Sports
An ‘alien’ is coming to Atlanta: Falcons admit Mahomes Week is different
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons’ defensive players talk about Patrick Mahomes like he’s an actor, and the NFL’s leading man is coming to Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday night.
“When the play breaks down and you’ve got it all covered and you’ve done it all right, there’s a second part to the play. There’s a second act,” Falcons linebacker Kaden Elliss said. “Being able to cover up not only the initial play that the great Andy Reid has drawn up falls apart, you’ve got Patrick Mahomes becoming Him.”
“Him” refers to the dominant figure in his environment, and few professional athletes have been more dominant in their environment than Mahomes.
In six seasons as Kansas City’s starting quarterback, he has never finished a season short of the AFC Championship Game. His three Super Bowl titles are tied for third among starting quarterbacks in NFL history, and everyone ahead of him on that list started for at least twice as many seasons as he has. Only Tom Brady and Joe Montana have more playoff wins than Mahomes’ 15, and he’s 29 years old. Since he joined the league in 2017, no quarterback has won more games (91) or won them at a higher rate (78.4 percent). The seven other quarterbacks drafted in 2017 have won 76 games combined.
These numbers go on and on and on, and they’re the reason Atlanta finds itself on a prime-time stage for the second straight week as the Falcons are preparing to host the Chiefs at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on “Sunday Night Football.”
With all due respect to Kirk Cousins and Bijan Robinson and the new-look Falcons, the stage will belong to Mahomes.
“It’s his improv, man,” Falcons safety Richie Grant said. “He can improv every single play, turn something that you think is a no gain into a touchdown.”
Mahomes is so good he even beats the oldest of NFL cliches — that every week has to be treated exactly the same no matter the opponent. Atlanta outside linebacker Matthew Judon faced Mahomes six times as a member of the New England Patriots. Mahomes Week is different, he said.
“There are special players in this league,” Judon said. “When you’ve got a guy like Patrick Mahomes on the schedule, you watch a little more film. You pay closer attention to the details because he’s a three-time champ, and there’s something in the margins to win the game. It’s going to be something in the details. It’s probably going to come down to a few plays.”
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The Chiefs (2-0) come into Atlanta as 3.5-point favorites, having won eight straight games dating to last postseason.
“As a competitor, you always want to make a play against one of the best competitors,” Grant said. “I would question you if you don’t have that mindset.”
“It definitely stokes your competitive fire,” Elliss said. “If you take anybody lax in this league, it’ll get you, but when you get to go up a team of this quality, it does stoke your competitive fire a little bit more. I’m excited.”
Falcons coach Raheem Morris compares Mahomes not to an actor but to an extraterrestrial.
“He’s an alien,” Morris said. “He’s smart. He’s unique. He can move around. He can buy time. He can play within the framework of the system. He knows what you’re doing on defense. He’s grown up to the point of seeing everything. He’s seen every trick, every gimmick, every gamut, whatever you want to call it. He’s been able to really go out there and be at the top of his game in just about everything, and he’s just one of the best.”
DOT. @PatrickMahomes | @Chiefs pic.twitter.com/a9lV4txNu3
— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2024
Atlanta offensive coordinator Zac Robinson was charting draft-eligible quarterbacks as an analyst for Pro Football Focus in 2017. He said Mahomes had all those traits even then.
“Obviously, the ability that he has with his arm to really make any throw at any time was special, and then you just saw the instincts and the vision, and right away you’re saying, ‘There’s really no way that this shouldn’t work out,’ as long as he’s committed to the game, and he loves it,” Robinson said. “Obviously, he’s proven to be a football junkie.”
Sunday night will be the second time the Falcons have faced Mahomes. The first was in December of 2020 when Morris was Atlanta’s interim head coach after the firing of Dan Quinn. The Chiefs won 17-14, but the Falcons caused Mahomes enough problems (55 percent completion percentage, 79.5 passer rating) that other NFL teams briefly hoped they had provided a blueprint for slowing him down.
He’s been to three Super Bowls since then.
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Morris got another shot at Mahomes as the defensive coordinator of the Rams in 2022. Again, Mahomes didn’t play great (85.4 passer rating). Again, Mahomes won (26-10). In two matchups against Morris’ defenses, Mahomes’ passer rating and efficiency as measured by EPA per attempt are lower than his career averages (82.4 passer rating versus 103.3 and .04 EPA per attempt versus .26), according to TruMedia.
Those numbers don’t change how Morris talks about Mahomes.
“He’s certainly a problem no matter what,” the coach said, “and he’s one of the best that we’ve seen just in whatever generation you want to talk about.”
Falcons safety Justin Simmons, who spent the first eight years of his career in Denver, also has had some success against Mahomes. He’s intercepted the quarterback five times. No other player has done it more than twice. Like Morris, Simmons is smart enough not to brag about it.
“It’s not those first three seconds of the play, it’s those next four or five seconds that really matter,” Simmons said. “You can’t get frustrated when they make a big play. It’s a next-play mentality. They take a lot of shots and you have a lot of chances to go play the ball. We’ve got to be able to make plays on the football. It’s fun playing that cat-and-mouse game. This is going to be a big one for us.”
(Photo: David Eulitt / Getty Images)
Sports
Craig Morton, quarterback who led the Broncos to their first Super Bowl appearance, dead at 83
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Former Denver Broncos quarterback Craig Morton, who was inducted into the team’s Ring of Fame, died on Saturday. He was 83.
Morton was critical in helping the Broncos reach their first-ever playoff appearance, ultimately getting them to Super Bowl XII during the 1977 campaign.
After going 12-2 during the season, and getting wins in the playoffs over the Pittsburgh Steelers and then-Oakland Raiders, Morton was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Year.
Denver Broncos quarterback Craig Morton stands on the sidelines with both hands on his hips. (GETTY)
“Craig Morton is unbelievable,” fellow Ring of Famer Haven Moses said after the Broncos won the AFC Championship in 1978, per the New York Times. “To me, he’s the most valuable player in the National Football League.”
Morton also won Sporting News Player of the Year, the PFWA Comeback Player of the Year and the NFL UPI MVP in 1977.
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“We are saddened to learn of the passing of #BroncosROF quarterback Craig Morton, who died on Saturday at the age of 83,” the Broncos posted on social media.
Morton also led the Broncos to two different division titles and three playoff berths during his six seasons with the franchise. He finished his career in Denver with 11,895 passing yards, which marked the most in franchise history at the time.
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Quarterback Craig Morton #7 of the Denver Broncos drops back to pass during an NFL game at Mile High Stadium in Denver, Colo., circa 1978. Morton played for the Broncos from 1977 to 1982. (Focus On Sport/Getty Images)
Morton also led the Broncos with pass attempts (1,594) and completions (907). But Morton’s time with the Broncos was the latter half of his NFL career.
He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in 1965, the fifth overall pick out of Cal. Morton spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the Cowboys, where he threw for 10,279 yards with 80 touchdowns and 73 interceptions. He went 32-14-1 in his time with Dallas.
Then, during the 1974 season, Morton was moved to the New York Giants, a division rival of the Cowboys. He went 1-6 in his first seven starts that year and wouldn’t find much success in New York across three seasons.
Quarterback Craig Morton #7 of the Denver Broncos drops back to pass during an NFL game at Mile High Stadium in Denver, Colo., circa 1978. Morton played for the Broncos from 1977 to 1982. (Focus On Sport/Getty Images)
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For his career, Morton threw for 27,908 yards with 183 touchdowns. He owned an 81-62-1 record across 207 games.
CITY SECTION
MONDAY’S RESULTS
QUARTERFINALS
DIVISION III
#1 New West Charter d. #9 Central City Value, 25-17, 16-25, 25-10, 17-25, 15-13
#13 Birmingham d. #5 University Prep Value, 3-1
#3 South East d. #11 Monroe, 25-16, 25-19, 26-28, 25-16
#2 Legacy d. #7 Lincoln, 17-25, 25-18, 25-19, 25-20
DIVISION IV
#8 Annenberg d. #17 Canoga Park, 26-24, 25-19, 22-25, 25-27, 15-13
#4 Math & Science College Prep d. #12 Mendez, 25-15, 25-17, 25-20
#6 King Drew at #3 Manual Arts
7 Maywood CES d. #2 RFK Community, 25-12, 25-21, 25-22
DIVISION V
#1 WISH Academy d. #9 Alliance Levine, 25-19, 25-12, 25-23
#13 Rancho Dominguez d. #21 LAAAE, 25016, 25-20, 25-15
#14 Franklin d. #6 Gardena, 25-15, 25-22, 25-17
#10 Animo De La Hoya d. #15 Sotomayor, 28-30, 25-23, 25-20, 25-23
TUESDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Matches at 7 p.m. unless noted)
SEMIFINALS
OPEN DIVISION
#4 Venice at #1 Granada Hills
#3 Chatsworth at #2 Palisades
DIVISION I
#4 North Hollywood at #1 Taft
#3 Cleveland at #2 Sylmar
WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Matches at 7 p.m. unless noted)
SEMIFINALS
DIVISION II
#4 Marquez at #1 LA Hamilton
#7 Panorama at #6 Narbonne
DIVISON III
#13 Birmingham at #1 New West Charter
#3 South East at #2 Legacy
DIVISION IV
#8 Annenberg at #4 Math & Science College Prep
#7 Maywood Academy at #3 Manual Arts or #6 King/Drew
DIVISION V
#13 Rancho Dominguez at #1 WISH Academy
#14 Franklin at #10 Animo De La Hoya
Note: Finals in all divisions May-16 (sites and times TBA).
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Now the NBA playoffs are in the swing of things.
Let’s check out the odds for the second round of the playoffs, at DraftKings Sportsbook as of May 11.
This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports.
EAST SECOND ROUND
No. 7 PHILADELPHIA vs. No. 3 NEW YORK
NYK wins 4-0
No. 4 CLEVELAND (+200) vs. No. 1 DETROIT (-250)
DET leads 2-1
GAME 4 — DET @ CLE (May 11)
Spread: Cavs -3.5
Moneyline: Pistons +140, Cavs -166
O/U: 213.5
What to know: This has been a weird series. Each team has yet to lose on its home court, and the games haven’t seen much domination on either side. Take Game 3 for example: Cleveland held Detroit to 18 points in the second quarter and took a 16-point lead into halftime. Then, in the third quarter, the Pistons held the Cavs to 19 points, cutting that deficit to two heading into the fourth. But Cleveland put together its highest-scoring quarter of the game in the final frame to emerge with a seven-point win.
WEST SECOND ROUND
No. 4 LOS ANGELES (+7000) vs. No. 1 OKLAHOMA CITY (-20000)
OKC leads 3-0
GAME 4 — OKC @ LAL (May 11)
Spread: Thunder -11.5
Moneyline: Thunder -520, Lakers +390
O/U: 214.5
What to know: It appears the Lakers just don’t have the firepower to compete with the Thunder. OKC has won the first three games of the series by a combined 59 points (19.7 points per game), including a 23-point win in Game 3 in Los Angeles. And consider this: SGA is averaging just 21 points per game on 46% shooting. The Thunder are stacked, and sit at 7-0 in the postseason so far.
No. 6 MINNESOTA (+320) vs. No. 3 SAN ANTONIO (-390)
Tied 2-2
GAME 5 — MIN @ SAS (May 12)
Spread: Spurs -10.5
Moneyline: Spurs -410, Wolves +320
O/U: 218.5
What to know: We’ve got a series on our hands. Now tied at 2-2, both of these teams have won once at home and once on the other team’s home floor, with the Wolves winning a crucial Game 4 in Minnesota. But that wasn’t the story of the night. Victor Wembanyama was assessed a Flagrant 2 in the first half of Game 4, and was ejected from the game, after hitting Naz Reid with a vicious elbow to the head. He will play Game 5, but how chippy might things be after that?
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