Lumen Field (Seattle) – You saw that the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots will play in Super bowl LX. You saw the blizzard that rolled into Denver and rendered the Broncos and New England Patriots’ offenses useless. You saw the shootout were Sam Darnold kept pace with – and ultimately surpassed - Matthew Stafford.
So let’s try to spin it forward, dive deeper and think outside the box about what we witnessed in the conference championship games.This is ”Sound Smart,” where we prepare you for Monday morning with observations from the penultimate round of the postseason.If I do my job, you’ll be fluent in the NFL‘s playoff action.
1. IF THERE’S ONE THING YOU SHOUDL KNOW FROM CHAMPIONSHIP SUNDAY, IT’S THAT ….
Table of Contents
Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald and offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak called a better game – and outcoached Rams coach Sean mcvay and defensive coordinator Chris Shula.
In practice this week, there was one play where Jaxon Smith-njigba found himself wide open. Unbelievably open. The star receiver lined up in the backfield in a two-back set and broke for the back right corner of the end zone, where he found what every receiver craves: no coverage.
“Am I going to be that open in the game?” Smith-Njigba remembered wondering.
Yup.
During Sunday’s NFC Championship Game against the Los Angeles Rams, the Seahawks wideout did exactly what he’d practiced. And it worked out exactly as they’d practiced – with nobody near him when he hauled in the touchdown“`html
That 51-yard reception from Shaheed to start the game. That opening drive set the tone for the Seahawks and for Darnold, who finished with 346 yards and three touchdowns – all despite pressure on the scores. The 51-yarder was the third play of the game. It was their scripted drive. And Seattle saw an immediate advantage, which it wasted no time exploiting.
“They gave us the perfect look, man,” Shaheed told me. “Sam put it on the money.”
Speaking of Darnold …
2. STATS DON’T LIE – OR DO THEY?
Darnold completed three touchdowns under pressure, the most of his career and the most ever recorded since 2016, per Next Gen Stats.
There have been times when Darnold appeared unable to shake his reputation for flopping in big games. The most recent example, of course, was when he threw four interceptions against L.A. Most Rams players wouldn’t admit after the game that this version of Darnold looked different than the guy they saw earlier this year – or even the guy they bounced from the playoffs with the Minnesota Vikings roughly 13 months ago. But Speights finally conceded.
“He played better, without a doubt,” he told me. “He was able to find [his receivers] when we brought certain pressures.”
That was in the Rams’ locker room.
In the Seahawks’ locker room?
“He’s the best in the world,” receiver Jake Bobo said.
Take it easy there, Bobo.
“He just shut a lot of people up tonight,” Macdonald said during a postgame press conference.
OK, I can agree with that.
But it hasn’t been a smooth ride. Darnold’s performance has been a rollercoaster, showcasing both brilliance and frustrating inconsistency. He’s capable of making spectacular plays, as evidenced by his explosive play rate, which was third-highest among QBs behind Drake Maye and Jordan Love during the regular season. But that also came at the expense of turnovers (20; most in the NFL) with the second-highest turnover rate (3.7%) behind only Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy (4.6). You know … the guy who got memed into oblivion this year.
So, you get it. Darnold was really good, at times – and really bad, at times. The Seahawks had to compensate for his mistakes. Or they had to carry him altogether.
This was the game when Shaheed’s sentiment was most true: We wouldn’t be here without him.
Darnold was that good. The Seahawks wouldn’t have beaten the Rams to advance to the Super Bowl without him.
3. EVERYONE IS AFRAID TO SAY
Part 1: Drake Maye was the youngest QB in the playoff field, but he’s playing with wisdom beyond his years.
Patriots receiver DeMario Douglas told me a few weeks ago that Maye was mature beyond his years. Douglas is 25 years old himself, so what does he know, right?
Well, since douglas said that, the Patriots have won three straight playoff games – and with maye helping them win in three different ways.This isn’t to say he’s been perfect or even exceptionally consistent, especially when compared to an incredible regular season. but if you look around the NFL, you’ll see that quarterbacks have struggled throughout the playoffs.
Even for a guy like Matthew Stafford, it has been about doing just enough.
So that’s what Maye did on sunday against the Broncos in a game that - in the second half – devolved into a white-out blizzard.Maye had zero
And to the credit of the skeptics, he has not had to outduel an offense with considerable firepower. But what those skeptics won’t point out is that Maye is the first QB to win three playoff games against top five total defenses in a single postseason, per FOX Sports research. Those units are all also three top nine defenses in points allowed per game, and two of them (the Broncos and the Texans) finished in the top three.
Because of that, Maye will be the second-youngest QB to start the Super Bowl – just behind dan Marino – where, perhaps fittingly, he’ll face the top defense in the Seahawks.
Part 2: Special teams matter!
In the rams’ loss to the Seahawks, we saw yet another reminder that there are three phases of this game. And it was special teams that provided the moment when the Seahawks took control of the game.
Rams receiver Xavier Smith fell over while trying to field a punt early in the third quarter and muffed it. The Seahawks were there to recover at the 17-yard line. And one play later, Darnold threw a touchdown to Jake Bobo to give the Seahawks a 12-point lead they ultimately wouldn’t squander.
“Every year, they lose key games and fail to maximize their potential due to a lack of investment in special teams,” a former NFL head coach texted me on Sunday night after the Rams’ muffed punt. “Look at the investments of who they hire. [It went from] from [former Rams special teams coordinator John Fassel] and [Joe] DeCamillis (two of the best) to the lowest bidders who promise in interviews to basically not play the phase. Whenever they play teams who invest in special teams, it costs them!”
A Rams fumble deep in their own zone led to a Seahawks touchdown and proved to be the difference in the NFC title game. (Photo by Jane Gershovich/Getty Images)
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.