Obviously ... as a North Carolina fan ... I am not happy at the state of the men's basketball program. Right now the Tar Heels are 16-11 and are more than likely going to miss the NCAA Tournament once again. That would be the second time in three years UNC will miss the Big Dance, which is epically bad for a program of this stature. That hasn't happened since the 2002 and 2003 tournaments which saw Matt Doherty get fired.
Head coach Hubert Davis has been a mixed bag. Some of it is on him, and some of it is on university, and some of it is on the fact that he got his start college athletics during a volatile time. The facts are that Davis is 94-42 in four seasons as head coach (as of February 20th), with a 7-2 record in NCAA tournament games. He may miss the tournament for the second time in those four seasons, but in the seasons he reached the tournament was a No. 1 seed once and reached the national championship game in the other. He has hit on some great transfers (Brady Manek, Harrison Ingram) and has missed on others (Pete Nance, Cade Tyson). He has done a fine job in recruiting high school kids, but has struggled to land key transfer portal targets (which may have more to do with UNC's lack of aggressiveness with NIL). He's won the ACC's Coach of the Year award, but many have questioned his ability to use his rosters properly and his coaching philosophies.
It's hard to figure out if Hubert really is the right guy for the job. When the team has struggled like it has this season, there are calls to remove him and go in a different direction.
On one hand, he's the nicest guy you will ever meet, bleeds Carolina blue, and had a decent NBA career despite not being a big time prospect coming out of high school. Recruits and their parents love him and the family atmosphere he continues at UNC. He's highly competitive and passionate about his players and the university. On the other, this is the third season the Heels have lost at least 10 games in his four years as head coach. This roster is the most imbalanced it has been in ages. It wasn't as if didn't try to land the best bigs in the portal ... he just couldn't close the deal (again, that may be a bit on the NIL side of things).
The 2023 season was a disaster and an embarrassing moment in Carolina hoops history. The core of the team that nearly won the national championship was ranked No. 1 in the preseason, yet infighting and ugly play took the Heels out of the NCAA tournament -- becoming the first preseason No. 1 team to miss the tournament in the modern era. He followed that up with an ACC regular season championship last year and a No. 1 seed in the tournament. The Heels fell short to Alabama in the Sweet 16, but if felt that Hubert righted the ship. That the stink from 2023 season seemed to go away with a team fans adored; R.J. Davis was the ACC Player of the Year, Armando Bacot set program records, Harrison Ingram's smile and Swiss Army knife play electrified fans and the team looked like it was back as an elite program.
That's all gone away this year. Again, the roster lacks bigs which has thrown the team and fans' expectations way out of whack. It could be argued that the five best players on this team are all guards or wings (R.J. Davis, Elliott Cadeau, Ian Jackson, Drake Powell, Seth Trimble). Jackson and Powell could be one-and-done freshman, but the transfer portal has been a nightmare. Hubert missed out on several high profile bigs who had UNC on their short lists, plus their primary catch (Tyson) has been a dud. Ven-Allen Lubin has been okay, he's not a traditional center and third year big man Jalen Washington hasn't taken as big of a jump as they needed. What you have is a perimeter oriented team who has no post presence, no shot blockers, and not the rebounding studs they've typically been. If you are going to be a guard dominated team, you can't turn the ball over the way this team does and you need to be a less streaky shooting squad. This team lacks any room for error and is extremely limited to what it can do.
That brings us to Hubert.
What is wrong with him? Is he unable to coach? He was the Coach of the Year last season and was able to adapt his team in 2022 to make a late season run to the title game. He certainly can recruit high school talent -- I mentioned that Jackson and Powell could be first round picks this year and elite prospect Caleb Wilson is coming next season. There's more than enough talent ... even with this flawed roster ... to miss another NCAA tournament.
As I said, I'm not happy with where we are at. But I will say this: if Hubert Davis actually does go out and get a GM for the basketball program (he said they'd hire one soon) then I do believe he deserves at least one more season to see this through. While it is commendable for Hubert to lean into the Carolina Family and the way the program has successfully operated for decades, he also must realize that those things don't lock down recruits anymore. The fact that Bill Belichick is now the head coach of the football team should bring the university and other athletic programs to the realization that you have to pay to play at an elite level now. Programs are built like professional organizations now and that having financial opportunities to lure talent to your team is the way you do business. Again, Hubert has done okay with acquiring some talent, but you need a guy running your operations while you coach your team.
I would like to see how that would look like. I think Hubert deserves that chance to show us. I'm all for that, but that also means I want to see results.
Remember the hit show Friends? The name of each episode always began with "The One Where ... " and then some moment from that week's program. The Super Bowl is sort of like that. Each Super Bowl has its own flavor. Its own memory. Sure, there is a lot more to a Super Bowl than just one play or one person, but there is usually a first thought that comes to mind.
So here is the Super Bowl episodes: I-THE ONE THAT WAS THE FIRST ONE
This wasn't even called the Super Bowl. It was the NFL/AFL World Championship game. The NFL was believed to be the superior conference and the Packers' 35-10 spanking of the Chiefs proved it.
II-THE ONE THAT VINCE LOMBARDI WAS CARRIED OFF THE FIELD
The Packers easily handled the Oakland Raiders to win their 2nd straight Super Bowl. The game would be the last for Vince Lombardi in Green Bay. He would be the GM the following year before returning to coaching with the Washington Redskins in 1969. He died in 1970.
III-THE ONE WHERE JOE NAMATH WON
Obviously, Super Bowl III will always be remembered as the one where the AFL beat the NFL in the title game. Joe Namath's guarantee was spot on as the Jets beat the Colts and legitimized the AFL's existence.
IV-THE ONE WHERE HANK STRAM WAC MIC'D
Chiefs head coach Hank Stram was wearing a microphone as his team beat the Vikings in Super Bowl IV. The sounds that they got were priceless. "You can't do that in our league!"
V-THE ONE WITH ALL THE MISTAKES
This was the Blunder Bowl. There were 11 turnovers in this one. The Cowboys set a record with 10 penalties. There was even a missed PAT. This is still the only Super Bowl were a player on the losing team won the MVP award.
VI-THE ONE WITH THE PRESIDENTIAL PLAY
Richard Nixon called Dolphins coach Don Shula and drew up a play. The Dolphins ran it ... and it didn't work.
VII-THE ONE UNDEFEATED SEASON
Of course, Super Bowl VII is most noted as the one season where we saw an undefeated team. The Miami Dolphins beat the Washington Redskins in a rather boring, non-descript game to finish the year 17-0. There, of course, was the Garo Yepremian botched kick that turned into the lone Washington touchdown.
VIII-THE ONE WITH CZONKA
Hard to believe now, the the Miami Dolphins won this Super Bowl with a quarterback that threw just 7 passes. Bob Griese did complete six of those passes in the 24-7 win over the Vikings. This was Czonka's night. Czonka ran for a then-record 33 times for a then-record 145 yards. IX-THE ONE WHERE THE STEEL CURTAIN ARRIVES
Super Bowl IX was unattractive. The Vikings offense was pitiful and the game was a defensive struggle. But Steelers back Franco Harris broke Czonka's records from the prior game (34 rushes, 154 yards) to begin one of the greatest dynasties in NFL history.
X-THE ONE WITH LYNN SWANN'S CATCH
We all know that Swann catch. The tip. The fall. The beauty. XI-THE ONE WITH THE RAIDERS
The Raiders returned to the Super Bowl for the first time since Super Bowl II. That tough, physical (sometimes dirty) defense mixed with a gun-slinging offense won a championship. The game and the players were iconic. From John Madden to Kenny Stabler to Willie Brown's huge pick-six. When we all think of the Raiders, this game comes to mind. That's how Al Davis would want it.
XII-THE ONE WHERE ROBERT NEWHOUSE THROWS A TD
Super Bowl XII was the first to be played indoors and the first to be played at night. It also featured a nice touchdown pass by Cowboys' running back Robert Newhouse. That was the first TD pass thrown by a running back in a Super Bowl.
XIII-THE ONE WHERE JACKIE SMITH DROPPED A TD PASS
There are great plays in the Super Bowl, but there are some huge blunders (more will be on this list). One of the biggest was Cowboys' tight end Jackie Smith dropping a sure touchdown pass late in Super Bowl XIII. Dallas settled for a field goal instead, and they ended up losing by 4.
XIV-THE ONE WITH STALLWORTH'S GRAB
The 1970s had closed and with it some of the greatest teams in NFL history. The Steelers were the best among them. This Super Bowl was surprisingly in doubt late. The Rams actually held a 19-17 lead going into the 4th quarter when Terry Bradshaw completed a 73-yard TD pass to John Stallworth to give the Steelers a lead they would never relinquish.
XV-THE ONE WITH PETE ROZELLE HANDING THE TROPHY TO AL DAVIS
The Raiders were back in the Super Bowl, but this was a bit different. Before the season, NFL commish Pete Rozelle had didn't allow the Raiders to move from Oakland to Los Angeles. Al Davis and the Raiders then sued the NFL, citing the league's anti-trust laws. The Raiders would later win, but there was quite the tension between the two men for several years. So the anticipation of Pete Rozelle handing the Super Bowl trophy to Al Davis was at a fever pitch. It happened, without any incident.
XVI-THE ONE WHERE IT WAS FREEZING
The game was played in Pontiac, Michigan at the Silverdome. Good thing, since this was a very cold day. Only the second Super Bowl to that point that didn't take place in either Miami, New Orleans or the Los Angeles area and the first to take place in a cold-weather city. The fans, of course, were fine inside the stadium but a snowy weekend caused a nightmare for fans and media to get to the game.
XVII-THE ONE WITH JOHN RIGGINS RUN
I Right, 70 Chip. That was the play Redskins' coach Joe Gibbs called on 4th-and-1 in the 4th quarter and Washington trailing 17-13 to the Dolphins. The play saw John Riggins not only pick up the 1st down, but he lumbered to a TD and a Super Bowl title. XVIII-THE ONE WHERE MARCUS ALLEN TORE IT UP ON BLACK SUNDAY
The Redskins were back in the Super Bowl, but they would not repeat their title. No, Marcus Allen and the Los Angeles Raiders ran all over Washington to a 38-9 win. The game is also known for the Apple commercial, 1984, where ads became as synonymous with Super Bowl Sunday as the game itself. But it was Allen's 191 yards rushing and 2 TDs ... one of which was a wicked 74-yd TD scamper ... that won the day.
XIX-THE ONE WHERE ROGER CRAIG HIGH STEPS FOR A TD
Roger Craig scored 3 touchdowns in Super Bowl XIX, a blowout of Dan Marino's Dolphins. But the most memorable moment was Craig high-stepping into the endzone for his final score.
XX-THE ONE WITH THE SUPER BOWL SHUFFLE
The 1985 Chicago Bears are legendary. That team nearly went undefeated and blew through the postseason. They were so dominant that they made this video before even winning the Super Bowl. It was brash, but it fit this team so well. Hard to believe that not only was this the Bears lone title, but this group didn't even get to another Super Bowl.
XXI-THE ONE WITH THE GATORADE SHOWER
It is ubiquitous. Winning teams douse the coach with a cooler full of Gatorade. Heck, now you can even bet on the color of Gatorade that gets dumped. However, it was this Giants team that made it a thing. They dumped it all over Bill Parcells after each of their victories in 1986, including their Super Bowl XXI victory of the Denver Broncos.
XXII-THE ONE WITH THAT SECOND QUARTER
Still my favorite quarter of football (ed. note: I'm a Redskins fan). The Redskins trailed 10-0 to the Broncos heading into the 2nd quarter when the Redskins would pile on 35 points. Doug Williams completed 9 or 11 passes for 228 yards and 4 TDs ... in that quarter alone! Timmy Smith, a nobody, rushed for 122 yards and Ricky Sanders caught 168 yards worth of passes (and two TDs) in that quarter. This Super Bowl featured the biggest deficit a winning team ever faced (since tied), the most rushing yards by a player (Smith) and Williams was the first African-American quarterback to win a Super Bowl (it took 26 years before it happened again).
XXIII-THE ONE WITH JOHN CANDY
One of the greatest Super Bowls, this game featured one of the best lines ever. With the 49ers trailing the Bengals 16-13 with just over 3 minutes left in the game, Joe Montana gets into the huddle and says, "hey, isn't that John Candy?" San Francisco would then go on an 11-play, 92-yd drive that ended with a John Taylor touchdown catch and Montana's 3rd Super Bowl title.
XXIV-THE ONE WITH THE BLOWOUT
The Niners repeated their championship with a blowout of the Broncos, Denver's third Super Bowl loss in four years. San Fran won 55-10, which remains the most points scored by a team in Super Bowl history and the largest margin of victory. It may also be the greatest matchup of quarterbacks in Super Bowl history as Joe Montana faced John Elway. Add in Steve Young's mop-up duty and it is a shoo-in.
XXV-THE ONE WITH WHITNEY AND SCOTT
This Super Bowl is remembered for two things: Whitney Houston's rendition of the National Anthem and Scott Norwood's missed field goal to end the game. Not much more I can tell you about it.
XXVI-THE ONE WITHOUT THURMAN THOMAS' HELMET
The Bills were back in the Super Bowl and they felt they were ready to beat the Redskins. Well, except that their star running back couldn't find his helmet and was missing from the opening Buffalo drive. That wasn't the only miscue to start this game (botched kicks from both teams, namely) but the Redskins cruised to a title.
XXVII-THE ONE WITH LEON LETT
Or you could say "The One With Don Beebe". This utter spanking the Cowboys gave the Bills is mostly forgettable, but it should've been worse as Leon Lett let a sure TD return go awry when he was showboating and Bills' receiver Don Beebe chased him down and forced a fumble into the endzone.
XXVIII-THE ONE WHERE THE BILLS CEMENT HISTORY
Most people don't remember too much about this Super Bowl. Yes, Atlanta had an ice storm during Super Bowl week and Emmitt Smith had a big day. But this is known for the Bills final appearance in a Super Bowl ... four games in four years. The Bills actually held a halftime lead, but Dallas outscored them 24-0 in the 2nd half. XXIX-THE ONE WITH THE MONKEY OFF STEVE YOUNG'S BACK
Steve Young is one of the best quarterbacks of the Super Bowl era, but people were giving him a lot of grief for not winning the big one. Fair, since the Niners chose Young when they cut ties with Joe Montana. Young did it with a record setting performance.
XXX-THE ONE WITH NEIL O'DONNELL
Other quarterbacks have had bad Super Bowls. But Neil O'Donnell was giving the Cowboys this one despite the Steelers outplaying Dallas. Three interceptions, including two that made Larry Brown into a household name. It got Brown a huge free agent contract with the Raiders. Ironically, this was O'Donnell's final game with the Steelers as he would leave for the Jets. XXXI-THE ONE WITH BRETT FAVRE
Brett Favre's biggest moment was the Packers' 35-21 win over the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI. While Favre wasn't the MVP (Desmond Howard was) or the most dominant player on the field (Reggie White was), Favre got loose. He threw TD passes of 54 and 81 yards and his celebrating became part of his legend.
XXXII-THE ONE WHERE JOHN ELWAY'S FLIP
John Elway lost three Super Bowls in the early part of his career which came in three of four seasons. Since the 1989 season, it took nearly a decade to get back. Elway faced the defending champion Packers and were also trying to end the AFC's 13-year losing streak in the Super Bowl. Late in the 17-17 game, Elway scrambled to pick up a 1st down and did his famous Helicopter Flip. The flip showed how badly he wanted this and the Broncos would finish off the win.
XXXIII-THE ONE WHERE ELWAY LEAVES
Not much stands out about Super Bowl XXXIII other than an unfortunate pre-game incident involving a well-respected Falcons player and the fact that John Elway left on top. As of now, it is the moment pointed to when a veteran wins a title. Do you leave now on top? It was asked to Tim Duncan when the Spurs won the 2014 NBA title. Hardly any athlete, especially of that stature, gets to even make a decision like this. Elway did.
XXXIV-THE ONE THAT NEEDED ONE MORE YARD
One of the most thrilling endings in a Super Bowl, the Titans were "one yard short" to tying Super Bowl XXXIV. Trailing the Rams 23-16 with no timeouts and just six seconds left. Steve McNair threw a pass over the middle to Kevin Dyson. Rams linebacker Mike Jones held on to the tackle and stopped Dyson on the 1-yard line as time expired.
XXXV-THE ONE WITH THREE TOUCHDOWNS ON THREE PLAYS
The Ravens defense was all-time great, but this game will be most remembered as the game with three TDs on three consecutive plays. The first one was the Ravens Duane Starks picking off Kerry Collins and returning it for a 49-yd touchdown. On the ensuing kickoff, the Giants' Ron Dixon returned it 97 yards for a TD. The following kickoff, the Ravens' Jermaine Lewis returned that kick for a TD. Amazing. In three plays, a 10-0 game turned into a 24-7 Baltimore lead. XXXVI-THE ONE THE PATRIOTS WON THE 9/11 GAME
This Super Bowl was pushed back a week due to the NFL moving a week of games after the attack on September 11th. The Patriots were a Cinderella team who made the Super Bowl with a young, backup quarterback named Tom Brady and a some close calls in the playoffs. They then get to face the Greatest Show On Turf Rams, who were 14 point favorites. The Patriots and Tom Brady pulled off the upset with Adam Vinatieri's 48-yd field goal as time ran out for the improbable win.
XXXVII-THE ONE THAT'S THE GRUDEN BOWL
In the offseason, the Oakland Raiders 'traded' Jon Gruden to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Oakland then hired assistant Bill Callahan. Who knew the two teams would face off in the Super Bowl? No one knew that, but Gruden apparently knew the Raiders' playbook hadn't changed since he left and Tampa jumped all over Oakland, forcing five turnovers and a dominant win. XXXVIII-THE ONE WITH THE WARDROBE MALFUNCTION
Forget that the Patriots and Panthers played in one of the most exciting Super Bowls ever, this game will be forever known for Janet Jackson's boob showing during the halftime show and all the ramifications since. XXXIX-THE ONE WHERE DONOVAN MCNABB "THREW UP"
This one is an urban legend that has people on both sides of the debate. Did Donovan McNabb throw up during that final drive to tie Super Bowl XXXIX (which failed)?
XL-THE ONE THE REFS HAD A BAD GAME
The Steelers and Seahawks met in Detroit, but what many people remember is the questionable officiating. Both sides complained about calls, though the feeling among most is that Seattle got the raw end of the deal. At the time, I called this the worst Super Bowl ever.
XLI-THE ONE IN THE RAIN
There are a few bigger moments in this one. It was Peyton Manning's lone Super Bowl win. It was also the one where Devin Hester ran the opening kickoff back for a touchdown. But it was also the one Super Bowl that truly was in the elements. The one Super Bowl played in rain. While it certainly wasn't a monsoon out there, it was quite slick out there. And that rain played a cool part in one of the greatest halftime shows ever -- Prince.
XLII-THE ONE THE PATRIOTS LOST THEIR PERFECT SEASON
Yes, David Tyree's catch is the moment of this Super Bowl. But the catch's greatness is magnified by who it was against. The 17-0 Patriots were attempting to be just the 2nd undefeated team ever and first to win 18 games. But that catch and some other big plays after it ruined the Patriots great season.
XLIII-THE ONE WITH SANTONIO HOLMES' CATCH
The Steelers have had some great catches in Super Bowl history. But this Santonio Holmes TD snag with 35 seconds left may be the best. It negated a wild 4th quarter rally by the Arizona Cardinals and gave Pittsburgh their record 6th Super Bowl title.
XLIV-THE ONE DREW BREES HELD UP HIS SON
There may not be a better moment than seeing Drew Brees hold up his young son while confetti falls down in Miami for the Saints Super Bowl title. Sure, there was the surprise onside kick and the Tracy Porter pick-six, but this picture captures this game.
XLV-THE ONE AT JERRY WORLD
Cowboy Stadium seemed like a great place to have a Super Bowl, especially this one. It is huge and can accommodate the huge Packers and Steelers fanbases. However, an icy winter storm crippled North Texas and even put the game in some jeopardy. There was also a big stink about people who bought tickets for the game who had to sit outside the stadium and watch since their seats weren't ready by game time. Also, there is nothing more Dallas Cowboys than their cheerleaders. Well, since both the Packers and Steelers are among the six teams who don't employ cheerleaders, there weren't any at the Super Bowl ... a first.
XLVI-THE ONE WHERE THE GIANTS DID IT AGAIN
Four years ago, the Giants upset the undefeated Patriots to win their 3rd Super Bowl. This time, the 9-7 Giants became the team with the worst record to win a Super Bowl.
XLVII-THE ONE WHERE THE LIGHTS WENT OUT IN NEW ORLEANS
This is an interesting Super Bowl for all kinds of reasons. First off, the Ravens had a 28-6 after returning the 2nd half opening kickoff back for a TD. Then the 49ers had a furious comeback and nearly tied it at 31 late (a 2-pt conversion failed to keep it 31-29). What happened in between was a Super Bowl first -- the power went out in the Superdome. A 34-minute delay after the Ravens took that 28-6 lead rocked the game.
XLVIII-THE ONE THAT WAS PLAYED IN NEW YORK
Yes, this was the one where the Seahawks completely dismantled the Broncos (and nearly became The One Where A Team Was Shutout), but everything leading up to and during the game was about it being in the New York area. The first (and only) cold weather outdoor Super Bowl. Actually, it had just the 3rd coldest kickoff ever and there really wasn't any other weather issues.
XLIX-THE ONE WHERE MARSHAWN LYNCH DIDN'T GET THE BALL
One yard. One yard.
50- THE ONE WHERE DENVER'S OFFENSE STUNK YET WON ANYWAY
This will long be remembered as Peyton Manning's second title and his final game of a remarkable career. It was also the worst offensive game for a winning team in Super Bowl history. They set Super Bowl records for the least yards and first downs for a winner. They were 1-of-14 on third down. Really, both offenses and quarterbacks stunk making this a very ugly Super Bowl.
LI-THE ONE WITH THE GREATEST COMEBACK
You all know the memes of the Falcons blowing a 28-3 lead to lose this game 34-28. Not only was this easily the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history, it was also the first overtime game in Super Bowl history. Maybe the most stunning title game ever.
LII-THE ONE WITH THE TRICK PLAY OF FOURTH DOWN
The Eagles were up 15-12 with 38 seconds left in the first half when they faced a 4th down and goal at the 2 yard line when they ran a beautiful trick play. Philly quarterback Nick Foles lined up in shotgun before approaching the line for what looks like him barking out blocking assignments. Instead the ball is snapped to running back Corey Clement who ran wide and pitched it to a reversing tight end Trey Burton who tossed it to Foles who was wide open in the end zone. A gutsy play and the made Foles the first quarterback with a touchdown catch and the first player to throw a TD and catch one in Super Bowl history.
LIII-THE ONE WHERE NO ONE COULD SCORE
This Super Bowl featured the lowest total score (16 points), lowest score by a winner (13) and latest in a game their first touchdown was scored (7 minutes left in the 4th quarter). This game had the fewest touchdowns in a Super Bowl, fewest PATs and only two kickoff returns. The Rams set a record for punts. All that during an era where offenses zing up and down the field, we had a tough defensive battle where neither team could get much going.
LIV-THE ONE WITH THE CHIEFS EPIC 4TH QUARTER
The San Francisco 49ers entered the 4th quarter with a 20-10 lead and were seemingly in control of the game. That was until less than 9 minutes through the period when Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs scored touchdowns on three straight drives. Kansas City would win the game, 31-20.
LV-THE ONE DURING THE PANDEMIC
This will also be known as Tom Brady's final Super Bowl and his only one with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the 31-9 victory is more well known for who wasn't there: fans. Only 25,000 fans were able to attend the game due to COVID-19 restrictions that forced most of the games played that season to be in front of sparse crowds or no fans. Approximately 7,500 of the 25,000 fans at the game were first responders. This was also the first Super Bowl to be played at one of the participant's home stadium.
LVI-THE ONE WITH STAFFORD TO KUPP
With the Bengals leading Super Bowl LVI 20-16 late in the 4th quarter, the Rams decided the best way to win it was to put the ball in the hands of Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp. On the game winning drive, Stafford completed four passes to Kupp, had two pass attempts to Kupp draw pass interference penalties from the Bengals, had another pass to Kupp nullified by offsetting penalties, and Kupp rushed for 7 yards on a 4th and 1. It ended with a Kupp TD grab to give Los Angeles the 23-20 win.
LVII-THE ONE THAT WAS THE KELCE BOWL
This was a great game, with a high scoring 38-35 final that saw a lot of punches and return punches. But it will be known as the Kelce Bowl as brothers Jason (Eagles center) and Travis (Chiefs TE) became the first brothers to face off as player in a Super Bowl. It was also the Andy Reid Bowl, as Reid became just the fifth head coach to face his former team in the Super Bowl (only Reid and Dan Reeves faced a franchise they had also lead to a Super Bowl).
LVIII-THE ONE WITH TAYLOR SWIFT
There was so much to love about this game. The scoring went back and forth, we had the second OT in Super Bowl history (making it the longest Super Bowl in history), we got the new OT scoring rules, and the Chiefs became the first repeat champs since the Patriots 20 years earlier. But this game is known for the Taylor Swift effect. Swift started dating Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce during the 2023 season and her presence at games took NFL viewership to astronomical levels. People who normally didn't watch football became fans just because of Swift. It was the largest TV broadcast in America since the Moon landing.
I love the NBA. I should say that I really loved the NBA. Right now I really like the NBA. I'm grew up in the 1980s where Magic's Lakers, Larry's Celtics and the Bad Boy Pistons reigned supreme. The 1990s is known as the Michael Jordan Bulls decade, but is also seen as the era where scoring dipped way down and every game had the look of a physical fight. Rules changed and the 2000s was a bit of a hybrid from both eras.
The NBA's product right now is under attack. While I am not the old guy yelling at the clouds that this version of basketball is unwatchable, I do understand why people feel this way. The long time fans in my age group are turned off and the casual fans aren't turned on enough to pay attention. While it's easy to point to the style of play as the reason (and I will do some pointing that way), it is actually several reasons that are converging.
So when NBA Commissioner Adam Silver goes on the Dan Patrick Show and says that one of the things he's in favor of is having less basketball, it sticks a dagger in my heart. Not just because I don't like the idea, but that the commissioner of the sport won't address the problem that seems to be on everyone's mind.
Let me start with what Mr. Silver said: he lobbed the idea of making quarters 10 minutes instead of the current ... and always ... 12 minutes. He said that all other levels of basketball are 10 minute quarters: FIBA, WNBA, women's college and the men's is a 40 minute game. He also said that it would allow NBA games ... as he described as a "TV show" ... to be in a neat two hour window for his broadcast partners.
Sorry, but that's as tone deaf as I've ever heard from him. No fan is complaining that 48 minutes is too long for an NBA game. In fact, games are about 2:15 on average, so shaving 15 minutes of TV time doesn't seem to be a nice payoff for such a drastic change that would skew historical records. That 2:15 game length has been pretty consistent for decades, so we aren't dealing with the issues that Major League Baseball or college football has had recently. It also is telling that your product has become so bad that giving your fans less of it seems to be on the table.
Fans are whining because:
-Load management is an insult to fans. Fans who have to show up to their jobs every day to afford expensive tickets to an NBA game only to see their favorite players take a vacation day.
-The new CBA crushes player movement, which the league has actually enjoyed promoting. It's done itself a disservice. The NBA trade deadline and free agency period were so much fun because player movement really is a game changer in this league and the NBA actually loved having that keep them in the sports chatter. But the CBA punishes teams who try to build great rosters and we instead see less excitement.
-Stars are unknowns. There are two reasons for this: the NBA Draft has turned into a bunch of no-names being thrust into a league they aren't ready for. In the 1980s or 1990s, the college players being drafted were certified stars before putting on an NBA jersey. Sure, we do get a Zion Williamson or Victor Wembenyama come into the league, but these guys are relatively unknows to the casual fan. On one hand, that speaks to the success of basketball's development internationally, but it's bad for business. The second reason is the best player on the planet, Nikola Jokic, doesn't want to be a star. He isn't Jordan or Kobe or LeBron.
-Flopping. Jalen Brunson is so talented, but it pains me to watch him play. All the head snapping, shoving and tripping, frankly, pisses me off. Instead of just playing the game, he plays to the refs.
-All these extended reviews for out of bounds plays, timing issues, and flagrant fouls.
-And the big one: fans aren't big on teams chucking up 50 threes a game.
I used to think of myself as someone who didn't mind the game changing because that's just what happens. Players are bigger, faster, stronger and more skilled then ever. But the players are a bit lazier as well. My son plays in a U13 league and my daughter is on the dance team for her high school so I get to watch a lot of prep hoops right now. And there is a lot of really bad basketball being played out there. The high school games I watch, no one seems to know how to make an entry pass into the post, no one seems to understand that you are allowed to shoot midrange shots, and players seem to rather shoot fade away step backs than attack the paint. I couldn't count how many times I've watched five guys dribble and pass the ball around the three point line while no one bothers to get inside the paint.
The sad thing is that we've all just accepted it. Now we the fans, but we the basketball community. My son's U13 league all plays like that, the high school teams play like that, college basketball plays like that, and the NBA plays like that. Every single player in the NBA has a green light to launch a three ... so every player does. Even if they aren't good at it.
You may look at me and say stop yelling at the clouds, but here is where the problem gets us: every team plays the exact same way and there is no difference watching any game in the league anymore.
Magic's Lakers were known for their Showtime antics. Fast breaks and slick passing. Larry's Celtics were the fundamental team who set screens, split double teams in the post and made the right play. The Bad Boy Pistons were known for their tough, physical defense. At the same time, you had the run-and-gun Nuggets, the Run TMC Warriors, the dunk-tastic Sixers, and this rising force of Michael Jordan on the Bulls.
That's all gone now. Every game looks exactly the same. The league has become saturated and stale. Sure, teams have different stars that do different things but you're pretty much just watching the same thing. The champion Celtics and the basement dwelling Wizards run pretty much the same game plan, it's just Boston has more talented players.
Shaving eight minutes off the game doesn't make our problem with the NBA go away. The game will still look the same, just less of it. Players will still load manage, there will be 48 threes jacked up instead of 50, floppers will still flop, and we will still see players twirl their fingers in the air whenever they think there is a call that didn't go their way.
Silver's previous ideas have been meh to me. I really don't care about these In-Season Tournament games. Just because I turn the game on and see that bright colorful floor doesn't mean I think to myself "wow, I better watch this game because it's so important". He tried to lay down the law by creating a minimum games played rule to be eligible for post season awards. None of the players seem to care one bit about that. His attempt to fix the broken All-Star weekend doesn't motivate me at all.
Baseball has famously made drastic changes to fix their on-field problems. Games were going on way too long and there was so much dead time that they were losing casual fans. The pitch clock has cut down all that waste of stepping out of the batter's box and fixing all your gear between pitches, plus the bigger bases has helped bring base stealing back in vogue. Now teams are manufacturing runs like they did 30 years ago instead of just waiting for someone to hit a home run. Putting the DH in the National League has slowed down pitching changes and allows for a better offensive player to be up instead of an awkward pitcher. Even the highly controversial "ghost runner" in extra innings is designed to keep games moving along.
The NBA is doing none of that. Their ideas are colorful courts, insignificant trophies, asking "pretty please" for the stars to play more, and taxing organizations for trying to build star loaded teams. Now it is to dumb down the biggest and greatest league in basketball to conform to what other leagues are doing.
Championships matter, especially when it comes to the legacies of athletes. Dan Marino is looked at a certain way because he never won a Super Bowl. Shaquille O'Neal constantly chides Charles Barkley -- in fact, it is his go-to move when they get in an argument -- that Sir Charles doesn't own a ring. Eli Manning is likely getting into the Hall of Fame because he has two Super Bowl titles. It is the ultimate trump card for discussing sports history.
Which could be a problem for NFL fans in Buffalo, Baltimore, Cincinnati and 12 other AFC cities. There is a good chance their first ballot Hall of Fame quarterbacks will end their career with zero Super Bowl titles.
Right now, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are hogging up all the hardware. In less than two week, the Chiefs will play the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX -- their fifth Super Bowl appearance in six seasons. No franchise has come close to that kind of dominance in such a period of time. The Patriots from 2014 to 2018 went four times in five years. The 1990-1993 Buffalo Bills went four times in a row (still a record) but won none of those Super Bowls and hadn't been there before or since. These Chiefs are doing this while going through several versions of itself, with the main constants being Mahomes, Andy Reid and Travis Kelce.
As long as Mahomes is playing, it seems that the Chiefs will always be in the conversation. Andy Reid is 66, so there's no telling how long he intends to coach. He doesn't look like someone on the cusp of retiring, but you never know. Kelce will turn 36 during next season, so he's clearly in his last few years of football. But Mahomes holds the key.
And therein lies the problem for everyone else in the AFC: When will we get a turn?
This could be the golden age of quarterbacks in the AFC. At this moment, you have Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow in that conference -- four insanely great QBs. There's also CJ Stroud, Justin Herbert and upstarts Bo Nix and Drake Maye. You'd think that Allen, Lamar and Burrow will eventually get their chance at pulling down a ring, but that's not necessarily true. In fact, it is unlikely.
For one, the Chiefs will have to tail off. If we're being honest, these last two seasons have been the time to catch Kansas City napping. I mean, last year's receiving corps was a season long joke and they still won the Super Bowl. This season watched KC snatch several wins in the final moments of games, and they kept winning them. If the Chiefs do slip up one of these years, it opens the door for the other great quarterbacks to go get their ring.
But that door opened by the Chiefs losing doesn't mean everyone else gets to eat. Each season only gets one Super Bowl champion. If the Chiefs aren't there, only Lamar, Allen or Burrow could get there. Just like in 2021 when the Bengals finally broke through by beating the Chiefs in the AFC title game, it was just Cincinnati. Allen and Jackson were stuffed. If Allen makes it, Burrow and Lamar Jackson didn't.
That's the reality of the AFC right now. Someone will not win their franchise a Super Bowl. Someone will be their generation's Dan Marino.
Marino spent the 1980s and 1990s in an AFC with John Elway and Jim Kelly. From 1986 to 1993, Elway or Kelly went to 7 of 8 Super Bowls (Boomer Esiason's Bengals went in 1988). Ironically, they didn't win any of those seven Super Bowls ... but NFC quarterbacks named Phil Simms, Doug Williams, Jeff Hostetler, Mark Rypien, Joe Montana (twice) and Troy Aikman (twice) did. Marino did get there in 1984 but never got back. Warren Moon never got there. Neither did Bernie Kosar.
Joe Burrow is sort of Marino already. Burrow, like Marino, reached the Super Bowl in his second season in the NFL. He hasn't been back, and with Mahomes seemingly stacking Super Bowl apperances while Lamar Jackson is stacking MVPs and Josh Allen is left watching his seasons end a bit too early, there's no guarantee that Burrow will get back. That's still better than either Jackson or Allen, who just want a taste.
In the NBA, one of the legendary things about Michael Jordan's career is that he kept guys like Karl Malone, Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley and others from winning their championships. In the 1990s, he stunted the entire Eastern Conference from getting to a Finals. That's what Mahomes is doing right now in the AFC. The Chiefs won't get to every Super Bowl during Mahomes time there, but the few times he slips up will be a massive opportunity that only one of those Hall of Fame quarterbacks will be able to maximize. That was Burrow in 2021. Who will it be if and when it happens again?
Maybe one of these guys end up in the NFC at some point. If Burrow, Jackson or Allen went to the NFC they would immediately be the best quarterback in that conference. I mean, who is it now? Jalen Hurts? Jared Goff? Jayden Daniels? Dak Prescott? Brock Purdy? In the Mahomes era, the NFC has sent to the Super Bowl: Hurts twice, Purdy, Matthew Stafford (who should be retiring in the near future), Tom Brady (who has retired) and Jimmy Garoppolo. Sam Darnold reached the Pro Bowl in the NFC but Mahomes didn't make it in the AFC. That's how tough the competition is over there.
That's how tough it is to reach you ultimate goals.
Well, one of my preseason picks to reach the Super Bowl actually did. The Philadelphia Eagles will be in New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX, but it won't be the Baltimore Ravens they'll be playing. They'll see the Kansas City Chiefs, who will be in their fifth Super Bowl in six years.
But how well did I do with my other picks? Let's see.
AFC DIVISION WINNERS
I got three of the four winners correctly, but I whiffed on picking the Bengals to win the North. I figured Cincinnati would be the most stable team in that divisions, as the Steelers got a new quarterback(s) and the Ravens lost a lot on defense. I figured the Ravens would take a step back from winning the division, but could make a postseason run.
I also missed on my wildcard teams. I had the Ravens in, but missed on the Dolphins and Browns. BOY did I miss on those two. For the most part, outside of the North I did pretty well in terms of division standings -- nailing the East and West.
NFC DIVISION WINNERS
The West was my horror show in the NFC. I had the Eagles and Lions right but missed on the Falcons in the South. The West was awful. I had the 49ers repeating as division champs but injuries derailed their entire season. Seattle did better than I thought they would. I also picked the Vikings last in the North and the Cowboys getting a wildcard berth. Ugh.
I only got four of the seven playoff teams, with me missing out on the Buccaneers, Commanders and Vikings. (I had the Cowboys, Falcons and 49ers).
There are just four teams remaining. Two of them I picked against last week. The Eagles will host the surprising Commanders while the Bills travel to Kansas City to try to knock off the Chiefs.
COMMANDERS AT EAGLES: The two division rivals split their first two meeting, with each home team victorious. The first game was a rather low scoring contest that saw the Eagles take the lead in the second half and surge to a win. The second game saw Jalen Hurts knocked out of the game with a concussion and Jayden Daniels orchestrating a great comeback to win arguably their biggest regular season game of the year. So what does that mean for the third matchup? I think Philadelphia will learn from their mistakes of the second game. I don't see them blitzing Daniels much and trying to make him beat their coverage. I said during their regular season meetings that Saquon Barkley has always gone off against the Commanders ... and he did so in each game. I expect the same here. Barkley goes off and Hurts does just enough to give the Eagles a double-digit win. Philly.
BILLS AT CHIEFS: This Chiefs team isn't as dominant as their 15-2 record indicates. They just find ways to win games. This is Josh Allen at his greatest and if there was a good time to knock off the Chiefs, it seems to be now. Buffalo won their regular season matchup ... but that isn't news. Buffalo has actually dominated the Chiefs during the regular season over the last few years, but can't get over the hump in the playoffs. I think that stands here. I do think the Bills could win this game, but Kansas City simply doesn't lose in the postseasons. Their three playoff losses in the Mahomes era were to Tom Brady in the AFC title game (they were an offsides away from winning that), Tom Brady in the Super Bowl (Chiefs offensive line was decimated) and the Joe Burrow-led Bengals in the 2021 AFC Championship game on a last second field goal. They make enough plays to win these games. I have zero good reasons they win other than that. They just win.
Chiefs-Eagles Super Bowl for the second time in three years.
This year, 2025, is a big year for me. In July I will turn 50 years old. Ugh. But right now, I'm feeling like I'm 16 again.
The Washington Commanders will be playing in the NFC Championship against the Philadelphia Eagles this Sunday. This is the first time the Washington franchise has played in this game since January 1992, when the then-Redskins beat the Detroit Lions to reach Super Bowl XXVI. I was 16 years old on that day and that NFC Championship didn't feel like the surprise event that the one in 2025 does.
The 1991 Redskins went 14-2 and had a lethal offense and a physical defense that dominated that season. After blowing out the Falcons and Lions, the Redskins pounded the Bills to win their third Super Bowl in 10 years. That franchise was elite then. Joe Gibbs was a Hall of Fame coach and Jack Kent Cooke was a solid owner. The 1980s was filled with great football -- the dynasty San Francisco 49ers, those '85 Bears, the Bill Parcells/Bill Belichick Giants and the team from the nation's capital.
That's how it was being a Redskins fan back then. Great teams in a great stadium.
I had no idea it would all go away so quickly and for so long. A little over a year after that Super Bowl title, Gibbs retired after a 9-7 season in 1992. Jack Kent Cooke would build a new stadium in nearby Landover, Maryland but died in 1997 before it opened. His will had instructions for the team to be sold, which businessman Daniel Snyder did in 1999. I don't have to remind you how bad Snyder's tenure was -- but I will. Just six winning seasons, six playoff appearances and two playoff wins in his 24 years at the helm. His last playoff win came in January 2006. That doesn't even touch on the dysfunction he cultivated in the organization.
That all ended in 2023 when a group lead by Josh Harris bought the now-Commanders from Snyder (who was essentially forced out). Harris spent the 2023 season assessing the franchise before making big moves last offseason. His main move was bringing in Adam Peters as the general manager of the team and ... get this ... let Peters do his job. Snyder meddled with his football people, but Harris enables his people to do the job as they seem fit. That led to Dan Quinn being hired as the new head coach and a near total overhaul of the roster. Of course, the most notable move was drafting LSU's Jayden Daniels with the No. 2 overall pick.
I won't go into what all happened this season, but where we are at now. The Commanders have won two road playoff games this season -- which matches the postseason wins during the Snyder era. The Commanders went 12-5 during the regular season, which is the franchise's most wins since that 1991 Super Bowl championship team. For Redskins/Commanders fans that have suffered for over 30 years waiting for this team to get back to mattering ... this season has been such a joy.
January 1992.
I was a high school junior. George H.W. Bush was the president. Michael Jackson's "Black or White" was the No. 1 song.
In sports, the Minnesota Twins were the World Series champions. Michael Jordan was trying to win his second NBA title. Magic Johnson ... who is now a minority owner of the Commanders ... had just retired from the NBA after contracting HIV. The Dream Team hadn't played a game yet. Duke's Christian Laettner would hit the shot to beat Kentucky two months later.
Look at the NFL in January 1992. There were no Carolina Panthers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Baltimore Ravens or Houston Texans. There also weren't any Tennessee Titans -- as they were the Houston Oilers. The Phoenix Cardinals were in the NFC East. The Seattle Seahawks were in the AFC. The Raiders were in Los Angeles and the Chargers were in San Diego. Of the 27 stadiums of that year, only six are being used today.
Dan Quinn was a lineman at Salisbury University.
It's been a long time and after suffering through the Daniel Snyder era or dysfunction and promises squashed, it now feels like Washington is on a path that won't be screwed up by incompetence.
I don't think we will beat the Eagles on Sunday. That doesn't mean I don't think we can. Still, it doesn't feel like this is a aberration that will end when I wake up.
The NFL has had three-peats before. The Green Bay Packers won three straight NFL championships from 1929 to 1931, and then again from 1965 to 1967. Of course, only the last two of those were in the Super Bowl, which no one has ever won three consecutive times. That is unless the Kansas City Chiefs end up doing it by beating the Buffalo Bills next Sunday and then either the Philadelphia Eagles or Washington Commanders on February 9th in New Orleans.
So how close have the other teams come to making a three-peat?
1968 GREEN BAY PACKERS
Vince Lombardi retired as the Packers head coach a few weeks after winning Super Bowl II to become the team's general manager. Phil Bengston took over an aging Green Bay team and his style was in stark contrast to Lombardi's. Despite having four of their first five games at Lambeau Field, the Packers got off to a 2-3 start and hovered around the .500 mark before finishing 6-7-1. They missed the playoffs for the first time in nine years. Lombardi would leave for the Washington Redskins following the season.
1974 MIAMI DOLPHINS
The Dolphins had a magical two year run where they'd go 32-2 and won consecutive Super Bowls. The Dolphins slipped a bit in 1974, going 11-3, but won the AFC East. Miami would have to play at the Oakland Raiders in the first round of the playoffs, and lost in the "Sea of Hands" game. Ken Stabler threw an 8-yard touchdown pass while falling down to Clarence Davis, who fought three Dolphins for the possession of the football. Miami would miss the playoffs the next two seasons and wouldn't get back to the Super Bowl until 1982.
1976 PITTSBURGH STEELERS
This is one of those times where the team was dominant enough to win it all, just came up short in the playoffs. The 1976 Steelers averaged under 10 points given up per game -- still a franchise record. They shut out five teams -- a Super Bowl era record -- including three straight games in the middle of the season. They forced 46 turnovers in a 14 game season. What did the Steelers in was their offense in the postseason. Both of their 1,000 yard running backs -- Rocky Bleier and Franco Harris -- got hurt in the Steelers' first round win over the Baltimore Colts. Both were out in the AFC Championship game against the rival Oakland Raiders, who took advantage by winning 24-7. Obviously this was a blip in the Steelers' dynasty. Because ...
1980 PITTSBURGH STEELERS
After not winning the Super Bowl in 1976 and 1977, the Steelers would win consecutive titles in 1978 and 1979. The 1980 version just got old, especially on defense. The vaunted Steel Curtain fell from the second best defense to 15th overall and the offense, while still good, was turnover prone. They lost three of their final five games of the season (including an ugly 6-0 loss to the Oilers in the Astrodome), knocking them out of the playoff hunt for the first time since 1971. This was the end of the 1970s Steelers dynasty.
1990 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS
This is one of the more interesting misses at a three-peat. These Niners were a juggernaut, winning Super Bowls in 1981, 1984, 1988 and 1989. In 1990, they went 10-0 before losing to the Los Angeles Rams in the game prior to their showdown with the New York Giants. They won their hyped up Monday Night Football matchup with the Giants, but the two would meet again in the NFC Championship. In that game, Joe Montana was violently hit by Leonard Marshall and suffered broken ribs, a broken hand, and a bruised sternum. He'd miss the rest of the game and nearly the next two years. Steve Young came on and the Niners tried to run out the clock, but a fumble by Roger Craig was recovered by Lawrence Taylor, giving the Giants a chance. New York moved down the field and kicked a field goal as time expired to win the game, 15-13. The three-peat was denied and while the 49ers would win a Super Bowl again in 1994, the dynasty pivoted. Had San Francisco won this game, Montana likely wouldn't have been able to start in the Super Bowl.
1994 DALLAS COWBOYS
With the Niners dynasty (kind of) over, the Dallas Cowboys emerged as the next power in the NFL. Owner Jerry Jones and head coach Jimmy Johnson used deft trades and draft picks to build an absolute power house that blew through Super Bowl XXVII and XXVIII (both over the Buffalo Bills). However, an offseason argument broke up the Jones-Johnson partnership and the hiring of Oklahoma Sooners legend Barry Switzer to take over. On the surface, the Cowboys didn't miss a beat. They went 12-4 and won the NFC East yet again, but injuries bothered Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and others. They went into San Francisco for the NFC Championship and fell behind early, only the scratch back and lose, 38-28. Dallas would sign cornerback Deion Sanders away from San Francisco and win the next year's Super Bowl, winning three titles in four years.
1999 DENVER BRONCOS
This one is fairly easy: John Elway retired. After winning consecutive Super Bowls over the Packers and Falcons, Elway called it quits after a brilliant 16-year career. Mike Shanahan and the Broncos looked to Brian Griese as their new quarterback as they would lean on running back Terrell Davis, however an 0-4 start to the season (which Davis suffered a season-ending injury) cratered any hopes at a three-peat. Denver went 6-10 on the season and missed the playoffs.
2005 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS
Like the earlier Cowboys, these era of the Patriots win three Super Bowls in a four year period. The difference is that the Patriots won their last two consecutively. As the theme of this piece goes, injuries played a key role in stopping a three-peat. Tedy Bruschi suffered a stroke in the offseason and Rodney Harrison (who suffered a season ending injury in Week 3) was one of several defensive players who missed time that season. The Patriots also lost coordinators Charlie Weis (Notre Dame) and Romeo Crennel (Browns) to head coaching jobs elsewhere. New England got off to a 4-4 start before winning six of their next seven and starting to look like a contender again. But five turnovers in an ugly loss to the Broncos in Denver ended their playoff run. It was the first playoff loss in the Brady/Belichick era, and the Patriots wouldn't win a Super Bowl again for ten years.
In the Wildcard Round, I went 4-2 ... incorrectly picking the Chargers and Buccaneers to win. There's four more games this weekend and a chance for four more wins for me. So here's how I see it: TEXANS AT CHIEFS: I'm not the "you can't pick against Patrick Mahomes" guy because not every GOAT wins every game. Still, with the offensive injury issues that the Texans have right now -- mainly to Joe Mixon -- I just don't think Houston has enough. If they bring the defensive pressure they did against Justin Herbert then they have a chance to stay in the game. But no Mixon means it will be tough to keep the ball out of Mahomes hands. Give me the Chiefs.
COMMANDERS AT LIONS: Washington is several steps ahead of their plan, but their season ends here (full disclosure: I'm a Commanders fan and hope I am wrong). The Commanders have done well to mask their weakness this season on defense, but I don't think they can slow down this Lions team that has been stewing over their playoff loss to the 49ers in last year's NFC title game. Too much Detroit.
RAMS AT EAGLES: This is the trendy upset pick. I just think the Eagles defense can dent the Rams offensive attack and there's enough Saquon Barkley to keep LA at bay. Philly is a tough place to play and the Rams organization is going through a lot. Jalen Hurts makes just enough plays to set up the Lions-Eagles NFC championship game we've been waiting for.
RAVENS AT BILLS: There's a lot of hype about this game ... and maybe it's unwarranted. These two, plus the Chiefs, have been the class of the AFC this season and these two QBs have been the best players in the league. But it's going to come down to James Cook vs Derrick Henry. Cook has been fantastic over the last 15 months, but I think Henry came to Baltimore for this. Winning these kinds of games. This should be a fantastic game, but I have Baltimore winning.
Wildcard weekend is almost here!! So who do I have winning the six games we will feast on?
CHARGERS AT TEXANS: Texans have really slogged through the regular season, losing 5 of their last 9 games. Aside from an impressive win over the Bills in Week 4, they haven't beaten a playoff team this year. I really can't shake that 31-2 loss to the Ravens on Christmas. The Chargers have also only beaten one playoff team this season -- the Broncos twice. But this seems like the more consistent team in a better head space right now. I have the Chargers winning this one.
STEELERS AT RAVENS: Anyone who has paid attention to Pittsburgh has seen their offense at their worst, scoring just 57 points (14.3 ppg) in their four game losing streak. Three weeks ago the Ravens spanked the Steelers in Baltimore and I see this game going the same way. Ravens win.
BRONCOS AT BILLS: This has become the trendy upset pick and I can see why. Denver's defense is the perfect kind of defense to go up against this Josh Allen offense. They get to the quarterback and they have a shut down corner that forces the quarterback to work his other receivers. I get it. I still think Buffalo wins this game and sets up a showdown with the Ravens.
PACKERS AT EAGLES: A rematch from the Week 1 Brazil game that the Packers almost won. Love is banged up and I feel that Philly is the most complete team in the NFL. The Eagles make mistakes that could be their demise in these playoffs, but I feel they are destined to face the Lions in the NFC championship game. Eagles fly to a comfortable win.
COMMANDERS AT BUCCANEERS: Note that I am a Commanders fan, so it's hard for me to pick against Washington. But I will. This has been a fantastic season for the Commanders and the future is extremely bright. But Tampa is better right now. They can run the ball (Washington struggles at that) and I feel Mike Evans is going to have a major game. However, I'd love to see these two quarterbacks who have been so clutch all season long have chances to will their teams to win. I just think the Buccaneers eek this one out.
VIKINGS AT RAMS: This should be great. Two explosive offenses and two of the young great offensive minds at head coach. I'm so torn on this. I trust the Rams more ... especially now that they are healthy. But Minnesota has been so good this entire season. The key is if the Rams defense can force Sam Darnold to look chaotic like the Lions did last Sunday. Minnesota's defense is much better at home than on the road so I'm going with the Rams.
I know I won't be right on all of these, but I'll talk smack about the few I'm right about. Here we go:
*Celtics repeat. Unfortunately. I just think this roster is too good in comparison to the rest of the field that they will end up hanging their 19th banner. I really like to see them face the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Finals, but I think Boston's experience in that moment pulls them through.
*Kansas City Chiefs won't three-peat. It hasn't been done in the Super Bowl era and hasn't been done since the Packers in the 1960s (the only other time it happened was the Packers from 1929 to 1931). As I write this, they are 15-1 but that doesn't mean much. In the Super Bowl era, teams that has won at least 15 regular season games have only won the Super Bowl twice in seven opportunities ... and that was the 1984 Niners and 1985 Bears. I just don't think this Chiefs team is as good as Patrick Mahomes' previous three title teams and I think the Bills and Ravens are more equipped to knock them off. Of course, I could very well be wrong.
*UConn won't repeat either. The other notable team looking for a threepeat are the UConn Huskies basketball team. They've been so dominant the last two NCAA tournaments but I don't think this year's team is as polished as the previous two. The NCAA tournament is just so random as it is that all it takes is an off night to get knocked off.
*An SEC team will win the NCAA tournament. Just a feeling, but I think one of the SEC teams wins their first tournament since Kentucky did in 2012. I can't tell which one it will be, but the Alabama-Auburn rivalry looks to be a nice start. Kentucky could do it. So could Tennessee. Maybe Florida.
*An SEC team will NOT win the College Football Playoff. This one I may not truly believe, but I'm going with it. The Big Ten has three legitimate contenders to the title and two of the Final Four could be from there. I feel the Oregon-Ohio State winner will end up winning the championship. I loved Georgia, but I'm very hesitant with Carson Beck out for the season.
*Warriors miss the playoffs again. They'll probably get into the play-in, but this isn't a playoff team. Right now they are 10th in the standings and the teams ahead of them (Wolves, Suns, Clippers) are more likely to get better than Golden State is. The Spurs are also right there behind them, and while I don't think much of San Antonio in the grand scheme of things, they could catch fire and sneak past the Warriors. If they make a big trade and land Jimmy Butler, well that could change things.
*Golden Knights win Stanley Cup. Just a feeling.
*Mets miss the playoffs. Just a feeling.
*Travis Hunter won't be the NFL's No. 1 overall pick, but should be. Everyone is desperate for their franchise quarterback that they'll reach for hope instead of drafting the best player available. The Giants would most likely draft a QB with the top pick. The Patriots won't, but could feasibly trade out of a top two spot to get more picks to fill out their roster. The Jaguars are the only other team likely picking at the top that wouldn't use that pick on a QB if either Shadeur Sanders or Cam Ward were available. I'd tell all of them to draft Hunter and deal with finding a QB later. Hunter is both a culture changing person but an elite and special talent.
*Caitlyn Clark will get the Indiana Fever to the WNBA playoffs. Self explanatory.
*NBA announces they will be officially expanding. Signs point to Seattle and Las Vegas getting those teams. That announcement may not happen in 2025, but that's what I think eventually happens. The Minnesota Timberwolves will move to the Eastern Conference. If they keep the current six divisions, the Wolves join the Central Division, Seattle to the Pacific Division and Seattle to the Northwest Division.
*MLB gets closer to their expansion, but doesn't. MLB has some issues this coming season. Two of their franchises will be playing in minor league ballparks. The Tampa Bay Rays will be playing in Tampa's minor league park after hurricanes made Tropicana Field unplayable, while the Oakland Athletics will leave Oakland to play in a minor league park in Sacramento (their name will just be the Athletics this year) before moving to Las Vegas by the end of the decade. While this is a problem, the A's relocation drama ... ending? ... means that the league can look at adding two or four more franchises. Unlike the NBA, there is no shoo-in candidates since several are very attractive. Nashville, Montreal, Salt Lake City, Charlotte, Portland and others are on the list.
*Streaming becomes a more important part of sports broadcasting. While fans may complain about it, they are going to have to get used to it. The NFL has already done a lot with streaming with Amazon, Peacock, ESPN+ and Netflix while the NBA enters its new broadcast agreement next fall where streaming is a major partner. The fall of regional sports networks will make streaming options more attractive to leagues like the NBA, NHL and MLB. While people may not be used to it, they should enjoy these options. If you really think about it, we have more access to sports than we have ever had before and that's a good thing. If you refuse to pay for six or more streaming services to watch all the games, I get it. But you're still watching more games a week than you did 10 years ago and exponentially more than you did 20 or 30 years ago. Netflix's broadcast of the Paul-Tyson fight was ridiculed, but they did a much better job on their Christmas Day telecast. Netflix wants in on sports, so expect more and more games online.
*NFL will add an 18th game. Having said what I did about streaming, the next foray for the NFL is to reach more into streaming and more into international games. Those things will compel the NFL to try to work with the player's union to add that 18th game on the schedule. That WILL NOT happen for the 2025 season, but it will be worked on extensively this year. The NFL will want to sell an international package of games to one service -- which likely will be a streaming service. Think the Thursday Night schedule for Amazon, except it will be international games for, say, Netflix. That doesn't short the other broadcast partners and gives an influx of money to both the teams and the players. If the NFL can figure out how to throw in a second bye (it happened in the 1990s, but wasn't well received) then it gives the league even more weight on the sports schedule. The NFL now has no issue stepping on other sports' toes (right NBA on Christmas?) so the NFL could start the week before Labor Day (sorry, college football) and end the regular season the second week of January. That pushes the playoffs forward a week and puts the Super Bowl around President's Day weekend. Having that second bye means there is more opportunity to have international games since there is more built it rest weeks. We could see a situation where there is a new 9am Eastern Time window for an international game most weeks. With England and Germany already in the bag and Spain in the future, there is interest in hosting these games. Add in Brazil and back to Mexico City and there are plenty of places wanting to host NFL games. Have a 10 or 14 game package and sell that to Netflix? Look for that on the horizon.
*New ESPN streaming hub will change the game. One of the changes going on in the streaming world is how networks are streamlining their properties into their streaming service. In the non-sports world, you are seeing companies slash their networks and just integrate them into their streaming format. ESPN is essentially doing the same but creating their streaming service all encompassing. As you likely know, ESPN+ alone doesn't give you events on the linear ESPN networks -- you still must have a subscription through cable or satellite for ESPN. The new format will have all of ESPN's content on one place, which is attractive to people who just have cable for ESPN. That's a big hit for those cord companies, and could be the trend that goes into other networks. I mean, you are already seeing hubs on all these services already.
*NCAA tournament will expand to 76 teams. Again, that won't happen for the 2025 tournament, but it will be voted in this year. There is a want to expand the tournament some, but nothing to big. Adding eight teams means the First Four gets expanded out to eight games. Here's how it goes: There will be four games on Tuesday and four games on Wednesday. Four of those games will be two 16 seeds facing off where the winners will be the 16-seeds to face the No. 1 seeds in the "real" bracket. There is a bit of a trick to this since with the pods that we can't just split those games to two on each day. Then we have four games of 12-seeds (or 11-seeds, if that's how it lands) that are not automatic qualifiers. Have all of that in Dayton for both days -- a day session of two games and a night session of two games for each day. Or, if you want, add a second site that is kind of centrally located. Maybe Nashville? Kansas City? Or maybe another Dayton-type city like Greensboro, Birmingham, Tulsa or Arlington, Texas?
*NBA makes some rule change on three point shot. This may be less likely, but Adam Silver clearly has an issue with how his game is perceived. He wasn't too shy about his disdain for the way the All Star Game looks and is quickly looking for a fix. He started the NBA Cup to make the early part of the season (read: the schedule that coincides with the NFL) attractive to viewers. So with a lot of people turned off by the NBA's current style of gunning threes, look for Silver to at least float some ideas out there to make the game ... more attractive. The idea I like is ditching the corner three -- having the three point arc extend out to the free throw line extended. Who knows if Silver is willing to do something that drastic immediately, but that could be a discussion that gets tried out in the G-League for a few years before the NBA actually implements it. But expect those discussions to get serious.
*NBA's broadcasting free agency. Remember that TNT's time as an NBA broadcast partner ends after this season. That means that there will be a free agency of sorts for TNT's talent to ESPN, Amazon and NBC. Ian Eagle has already agreed to go to Amazon. Kevin Harlan will be a huge free agent, though he already does work for CBS for the NFL and the NCAA tournament (as part of the Discovery-CBS agreement). There is a lot of talent that will be leaving TNT, and while NBC and Amazon are starting from scratch, expect ESPN to really look at adding some of it as well. While Mike Breen is a legend, their top broadcast team has been a mess since they broke off Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson (expect them to show up on one of those other networks). Tim Legler has been really good and may be the guy going forward, you still have to do your due diligence.
*Tom Brady stops/slows his broadcasting career. The amount of money owed to him is outrageous, so this is a serious take, but Tom Brady may decide to be more involved in his ownership of the Las Vegas Raiders than into his broadcasting. If that's true, he may back off his FOX broadcasting commitments. That could mean he does less games, does only games close to his home, or just stops doing it altogether. He's not been great at the job, but he has shown moments where he drops key knowledge on the audience ... especially in clutch moments.
Here we are. The final week of the NFL's regular season. What's on the line? Let's see why you should watch each game this week.
SATURDAY
BROWNS AT RAVENS: If the Ravens win this game, they are the AFC North champions and the No. 3 seed in the playoffs. A loss keeps the Steelers hope to win the division alive, which would knock the Ravens to the No. 5 seed.
BENGALS AT STEELERS: Two pronged deal here. If the Ravens lose the earlier game, then a win for the Steelers gives them the AFC North title and the No. 3 seed. Even if the Ravens win, the Steelers have a lot to play for. A win gives them the No. 5 seed and a road game at Houston while a loss could drop them to the No. 6 seed and playing at rival Baltimore. As for the Bengals, they must win to keep their playoff hopes alive. They need to win and hope both the Broncos and Dolphins lose. A loss knocks them out.
SUNDAY, 1pm GAMES
SAINTS AT BUCCANEERS; PANTHERS AT FALCONS: Let's put these two games together. If the Buccaneers beat the Saints, they are the NFC South champs and the No. 4 seed (they'd be the No. 3 seed if the Rams lose). A Bucs loss and a Falcons win makes Atlanta the NFC South champs and the No. 4 seed. If both teams lose, the Buccaneers are the No. 4 seed.
COMMANDERS AT COWBOYS: A win by the Commanders gives them the No. 6 seed. A loss and a Packers win gives them the No. 7 seed.
BEARS AT PACKERS: Another classic rivalry, a Packers win and a Commanders loss gives Green Bay the No. 6 seed. Anything else and the Packers will be the No. 7 seed.
GIANTS AT EAGLES: The only real reason to watch this game is to see if Saquon Barkley rushes for 101 yards and breaks the single season rushing record. All signs point to the Eagles resting their starters, however.
BILLS AT PATRIOTS: A weird game. Look for Josh Allen to start to keep his streak alive, then bow out quickly. As for New England, they currently hold down the top pick in the draft which could be a gold mine for them. If they keep it, they could use it to get one of the most unique players in the country in Travis Hunter. Or ... since they already have their QB ... trade it to someone desperate and gain a haul of picks. This is a game New England doesn't want to win. So they probably will.
TEXANS AT TITANS: Not much of a reason to watch this game. Houston is locked into the 4th seed in the AFC and should be resting their guys. The Titans have been a mess all season and are in a scrum for one of the top picks in the draft.
JAGUARS AT COLTS: A battle of two teams who have had disappointing seasons. It has been a disaster in Jacksonville that will likely cost head coach Doug Pederson his job. There's a lot of heat in Indianapolis, too, where the quarterback hasn't improved much and is habitually injured.
SATURDAY, 4pm GAMES
CHIEFS AT BRONCOS; DOLPHINS AT JETS: By the time we get to this game, we will know the Bengals result. If the Bengals lost, it comes down to the Broncos and Jets. Broncos win ... and they are in. Broncos lose ... then the Dolphins can win and get in. If both lose and the Bengals won ... Cincinnati is in. If all of them lose, well Denver gets in.
CHARGERS AT RAIDERS: The Chargers will know before this game if there's anything to play for. If the Steelers beat the Bengals on Saturday, the Chargers are locked into the No. 6 seed. If the Steelers lose and the Chargers beat the Raiders, they move up to the No. 5 seed. Like I mentioned before, being the 5th seed means you play on the road against the Texans and not at the Ravens.
SEAHAWKS AT RAMS: This nearly was for the NFC West title, but a complicated tiebreaker has already given the title to the Rams. Still, LA needs to win to keep that No. 3 seed. A loss and a Buccaneers win knocks LA down the No. 4 seed. That difference is staggering, as the No. 4 seed will host a 14-3 team (Lions or Vikings) in the first round; while being the 3rd seed means hosting the Commanders or Packers.
49ERS AT CARDINALS: Not much reason to watch this game as both teams are done for the season and neither team has been bad enough to sneak into a great draft pick.
SUNDAY NIGHT
VIKINGS AT LIONS: This is a rather huge game. Both teams are 14-2 with the winner becoming the NFC North champion and the top overall seed in the NFC playoffs. With that comes a first round bye. The loser would be a wildcard team and drop all the way to the No. 5 seed and would play on the road at Atlanta/Tampa/Los Angeles.
As you probably know, the NFL sets up their Week 18 schedule to maximize the drama of the playoff race. So there will be games played at the 1pm slot that could be for seeding or division championships, and games at the 4pm slot that will do the same. But the big game is the NBC Sunday Night Football matchup which typically is a "win and your in" type of game.
So with two weeks left in the season, what games are on the radar to be that showdown?
VIKINGS AT LIONS: Both teams are 13-2 right now and there's a good chance that their Week 18 showdown will be for the No. 1 seed in the NFC. The winner gets that bye and home field advantage for the playoffs, while the loser likely drops to the No. 5 seed and will play on the road against either the NFC South or West champion.
SEAHAWKS AT RAMS: There will need to be some things happen in Week 17 to make this game matter. Obviously, it needs Seattle to beat the Bears in Chicago and the Rams to lose to the Arizona Cardinals. If those two things happen, I believe this would end up being the frontrunner to be the Week 18 SNF game as the winner makes the playoffs while the loser would be knocked out.
COMMANDERS AT COWBOYS: There's an outside shot that the Commanders could be sitting at 10-6 with a loss to the Falcons in Week 17, and Washington may need to win this game to clinch a playoff spot. While this has a lot of moving parts, it is a candidate to be the SNF game. Again, Washington would have to lose to Atlanta next week, giving the Falcons the tiebreaker. Tampa Bay beat Washington way back in Week 1 which could make the Commanders game a must-win if both the Buccaneers and Falcons beat the Panthers and Saints, respectively, at home.
CHIEFS AT BRONCOS: Similar to the Commanders game, the Broncos are holding onto the final spot in the AFC, and play a team behind them in the standings next week (Bengals). If Cincinnati beats Denver next week, it puts pressure on Denver to beat Kansas City in the finale. The issue here is that the Chiefs could have clinched the No. 1 seed and will sit most of their starters -- most notably Patrick Mahomes. Now, that's happened in this game before, but with better options on the table, I could see this in that 4pm window with the Bengals-Steelers game playing concurrently.
We just finished Week 9 of the NFL season, meaning we are at the exact halfway point of the year. Just like any season, we've had some pleasant surprises and major disappointments. So let's go division by division for a look of where we are and what's coming down the stretch.
AFC EAST
THE GOOD: Bills. Buffalo has built up a four game lead already and is clearly the class of this division.
THE BAD: Jets. While both the Dolphins and Jets have underperformed, Miami was more about Tua Tagovailoa's missed games than whatever the deal is with the Jets.
THE FUTURE: The Bills run away with this thing and have it locked up by early December. Then the focus is on health and getting that No. 1 seed and making everyone come to Buffalo in January. Barring the Jets or Dolphins figuring it out, I doubt there will be another AFC East representative in the postseason.
AFC SOUTH
THE GOOD: Texans. Look, they haven't made the jump to elite status in the AFC, but they do hold a nice lead in the division.
THE BAD: Jaguars. I didn't expect it to get this bad in Jacksonville. Sure, they've been in some close games that ended in losses, but close doesn't matter.
THE FUTURE: When Nico Collins gets healthy, maybe the Texans get their offensive mojo back and make a run. I just don't see them being a danger this season -- we may be a year away. Aside from that, who knows? The Titans and Jags are bad and maybe the Colts can sneak into the playoffs if they can figure out their QB situation.
AFC NORTH
THE GOOD: Steelers. I have Mike Tomlin as the Coach of the Year. To be 6-2 with Justin Fields and Russell Wilson as your quarterbacks is rather amazing. That defense is ridiculous and Tomlin is hitting all the right buttons.
THE BAD: Browns. Most felt they were a QB away from being Super Bowl contenders. That's why they made the trade for Deshaun Watson. But not only hasn't that happened, but he's been awful. Their QB situation is bad and it has manifested itself to a 2-7 record this season.
THE FUTURE: The North could do some major damage. The Ravens just may be the biggest threat to the Chiefs getting to the Super Bowl and the Steelers could scare anyone. I'm big on the Bengals making the playoffs, but they are not a championship level team. Still, they could scare the hell out of the Chiefs if they happen to match up that wildcard round.
AFC WEST
THE GOOD: Chiefs. To be 8-0 after consecutive Super Bowl titles is unreal. This team is not dominant, but it knows how to win these close games.
THE BAD: Raiders. Las Vegas has issues in the important places. The quarterback situation is one of the worst in the NFL and Antonio Pierce is getting a lot of heat.
THE FUTURE: The Chiefs will make the playoffs, but watch out for both the Chargers and Broncos. Jim Harbaugh is doing wonders with the Bolts in what is supposed to be a transition year while Denver's defense has held up nicely as Bo Nix develops.
SPORTZ AFC PREDICTIONS: Bills, Texans, Ravens and Chiefs win their divisions. I have the Steelers, Bengals and Chargers as the three wildcard teams.
NFC EAST
THE GOOD: Commanders. Who knew this team would be 7-2 at this point? Jayden Daniels has been everything you could dream of a rookie QB and the entire franchise seems to have exorcised the Dan Snyder curse.
THE BAD: Cowboys. This hasn't been an outright disaster, but this is a flawed roster that has been hit by injuries and a lack of both running the football and stopping the run. With Dak Prescott out for at least a month, this thing may be over in Dallas.
THE FUTURE: The two Eagles-Commanders games should be great. I have Philadelphia winning the East, since I feel they are just more talented and more experienced in being an elite team. But Washington is coming! Dallas is done and the Giants ... though not as bad as you think ... are ready for 2025.
NFC SOUTH
THE GOOD: Falcons. I've been so bad at picking Falcons games this season that it is comical. They are at the halfway point to best team in the division and are set up better for success over the next couple of months.
THE BAD: Saints. Remember after Week 2's destruction of the Cowboys that we thought the Saints were going to be trouble in the NFC? Well, since then they've lost seven straight, fired their head coach, and their QB is dodging strays from former teammates in social media.
THE FUTURE: This division has been so difficult to read. Again, the Saints scored 91 points over their first two games and 116 points in the seven games since. This looks like the Falcons division since they have the lead, are the only team sort of surging, and have destroyed the Buccaneers twice already. The Buccaneers have dealt with so many injuries that it may be hard to crawl back into the playoff race. The Panthers are just waiting for next season.
NFC NORTH
THE GOOD: Lions. Detroit looks like the best team in the NFL. Certainly the NFC.
THE BAD: Bears. Matt Eberflus is feeling some heat and Chicago has arguably the most difficult remaining schedule. Losing on that Hail Mary to Washington really stings.
THE FUTURE: This is the power division, and I can see the Lions, Vikings and Packers all getting in. Minnesota is sort of sitting tenuously but have an easy schedule looming.
NFC WEST
THE GOOD: Rams. I want to say the Cardinals, but for Los Angeles to be sitting at 4-4 despite missing Cooper Cup and Puca Nacua for an extended time is masterful.
THE BAD: 49ers. This hasn't gone as planned in San Francisco as injuries just keep coming
THE FUTURE: This might be the best division race since we have zero idea who will win it. Only one game separates first from last.
SPORTZ NFC PREDICTIONS: I have the Eagles, Lions, Falcons and 49ers still winning the division. Wildcards are Commanders, Packers and Rams. Yeah, I think LA takes down Minnesota.
I grew up in Charlotte, and despite me moving away many years ago I still consider it as my hometown. I am not a Carolina Panthers fan, as the team arrived in Charlotte when I was 20 years old. I grew up and still am a Washington Commanders (formerly Redskins) fan, which was the popular team in Charlotte until the NFL expanded into the Carolinas.
So I know a thing or two about clown franchises.
With Daniel Snyder gone in Washington, David Tepper's Panthers have emerged as the newest clown prince of dysfunctional franchises in the NFL. That was confirmed today when it was announced that quarterback Bryce Young will be benched for Andy Dalton in Week 3.
Why is that the moment that made he write this? Well ...
*The Panthers seem to be throwing in the towel on Young, their No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 Draft. I'm not big on throwing players away so quickly, but I also agree that it does no good to keep living with a mistake.
*However, this team has invested heavily in acquiring Young. In 2023, the Panthers traded their 2023 first round pick (9th overall), their 2024 first round pick, a 2025 second round pick, and their top receiver, D.J. Moore. That 2024 first rounder turned into the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, which Chicago was able to use to draft USC quarterback Caleb Williams. The Bears were able to obtain Williams, Moore and offensive tackle Darnell Wright, and still has the 2025 pick to use.
*What makes Young's selection worse is that quarterback CJ Stroud was selected right after him. Stroud was the 2023 Offensive Rookie of the Year and led the Houston Texans to the playoffs.
*Also against Young is the fact that the Panthers had Sam Darnold in 2021 and 2022 and couldn't win with him. They also took a flyer on Baker Mayfield in 2022, and that didn't work out. Darnold is 2-0 with the Minnesota Vikings while Mayfield led NFC South rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the division title last year and has them 2-0 this season.
*Young is 2-16 as a starter in Carolina, with 11 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
That's just the Young part of things. Again, there are fans who are celebrating benching Young while others think that you are pretty much beholden to try to develop him and see if he is salvageable. This team isn't talented enough to go anywhere, so maybe playing Young and riding with whatever happens (even if that means getting the No. 1 pick again). That's why this is a bit weird.
Tepper wanted Young. He said so in a press conference. He hired Frank Reich, the former Indianapolis Colts head coach and Panthers quarterback, to be the head coach to mentor Young. He was fired just 11 games into his first season and replaced with Chris Tabor. Tepper hired Dave Canales as the new head coach for 2024, and you would think his top job duty would be to work with Young and unlock his potential.
Apparently that was just a two week project. The Bryce Young era ... despite all of the capital used to acquire the pick to draft him ... lasted just 18 games. That's Tapper in a nutshell during his time in Charlotte.
The Panthers have had six head coaches since Tepper bought the team in 2018. They had four under previous owner Jerry Richardson from 1995 to 2017 (22 years). That's usually a huge red flag of a bad owner -- one that's impatient and meddlesome. Tepper was the guy who wanted Young and, it seems, everyone had to play along. It has long been rumored that Reich didn't want Young ... but Tepper gets what he wants. During his short reign as Carolina's head coach, Reich admitted that Tepper would meet with him and go over on field ideas.
Just yesterday after the Panthers' 26-3 home loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, Canales said that Young is still his starting quarterback. Well, that ended today when Canales magically changed his mind on the matter. When asked by the media if Tepper had any input on the decision, Canales answered by saying he wanted to keep that "private".
That said a lot.
So either Tepper meddles in personnel decisions, or he hires people who aren't good at their job. He hired Canales and general manager Dan Morgan this offseason ... and neither of them were responsible for drafting Young. But both were tasked with making him successful, and they seemed to think that it wasn't going to happen after just two weeks. The team traded away its top receiver and valuable draft picks to acquire Young and are ready to throw him away.
Think about this: they traded two 1st round picks, two 2nd round picks and DJ Moore for Bryce Young. That means they traded their best receiver (Moore) and all that to get Young, who they are now throwing away. They also traded Christian McCaffrey to the San Francisco 49ers for a second, third, fourth and fifth round pick in 2022. This offseason, they also traded linebacker Brian Burns for a second and fifth round pick. So they traded arguably their three best players and four draft picks (including two first round picks) and got one first round pick out of all of that... and that was the one they used to draft Young.
Now, I want to stress that this isn't about how Young is a victim of being drafted into a poor organization. Well, he sort of is, but he has played poorly and under most circumstances the Panthers would be right to bench him for Andy Dalton. Dalton was once a decent starter for nine years with the Cincinnati Bengals but has spent the last five years as a backup or mentor for a young QB in Dallas, New Orleans, Chicago and Carolina. He's been astute at picking his jobs, as he's ended up starting 30 games over the last four seasons, and will add to that total starting in Week 3.
Young has been really, really bad and hasn't shown anything close to improvement. If the Panthers hadn't given up so much for him, benching him would make sense. Maybe it does anyway if he has lost the locker room or he's in such a bad place that sitting for a bit and learning from the sidelines is truly the best idea to crack open his potential. Young may never be a starter in the NFL again. Or he could be like Darnold and Mayfield and just needs to get away from Charlotte and into a functional organization that can foster their talent.
There's no doubt that the Panthers will be a better offense with Dalton running it. He's experienced and understands the assignment. Still, how much better will the Panthers be? The roster isn't talented enough to compete for the NFC South title ... let alone a playoff spot. Dalton is in his 14th season and isn't the future of the franchise. Young may not be, either, but the organization felt he was at one point and may be best served to ride this thing out. Even if Young continues to struggle, they'd probably get one of the top picks in the draft where they could move on from Young and draft his replacement.
Of course, that's not happening. As Tepper did with Reich ... and Matt Rhule ... and Ron Rivera ... he's ready to move on to the next thing. Maybe that would even mean ditching Canales. Who knows? This is a guy who argues with critics, shows up to local businesses that troll him, and throw drinks at fans. There have been reports of a stressful and dysfunctional environment within the organization. There have been plenty of promises that haven't been kept and projects that never got off the ground. To many NFL observers, Tepper's Panthers has taken over the title as worst owner and franchise now that Snyder sold the Commanders (but Snyder is by far a worse owner than Tepper could ever dream to be).
That means nothing to Panthers fans, who want nothing more than for Tepper to sell the team. This was a franchise that went 17-1 and played in a Super Bowl in February 2016 that has yet to have a winning record since he took over just two years later. They are 31-70 since Tepper took over -- worst record in the NFL during that span. While I am not a fan, I'm a Charlottean and many of my family and friends are Panther fans who are sick of Tepper and what he's done to this franchise. Maybe he'll realize he can get a great return on his investment and sell the franchise for twice what he paid for it and the fans can get what they want.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(708x143:710x145)/patrick-mahomes-josh-allen-2-121223-f003a27df0b9427a8cd97b94704f56e7.jpg)
