by Brent Schwartz
Every February, there's a rush to uncover both the biggest and unheralded Super Bowl storylines that surround and directly affect the NFL's annual big game. In terms of beyond-the-game storylines, it simply doesn't get bigger than Tom Brady versus Patrick Mahomes in the Super Bowl. https://twitter.com/FieldYates/status/1357314845163536385 Although we're now in the year 2021, this is … Continue reading Super Bowl LV Preview: Brady, Mahomes to meet in legendary QB battle
And then there were two. Kansas City-Tampa Bay. Patrick Mahomes versus Tom Brady. There will be time to do a deep dive on the fascinating Super Bowl 55 matchup that is to come ( you can expect my mega preview next week), so let's use this space to tackle some of the initial takeaways from … Continue reading NFL Conference Championship Madness: Brady tops Rodgers, KC’s well-oiled machine moves along
Roughly 24 hours after Aaron Rodgers put forth the most efficient quarterback performance of the weekend, Tom Brady shook off some early rust to make the throws necessary to likely dispel Drew Brees from New Orleans (and the NFL) en route to joining the soon-to-be-named MVP Rodgers in the conference championship round — the 14th such … Continue reading NFL Divisional Round Madness: Brady-Rodgers championship tilt finally materializes
After a quarter of jawing back and forth, hard hits and the feel of a true playoff game reminiscent of the Ray Lewis-Eddie George, Ravens-Titans rivalry of the early 2000s, Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson found himself in a familiar place. With Tennessee leading 10-0, and Jackson's Baltimore-led offense struggling to play from behind, valid questions … Continue reading NFL Wild Card Madness: Jackson’s first playoff win a new chapter of renewed Ravens-Titans rivalry
Just four months ago, many wondered if the NFL would successfully get through all 256 games during their preset, schedule-based time frame. Well, it wasn't easy, and several somewhat-questionable decisions were made to work around the COVID-19 pandemic, but alas, the regular season is over, and the playoffs will begin on time. Before jumping into … Continue reading NFL Playoff Primer: Are Chiefs destined to repeat?
With the final games of the year (not season) 2020 behind us, a new year will dawn with the end of an odd, pandemic-altering season. I decided to empty my brain's notebook of takes this week prior to Week 17 and the playoffs by taking a deep dive into the NFL MVP race, giving perhaps … Continue reading NFL Tuesday Morning Madness Week 16: A shakeup in the MVP race, and other musings
When Cam Newton was sacked on 4th down late in New England's 22-12 loss in Miami on Sunday, the Patriots already-slim playoff chances went down with him. Technically, the Patriots entered Sunday's contest with just a three percent chance to make the playoffs, according to ESPN's Football Power Index, but the NFL community has certainly … Continue reading NFL Monday Morning Madness Week 15: Where do the Patriots go from here?
When the NFL schedule was set, few looked at this Saints-Eagles matchup and imagined anything other than Drew Brees battling Carson Wentz, possibly for playoff seeding, in a cold-weather December matchup. Queue, 2020. With Brees injured and Wentz and his albatross contract on the bench, one of the most unique matchups took place on Sunday … Continue reading NFL Monday Morning Madness Week 14: Hurts bests Hill in unique QB matchup
The Browns (9-3) entered Sunday's uber-important contest with the Titans (8-4) in Tennessee as a semi-fraudulent team (to some) that had beaten up on bad teams en route to a probable playoff spot that won't become of anything (some thought). At halftime, Cleveland surprisingly led Tennessee by a score of 38-7, before holding on for … Continue reading NFL Tuesday Morning Madness Week 13: Are the Browns serious contenders?
Just a few weeks ago, Sunday's marquee matchup in Tampa Bay was seemingly a possible Super Bowl preview between the Chiefs (10-1) and Buccaneers (7-5) in the stadium that will host Super Bowl 55 in two months. By yesterday, questions surrounded the Bucs' ability to remain a NFC threat going forward due to inconsistency and … Continue reading NFL Monday Morning Madness Week 12: Are Chiefs primed to repeat?
No Guts No Glory 