Is it time for the Kansas City Chiefs (and a good number of other NFL teams, trust me) to hire an assistant coach whose lone duty is clock management?

Andy Reid has been an NFL coach for longer than some of you reading this have been alive, and he can’t manage the clock to save his life to this day.  And he’s not alone.

Despite this, Reid continues to bungle end of game strategy, in this instance costing the Chiefs a chance at tying their Divisional Round game against the Patriots, back in 2004, costing the Eagles a similar chance in the Super Bowl against the Patriots, and a whole lot of late game headaches in between.

In an era where teams frequently experiment with quick snaps and no-huddles designed to prevent the defense from making substitutions, including one coach (Chip Kelly) whose entire offense is based on it, you’d think it would be easy enough for teams to script late game drives so the need for long huddles and muddled decision making could be eliminated.

Brady vs. Manning, the playoff rubber match

The Divisional Round is over and all the good little football fan boys and girls got their wish because we’re going to see Manning vs. Brady one more time for a trip to the Super Bowl.

While Tom Brady has a decisive advantage overall in these head to head meetings, the universally accepted narrative here is Brady is Mr. Clutch in the playoffs while Peyton Manning is a big choker.  So it might surprise you to learn that in the playoffs, which some would have you believe are the ONLY stats that matter at all, Brady and Manning are 2-2 lifetime vs. each other.

This is the rubber game.

And don’t kid yourself. Tom Brady won’t go on being ageless forever because Manning is the proof that when it goes, it goes quickly.

Just two years ago, Manning had the best season any quarterback has had in the history of the league.  Now, there’s a real debate about whether the Broncos should play him at all.  Brady has been awesome this year and maybe he will be next year too. But sooner rather than later the day is coming when Tom Brady won’t be Tom Brady anymore.

Watch these NFL all-time greats while you still can.

This Week’s Sucked And Won

Ronnie Hillman, RB (DEN):  Hillman gained just 38 yards on 16 carries, a 2.4 YPC average, against the Steelers.  And don’t tell me it was his blocking.  C.J. Anderson had a more-than-respectable 4.8 YPC on 15 attempts.  Hillman just didn’t have it on Sunday.

Can the Carolina Panthers play 4 quarters of football.  Remember, this weekend was not the first time they blew a huge lead and then had to salvage a game from the wreckage right at the end.  It’s been a troubling, recurring theme for the Panthers all season, and despite the ongoing perception that they’re the “IT” team this season, their destiny-laden journey WILL come to an end this Sunday against Arizona if they don’t shore up their second half play.

Shocking Realization of the Week

Tom Brady is 2-6 lifetime in Denver.

This Week’s Great But Lost

Jeff Janis (WHO?), WR (GB):  The relatively unknown receiver caught 7 passes for 145 yards and 2 TDs, including the thrilling game-tying Hail Mary from Aaron Rodgers with no time left in regulation.  Bonus points if you ever heard him before this weekend.
This will be my last Random Thoughts of the season – you can’t exactly have an entire series of “Random Thoughts” about a two-game slate next week – so thanks for reading and keep thinking randomly.

 

Featured image via SB Nation NFL