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NBA suspends season after Rudy Gobert tests positive for coronavirus

MIAMI — The NBA has suspended its season “until further notice” after a Utah Jazz player tested positive Wednesday for the coronavirus, a move that came only hours after the majority of the league’s owners were leaning toward playing games without fans in arenas.

Now there will be no games at all, at least for the time being. A person with knowledge of the situation said the Jazz player who tested positive was center Rudy Gobert. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither the league nor the team confirmed the presumptive positive test.

“The NBA is suspending game play following the conclusion of tonight’s schedule of games until further notice,” the league said in a statement sent shortly after 9:30 p.m. Eastern. “The NBA will use this hiatus to determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the coronavirus pandemic.”

The test result, the NBA said, was reported shortly before the scheduled tip-off time for the Utah at Oklahoma City game on Wednesday night was called off. Players were on the floor for warmups and tip-off was moments away when they were told to return to their locker rooms. About 30 minutes later, fans were told the game was postponed “due to unforeseen circumstances.”

Those circumstances were the league’s worst-case scenario for now — a player testing positive. A second person who spoke to AP on condition of anonymity said the league expects the shutdown to last a minimum of two weeks, but cautioned that timeframe is very fluid.

For most people, the coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.

The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, which declared a pandemic on Wednesday, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover. In mainland China, where the virus first exploded, more than 80,000 people have been diagnosed and more than 58,000 have so far recovered.

It has been a worldwide issue for several weeks. And now, it has hit the NBA.

Charlotte Hornets coach James Borrego, speaking before his team played at Miami on Wednesday — where news of the shutdown broke during the fourth quarter — said “these are scary times.”

The NBA’s movement toward empty arenas in the short term came on the same day that the NCAA announced that the men’s and women’s Division I tournaments would be played without fans — except for a few family members — permitted inside to watch.

“People are clearly taking the measures that they feel they need to take for safety,” said Miami Heat guard Duncan Robinson, who played in both the Division I and Division III national championship games during his college days at Michigan and Williams.

“There’s people a lot higher up than ourselves in this locker room who have the information and the knowledge to make those types of decisions,” Robinson said. “In terms of if that were to happen here … we love playing in front of our fans and we feel like that gives us an advantage. But at the same time the NBA has to protect its players in the league and the fans.”

Things have clearly been trending toward empty arenas for some time, and it was abundantly clear Wednesday morning when the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases told a Congressional committee that he would recommend the NBA not allow fans at games in response to the coronavirus.

Dr. Anthony Fauci was responding to a question asked by Rep. Glenn Grothman, a Wisconsin Republican, “is the NBA underreacting or is the Ivy League overreacting?” Grothman was referencing how the Ivy League recently canceled its basketball tournaments, instead of having them without fans or keeping the status quo.

“We would recommend that there not be large crowds,” Fauci said. “If that means not having any people in the audience when the NBA plays, so be it. But as a public health official, anything that has crowds is something that would give a risk to spread.”

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/nba-suspends-season-after-rudy-gobert-tests-positive-for-coronavirus/

Knicks win what could be their final game of the season

ATLANTA — Wayne Ellington cracked the only smile he had in him in the press room late Wednesday night.

“We wanted to go out on a good note,’’ he said.

If this was the season finale, the Knicks got a rare win, 136-131, over the Hawks. They exploded for 67 points in the first half to take a 17-point lead.

But in the end, the Knicks (21-45) blew a 20-point advantage and needed overtime to repel Atlanta, right as the NBA suspended its season due to coronavirus concerns.

The Knicks blew a double-digit lead in the final 2:30 of regulation, but never trailed after Julius Randle hit a 3-pointer early in the extra period.

Randle finished with 33 points and RJ Barrett, off a miserable outing in Washington the previous night and playing with a swollen mouth, notched 26. Trae Young led the Hawks comeback with a game-high 42 points and 11 assists.

RJ Barrett drives to the basket during the Knicks’ 136-131 OT victory over the Hawks.NBAE via Getty Images

The Knicks also got strong production from their 2018 draft picks, Mitchell Robinson and Kevin Knox, who combined to shoot 10 of 14. Robinson was 7 of 7 for 16 points. Knox, coming out of his recent shell, scored 12 points, making all three of his 3-pointers.

Atlanta veteran Vince Carter was inserted in the final seconds and hit a last-second 3-pointer in what could be his final game. Carter, who had announced last summer this would be his final season, was hugged and backslapped by several Knicks after the buzzer — which might not have been the healthiest thing to do.

“I heard the fans yelling it, I was still trying to win a game, but it was a surreal moment,’’ Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce said.

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/knicks-win-what-could-be-their-final-game-of-the-season/

Rudy Gobert touched reporters’ recorders before positive coronavirus test

This joke didn’t age well.

Rudy Gobert, who reportedly tested positive for coronavirus Wednesday, touched reporters’ recorders jokingly during media availability two days ago.

The ill-timed crack came on the heel of a decision by the NBA and other sports leagues to limit access to players and essential staff.

Gobert’s illness was the reason why the Thunder-Jazz game was postponed Wednesday night. That decision was soon followed by the NBA’s decision to suspend their season.

Salt Lake Tribune reporter Eric Walden tweeted about Gobert’s action:

As part of the Jazz’s COVID-19 response, shootaround availability was done in the ZBBC media room today rather than on the court. As Rudy Gobert got finished discussing the situation, he stood up, leaned over and made it a point to touch every mic and recorder in front of him.

— Eric Walden (@tribjazz) March 9, 2020

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/rudy-gobert-touched-reporters-recorders-before-positive-coronavirus-test/

Mavericks’ Mark Cuban on NBA suspending season: Hard to know what’s right

NBA players — even the ones still finishing their Wednesday night games — were aware the league had suspended its season.

Not long after it was announced a Utah Jazz player, believed to be center Rudy Gobert, had contracted the coronavirus, causing the team’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder to be postponed, players in Dallas for the Mavericks-Nuggets matchup were discussing it.

“I’m pretty sure everybody is aware at this point,” Mavericks owner Mark Cuban told ESPN in a mid-game interview. “Guys are talking about it on the bench.”

Upgraded to a pandemic on Wednesday, coronavirus has been a consuming topic in sports. The NCAA announced plans to play opening-round games without fans in attendance while the NBA, NHL, MLS and MLB began enacting policies to keep players, media and fans safe.

Cuban, who left his courtside seat to discuss the news with his front office team, spoke candidly about the situation.

“This is crazy, this can’t be true,” he said. “I mean, it’s not within the realm of possibility. It seemed more like out of a movie than reality.”

Hours before, it was reported that the league’s Board of Governors were already discussing playing games without fans — some teams had already begun doing so — or going on hiatus. Gobert’s situation pushed the league and commissioner Adam Silver into fast action.

“I trust Adam,” Cuban said. “It’s not about basketball or money, really. Literally, if this thing is just exploding to the point where all of a sudden NBA players and others have had it, you think about your family. You want to make sure you’re doing this the right way. Now it’s much more personal. The whole idea it’s come this close, potentiality a couple of players have it, it’s stunning.”

The league halting its season is an extraordinary measure, and one that came faster than expected. The news could put entire teams in limbo.

“Talking to some of the guys that weren’t playing, on the bench… ‘Look, I don’t think you guys are going to be able to leave town,’” Cuban said. “This isn’t like a lockout time, go enjoy and we’ll figure it out. No. The whole idea is, and I’m only guessing, the only way we’re gonna have any control over it, and making sure our players are healthy is if we know where they’re at and who they’re dealing with.”

Much like owners around the NBA and across sports entirely, Cuban has many bigger things to consider.

“It’s not about the team,” he said. “It’s about the country and life in general, you know? We have the pieces in place. I’m concerned, now that we’re not playing games, who about the people working here on an hourly basis. We’ll put together a program for them. There’s so many things that go through your head, it’s hard to know what’s right.”

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/mavericks-mark-cuban-on-nba-suspending-season-hard-to-know-whats-right/

Who is Rudy Gobert? Utah Jazz player tests positive for coronavirus

Concerns regarding the coronavirus outbreak reached a fever pitch on Wednesday night when a member of the Utah Jazz, Rudy Gobert, reportedly preliminarily tested positive for the virus.

It prompted officials to postpone the Thunder-Jazz game right before tip-off.

Moments later, the NBA announced the 2019-2020 season is suspended “until further notice.”

Rudy Gobert-Bourgarel, 27, was born in Saint-Quentin, a commune in northern France about two hours northeast of Paris. His father, Rudy Bourgarel, attended Marist College in New York and was a professional basketball player for the French national team in the 1980s. Gobert rose through the French ranks for the Cholet Basket team and eventually as a member of the French under-18 national team.

The 7-foot-1 French phenom declared for the 2013 NBA Draft and earned the nickname, “The Stifle Tower” for his then-record wingspan of 7-feet-8.5 inches and standing reach of 9-foot-7. The center was selected in the first round, 27th overall by the Denver Nuggets, and was traded to the Utah Jazz on draft night.

In 2016, Gobert signed a four-year, $102 million extension with the Jazz including $94 million guaranteed according to Spotrac. The contract made him the highest-paid French athlete at the time.

He was awarded the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year distinction in 2018 and 2019.

Gobert started all 62 games for the Jazz this season and earned his first trip to the All-Star game.

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/who-is-rudy-gobert-utah-jazz-player-tests-positive-for-coronavirus/

NHL evaluates options after NBA suspends season over coronavirus

The NHL isn’t following the NBA’s lead — yet.

Not long after the NBA announced it would be suspending its season indefinitely due to the coronavirus on Wednesday night, the NHL released a statement of its own.

“The National Hockey League is aware of the NBA’s decision tonight to indefinitely suspend its season due to a player testing positive for the coronavirus,” the League said in a statement. “The NHL is continuing to consult with medical experts and is evaluating the options. We expect to have a further update tomorrow.”

NHL teams played five games on Wednesday, with 10 matchups slated for Thursday. The Players’ Association is expecting to continue virus-related discussions with the league before then.

“We are in continuous contact with the NHL regarding the coronavirus and the recent announcement by the NBA,” the NHLPA said in a statement. “These discussions will continue tomorrow morning, and we will consult with players before commenting further.”

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/nhl-evaluates-options-after-nba-suspends-season-over-coronavirus/

Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg leaves Big Ten game with illness

INDIANAPOLIS — Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg left Wednesday night’s 89-64 loss to Indiana in the Big Ten Tournament because of an illness.

Hoiberg was in visible discomfort on the Cornhuskers’ bench. Doc Sadler took over after Hoiberg left the floor near the end of the loss.

Nebraska did not make any players or coaches available to the media after the game. Messages were left seeking comment from the school.

The Big Ten is closing the rest of the tournament to fans over fears of exposure to the coronavirus.

The 11th-seeded Hoosiers (20-12) will play sixth-seeded Penn State (21-10) in the second round Thursday night. Indiana split its two meetings with the Nittany Lions.

“I would say it would be a heck of an environment in here, but it’s going to be more like a closed scrimmage, which is unfortunate,” Indiana coach Archie Miller said. “We’ll be ready to go. Penn State has had a heck of a season and heck of a team so we got a heck of a challenge.”

Miller chose to send his players back to the hotel instead of to interview room after hearing the news about the NBA suspending its season over concerns about the spread of coronavirus.

Fred HoibergAP

“I think, once you start getting the news that we got after the game, I think right now for our players, it’s let’s get cleaned up, let’s get out of here, and let’s get back to the hotel where we can keep our group kind of tight and move forward with tomorrow,” he said. “They’re not going to have a whole lot of answers about what’s going on anyway.”

Indiana got pushed a bit by Nebraska, but the Hoosiers’ depth was too much for the Cornhuskers.

“They made their runs during the (second) half, got us a little bit stationary at times, but I thought overall our guys responded and were able to finish the game in a big way,” Miller said. “And I’m proud of our depth. I thought we had a lot of guys. We were committed to playing a lot of guys tonight, and we had a lot of guys play valuable minutes and get some things done.”

Indiana freshman Trayce Jackson-Davis had a double double of 11 points and career-high 17 rebounds. Armaan Franklin led the Hoosiers with 13 points. Justin Smith and Devonte Green each scored 12 and Al Durham added 11.

Kevin Cross led Nebraska (7-25) with 23 points. Haanif Cheatham had 17, and Jervay Green finished with 15.

Indiana shot 53 percent while Nebraska shot 30%.

Indiana expanded its lead to 58-38 with 15:48 to go.

“Early on, I didn’t think we were ready, and then as the half sort of closed, we had a big run, which was a real key part of the game,” Miller said. “Being able to go into halftime with a lead was important, and then we started the second half, I thought, really well as well to build a cushion.”

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/nebraska-coach-fred-hoiberg-leaves-big-ten-game-with-illness/

DePaul rallies to win first Big East Tournament game since 2014

NEW YORK — Paul Reed had 23 points and 12 rebounds and DePaul won its first Big East Tournament game since 2014 with a come-from-behind 71-67 over seventh-seeded Xavier in a first-round game on Tuesday night.

Charlie Moore added 18 points and nine assists for the 10th-seeded Blue Demons (16-16), who advanced to a quarterfinal showdown against second-seeded Villanova on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.

Tyrique Jones had 22 points to lead Xavier (19-13). Zach Freemantle matched his career high with 18 and Naji Marshall scored 15 for the Musketeers, who made 1 of their last 10 shots.

The two first-round games on Wednesday night — St. John’s beat Georgetown in the opener — will be the last ones without fan restrictions. The league announced during the DePaul-Xavier game that the remainder of the conference’s tournament will be played under a restricted attendance policy.

Attendees will be limited to student-athletes, coaches, event staff, essential team and conference staff, television personnel, credentialed media and immediate family members of the participating teams. Schools will be limited to 200 tickets per institution.

It won’t matter for seventh-seeded Xavier. It had used a 13-point run to take a 59-53 lead with 9:18 to play, but the Musketeers scored eight points the rest of the way in failing to win a tournament game for the first time since joining the league seven years ago.

DePaul was 3-15 in conference play this season and it was 2-12 overall in tournament play.

After falling behind by six points, Moore hit a 3-pointer and Reed slammed home a dunk around a shot by Xavier’s KyKy Tandy to get within 61-58. DePaul would eventually take the lead for good on a shot by Reed in the paint for a 64-63 lead with 4:15 to play. Jaylen Butz scored inside with 2:47 to go and Moore made two free throws to up the advantage to 69-63 with 29 seconds left.

DePaul used a 13-2 run to open a 35-24 lead late in the first half, but Freemantle hit two 3-pointers in a 10-3 spurt to close the gap to 38-24 at the half.

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/depaul-rallies-to-win-first-big-east-tournament-game-since-2014/

Mets’ Jacob deGrom not letting coronavirus concerns distract him

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — What’s clear right now is that Jacob deGrom will pitch Opening Day for the Mets.

But with coronavirus fears growing by the day — if not the hour — there’s no guarantee there will be fans at Citi Field on March 26 — or that the game will even be in Queens.

For now though, deGrom is keeping his routine throughout spring training.

“I haven’t thought about it too much,’’ deGrom said of a potential change to the schedule. “It’s unfortunate, all this going on. As of right now, I’m just preparing as if everything was gonna happen normal. I think that’s the plan. It could change. For me, I just have to prepare for that day.”

It’s a lesson he learned last year, when three straight rocky starts in April were just about the only tarnish on his second consecutive Cy Young season.

And the hiccup still bothers the right-hander.

“I want to eliminate those starts that get out of control,’’ deGrom said. “I let three in a row get out of control. I wish I could have those starts back, but you learn from it. I felt like I was trying to do too much.”

Jacob deGrom warms up Wednesday.AP

At this point last spring, deGrom had yet to sign his contract extension, which was something that was on his mind.

“There’s a few differences,’’ deGrom said of his situation from 2019 to now. “But my mindset is the same. I’m trying to get ready for the season. The outside things [with the contract] are a little different. Last year, it was a cool process to go through looking back. The goal is to get ready for the season, and I had more stuff going on away from the field. But my mindset when I take the mound is the same as it was last year.”

He’s hoping the results are the same as they were for most of last season, and his start on Wednesday against the Cardinals at Clover Park was an indication that he may be able to pick up where he left off.

DeGrom allowed just one base runner — a solo homer to Matt Carpenter in a 7-3 win over St. Louis — as he cruised through four innings.

His stuff was better than it was in his previous appearance, which came in a simulated game.

“I felt in that game, I was yanking my pitches a little bit,’’ deGrom said. “Today, I was able to locate my fastball, slider and changeup pretty well.”

For deGrom, it was a rather ordinary day. But his manager, Luis Rojas, is enjoying the view from his new seat in the dugout.

“We didn’t think he would reach his pitch count at one point,’’ said Rojas, who was wowed by deGrom’s efficiency. “His command, his stuff, his choice of pitches were great. He did everything right today.”

It’s something the Mets have grown accustomed to seeing.

“He’s so competitive,’’ Rojas said. “He competes against the guys out there, but he also competes against himself.”

That’s a trait that has also stood out to one of deGrom’s newest teammates, Dellin Betances, who watched deGrom from the other side of town before signing with the Mets during the offseason.

“He’s one of a kind,’’ Betances said. “Just how confident he is. His poise. He knows he’s really good. … He’s been the best pitcher in the game the past couple years. I’m glad to be on his team.”

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/mets-jacob-degrom-not-letting-coronavirus-concerns-distract-him/

USWNT shows disdain for US Soccer before latest title win

FRISCO, Texas — The increasingly bitter dispute between American women’s national soccer team and the U.S. Soccer Federation spilled onto the field Wednesday night when players wore their warm-up jerseys inside out in a protest before their 3-1 victory over Japan.

Players filed a gender discrimination suit against the USSF last year, a case scheduled for trial starting May 5 in federal court in Los Angeles. The USSF submitted legal papers this week claiming that the women are less skilled and have less-demanding roles than the men on its national team.

By wearing their jerseys inside out for the national anthems and team photo, players hid the USSF crest on the jerseys but allowed the four stars — one for each World Cup title — to be visible.

“We just decided today as a group, and everybody was on board with it,” said forward Carli Lloyd, a two-time FIFA Player of the Year. “And I think it just was a powerful message, without having to really send a message. I’m really proud of this group because this is not an easy thing. Like I said, we don’t want to be in this position, but we’re here and it’s just got to be better.”

The USWNT has taken the field with their warm up jerseys inside out, hiding the US Soccer crest.

This is in response to the latest legal filings by the US Soccer Federation in the gender discrimination lawsuit filed by 28 US players. (@espnW) pic.twitter.com/BTZgYeeNMD

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 12, 2020

The victory gave the U.S. the title in the SheBelieves Cup, a prep tournament for this year’s Olympics. Late in the second half, USSF president Carlos Cordeiro issued an apology and announced a shakeup to the federation’s legal team.

“On behalf of U.S. Soccer, I sincerely apologize for the offense and pain caused by language in this week’s court filing, which did not reflect the values of our federation or our tremendous admiration of our women’s national team,” Cordeiro said in a statement. “Our WNT players are incredibly talented and work tirelessly, as they have demonstrated time and again from their Olympic gold medals to their World Cup titles.”

Cordeiro said the USSF asked Latham & Watkins “to join and guide our legal strategy going forward.” Seyfarth Shaw had been representing the federation; Latham is the firm where former USSF president Alan Rothenberg is a retired partner.

“I have made it clear to our legal team that even as we debate facts and figures in the course of this case, we must do so with the utmost respect not only for our women’s national team players but for all female athletes around the world,” Cordeiro said.

Lloyd said she couldn’t comment on the apology, but said the team was united.

“I think it’s just very unfortunate timing. All of it. Obviously, this is a very, very tough situation that we as players are in, and it’s not something that we want to be public about, you know? But at the end of the day, I think that we all stand united as a team,” Lloyd said. “I can’t comment, I didn’t fully read the statement that was put out, yet. I literally just came out a locker room in here. So, I’ll take some time to read it. But I think a lot of it has been unacceptable, what’s gone on. We just want to continue to keep making things better. We’ve obviously proven it on the field, and that’s ultimately our job first and foremost. But it’s our job as well to keep pushing and making things better.”

Following the protest, many of the team’s fans on Twitter changed their profile pictures to a blank crest with four stars.

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/uswnt-shows-disdain-for-us-soccer-before-latest-title-win/

Rangers steal point, but lose in OT to Avalanche

DENVER — In the wake of the NBA suspending its season, amid the uneasiness of two teams in the NHL not allowed to play home games in front of fans, here were the Rangers, playing a wild game, talking about playoff implications, doing all they could not to think about the widespread health pandemic taking over the sports world.

What else were they supposed to do?

It was a strange feeling as the Blueshirts dropped a crazy 3-2 overtime contest to the Avalanche in the relative quiet of the Rocky Mountains on Wednesday night. Pavel Buchnevich tied it for the Rangers with 13 seconds left in regulation before a J.T. Compher tip won it for Colorado 2:50 into the three-on-three overtime.

The scare of the coronavirus was not far away, and yet an announced crowd of 18,025 jammed into the downtown Pepsi Center. But the Rangers were doing everything they could not to worry about things they couldn’t control — at least, for now.

“I really don’t think a lot about it,” coach David Quinn said before the game. “I can’t control that. We’re going to play hockey games until they tell us we don’t.”

That could come as early as Thursday, when the NHL is expected to make a further statement beyond what it released Wednesday night.

“The National Hockey League is aware of the NBA’s decision tonight to indefinitely suspend its season due to a player testing positive for the coronavirus,” the statement read. “The NHL is continuing to consult with medical experts and is evaluating the options. We expect to have a further update [Thursday].”

A similar statement was released by the NHL Players’ Association, adding that it is in constant contact with the league and that “these discussions will continue [Thursday] morning, and we will consult with players before commenting further.”

The Sharks had already been forced to say no more fans for their home games in San Jose per a decree from Santa Clara County, and the governor of Ohio put a stop to fans at Blue Jackets games by eliminating large gatherings.

It’s plausible that the NHL — a league with a financial system predicated on gate receipts more than any other — would eliminate fans at any future games. But in that instance, the league might find it just as reasonable to follow the lead of the NBA and suspend the season indefinitely.

“We’ll play in front of zero fans or 20,000 fans,” Quinn said, “depending on what happens.”

What happened in this one was that the Rangers (37-28-5) contested a playoff-like game against the hobbled Avalanche (42-20-8), without injured star Nathan MacKinnon. The action was back and forth, and Buchnevich sent it to overtime with a redirection of an Artemi Panarin centering feed while goalie Alex Georgiev was on the bench for the extra attacker.

But in OT Compher’s tip of a Cale Makar shot snuck over Georgiev’s shoulder for the winner.

Alexandar Georgiev gives up a goal in overtime to the Avalanche.AP

Quinn went to Georgiev in nets for this one after presumptive No. 1 Igor Shesterkin had started the previous two in his return from a broken rib suffered in a Feb. 23 car accident. Georgiev then had to stop a Matt Nieto penalty shot 4:43 into the third period to keep his team down, 2-1.

But the Rangers struggled to beat Georgiev’s counterpart, Pavel Francouz, who was outstanding throughout and made a handful of great saves including one on a semi-breakaway from Kaapo Kakko with 10 minutes left in regulation and a shorthanded breakaway on the hottest player in the league, Mika Zibanejad, with 2:20 left.

It was all contested after the news of the NBA’s decision had come just before puck drop, and it was still reverberating when Zibanejad continued his torrid play with his 41st goal of the season at 6:28 of the first period, giving his team a 1-0 lead. But less than six minutes later, the Rangers then gave up a power-play goal to Tyson Jost to tie it, 1-1.

They gave up another on a Colorado man-advantage at 3:55 of the second, when former Ranger Vlad Namestnikov got his 17th of the season when he beat a screened Georgiev to make it 2-1.

That was the deficit the Rangers took into the third period, with still the bigger issue of the fate of the remaining NHL season still hanging in the balance.

“Obviously it’s a hot topic for all of society. But from where we sit, there’s nothing we can do about it,” Quinn had said. “So I don’t really spend too much time on it. I follow it for health reasons, but that’s about it.”

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/rangers-steal-point-but-lose-in-ot-to-avalanche/

Our Guide To The NFL’s Conference Championships

The dust is still clearing from a divisional-round weekend that gave us mostly chalk but also one massive upset. The Baltimore Ravens had been our favorite to win the Super Bowl — and pretty heavy ones at that — but Derrick Henry and Tennessee had different plans. Now, the Titans face our new favorites, the Kansas City Chiefs, in the AFC title game, while the San Francisco 49ers host the Green Bay Packers on the NFC side. Looking ahead, we’ve broken down the matchups using our Elo ratings — which track each team’s form, with adjustments for each starting quarterback — and also identified the phases of the game in which each team was best (and worst) according to ESPN’s expected points added (EPA) during the regular season. This week’s spreads aren’t sizable enough to generate any historic upsets, but the upside is that we should see a more balanced set of matchups here on the cusp of the Super Bowl.

Tale of the tape: Kansas City vs. Tennessee

3:05 p.m. ET Sunday

Kansas City Category Tennessee 13-4 Record 11-7 5th Schedule strength 2nd 1723 Elo rating 1661 2nd League rank 4th Patrick Mahomes Starting QB Ryan Tannehill 2nd QB Elo rank 12th 4th QB’s supporting cast 2nd 5th Avg. QB Elo defense 16th Pass offense Biggest EPA strength Run offense Run defense Biggest EPA weakness Special teams 69.4% 538 forecast 30.6%

Source: ESPN Stats & Information Group

After a pair of stunning upsets over the defending champs (New England) and the AFC’s No. 1 seed (Baltimore), what does Tennessee have in store next? Certainly the Titans are underdogs again, on the road at Arrowhead Stadium against the Chiefs. But Elo has also learned its lesson about them — to a degree — and has boosted Tennessee’s rating by a whopping 81 points since the start of the playoffs. Still, the Titans have their work cut out for them against a vastly superior (on paper) passing attack directed by reigning league MVP Patrick Mahomes. In leading Kansas City on a furious comeback from down 24-0 against the Texans, Mahomes posted a sky-high 97.9 Total QB Rating from the second quarter onward, so he may not prove as easy for Tennessee’s defense to stymie as Lamar Jackson was. The good news for the Titans, however, is that their offensive strength — the mighty power running of Henry and Co. — ranks fourth in schedule-adjusted EPA per game this season, corresponding well to Kansas City’s weakness in defending the run (29th in rushing defense). The ingredients are there for Henry to have another big day, perhaps similar to the 188 yards he produced against K.C. in a Week 10 Tennessee victory. The only question is whether it will be enough to match the Chiefs’ own firepower again — an unlikely proposition, though not that unlikely. Elo’s spread: Kansas City -5½

Tale of the tape: San Francisco vs. Green Bay

6:40 p.m. ET Sunday

San Francisco Category Green Bay 14-3 Record 14-3 11th Schedule strength 18th 1655 Elo rating 1635 5th League rank 6th Jimmy Garoppolo Starting QB Aaron Rodgers 22nd QB Elo rank 13th 1st QB’s supporting cast 3rd 6th Avg. QB Elo defense 4th Pass defense Biggest EPA strength Run offense Special teams Biggest EPA weakness Run defense 63.9% 538 forecast 36.1%

Source: ESPN Stats & Information Group

The most iconic playoff battle between these two teams happened back in 1999, when San Francisco’s Steve Young hit Terrell Owens for a 25-yard, game-winning TD to defeat Brett Favre and the Packers. The QBs in this year’s edition — SF’s Jimmy Garropolo (-18 QB Elo vs. average) and GB’s Aaron Rodgers (+12) — aren’t quite at the top of their games the way Young (+122) and Favre (+61) were back then, but they are assisted by two of the best supporting casts in the league, including a pair of strong pass defenses. In theory, that makes these teams pretty evenly matched: Even the biggest disparities on one side of the ball (such as Green Bay’s superior running game) are matched on the other side (e.g., San Francisco’s run defense is better). One thing the 49ers can point to is their 37-8 demolition of the Packers at home in Week 12, when Garropolo outplayed Rodgers and San Francisco outgained Green Bay 339 to 198. But even in that department, there’s some evidence that the team that was blown out in the regular season gains more information for the rematch than the team that dominated. Will that — and plain old regression to the mean — be enough to keep Green Bay more competitive this time around? Probably, though the 49ers are still clear favorites here. Elo’s spread: San Francisco -4

FiveThirtyEight vs. the Readers

As a weekly tradition here at FiveThirtyEight, we look at how our Elo model did against everybody who made picks in our forecasting game. (If you entered, you can find yourself on our leaderboard here.) These are the games in which Elo made its best — and worst — predictions against the field last week:

Elo’s dumbest (and smartest) picks of the divisional round

Average difference between points won by readers and by Elo in Week 19 matchups in FiveThirtyEight’s NFL prediction game

OUR PREDICTION (ELO) READERS’ PREDICTION PICK WIN PROB. PICK WIN PROB. Result READERS’ NET PTS BAL 87% BAL 84% TEN 28, BAL 12 +5.8

–

SF 67 SF 68 SF 27, MIN 10 -6.5

–

KC 83 KC 80 KC 51, HOU 31 -8.3

–

GB 74 GB 57 GB 28, SEA 23 -34.5

–

Home teams are in bold.

The scoring system is nonlinear, so readers’ average points don’t necessarily match the number of points that would be given to the average reader prediction.

A week ago, Elo made a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad pick when it took the Eagles over the Seahawks with 69 percent confidence. This time around, the model whiffed on the Ravens, giving them an 87 percent win probability … but so did basically everyone else. Elo lost only 5.8 points to the field on that pick, which it made up for by gaining 49.3 points over the average reader in the other three games — including a massive 34.5-point gain for picking Green Bay over Seattle. (Elo had been suspicious of the Seahawks for a long time.) As a result, Elo was back to its winning ways for the week, beating the field by 43.5 points on average.

Despite that, some readers did well. Congratulations to Andrew Lindstrom, who leads all (identified) readers in the postseason with 200.0 points, and Jan Hájek, who pulled into first place in the full-season contest with 1,061.3 points. Thanks to everyone who played — and if you haven’t, be sure to get in on the action! You can make picks now and try your luck against Elo in the playoffs, even if you missed Week 19.

Check out our latest NFL predictions.

source https://truesportsfan.com/football/our-guide-to-the-nfls-conference-championships/

Richard Sherman Is Elite, But Is He The Best Pass Defender?

Richard Sherman wants to be loved. Or perhaps just more loved.

After all, in a comeback season at age 31, on the heels of a seemingly career-ending Achilles tear in 2017, the San Francisco 49ers cornerback was named to the Pro Bowl for the fifth time and as a second-team All-Pro, a more exclusive honor. (He’s been first-team All-Pro three times, including one year, 2012, when he did not receive Pro Bowl honors.) In December, Sherman received an early Christmas present when Pro Football Focus (PFF), a leading source for NFL player evaluation, named him the best cornerback of the decade.

In Saturday’s divisional-round win against the Minnesota Vikings, he made a key interception while blanketing Minnesota’s Adam Thielen. For the game, he gave up one catch for 9 yards and was thrown at by Kirk Cousins just three times.

Sherman was a fifth-round draft pick (not even the first Sherman drafted in Round 5) and still takes issue with how scouts assessed his ability back in 2011. And he’s not happy about being cut by the Seahawks while recovering from his injury. So it was hardly surprising that after the win over the Vikings, he challenged the press to give him his proper due:

“Since I got in the league, in every category that matters to a corner, I’m No. 1 in: completion percentage, interceptions, touchdowns against, yards … passer rating. If that was any other corner, it wouldn’t even be a conversation. But I just get tired of it. In the playoffs, I played in 13 games now, zero touchdowns given up, three interceptions. Like, show me somebody else doing it like that. Then I’ll enjoy the argument. But there isn’t one.”

Sherman does his homework on Richard Sherman: Just three days earlier, he had retweeted the stats showing that he’s had more than twice as many picks in his career (37) than TDs allowed (17). And he’s had more picks than TDs allowed in six of his nine seasons.

But measuring defense in the NFL is hard. This is especially true of pass coverage: When it’s good, the quarterback typically throws the ball somewhere else. But a new metric reported on at FiveThirtyEight last week holds promise for identifying the best players in coverage beyond the raw targeting stats, separating man from zone coverage and using Next Gen Stats data from the NFL.

And what all that gives us is a tale of two Shermans. First, there’s the old-school targeting data, which accounts for when the defender, Sherman, is closest to the receiver when the ball arrives. This season, quarterbacks have targeted receivers closest to Sherman 51 times, and Sherman has allowed just 27 catches for 227 yards and a touchdown. That’s 4.45 yards per target and an opposing passer rating of 46.8.

These are elite stats. The leaguewide passer rating this year was 90.4, so QBs were about half as efficient on average throwing at Sherman than they were overall. And quarterbacks averaged 8.2 yards per pass attempt to a wide receiver in 2019 compared with the 4.45 they gained throwing at Sherman. It’s stats like these that helped make Sherman PFF’s No. 1 coverage corner in 2019.

But the newer metrics are not as kind.

By this metric, Richard Sherman is good … not great

Richard Sherman’s stats and league ranks using player-tracking data from Next Gen Stats, 2019 regular season

Man coverage Sherman Rank Opponent Reception Plus/Minus +0.53 19th Opponent Reception Percentage Plus 104.8 15th Zone coverage Sherman Rank Opponent Reception Plus/Minus -0.96 45th Opponent Reception Percentage Plus 94.6 43rd

Source: ESPN STATS & INFORMATION GROUP

ESPN Stats & Information Group uses Next Gen Stats player-tracking data to track how many incompletions a defender forced above or below expected in the new metric Opponent Receptions Plus/Minus. That stat is centered on an average of 100, with numbers above 100 indicating more incompletions forced than expected. Sherman is still strong by this approach — but not near league-best.

Do offenses avoid targeting Sherman? You be the judge. Michael Chiang tracked the frequency of targets by opposing quarterbacks against the 49ers for the entire regular season, with dark red representing the areas most targeted by opposing passes and dark blue representing the least. Sherman plays almost exclusively left cornerback, meaning the right side from the quarterback’s perspective.

Sherman’s side of the field does appear to see fewer passes over a larger area than the other side, which is usually covered by Ahkello Witherspoon (who was benched last week). But overall, opposing quarterbacks tend to attack the middle of the Niner defense.

It’s hard to assess Sherman — partly because he’s not always going up against the best wide receivers. He generally lines up on the same side of the defense no matter where the team’s top opposing wide receiver happens to be. And he’s been criticized for this by fellow players, including by arguably the greatest cover cornerback ever, Deion Sanders.

This could end up being a problem on Sunday in the NFC championship game. Green Bay’s top receiver by far, Davante Adams, is coming off a franchise record-setting 160-yard receiving postseason game. But he caught both touchdowns (and 71 of his yards) on the side of the field that Sherman doesn’t cover. So it’s possible that Aaron Rodgers could pepper Adams with targets all game by just keeping him lined up away from Sherman. This would deprive fans of seeing an epic receiver vs. corner matchup and, perhaps, keep the 49ers from reaching the Super Bowl.

Check out our latest NFL predictions.

source https://truesportsfan.com/football/richard-sherman-is-elite-but-is-he-the-best-pass-defender/

Sure, The NFL Playoffs Seem Chaotic … But They’re Actually Pretty Predictable

The Tennessee Titans’ run from the sixth seed to the AFC championship game is a Cinderella tale amid an NFL postseason full of great stories. Even after the Minnesota Vikings upset the New Orleans Saints in the Superdome, and the Houston Texans racked up (and then blew) a 24-0 lead over the Kansas City Chiefs, the Titans beating the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens on the road on consecutive weeks still stands out.

This isn’t supposed to be unusual in the league of parity, where the sixth-seed 2005 Pittsburgh Steelers kicked off an era of wild-card teams winning it all. The 2007 New York Giants, a five-seed, met the 18-0 New England Patriots in the Super Bowl and beat them. The 2010 Green Bay Packers won it all as a sixth seed, too. In 2011, the Giants won another Super Bowl ring after sneaking into the playoffs at 9-7 as the champion of a weak NFC East.

It’s no wonder fans and analysts frequently complain about the NFL’s playoff format, insisting that it’s too easy for weak teams to get in and too hard for the regular season’s best teams to capitalize on their seasonlong performance. Amid reports that the league is looking to add a playoff game on each side of the bracket and some in the players union are trying to change the seeding, it seems like a solution to this problem is coming.

The only problem? There’s no problem.

In fact, the NFL playoffs are a chalk factory. Since at least 2010, no other major U.S. professional sport has put its best teams in the semifinals more frequently than the NFL. The NFL and NBA averaged three top-two seeds in the conference finals per season, while MLB averaged two, and the NHL averaged 1.3.

In eight of the past 10 NFL seasons, at least three of each year’s four conference finalists have had a first-round bye. In fact, no season has had fewer than two top-two seeds in the final four. Overall, 30 of the 40 title-game participants have been either No. 1 or No. 2 seeds. Since the 2013 season, every Super Bowl winner has been a top-two seed — and all but one have been their conference’s No. 1.

The NBA is just as good at putting its best teams in position to win a ring; over the same period, it has averaged 3 top-two seeds in its final fours. Of course, every round of the NBA playoffs is a best-of series instead of a single-elimination game — and, as Michael Mauboussin found, NBA basketball results are driven more by skill than any other major U.S. sport. Luck plays a much bigger role in baseball and hockey, so it’s no wonder that MLB and the NHL don’t put top seeds in the semifinals nearly as often.

But wait — we know NFL results are significantly luck-driven, too, and single-elimination games give underdogs a better chance to win than a multiple-trial series. How does the NFL put its regular-season champs in position to win conference and league titles as frequently as the NBA?

Credit the NFL playoff structure. When the season’s winningest teams have to win just one home game to make the conference finals, they’re going to do so more often than not. Of course, when luck is a significant factor in wins and losses, the winningest teams aren’t necessarily the best ones. FiveThirtyEight’s Elo rankings still regard the Ravens and Saints as the strongest and third-strongest teams. The Ravens, Saints and Patriots also finished first, third and fourth in Football Outsiders’ DVOA.

But the reason we have playoffs is to put the winners against the winners and see who wins — and the NFL’s format does that more effectively than anyone gives it credit for.

Check out our latest NFL predictions.

CORRECTION (Jan. 16, 2020, 5:28 p.m.): A previous version of this article incorrectly identified the league that averaged two top-two seeds in its conference finals from 2010 through 2019. It was MLB, not the NBA.

source https://truesportsfan.com/football/sure-the-nfl-playoffs-seem-chaotic-but-theyre-actually-pretty-predictable/

How The Chiefs And Niners Became The Last NFL Teams Standing

sara.ziegler (Sara Ziegler, sports editor): And just like that, we’ve got ourselves a Super Bowl.

It would have been hard for the conference championship games to match the chaos of the first two rounds of playoff action — though about 10 minutes into the Kansas City-Tennessee game, I thought the Titans might actually take out the No. 2 seed (along with the Nos. 1 and 3 they had already dispatched). But Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs rallied again. What stood out to you guys about that game?

Salfino (Michael Salfino, FiveThirtyEight contributor): That the Titans, stealing a line from “The Untouchables,” brought a knife to a gun fight.

joshua.hermsmeyer (Josh Hermsmeyer, NFL analyst): That Derrick Henry is basically just a guy, and that Mahomes is not just a guy.

neil (Neil Paine, senior sportswriter): Too much K.C. offense, too much Mahomes.

Salfino: Mahomes now has 11 TDs and 0 picks in the postseason. He has the highest QB rating in postseason history since the merger.

joshua.hermsmeyer: Two moments stood out to me in particular:

One was the Titans’ last drive right before the half. They needed to run clock, and it was Henry time. They got predictable and had to give the ball back to Mahomes before the half (he scored), and then K.C. got the ball again after halftime.

The other was the third-and-1 where holding was called, and Henry still got stuffed.

neil: In general, the Chiefs were able to slow down the Titan running game like no team really has recently. Tennessee’s rushing expected points added in the game was -0.1 compared with average. That stopped a streak of nine straight games where they had been positive, and often significantly so.

Salfino: When it came to stopping Henry, the Chiefs, who allowed 4.9 yards per rush during the regular season, just threw numbers at the problem. Remember, a team with a top QB like the Chiefs should be built to stop the pass, not the run. They don’t care about stopping the run because they are generally playing ahead. But Sunday, the Chiefs did. They committed to it.

You can do that against the run and it works. You can’t really throw numbers at the problem of stopping the QB.

neil: Of course, K.C. did do some Andy Reid-ish things late in the game to try to let the Titans back into it…

sara.ziegler: Clock management just shouldn’t be so hard.

neil: Mahomes is so good that bad clock management can’t thwart his Super Bowl aspirations.

Salfino: Mahomes bailed Reid out of horrible clock management with 20 seconds to go in the half by running in that TD.

That was classic Reid.

neil: And then late in the game they just refused to either: a) force Tennessee to stay in bounds to run clock, or b) not stop the clock when they had the ball.

sara.ziegler: I get that teams built to pass sometimes keep passing in end-of-game situations just because it’s what they do best. But man, they really kept stopping the clock!

neil: Luckily they got that defensive pass interference call!

Salfino: I thought the game was over as soon as the Chiefs went up double digits. Everything after that was garbage time.

neil: Certainly that took the Titans away from their run-heavy focus and made Ryan Tannehill more than a caretaker.

sara.ziegler: What did you guys think of how Tannehill played?

joshua.hermsmeyer: I thought he played well. They went back to their strength, the play-action (0.41 EPA per play-action pass play), and he kept them in the game at the very least.

Salfino: Tannehill was OK. Not as good as his rating. He could not make a play to stop the Chiefs momentum.

neil: He did his best — and man did he take some licks at times.

sara.ziegler:

neil:

sara.ziegler: That was maybe my favorite moment of the game, tbh.

joshua.hermsmeyer: Momentum is a hard thing to stop, considering it’s impossible to measure or define.

I thought Tannehill’s QBR of 74 accurately reflected his play. And his QBR of 86 on play-action passes was very good.

Salfino: It’s interesting with Tannehill and the Titans. We reflexively say after a run like the Titans had, “They’ll be back.” No, they won’t.

Tannehill is a free agent — I’m fairly certain he’ll be back, but do you give him a long-term deal at franchise money or just franchise him for $30 million (or whatever) in 2020? I opt for the latter. That’s almost a guarantee you don’t have Tannehill in 2021 though.

sara.ziegler: So was this just lightning in a bottle for them, Mike?

Salfino: The Titans have two football freaks on offense in Henry and A.J. Brown who have really no other physical comparables. But the defense is bad. They don’t have a high draft pick. They have no long-term plan that I can see at QB unless you believe Tannehill is good. (I do not.) And their approach to football is antediluvian.

neil: “Antediluvian”!

LOL

joshua.hermsmeyer: The pre-flood games were lit.

neil: Noah was BIG on smash-mouth football.

Salfino: I learned that word from Josh.

When he’s flaming the “run to win” Twitter trolls.

neil: To be fair, there was one team that Ran to Win on Sunday … but I am sure we will get to the Niners soon enough.

Salfino: Do you guys think that Mahomes would have been great no matter where he landed, or that he landed in the perfect place (or both)?

joshua.hermsmeyer: I think he landed in a good spot, but there’s no denying that he’s a special talent.

But my take is that every QB, if he’s any good, is a system QB.

Salfino: I just have a hard time assessing true skill level in football as opposed to baseball, which is so pure in this regard. It’s more tools in football, I guess. Mahomes sure has them.

sara.ziegler: A little website I like to follow told me that Mahomes had a pretty ideal situation to start out in.

joshua.hermsmeyer: That guy Neil seems to know his stuff. Sharp fellow.

neil: LOL

I think it’s fair to say he has exceeded expectations, though, even given his coaching and supporting cast.

sara.ziegler: I’m pretty sure Mahomes’s path to greatness all started with his early experience around the Minnesota Twins clubhouse:

neil: Yesssss

Or his Little League World Series experience (hat-tip to designer Emily Scherer for this find):

Salfino: Um…

neil: This is how good Mahomes is. Not even the Mets’ curse can stop him.

sara.ziegler: LOL

So let’s move on to the NFC game … which was decidedly less exciting.

neil: Pretty exciting for San Francisco fans, at least.

sara.ziegler: Well, sure.

neil: And Aaron Rodgers haters.

sara.ziegler: And Packer haters.

neil: LOL, jinx.

Salfino: The 1972 Dolphins are always so touchy about their place in history and about people remembering them. But this is really the postseason of the 1972 Dolphins. Or that era’s Dolphins teams. The Titans started it, and then the people who want that style of football just latched on to the Niners. San Francisco had the third-fewest passing attempts (eight) in a postseason game since the merger. Miami had the others. Note that all but one team with fewer than 15 attempts won their games. (Just don’t throw the ball, and you’ll win!)

sara.ziegler: Jimmy Garoppolo with just six completions was definitely my favorite stat of the day.

neil: And Raheem Mostert had the second-most rushing yards by anybody in a playoff game ever!

So much history (that Green Bay was on the receiving end of).

Salfino: You need to find a back who can run to the Super Bowl either at the top of the draft or on the punt coverage team after he’s been cut a half-dozen times. Take your pick.

neil:

joshua.hermsmeyer: I had no dog in the fight, but the game was an object lesson in the old football saw that you have to stop the run to win. Mostert averaged 10 yards per carry on his first 19 attempts. That’s far too many long run plays. It looked like high school ball out there.

neil: The Packer run defense had zero answers for it.

Salfino: I don’t remember a team running that often and that easily ever. There was almost no resistance. I guess we have to credit the Niners’ scheme and blocking.

sara.ziegler: I’m a little confused about how that happened, though. The Packers were bad against the run during the regular season, but not the worst in the league, by any means. Football Outsiders had their run defense at 23rd in Defense-adjusted Value Over Average.

Salfino: Kyle Shanahan is a chip off the old block — Mike Shanahan was finding running backs in the recycling bin with the Broncos and turning them into All-Pros, even after Terrell Davis (a sixth-round pick who also made his bones on special teams).

Someone told me once that defense doesn’t matter. Offense controls outcomes.

joshua.hermsmeyer: The why is always hard without a lot of tape study. But it sure seemed like Shanahan saw a structural flaw in the Green Bay defense and exploited it again and again.

Salfino: How many times have the Packers faced a fullback and a tight end who can block like George Kittle? This is what is tricky about defensive stats, seriously.

neil: And it bears mentioning that the Packers are sort of built this way deliberately. No team spent a higher share of the cap on offense this year, and it’s not even close.

A lot of that is tied up in Rodgers’s massive contract as well. But Rodgers and the offense couldn’t really get rolling at all when the game was still in reach.

(The many turnovers didn’t help.)

sara.ziegler: That has to worry Packer fans long-term. We’ve talked about Rodgers’s “eliteness,” but is he kind of done?

Salfino: Rodgers gave hope to the people who still believe in the greatness — which has objectively faded since 2014 — with a bunch of garbage-time numbers.

neil: Well, he did statistically outplay Jimmy G in the raw numbers, LOL.

(Obviously those numbers are very misleading for the reason you said, Mike.)

joshua.hermsmeyer: Rodgers was average all season long. I think he’s a player you can win with, and might still have sparks of greatness left. Think late-career John Elway as the very top range of outcomes, if the entire team is reshaped around a different philosophy.

Like, imagine Rodgers in a system that asked him to make the throws Tannehill was asked to make this season.

Salfino: I will say it again: Rodgers has ironically turned into Alex Smith, his lifetime nemesis from back in the 2005 draft.

sara.ziegler: Can I just rant for a second about that dumb narrative about Rodgers seeking revenge on the Niners for not taking him No. 1? It’s not like every other team was lining up to take him as their first pick either. He fell to No. 24, for Pete’s sake!

neil: Also, it was 15 years ago. Get over it already.

sara.ziegler: ^^^ THIS

Salfino: The Niners always kick Rodgers’s ass in the postseason, too.

neil: By running the ball down the Packers’ throats, usually.

ESPN’s Stats & Information Group had a stat where San Francisco has averaged 258.3 rushing yards and three rushing TDs per game in three playoff wins vs. Rodgers.

Salfino: Well, there was that Colin Kaepernick game where he ran for about 1,000 and threw for 1,000.

neil: Right.

joshua.hermsmeyer: Coming back to more recent history, I have another thought on the Niners game: It was smart of the 49ers to hide Jimmy G. I think they should continue to do so in the Super Bowl, if they can.

Salfino: But they won’t be able to, Josh. I’m sure you agree.

Mahomes doesn’t let you run to win.

joshua.hermsmeyer: Yes, they won’t. And I think it’s why K.C. will win, and probably pretty easily.

neil: This is low-key one of the biggest QB mismatches in Super Bowl history.

Salfino: I think the spread should be 5. It was 2.5. Now it’s 1.5. All the retired head coach money coming in on the Niners.

neil: (We say K.C. -3.5, for what it’s worth.)

joshua.hermsmeyer: Richard Sherman is not going to be able to run with Tyreek Hill.

Salfino: Darrelle Revis doesn’t think so. Tyreek is going to have a huge game — 200 yards, I predict. He’s going to break the way the Niners prefer to play defense. Or Travis Kelce will have about 150. Pick your poison.

joshua.hermsmeyer: Right, if you go to a zone scheme with safety help for Sherman, then Kelce could be a big problem underneath.

sara.ziegler: Will the Niner pass rush affect Mahomes? He had all day long to throw on Sunday — I can’t imagine that will continue against Nick Bosa and Co.

Salfino: Mahomes’s sack rate is the most underrated thing about his game. It was 3.4 percent this year and down from 2018. It’s 2.8 percent for this postseason. Yes, the Niners have the best rush the Chiefs will have faced, but Mahomes won’t be getting sacked 10 percent of the time or so, which would swing this game to the Niners, IMO. I’d expect 5 percent — so two or three sacks.

joshua.hermsmeyer: The Niners get above-average pressure with just their front four, so I think Mahomes will not be too comfortable. But we saw at the end of the half vs. the Titans what he’s capable of if you let him loose running as well.

Salfino: Mahomes is such a decisive runner for someone who does not run a lot. He had 53 rushing yards in each of the past two games, and he has only exceeded that number twice in his career in the regular season.

sara.ziegler: What other matchups in the Super Bowl are you guys excited to see?

neil: I will say that K.C.’s run defense is suspect, even after they performed a lot better against Tennessee. That might play into San Francisco’s strengths some.

The Chiefs ranked 29th in rushing defense DVOA this season.

Salfino: The 49ers could hurt the Chiefs in the passing game if they cross them up by being more aggressive and designing their game plan to score 30 points, which I think is essential for them to win. If they think they are going to ride their defense and running game to victory, they are sadly mistaken. I’m assuming Shanahan is too smart to think that, though.

joshua.hermsmeyer: Early on, the Niners offensive line vs. the Chiefs run defense should be telling. San Francisco will need that to be another home run, much like the Green Bay game.

Salfino: But Neil, don’t you discount their season ranking given how they just shut down Henry, who was supposedly unstoppable? I just believe that if you want to stop the run badly enough, you can.

neil: So will the key to the Super Bowl be whether Garoppolo is better than Tannehill???

joshua.hermsmeyer: I think that’s the question!

neil: (Um … is he?)

(LOL)

Salfino: I think Garoppolo is better than Tannehill, but I have very low confidence in the accuracy of that opinion.

Deebo Samuel and George Kittle are very serious weapons, though. I think the Niners forgot Manny Sanders was on the team yesterday. But he’s fine.

sara.ziegler: When Kittle was on the stage at the end, holding the trophy, I was like, “Oh, yeah — him!”

LOL

Salfino: Kittle did have 17 targets in the loss to Atlanta. That seems impossible now. Both the targets and the losing to Atlanta.

sara.ziegler:

joshua.hermsmeyer:

sara.ziegler: Oh, no.

joshua.hermsmeyer: Kittle is all that’s good and wonderful about football.

sara.ziegler: So let’s wrap up our final Slack chat of the season (not including our live blog the night of the Super Bowl) with our predictions.

Are you three all taking the Chiefs???

joshua.hermsmeyer: Yes!

Salfino: Chiefs 34, Niners 17.

joshua.hermsmeyer: Wow, even a score.

sara.ziegler: You think the Niners are going to give up roughly the same number of points as the Titans, but score less?

Salfino: I’m 5-5 in the playoffs now! Feeling it!

neil: I’m gonna be a little more conservative than Mike. Chiefs 24, Niners 21.

joshua.hermsmeyer: 28-13

sara.ziegler: Neil stays true to the model, to the very end.

Salfino: Hahaha

neil: Ehhhh, my O/U of 45 now feels a bit low. Can I make it 27-24? LOL

sara.ziegler: Nope

neil: Awww

sara.ziegler: OK, fine.

Salfino: 27.5-24.

neil: Ooooh

I like how somebody on the FOX pregame picked a half-point margin. I think it was Howie.

They were like, YOU CAN’T DO THAT!

Salfino: I think this game is going to be very tribal. There is a football philosophy on the line for the old-school types. So I bet that, as was the case with the Titans, ex-players and coaches will pick the Niners in the game.

sara.ziegler: All right, I can’t let us all have the same picks.

So I have to take the Niners.

neil: It helps that you also took them in our Hot Takedown Super Bowl Draft episode! (Many, many weeks ago!)

sara.ziegler: Very true — gotta stick with my teams to the bitter end.

joshua.hermsmeyer: Nice work!

sara.ziegler: 49ers 29, Chiefs 28.

Salfino: Niners win on a 2-point conversion in the final seconds.

neil: Running it in, naturally.

sara.ziegler: But really, I just want a good game. We deserve a good game for the Super Bowl.

I’m like Rob Lowe out here, just rooting for everyone:

neil: “Go League! Protect the Shield! Wooo!”

Check out our latest NFL predictions.

source https://truesportsfan.com/football/how-the-chiefs-and-niners-became-the-last-nfl-teams-standing/

Giants target Kyle Van Noy sends ‘priority’ warning to Patriots in free agency

Free agent linebacker Kyle Van Noy says he wants to be a priority for a team in free agency, and the Giants could make him one.

Van Noy, 28, is one of several impending free agents in New England getting overshadowed by NFL headliner Tom Brady. As the Patriots are likely to prioritize their four-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback, Van Noy doesn’t see himself waiting around for much longer.

“It is interesting, but I’m going to be honest, I want to be a priority for a team and I feel I have to go where someone is going to make me a priority,” Van Noy told NFL.com this week. “I’m sure New England knows that. If that opportunity comes, it comes.

“I’ll be frank, I don’t see myself waiting around. I’m pretty sure those guys aren’t going to wait around either. They’re really good at their craft. They’re at the top of the league at their position, so it’ll be interesting.”

Van Noy, who is a free agent for the first time in his career, said he has yet to have any discussions with New England about a new deal, adding that he’s “sure they’re waiting for Tom.” So it would appear that Van Noy will be negotiating with other teams.

Kyle Van NoyGetty Images

With the recent hiring of head coach Joe Judge and defensive coordinator Patrick Graham, both of whom have New England roots, the Giants have some familiar faces for Van Noy to reunite with. The Giants also will be looking to add playmakers at linebacker after cutting Alec Ogletree and Kareem Martin from the position this offseason.

Serving as a signal-caller for the Patriots, Van Noy has proven to be a versatile player that can easily acclimate to Graham’s system. After the Lions traded him to New England in October 2016, Van Noy played many roles for New England.

“That’s been the main topic for me: What’s your position?” Van Noy said. “But like I tell everybody, ‘How good of a football player do you want? Someone who can do it all?’ I don’t want a position.

“I kind of view myself in the Tyrann Mathieu mold. Obviously, we play different positions, but he’s a football player. I view myself the same way. I can play on the ball, off the ball, I can drop into coverage, I can rush the passer, I can do every single thing you want.”

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/giants-target-kyle-van-noy-sends-priority-warning-to-patriots-in-free-agency/

March Madness 2020 could change Final Four venue amid coronavirus crisis

The drastic changes to March Madness 2020 may have just begun.

The AP reports that NCAA president Mark Emmert is considering switching the site of the men’s Final Four and regional sites, which includes Madison Square Garden, to smaller venues within the same cities.

Currently, the Final Four is scheduled to be played at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which is the home of the NFL’s Falcons. The other regional sites are Indianapolis, Los Angeles and Houston.

The NCAA announced earlier on Wednesday that fans would be kept out of the men’s and women’s NCAA Tournaments. The men’s tournament starts on Tuesday with the First Four in Dayton. The first-round sites for the Big Dance — Albany, St. Louis, Spokane, Tampa, Cleveland, Greensboro, Omaha and Sacramento — are expected to remain the same.

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/march-madness-2020-could-change-final-four-venue-amid-coronavirus-crisis/

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