- The Sixers played like dogs in Boston Saturday night. I picked the Celtics to win since they were home and had revenge in their minds after losing three straight to Philly earlier in the season. The 76ers missed their chance to sweep the Celts for the first time in 19 years. Instead, the Sixers showed little effort, shooting tons of 3's when they are not a good outside shooting team. Does that make sense?
Clearly this squad needs a new direction. Joel Embiid plays great one night, is very motivated, then slips back into lackluster mode. Either Head Coach Brett Brown must go after the season or GM Elton Brand needs to make a big trade for a shooter, or both. They aren't getting better, they are getting worse.
The Sixers are now a disappointing 9-16 on the road this season. They are far from championship contenders.
I expect them to lose again tonight in Miami where the Heat are 22-3. At least two of the players were at the Super Bowl last night ( Embiid and Ben Simmons). I expect most of them were partying in South Beach last night. Do you think the effort will be there tonight against a hungry Jimmy Butler and crew?
It doesn't get any easier for Philly. On Thursday they travel to Milwaukee to take on the 41-7 Bucks. Not a good way to go into the All-Star break.
The team looks disorganized. their defense is too inconsistent. They can't make 3-pointers. Their bench is giving them little production. Otherwise, the 76ers are just fine.
********************************************************************************
My thoughts on Super Bowl 54..
- I'm glad Andy Reid finally won a championship. He solidified his place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. With a young QB like the dynamic Patrick Mahomes, chances are the chiefs will get back to the Super Bowl in the not-too-distant future. With the Patriots in decline their only real competition may be the Baltimore Ravens.
- The 49ers had the game in the palm of their hand. Up 20-10 with only six minutes to go, the Niners needed a few first downs while running the ball to seal the win. Instead, they threw the ball and incurred several key penalties which gave the ball back to the chiefs. To their credit, Mahomes, who up until the 4th quarter had a shaky game, woke up late and led Kansas City to score 21 points in the final stanza.
The biggest play was a huge 41-yard bomb to speedy Tyreek Hill, after the San Francisco secondary frustrated Mahomes all game. No excuse for the breakdown late for the San Fran defense. The Cheifs' high-octane offense can be slowed, but cannot be stopped, as they proved last night in Miami.
- I had the Under in the game and cased in. Just barely. The under was 54 and the game ended at 51. Any additional score and I would've tied or lost my bet. At 20-10 the bet looked safe- until gunslinger Mahomes started firing away.
- I'm happy for the long-suffering KC fans. They had to wait 50 years before claiming their second Super Bowl victory. Arrowhead stadium is always full and noisy. Those fans are pretty much like Eagles fans. They travel well and withstand bitter cold in the winter to support their football team. Chief fans should have plenty of winning seasons ahead to look forward to.
- Seeing all the legendary football greats on the field before the game was awesome. It was especially great to see the icon Jim Brown looking good.
- The halftime show, featuring Shakira and Jennifer Lopez, offering lots of energy and skin. The dancing was tremendous, although i still couldn't name one of their songs. It played well to the Latino crowd watching. It will go down as one of the best Super bowl halftime shows.
- The commercial were just okay. My favorites were the Cheetos ad featuring Hammer ("Can't Touch This"), and the great Bill Murray in an up-to-date segment from the iconic movie Groundhog Day. Most ads were pretty dumb, many featuring robots and fast car chases and lots of action.
- The Eagles opened with the 6th shortest odds to win the Super Bowl next season. At 17-1, they are tied with the Cowboys. The Chiefs are favorites again, with the Ravens second and the Niners third.
- The Fox braodcasting crew did a good job calling the game. No real disputes or awful referee calls, although it looked like SF got screwed on a few potential penalties that weren't called.
- SF Head Coach Kyle Shanhan played it a little too conservative for my liking most of the game. For instance, with 3 time-outs and a little over a minute remaining in the first half, SF elected to run the clock out, rather than at lease get into position for a field goal. As Doug Pederson proved two years ago with "The Philly Special," to win a Super Bowl you have to be creative and aggressive,not reserved and conservative.
Shanahan was the offensive coordinator for the Falcons when they blew a 28-3 lead against New England several years ago in the Super Bowl. So he does have a track record for choking when the chips are down.
- It will take a while to adjust to no football every Sunday. I'm not into the XFL which Fox is promoting. Both hockey and basketball have yet to reach their playoffs. March Madness is still a month away. And Baseball season is just around the corner, as spring training starts next week.
No comments:
Post a Comment