Winners and Losers from 2018-19 NFL Conference Championships
Winners
Sean McVay
You wouldn't be able to tell by his coaching ability that Rams HC Sean McVay is only 32 years old. The way he handled changes and struggles throughout the game was unbelievable of such a young coach. He knew immediately to remove normal starting RB Todd Gurley from the game because he was not playing anywhere near his best. He instead put in newly signed C.J. Anderson, who did the job well enough to keep LA in the game. They were lucky that they even had just over a minute to tie the game, which I will dive into later, but McVay gave young QB Jared Goff the right plays for the situation. The Rams converted when needed, and put K Greg Zuerlein in the right position for a 48 yd field goal to practically send the game into overtime. They did get lucky on one certain play, but they are still one helluva team going into this Super Bowl. With Sean McVay leading the way, I believe that they have a decent shot on dethroning the New England Patriots for their Super Bowl since 2000.
New England Offense
This game was a shoot-out since the first snap. And lucky for New England, they won that fight and now are heading to their NINTH Super Bowl during the Brady-Belichick era. QB Tom Brady had another spectacular game, throwing for 300+ yards and another touchdown to add to his already unreal postseason tally. The main stars of the night on offense though was WR Julian Edelman and RB Sony Michel. Michel has secretly been one of the best players in New England this season when he is healthy. RB James White has developed into a more receiving back, so Michel is taking more of the actual ground game. Edelman almost made an error in the second half when it was first called that he muffed a punt that Kansas City recovered. But after review, it showed that he never did touch the ball and possession stayed with the Patriots. Michel ended up going for 113 yds and 2 TDs and Edelman 96 yards off of 7 catches. For the Patriots to win the Super Bowl, they will need these key players to keep their defense off of the field.
Tony Romo
Why isn't he being hired for a coaching position in the NFL? Seriously, the way he was analyzing plays and predicting exactly what would happen is surreal. I remember one play that he spotted man coverage on New England TE Rob Gronkowski and said that the ball would be going to him high. Seconds later, Tom Brady waited two seconds, spotted the mismatch, and threw it to Gronkowski for a first down. I understand that he wants to enjoy retirement and live his life, but he really should be hired. There is currently a Offensive Coordinator position open in his hometown of Dallas. Few teams need head coaching positions anymore, but some are still needing OCs. It may not happen this year, but Tony Romo needs to be hired by an NFL team to fully use his gift.
Honorable mentions: Brandin Cooks, Patrick Mahomes, and cliches (teams in Super Bowl are from same city as teams in 2018 World Series)
Losers
New Orleans Saints
In this century, the New Orleans Saints have probably had some of the biggest heartbreaks in NFL postseason history. On Sunday, the Saints may have lost due to a horrible missed call that may go down in history with plays like the "Fail Mary". On a 3rd & 10 in the redzone, QB Drew Brees attempted to throw the ball to WR Tommylee Lewis, when Lewis got hit in the helmet before the ball arrived by Rams CB Nickell Robey-Coleman. There was no flag called, and it slightly felt that the Saints' destiny was sealed. New Orleans settled for a field goal for a three point lead. LA went on and scored a field goal to send the game into overtime, and then winning the game off of a field goal by K Greg Zuerlein. They have now had back-to-back seasons with heartbreaking endings, with last year being the "Minnesota Miracle". I wouldn't with this scenario on any professional sports fan base. The worst part of this is that Brees is getting older and his arm is not as strong as it used to be. This may have been the Saints' last chance to reach the Super Bowl during the Payton-Brees era. I just hope that they get one more chance.
Andy Reid
What happened? If I could talk to Kansas City Chiefs HC Andy Reid right now, I would ask what was really the game plan and if they really believed that it would work. The Chiefs were nonexistent on offense in the first half, which against the New England Patriots will most of the time not work. And on defense, they seemed to have no answers for Tom Brady and Sony Michel the entire game. It was an udder disaster. I do admit, they did pick up the pace in the second half and forced the game into OT, but when the Patriots won the coin toss it was pretty much game over for Kansas City. WR Tyreek Hill was isolated, only having one catch for 42 yards. That by itself comes down to the play-calling, and that comes back to Andy Reid. The only positive coming out of this game for Reid was how good QB Patrick Mahomes really is. Some thought that he would struggle under the pressure of a AFC Championship, but he was arguably their best player of the night. I am not saying that Reid deserves to get fired or anything like that, but rather he may have had one of the worst halves of his coaching career.
The League
When is the league finally going to realize that there is a huge problem with how the league works? The Saints were the better team on the day, and yet, due to a dreadful decision by one crew of NFL referees they will be sitting at home watching the Super Bowl instead of traveling to Atlanta. There is a rule in the NFL rulebook that allows the Commissioner (currently Roger Goodell) can overrule the outcome of a game if there was a clear and vital error. He did not exercise this right, and I think the only way it would have happened was if there was a awful call on the final play of the game that would have directly changed the outcome. This is not the only time this season that the NFL has been under scrutiny, the other being the questionable roughing the passer calls throughout the season which even continued with a tap on Tom Brady's shoulder meaning a new first down. The NFL League Office really need to clarify what is and is not a penalty, and they can definitely use the hit on TommyLee Lewis as an example of pass interference.
Dishonorable mentions: Todd Gurley, Josh Hill, and diversity in Super Bowl
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