Tag: 2024 NFL Playoffs

Michael Strahan carried Terry Bradshaw’s tradition of completely botching the NFC trophy presentation

You gotta let Joe Montana speak when the 49ers win, guy.

Michael Strahan is a solid pregame show host. For more than a decade he’s been a part of Fox broadcasts, prepping us for the game like all the other player-turned-analysts we’ve seen before.

Michael Strahan is a solid morning show host. For four years he showed up like a jacked Regis Philbin to chat with Kelly Ripa and it was mostly fine.

Michael Strahan is a terrible postgame ceremony host. Sunday’s presentation of the George Halas Trophy, awarded to the San Francisco 49ers after winning the NFC title game over the Detroit Lions, was proof.

Strahan was generally a mess start to finish. He seemingly had no control over his voice, shouting to the viewers at home as though he were eternally bombarded by planes flying just overhead. He misquoted the score of the game. Perhaps most egregiously, he reduced Niners legend Joe Montana to an on-stage prop rather than allowing him to congratulate the team he once guided to four world championships.

It was all a bit of a mess, but that in itself is a Fox tradition. Last year, we saw Terry Bradshaw bloviate his way through the Philadelphia Eagles’ title celebration. Needless to say, those who were still tuned in weren’t happy to have the celebration interrupted with an on-the-fly audition for America’s next forgettable game show.

The 12 NFL teams that have never won a Super Bowl as of 2024

Which NFL teams have never won a Super Bowl? Here’s the answer.

Welcome to the 2024 NFL postseason, in which we’ll find out who’s the champion at Super Bowl 58 in Las Vegas.

And it’s possible that one of the teams on this list might be there, hoisting the Lombardi Trophy for the very first time.

Of the teams that haven’t won a Super Bowl in NFL history, four of them are in the 2024 playoffs, so who knows? It’s possible we’ll see it happen this year, and that would be incredible for their fanbases and the rest of the league.

So here you have it: The 12 teams who have yet to win the Super Bowl heading into 2024:

An astounding Brandon Aiyuk catch bounced off a Lions defender’s face and everyone had the same Brock Purdy joke

Who else could complete an overthrown 51-yard pass off a cornerback’s facemask?

Brock Purdy’s credentials as a winning quarterback are undeniable. He’s 17-4 as a starter with the San Francisco 49ers to date.

But whether Purdy is an elite talent deserving of that record is another debate altogether. The former final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft is a high efficiency quarterback who can execute head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense to a T. He minimizes mistakes and has found a way to thrive in a playbook that previously propped up Jimmy Garoppolo before him.

He also plays a little worse than stats suggest. For the fifth straight year, the Niners have led the league in yards after catch, padding his passing numbers behind big runs from playmakers like Deebo Samuel, Christian McCaffrey, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle. His solid interception rate hinges on the fact that many of his bad decisions and wounded ducks harmlessly fall to the turf off the hands of frustrated defensive backs.

And then there’s this. A play that, if you tried to explain it to a friend who hadn’t watched the game, would leave you laughed at and branded a liar. A pass that bounces off Detroit Lions cornerback Kindle Vildor’s face for a 51-yard gain.

So while a big chunk of the discourse online revolved around Aiyuk’s concentration, a large part of Twitter marveled at the fact that, yes, apparently Purdy *can* keep getting away with it.

The Chiefs are back in the Super Bowl because they have the memory of a goldfish

The Ravens gave Kansas City reason to back off their game plan early. The Chiefs held true, and now they’re going to the Super Bowl.

This was not the Kansas City Chiefs we’re used to. Patrick Mahomes’ receiving corps was whittled down to one trustable wideout who happened to be a rookie. Travis Kelce was another year into his 30s. Their opponent, the Baltimore Ravens, had the presumptive NFL MVP behind center and few weaknesses to exploit.

Yet here they are, coming off their sixth straight AFC title game. Headed to their fourth Super Bowl in six years thanks to a 17-10 victory in Baltimore Sunday.

This was a team that knew it could get torched by Lamar Jackson because it *was* torched by Lamar Jackson. The first quarter of this game looked like a preview into a shootout thanks in large part to one brilliant play that took Kansas City’s defensive aggression and turned it upside down via impossible athleticism:

Overreacting would have meant easing off the gas. One week earlier, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo’s aggression dialed up 10 blitzes on 39 Josh Allen dropbacks, which the similarly slippery quarterback escaped en route to zero sacks, 72 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns and nearly cost Kansas City the game. It would have been a reasonable adjustment.

And as Sunday’s game proved, an unnecessary one. Spagnuolo’s aggression kept Jackson wading through crowded pockets all afternoon, sacking him four times in 41 dropbacks. Half those sacks came on key third downs in the second half as Baltimore tried to battle back from a 17-7 deficit.

It wasn’t just Spagnuolo’s aggression that paid off. The Chiefs’ defense played with the discipline needed to erase Jackson’s off-the-cuff improvisations before they could get too dangerous. That group was table to take a situation where the likely MVP had more than 11 seconds to throw the ball or take off with it and run on third down and turned it into a loss of two:

But the most impactful play hinged on star cornerback L’Jarius Sneed’s ability to brush off one awful snap and trade it in for an incredible one. With 32 seconds to play in the third quarter, his secondary blanked Zay Flowers for what would be a 54-yard gain into Kansas City’s red zone. But it net just 39 yards after Flowers got dinged for a well-deserved taunting flag.

This could have rattled Sneed or pushed him to retaliate in a truly stupid way. Instead, he got perfect, beautiful revenge.

This didn’t just take a touchdown off the board — a play worth -5.2 expected points added, per RBSDM.com. It also sent a frustrated Flowers to the bench, where he cut his hand either slamming down his helmet or punching something inanimate, depending on the sideline report. His inability to shake off a bad decision meant Baltimore had to mount its comeback without him; the Ravens’ WR1 didn’t have a single target after this.

This limited an offense that ranked third in points per play in 2023 to a single touchdown Sunday and just three points after the first quarter. That wasn’t the only place where a short memory came in handy.

Tony Romo once again called a playoff game like your drunk uncle and got dragged for it

“In games like this, the ball matters more than any other game.” Oh, OK.

Tony Romo is on the precipice of calling the first Super Bowl of his broadcasting career. If you expected this to get him to refocus his efforts and return to the roots that made him one of the NFL’s more enlightening color commentators, you were incorrect.

Romo continued to lean into his worst instincts in the both during Sunday’s showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens. His inarticulate “oh my god” reactions to great plays continued, giving folks at home watching with vaguely stoned friends the chance to hear it in stereo. His on-field experience occasionally pointed out audibles and coverage schemes and occasionally made no damn sense whatsoever.

Minutes later, he’d tell a Chiefs team with three timeouts and Patrick Mahomes behind center with fewer than two minutes left in the first half “I would tell you to be safe here, as a quarterback.” That drive resulted in in a called-back touchdown before a field goal gave Kansas City a 17-7 halftime lead.

Romo was more composed in the latter two quarters of a more subdued game. Still, it was not the kind of performance you’d expect from someone getting paid nearly $1 million per game to sit atop CBS’s announce teams.

As usual, fans, analysts and NFL veterans alike noticed. And they took to Twitter to work through their frustrations.

Lions – 49ers referees: Who’s officiating the NFC championship game?

Here’s who the referees will be for Lions – Niners.

It’s time to find out who’s going to play in Super Bowl 58 from the NFC side.

We’ll find out on Sunday in the NFC championship game. Will the Lions finally make it to the NFL’s title game? Or are the Niners destined to go once again?

We don’t know that answer yet. What we do know is who the referee and officials who will be working the playoff game. In case you want to know who they are, here you go:

Referee: Clete Blakeman

Umpire: Barry Anderson

Down judge: Dana McKenzie

Line judge: Rusty Baynes

Field judge: Anthony Flemming

Side judge: Chad Hill

Back judge: Grantis Bell

Replay: Chad Adams

Lamar Jackson proved why he’ll be 2023 NFL MVP with 1 AFC title game play

Jackson turned an eight-yard loss into a 30-yard touchdown with a quick duck and a flick of his arm.

Lamar Jackson is your 2023 NFL MVP.

It isn’t official yet, of course. The Associated Press’s voting is done, but the trophy won’t be handed out until the night before Super Bowl 58. But with a trip to said championship game on the line, Jackson showed the world why he’ll be the man at the podium at the end of the night — or accepting via proxy since he’s got more important business that needs tending.

His Baltimore Ravens needed a response after a three-and-out gave the Kansas City Chiefs room to stake an early 7-0 lead in the AFC title game behind Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce. While the Chiefs’ pressure had found success earlier in the drive, this time it could do nothing against a truly impossible athlete.

If you don’t feel like clicking play a) why not, this play ruled and b) the gist of it is, Jackson took this scenario in which he’s staring down an almost certain eight-yard loss via sack:

via CBS

And turned it into a 30-yard touchdown. It was beautiful. And, as is tradition, fans and analysts lost their minds online.

Chiefs – Ravens referees: Who’s officiating the AFC championship game?

Here’s who the referees will be for Chiefs – Ravens.

It’s time to find out who’s going to play in Super Bowl 58 from the AFC side.

We’ll find out on Sunday in the AFC championship game. Will the Ravens get back to the NFL’s title game? Or are the Chiefs destined to go yet another time in recent years?

We don’t know that answer yet. What we do know is who the referee and officials who will be working the playoff game. In case you want to know who they are, here you go:

Referee: Shawn Smith

Umpire: Roy Ellison

Down judge: Jerod Phillips

Line judge: Jeff Seeman

Field judge: Nate Jones

Side judge: Anthony Jeffries

Back judge: Dino Paganelli

Replay: Mike Wimmer

Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce kept tossing Justin Tucker’s equipment in a Chiefs-Ravens warmup spat

Justin Tucker never stood a chance.

Pre-game warmup real estate is apparently at a premium in Baltimore because a few future Hall of Famers from the Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs went at it over a small piece of field before the AFC championship game Sunday.

Ravens kicker Justin Tucker was doing some stretching near one of the goal-lines before the game, and it was the same place Patrick Mahomes was warming up with a few throws. It’s unclear who was there first or had claim to the spot from videos shared by NFL Network’s James Palmer, but it was clear who was going to be there last.

Mahomes and Travis Kelce kicked and tossed aside Tucker’s tee a few times, and Kelce also tossed Tucker’s helmet and two footballs.

It’s unclear if Tucker was being an intentional irritant or if he was genuinely warming up as usual. Either way, that’s some tough treatment in your own stadium.

The non-QBs who could pave the way to the Super Bowl for all 4 conference championship teams

We know guys like Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes are vital. But they’ve got teammates who could pave the path to Super Bowl 58.

The quarterbacks who’ll take the field in 2024’s NFL conference championship games are all familiar faces. Patrick Mahomes and Jared Goff have each been to the Super Bowl. Lamar Jackson is headed to his second MVP. Brock Purdy went from Mr. Irrelevant at the 2022 NFL Draft to 20-5 as a starting quarterback and finished 2023 as the regular season’s most efficient passer.

Each will have a massive effect on how their title games turn out and whether or not they make it to Super Bowl 58. That weight won’t be solely on their shoulders — and some players can expect a heavier load than others.

These players are too well known to be X factors, but don’t rise to the level of obvious importance as their quarterbacks. Let’s talk about the guys who could swing the Super Bowl matchup with a single play or, more likely, a whole bunch of them.