The AFC and NFC Championship games last Sunday were fantastic. It was the first time in NFL playoff history that both conference title games went to overtime. The Patriots and Rams are headed to Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta on February 3 in what should be an exciting matchup of something old (Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and New England's fourth Super Bowl trip in five years) against something new (Sean McVay, Jared Goff and the Rams first time in the biggest game since 1979 for the L.A. version of the team).
The NFL came out of these two thrilling title games facing controversy as the losing teams--the Chiefs and Saints--both have legitimate gripes about how their seasons ended. And the NFL needs to make rule changes effective next season that will address the inequities that helped determine the outcomes.
The overtime rule cost Kansas City in their 37-31 loss as New England won the OT coin toss and Tom Brady predictably drove the Patriots 75 yards in 13 plays for the winning touchdown against a tired Chiefs defense.
Under league rules, if the team that wins the overtime toss kicks a field goal on the first series, then the opposing team gets a shot at tying the game with a field goal or winning with a TD. But a TD on the first series ends the game, so when New England running back Rex Burkhead ran the final two yards into the end zone, it was season over for K.C. The Chiefs’ exciting young quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who threw three touchdown passes in leading his team to 31 second half points, never had a chance to touch the ball in OT.
It's so wrong for a championship game to be determined in large part by a coin toss. Sure the Chiefs defense could have made a stop as the Rams D did when they lost the coin toss but intercepted Drew Brees on the Saints overtime possession, which set up Greg Zuerlein's playoff record 57 yard field goal to end the game. But if the league went so far as to guarantee both teams an overtime possession if the opening series results in a field goal, then it's not a big stretch to change this rule and require both teams to have a possession if a TD occurs.
I know the NFL wants to keep games from going too long for player safety and for television viewing time. But how can a $15 billion per year business have its second biggest game of the year basically decided by a coin flip?
So I say the league should change the OT rule and guarantee both teams will have a possession with a normal kickoff and not the college rule of starting at the opposing team's 25 yard line. And in an attempt to shorten games and add excitement, I suggest that teams be required to attempt a two-point conversion after a touchdown instead of kicking PATs (which college football requires beginning with the third overtime possession for each team).
While the Patriots took advantage of a bad existing rule in the AFC title game, the Rams benefited from one of the worst non-calls of pass interference we've ever seen in a playoff game. When L.A. cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman blatantly ran into Saints receiver Tommylee Lewis (and hit him helmet-to-helmet) at the Rams 5-yard line with 1:41 to play, everyone--especially Lewis, Brees and an exasperated Saints Coach Sean Payton-- expected the officials to throw a flag, including Robey-Coleman. If the interference call had been made or a roughing penalty for the hit to the head, the Saints would have been able to take the clock inside 20 seconds before kicking an almost certain game-winning field goal.
"Yes, I got there too early," Robey-Coleman admitted. "I was beat and trying to save a touchdown. Thank you, football gods."
The result of this injustice to the Saints is there will surely be an intense discussion at the next league meeting in March on making pass interference a play that can be reviewed via instant replay (as is the case in the Canadian Football League).
The Vikings and their fans wish there had been instant replay to determine pass interference in 1975. Then the famous Hail Mary TD pass from Roger Staubach to Drew Pearson that beat one of the best Vikings teams ever (10-0 start that season) would have been nullified for offensive pass interference since Pearson clearly pushed off on Vikings corner Nate Wright with no call made.
There is too much at stake for games to be decided on an obvious officials' error when the technology exists for the play to be reviewed and the right call to be made. The NFL doesn't have to make every play reviewable or the games will last four hours. But pass interference is a game changing play (like turnovers and scoring plays) that should be challenged by coaches or reviewed by the replay official and league office in the last two minutes of each half and in overtime.
That's what should have happened for the Saints and then my prediction of the two 40 year old quarterbacks--Brees and Brady--meeting in the Super Bowl would have come to fruition.
Looking ahead to Super Bowl LIII: We still have great storylines for the Patriots-Rams matchup, starting with the old vs. young theme at quarterback with the 41 year old Brady going for his record sixth Super Bowl win. He'll compete against 24 year old Goff, the No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft who just outplayed Brees in the second half and overtime (he threw for 297 yards in the title game and his passing carried the Rams on a day when star running back Todd Gurley was held to 10 yards rushing).
Brady, meanwhile,e was brilliant as usual in crunch time as he passed for 348 yards and converted three 3rd and 10 plays (two to Julian Edelman and one to Rob Gronkowski) on the game-winning drive.
The matchup also showcases one of the NFL's oldest head coaches--and the most successful in postseason (five Super Bowl wins)--in the 66 year old Belichick taking on the NFL's youngest head coach--McVay (who turns 33 this week). Belichick is the league's top defensive strategist who will try to beat an offensive mastermind in McVay.
Check in next week for my prediction, but I'll say now that it's difficult for me to see Brady not holding up another Lombardi Trophy come Super Sunday unless the Rams get sensational performances from NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald and his fellow defensive tackle Ndamukongh Suh. It will be tough for that to happen against Brady and his excellent offensive line (take notice, Vikings) which has not allowed him to be sacked on 90 pass attempts this postseason, not to mention opening holes for two 100-plus yard rushing days for Sony Michel.