Instant Coffee: NFL Championship Game Weekend

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New England Patriots 16 @ Denver Broncos 26

The Broncos completely dominated the game from both sides of the ball. It was not even as close as the score would indicate as the Patriots scored their two touchdowns late after the Broncos built a comfortable lead. The Broncos went to a prevent defense that was much easier to score against but stopped big plays and forced the Patriot scoring drives to eat up the game clock so they did not have enough time to make another miracle comeback. Similar to the Divisional Round against the San Diego Chargers, the Broncos defense stepped up again. They completely shut down the Patriots running game by holding it to 64 yards a week after it totally gouged the Indianapolis Colts. Accordingly, they made the Patriots offense one dimensional and forced Tom Brady to throw the ball. Brady just does not have the necessary weapons in the passing game without an effective running game. They were held to 3 points till the fourth quarter. Their two touchdowns were cosmetic as they just did not have time to rally. Of course, the Broncos are an offensive team. Peyton Manning played a perfect game throwing for 400 yards and 2 touchdowns. After the Broncos punted on the first drive, they scored on every drive the rest of the game. The Patriots defense just could not get any pressure on Manning. They did not sack him once and only hurried him once. It is a recipe for disaster against the greatest pocket passer of all time. If you do not get pressure on him to throw him off balance, he will tear you apart. It is exactly what happened to the Patriot defense. The injury to Aqib Talib also did not help. He did an excellent job against Demaryius Thomas in the regular season matchup. Thomas went for 7 catches, 134 yards, and a touchdown in this game after Talib’s injury. Another factor was tight end Julius Thomas, who missed the regular season game. He had 8 catches for 85 yards with big plays in key moments of drives. The Patriots defense did hold the Broncos to field goals 4 times. Otherwise, the game would have gotten completely out of hand.

The Patriots flaws were exposed in this game. First, their defense is very average against top offenses. In the championship runs, they had great players that put pressure on and confused opposing quarterbacks. Peyton Manning and his Colts were among its victims. However, the defense just does not have the players anymore and Bill Belichick can only scheme so much. It showed against the Broncos as they forced zero pass rush and looked helpless against Manning. If the Broncos finished a couple more of their drives for touchdowns, the final score would have more accurately reflected how badly the Patriots defense was dominated. On offense, they just did not have the receivers to rely on once their running game was stuffed. Julian Edelman is an excellent possession receiver but he is not a gamebreaker they can heavily rely on. They allowed Wes Welker to sign with the Broncos and signed Danny Amendola to replace him. Amendola had zero catches in the game. The loss of superstar Rob Gronkowski really robbed them of any explosiveness in the receiving game. Nevertheless, the Patriots will always contend so long as Brady and Belichick lead them. However, they definitely need Gronkowski back and to finally stay healthy throughout the entire season. They also need to improve an offensive line that allowed Brady to be sacked over 40 times this season. Adding a deep threat wide receiver to stretch the field on opposing defenses would also help. In regards to their own defense, they have a young linebacker in Jamie Collins that looks promising. However, they need to add a lot more. Their draft picks and free agents on defense have been poor in recent history. Belichick has been tremendous in coaching defensive players but his track record on selecting them has been questionable.

For the Broncos, they get a chance to complete their mission of winning the Superbowl. This season is all about Peyton Manning’s greatness. He broke the passing records. However, it will mean nothing without a Superbowl win. He can cement his legacy with a second Superbowl victory or receive additional criticism for not being clutch. Nevertheless, I disagree with some of it. It is a team game. Tom Brady started his postseason career 10-0 with 3 Superbowl wins. Since then, he is 8-8 in the playoffs, 0-2 against Peyton Manning, and 0-2 in the Superbowl. He has been a better quarterback since the last Superbowl victory but his teams have not been as good as the ones that won it all. Due to his 3 Superbowl rings, he never gets criticized for his team’s postseason failures. While he deserves all his accolades, the Patriots recent postseason track record proves why it is silly to detract from Peyton Manning’s career for postseason losses. It is fair to state that he has not been the same quarterback he has been in the regular season during the postseason. However, I disagree that it makes him a choker. The failures can be used to compare him to the other immortal quarterbacks, such as Joe Montana. Nothing should take away from his place in history as one of the greatest quarterbacks and winners of all time. I will be rooting for him to win his second Superbowl so he can put an end to the postseason criticisms once and for all.

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San Francisco 49ers 17 @ Seattle Seahawks 23

While Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning Round 4 in the playoffs did not live up to the hype, the grudge match between NFC West Rivals, the San Francisco 49ers and the Seattle Seahawks, was an instant classic. The 49ers were dominating the game the first three quarters. They built an early 10-0 lead in the first half. They took a 17-13 lead into the fourth quarter. 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick was shredding the Seahawks defense with his legs en route to finishing the game with 130 yards rushing on 11 carries. Moreover, their defense was playing well. Marshawn Lynch ran hard and kept the Seahawks in the game. He finished with 109 yards rushing and a touchdown as he was the first running back to rush for over 100 yards against the 49ers in 22 games. Nevertheless, the 49ers defense played great. They put intense pressure on Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson with 4 sacks and many more hurries and hits. Accordingly, they stifled the Seahawks passing game. Going into the game, I thought Wilson would make plays when he needed to do so for his team. There is no question that the biggest play and turning point of the game was at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The Seahawks had a 4th and 7 on the 49ers 35 yard line. While they initially lined up to attempt a field goal, there was a lot of confusion and kicker Steve Hauschka was not ready. Accordingly, the Seahawks called a timeout and decided to go for it on fourth down instead. At that point, I thought the Seahawks were in trouble. They looked disoriented and unorganized. Burning a timeout in the second half is usually a terrible mistake. Moreover, they decided to go for the first down on a fourth and long against a great defense. I assumed that they would turn it over on downs and put themselves in a difficult position to win the game. However, they made a gutsy call and threw a deep pass to Jermaine Kearse for a 35 yard touchdown that gave them a 20-17 lead. Instead of giving up great field position to the 49ers and needing to drive against their great defense, the tables were turned. The 49ers were trailing and needed to go against the number 1 ranked defense in the league in the toughest stadium in the league to play in with the Seahawk fans, also known as the 12th man, generating deafening noise.

On the very next 49ers drive, Kaepernick was stripped for a fumble in his own territory. However, his vaunted defense made a brilliant goal line stand to get the football back. Nevertheless, Kaepernick was intercepted on the following 49er drive. He made a terrible decision throwing to a covered Anquan Boldin. Kaepernick has made errant throws in the playoffs before this game. The potential interception by the Green Bay Packers during the 49ers final drive that won the Wild Card game in Green Bay comes to mind. The corner should have picked the ball but dropped it. However, the Seahawks secondary is the best in the league and is also the best in intercepting the ball. Accordingly, Kaepernick’s mistakes did not go unpunished as they did against the Packers and the Carolina Panthers. The 49ers defense was able to hold again and limit the Seahawks to a field goal. As a result, Kaepernick had one more chance to join 49er lore and lead his team to an epic, playoff game winning touchdown drive similar to Joe Montana and Steve Young. He made some great plays to get the 49ers in position at the Seahawks 18 yard line. At that point, he went for it all on a pass to the endzone to his favorite receiver Michael Crabtree. Although it was not a terrible pass, cornerback Richard Sherman was off balance but made an amazing play to deflect the ball so linebacker Michael Smith could intercept it. The play sealed the game and sent the Seahawks to the Superbowl. In the fourth quarter, the great Seahawks defense was able to force Kaepernick into 3 turnovers after he played tremendous during the first two games of the playoffs and for the first three quarters of the Championship game.

For the 49ers, it is another bitter end to the season. In my opinion, they have been the best team in the NFL the last 3 seasons and finished the season playing the best. However, they have zero Superbowl rings to show for their efforts. If they were playing the Seahawks on a neutral field, I think they would have won. Nevertheless, Seattle has the toughest stadium for opposing teams to play in the NFL. The Seahawks earned that homefield advantage and are worthy of the Superbowl berth. In 2012, the 49ers punt and kick returner fumbled away their chance to go to the Superbowl and win it. Last year, they were one play away from winning it all as the Baltimore Ravens made a goal line stand. They got close to returning to the Superbowl again this year before the Seahawks defense made the interception to stop them in the red zone. If the 49ers made the Superbowl, they would have been favorites against the Denver Broncos. They are a complete team with a great, young quarterback that can get better and a brilliant coach in Jim Harbaugh. Kaepernick and Harbaugh are pillars that should give the 49ers a large window to win titles. Nevertheless, it is disappointing. While they are set up to make another run at the title next year, a team’s fate can change quickly in today’s NFL. There are only so many chances to win the title as the best team before a franchise needs to retool or rebuild. The 49ers fell short again and squandered a third, great opportunity to win the Superbowl.

For the Seahawks, they take a top defense and a top running game to the Superbowl. The matchup between Seahawks secondary and the most prolific offense in the history of the NFL led by Peyton Manning should be great. Something has to give so it will be interesting to see which unit gets the better of the other. It should be the key matchup in the game. Nevertheless, I also want to see how the Denver defense does against Marhsawn Lynch. It stepped up to stop the Chargers and Patriots running game. However, Lynch will be the best and most physical back they face in the playoffs. In addition, do not count out quarterback Russell Wilson. He is a charismatic leader and can make big plays. He did not end the regular season well and did not do much against the New Orleans Saints in the Divisional Round. Regardless, he stepped up in the Conference title game when his team needed him and made the play of the game. The Broncos secondary can be beat for big plays. Wilson can have a major impact on the outcome of the Superbowl.

Pat Wong

About Pat Wong

Patrick is a contributor for Rookerville. He is an avid sports fan. Before joining Rookerville, he was part of a defunct New York Yankees message board, NYYankeefans, where he was its top poster and was inducted in its Hall of Fame for his contributions. Patrick is also a passionate fan of movies. He has enjoyed reading movie reviews over the years and is excited about the opportunity to review movies.

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