FMQB

FMQB: The Best Playoff Weekend of All Time

Disregarding recency bias, this was also statistically the best playoff weekend of all time. Prior to Sunday, the closest point differential for 4 playoff games (wild card or divisional round) was 18 points. This week’s differential was 15 points. So this was the Best Playoff Weekend in the history of the NFL. 3 games ended in walkoff field goals (all by the road team no less), and the 4th and most lopsided game ended with an OT Touchdown was probabaly a Top 5 playoff game of all time.

For the Record:

• FMQB went 3-1 last week. In a week where 3 road teams won, I’ll take that in a heartbeat!
• Crazy to see the #1 and #2 MVP candidates have major questions on whether they’ll be back with their teams or not. My prediction? Brady does another year, Rodgers is out in Green Bay.
• Jimmy Garrapolo has now made the same number of Conference Championship games as New England has since they traded him

Bengals vs. Titans:
If there’s ever an argument that turnover differential is make or break, this game showed that Joe Burrow could get sacked NINE TIMES and still win the game since the Titans threw 3 INT’s. Burrow looked rough to be honest, but a lot of that was his offensive line. He had a 28.2 QBR (ouch) but 348 yards passing. Tannehill threw INT’s on the first play of the game, at the goal line of the 1st drive of the 2nd half, and the last drive of the game.

49ers vs. Packers:
Not that this was an awesome game, but it was close and meaningful. Both QB’s combined for 356 yards passing (Mahomes and Stafford alone threw for more than that), and there was only 1 offensive TD the entire game (vs. 3 TD’s in the last 2 minutes of the Bills game). But Packers special teams made, or breaked, this game with 3 huge blunders. First, they allowed a FG block at the end of the 1st half, they then allowed a Punt Block for the 49ers only TD, and finally on the game winning FG, they only had 10 guys on the field to attempt a block. That’s terrible football. One thing of note, I was shocked the 49ers ran the ball on 3rd and 7 with 1 minute left in the game and out of FG range. If you don’t make it there, it’s going into OT. Apparently the Packers were just as shocked since it went for 9 yards.

Rams vs. Buccaneers:
I will caveat this game with “it was awesome as long as you didn’t turn it off.” When the Rams went up 27-3, I’ll admit I 100% thought it was over. Heck, I hung on just to be able to watch Brady’s potential last game. But as we should have known, if 1 team can make mistakes and be outscored by 24 points, the other team can just as easily do the same. The Rams tried everything they could to give the game back, with their last 6 drives before the TD ending with Fumble on 1st play, 3 and out Punt, snap fumbled backwards on 1st play, Missed Field Goal, 3 and out Punt, Fumble on 2nd play. As a Rams fan, the swing of emotions from watching the momentum completely shift and the lead melt away, only to have a miracle final drive and chip shot field goal.

Bills vs Chiefs:
This is 100% going to be the Brady vs Manning of this generation, and we’re in for a treat if this is the case. I don’t even know where to start with this game as nothing I say will give it justice, but it was tied 14-14 at halftime. The 4th quarter is when this game became a classic. Buffalo was down by 5 with 9 minutes left. After a long drive, they scored on a 4th and 13 to go up by 3. The Chiefs then scored in 52 seconds to go up by 4. The Bills then scored in 49 seconds to go up by 3. And then, with 13 seconds left at the 25 yard line, the Chiefs gained 44 yards in 2 plays by throwing it right up the middle and calling timeouts. What ended up being the only anticlimactic part of this game is we all knew whoever won the coin toss was going to take the game. That was the Chiefs, and sure enough they drove down and scored easily.

After the 2 minute warning, 31 points were scored, there were 3 lead changes in the final 2 minutes as well as a game tying FG.

There has been a ton of talk this week about the NFL changing the OT rules. And the odds definitely go to the winner of the cointoss, which is very unfair. There have been 11 OT playoff games since the new rule was implemented in 2010. Of those 11, the team that won the coin toss is 10-1, with 7 of those teams scoring a TD.

So will this playoff game of the century be enough to change it? I say it won’t. Why? Because the only Super Bowl to go to OT was also won by a TD on the 1st drive. If the NFL doesn’t want to see that drive matched in a Super Bowl, they’re not going to change it due to a divisional round game.

Stats of the Week:

• This is the first time in 12 years that the Championship round won’t have Brady or Rodgers in it.
• The last 18 Super Bowls have had either Brady, Manning, Roethlisberger or the 49ers in it
• All 4 road teams had never won in the divisional round, and we were 13 seconds away from that happening
• The Packers had scored 20 or more points in every playoff game Rodgers was in until Sunday.
• Gabriel Davis was the team’s 6th leading receiver on the team, and just set a playoff record doing something Jerry Rice, Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, Cris Carter, Lynn Swan, etc had never done.
• The Bills’ had 13 drives without a punt, and then their 1st punt was downed at the 1 yard line
• The Bills were 4 for 4 on 4th down, with 2 of the plays going for a TD
• Andy Reid’s Chiefs are the 1st team ever to host 4 Championship games in a row. The team in 2nd place with 3 in a row? Andy Reid’s Eagles.
• The Chief’s game tying FG drive took less seconds (13 seconds) than Dak Prescott’s final run (14 seconds)
• Patrick Mahomes has more playoff wins and Super Bowl appearances than Aaron Rodgers, and it’s only Mahomes’ 4th season as a starter
• The Regular season passing yards leader has never won the Super Bowl (0-56)

2 Retirements (possibly more):
Not shocked about Ben Roethlisberger, but will be super weird to see the Steelers with a different QB. I was a freshman in college when he was a rookie, and Big Ben was the QB for the Steelers for over half of my life.

I am shocked by Sean Payton though. Not saying that Jameis Winston is close to Drew Brees, but they definitely make the playoffs if he doesn’t go down. My guess is he’ll take a year off and come back and coach the Cowboys. Maybe he just needed a change of pace.

Packers Fans, look away:

Without getting into it too much, the ire of Aaron Rodgers out there is palpable. I saw one person accurately describe it by saying “if you had told me 7 years ago that Tom Brady would get more sympathy and be more well liked than Aaron Rodgers, I would have thought Aaron Rodgers was a part of a hit and run that caused a death.”

Aaron Rodgers went from one of the most well liked players and well like personalities, to one of the most hated in about a 10 week period. He again opened his mouth this past week and completely misquoted a CDC study, but I’ll hold off on going on a rant.

My point with all of this, is there were Jokes-a-plenty after his loss! Here were a few of my favorites:

• Aaron Rodgers must have gotten his coaching advice from Joe Rogan

• Rodgers must have done his own research on the 49ers

• Rodgers thought that he was going to the Super Bowl, but it was just a false positive

• Once again, we all mistakenly believed that Aaron Rodgers had a shot

• Everyone needs to stop making fun of Aaron Rodgers, he hates being needled

• Losing to the same team 4 times in the playoffs builds natural immunity
• Rodgers spent a lot of time talking about Covid, when he should’ve been more worried about the common Gould (Robbie Gould kicked the game winning FG)
• Aaron Rodgers’ new nickname should be “Joe Throwgan”

• And my personal favorite: “Aaron Rodgers can still make it to the Super Bowl this year if Mike Pence has enough courage.”

Rams vs 49ers:

The Rams have blown 2 big leads in the last 3 games. Definitely cause for concern, and 1 of the leads was against the 49ers in Week 18. The 49ers have won the last 6 matchups against the Rams which is also concerning. But Garrapolo is still banged up, and the Rams technically have the better team. I see them finally busting free and winning it Rams 31, 49ers 21.

Bengals vs. Chiefs:
This was another awesome regular season game, but it also took a flag on a 4th and goal for the Bengals to win it. But they did face this hot KC team, breaking their 8 game win streak. I think KC takes it in the end, definitely high scoring again: 38-35

Setting up…
Rams VS. Chiefs in the Super Bowl! A rematch of the greatest regular season game of all time.

Quote of the Week:
“I’m being silenced” Aaron Rodgers on a 28 minute interview

Quote of the Career:
“Are you disappointed the 49ers didn’t draft you?” Reporter
“Not as disappointed as they will be that they didn’t draft me” Aaron Rodgers
Since that comment, the 49ers have made more Super Bowls and are 4-0 against Rodgers in the playoffs

Quote of the Week #2:
“Well, it looks like we’re going to the AFC Championship” Evan McPherson BEFORE his kick to win the game

Quote of the Week #3:
“OH MY GOD, Kupp has it at the 10. Spike the freaking balllllll !!!” FMQB

Memes of the Week: