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“Wildcard Weekend–What I Saw”

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BUFFALO-HOUSTON

..Josh Allen-Bills QB-hit all the checkboxes showing as a rookie growing up on the job…Big plays…big 42Y-run…TD pass…TD catch on throwback play…2-bad sacks…bad grounding penalty.  He learned a lot at the end of the season and in postseason.  Watch the Bills add more offense to his team.

..Bills defense…big fast…run to the ball…lots of hats on the tackles…What a turnaround in just two short seasons, and a very young group of players on that side..

..Deshaun Watson-what fortitude…Quarterback under siege all day…yet made tons of big plays by himself….The 34Y-overtime pass while about to be sacked-amazing….They won-he took 7-sacks…12-additional hits and was pressured out of the pocket 11-times…He has been sacked 56-times this year.

..Don’t like the Houston offensive line, and this is a team that traded for Laremy Tonsil from Miami.

..DeAndre Hopkins is a star, Will Fuller is brilliant, but that’s a lot of money they are paying to Kenny Stills, who does not seem to be part of the package.

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TENNESSEE-NEW ENGLAND

..Does Derrick Henry bring back memories of the power, the extra gear of speed, like Earl Campbell, or Eddie George or Tony Dorsett.?  He now has over (1700Y) rushing as they go to next week.

..Teacher beaten by pupil, sure seemed to be the storyline as Mike Vrabel outsmarted Bill Belichick with scheme, and his team out-toughed the usually tough Patriots.  They bullied the Pats in their own stadium, and even Vrabel outsmarted Belichick  by eating up clock time by taking delay of penalty calls in the fourth quarter.

..Tom Brady’s career is not over, regardless of what all the network analysts wanted to talk about, but his organization let him down by not acquiring enough off-season skill talent…by not replacing Rob Gronkowski, and not finding the proper mix of wide receivers to solidify the offense.  Brady completed  10-passes to running backs, only 3-to Julian Edelman, and did not get much out of Mohammad Sanu, Phil Dorsett or N’Keal Henry.

..It was bad on Saturday, and Belichick’s press conference on Sunday was even more sour-dour on Sunday.  The Patriots now have to face the off season waiting to solve the Brady contract, the NFL sanctions about video gate, and the still impending discipline directed at Owner Robert Kraft for that prostitution charge from last off season.

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MINNESOTA-NEW ORLEANS

..The Vikings made it a street fight with their defense, and they caused enough ruckus to disrupt Drew Brees and the Saints offense.  It was a thriller, fueled by big plays.  Kirk Cousins finally won a key game that counted in his career, Dalvin Cook ran for big yards early in the game, and Adam Theilen, finally healthy, had a 100-yard game receiving.

..The on going snafus with instant replays and the refs continued, with the non-call on offensive pass interference in the end zone on the Kyle Rudolph game winning touchdown.  Another bad look for the NFL.

..Just wondering where Stefon Diggs was in the Vikings game plan, you know, the one who averages (17.9YPC) this season?

..Love the Minnesota front seven.  Think about this, in one stretch, in the Superdome, the Vikings defense had limited the Saints to 9-first downs in the first 8-possessions.  But I don’t like the Minnesota secondary.

..Taysom Hill, some type of talent.  So what impressed you the most, the 50-yard pass he threw off the bench, the 20-yard TD catch he made, the 38-yard run, or the four first down runs he made in that game?

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SEATTLE-PHILADELPHIA

..You have to feel bad for Carson Wentz, all that production, and all those injuries.  The head hit that knocked him out of the game just 9-minutes into Sunday.  He cannot stay healthy.

..Josh McCown put on a show of courage, running, scrambling out of trouble all day long.  Not bad for a 40-year old journeyman back up giving it all he had.  Seattle wound up with 7-sacks of the Eagles QBs. .

..What a beast Fletcher Cox is at defensive tackle.  He was unblockable all day long, on Russell Wilson, in that backfield.

Equally as dominant, the Seahawks DE-Jadaveon Clowney.  Just ask the Philly offensive unit.

..Russell Wilson and his receiver corps had to do most of the heavy lifting in that game, despite the reappearance of Marshawn Lynch as a running back.  Seattle’s defense came up with big plays all day long to slow down the battered Eagles.   Remember Wilson was without all three of his top running backs, notably Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny.

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