CHARGERS NFL'S MOST COMPLETE TEAM? BEARS NFC'S TEAM TO
BEAT?
Fifteen Sundays deep in the 2018 NFL season, a lot of fans
are struggling to -- as I channel my inner Jack Nicholson -- handle the
truth.
1) THE CHARGERS
ARE CURRENTLY THE MOST COMPLETE TEAM IN THE NFL.
THIS IS ABSOLUTELY TRUE. And we all saw the best
proof yet last Thursday night, in Los Angeles' pulsating comeback win
over the Chiefs in Arrowhead. The Chargers (11-3)
can win any style of fight -- anywhere. That last bit is crucial,
especially if L.A. doesn't end up with home-field advantage in the playoffs.
The Bolts are 6-1 on the road. In just the past three weeks, they've erased
major second-half deficits to win at Pittsburgh and Kansas City. This team
doesn't need the comfy confines of home to thrive. And let's be honest:
The Chargers haven't
had a true home game since they left San Diego.
At 37 years old, Philip Rivers is
arguably having the best year of his Hall of Fame career. He was majestic
in that fourth-quarter rally last Thursday, particularly on the game-winning
drive. The fact that he did that without Keenan Allen and Melvin Gordon cannot
be overlooked. Los Angeles' passing attack is explosive, with Mike Williams emerging
as a real weapon opposite Allen. The backfield is loaded when everyone's
healthy: a three-headed monster of Melvin Gordon, Austin Ekeler and Justin
Jackson is quite an enticing proposal. And the line is solid.
Defensively, the Chargers make
plays and get to the quarterback. Joey Bosa, Melvin Ingram and Derwin James are
high-impact players. Lastly, the special teams have been consistent this year
-- no small development for this snake-bitten franchise. These Chargers have
a totally different feel to them. And it's awesome.
The Saints are
great. The Rams --
the other half of my preseason
prediction of an all-L.A. Super Bowl -- are loaded, but they
just struggled mightily in all three phases for the second straight week. And
in the AFC, no team comes close to the Bolts in terms of well-roundedness.
2) THE EAGLES ARE
BETTER WITH NICK FOLES AT QUARTERBACK.
THIS IS BEYOND FALSE. Far too
hot a take for this man.
Credit Foles for his resplendent replacement work in the
Sunday night spotlight. I didn't think he could knock off the Rams in
the L.A. Coliseum. Heck, I still can't believe what happened in the playoffs
last season. It's wild. It's magical. And he made Alshon
Jeffery reappear out of thin air on Sunday evening (eight
catches for 160 yards), with the highly paid wideout logging his first 100-yard
game since Week 4.
Still, Carson Wentz is
an absolute stud. He's elite. And despite the fact that some folks say he
doesn't look the same post-knee injury, Wentz's 2018 passer rating (102.2) is
actually higher than his 2017 mark (101.9). The 25-year-old is the Eagles'
franchise quarterback. Foles will be
somewhere else next season. Don't be a prisoner of the moment.
3) THE TEXANS WILL
FINISH WITH A BETTER RECORD THAN THE PATRIOTS.
YES, THIS IS HAPPENING. And I dig it. Houston
(10-4) is a solid, well-rounded team that's fueled by some notable stars. DeAndre
Hopkins is the best receiver in the league this year, and he's
been among the true elites for a while. Deshaun
Watson, who has thrown 43 touchdown passes in his first 21 NFL
games, is special. J.J. Watt is J.J. Watt again,
and it's great to have him back. Watt and Jadeveon
Clowney are an elite pass-rushing combo. I do not see
these Texans losing
either of their last two regular-season games: at
Philadelphia, vs.
Jacksonville. I think Bill O'Brien's team can handle success and
prosperity.
Meanwhile, I was floored seeing New England
lose in Pittsburgh, especially given how the loss went down. Getting
bottled up on offense? Penalties? Drops? Tom Brady making
awful decisions in the red zone? Errant throws with the game on the line?
Against a spiraling Steelers team
that had lost its previous three games? Wow. Credit the Pittsburgh defense. But
this was a major disappointment for the Pats, who dropped to 9-5 and are
now slated to
play on Wild Card Weekend. New England finishes with a pair of home games against the
Bills and Jets, so the Texans have
no margin for error. I think they are ready to rock and will nab a first-round
bye.
4) THE COWBOYS HAD
THE MOST DISAPPOINTING PERFORMANCE OF WEEK 15.
I HAVE TO SAY FALSE, because ... JOSH JOHNSON MARCHED
INTO JACKSONVILLE AND BEAT THE
JAGUARS! Imagine typing that sentence this past offseason, or after
the Jags beat the Patriots in Week 2.
What an unbelievable collapse for Jacksonville, which has now lost nine of its
last 10 games.
Meanwhile, I thought the Colts would
end Dallas' five-game win streak -- albeit not in the lopsided manner that we
saw. 23-0 was
indeed surprising. Still, the Cowboys are
a great defensive team with a game-changing running back -- this group can win
a game or two in the playoffs. Burn the game film and move on. However, as I've
been saying consistently on SiriusXM Radio and CBS Sports Network, Dallas needs
to think long and hard before paying Dak Prescott the
big bucks.
5) THE BEARS ARE
THE TEAM TO BEAT IN THE NFC.
Back in March, I said Chicago would be the NFL's Cinderella
team in 2018. Well, now that they've officially gone from
worst to first in the NFC North, I'm gonna call that prediction a
winner. It's an awesome accomplishment in Matt Nagy's debut season as an NFL
head coach. And Chicago's defense is special and capable of fueling a run to
Atlanta. I do love the Bears'
run game, and Mitch Trubisky rocked steady in beating the
Packers to clinch the division title Sunday. Honestly, I won't
bat an eye if the Bears march
to Super Bowl LIII.
But still, the above statement is false.
Even with the Rams scuffling
and New Orleans coming back down to Earth a bit, I still favor those two teams
over Chicago and Dallas in the NFC race.
6) THE VIKINGS
WILL HOLD ON TO THE NFC'S NO. 6 SEED.
True! Kevin Stefanski! Genius!
Minnesota needed to make a change on offense. The head coach
wasn't happy, while Kirk Cousins was
in a funk (especially in big games). Minnesota lacked balance with John
DeFilippo at the controls. Insert Stefanski, who followed Mike Zimmer's orders
to pound the rock more. Lo and behold, the Vikings
lambasted Miami, 41-17, with 198 yards passing and 220(!) rushing. Dalvin Cook?
Yeah, that guy's pretty good: 19 carries for 136 yards and two touchdowns. This
Stefanski might be onto something, giving the second-year back the rock.
I expect the Vikings (7-6-1)
to beat the
Lions before losing to the
Bears. But the real deal here is ... well ... there is simply no
other NFC wild-card contender I trust.
7) FRANK REICH IS
THE COACH OF THE YEAR.
He's amazing and a legit candidate, but that's false.
For truly changing the culture with the Chargers,
Anthony Lynn is getting my AP vote. In a typically Bolts season, the team
either starts painfully slow or finishes with a thud. But these Chargers seem
to be peaking at the right time.
The Colts have
totally turned it around, and Reich is the maestro. Pete Carroll also deserves
serious consideration, considering everyone thought this would be a rebuilding
year in Seattle. But Lynn is my guy for 2018.
8) SAM DARNOLD IS
GOING TO BE A STAR.
Did you see the way he worked against the AFC's current No.
2 seed on Sunday? Did you see how Darnold made clutch plays versus the
Texans' excellent defense a week after he flummoxed a
well-coached and strong Bills defense on the road? Darnold can
make every throw in the book. And it was so impressive the way he kept plays
alive in Sunday's tight loss.
The Jets have
no surrounding talent on offense. The line is terrible. The receiving corps is
weak and there are way too many drops. I hope you didn't jump off the Darnold
bandwagon during his midseason struggles. This offseason, I believe the Jets will
change the coach and play caller and give this talented kid some support on the
personnel front. It's true: Darnold is going to be a bona fide star,
and I can't wait to see it.
9) JOE FLACCO,
BLAKE BORTLES AND RYAN TANNEHILL WILL RELOCATE IN 2019.
Lamar Jackson is
a stud, so Joe Flacco's
done in Baltimore. Blake Bortles is
terrible when it comes to the forward pass -- kind of crippling for a, uh, passer.
Jacksonville, the NFL's biggest underachiever in 2018, will eat the dead-cap
money and release the former No. 3 overall pick.
Personally, I would absolutely move on from Ryan Tannehill if
I were running the Dolphins.
It's Year 7, and he remains just a guy, something I've been saying
for quite some time. But at the moment, there are no indications Miami will cut
bait on Tannehill, who is under contract through 2020.
So, I'm calling this 2/3 true and 1/3 false. But
for the great, long-suffering fans of the Dolphins,
I hope it's 100 percent true.
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