The Shenoa Report
January 16, 2021
Divisional Round
We’ve made it to the Divisional Round but first we’ve got some playoff news and some other news not related to the playoffs. In NFL non playoff news Doug Pederson, head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles was fired. I guess it wasn’t the right decision to throw the last game of the season and not let the Giants get into the playoffs. Sorry not sorry. Other coaches let go this week include: Steelers OC Randy Fichtner, OL coach Shaun Sarrett and Defensive Backs coach Tom Bradley. From the Seahawks, OC Brian Schottenheimer.
On the hiring side, the New York Jets welcomed former San Francisco DC Robert Saleh to the head coach position. Urban Meyer will be the new head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Atlanta Falcons have hired Titans OC Arthur Smith as their new head coach .
In NFL feel good news Bill Belichick will not accept the Presidential Medal of Freedom, stating: "Recently, I was offered the opportunity to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which I was flattered by out of respect for what the honor represents and admiration for prior recipients," Belichick said in a statement. "Subsequently, the tragic events of last week occurred and the decision has been made not to move forward with the award. Above all, I am an American citizen with great reverence for our nation's values, freedom and democracy … I also represent my family and the New England Patriots team … One of the most rewarding things in my professional career took place in 2020 when, through the great leadership within our team, conversations about social justice, equality and human rights moved to the forefront and became actions," he said. "Continuing those efforts while remaining true to the people, team and country I love outweigh the benefits of any individual award."
In playoff news, Baker Mayfield is the oldest starting quarterback left in the AFC playoffs, he’s not even 26. In the NFC Brady (43) and Brees (42) will have the combined age of 85 when they face off becoming the 2 oldest quarterbacks to play against each other in NFL history.
Fun Facts: In the past 4 months the Browns have won 12 games. Cleveland won a total of 14 games in the previous 4 seasons combined.
Jared Veldheer (OT) who started for the Colts last week has now signed with the Packers. He is the first player in NFL history to play in 2 postseason games for 2 different teams in the same season. The Packers were able to sign him because he was on the Colts practice squad.
Last week I went 3-3 on picks. Here’s the recap of Super Wild Card Weekend.
Colts @ Bills 24-27
The Bills have finally won their first playoff game in 25 years. The last one they won was before Josh Allen was born. This might have been Phillip Rivers last game, after the loss he is contemplating retirement. It was a back and forth kind of game, one in which the Colts looked dangerous and the Bills didn’t look so great. In true Bills fashion they finally got it together before then squandering a 24-10 lead in the forth, letting the Colts back into the game. It wasn’t a pretty win but the Bills got the job done. The Bills will host the Baltimore Ravens for the divisional round next. Now do you Bill-ieve?
Rams @ Seahawks 30-20
Well, I got this pick wrong. The Seahawks looked horrible. I thought with Jared Goff not starting and Cooper Kupp questionable there was no chance of a win, but I had counted out Cam Akers legs and Aaron Donald with the rest of the Rams defense. Seattle never played with the lead and was 2 of 14 on third downs, with a Russell Wilson interception returned for a pick six. John Wolford did start for the Rams at QB but was injured early in the game so Jared Goff stepped in, surgically repaired thumb and all. The Rams will travel to Green Bay for the divisional round and the Seahawks will just go home.
Buccaneers @ Washington 31-23
This game was way more exciting than I ever thought it would be. I thought the game would be downright awful without Alex Smith starting at QB for the Football Team with Taylor Heinicke taking his place. Heinicke was a surprising breath of fresh air. He had an 8 yard rushing touchdown in which he dove for the pylon to get the score in the 3rd quarter. Unfortunately on the Football Team’s following possession Heinicke was injured and it kinda let the air out of the proverbial balloon. He was still able to play but he was definitely not as explosive as before. Washington’s defense wasn’t as good as it had been in previous games and let Leonard Fournette, Tom Brady, Cameron Brate, and even Antonio Brown score. I was disappointed with Chase Young after the big talk leading up to the game and then not being able to back up his words. He’s a rookie, I hope he’s learned something. The Bucs head to New Orleans for the divisional round.
Ravens @ Titans 20-13
The Ravens were finally able to finish a playoff game with Lamar Jackson under center. Baltimore also held Tennessee to its fewest points all season. The Ravens defense was able to contain Derrick Henry while the Titans defense could not stop Lamar. It wasn’t the ending I would have liked to see, mostly because I’m sure Ray Lewis will have a lot to say about this game. The Titans started off really great and then it just fizzled away. Baltimore will travel to Buffalo next.
Bears @ Saints 9-21
The Saints are still alive in the playoffs, something they haven’t been able to say the past two years. Alvin Kamara was back, after testing positive for COVID-19 a couple of weeks before this game, and rushed for 99 yards and a touchdown. Drew Brees was on point with 265 passing yards and two touchdowns. The Bears defense, which usually keeps Chicago in games, made dumb mistakes ultimately costing them the game. Bears wide receiver Anthony Miller was ejected for shoving Saints defensive back J.J. Cardner-Johnson after a failed third down play early in the second half. Da-Bears postseason has come to an end and the Saints will host the Bucs next.
Browns @ Steelers 48-37
Yeah, I got this pick wrong too. Cleveland’s head coach Kevin Stefanski watched the game from his basement after he, Pro Bowl guard Joel Bitonio, and top cornerback Denzel Ward all tested positive for COVID-19. The Browns overcame and won despite practicing just once over the last two weeks and having lost 17 straight at Heinz Field. Not only did they win, the Browns were up 28-0 in the first quarter! The Steelers just didn’t take the Browns seriously and treated them like a harmless younger brother. JuJu Smith-Schuster even said mid week before the game the Browns were the same "nameless gray faces" he sees every season, adding "the Browns is the Browns." Inferring that this would be an easy win for the Steelers. The victory was the Browns first postseason triumph of any kind since New Years day, 1995, three months before Baker Mayfield was born, and their first playoff road win since December 28, 1969. Mayfield had 3 touchdowns, one each to Jarvis Landry, Nick Chubb, and Austin Hooper. Kareem Hunt had 2 rushing touchdowns. The Browns defense picked off Big Ben 4 times, one being a pick 6. After the game Myles Garrett said with a smirk, “We’re the Cleveland Browns, same old Cleveland Browns.” The Browns will travel to Kansas City next and the Steelers will travel to their couches to watch the rest of the post season.
DIVISIONAL ROUND
Saturday, January 16th
Rams (10-6) @ Packers (13-3) (4:35pm FOX)
Despite a rib injury that took Aaron Donald out of the game last week he is supposed to start this game. This is good news for the Rams, not the Packers. Nobody has a better defense than the L.A. Rams, but then again no NFL team scored more points during the regular season than the Green Bay Packers. Aaron Rodgers is having the best season of his career. He set a franchise single-season record for touchdown passes (48) and completion percentage (.707) while throwing just 5 total interceptions. This should be a good game. The Rams are pretty beat up, like I said Donald, Goff, Kupp, and Akers are playing with injuries. The Packers will be playing without All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in December. Green Bay will have fans in their stands for the first time this season (6,500 lucky fans). The home-field advantage should help. I’m picking the Packers to win this game.
Ravens (11-5) @ Bills (13-3) (8:15pm NBC)
The Bills signed former Giants RB Devanta Freeman to their practice squad after losing Zack Moss to a season ending injury. Josh Allen has matured a lot since the last time these two teams played each other. After the Bills won last week my uncle, who is a die hard fan, texted me saying, “I hope Pittsburgh wins tonight because I don’t think I want to face Baltimore right now. What do you think?” I replied, “I don’t think you’ll have to worry either way. I’m sure Pittsburgh will win tonight and if by some crazy reason they don’t, Baltimore isn’t that scary. You shut down Lamar, you shut down the entire team. Baltimore doesn’t have a backup plan to Lamar…” Well, I stand by the second half of that response. I think the Bills can and will win this game. They just have to shut down Lamar Jackson. I Bill-ieve and am picking Buffalo to win this game.
Sunday, January 17th
Browns (11-5) @ Chiefs (14-2) (3:05pm CBS)
After last week’s game I think that any team could win, and I will not be disappointed with who wins this game. The Chiefs have won three straight and four of their last five games against Cleveland. They have never met in the postseason. Kevin Stefanski will make his playoff head coaching debut after missing last week because of COVID-19. Kareem Hunt will face the Chiefs for the first time since they released him in 2018. The Chiefs are the defending Super Bowl Champions and for that reason I am picking them to win this game.
Buccaneers (11-5) @ Saints (12-4) (6:40pm FOX)
Ugh. Look, Brady is in the postseason again. Tampa Bay has built a team around this guy for the sole purpose of a Super Bowl appearance. Hopefully the road to the big game ends here with a win for the Saints. I hope that Drew Brees, Alvin Kamara, and the Saints defense have a stellar game. I’m rooting for and picking the Saints to win this game.
Thanks for the edit Eric!
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