Posts

Showing posts from January, 2018

NFL Conference Championships Review: By Kyle Balfour

So...there we have it. Our final two gladiators have been chosen for the final showdown: The Superbowl. So let's see how they emerged victorious as we cover the AFC & NFC Conference Championships. AFC Game: New England Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts Result: Patriots 24-20 Jaguars Kyle Said: Patriots (1-0) Stuart Said: Patriots (1-0) ... so close ... so close ... All right, I'll give them their dues: the Jaguars played great. Some incredible defensive stops made this a very close knit game in a situation where many tipped them to roll over and die like a real life jaguar to a poacher.  They didn't: they stepped up, their defence made plays, Tom Brady ate dirt far more than even he himself anticipated. The downside for the Jaguars? Being both predictable in deploying Leonard Fournette for 1st and 2nd down runs that amounted to fuck all, and the unpredictable roulette wheel of chance known as Blake fucking Bortl
NFL Conference Championship Preview: By Stuart Tomlin And then there were four. One more game. A trip to the Super Bowl in the balance. 28 teams have come and gone, and we’re now left with the New England Patriots, the Jacksonville Jaguars (yes, I know, I’m surprised at this too), the Philadelphia Eagles, and the Minnesota Vikings. Lead by Quarterback greats such as Tom Brady…Blake…Bortles…Nick Foles (well, WOULD have been Carson Wentz)…and…Case Keenum (to be fair, he’s having a very good season.). After next week, we’ll know which two of these quarterbacks, and which two of these teams will be playing the Super Bowl. Let’s have a look at the four teams, and the two Conference Championship games, shall we? THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP: NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 13-3, AFC East Champions, AFC 1 st Seed. FFS, the Patriots are in the AFC Championship game for the seventh consecutive year. They’re probably going to the Super Bowl again, we’re probably never gonna hear the end
The Coaching Carousel By Stuart Tomlin Congratulations to the New England Patriots, Jacksonville Jaguars, Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings. Now that’s out of the way, and there’s a Conference Championship Game (and a preview) coming up for you this weekend, but this is going to be looking at the other 28 teams. More specifically, those of us who changed coaches in the offseason. Naturally, owing to complete bias, I’m going to start in Indianapolis. The Chuck Pagano era mercifully ended in Indy on December 31 st following our 22-13 win over the Texans, which got us to the lofty heights of 4-12. That was enough for Jim Irsay to finally fire Pagano, probably two years after he should have. A disastrous season from start to finish with Andrew Luck being out for the entire year. Fortunately, he’s most likely back next season, and it’s looking like Josh McDaniels will be the man taking over. The current Patriots OC, he can’t officially accept the job until the Patriot

NFL Conference Championships Preview and Predictions: By Kyle Balfour

Here it is: the semi-finals! Better known as the Conference Championships! The last one standing in the AFC vs. New England (every damn year, these days...), and the best the NFC has to offer duel it out for the opportunity to try and beat the Patr-uh, I mean...whoever wins the AFC conference final in the Superbowl! Show us the competitors! AFC Game: New England Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts Winner: Who the fuck do you think? Look, it's all fine and congratulatory that the Jaguars made it this far. After an utter slogfest with the Bills, and amusingly staving off a comeback attempt by the Steelers, due to the Steelers joining in far too late, but it's not gonna mean squat when they face a real opponent. One with a strong, if flawed, defence, and a stellar offence led by the fraud GOAT Tom Brady. This is ultimately where I really, really wish the Jaguars had a real quarterback. If they did, I would honestly believe, and

NFL Divisional Finals Review: By Kyle Balfour

And then...there were four. The Conference Championships are upon us, and we have narrowed it down to the two remaining finalists from each conference, ready to face each other to advance onto the holy land of football: known to all as the Superbowl (I'm running out of ways to make this same style of introduction...) So let's recap the Divisional Finals! Game 1: Philadelphia Eagles vs. Atlanta Falcons Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Result: Eagles 15-10 Falcons Stuart Said: Falcons (0-1) Kyle Said: Falcons (0-1) How does the top seed go from...well, that, to underdogs? Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? Regardless, an 'lergy suffering Eagles squad managed to duel it out in a very war-of-attrition style game with the Falcons. The Falcons O-Line couldn't contain the talent still alive on the Eagles defence (Fletcher Cox...offt), and the Eagles run game trampled onward. Despite some very good chemistry between Matt Ryan and Julio Jones to

NFL Divisional Finals Preview and Predictions: By Kyle Balfour

With the Wildcard round concluded, our beloved dark horses and underdogs have made it through to face the divisional champions in order to be one step closer to the Superbowl. Another batch of 4 games is upon us, so let's delve right in! Game 1:  Philadelphia Eagles vs Atlanta Falcons Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Winner: Falcons Oh, goodie! A bird fight! So the Eagles must face the Falcons without their beloved quarterback Carson Wentz, but Nick Foles is still a viable option. A strong running game tandem will be the weapon of choice I feel for the Eagles to keep up with the Falcons. I still think the Falcons will win, mostly because I despise the Eagles and consider them playoff frauds (seriously, go and look at their schedule. They faced maybe 2 strong opponents all season long. A terrible Redskins squad, an abysmal Giants team, and the Cowboys lacked Ezekiel Elliot, all handing the Eagles 5 out of 6 wins - and like they could care less about the

NFL Wildcard Review: By Kyle Balfour

God, I love playoff football. Even when your team isn't in it, it's still exciting stuff. Everything on the line for a shot at the Superbowl is what drives every one of these teams, and the wildcard teams even more so since they have an additional opponent standing in their way. So with tonight being the divisional finals, let's quickly wrap up the Wildcard Round. Game 1: Kansas City Chiefs vs. Tennessee Titans Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas, Missouri Result: Chiefs 21-22 Titans Stuart Said: Chiefs (0-1) Kyle Said: Titans (1-0) Now THAT was a comeback! The Chiefs went full Chiefs and pissed away an 18 point lead in the second half. Oh, the memes were heavenly. Alex Smith relapsed and remembered his former identity, and couldn't muster it in the second half. Travis Kelce going down with a concussion definitely did shift the game, but Kareem Hunt was barely in this game. The Chiefs stuck to the script, forgetting that a main role was missing, and the results were a

NFL Wildcard Preview and Predictions: By Kyle Balfour

Kept you waiting, huh? Well with the lovely festive period well and truly done; people finally know what day it is, and the shops are now open as per usual. Now it's time for the actual most wonderful time of the year: the Playoffs! Playoffs?!! Don't talk abo- playoffs?! You kidding me?! Playoffs?! Yes, playoffs, that wonderful time when the cream off the crop (if you're the NFC) and the usual suspects (see also AFC) come to town and duel it out for the prestigious honour of The Superbowl , and the fabulous prize that that game entails for the victor. So who do we have lined up for the preliminary wildcard round? Game 1:  Kansas City Chiefs vs. Tennessee Titans Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri Winner: Titans So the NFL equivalent of that guy in college who barely turns up to class, never studies, yet can still churn out a grade C for assignments has clinched a woefully pathetic division (congratulations AFC West, you out AFC South'd the