New England coach Bill Belichick is the greatest NFL coach of all time. Quarterback Tom Brady is NOT the greatest quarterback of all time. Does anyone really believe had the Buffalo Bills (or Cleveland Browns) drafted Brady he would be talked about as the greatest of all time. It’s this arrogant curmudgeon coach Belichick who built this dynasty. Not that Brady isn’t great at what he does. He is. He is amazing with his football IQ, dedication and extreme accuracy in throwing. And most of all, he comes through when needed the most. Clutch. But, many quarterbacks have done that such as Peyton Mannning who won 5 Most valuable player awards compared to Brady’s three. Stick Drew Brees into Belichick’s system…bet on things being much the same. People think Brady is the greatest because they’ve seen him so often and is a clutch performer. Put him with the Cincinnati Bengals and he’d be lost in the shuffle. More on this later. Read on.
So lets talk about Sunday’s game matching the L.A. Rams versus the New England Patriots. All the heavy money bet on the game is on the Patriots. They are slight favorites. On paper the Rams have better personnel. Games aren’t won on paper. Strategy of the game plan and putting the players into the best way to defeat the opponent is the key to everything. And that is the genius of Bill Belichick. And it’s been said…”Experience is your best teacher.” 35 New England players have played in the Super Bowl. Five for the Rams.
In order to win, Belichick has been a master at taking away the strengths of the other team. Rams 33 year old brilliant coach Sean McVey must now do the same. Without going into too much intricate detail, I’ll give you my take on what McVey must do to win. Not easy, but Philly beat the Pat’s last year. So it can be done. In order for the Rams to win it’s much the same old story…put pressure on Tom Brady. “Get him off his spot.” But how? Jackjargon looks at it this way. The L.A. Rams must take away Brady’s short passing game. Edelman…Gronkowski…double team Edelman if possible. Why? Because if Brady cannot have his short passing game (passes in the flat as well) and should the Patriots fall behind it will force him to pass to longer routes. Consequently Brady will not get rid of the ball as quickly and that opens up the pass rush. And the Rams have that strength. Second key for the Rams…they must not let the Patriots run the ball at will. They are not very strong at linebacker, but if they don’t stop the run, the Patriots will eat up the clock and keep the Rams defense on the field too long and that fatigue is a killer late in the game. That is what killed the Falcons blowing their 23 point lead late in the game two years ago. Those two factors won’t be easy. Especially doing them both.
Note, Rams quarterback Jared Goff is very capable with a stronger throwing arm. His key is overcoming nerves in the 1st quarter. And they have a strong twosome in the running game. L.A. can put up mucho points when rolling.
Turnovers are huge factor in football. The Patriots seldom make foolish errors. If L.A. can keep fumbles and interceptions to a minimum, they have a decent chance of winning. These factors make predictions guessing games.
On a personal note…Jacksjargon is sick and tired of hearing Tom Brady is the greatest quarterback of all time. He is the luckiest of all time. Most of all being selected by the greatest coach in NFL history. He has won five and lost three Super Bowls. Remember Seattle with the ball and seconds remaining on the Pat’s one yard. They had a Sherman Tank in Marshon Lynch who would have scored the winning TD. No…instead the Seahawks called the most stupid play in playoff history. Decided to pass…intercepted at the goal line and Brady won.
Remember Atlanta scoring so fast that the Patriots kept the Falcons defense on the field all day. They were gassed at the end blowing a 25 point lead. However, they would have still won with an ideal field goal all set. Then the 2nd dumbest play in playoff history. They decided to pass…Ryan got sacked. Took them out of field goal range and the Pat’s lucked out again. Instead of 5-3 in Super Bowls Brady is 3-5 and not being called the greatest of all time.
Nobody has seen the likes of coach Bill Belichick. He made a dynasty with players not always the best. Remember when Tom Brady was suspended for 4 games after under deflating footballs and throwing away his cell phone. Belichick used inexperienced quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. 1st game won easily. Second game Garoppolo used again and won again. Third game Garoppolo is hurt. So Belichick takes his 3rd string quarterback, Jacoby Brissett in his 1st start, gives him only 5 plays to use and he wins. What does that tell you about that coach?
So who wins Sunday’s Super Bowl? My feeling is it will be close. Dead even with predictions from a host of NFL players. I lean towards the Rams mainly because the Pat’s have won enough. Only New Englanders are rooting for the Patriot’s and grouchy old coach Belichick. Or put it another way…with New England being only a two and a half point favorite I won’t wager. If it goes to being a 3 point favorite, I’ll take the Rams.
Final note…this will be New England’s tight end Rob Gronkowski’s final game. His body has had it.
If Los Angles wins the toss….GO ON OFFENSE RIGHT AWAY. Don’t defer. Let the chess match begin. A young brilliant young coach against the best of all time. Enjoy the game everybody.
Jacksjargon.com