Who should you cheer for if you're glued to the couch on Sundays instead of Saturdays? I've prepared a scientifically airtight translation guide to help. Meet the 2015 NCAAF Final Four and their NFL spirit animals!
4) Oklahoma Sooners = Kansas City Chiefs
Written off at one point in their respective seasons for a bad loss [or five, in the Chiefs' case], there might not be two hotter teams playing football right now. Ever since losing to lowly unranked Texas in October, the Sooners have won seven straight, averaging a bruising 52 points per game on offense while holding opponents to an average of 19. Meanwhile, the Chiefs just became the second team in NFL history to start the year 1 - 5 and go on to clinch a playoff berth. These teams also share a few style points of note. On offense, QBs Alex Smith and Baker Mayfield are efficient game managers who very rarely turn the ball over and wear defenses down with their scrambling abilities. They're both having very strong years bolstered by a reliable run game no matter which committee member is carrying the ball. On defense, the Chiefs and Sooners are both Top 5 teams in terms of forcing turnovers and sacking quarterbacks, and it has shown in the ways they've played the part of buzzsaw to virtually every offense they've met since their most recent losses. If you're looking for balance and depth all over some well-rounded rosters, these are your teams. If there's any reason to be concerned, it's that Oklahoma and Kansas City haven't exactly played the top brass during their hot streaks. Between the Sooners' cake walk in the Big 12 and the Chiefs' Chargers-and-Raiders-heavy second half of the schedule, we don't yet know how they'll do against their toughest competition in the coming days. But these look like two dark horses who could really go places given how many different ways their talent rosters can win.
3) Michigan State Spartans = Cincinnati Bengals
Next up, we have the overlooked kid brothers of the playoffs - the Michigan State Spartans and Cincinnati Bengals. Both teams are playing extra football because of the clutch quarterback play of Connor Cook and Andy Dalton - they've engineered great game-winning drives and can sling the ball on the skinniest seams downfield with the best of 'em. (P.S. Who would've ever thought we could legitimately say that about Dalton a year ago?) Even though Cook and Dalton have been banged up to various degrees in recent weeks, they'll both be tough to beat if they play to their ceiling ability in the postseason. Even when these passers are having an off day though, both defenses have come through more times than not - they're stingy in the red zone and points allowed, and they've maintained solid turnover differentials this year. On a broader level, the Spartans and Bengals have grittier resumes than most going into the playoffs - MSU has already toppled four ranked teams in 13 games including the previous #1, Ohio State. Cincy had a particularly impressive run in the first half of the season, beating the Chiefs, Seahawks, Bills and Steelers in consecutive weeks and recently only lost by a field goal on the road against the Broncos and Cardinals. They haven't always looked pretty with some too-close-for-comfort wins and a couple inexplicable losses (Nebraska for the Trojans, Houston for the Bengals). Neither team has ever won the big dance either. But these are two underdogs that will play like they have nothing to lose and have more than a prayer when it comes to their upside and their experience against the top brass this season.2) Alabama Crimson Tide = St. Louis Rams
Last year, I compared the Tide to the Patriots for obvious Nick Saban/Bill Belichick-related reasons, but that'd be no fun to repeat. On the other hand, if there's anything Saban and Belichick really hate, it's fun. Moving on, the Tide are actually pretty hard to pin down in terms of NFL spirit animals this year, mainly because there isn't a pro team with a running back remotely as essential as recent Heisman winner Derrick Henry. Early on, the Tide looked shaky while relying on turnover-prone QB Jake Coker to keep the offense moving, but things turned around nicely as Henry's share of snap counts grew. Although the St. Louis Rams aren't nearly the dominant force in the pros that Alabama has been in the NCAA for years under Nick Saban, you can see some offensive parallels when Todd Gurley is having a good day. Gurley has averaged a whopping six yards per carry in the Rams' seven wins this season, and just like Henry, he's impossible to tackle until he's dragging 3 - 5 linebackers in his wake. And like the Tide, the Rams would much rather run the ball to keep the chains moving than entrust it in the hands of whoever's playing quarterback that day. These teams are even closer spirit animals on defense where they have an embarrassment of riches at the line of scrimmage. Alabama rotates 12+ players regularly in its front seven and is downright brutal in its pass rush - it's been more than enough to wear down just about every offense they've faced this season by the end of the third quarter. Rinse and repeat for St. Louis, whose current roster includes Robert Quinn, Aaron Donald, Chris Long and James Laurinaitis among others. Most NFL teams would kill their salary cap for just one defender of that caliber. In sum, these are your quintessential ground-and-pound teams if you like a vintage game in the trenches.1) Clemson Tigers = Carolina Panthers
Between these guys and UNC's surprising year, it's been a spectacular football season in the Carolinas. But the similarities for the Tigers and Panthers don't end with geographic proximity and jungle cats. Most prominently, they both have quarterbacks who are Carrying The Load and having Heisman/MVP-caliber seasons. Although these teams' reshuffled offensive lines and fairly anonymous skill players have surpassed preseason expectations, there's no doubt that these two offenses--and these two teams' paths to the playoffs--have run entirely through Deshaun Watson and Cam Newton. Watson and Newton have been dual-threat passers at their best this season, leading their teams to astounding 13 - 0 and 14 - 1 records with career-best QB ratings. Of course, we shouldn't understate what the Tigers and Panthers have accomplished on the defensive side of the ball. Clemson's defensive efficiency is second only to Alabama's this season in college football and anchored by an aggressive front seven that can stuff the run and keep pressure on the pocket. That probably sounds familiar to Panthers fans who continue to enjoy one of the best linebacker duos in the NFL these days in Luke Kuechley and Thomas Davis. All told, Clemson and Carolina have huge talent where it matters most on the roster, and it's led these two teams to the top of their leagues in electrifying fashion. Now we'll see if it's enough to keep them at the top when the playoff dust settles.
No comments:
Post a Comment