Brady, Belichick and the Pats run Mahomes, Reid and the Chiefs in OT

The good, bad and ugly of the AFC Championship game

The good, bad and ugly of the AFC Championship game
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In the matchup of the old versus young, we saw the oldhead prevail as the Patriots beat the Chiefs 37-31 in overtime. Here's how I saw things play out:

The Good

-Bill Belichick found what worked best and exploited it. He made Pat Mahomes uncomfortable in the pocket by getting pressure up the middle, while also maintaining containment on the outside. Four sacks for 46 yards lost, mostly in the first half, was enough to frustrate the Chiefs' offense and help the Pats build a lead. But…

-…Andy Reid and Mahomes have weapons to combat whatever is thrown at them. The signing of running back Damien Williams midseason has proven to be their answer for losing Kareem Hunt due to stupidity. Mahomes/Reid is similar to the Brett Favre/Mike Holmgren combo in that you have a good, young quarterback with a good play calling coach.

-Tom Brady is the GOAT. There's no more arguing or debate. Put it to rest please. We all must learn to appreciate greatness when we see it happening, and the Brady/Belichek era of what they're doing is great.

The Bad

-Brady made an uncharacteristic red zone interception. In the second quarter, he threw a pass off target that Chief's linebacker Reggie Ragland picked off. Rob Gronkowski was running a crossing route off play action. He wasn't wide open, but the pass should've been thrown higher and more towards the back of the end zone.

-Speaking of Gronk, he went 50-plus minutes in between catches. From the 12:28 mark of the first quarter to the 5:28 mark of the fourth quarter, the Chiefs defense held him in check. Being such a large part of what the Pats are able to do on offense, it helped the Chiefs get back into the game.

-The Chiefs defense couldn't hold up in overtime. They played up, or down, to the level of their competition up until when it counted most. In overtime, they never gave their offense a chance to try to win the game.

The Ugly

-Chiefs' safety Eric Berry was clearly playing injured. He was a shell of his former All-Pro self. On the Patriots' touchdown just before halftime, his zone assignment was a short zone in the middle of the field. He barely moved and the bulk of the action was nowhere near his zone. He also gave up a 25-yard completion to Gronk with 54 seconds left in the game that put the Pats in touchdown range. Word is that he'll need surgery on the heel in the offseason.

- The Chiefs were held scoreless in the first half. They totaled 32 yards of offense in the first half which 43 yards less than Patriot running back Sony Michel had rushing in the same time frame. All season, we've never seen this Chiefs team held in check like this for that extended period of time.

-Brady threw two interceptions in this game. Both came with them ahead by one score, but only one turned into points for the Chiefs. Typically when the Chiefs are given extra possessions, they're able to turn them into points and wins.

The Super Bowl in this day and age wouldn't be complete if the Patriots weren't in the mix. The Chiefs gave it their best shot, but couldn't pull off the win. As much as people would love to see the Patriots dynasty fall to pieces, it isn't time yet. A matchup with the Rams looms. Super Bowl 53 is set and we get another young versus old matchup.

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The Texans are the class of the division. Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.

The Houston Texans received a lot of praise for their moves in free agency across various outlets. And for good reason, most people believe the team got significantly better with the additions of Danielle Hunter, Azeez Al-Shaair, and Denico Autry among others.

But there's another factor to consider this offseason. How much have the other teams in the AFC South improved?

When looking at the PFF grades in free agency, the Colts received a B-minus. Most of the Colts moves this offseason involved spending a lot of money re-signing their own players. Which is great in theory, but it's hard to improve the overall quality of your roster when you're bringing back players that were already there to begin with. A lot will be riding on player development for the Colts to see a big jump this season. A healthy quarterback wouldn't hurt either.

The Jaguars have made some big additions financially this offseason by signing receiver Gabe Davis and defensive tackle Arik Armstead. They also lost the top receiver on the market, Calvin Ridley, to the Titans. Gabe Davis wasn't able to establish himself as a reliable No. 2 receiver with Josh Allen throwing him the ball in Buffalo. So it's hard to believe he'll take the next step in Jacksonville. Their best move of the offseason might have been retaining edge rusher Josh Allen by using the franchise tag on him. So what did PFF think of Jacksonville's offseason? They received a B-minus, just like the Colts.

The Titans have a lot of turnover heading into the 2024 season, and not just on the roster. They have a new head coach in Brian Callahan, who's looking to revamp Tennessee's offense. Early in free agency, they agreed to terms with former Cowboys running back Tony Pollard, signing him to a 3-year deal at $8 million per season. Which is more money than the Ravens are paying for Derrick Henry, who left the Titans in free agency. Calvin Ridley was the most notable addition to the squad, he received a 4-year, $92 million deal. And while this could be viewed as an overpay, at least he gives the Titans' offense some upside. Their receiving corps looks a lot more dangerous with Ridley added to DeAndre Hopkins and Treylon Burks.

They also spent big at the center position, adding Lloyd Cushenberry on a 4-year, $50 million contract.

Because the Titans spent a lot of money on some highly coveted players, PFF gave them a B.

Now that brings us to the Texans. The Texans re-signed some of their own players like Dalton Schultz and Noah Brown. But they also made some big splashes with Hunter, Autry, Al-Shaair, and Joe Mixon. But the Texans spent their money in a more conservative way by not handing out many contracts over two years in length.

The Texans managed to add the best pass rusher in free agency with Hunter, but it's only a two-year deal. The overall talent level is going up on this roster, and GM Nick Caserio isn't having to sign players to long contracts that could come back and haunt him.

That's why we're seeing post-free agency power rankings coming out with Houston in the Top 10. And that's also why PFF gave the Texans an A for their moves in free agency.

Be sure to check out the video above as Craig from Sports Talk Extra takes an in-depth look at PFF's grades for the AFC South, and much more!

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