Once more, NFL draft season begins. A time of improvement, a time of excitement, and a time of hope for fans hoping to do even better than this last year. The 2018 NFL Draft is headlined by a strong quarterback class, boasting names like Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield, Josh Allen, and Lamar Jackson. The speculation begins and each team hopes to land that impact player that can come in and perform the way they need a young superstar to. Cleveland kicks off this draft and with the first pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns select... 1. Cleveland Browns: Sam Darnold, QB, USC
2. New York Giants: Josh Rosen, QB, UCLA
3. Indianapolis Colts: Saquon Barkley, RB, Penn State
4. Cleveland Browns: Minkah Fitzpatrick, CB, Alabama5. Denver Broncos: Quenton Nelson, G, Notre Dame
6. New York Jets: Josh Allen, QB, Wyoming
7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Bradley Chubb, DE, N.C. State
8. Chicago Bears: Calvin Ridley, WR, Alabama
9. San Francisco 49ers: Josh Jackson, CB, Iowa10. Oakland Raiders: Denzel Ward, CB, Ohio State
11. Miami Dolphins: Roquan Smith, LB, Georgia12. CINCINNATI Bengals: Mike Gesicki, TE, Penn State13. Washington Redskins: Marcus Davenport, DE, UTSA14. Green Bay Packers: Derwin James, S, FSU15. Arizona Cardinals: Baker Mayfield, QB, Oklahoma16. Baltimore Ravens: Tremaine Edmunds, LB, Virginia Tech17. Los Angeles Chargers: Vita Vea, DL, Washington18. Seattle Seahawks: Connor Williams, OT, Texas
19. Dallas Cowboys: Courtland Sutton, WR, SMU20. Detroit Lions: Rashaan Evans, LB, Alabama21. Buffalo Bills: Lamar Jackson, QB, Louisville22. Buffalo Bills: Mike McGlinchey, OT, Notre Dame23. Los Angeles Rams: Malik Jefferson, LB, Texas24. Carolina Panthers: Christian Kirk, WR, Texas A&M25. Tennessee Titans: Harold landry, DE, Boston College26. Atlanta Falcons: Taven Bryan, DT, Florida27. New Orleans Saints: Dallas Goedert, TE, South Dakota State28. Pittsburgh Steelers: Leighton Vander Esch, LB, Boise State29. Jacksonville Jaguars: James Washington, WR, OSU30. Minnesota Vikings: Maurice Hurst, DT, Michigan31. New England patriots: Kolton Miller, T, UCLA32. Philadelphia Eagles: Donte Jackson, CB, LSU
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Brady vs FolesCertainly the headline of the Patriots-Eagles Super Bowl is Tom Brady's crammed trophy case versus the less impressive resume of Nick Foles. At age 40, Tom Brady enters his eight super bowl having already won five and looking for his sixth. Nick Foles' career has not been as star-studded having been traded and cut twice. In his second stint with the Philadelphia Eagles, Foles swooped in following the untimely ACL tear of MVP favorite Carson Wentz. His numbers have been reminiscent of his impressive 2013 Pro Bowl season, a form he has struggled to regain. Nick Foles tells a story of adversity. Foles has been doubted and labeled as a journeyman, not able to live up to expectations from a wonder year in Philly in his stint with the St. Louis Rams. In his last two playoff games, Foles has posted an astounding passer rating of 120.8, 3 touchdowns, no interceptions, and a completion percentage of 77.8%. Much of his success in a season where he posted 27 touchdowns and remarkably only 2 interceptions, was credited to Chip Kelly, a quarterback whisperer of sorts. Following a poor follow up season, he was traded to St. Louis where he continued to not live up to his 2013 season. Many have doubted the Eagles, painting a strong team that finished as the number one seed as the underdog in this Super Bowl. With Nick Foles' recent form, I don't envision a blowout. Nick Foles did post the then-record of TD:INT ratio in 2013 only to be broken three years later by... Tom Brady tells a story of consistency. At age 40, he becomes the oldest player in major sports history to win the Most Valuable Player Award. Excluding the 2009 season, Tom Brady has been a model of health, currently in eighth for most consecutive starts with 112. With his top receiver out before the season began, Brady continues to post career numbers at an incredulous age, especially in such a physical sport. His playoff record is impeccable and his career win record is 77.7%, higher than his completion percentage. Of his eighteen years in the NFL, he has made the Super Bowl eight times, almost half of his professional career. With his retirement, which could still take years, Brady would have established himself not only as the greatest quarterback ever, not only the greatest football player ever, but perhaps the greatest athlete ever. Belichick vs PedersonHowever, while the Super Bowl is heavily dictated by the play of quarterbacks there are other factors. Bill Belichick, widely regarded as one of the most intelligent minds in football and a conservative play caller, leads the Patriots head to head against second-year head coach Doug Pederson, more of a gambler and a former quarterback himself. I would take Belichick in this matchup, simply because I feel he prepares his team much better, but Pederson is a very capable coach who, if his risk-taking pays off, threatens to be a force to reckon with. New ENgland Offense vs Philadelphia OffenseOffensively, both New England and Philadelphia's rank top three according to Pro Football Focus. Philadelphia boasts a receiving core of major free-agent signing Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor, and Zach Ertz, who combined for 25 touchdowns, the most for a trio of receiving teammates. New England lost Julian Edelman prior to the season but Rob Gronkowski has been approved to play following his concussion in the AFC Championship game, Brandin Cooks comes off a strong performance, and Amendola looks to burst once more following an impressive game two weeks ago. In the run game, Philadelphia have bigger names in LeGarrette Blount, Jay Ajayi, and Corey Clement but New England have their own trio of capable backs in Dion Lewis, Rex Burkhead, and James White, who exploded a year ago in the Super Bowl against Atlanta. I see similar production from both sides but Philadelphia will commit to the run more while Belichick's Patriots will utilize the pass-catching abilites of their backs. New England Defense vs Philadelphia defenseWhen it comes to defense, both Philadelphia and New England finished as top five scoring defenses, allowing 18.4 and 18.5 points on average. This is especially impressive for New England who through four weeks were on pace for the worst NFL defense ever and managed to turn it around dramatically. Philadelphia's turnover ratio stands at +11, ranking fourth in the NFL, due in large part to the 19 interceptions and 12 fumble recoveries, each also ranking fourth in the NFL, forced by their strong defense with names like Fletcher Cox and Malcolm Jenkins. New England's defense stands as one of the more disciplined defenses and are bolstered by the fact that Belichick is a defensive-minded head coach. While New England rank poorly in yards per game they manage to prevent high scoring games. They present a strong secondary consisting of Stephon Gilmore, Malcolm Butler, and Devin McCourty. While I think Philadelphia's defense will provide a strong challenge, the more formidable Jaguars defense has already been overrode by the Patriots offense designed by Josh McDaniels and executed to perfection by Tom Brady. So... Who's Going to Win?At the end of the day, this game can go either way. However, I've seen this scenario play out too many times and I have learned you never bet against the Patriots. Often, a team will swagger in to a large game and take leads against New England. The Legion of Boom in Super Bowl 49. Rise Up Nation in Super Bowl 51. Sacksonville in the AFC Championship Game. But Belichick always adjusts. And wins. The Super Bowl will follow like this, according to what I have seen and can predict:
Super Bowl MVP: Tom Brady |
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