NFC Championship Game
And then there were four. NFL Championship weekend is upon us and let’s start our journey in Los Angeles, where the Rams and the 49ers will meet for the third time this season, with San Francisco having won the first two, including a Week 18 victory that sent the Niners to the playoffs.
Both teams have top defenses, and both teams have quarterbacks that are sometimes interception happy. The 49ers front seven, that includes Nick Bosa and Arik Armstead, has to bring pressure to Matthew Stafford to try and force him into some of the errant throws-turned pick-6s. Stafford has Cooper Kupp and Odell Beckham Jr. at his disposal, so the pressure is key.
For the 49ers part, they need to keep doing the things that turned their once 3-5 season around – running the football, being efficient on third-down and winning the turnover battle. Jimmy Garoppolo has tight end George Kittle, wide-back Deebo Samuel and running back Elijah Mitchell on his side. The O-line has been effective versus Aaron Donald, but the passing game can’t let Rams’ CB Jalen Ramsey disrupt its flow.
Garoppolo is 6-0 against the Rams, and it’s hard to pick against that. It’s going to be a close one and a tough one. Can the Rams get their Hollywood ending? This Fangirl says not this year.
AFC Championship Game
Next stop on our championship tour is Arrowhead Stadium, where the Kansas City Chiefs will host Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals. These teams played a few weeks back in Week 17, with the Bengals winning, 34-31.
In that game, Bengals’ wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase had 11 receptions for 266 yards and three touchdowns. The Chiefs are going to want to avoid that happening again. Cincinnati QB Joe Burrow was sacked nine times in last week’s divisional round game against the Titans. The Bengals are going to want to avoid that.
The Chiefs beat the Buffalo Bills last week in an epic overtime game that showed just how elite both those teams are. Kansas City has an embarrassment of riches on offense from Patrick Mahomes to Tyreek Hill to Travis Kelce. While attempting to contain Chase, the Chiefs defense will have to contend with wide receives Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins, as well as running back Joe Mixon. That being said, the KC defense has been playing at a high level, and that won’t change on Sunday.
The Bengals will keep it close, but the Chiefs are just too good. Prediction: Kansas City is going to its third-straight Super Bowl.
Hey Now, You’re A NBA All-Star
LeBron James has been named a starter for the NBA All-Star game for the 18th time in his career, tying him with Kobe Bryant for the second-most in the history of the league. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is first with 19. Go Lakers.
The rest of the starters for the Feb. 20 game in Cleveland are as follows.
Team LeBron (Western Conference):
LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers), Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets), Andrew Wiggins (Golden State Warriors), Steph Curry (Golden State Warriors) and Ja Morant (Memphis Grizzlies)
Team Durant (Eastern Conference): Kevin Durant (Brooklyn Nets), Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers), Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks) and DeMar DeRozan (Chicago Bulls)
The Steelers are Looking for a New GM
Pittsburgh Steelers’ owner Art Rooney II announced on Friday that GM Kevin Colbert will step down from his role following the 2022 NFL draft. Colbert, who has been with the organization for 22 seasons became the team’s general manager in 2010, after serving as the director of football operations.
Rooney said that Colbert may take on another role in the organization and said they have interviewed Omar Khan and Brandon Hunt, both in-house candidates, for the GM position. The Steelers have won two Super Bowls and three AFC championships during Colbert’s tenure with the team.
New NFL Head Coaches
Chicago Bears
Da bears have a new head coach, as they announced the hiring of Matt Eberflus on Thursday night. Eberflus was the defensive coordinator for the Indianapolis Colts. The Bears also have a new GM in Ryan Poles, so the two will have their work cut out for them. Chicago was 6-11 in 2021 and has missed the playoffs in nine of the last 11 seasons.
Denver Broncos
Over in Denver, the Broncos have agreed to terms with Nathaniel Hackett, who was the offensive coordinator for the Green Bay Packers. Does that mean Aaron Rodgers will follow him to Denver? TBD.
Hackett will be the Broncos’ fourth head coach since 2016, and they have had five consecutive losing seasons. On the plus side, there’s nowhere to go but up (in theory).