Sak Sports Blog

The NFC Championship game came down to the wire, needing an overtime period to break the 23-23 tie. Despite the Saints striking first and never giving up the lead in regulation, the Rams won in overtime in a game filled with drama and a comeback sparked by a questionable pass interference non-call on Los Angeles. 23-year-old Jared Goff becomes the youngest quarterback to advance to the Super Bowl, over 40-year-old veteran Drew Brees and the Saints. The Rams advance to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2001 and await the winner of the Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots. The Saints defense dominated the first quarter, holding the Rams without a first down. A fake punt pass yielded Los Angeles their first first down of the day in the second quarter. But in the final three frames, Goff was able to find his receivers to complete long drives and put points on the board. With under 6 minutes left, the Saints defense denied C.J. Anderson at the goal line and the Rams ti...

With no road upsets in the divisional round of the playoffs, we have a stacked final four teams remaining to play for the Super Bowl. The #1 and #2 seed from the AFC and NFC will square off Sunday with a Super Bowl berth on the line. Both games tell a similar tale: an established team with a veteran quarterback taking on a high flying offensive team led by a young signal-caller. Tom Brady has been to the AFC Championship just a few times (this will be his 13th). Patrick Mahommes is capping off his first season as an NFL starter. Drew Brees plays in his 3rd NFC title game, with an even 1-1 record so far. Jared Goff has taken the Rams further in each of his three seasons (two full seasons.) All four offenses can light up the scoreboard, which should be a treat for fans on Sunday. The Kansas City Chiefs led the league in scoring (35.3 PPG) with the Los Angeles Rams right on their tail (32.9 PPG). The New Orleans Saints could've been in the 34-35 PPG game range, but a couple l...

The second round of the NFL playoffs told a different tale than Wildcard Weekend. After home teams went 1-3 in the playoffs opening weekend, they won, often in impressive fashion, going 4-0 in the Divisional Round. Four home teams, four favorites, four high-scoring offenses. The Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots, Los Angeles Rams, and New Orleans Saints all held 6-2, 7-1, or 8-0 home records in the regular season, and they carried the home-field advantage into the playoffs. In my personal picks, I went 3-1, incorrectly predicting the LA Rams would slip up and allow the Dallas Cowboys to advance. The most exciting and close game was between the Eagles and Saints, with New Orleans winning by a score and Nick Foles nearly pulling off a game-winning drive. My Playoff Week 2 Picks #Chiefs over #Colts ✅ #Cowboys over #Rams ❌ #Patriots over #Chargers ✅ #Saints over #Eagles ✅ Last week’s record: 3-1 Playoff record: 6-2 — Sak Sports Blog (@SakSports) January 14, ...

With eight teams remaining, there's a calculated amount of Super Bowl matchups remaining. Sixteen possibilities exist, and almost every one would be a breathe of fresh air for the NFL. Except for, of course, a rematch of last year's Super Bowl. Three other rematches of Super Bowl's since 2000 exist, and the New England Patriots are implicated in three of these four matchups. If Tom Brady wins two home games and advances to the Super Bowl, it would be the outcome closest to the norm. But with four close games expected in the NFL's Divisional Round, any matchup could become reality with some upsets along the way. For my picks in those four games you can read my preview and predictions. The top five potential Super Bowl 53 possibilities weighs the potential excitement for the big game coupled with the likelihood of the matchup occuring. 5. New England Patriots Vs. Philadelphia Eagles We haven't had a Super Bowl rematch in back-to-back seasons since 199...

In the Wildcard Round, I went with the road team, and consequently, underdog, in each of the four matchups. The bold strategy paid off, as three road teams pulled out victories. The only blemish on my 3-1 record was the Dallas Cowboys win over the Seattle Seahawks. Road wins will be tougher to come by in the second round of the NFL postseason. The four home teams are a combined 28-4, with the New England Patriots leading the pack at 8-0. The opposing road teams have road records at or above .500: except the Dallas Cowboys, the only team switching from home to road since last week. Without further ado let's dive in to this week's picks: #6 Indianapolis Colts (11-6) at #1 Kansas City Chiefs (12-4) Time: Saturday, 4:35 PM ET Line: Kansas City Chiefs (-5.5) Two quarterbacks expected to be faces of the league for years to come square off with an AFC Championship appearance on the line. Andrew Luck is looking to make his comeback season even sweeter, while Patri...

The 2019 NFL Playoffs feel fresh and exciting. Yes, the New England Patriots have a first round bye, and the NFC field has some familiar faces. But overall, the playoff field feels like a breathe of fresh air with the Mitch Trubisky and the Chicago Bears, the new-look Baltimore Ravens with Lamar Jackson running the show, and the MVP-hopeful, high octane Patrick Mahommes and the Kansas City Chiefs. Above all, there's a feeling that any of the twelve teams could honestly make a run. Some are more likely than others, and as always, the top seeds have the easiest path to Super Bowl 53. The first round of the playoffs features four matchups that could go either way. The winners will face the daunting tasks of visiting Kansas City, New England, New Orleans, and Los Angeles: some of the toughest venues to win at during the regular season. #6 Indianapolis Colts at #3 Houston Texans Time: Saturday, 4:35 PM ET Line: Houston Texans (-2) The Indianapolis Colts have been su...

In Week 3, in Houston, the New York Giants pushed the Houston Texans to 0-3. The Jacksonville Jaguars were 2-1, the Tennessee Titans were upstart, and people were more interested to see if Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts could rebound than DeShaun Watson and the Texans.  The underdog role has suited the Texans well, and they've responded by winning their next seven games. This has them perched atop the AFC South, and although the Jaguars haven't won a game in two months, the Colts have been surging on their own with five straight wins. But the Texans control their own destiny, starting with a pivotal AFC South matchup on Monday Night Football. With a road win, the Titans can make the AFC South a three-way race to the finish. If the Texans can hold down the fort at home, they'll create a little breathing room, improve their divisional record, and stretch their win streak to eight games. It's possible the Texans don't lose again this season...

If you're not an overly optimistic New York Giants fan, or Odell Beckham Jr, I probably don't have to tell you this: but the Giants are't going to win out and sneak into the playoffs at 9-7. On paper, of course it's possible. The Giants have only lost two games this year by more than a touchdown, and their second half schedule isn't too menacing. And I can't knock Odell for believing this, it's the kind of motivation and drive that is rarely seen on a 2-7 squad. But this team just can't do it. Over the past two seasons, the Giants are 5-20. Only once in every five games have they been able to pull off a victory in this span. Even amid Beckham's injury, among others, last season, the Giants haven't had a horrible roster over these 25 games. Yet, time and time again , every time the team takes one step forward or seems to find some consistency on offense, it takes two steps back. I do credit the defense for keeping the ...

This week's picks theme is Eyes on the Playoffs. At the rough halfway point in the 2018-19 NFL season, the playoff standings are beginning to take shape. The Rams, Chiefs, and Patriots lead the pack, and after that, there's plenty of intrigue. Can the Redskins maintain the NFC East with the Eagles and Cowboys on their backs? Can the Chargers challenge for the AFC's best seed? And in a loaded potential NFC Wildcard playoff race, the Packers, Panthers, Falcons, Seahawks, and Bears/Vikings could all be competing for just two spots. Week 9 Recap Through Week 8, I held a 59-45-2 record picking games. I was unable to publish my Week 9 picks, so you'll have to take my word for who I went with. Overall, it was a pretty strong week, where I went 8-5 to improve to 67-50-2. Correct Picks 49ers over Raiders Bears over Bills  Chiefs over Browns Vikings over Lions Falcons over Redskins Panthers over Buccaneers Texans over Broncos Patriots over Packers Inc...

The NFL regular season is nearing it's halfway point. The Rams and Chiefs are pacing the league and continuing to excite week in and week out. The Patriots, Chargers, Panthers, Saints and Vikings have also formed winning habits through Week 7. Besides that? Most teams are vulnerable enough to be beaten by anyone on any given Sunday. I'm on a hot streak making picks after a slow start to the season. Week 5 brought me a 9-6 record, Week 6 was my strongest with 11 wins and 4 losses, and in Week 7 I stayed positive with a (9-4 before MNF) The highlights of Week 8 include the London game between the Eagles and Jaguars, the Rams getting a potential test from the Packers, and an NFC playoff rematch between the Saints and Vikings. Thursday Night Miami Dolphins (4-3) at Houston Texans (4-3) Before DeShaun Watson tore his ACL last October, he was taking the league by storm. The Texans got off to a rocky 0-3 start, but are now one of the hottest teams in the league with...