Stadium to face the Chiefs again. These next 2 games will determine if the Broncos can get home field advantage throughout the playoffs.
Panthers 24, Patriots 20
Cam Newton has arrived folks! He played one of his best games of his career and lead the Panthers to another impressive win over the Patriots. Newton threw for 209 yards and 3 TD's and also made some key 3rd down conversions with his legs while rushing for 62 total yards. The Panthers defense didn't play their best, but they disrupted the Patriots offense the whole 1st half and stopped New England on the final play of the game that sealed the win. Tom Brady was in position to win the game on the last drive, but couldn't do it due to a controversial call. The Patriots running game was a reason they were in the game the whole night with a balance attack with Ridley, Blount and Vereen. This really helped the offense and allowed the play action to work with Brady and his receivers. The Patriots host the Broncos this Sunday and their offense has to be more efficient and their defense needs to play a lot better. This game will be another classic match up between Peyton Manning and Tom Brady.
Saints 23, 49ers 20
The 49ers defense played great, but the lack of a passing game and a stifled running game allowed the Saints to pull out the victory. The Niners defense was pumped all game, holding the Saints to just field goals in the 2nd half and Brees to just 1 touchdown pass. But for the 2nd week in a row, the Niners passing game didn't show up. Kaepernick threw for only 127 yards and the Saints defense held Frank Gore to only 48 yards rushing. Even with those terrible offensive numbers, the 49ers were still in the game and if the controversial roughing the passer penalty on Drew Brees had not been called, they would have most likely pulled out the victory. The Saints didn't play their best on Sunday, but still managed to win the game. As long as New Orleans plays at home, they will be tough to beat. The defense for the Saints plays a different game at home than on the road and their offense just feeds off the crowd. The Saints have a balanced offense with over 10 players getting catches and that forces defenses to scramble to cover them all. The Saints play in Seattle in a few weeks and that will be a true test on how good this Saints team is.
Those were the 3 monster games that have changed the playoff race and every week there will be more and more games that will add chaos to the playoff picture. But of course with good games comes moments during a game that are controversial and drive fans crazy. Here are 2 examples:
Example #1
The Saints versus 49ers game had a bad call on a sack of Drew Brees that was called roughing the passer. Drew Brees was sacked, fumbled the ball and the 49ers recovered, which would have changed that game dramatically. The refs flagged Ahmad Brooks for roughing Brees because he tackled him by throwing his arms around his neck. Brooks didn't contact Brees' helmet and it looked like a clean sack, but even tackling a QB around the neck is considered roughing the passer.
Example #2
The Patriots versus Panthers came down to a final play that will be talked about for a long time. Tom Brady threw an interception in the end zone as time expired, but a flag was thrown for pass interference. This would have given the Patriots one more play even though time had expired. After a conference with all the refs, the flag was picked up and the Panthers won 24-20. The refs explained after the game that Gronkowski didn't attempt to catch the ball and the ball thrown by Brady was considered un-catchable.
Both of these calls I believe are judgement calls by the referees. Of course after the game the refs explained their reasoning for the call by using a rule that doesn't make any sense. The refs called the pass interference penalty because the ball wasn't catch able and Gronkowski didn't make an effort to catch the ball. When you watch the replay, the reason Gronkowski couldn't make a play on the ball is that Kuechly, the Panthers linebacker, was hugging Gronk for most of the play. In a game that close and pivotal to the playoff picture, the ref who threw the penalty flag immediately did see something and should have stood by his initial decision.
For the roughing the passer penalty on Drew Brees, how are defenders suppose to sack quarterbacks anymore? If you can't contact them above the shoulders or touch their helmet or take their legs out, that doesn't leave many areas to tackle them. In the NFL now, the quarterback position in the most valuable player on the field. When a team loses their start quarterback like Rodgers for the Packers, the team usually starts playing bad football and that's not good for the league. When the elite quarterbacks are on the field playing well, that's great business for the NFL. So defenders have to understand that elite quarterbacks like Brees, Manning, Rodgers and Brady will be protected at all cost. I don't agree with the call on Ahmad Brooks, but the league has changed and the quarterback position will be overly protect at all times. Defenders must adjust to this new era of football or else many more penalties and possible fines will be called on them.
Power Rankings: Week 12
1. Denver Broncos- gave Chiefs 1st loss, defense stepped up, at Pats & at Chiefs next 2 games, wow!
2. Seattle Seahawks- host Saints a week from Monday, can grab home field with win, Harvin is back
3. Kansas City Chiefs- lost 1st game, defense played well, Alex Smith has to improve, need Charles more involved
4. New Orleans Saints- good win vs 49ers, Seahawk game is for home field, can they play well on road?
5. Indianapolis Colts- 2nd seed in AFC, tough game in Arizona, defense must step up, Luck is leading
6. Carolina Panthers- beat 49ers & Pats back to back, Newton looking elite, defense is for real
7. New England Patriots- tough loss at Carolina, running game improving, defense wearing down?
8. Cincinnati Bengals- offense busted out, defense looking sharp, Indy game looms in a few weeks
9. San Francisco 49ers- tough loss, passing game bad, Crabtree will help, Kap not himself, defense is stout
10. Detroit Lions- Megatron is unstoppable, defense getting shredded, Bush no factor, Bears are looming
11. Chicago Bears- fighting for division, better without Cutler? Marshall is awesome, defense playing well
12. Dallas Cowboys- huge game vs Giants, will Dez Bryant breakout? typical Dallas season
13. Arizona Cardinals- no one talks about them, defense is good, Fitz and Palmer connecting, look out!
14. Philadelphia Eagles- first place in East! Foles is on fire, McCoy running well, defense has improved
15. Miami Dolphins- riding the ship? Carolina tough game, where is Wallace, Tannehill playing well
16. New York Jets- Geno not so good, too many mistakes, running game is good, Dave & Busters?
17. New York Giants- 4 in a row, can tie Dallas with win, defense is anchoring team, few mistakes from Eli
18. Green Bay Packers- Whole organization depends on Aaron Rodgers
19. Pittsburgh Steelers- back in playoff hunt, Big Ben of old, defense old & suspect, burn jailbird uniforms!
20. San Diego Chargers- big loss in Miami, face tough Chief defense, dropping out of playoff chase?
OUT: Ravens, Browns, Rams, Titans, Redskins, Bills, Vikings, Texans, Falcons, Raiders, Bucs, Jaguars
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