The NFL's final 4, plus more Australian Open drama

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Good morning! Have a meaningful Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Legacies, Pt. 1: We are watching era-defining football

When history looks back upon this era of AFC football, it will start with three quarterbacks: Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. For now, Mahomes is the unquestioned god of the era. The latter two are Hall of Fame-worthy talents whose legacies will be defined by their play against each and, most importantly, Mahomes.

It should be no surprise all three were among the final four AFC teams standing this year. And last night, Buffalo’s 27-25 win over Baltimore added another chapter:

  • The Bills are heading to the AFC title game for the first time since 2021, when they lost to the Chiefs, of course. Down the stretch last night, Buffalo did just enough, leaning on the run while benefitting from some unseemly Ravens mistakes. Allen had just 147 total yards, but felt in control the entire time. A road game against Mahomes, whom Allen has never beaten in the playoffs, awaits.
  • Ravens fans will rue this day. Two critical mistakes by normally reliable tight end Mark Andrews (a fumble in the fourth quarter and a drop on what would’ve been the game-tying two-point conversion) overshadowed an awesome day for Baltimore’s offense. The Ravens gained more yards (416 to 273) and first downs (23 to 20) than the Bills, but still lost. Yuck. Here’s the image that will sear in minds across the Mid-Atlantic:

On the other side of the bracket, we saw greatness from Saquon Barkley, who at this point has to be one of the best free-agent additions in NFL history. He ran for 205 yards and an ultimately game-winning, 78-yard touchdown late in Philadelphia’s thrilling win over the Rams.

We also had plenty of snow:

And thus here are next Sunday’s final four:

  • NFC: Commanders at Eagles
  • AFC: Bills at Chiefs

Philadelphia emerges from the weekend with the best odds to win the Super Bowl, per our model, partly because they have better odds of reaching it than either of the AFC teams do. See all those numbers here. (I’m not sure I agree, though.)

Also: Let’s not forget Matthew Stafford, who was largely brilliant in the loss. Jourdan Rodrigue wrote a beautiful tribute to the nearly 37-year-old’s performance, with some fantastic input from Eagles cornerback Darius Slay. Even at the end, Stafford was “slinging that mf—er.”

News to Know

Announcer apologizes to Djokovic
Tony Jones, an Australian TV journalist and on-court interviewer at the Australian Open, said he “overstepped the mark” with comments about Novak Djokovic. On Friday, Jones bantered the crowd and called Djokovic “overrated” and a “has-been” before saying the tournament should “kick him out,” which was a reference to Djokovic’s missed 2022 Australian Open due to his refusal to comply with COVID-19 protocols. Last night, Djokovic said he was boycotting any interviews with Channel 9, where Jones works. Full report on the drama here.

George interviews in Chicago
NFL legend and current Tennessee State head coach Eddie George became the 17th person to interview for the Bears’ vacant head-coaching job, the team announced yesterday. George would certainly be an outsider candidate, but he’s been good at TSU and obviously has plenty of NFL experience. George’s interview also satisfies the Rooney Rule, meaning the Bears can hire a coach at any time. Ben Johnson just became available, too. See more details.

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Legacies, Pt. 2: Two incredible runs are colliding

The first year of college football’s 12-team playoff ends tonight, and I’m not sure if there could be a better — or more apt — result than this. Consider both points from this season: 

  • Sept. 7: Notre Dame loses to Northern Illinois, four-touchdown underdogs. We wondered if it was the worst loss in program history.
  • Nov. 30: Ohio State loses to a mediocre Michigan team in one of this storied rivalry’s biggest chokes ever. People talked about firing Buckeyes coach Ryan Day, even with a Playoff spot in hand. Michigan owns the Day-led Ohio State.

Now, in the same season, here both teams are, playing for a national title tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. Ohio State has gone full Super Saiyan in the Playoff, while Notre Dame continues to whittle teams down into nothing. They are both deserving of this place, even with the above lowlights in the discussion.

Let’s get to the game, though, with one thought and one Good Bet:

  • This is Ohio State’s game to lose. The Buckeyes are favored by 8.5 points over at BetMGM, and clearly have the best roster in college football. I suspect Notre Dame’s rigorous defense will keep the Irish in this game though, and after Notre Dame’s fearless comeback against Penn State, nothing feels off-limits here.

Good Bet: Notre Dame (+8.5). This will be close, but the Buckeyes will kneel out a seven-point win late. 

Pulse bets record overall: 34-43-1. We went 4-0 on NFL picks this weekend. Thank goodness.

Watch, Listen and Play

In addition to Notre Dame-Ohio State:

đŸ“ș NBA: Timberwolves at Grizzlies
2:30 p.m. ET on TNT/truTV/Max
The NBA has two nationally televised games during the day today, and this is the most intriguing to me. Memphis is the best team no one is talking about, while Minnesota is high on talent and low on consistency. Plus, I’ll watch Anthony Edwards play Ja Morant (who is questionable) any day. 

đŸ“ș NCAAW: No. 7 Texas vs. No. 8 Maryland
5:30 p.m. ET on Fox
This takes place at the first inaugural Coretta Scott King Classic, and it is a doozy. This is the theoretically better top-10 matchup, but No. 1 UCLA also plays 16-3 unranked Baylor earlier this afternoon (3 p.m.). 

Get tickets to games like these here.

🎧 The “No Dunks” crew celebrated their 19th year of podcasting over the weekend. Incredible stuff. Give their NBA midseason awards show a listen as a tribute. Listen here.

Pulse Picks

As MLB free agency wanes, our writers updated the free-agent Big Board for one of the final times, with a prescient new missive aimed at the Dodgers, who are angering everyone by simply trying to win again. Worth a read here. 

The Knicks will be one of the most interesting teams to watch at the NBA trade deadline. We have trade ideas for them. 

I thought Dan Shanoff’s review of Tom Brady this weekend was insightful. So, so wild that Brady didn’t mention Ben Johnson’s name once. 

Did you think there was any doubt Cooper Flagg will be the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft? Sam Vecenie argues that — for now — the debate is over. 

Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Our bad sports owner tiers. We love mess. 

Most-read on the website yesterday: Colton Pouncy’s story on the Lions’ forever pain. Tough scene.

(Top photo: Al Bello / Getty Images)





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