Tag: Super Bowl

3 former Seahawks among 25 Hall of Fame semifinalists

Former Seattle Seahawks Steve Hutchinson, Ricky Watters and Edgerrin James are among the 25 modern-era semifinalists for the Hall of Fame.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame reduced the list of 122 modern-era nominees to 25 on Tuesday, and three of the eight former Seattle Seahawks remain: guard Steve Hutchinson and running backs Ricky Watters and Edgerrin James.

The original class of 2020 ballot also included quarterback Dave Krieg; running backs Shaun Alexander and Chris Warren; center Ray Donovan; and punter Jeff Feagles.

Hutchinson is the likeliest of the trio to gain Hall of Fame status this winter, having finished as a finalist in each of the past two years. The guard was a seven-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro in his 12-year career.

James only appeared in seven games for the Seahawks in the 2009 season, rushing 46 times for just 125 yards. He is 13th all-time in rushing yards, however, and has a decent chance of hearing his name called this year.

Watters’ success came primarily as a member of the 49ers, but he did post four quality seasons with Seattle from 1998-2001, rushing 994 times for 4,009 yards and four touchdowns.

A Pro Bowler in each of his first five NFL seasons, Watters is 24th all-time in rushing yards and 22nd in rushing touchdowns.

The ballot will be pared down again, this time from 25 to 15, and they will be announced in January. The final ballot with five inductees will be announced the Saturday before the Super Bowl. As part of the Hall’s special 20-member class of 2020, they will be joined by 10 “senior” players (who have been retired for more than 25 seasons), three “contributors” (neither a player nor coach) and two coaches.

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Pro Football Focus gives Saints solid probability to win Super Bowl LIV

Pro Football Focus analysis gave the New Orleans Saints solid probability of winning Super Bowl LIV but they need to win the NFC South first

The New Orleans Saints can clinch their third straight division title during Week 13 of the NFL regular season, but they have a bigger goal in mind: winning Super Bowl LIV. But they’re not alone — other contenders are beginning to stand out from the crowd, including the NFC-rival San Francisco 49ers and two would-be AFC champions (the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens).

According to win probability numbers put together by the analysts at Pro Football Focus, the Saints are in great position to go all the way.

Unlike a season ago, when it was the consensus that the Saints were the frontrunner in the NFC, the attention right now is fixated not on New Orleans but San Francisco, despite the Saints’ 9-2 record and the league’s second most valuable receiver, Michael Thomas, having compiled 104 catches through 11 games and two starting quarterbacks. The Saints have a 36% chance to get home-field throughout the NFC playoffs for the second time in as many years, and they have a 73% chance to earn a bye. Should they get home-field, their odds of winning the Super Bowl increase to over 21%.

On top of those odds, the PFF team gives New Orleans a 16.7% chance of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy when it’s all said and done; that number trails the Patriots (26.5%) by a sizable distance, but it’s better than what the 49ers and Ravens received.

It’s due to the schedules each team is set to face going into the postseason, as well as their past success when playing on the road versus at home. Obviously it benefits the Saints to control homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, but it’s fascinating to see that made quantifiable. Here’s hoping they can take the first step towards accomplishing that with a win over the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night.

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Ricky Watters named Pro Football Hall of Fame semifinalist

Former Notre Dame Fighting Irish running back Ricky Watters is one of 25 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s modern era ballot was cut from 122 all the way down to 25, but former Notre Dame Fighting Irish running back Ricky Watters made it through the second round of cuts, and is still eligible for induction as a member of the class of 2020.

The ballot will be pared down to 15 at some point in January, before the five inductees are announced on the Saturday before the Super Bowl.

Watters was named to five straight Pro Bowls from 1992-1996, and was a Super Bowl champion in 1994 with the San Francisco 49ers. His career was cut short by injuries, but he was arguably a top-two running back in the NFL in the early-1990’s, and still finished with 10,643 rushing yards and 78 rushing touchdowns, both just outside the top-20 of all-time.

Watters starred at Notre Dame before getting drafted 45th overall by the 49ers in the 1991 NFL draft. He rushed for 1,814 yards and 21 touchdowns with the Irish, while also hauling in 610 receiving yards.

He also excelled as a punt returner, leading the NCAA in punt return touchdowns in 1988, with two.

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4 Broncos squads make NFL’s list of 100 greatest teams

John Elway and Peyton Manning quarterbacked the four Broncos squads that made the NFL’s list of 100 greatest teams in league history.

In celebration of the league’s 100 years, the Associated Press created a list of the 100 greatest teams in NFL history and NFL Network put together a countdown series based on the list.

Four Denver Broncos teams made the cut.

Coming in at No. 86 on the list is the 2013 Broncos, a team that smashed offensive records in the regular season but suffered an embarrassing loss in the Super Bowl.

Denver’s 2015 team is ranked No. 58, which many Broncos fans would say is too low. It’s a fitting number, though, given that outside linebacker Von Miller wore No. 58 when he earned MVP honors in Super Bowl 50.

Just nine spots up in the rankings from the 2013 squad, Denver’s 1997 team is ranked No. 50. Again, many Broncos fans probably feel that’s too low.

It’s no surprise that Denver’s highest-ranked squad is the 1998 team, which started the year 13-0 on the way to a convincing Super Bowl win. That team is ranked No. 14 on the list.

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The 1972 Miami Dolphins are ranked No. 1 on NFL Network’s list. To view our list of the 100 greatest players in Broncos history, click here.

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Clark Hunt still optimistic regarding Chiefs’ chances of making Super Bowl LIV

Ownership still has Super Bowl aspirations despite some hiccups for the Kansas City Chiefs throughout this season.

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Clark Hunt is not yet ready to give up on the goal of reaching Super Bowl LIV.

In his opening statement during his Wednesday press conference, the Kansas City Chiefs chairman and CEO admitted that the loss to Titans stung. At the same time, he expressed that it isn’t the end of the line for this Chiefs team.

“The goals that we set out for ourselves in the beginning of the season are still in front of us,” Hunt explained. “Taking a step in the right direction starts with our game in Mexico this weekend against a division rival. We are looking forward to heading down to Mexico City and getting to play the Chargers in prime time on Monday night.”

Kansas City remains in prime position to win the AFC West. With four games remaining against division opponents and three of four occurring at Arrowhead Stadium, they’ll have a good chance to secure the division for the fourth consecutive season.

While many fans are still disappointed over the missed opportunity in Tennessee, Hunt is still optimistic.

“I believe that we have an outstanding football team with a great coaching staff,” Hunt said. “I think, as they continue to work better as we head towards hopefully a playoff opportunity, I think the team is going to continue to improve. I mentioned at the beginning of the season that one of the most important narratives this year was the improvement of the defense and how that took place during the season. I personally didn’t expect that we would start off with a finished product and I have been very encouraged by what I’ve seen. This past week notwithstanding, I do think that the defense is improving. With Patrick (Mahomes) back and now getting more of our offensive starters back, I think the offense can be at least as good as it was last year, if not better. You put that together and that gives you a chance to win a Super Bowl.”

Hunt isn’t exactly talking with blinders on here, especially when it comes to the defense. He came into the season expecting a product that wasn’t yet finished. It’s the perspective of a realist, given the personnel and scheme change. However, he’s been pleasantly surprised with what he’s seen thus far, apart from the performance against the Titans.

If the defense can get back to playing like they did against the Packers and Vikings while the offense also gets healthier, the team has a good chance to improve down the stretch.

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