By HCR Staff | Sept. 20, 2019
The phrase “any given Sunday” became popular and well-known simply because it was true. Most of the NFL teams were of relatively similar quality (or perhaps, many might say, similar deficiency), and outcomes were unpredictable.
However, there is a small group of teams whose quality simply transcends the middle of the pack. This group of teams has the ability to dictate the style of play to the opponent, and control the game from start to finish. These teams also have the ability to dictate the pace of the game, making it very difficult for opponents to compete against.
Right now, the only teams with these capabilities are:
- New England Patriots – They can spread you out, or they can line up and smash it down your throat in the i-formation. They can speed it up with no huddle, or they can slow it down completely and burn 10 minutes of the clock. No other team can do this.
- Los Angeles Rams – They aren’t quite at the Patriots level of game dictation and control, but they do come close. Head coach Sean McVay has done an excellent job teaching tempo control to his team, and they play with great energy and focus with respect to game tempo.
- Kansas City Chiefs – The Chiefs are probably the best front-running team in the league. The only area we are interested in seeing improvement in is whether they can burn clock when they have to.
The New Orleans Saints may have been in this group, but with the injury to quarterback Drew Brees, we can’t put them in here at the moment. But it’s no surprise that these teams played in the the two Conference Championship games last year.
