Like millions of NFL fans across the globe, I was looking forward to the conclusion of the 2020 season with an exciting Super Bowl game. And like millions of NFL fans across the globe, I instead was disappointed with a boring blowout. God dammit. As I'm sure you already know the Tampa Bay Buccaneers thumped the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9 to win Super Bowl LV.
Congratulations to all the Bucs fans, your team earned this title with big wins at Lambeau Field and against a very talented Chiefs squad. Even though the media has been kissing Tom Brady's ass and acting like he won the damn game by himself, this was really a total team win. Offense, defense, special teams and coaching all had big days.
The Chiefs on the other hand, what the hell was that! Did you not realize this game was for the Super Bowl title? Did you forget to practice for two weeks? Was Britt Reid in charge of the game plan? I demand answers! NFL fans deserved to have an exciting championship game, not a game whose biggest highlight was some drunken half naked dude streaking down the field.
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The Buccaneers won this game because they had excellent game plans on both offense and defense that were executed to perfection. Coordinators Byron Leftwich and Todd Bowles deserve a lot of credit for coming up with plans that went against their normal tendencies and instead attacked the Chiefs where they were most vulnerable.
On offense, obviously the top priority had to be holding onto the ball. You can't give a talented offense like KC extra opportunities with turnovers. The Bucs did the job with zero fumbles and zero interceptions.
Head coach Bruce Arians loves to have his QB chuck the ball down the field. He wisely showed restraint in this game. The Chiefs defense was surprisingly good against the long ball this year. Brady did throw some long balls to keep the defense honest, but the Bucs moved the ball with more intermediate passes that the Chiefs struggled to defend. The game stats tell the story. On a team that features wide receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Antonio Brown and Scott Miller, tight end Rob Gronkowski led the team in receptions (6), receiving yards (67) and TDs (2). The second leading receiver in catches and yards was running back Leonard Fournette. The Bucs knew where their opponent was weak and attacked them there. Smart.
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Like I said, Bruce Arians loves the passing game. Yet he didn't forget about the rushing attack in this game. The Bucs had a balanced offense, Brady threw 29 passes while the running back duo of Leonard Fournette and Ronald Jones combined for 28 carries. That's some serious balance right there.
Establishing the run served several purposes. First it kept the defense on its heels so they couldn't just tee off on Tom Brady. Brady was sacked only once and faced little pressure most of the game. Second it helped Tampa control time of possession, cutting the opportunities for the KC offense. And third when the game was in hand in the 4th quarter, the rushing attack was able to efficiently bleed the clock against the battered Chiefs defense.
On defense the Bucs also had a great game plan. Todd Bowles loves to call blitzes and Tampa was one of the top blitzing teams this season. However Bowles knew blitzing against Patrick Mahomes and his speedy receivers is very risky. Also knowing the Chiefs were missing offensive line starters due to injury, Bowles formulated a different plan.
Instead of calling blitzes, Bowles relied on his four defensive linemen to create pressure while consistently dropping back seven defenders into coverage. It worked. Jason Pierre-Paul, Ndamukong Suh, Vitta Vea and Shaquil Barrett kept Patrick Mahomes under constant pressure and sacked him three times. The remaining defenders covered the Chiefs receivers well and gave Mahomes very few outlets for his passes.
The Bucs held the explosive KC offense to three lousy field goals, becoming the third team in Super Bowl history to hold their opponent without a touchdown. A very impressive performance.
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In the end it was a total team victory for the Buccaneers. So of course they gave the MVP award to Tom Brady. Ugh. I was disappointed. Brady (21/29, 201 yards, 3 TDs) had a fine game. But in my mind it was the Bucs defense who were the real heroes. They completely dominated the best offense in the entire league, preventing them from reaching the endzone even once.
In his entire career, Patrick Mahomes had never had a game without at least one TD pass and had never lost a game by double digits. The Tampa defense laid both indignities on him for the first time in the biggest game in the sport. Somebody from the defense should have been awarded the MVP award. Hell they should have gave it to the entire defense, it was a total team effort.
Yet they gave the award to Brady. I would argue he wasn't even the offensive player who deserved the award the most, I would have given it to Gronk over Brady. Oh well, this is a continuous problem with a NFL media that can't see past the quarterbacks week after week. Dumb asses.
The Super Bowl was a great game for Buccaneer fans, but for the rest of us it really was a dud. I mean everything about this game stunk. It wasn't competitive, Tampa Bay blew them out. The game was over by halftime and the 4th quarter featured zero points. Yawn.
Everything else around the game was bad too. For the most part the commercials were boring. The one with Tracy Morgan was funny, that's the only one I can remember that gave me a laugh. I did like the Frito-Lay commercial, but that was mainly because it featured Troy Aikman. I do love my Cowboys.
Speaking of my Cowboys, my main man Tony Romo let me down in the big game. Since Romo transitioned to the broadcast booth he has been excellent. I normally enjoy his commentary. So I don't know what happened on Sunday but he was awful. He had little insights and harped way too much on stupid shit. When the game is a turd you need the commentators to save the day. Romo dropped the ball.
Of course it goes without saying that the halftime show was a shitfest. It always is. I am a rock and roll fan so I never even heard of the weekend before. All I can say is his performance was as stupid as his name. Dancing on the field with a bunch of dudes wearing jockstraps on their heads wasn't a bright idea. At least the Chiefs can say with total sincerity they were not the worse thing on the field on Sunday.
The best part about my Super Bowl Sunday was the awesome Doritos Taco Salad I ate, among all the other snacks I had. Maybe they should have given the MVP award to my brother, he saved the game for me!
Well that's a wrap for the 2020 NFL season and my Monday Morning Quarterback posts. It was one crappy year for my Cowboys, I won't miss it. That being said I'm sure by the time Fall rolls around I'll be deluding myself into thinking maybe the 2021 season will be the one where Dallas finally returns to their former glory. Nah, I don't drink that much any more.
Anyway as always thanks for taking the time to read. If you actually read this post that is. I don't think I have very many actual readers, but I did receive a lot of upvotes this season so thank you for the support. Let me know your thoughts on Super Bowl LV in the comments below.