An NFL season unlike any other concludes on Sunday when the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers meet in a Super Bowl with a difference.
The Bucs have home advantage as they bid to make history – no team has ever before played for the Lombardi Trophy in their own stadium – but there will be no full house present to watch the action unfold. In a campaign shaped by the coronavirus pandemic, there will be more cardboard cut-outs in attendance than real fans.
As for the game itself, Tom Brady versus Patrick Mahomes is box office viewing. Both have supporting casts that can accentuate their talent, giving us a battle between two quarterbacks at opposite ends of their NFL careers but with the same goal: Win one more ring.
Then there are the head coaches. Andy Reid, who couldn't win the big games, until he actually did. Bruce Arians, who retired from coaching, until he came back. They have continued to work through unprecedented times in the league, where protocols have dictated daily schedules and the only talk of two-a-days referred to COVID-19 testing, rather than practices.
Adapting to their specific situations has been the key to getting this far, according to former NFL head coach Brian Billick, now working for NFL Media.
"They evolve, they do what their players do best," Billick said on a conference call. "Certainly, Andy Reid has morphed that offense around Patrick Mahomes. He's been able to adapt exactly to the talents.
"Bruce Arians is the same way, the things that he's doing with the experience of Tom Brady and the big play presence on the outside. They adapt, specifically to the type of players that they have around them."
After starting out in the NFL in a number of roles with Green Bay, Reid had success in charge of the Philadelphia Eagles – he remains top of their all-time list for wins - without ever managing to secure the franchise a first Super Bowl. The narrative of coming up short in the postseason continued in Kansas City, but eventually – thanks to a fourth-quarter comeback – he got over the hump.
The Super Bowl triumph in 2020 ended any suggestion that Reid's Hall-of-Fame career required a ring for validation. Since then, he has appeared to be playing with house money.
Depending on what unfolds on the field this weekend, the fourth-down call against the Cleveland Browns may well remain the lasting memory of this playoff run for Kansas City. Minus Mahomes and defending a five-point lead late in the game, a hard count by stand-in quarterback Chad Henne seemed the prelude to a punt.
Hold what you have and hope to hang on, right? Not for Reid, who went all in.
Knowing a first down would seal victory and a place in the AFC Championship Game, he allowed Henne to snap the ball while in the shotgun, wait briefly for Tyreek Hill to break on his shallow route and then fire in a pass to the wide receiver. The risk was great, but so too was the reward.
Had Arians been in a similar situation, he too may have gone for it. A cancer survivor, the 68-year-old is known for his "No risk it, no biscuit" way of thinking, both in terms of his coaching philosophy and life in general.
The Buccaneers certainly pushed all their chips into the middle of the table for this season, too. The seemingly unthinkable became reality when Brady walked away from the New England Patriots to start afresh in 'Tompa Bay', a move that tempted the retired Rob Gronkowski to put away the wrestling pants and don the football pads again.
There were teething problems, as to be expected, yet Arians always insisted the team was learning on the fly, adjusting from week to week with a new starting quarterback – even one as good as Brady.
However, the Bucs have been on a roll since their bye week. Four straight victories in which they amassed a combined total of 148 points to finish the regular season were followed by playoff triumphs on the road in Washington, New Orleans – who had previously beaten them twice – and then finally Green Bay.
Arians went close to making a Super Bowl in his previous head coaching job in Arizona, losing in the NFC Championship Game. When he left in 2017, his future appeared to be in television working as an analyst.
Then the Bucs called.
Convincing both him and his wife Christine that it was the right move, he made a comeback. The arrival of Brady for his second season in charge changed the timeline, requiring Arians to use his man-management skills - "I'm not a father figure. I'm the cool uncle you'd like to have a drink with" - to bring it all together.
The presence of a great quarterback on the rosters for both franchises should not overshadow what their coaches have achieved. Arians has ironed out the wrinkles in time while allowing Brady to turn back the clock in terms of airing the ball out. Reid's biggest issue in the regular season seemed to be finding a suitable face mask to wear, yet he could still see how to put Mahomes in situations that allowed him to dazzle.
Arians and Reid have prevailed in hugely different circumstances but with the same positive outlook. Despite all that is on the line, you should expect both to be ready to gamble in the bid for glory.
Bills sign veteran pass-rusher Leonard Floyd to one-year deal
The Buffalo Bills have upgraded their pass rush, agreeing to a one-year deal with veteran outside linebacker Leonard Floyd.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network was the first to report the agreement on Monday.
Drafted with the ninth overall pick by the Chicago Bears in 2016, the 30-year-old Floyd is entering his eighth NFL season after spending the last three with the Los Angeles Rams following his first four years with the Bears.
He won a Super Bowl with the Rams two years ago while playing on the opposite side of the defense as Von Miller, who he'll be reunited with in Buffalo.
The Bills were tied for 14th in the NFL in sacks last season with 40, but their production dipped after Miller tore the ACL in his right knee in November and missed the rest of the season.
Following Miller's injury, Buffalo had two or fewer sacks in five of their final seven games.
Floyd had nine sacks while playing in all 17 games last season and has 47 1/2 sacks in his career.
Since the start of the 2020 season, his 29 sacks rank 10th in the league.
The Bills have lost in the divisional round of the playoffs each of the last two seasons, and hope the addition of Floyd will help them get back to the Super Bowl for the first time since the 1993 season.
Buffalo opens the 2023 season with a highly anticipated Monday night showdown against Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets on September 11, and Miller is optimistic he'll be able to play.
Bills agree to terms with OLB Leonard Floyd on a 1-year deal. (via @rapsheet) pic.twitter.com/4NKBxj1Lcr
— NFL (@NFL) June 5, 2023
Cardinals release three-time All-Pro WR Hopkins
The Arizona Cardinals have released wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins after failing to find a trade partner.
The team announced the move Friday on Twitter.
Hopkins spent three seasons with the Cardinals after being acquired via trade from the Houston Texans in March 2020.
The 30-year-old had a stellar debut season with Arizona, being voted to his fifth Pro Bowl after tying his personal best with 115 catches totalling 1,407 yards.
In 2021 and 2022, Hopkins had a combined 106 catches as a torn knee ligament and a six-game suspension for performance-enhancing substances limited his playing time.
Earlier this offseason, the Cardinals brought in a new leadership team in general manager Monti Ossenfort and defensive-minded head coach Jonathan Gannon, leading to trade rumours circling Hopkins.
Arizona were unable to find a trade partner to take on Hopkins' $22.6million salary cap hit during the draft last month, leaving the rebuilding Cardinals no other choice but to release the three-time All-Pro receiver.
Amid the offseason trade rumours, Hopkins had been notably absent from voluntary OTA workouts and caused a stir earlier this week when he discussed the NFL's top quarterbacks on a podcast and omitted now-former teammate Kyler Murray.
In three seasons with the Cardinals, Hopkins recorded 221 receptions for 2,696 yards and 17 touchdowns in 35 games.
The 10-year veteran has 853 career catches for 11,298 yards and 71 touchdowns.
Mahomes concerned with 'winning rings more than making money'
Patrick Mahomes' focus is on "winning rings" and not making more money, as the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback aims to cement his legacy as an NFL great.
Mahomes was the driving force yet again as the Chiefs won their second Super Bowl in the space of three years to cap the 2022 season.
The Chiefs beat the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 in Arizona, with league MVP Mahomes completing 21 of 27 passes for three touchdowns.
In the process, Mahomes, who was battling injury throughout the Chiefs' postseason, became the first player since Kurt Warner in 1999 to be crowned NFL MVP and Super Bowl MVP in the same season.
Yet Mahomes, who became the NFL's highest-paid player when he signed a $450million, 10-year contract in 2020, is now only the seventh-highest-paid QB in the league when it comes to average annual salary.
The 27-year-old, though, is not concerned by money, even though the Chiefs have hinted they will look at improving his terms.
"I've always said I worry about legacy and winning rings more than making money at this moment," he told reporters on Wednesday, as quoted by ESPN.
"We see what's going on around the league, but at the same time, I'll never do anything that's going to hurt us from keeping the great players around me.
"So it's kind of teetering around that line.
"You just want to do whatever to not hurt other quarterbacks [financially]. Whenever their contracts come up, you want to keep the bar pushing [higher]."
Mahomes wants to find a sweet spot where he is earning a fair salary that also enables the Chiefs to retain other players who have proved crucial to their success.
He explained: "It's not about being the highest-paid guy; it's not about making a ton of money. I've made enough money that I'll be set for the rest of my life.
"But at the same time, you got to find that line where you're making a good amount of money but you're still keeping a lot of great players around you so you can win these Super Bowls and you're able to compete in these games.
"If you look at the greats in the league, they find that right spot where they're getting paid a lot of money but at the same time keeping a lot of these great players around.
"I understand you look at the team and you've got guys like Chris [Jones] and [L'Jarius] Sneed and even Travis [Kelce], all these guys that you need to keep around you to have these great teams. But at the same time, you want to make sure you're taking care of yourself."
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