Patrick Mahomes Doesn't Need Stinking Blockers
For a long time Super Bowl really meant Super Bore.
The Green Bay Packers' efficiency made both of the first Super Bowls boring. Hank Stram and the Chiefs laughed it up on NFL Films while they trashed Minnesota in Super Bowl IV. Super Bowl V was a close game and a completely butt-ugly one.
Super Bowl VI, bad. Super Bowl VII, if not for Garo Yepremian's silly little pass, no one would ever even remember it.
Even Super Bowl III was sad. If not for Joe Namath's bold boast and the ramifications of an AFL win, it was simply a boring game.
This all eventually changed, although Super Bowl XX and the Bears didn't help matters. A 46-10 win was certainly celebrated enough in Chicago—and still is ridiculously remembered every day because the Bears have had no other titles to celebrate. The rest of the country tuned in and then out once they saw Tony Eason curling into a fetal position. Whether William Perry would score a TD was the only thing retaining national viewership. It was the original prop bet.
Return today to those days of yore, when every completed Patrick Mahomes pass will be followed by two or three yawns and then everyone looking forward to the halftime show and a new commercial.
Final score—Chiefs 37, Buccaneers 17, and here's why:
5. The last game. It was already the end of November when the Chiefs beat Tampa Bay 27-24 in a game nowhere near as close as the final score indicates. The Chiefs were leading 27-10 in the fourth quarter. They had 377 yards of offense by halftime to 131 by Tampa Bay. They lost interest and let Tampa Bay pull back within a score with four minutes left. Their interest will return today. The Chiefs are a much better team, efficient and rolling right now. The only loss they've had since Week 5 was the regular-season finale when Chad Henne played with subs and they had nothing to gain by winning.
4. The Chiefs defense. Always underrated, rarely even mentioned, Steve Spagnuolo's group always comes up with the big game or big play when necessary. They held Tampa Bay down virtually all of the last game. In the Super Bowl last year they kept the 49ers from turning it into a rout before Patrick Mahomes got the offense going.
3. The pocket's lack of importance for Kansas City. Kansas City's offense is without top tackles Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz. It doesn't matter. They compensate with a machine-like system, one that's well rehearsed and because they have Patrick Mahomes the pocket is totally unimportant. Sometimes he's as far back as a punter when he passes. Other times he's out of the pocket as soon as the ball is in his hands. Edge rushers Shaq Barrett and Jason Pierre-Paul both made sacks in the first game and it did nothing to deter the Chiefs. They turn third-and-long into first downs with ease thanks to Mahomes' arm and their effective system.
2. Tampa Bay shouldn't even be in this game. The Packers were better. The Saints were better. The Seahawks were better. The Rams were better until Jared Goff's injury. The only reason the Buccaneers are in this game is Green Bay pulled a stone-cold choke job. The Packers choked. Matt LaFleur choked by not putting the ball in Aaron Rodgers' hands for a fourth-down play. Earlier in the game Rodgers made too many mistakes. They somehow let Tom Brady throw three interceptions and still win the game. This shouldn't happen. Mike Pettine put their defense at risk when he shouldn't have by trusting in Kevin King too much. Now he's fired. The Packers have only themselves to blame for not being in this game and making it a far better matchup. You'll only seen Rodgers and Mahomes together on insurance commercials now.
1. The Bears even beat Tampa Bay.
Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven
