Laddie Morse
Will the Kansas City Chief make it back to another Super Bowl? Their fourth in five seasons? Who knows for sure. That, of course, would mean they beat the Ravens in Baltimore, which will be no easy task. So, what is it about this season that remains strange? Well, when the Chiefs were going 3-and-5 in the middle of this season, did anyone think the team could pull it together enough to make it back to another Super Bowl, much less an AFC Conference Championship? Which they will play in this coming Sunday in Baltimore.
No, “strange” is the right word to describe this one. There’s no other word that fits really. Bizarre is a little strong and curious doesn’t have the same ring to it. Strange is it.
So, what was so strange about this year?
Well, to begin with, hasn’t it been a little strange that once the Chiefs hit the post season, they seemed to turn it on? Finishing the season with a 5-and-5 record in their last ten games doesn’t quite fit the definition of a team that is supposedly going to get hot at the right time of the year. These Chiefs have waited entirely until the Playoffs began to get it all together.
Let’s take a look at the two playoff games the Chiefs have played in so far. When they went up against the Dolphins, they held the ball for more than 34 minutes (34:05) and when they played the Bills they only had the ball for less than 23 minutes (22:57) yet… they won both games. The fact that there’s no patter here is what’s strange.
That’s not all, as the Chiefs won the game vs the Dolpins with an advantage in the first downs made by a margin of 25-to-13 when they lost that battle vs the Bills by a margin of 27-to-21. When I say there’s no consistency, this is exactly what I’m referring to. They also beat the Dolphins by a wide margin and a score of 26-to-7… then turned around and barely squeaked out a win in Buffalo by a score of 27-to-24.
Strange, yes, I’d say so.
While the Chiefs Defense has been fairly consistently good, even their performances have been spotty giving up 7 points to a fast and dynamic Dolphins Offense then turning around and giving up 24 points to the Josh Allen led Offense. I still believe in this Defense and they will be needed to step up against the Ravens. The question still remains: is this a Championship caliber Defense? We’ll soon find out.
The play that many may have thought as being “strange” is the play involving WR Mecole Hardman. Hardman had taken the ball from a Patrick Mahomes shuttle pass and darted around the left end and was trying to stretch out to get the ball across the goal line when he fumbled it away and the ball bounced out the side of the end zone allowing the Bills to take back possession at the 20 yard line. If the Chiefs LT Donovan Smith just puts his arm out to block the Bills much smaller #25 Tyrel Dodson (see below), then Hardman could have walked into the end zone. Instead, Dodson makes the tackle on Hardman… and the ball comes lose.
Some fans saw it as another trick play by Andy Reid gone awry. I didn’t see it that way and Hardman was the fastest available Wideout to make that play, he just came up short. I get the idea that Isiah Pacheco was doing well running the ball between the Tackles so why stop doing that, but the Chiefs needed to keep the Bills D honest and keep them spread out so… the Hardman play. Here’s Rich Baldinger explaining the play (1:00):
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Ricko Mendoza wrote a piece for ArrowheadPride called, “Andy Reid praises Chiefs for winning another ‘all-time classic’ over Bills” in which he quotes HC Andy Reid as saying,
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“All-time classic again. Every time we play one of [Bills’ head coach] Sean (McDermott’s) teams, it comes right down to the end. He’s done a phenomenal job here and a phenomenal job this year — like Coach of the Year level coaching. If we don’t play them again, I’m good with that.”
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“He’s done a phenomenal job”… and… “if we don’t play them again, I’m good with that”… hmm, that sounds like a strange conundrum to me.
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In an article by Jeff Kerr called, “Mecole Hardman fumble results in touchback as controversial rule enforced in Chiefs-Bills playoff game” for NFL.com he says,
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“This rule could be under review by the league
competition committee this offseason. According
to CBS Sports NFL lead Insider Jonathan Jones, NFL
EVP Troy Vincent said the league will discuss amending
the touchback rule regarding fumbling through the end zone.”
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The Chiefs and Bills always end up changing the game… whether or not each teams get to touch the ball in Overtime games in the playoffs… or… if it is the ball bouncing through the end zone. “Changing the game”… it’s all sounds a little strange to me. One last “weird” or strange fact about the game between the Chiefs and the Bills:
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“[The Buffalo] Bills were the 12th team to have
at least 180 yards rushing, 180 yards passing,
and no turnovers in a postseason game.
[However,] they were the first one to lose.”
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Who did the deep dive for that anomaly? Kurtis Seabolt! While this is an amazing factoid, this season marks the fifth straight season in which Patrick Mahomes has won more than one playoff game… in a row. A record and… strange? Oh yea… and I’m all here for it.
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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne
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