Super Bow; LIX - Eagles XL - Chiefs XXII

Let me begin my commentary on this past Sunday's Super Bowl by flashing back to what I wrote two years ago in this space, February 15, 2023 to be exact, after the Kansas City defeated Philadelphia 39-35:

• Equally magnificent in defeat was Eagles QB Jalen Hurts.  Three rushing TD's and a bomb of a TD pass.  He led the Eagles on a drive in the fourth quarter to tie the game after KayCee took a 35-27 lead, by making an "octopus" (more on that later).  It was gutty performance, and perhaps the best and most heroic performance in defeat in Super Bowl history.  Hurts has proven himself beyond all doubt, and Philly is set at QB for the next decade or so.

As the old saying goes, I believe I had that.

The highly anticipated matchup between the  two Number 1 and Number 2 seeds in their respective conferences turned into pretty much a non-game.  The Eagles led 24-0 at half time and extended that lead to 34-0 in the third quarter before KayCee finally got on the board.  Patrick Mahomes had perhaps the worst game of his career with two interceptions, one of which was returned for an Eagles TD and the other was deep inside Chiefs territory that led to another Philly score.  He was also pressured relentlessly by the Philly defense and was sacked 6 times.

Hurts, on the other hand was terrific.   He went 17 for 22 passing for 221 yards and two TD, and rushed for 72 yards on 11 carries and scored a TD of his own.  He fully deserved that MVP Award and those trips to Disney World.

A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith 

each caught a TD pass from Hurts

It sure wasn't the thrilling game that America's football fans wanted to see, and Mahomes and the Chiefs sure picked a bad day to have a Bad Day, but it happens.  As I often say, no sporting event comes with a guarantee.

Halftime Show

I am going to take the position of my favorite podcaster, Tony Kornheiser, on this one.  I am certain that Kendrick Lamar is very good, and perhaps among the very best at what he does (the guy has actually won a Pulitzer Prize for his work), but what he does is not aimed at me, although I truly did enjoy the choreography and dancing of the seeming hundreds of people on stage with Mr. Lamar..  I am not going to rage and criticize.  If you enjoyed it, great.  If you didn't, I hope that you used your time to go to the bathroom and get something to eat, and didn't give yourself an ulcer by griping and moaning about the performance.

Commercials

What we liked:

• Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal
• David Beckham and Dave Beckham.  "Are you like Matt Damon-famous?"
• Harrison Ford for Jeep "even though my last name is Ford."
• Ben and Casey Affleck for Dunkin' featuring Bill Belichick and his girlfriend.
• Anything with the Manning Brothers.

Didn't like:

• Those Tubi commercials with the people with the cowboy hat heads.  THAT was totally creepy.
• Seal as a seal.  Also kind of creepy.

Eagles Soar, Tide Rolls, and the Up to Date GPR

It was quite a football menu that we experienced this past weekend.

On Saturday we watched Michigan deliver their third straight victory over hated rival Ohio State, 30-24.  The seat gets hot for Ryan Day in Columbus, and the Wolverines have now gone 6-0 this season while their bombastic head coach Jim Harbaugh has been serving various suspensions.  Will he get paid for those six games?

In an absolutely terrific game, Alabama defeated Auburn in the Iron Bowl 27-24, on a last second pass when it was fourth and goal from the THIRTY-ONE YARD LINE.    Yes, you read that right, 4th and goal from the thirty-one.  A simply amazing play, and it sets up what should be a fantastic SEC Championship game on Saturday between 11-1 Alabama and 12-0 Georgia.

In the pros, the best game of the weekend took place across the state in Philly, as the Eagles defeated Buffalo 37-34 in overtime when Jalen Hurts ran for a touchdown from 14 yards out.

The metaphor of "it was like a heavyweight fight" is overused in sports, but that was what this game was like.  Josh Allen was completely unbelievable throwing for two TD's and running for two more, but Hurts was even better for the Eagles.  It was just a terrific game.  While anything can happen in a single elimination playoff format, the Eagles sure look like the best team in the NFL right now, and should be playing in the Big Game in Vegas come February 11.

Oh, and didn't you love those throwback Kelly green shirts and helmets that the Eagles were wearing on Sunday?

Locally, the Steelers defeated the Burrow-less Bengals on Sunday, and in the first game of the post Matt Canada Era, Kenny Pickett had his best game of the season, and their offense looked worlds better, producing 400+ yards for the first time since 2020.  Still, they only produced 16 points and one touchdown, but for the first time all season, I feel hopeful about what this team might be able to do going forward.

And now, what you all have been waiting for, the updated Grandstander Power Rankings.

1. Eagles 10-1 (Last week: 1)
2. Ravens 9-3 (2)
3. Chiefs 8-3 (4)
4. 49ers 8-3 (5)
5. Dolphins 8-3 (6)
6. Lions 8-3 (3)
7. Jaguars 8-3 (7)
8. Cowboys 8-3 (9)
9. Browns 7-4 (8)
10. Steelers 7-4 (not ranked)

The Championship Games

Yeah, I know that I am at least three days late to the party on this, but I do want to put my 

worth in on this past Sunday's NFL Conference Championship games.  I will state that the doubleheader Sunday of the AFC/NFC Championship is one of my favorite sports days of the year, and in the 49ers v. Eagles and Bengals v. Chiefs, both games appeared to be attractive and exciting matchups.

Eagles 31- 49'ers 7

Well, as you have often read in this space, no sporting event ever comes with a guarantee, and never was that proven more true than in the NFC title game in Philly.

Only minutes into the game, on San Francisco's first offensive series and sixth snap, this happened:

Niners QB Brock Purdy, one of the better stories in the NFL this season, took an awkward hit on the elbow and was out of the game.  This put Josh Johnson, SF's fourth string QB into the game and, effectively, ended it.   The Eagles ended up winning 31-7 and would have probably won the game anyway, but here's something that probably wouldn't have happened. Down only 14-7 just before halftime and possessing the ball deep in there own territory, Purdy probably wouldn't haver fumbled, as Johnson did, seen the Eagles recover it, score, and take a 21-7 lead into the locker room at the half.

So, a highly anticipated game became a laugher and a blowout.  It happens, because as a wise man, or maybe a wise guy, always says, there are no guarantees when you buy a ticket to a professional sports contest.  Or watch one on television.

Chiefs 23 - Bengals 20

Unlike the NFC game, the Chiefs and Bengals delivered with a really good game in the nightcap.  Joe Burrow had a good but not a great game for him, and Patrick Mahomes, playing with a bad right ankle that severely limited his mobility and forced him to stay in the pocket, was excellent.  He proved that for all of the talk about Burrow and Trevor Lawrence and Jalen Hurts and Justin Herbert and Josh Allen, all of it justified, he, Mahomes, is the best quarterback  and might well be the best player in the entire NFL right now.

For all of that, though, the teams were tied 20-20, and it appeared that the game was headed into overtime when, with seconds remaining, Mahomes took off running and was forced out of bounds with :05 remaining when the Knuckleheaded gene that seems imbedded in the DNA of the Cincy Bungles (need I remind you of Vontaze Burfict and Pacman Jones in a similar circumstance in a playoff game with the Steelers a few years back?) kicked in in the form of linebacker Joseph Ossai that led to this:

Ossai pushed and shoved Mahomes to the ground when he was clearly, CLEARLY out of bounds.  Out came the yellow flags, and fifteen yards was tacked onto the play, and Harrison Butker kicked what was now a chip shot field goal to win the game for the Chiefs as time expired.  Ossai was devastated over his dumbshittedness, but he shouldn't feel too bad, because I'm betting that Butker would have nailed that field goal even without the fifteen yard penalty.

Thus, we had one game decided early due to a fluke injury, and another game decided, maybe, by a stupid and totally unnecessary penalty.  The Thrill of Victory and The Agony of Defeat encapsulated twice in the same day.

This now leads up to an interesting Super Bowl LVII in Glendale eleven days from now.  

These are some of the storylines that will be bandied about ad nauseam  between now and then....

• Andy Reid coaching against his old team, the one he took to a handful of NFC Championship games and one Super Bowl, that fired him.
• Two Black QB's starting in a Super Bowl for the first time.
• Two brothers, Travis and Jason Kelce, facing off against each other for the first time ever in a Super Bowl.
• Will Gronk really attempt to kick field goal in a Fan Duel commercial?
• Will Greg Olsen, now a dead man walking in the Fox booth now that Tom Brady has retired "for good", talk longer than Castro used to talk in one of his marathon speeches to the Cuban people back in the day?
• Rhianna

As I type this, the Eagles are 1.5 point favorites over Kansas City.  I think that the Eagles may be a better team than KayCee, but the Chiefs have an advantage in the most important position on the field in Patrick Mahomes at quarterback.  My inclination is that in what figures to be  close game, the team with the better QB is the one to pick, so I lean to the Chiefs at +1.5, but I'm not ready to put any cash on the line just yet.

Looks like a dandy matchup between two really good teams.  Can't wait.

Fly Eagles Fly!!!!!

You may wonder why it has taken five days for The Grandstander to give his thoughts, comments, and opinions on last Sunday's Super Bowl victory for the Philadelphia Eagles.  It seems that along about late Sunday night/early Monday morning, a little bit of "real life" drama kicked in for Yours Truly.  Nothing major, as it turned out, and I will invoke HIPAA privilege and spare you all the details, but rest assured that all is well and I shall be cranking out Grandstander posts well into the future.

Now, as to those thoughts, comments, and opinions....

• Great game.  All those people who so high-mindedly decided to not watch missed one entertaining and terrific football game.
• Was glad to see the Eagles win, even though I DIDN'T have that. I finished 6-5 in post-season predictions, 7-5 if you count the Alabama win in the CFP.
• How about the onions on Doug Pederson  on that fourth and goal gadget play call that resulted in a touchdown pass TO quarterback Nick Foles?  Of course, coaches are only geniuses when such plays actually work.
• My absolutely, positively favorite moment of the entire game came immediately after the critical strip-sack-fumble by Tom Brady late in the game and deep in New England territory that, effectively, sealed the deal for the Eagles.  The TV cameras, as they appear to be obligated to do, switched immediately to the NE owner's box to catch the expression on Bob Kraft's face.  It looked like he had just defecated a large cinder block.  It was priceless, and I am only sorry that I was unable to capture a picture of the TV screen at the time so as to preserve the moment forever. I know that everyone is supposed to dislike Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, but the New England Patriot who chaps my ass the most is Robert Kraft.
• The Halftime Show.  In the immediate aftermath of Justin Timberlake's performance, I said "Four Stars".  Upon further reflection, I'm going to downgrade that to Three Stars.  I like Timberlake, and he is an undoubtedly talented performer.  I loved the dancing and the choreography, but like most of these halftime shows, it is just TOO MUCH production, too many bells and whistles.  I would be lying if I told you that I could understand the words of any of the songs Timberlake was singing.  Too loud, too noisy.  Is that what it's all about?  And what does the NFL do next year to top this one? More noise, more fireworks, a couple of thousand more dancers on the field around the stage?  Where does it all end?

• The Commercials.  Again, like the halftime shows, I feel like the day of the Mega-memorable Commercial may be past.  I really think that these people are trying too hard.  If the trend continues, I will soon be using these commercials for what God intended: breaks to go get something to eat and to use the bathroom.
• That said, the Eli Manning - Odell Beckham, Jr celebration commercial was not just a home run, it was a BobbyThomson-BillMazeroski-JoeCarter Home Run rolled into one.  Just brilliant!  And did you notice who the sponsor of that ad was?  It was the National Football League itself that gave its full imprimatur on end zone touchdown celebrations with that commercial.  So all you cranky old guys who deplore such celebrations, brace yourself, because they are only going to become bigger, better and more wide spread come 2019.
• One more comment on Commercials.  I counted at least five Tide detergent commercials.  Really, detergent commercials on the Super Bowl.  What is up with that?
• I will close out this commentary with two contrasting pictures of the opposing quarterbacks.

Pitchers and catchers report next week.