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Patriots Prep for Chilly KC

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FOXBOROUGH – In 2014, the last time the Patriots traveled to Kansas City, apoplectic reaction went to parts unknown: speculation whether Tom Brady was finished and if his Lombardi-hoarding coach had lost his touch.

Two Super Bowl victories later, New England is again on rarely traveled ground, packing for another AFC Championship game as the underdog at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday.

“They’re a well balanced, disciplined team. We’ll need our best game,” Belichick said Wednesday in Foxborough, Mass.

The Patriots need one win for their ninth Super Bowl appearance since 2000. Sunday will mark the eighth consecutive year New England has reached the conference title game. No other team has appeared in more than five in a row.

“I love to play in a championship game,” Belichick said, shrugging off a question about preparing for game time temperatures forecast to be at or below freezing. “Schedule it wherever you want. We’ll be there.”

The most recent forecast calls for a daytime temperature of 19 degrees.

Belichick has won a championship at the expense of Chiefs head coach Andy Reid. New England won Super Bowl XXXIX over the Eagles, with Reid as Philadelphia’s coach, following the 2004 season. The Patriots have 18 takeaways in eight games and a 6-2 record when Belichick opposes Reid.Overall, Reid is 1-4 in championship games. Kansas City hasn’t won the Super Bowl since 1970.

For all the playoff experience Brady and Belichick boast, not often has New England been asked to go on the road to earn a Super Bowl ticket. New England is 3-4 in postseason road games featuring Brady behind center.

“We’re going to have to stop the whole offense, not just one player,” Belichick said. “We’re going to have to play good team defense.”

Belichick is 8-4 in championship games and has 29 postseason wins as a head coach.Kansas City was first in the NFL at 35.3 points per game in 2018. New England was fourth at 27.2.

Recent games have been shootouts. The Chiefs beat the Patriots 42-27 to open the 2017 season, and New England knocked off K.C. in October of the just-completed season, 43-40.

“They have a great offense, they have a great set of players,” Belichick said. “Andy does a great job of forcing you to make choices, and spreading the ball around based on those choices. … They lead the league in everything.”

As for any lasting memories of the bloody Monday night in 2014 – a 41-14 loss in which New England trailed 27-0 and 41-7 – the Patriots are employing their usual short-term memory.This week, they’re on to Kansas City.

–Field Level Media

It’s On to Kansas City

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New England Patriots 41, L.A. Chargers 28

When: 1:05 PM ET, Sunday, January 13, 2019
Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough
Attendance: 65,878
By Field Level Media

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FOXBOROUGH – Scoring touchdowns on their first four possessions Sunday, the New England Patriots established a 35-7 halftime lead and cruised to a 41-28 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in an AFC divisional-round game at Gillette Stadium.

The result sends New England (12-5) to Kansas City next Sunday to play for the AFC title and a trip to the Super Bowl on Feb. 3. The conference championship at Arrowhead, a rematch of a 43-40 Patriots win in Week 6 in Foxborough, is scheduled to kick off at 6:40 p.m. ET.

Sunday’s win also gave the Patriots a perfect 9-0 home record this season and put them in the conference championship game for eighth consecutive season, extending an NFL record.

Los Angeles finished its season with a 13-5 record, after recording its first playoff win since January 2014 last week.

But on this day, the Chargers couldn’t come close to replicating last week’s wild-card round victory in Baltimore. The Patriots carved up Los Angeles’ defense for drives of 83, 67, 58 and 87 yards to start their day. When the Chargers finally stopped them, they fumbled the ensuing punt and the Patriots recovered, before going 35 yards for a fifth touchdown just before halftime.

Every aspect of New England’s offense did its job. Tom Brady completed 34 of 44 passes for 343 yards and a 15-yard scoring strike to Phillip Dorsett with 12:17 left in the second quarter. Rookie running back Sony Michel pounded out 129 yards on 24 carries, reaching the end zone on runs of 1, 14 and 5 yards.

Brady made liberal use of running back James White and wide receiver Julian Edelman — White caught 15 passes for 97 yards, and Edelman added nine catches for 151 yards, a franchise-record fifth 100-yard game in the playoffs.

“The line played great, and I thought we did a good job keeping them off-balance,” Brady said to CBS. “It’s that time of year where you have to play your best. We’ve got a big one next week.”

Defensively, the Patriots made the Chargers one-dimensional with their first-half explosion. Running back Melvin Gordon managed only nine carries for 15 yards and a third-quarter touchdown, forcing Philip Rivers to carry the load.

Operating under duress all day, Rivers completed only 25 of 51 passes for 331 yards and three scores with an interception. New England recorded only two sacks, but hurried and harassed the quarterback throughout the afternoon.

“This wasn’t the ending we wanted, but one game doesn’t define the type of season this team had,” Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn said.

–Field Level Media

That’s All, Foles

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New Orleans Saints 20, Philadelphia Eagles 14

When: 4:40 PM ET, Sunday, January 13, 2019
Where: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans
Attendance: 73,027
Recap for Digital Sports Desk by Field Level Media

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NEW ORLEANS – Overcoming a horrid start and a 14-point first-quarter deficit, Drew Brees threw for 301 yards and two touchdowns and lifted the New Orleans Saints to a 20-14 NFC Divisional Playoff victory over the Philadelphia Eagles Sunday at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore intercepted a Nick Foles pass — which went through the hands of Alshon Jeffery — at the New Orleans 33 with 1:52 remaining, and running back Alvin Kamara ran for 12 yards on third-and-10 to kill the clock.

The No. 1-seeded Saints (14-3) trailed 14-0 just 10:23 into the game but scored 20 unanswered points to advance to the NFC Championship Game next Sunday afternoon against the Los Angeles Rams at the Superdome.

After starting 0 for 3, including an interception on the first play of the game, Brees finished 28 of 38, with scoring passes of 2 yards each to Keith Kirkwood and Michael Thomas. Thomas set a Saints’ playoff record with 12 catches for 171 yards.

The sixth-seeded Eagles (10-8) played valiantly despite a flurry of injuries. Foles completed 18 of 31 passes for 201 yards, but Philadelphia’s offense failed over the final three quarters, amassing just 97 yards after 153 in the first.

New Orleans took its first lead of the game, 17-14, by capitalizing on a withering, 18-play, 92-yard drive that consumed 11:29 of the third quarter and netted the Saints nine first downs. Brees completed 8 of 10 passes for 80 yards on the march, on which the Saints overcame two holding penalties and a false start. One of the holding penalties, on left guard Andrus Peat, nullified a 46-yard scoring pass from Taysom Hill to Kamara.

Brees eventually got the touchdown, finding Thomas in man coverage against Cre’Von LeBlanc for a 2-yard score.

Wil Lutz extended the Saints’ lead to 20-14 with a 39-yard field goal with 10:28 left, but it was still a one-possession game.

When Lutz missed a 52-yard field-goal attempt wide right with 2:58 remaining, the Eagles had new life at their own 42, but Jeffery’s drop of Foles’ pass and Lattimore’s interception — his second of the game — sealed Philadelphia’s fate.

The Eagles dominated the first quarter, jumping out to a 14-0 lead and at one point holding a total yardage advantage of 151-0.

However, the Saints got back in the game with 10 consecutive points in the second quarter and trailed only 14-10 at halftime.

Foles completed eight of his first nine passes for 113 yards and led Philadelphia to touchdowns on its first two possessions. The first score was set up on the Saints’ first play, when Brees badly underthrew Ted Ginn Jr. on a deep route, and LeBlanc intercepted the ball at the Philadelphia 24.

Foles completed all five passes for 65 yards on the 76-yard scoring drive, including a 37-yard strike to wide receiver Jordan Matthews, who easily beat double coverage for the touchdown.

After New Orleans went three-and-out, Foles directed a 10-play, 75-yard touchdown march, setting up the score with a 30-yard back-shoulder throw on third-and-7 to Jeffery to the Saints’ 4. Foles got the 14-0 lead by stretching the ball over the goal line from 1 yard out.

But the Saints finally got rolling in the second quarter, when Brees completed 13 of 16 passes for 171 yards a touchdown. Sean Payton successfully gambled twice on fourth down on the drive — converting a fourth-and-1 on a fake-punt run by Hill and then converting the touchdown on fourth-and-goal from the 2 with Brees’ soft pass in the left corner of the end zone to Kirkwood.

Lutz brought the Saints within 14-10 with a 45-yard field just before intermission. The drive started at the New Orleans 6 with 78 seconds remaining in the half.

The NFC Championship Game is scheduled to kick off at 3:05 p.m. ET next Sunday.

–Field Level Media

NFL Playoff Scout

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Philadelphia Eagles at New Orleans Saints

When: 4:40 PM ET, Sunday, January 13, 2019
Where: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
Special to Digital Sports Desk by Gracenote

NEW ORLEANS – The lowest point in the Philadelphia Eagles’ season also provided the inspiration to turn it around. After their postseason plans were put in peril following a lopsided loss in New Orleans, the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles look to exact revenge against the host Saints on Sunday and become the first No. 6 seed to reach the conference championship since 2010. 

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“That game has helped us become the team we are today,” Philadelphia quarterback Nick Foles said of the 48-7 shellacking in Week 11. “Going through that, that’s not easy as a team to lose like that. But there was never a pointing of the finger. It actually brought us closer.” The Eagles won five of their last six games to squeeze into the playoffs, and Foles helped lead the team to its fourth straight victory overall by throwing for 266 yards and two touchdowns in a 16-15 decision at Chicago on Sunday. While Philadelphia’s advanced to the divisional round after former Eagles kicker Cody Parkey misfired on his bid for a game-winning kick, New Orleans’ starters have been well-rested for quite some time. Pro Bowl quarterback Drew Brees, who shattered his own NFL record for completion percentage in a season (74.4), finished close to that number on Nov. 18 after completing 22 of 30 passes for 363 yards with four touchdowns against the Eagles.

TV: 4:40 p.m. ET, FOX. LINE: Saints -8. O/U: 50.5

ABOUT THE EAGLES: Pro Bowl tight end Zach Ertz labeled Philadelphia’s previous visit to New Orleans as “probably the worst loss I’ve ever been a part of” while left tackle Jason Peters accused the Saints of running up the score. The Eagles barely bothered the scoreboard operator on that day, save for rookie Josh Adams’ 28-yard rushing touchdown midway into the second quarter that trimmed New Orleans’ lead to 17-7. Former Saints running back Darren Sproles could prove pivotal in the passing game on Sunday after finding the end zone three times (two receiving, one rushing) in his past six games. Alshon Jeffery, who had a team-leading six catches for 82 yards versus the Bears, has 18 receptions for 329 yards and two scores in his last three meetings with New Orleans. 

ABOUT THE SAINTS (13-3): Brees’ most trusted target this season was Michael Thomas, although the Pro Bowl wideout was “limited” to just four of his NFL-best 125 catches against Philadelphia as the quarterback established his connection with rookie Tre’Quan Smith (10 receptions, 157 yards, touchdown). New Orleans’ high-octane offense looks for another dominant performance against an Eagles’ third-worst pass defense that allowed Chicago’s Mitchell Trubisky to throw for 303 yards and Allen Robinson to collect 10 receptions, 143 yards and a score. The two-pronged backfield attack of Mark Ingram and the electric Alvin Kamara flustered Philadelphia, with the former rushing for 103 yards and two touchdowns while the latter had 71 yards to go along with a 37-yard scoring reception. Pro Bowl defensive end Cameron Jordan bids to ride the momentum of his team-leading 12 sack season into the playoffs, as he has 3.5 in four career postseason games.

EXTRA POINTS

1. New Orleans has won six consecutive postseason games at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

2. Eagles WR Golden Tate has recorded at least five catches in four of his last eight games, including in the previous contest versus the Saints.

3. New Orleans enjoyed a plus-8 turnover ratio this season while Philadelphia finished minus-6 in that department.

Ramble On

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L.A. Rams 30, Dallas Cowboys 22

When: 8:15 PM ET, Saturday, January 12, 2019
Where: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles
Attendance: 77,187
Recap for Digital Sports Desk by Field Level Media

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LOS ANGELES – C.J. Anderson rushed for 123 yards and two touchdowns, and Todd Gurley added 115 yards and a score as the Los Angeles Rams ran their way into the NFC Championship game with a 30-22 victory Saturday over the visiting Dallas Cowboys.

Quarterback Jared Goff was 15-of-28 passing for 186 yards as the Rams moved one victory from the franchise’s first Super Bowl appearance since 2001, when they lost to the New England Patriots.

The Rams will face the winner of Sunday’s Philadelphia Eagles-New Orleans Saints matchup in next weekend’s NFC title game.

“It was incredible what they did today,” Goff said of the Rams’ running backs. “We know this (Cowboys) defense, and we prepared for it well all week. What Todd and C.J. did … Todd started it and C.J. finished it off.”

Dak Prescott was 20 of 32 for 266 yards and one touchdown passing while also rushing for a score as the Cowboys lost their eighth consecutive road playoff game.

The Rams totaled 273 yards on the ground, a franchise record for a playoff game. It was the most rushing yards the Cowboys’ defense has given up in a game this season. Dallas entered with the fifth-best rushing defense in the NFL, allowing 94.6 yards per game.

“We just didn’t do a good enough job of controlling the line of scrimmage, winning our gaps and tackling,” Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said. “They were able to run consistently throughout the game. They controlled the pace and tempo of the game really because of that.”

Anderson, who was signed late in the season and played in just two regular-season games, scored on a 1-yard TD run to give the Rams a 13-7 lead with seven minutes remaining in the first half.

Gurley, who was playing in his first game since Dec. 16 against Philadelphia because of knee soreness, added a 35-yard TD run with 3:27 remaining in the opening half to give the Rams a 20-7 lead.

After a third-quarter field goal from the Rams’ Greg Zuerlein, the Cowboys cut the deficit to 23-15 on a 1-yard TD run from Ezekiel Elliott and a 2-point conversion catch from Amari Cooper.

The Cowboys started a potential game-tying drive late in the third quarter, but Elliott was stopped on fourth down from the Rams’ 35-yard line on the first play of the fourth quarter.

The Rams promptly went on a 12-play, 65-yard drive, capped by a 1-yard TD run from Anderson to take a 30-15 lead with 7:16 remaining. Prescott added the Cowboys’ final TD on a 1-yard run with 2:11 remaining.

Elliott was held to 47 yards on 20 rushes for the Cowboys.

“Even when we were in three-receiver sets they were in base, so they were committed to stopping our running game,” Garrett said. “If they’re committed to taking one thing away you have to be able to beat them in the other area, and at times we did a good job of that tonight.”

At 32, the Rams’ Sean McVay became the youngest head coach to win a playoff game, ahead of John Madden, who was 33 when he won his first playoff game with the Oakland Raiders.

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