Chapter 844 Sweeping the List
The 2018 NFL season is coming to an end, and there is only one final final showdown left in front of us——
Super Bowl.
The Los Angeles Rams, the second seed in the National League, and the Kansas Chiefs, the first seed in the American League, endured a bloody battle and withstood the test and both advanced. The "half-time Super Bowl" in the eleventh week of the regular season successfully evolved into the final "Decisive Battle at the Forbidden City" of the season. , easily ignites passion and detonates focus.
The discussion surrounding the ultimate Super Bowl showdown has been eagerly launched; however, before officially entering the Super Bowl analysis and prediction, league professionals temporarily turned their attention away from the two focus teams and gave some attention to the other 30 teams in the league. Awards are presented.
Maybe the wild card round and divisional round are disappointing, maybe the final focus of the season is still all on the four teams in the conference finals, but looking back at the regular season journey, the highlights of the season are still far more than that, the strength of the veterans and the new stars The brilliance of the team, the persistence of the traditional strong teams and the rise of the rising stars combined to create a wonderful season.
There is no doubt that this is a legendary season where the offense shines across the board -
The four teams of the Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Rams, New Orleans Saints and New England Patriots respectively occupy the top four offensive positions in the league. They not only occupy the top two seeds in their respective conferences in the regular season, but also join hands in the playoffs. Advancing to the final conference finals, the strong performance continued from the regular season to the playoffs.
In sharp contrast is the defensive team.
The Chicago Bears, Baltimore Ravens, Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans respectively occupy the top four defensive teams in the league. Among them, the Tennessee Titans did not even qualify for the playoffs. The performance of the other three teams in the playoffs was also disappointing and stopped early. .
The old saying that offense wins games and defense wins championships does not seem to be working this season; instead, the league has been working hard to promote passing as king and offense first for the sake of ratings, which is sweeping the league, essentially changing the league's emphasis on offense. flag trend.
Moreover, after the quarterback slump last season, the quarterbacks this season are all remarkable. Although they lack the dominant performance of Manning and Rogers, the three generations of old, middle and young quarterbacks have achievements worth mentioning. .
The senior quarterbacks led by Brady and Brees once again proved that they are still as good as they are.
Roethlisberger, Rivers, Matt Ryan, Rodgers, Luck, Cousins and other Mesozoic quarterbacks are becoming mainstays, among which Rivers and Luck have a new vitality that deserves special mention.
With Goff, Mahomes, Watson, Prescott, and Jackson emerging from nowhere, the future of quarterbacks in the league is bright.
A hundred flowers bloom and a hundred schools of thought contend.
Perhaps there is no absolute leader among the quarterbacks to unify the country, but the lively scene of comprehensive rise presents a prosperous scene.
The more important part is that the competition among wide receivers, tight ends, and running backs to shine has made the league deeply aware that stars are more than just quarterbacks.
Among them, star running backs play a crucial role this season. Especially after the Pittsburgh Steelers top running back Bell went on strike from training and games, the entire league's focus on running backs has reached an unprecedented height. Running backs Everyone realized this and ushered in a full-scale outbreak.
Elliott of the Dallas Cowboys, Barkley of the New York Giants, Gurley of the Los Angeles Rams, Peterson of the Washington Redskins, Henry of the Tennessee Titans, and McCaffrey of the Carolina Panthers are all remarkable. Play different roles in your position.
Not to mention Levi, who overturned the perception of the entire league. For the second consecutive season, he produced an epic top-level performance, which continued from the regular season to the playoffs. His wonderful performance in turning the tide in the American League finals detonated the entire league. The spotlight on running backs.
The limelight lasts forever. All kinds of things are reflected in the major selection lists of the regular season.
For the 2018 season, the All-American First Team/Second Team selection list has been released.
The Kansas Chiefs' offensive team that has written countless legendary battles this season has become the biggest highlight. The four great players of Mahomes, Levi, Kelsey and Hill, plus offensive tackle Mitchell Schwartz, have jointly occupied the first-team All-American five spots. Each seat is an excellent and beautiful scenery.
Among them, Mahomes emerged from nowhere. Not only was he selected to the All-American first team alongside Brees, but he also occupied the main spot in the All-American second team, so that all other quarterbacks were eclipsed and lost.
Including Goff of the Los Angeles Rams, including Brady of the New England Patriots.
It can also be seen from the side that Mahomes' performance this season has been highly recognized.
The same goes for Levi, who openly occupies the main position of the first team in the United States. He is on the same level as Gurley of the Los Angeles Rams, so that other running backs with outstanding performance cannot be selected.
Barkley and Elliott were both selected to the All-American second team. McCaffrey was selected to the All-American second team as a libero by relying on his dual threats of running and catching. Not every team has such a part-time running back and wide receiver job. Location.
In addition, the defensive team's Chris Jones also relied on his outstanding performance to be selected to the second team of the United States for the first time in his career, becoming the only member of the defensive team.
Although only one player from the defensive team was selected, it can still be seen that the Kansas Chiefs' weak defensive team has many highlights this season.
In the end, the Kansas Chiefs had a total of six players nominated for the All-American first/second team, surpassing the New Orleans Saints, who had a total of five players nominated, leading the team's finalist list, and undoubtedly became the biggest winner of the season.
Thinking back to the start of the season, the Kansas Chiefs, as the defending champions, were surrounded by crises and difficulties. The doubts and confusion left behind after reaching the top spot as a dark horse last season have fully erupted in the new season. However, now the team has handed over a beautiful performance with an unparalleled perfect performance. The answer sheet launched a counterattack, even if the playoff performance is left aside, it is still convincing.
If the All-American First Team/Second Team is recognition from professionals, then the Pro Bowl is recognition from fans.
Throughout the entire season, the Kansas Chiefs seem to have... attracted a lot of black fans. Questions and scorn, provocations and attacks are present throughout. Any slight disturbance can cause a craze on social networks, so that people always regard the Kansas Chiefs as "newbies" and " "dark horse", without giving real respect.
Even if he continues to win, doubts will continue.
For fans, traditional strong teams such as the Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints are still extremely popular, and they also have a large number of fans outside the home cities of the teams.
However, public opinion and traffic on social networks are one-sided and deceptive. How popular the Kansas City Chiefs are in other cities on the North American continent still needs to be proven by the announcement of the Pro Bowl roster.
So, outside of Kansas City, can this new team that emerges to disrupt the league dominate the North American continent like the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos? Or are they like the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles who have never been able to break through city barriers and break out of the circle?
(End of chapter)