Reacting and overreacting to everything that happened in the Divisional Round playoffs …
Things that made me dizzy
Taron Johnson runs 101 meters into the end zone. . . and in our hearts: “The 101-yard touchdown with interception and return was a big game” is the kind of analysis you come here for. But honestly, for Johnson, in a game where points were expensive, the biggest game of the postseason so far has been to rally himself and take off rather than just taking the touchback.
This Packers offense: Aaron Rodgers left a few throws on the field (including a miss in the red zone that cost them four points on the first drive) and Allen Lazard had a pretty nasty drop in the third quarter. But when all was said and done, they had 32 points, a nearly 500-meter offense on one of the league’s top three defenses.
Leslie Frazier is doing his part to ruin the QB game: Last week, the Colts really had a bead on Buffalo’s zone cover, and in the end, the Bills were lucky enough to escape. In a much more difficult attack in Baltimore on Saturday night, no luck was needed. as Frazier stunned the Ravens early with a heavy dose of athletic blitzers, and mixed the reportage at the right time – like blitz show and then drop seven on Taron Johnson’s 101-yard pick-six.
Tremaine Edmunds appears: He had a bad year, but Saturday night was arguably his best game of the year, and his athleticism was absolutely crucial in defending the Ravens.
Hook-and-lateral for two: Although, you might ask, if we only award two points for this, do we even deserve something so beautiful?
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Regrets
It ends too soon for Lamar Jackson: On a tough night due to high winds, snap issues and a Leslie Frazier defense with a really good game plan, Jackson had to be excellent at this game; the red zone pick-six was devastating, and one on which he must use his eyes to move defenders towards him in the tight red zone. But to have a concussion – which he sustained when he had to chase another bad fall and rescue a safety – keeping him in the locker room for the Ravens’ fourth-quarter comeback attempt seemed particularly cruel.
Tyler Huntley’s Ravens: No offense to Tyler Huntley, who did what he could and scared the Bills back into reporting with that near-miss on the Hollywood Brown-up-and-out. But it was unfortunate to watch him try to orchestrate a fourth-quarter comeback.
A Mortal Aaron Donald: Thanks to the five of the Packers, most notably Elgton Jenkins, but Donald looked very uncomfortable, probably because it is difficult to breathe with injured ribs. He was invisible, except for the 15-meter personal foul he’d committed in the first quarter.
And a Mortal Jalen Ramsey: “Torched” would exaggerate, but he lost a few battles and the all-out war to Davante Adams, and Adams did well on other DBs as well with Matt LaFleur dictating matchups. But the Rams aren’t going to win a playoff game when Donald and Ramsey have days off.
Josh Allen deserves a Tony Award: He also sang during this pratfall. It was just slightly off Pepin. (Is doing Pepin are there any problems? I’ve never seen Pepin.)
Justin Tucker continues to doinking: By midway through the second quarter, he was on track to become the first kicker to hit each of the field’s four uprights in one game.
Shotgun Snaps in Western New York: Was it really a winding as Michele Tafoya reported during half-time?
A broken PAT: What would you do in an emergency? Would you run to the danger, or run from it? Or would you kick the ball to your 36-year-old kicker with the expectation of him making his way to the end zone?
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Moments we will tell our grandchildren about
Davante Adams on the move: Adams getting on the move at full speed is a nightmare – and Jalen Ramsey is certainly not expected to chase him. But this causes a beautiful chaos in the defensive backfield of the Rams.
Josh Allen Overcomes Uncontrollable Falling Down Syndrome: Remember, of Brad Goodman’s Feel Bad Rainbow?
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What we’ll talk about this week
So help me God if we have to relive Lamar-in-Big-Game debates: He ran into a buzz saw against a very good Bills defense in some very tough circumstances. He made a brutal mistake in the red zone – with seven zone defenders staring at the backfield in the tight red zone, he must be able to manipulate them with his eyes. But he’s 25, he’s got a come-from-behind road playoff win to his name, and he did it while surrounded by lots of fill-ins. He will lose some big games in the future, and he will win many too.
Brandon Staley has some interviews coming up: I suspect the 38-year-old will grab one of the remaining open jobs and continue to grow Sean McVay’s coaching boom. So someone taught him how to tie a Windsor knot. Because they don’t like it when you wear such a t-shirt with the tie painted on it.
What about Jared Goff ?: He played quite well at Lambeau all things considered (“stuff” like in the pins in his thumb), but despite all the neat ways they attacked horizontally, the lack of explosive plays in the Rams’ passing game was noticeable this year. Goff is unquestionably their man next year, and maybe Van Jefferson will emerge deceptively soon as a field breaker, but it’ll be interesting to see what Sean McVay cooks up to get that piece back.
Is State Farm’s New Jake Also In A Hyundai Commercial ?: Is that allowed? I feel like we should all have signed that.
Matt LaFleur has been successful: 26-6 in the regular season and now back-to-back trips to the conference title game are pretty good.
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