Are the Cavaliers a championship team again?

If you are a Cleveland Cavalier fan, you might be wondering, are the Cavs a championship team like they were last year? The Cleveland Cavaliers are 32-12. That is first in the Eastern Conference, and fourth overall. Last year, they went to the NBA Finals but sadly lost to the Golden State Warriors in a 4-2 series. Arguably, the Cavs could have won if point guard Kyrie Irving did not get injured in game one. But Steph Curry and Draymond Green pretty much dominated the Finals. Lebron James did put in a great effort, but it frustrates me when James is doing all he can and his teammates cannot help him out. In the Finals, from game two and on, it was Lebron James against the whole Warrior team. James did put up great numbers, but when you only have one guy contributing to the team, your not going to win games. I am going to be talking about the weapons that the Cleveland Cavaliers have that could take them to the finals.

Ball Handlers
The Cavs have a couple of good ball handlers. They have Kyrie Irving, arguably, the best ball handler in the NBA next to Stephen Curry. J.R Smith and Iman Shumpert are also some other guys on the Cavs who can handle the ball well. They will need good ball handlers when they play good defensive teams like Golden State and the Chicago Bulls.

Defenders 
Cleveland has a bunch of good and solid defenders. I'm starting off with Lebron James. He is a good lock down defender. He can cover some point guards like Stephen Curry and Derrick Rose. He averages 1.3 steals per game. Next up, Iman Shumpert. Shumpert is a very versatile player. He can shoot the ball efficiently, and he can also defend some elite point guards. He averages a steal a game. Lastly, Matthew Dellavedova. Stats don't show Dellavedova's defensive skill but he did a good job on Stephen Curry in the NBA Finals and he is a player who can come in for Kyrie Irving and do a solid job defensively.

Play Makers
To get to the finals again, the Cavs need play makers and that is something that they have a lot of. Kyrie Irving can make plays and create off of the dribble. He averages 15.4 points per game but his field goal % has gone down. J.R. Smith is another one. He can be a very good shooter. He can go on streaks with his three point shots. He averages 12.5 points per game.

What are you thinking Steve Clifford?! - Jeremy Lin has to remain a starter

It's hard to be a Charlotte Hornets fan when my favorite player isn't getting the playing time he deserves. However, Jeremy Lin, guard on the Charlotte Hornets has been playing more minutes due to the absence of Nicolas Batum. So while that does make me happier, it would make me even more happy if he stayed a starter. With the extra minutes Lin has been on the court, he has shown Hornet fans what he is capable of. In order for Lin to continue to thrive and contribute to the team, he must remain a STARTER. Here are three reasons why.

1. Did you know that Jeremy Lin averages 18.4 points per game when he is in the starting lineup? He also shoots at a good field goal % of 46.8%. From beyond the arc, he shoots 41.2%. Also, his assists go up to 4.3 a game when he starts. Now let's compare that to Nicolas Batum, the guard that Lin replaced. Batum averages 15.1 points per game as a starter. He shoots at a field goal percentage of 41.5%. From beyond the arc, he shoots 35%. Clearly, this shows that Jeremy Lin should be a starter.

2. If you don't start Jeremy Lin, there is a limit to what he can do. I understand the size difference between Jeremy Lin and Nicolas Batum. Lin is 6'3" and Batum is 6'8". But when it comes to winning, who cares! Sometimes being shorter is better because most shorter guards are quicker which is true in the case of Lin vs. Batum.

3. He distributes the ball consistently. He probably would average more assists if the Hornets big men were better. Almost half of the great passes he gives them end up being misses. Still, as a starter he averages 4.3 assists per game. While he is not a lock down defender, his defense has improved and he can guard some other shooting guards that might have a size advantage over him.

So please Coach Clifford, put him in!!!

The Reason Why Brady Lost To Manning

Yesterday, the New England Patriots surprisingly lost to the Denver Broncos by a score of 20-18. As a lot of people know, this was another Brady vs Manning match up. But when the game was on the line for the Patriots, it wasn't Tom Brady who made the bad decisions. Instead, it was head coach Bill Belichick who made the bad decisions.

If you noticed, Belichick passed up on two field goals on fourth downs in Broncos territory. The first one was a completed pass to Julian Edelman but behind the line of scrimmage The score was 20-12 at both of those points. If Belichick had let the kicker go out both of those times the score would have been 20-18 still in the Broncos favor. But we still have to remember that the Patriots got the ball back and scored the touch down. That would have made the game 24-20 and the game would have been over.

And on the offensive side of the ball, it wasn't that Peyton Manning played that great.

He was 17 for 32 on passing 176 yards and had 2 touchdowns. He had a couple of good passes though. And also a surprising 12 yard run that got the bench going. But overall, Manning did not play that great.

The Broncos defense controlled the game. They sacked Brady 4 times and got 2 interceptions off of him. They also stopped the Pats offense on that two point conversion at the end of the game. Brady did all he could and it wasn't like Manning was the better quarterback in that match up. It was just a couple of costly decisions that lost the game for them.

But now for the Broncos, they will be going on to face the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50.

Kirk Cousins vs RG3 Comparison

The Washington Redskins have made it to the playoffs in the 2015-2016 season with a 9-7 record to top the division.

Although, this time it was without Robert Griffin lll.

And instead, this year, Kirk Cousins has brought this Washington team to the playoffs. This was a Skins team that was 4-12 the year before and 3-13 two years ago.

I am going to be comparing Kirk Cousins from the 2015-2016 season, and RG3, from his rookie year.

One thing Kirk Cousins has done this year is break the franchise record for passing yards with 4,166 passing yards along with 29 passing touchdowns. RG3 did not do that. RG3 threw for 3,200 yards and 20 touchdowns.

Although the difference between Cousins and RG3 was that RG3 actually ran the ball consistently. RG3 ran for 815 yards along with 7 rushing touchdowns but also 9 fumbles.

But what about the passer rating.

 Cousins posted a 101.6 passer rating while Griffin posted a 102.4 passer rating.

And what about interceptions.

RG3 had just 5 interceptions while Kirk Cousins had 11. I guess you could argue about that since RG3 had missed a game due to an injury and also left  game early. Cousins started all games.

They both lost in the wild card round, so there is nothing to compare there.

But if you add up all of their total yards, Kirk Cousins is the winner in that match.

So I guess both of the QBs were pretty equal, and only time will tell which one of the two is a better QB.

Which Two Teams Will Play In The Super Bowl?

We are now in the NFC and AFC championship round.        

The teams that still remain are the Arizona Cardinals, the Carolina Panthers, the New England Patriots, and the Denver Broncos. I will be telling you who will win each game of the Conference Championship round.

Denver Broncos vs New England Patriots
We all know this is going to be another exciting Brady vs Manning match up. But let's not forget that the Broncos have one of the best defenses in the league. With that Broncos D-line and secondary, it's going to be interesting to see how successful Tom Brady and the Patriots offense is going to be. I have a feeling that the Pats are going to settle on the passing game early after finding that they aren't getting any success running the ball and the Broncos secondary is going to make things hard for Brady.

Then there is also the improbability of the Denver offense. They struggled against the Steelers defense until late in the divisional round game and I believe Peyton Manning will struggle against the Pats defense.

For this game I am picking the Patriots to win. As long as their defense can come through, I think the Patriots are going to the Super Bowl again. I am guessing a score of 23-17 in the Patriots favor.



Carolina Panthers vs Arizona Cardinals


After the Carolina Panthers beat the almost unbeatable Seattle Seahawks [in the playoffs], some people probably aren't expecting anything from the Arizona Cardinals but don't go that far yet. The Cardinals arguably could have a better defense than the Panthers and Cam Newton could struggle against that defense. Also, don't forget about Arizona's offense. They are very dangerous with a group of three great receivers. Michael Floyd, Larry Fitzgerald, and the speedy John Brown.

And then there is that dangerous Carolina offense with Cam Newton leading the charge. He will be tough for Arizona to defend.

I am also wondering who Patrick Peterson will cover. It could be either Greg Olsen or Ted Ginn Jr..

For this game, I'm picking the Panthers. The score will be 24-21.

What The Redskins Have To Do To Beat The Eagles

The Washington Redskins have finally won back to back games for the first time this year and now have a .500 record. The crazy thing is, they lead the division with a 7-7 record. The NFC East really is a bad division. However, they haven't clinched a playoff spot yet. The Giants and Eagles are both only one game behind. This weekend, the Skins play the Philadelphia Eagles, a division rival. A win would clinch the playoffs for the Skins. A loss would make things a lot more interesting in this crazy division. I am going to tell you three things that the Skins have to do to get a win this weekend against the Eagles.

1. The Washington defense has been playing well, making plays, sacking the opposing quarterback, but also giving up big plays. For example, last week against the Bills, they gave up a 60 yard rush for a touchdown. The week before they gave up a 50 yard pass to Alshon Jeffery that put the Bears into field goal range. And this week, the Eagles offense could cause a lot of trouble for the Skins on defense. They have a bunch of weapons like Jordan Mathews and Ryan Mathews in the backfield. In special teams, the Eagles have Darren Sproles, the return specialist, who could give them big plays. The Skins defense can't give up big plays.

2. On offense, Kirk Cousins and the Skins are on fire. In two straight games, Kirk Cousins has thrown for 300 or more passing yards and his turnovers have been going down. If he can play the way he has been playing in the last couple games, the Redskins could take this game easily.

3. Also on offense, Kirk Cousins has to get the ball to his play makers. For example, Desean Jackson, Jordan Reed, and Pierre Garcon. The Eagles secondary won't be able to handle all of those elite play makers. I also suggest that the Skins run the ball a number of times too. The Eagles give up a lot of rushing yards to opposing teams. So, fantasy owners, if you don't have them already, find Alfred Morris or Matt Jones on waivers.

Are The Washington Redskins a Playoff Team?

After beating the Chicago Bears on the road, 24-21, the question remains the same. Are the Washington Redskins a playoff team? That question depends on what you think about the Skins if you want an answer. It mostly all depends on Kirk Cousins and if he plays efficient or not. It also depends on if their defense gives up big plays. It also depends on if they are playing on the road or at home. Two out of the three upcoming games for them are on the road so that is not good. But I have seen improvement by Kirk Cousins on the road and he has been progressing.                                           

 Most people aren't giving the Skins nearly as much credit as they should be getting. They have had to handle a bunch of adversity with some devastating losses. One of those kinds of games was a 19-16 loss against the Dallas Cowboys. The game after that they played the Bears on the road and to everybody's surprise, they beat them, 24-21. 

Like a couple of other teams, the Skins just have to keep finishing off games. They almost got too careless when they played the Bears but got lucky when Robbie Gould missed a 50 yard field  goal late in the game that would have tied it up. 

If you're keeping track of who has the easiest schedule, for the last three games to tell you who would make the playoffs in the NFC East, the Skins would be the winner in that category. All of there upcoming games are winnable. Here is their schedule [ the Skins are 6-7 right now ] :

Week 15: Bills

Week 16: Eagles

Week 17: Cowboys

Here is the Eagles Schedule [ they are 6-7 right now] : 

Week 15: Cardinals

Week 16: Redskins

Week 17: Giants

Here is the Giants schedule [ they are 6-7 right now ] :

Week 15: Panthers

Week 16: Vikings

Week 17: Eagles

Here is the Cowboys schedule [ they are 4-9 right now ] 

Week 15: Jets 

Week 16: Bills

Week 17: Redskins