Pittsburgh-31 Baltimore-24
1) This game had more scoring then it normally does, but it was a very entertaining game to watch. Once again, Ben Roethlisberger comes up big in the clutch. He isn't the prettiest girl at the party, but he just gets the job done in these big games. His 3rd and 18 throw to Antonio Brown late in fourth quarter with the scored tied at 24 was one of the biggest throws I have seen in a long time.
2) The Steelers defense really came alive in the second half. Down 21-7, they forced a Ray Rice fumble, got a pick from Ryan Clark, and got another Joe Flacco fumble to turn this game around. They really stepped up in this game, and made big plays to help them win it.
3) It will take Joe Flacco to win a Super Bowl to finally win me over. I'm still not sold on Flacco in a big spot, but I have to be fair, he hit Anquan Boldin right in the numbers and TJ Houshmanzadeh in the hands on the Ravens last two drives. Those two guys have to make those catches.
4) The Ravens offense really didn't do anything all game long. Rice was a non-factor, and his fumble in the 3rd quarter was the turning point. They took advantage of Pittsburgh turnovers to take a 21-7 halftime lead, but they really didn't do a lot all game.
5) The officiating was awful. Jeff Triplette always annoys me when he is does a game. Too many flags and too many ticky-tacky calls for a playoff game.
6) The Ravens have now put together three straight playoff runs, but have not made a Super Bowl in this three year span. Their window might be closing, and there should be some major changes in store for them this offseason.
7) Give credit to the Steelers. They start the season 3-1 without Big Ben, then after they lost to the Pats in midseason, everyone kind of forgot about them in the AFC playoff picture. Now, they are back in the AFC Title Game for the fourth time in seven years.
Green Bay-48 Atlanta-21
1) Aaron Rodgers just made the leap into the elite level of QBs with this game. 31-36 for 330 yards, 3 TDs and a rushing touchdown. He looked like Joe Montana circa 1989 on Saturday Night. Down 14-7 i the second quarter, he brought the Packers right back to take a 21-14 lead right away. He is a remarkable player, and he is putting together a classic playoff run.
2) The Packers defense is a fine group with impact players on every level. Everyone talks about Clay Matthews and Charles Woodson, but Tramon Williams is an All-Pro player. Their defense is fun to watch.
3) Matt Ryan and the Falcons got a little too greedy near the end of the half. Down 21-14 late in the half, Atlanta was in field goal range, but they were trying to get closer. Ryan threw a bad pass that Williams picked off and then he takes it 70 yards as time expired in the half. Instead of a 21-17 game, the Packers took a 28-14 lead a never looked back. Combine that with the fact that the Packers got the ball to start the 3rd quarter and Rodgers drove the ball right down for touchdown to make it 35-14. That sequence was the ballgame right there.
4) The Falcons weren't getting a lot of respect as the 1 seed in the NFC, and it turns out everyone was right. 13-3 is a nice season, but getting blown out at home in their first playoff game will be a bitter pill for Falcon fans to swallow all offseason.
5) Kudos to the Packers and their organization. In 2008, they were tired of the Brett Favre drama, were looking to move on, and they made a tough call to divorce from Favre and go with Aaron Rodgers. It paid off and had to navigate some tough times, but they are back in the NFC Championship and have a legitimate shot at winning the Super Bowl this year.
Chicago-35 Seattle-24
1) Let's take a minute to thank Josh McDaniels for trading away Jay Cutler and burying our franchise. The Bears went all-in to get Cutler, and it has paid off. Cutler was tremendous yesterday. He threw a long touchdown pass to Greg Olson on his first pass, and then ran for two more scores and threw another in the fourth quarter. Cutler has silenced his critics and it is hard as a Bronco fan to watch him be so successful. Thanks a lot McDaniels.
2) The Seahawks shot their load last week in their win over New Orleans and looked like a 7-9 team yesterday. They were overmatched and outplayed in every phase. Seattle punted on their first eight possessions, and were never in the game and down 21-0 at the half. Pete Carroll did a nice job these last two weeks, but they were no match for the Bears on Sunday.
3) The Bears defense has really played great this season, and they dominated the Seahawks yesterday. Give the Bears credit because many people didn't think the Bears defense was any good, but they have proved that time after time this season.
4) It's crazy to think about how the Bears were 4-3 at midseason and looking like a team that wouldn't make the playoffs. They rebounded to finish 11-5, and now they are hosting the NFC Championship for the first time since 2006. There were many critics of Lovie Smith, Mike Martz and Cutler, but they have really responded with a great season.
New York Jets-28 New England-21
1) Give credit to Rex Ryan and the Jet defense. For the second week in a row, the Jets put together a great defensive gameplan. They sacked Tom Brady five times and intercepted him once. No one was open for Brady all day long, and a lot of those sacks were the result of the coverage in the secondary. Rex has a big mouth but he backed it up the last two weeks big time.
2) Mark Sanchez threw for less then 200 yards, but he threw three big touchdown passes. He hit Tomlinson for a short touchdown to make it 7-3 in the second quarter, he then hit Braylon Edwards on a slant for a touchdown to make it 14-3, then his touchdown pass to Santonio Holmes in the fourth quarter to make 21-11 was a thing of beauty. Sanchez is erratic at times, but he has proven that he can make big time throws in big games. I can't believe Sanchez beat Peyton Manning and Brady in back to back games in the playoffs.
3) A few key turning points took place early in this game. First, Brady got picked off by David Harris on a screen on their first drive of the game when they were moving the ball and in Jet territory. Eventhough the Jets missed a field goal on that drive, it showed that Brady is human and can make mistakes. Second, down 7-3 with under two minutes in the first half, Belichick calls for a fake punt on 4th and 5 near midfield. The risk isn't worth it in that spot. The Pats don't get it, and they give the Jets the ball back in their own territory right before the half. The Jets turned it into a touchdown and a 14-3 lead, and the Pats were in serious trouble at that point. If they punt the Jets down deep, the Jets will play to get to the half with a 7-3 lead, instead it gave the Jets the ball and chance to score and they did.
4) The Pats finally got moving late in the third quarter, score a touchdown and a two point conversion to make it 14-11. Two plays later in the beginning of the fourth quarter, Sanchez hit Jerricho Cotchery wide open over the middle for a 58 yard catch and run. He then hit Holmes for that big touchdown pass and the Jets answered right back to make it 21-11. Right there, I really thought the Pats were cooked.
5) Brady was having flashbacks to the Super Bowl against the Giants. He was harrassed, confused and out of sync all game long. The Patriots also did a terrible job in the fourth quarter. Down 21-11 and needing two scores, they ran the ball and took their time in the fourth quarter. There was no sense of urgency and held the ball for most of the quarter on that drive and came away with no points. Brady's incomplete pass to Deion Branch on 4th and 13 summed up everything that happened to the Pats yesterday. Also, when they got it to 21-14 with two minutes left, they didn't get out of bounds to let their field goal team on to try the field goal before the 2 minute warning. That made them go for the onside kick instead of kicking deep. With two timeouts left and just under two minutes, I would have still kicked it deep, played defense and use those two timeouts and try to get the ball back with decent field position and down seven.
6) Brady and Belichick have to take some heat here. They haven't won a Super Bowl since 2004. They haven't won a playoff game since the 2007 AFC Championship, and they are 0-3 in their last three playoff games and lost all three at home. Belichick got outcoached yesterday, and he got outcoached agains the Giants in the Super Bowl and last year against the Ravens. Brady is 4-5 in his last nine playoff games. The window is not closing on the Pats. They have Brady, a young defense and a multitude of draft picks, but this loss will stick with the Pats for a long, long time. It will be interesting to see how they respond next year.
7) The Jets are not the "Same Old Jets" anymore and they haven't been like that in a over a year. They advance to the AFC Championship Game for the second straight year and now have won four playoff games in two years-all on the road. It's hard to root for a Rex Ryan, Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes, Bart Scott and Mark Sanchez but it just might be their year. Now that they have beaten the Colts and Pats in consecutive weeks, if they don't get to the Super Bowl it will be a huge disappointment. In my mind they are actually the favorites next week in Pittsburgh.
No comments:
Post a Comment