The IFL is a 30 team league that uses the Action! PC football game by Dave Koch Sports. If you would like more information about the IFL please contact Commissioner John Storer at jstorer715@gmail.com
IFL SUPER BOWLPATRIOTS 34 EAGLES 24 New England's Tyreek Hill caught four passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns
Philadelphia Eagles (13-3) vs. New England Patriots (15-1)
The Eagles came into this game looking for their first title against the defending champions from New England, winners of 3 of the last 5 IFL titles and entering this game on an 18 game winning streak after dropping their 2021 opener. The fates of these two teams were intertwined to an extent, as Eagle QB Ryan Tannehill and Patriot WR Cooper Kupp were integral pieces to a trade between these two teams less than two years ago. Both players would play key roles in this one...... Philadelphia would get the ball first looking to get out early.....and boy did they! Tannehill hit on all three of his pass attempts on the opening drive, short gains of 8 yards to both Julian Edelman and Brandin Cooks for 8 yards, mixed in with a few short Brian Hill runs. Then on 2nd and 6 from the 50, Tannehill hit Edelman on a quick out who was seemingly dead to rights, but Ronald Darby whiffed on the tackle and Edelman raced the distance to give the Eagles a quick 7-0 lead. Lamar Jackson looked to answer, hitting 4 consecutive first down plays to start the NE drive. Completions to Kupp for 13 on two occasions were mixed in with a 22 yard completion to Kareem Hunt and a 15 yard Jackson scramble to set up a 3 yard Austin Ekeler TD run. Eagles 7 Patriots 7 Starting their next drive from their own 25 Tannehill dropped back but was sacked by Justin Houston. Completions to Evan Engram and Tim Patrick weren't enough to convert a first down and the Eagles would punt it away. Starting from his own 25, Lamar Jackson decided to test Eagle all-pro CB JC Jackson (10 interceptions during the regular season) by throwing one up deep for Tyreek Hill. Hill raced past Jackson and caught the pass in stride, taking it to the house! Eagles 7 Patriots 14 Tannehill would connect with John Brown for a 12 yard gain on 3rd and 11 to give the Eagles a spark on their next drive, but they'd stall from there and punt it back to NE, who would go 3 and out before punting back to the Eagles, who with great field position at the 50 yard line looked to mount a drive heading into the 2nd quarter........ After a Tannehill to Cooks completion netted 13 yards, Rex Burkhead got the call for carries of 2 and 5 yards and then another 9 yard Cooks reception for the first down at the NE 24. Burkhead for 2 more on the ground was followed by a defensive PI call on Marcus Williams giving the Eagles first and goal at the 8. Alfred Morris rushed for 5 yards to the 3, but a false start on Edelman and a sack by Devin White pushed the Eagles into a 3rd and goal from the 11 yard line. Patriots go with 7 DBs, but it isn't enough to stop Tannehill from finding Cooks once again for the 11 yard TD!! Eagles 14 Patriots 14 On the first play of the ensuing drive, Lamar Jackson dropped back and lofted another high arching pass in the direction of Hill, who once again hauled it in to beat J.C Jackson for a 38 yard gain. An 8 yard pass to Hayden Hurst was followed by short gains on the ground by Hunt and Jackson. The drive was capped off by back to back completions to Kupp of 15 and 8 yards - the second for a TD - and the Pats were up once again. Eagles 14 Patriots 21 Eagles would go 3 and out and hand it right back to the Patriots. 12 plays and 55 yards later NE was looking poised to extend their lead. But on 1st and 10 from the Eagle 26, Lamar tried to force one in to a doubled Kupp, but was picked by Bashaud Breeland to end the threat. Game would move to halftime with NE up by a touchdown. The two teams would exchange punts to start the second half before NE would take over at their own 32 with 9 minutes to play in the quarter. A 10 yard reception by Ekeler on 3rd and 7 kept the chains moving. After 4 yard runs by Ekeler and Jackson brought a 3rd and 2 from the Eagle 47, Jackson dropped back to pass and aired another one out to Hill, who for the 3rd time got by J.C. Jackson - this time for the 47 yard TD giving him 3 receptions for 160 yards and 2 scores! Eagles 14 Patriots 28 Runs of 8, 9 and 2 by Rex Burkhead kick started the ensuing Eagle drive. Another pass interference call on Marcus Williams gave Philly first and 10 from the NE 45. An 18 yard run by Brian Hill ultimately led to a 9 yard Engram TD catch with under a minute to play in the 3rd quarter. Eagles 21 Patriots 28 Patriots looked to answer early in the 4th quarter. Faced with a 4th and inches at their own 35 yard line, NE lined up to go for it. Jackson tried to draw the Eagles offside to no avail.....but instead of calling time out, the ball was snapped and with the Eagles keying on Jackson, Lamar dropped back and found Kupp over the middle for 13 yards and a first down. On the very next play, Jackson found Tyreek Hill for the 4th time streaking down the field, this time for 39 yards to the Eagles 13 yard line. Justin Tucker would come in for the short field goal after the drive stalled. Eagles 21 Patriots 31 With 10:44 to play Philly needed to make something happen. With NE playing pass, the Eagles turned to Brian Hill who rushed for 3 and 8 yards out to the Eagle 36. After a 14 yard catch by Tim Patrick, Tannehill soon after found John Brown for a clutch 13 yard reception on 3rd and 10 out to the 37 of NE. Another false start by Edelman pushed them back 5 yards, and ultimately Butker was brought on for the 47 yard field goal. With under 7 minutes to play it was back to a one score game. Eagles 24 Patriots 31 On 2nd and 10, Lamar Jackson dashed around the left side for a 19 yard pickup and a first down. Jackson to Kupp for 14 and another first down - clock continued to tick away. Eagles desperately in need of a stop now, but with Hill and Kupp both doubled, Jackson took off once again for 13 yards and another first down. Two minute warning......Patriots first and ten at the Philly 24. Eagles had all 3 timeouts still but needed a stop and they got it when Nyheim Hines was stuffed for a 4 yard loss on first down. Eagles call time. On 2nd and 14 from the 28, the Eagles were expecting another run when Jackson dropped back and for the 10th time found Kupp who beat Breeland once again for 15 yards and a first down. Three Jackson kneels and a short Justin Tucker field goal stretched the Patriots lead to 10 points, which is how it would end. FINAL SCORE EAGLES 24 PATRIOTS 34 Lamar Jackson completed 21 of 27 passes for 385 yards, 3 TDs and 1 interception. He also rushed for 58 yards on the game. Jackson saved his best football for the playoffs, as he threw 13 TDs with only 1 INT in 4 games, while averaging nearly 50 yards rushing a game as well. Tyreek Hill (4 receptions, 199 yards and 2 TDs) was also a beast, hauling in 6 TD passes in 4 playoff games. Cooper Kupp caught 10 passes in the game for 117 and a score, while ILB Devin White was all over the field on defense, with 10 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble. For the Eagles, Ryan Tannehill kept his team in it with his stellar play and some clutch throws (50% on 3rd down), completing 21 of 34 for 257 and 3 TDs (and no interceptions). Brandin Cooks caught 7 for 75 and a TD to lead the Eagles receivers. Penalties were relatively even on the day and NE had the game's only turnover. TOP was fairly even while the Patriots outgained the Eagles 496 to 320 in net offense. Congratulations to Greg on a fantastic season, winning 15 games on the season and coming within spitting distance of an IFL championship. Patriots wrap up their second back to back title, and fourth in six years. With some personnel issues looming however, there's a good chance there'll be a different AFC participant in next year's IFL title game. 
PATRIOTS 28 BENGALS 23 Lamar Jackson throws for 162 yards and 3 TDs and rushes for another 69 as Patriots return to the Super Bowl.
Patriots return to Cincinnati for a rematch of their Week 16 contest, where NE won 31-10 in a game that saw the Bengals resting many of their starters.
Not the case in this one, as both teams were at full strength. New England received the ball first and Lamar Jackson immediately looked to Cooper Kupp for consecutive plays of 14 and 26 yards. A 14 yard hook up to Hayden Hurst was followed by an 11 yard TD pass from Lamar to Austin Ekeler. 7-0 Patriots Aaron Rodgers completes 7 or 8 pass attempts on the first Cinci drive, while Ronald Jones rushed for 18 yards on 3 carries - but the drive stalled at the NE 17 and the Bengals had to settle for a FG. 7-3 NE After an exchange of punts, the Patriots found themselves at midfield starting their next drive. Runs of 15, 2 and 4 by Kareem Hunt helped NE move deeper into Bengal territory, as did a 16 yard Lamar Jackson hookup with Tyreek Hill. On 3rd and 6 from the Cinci 9 yard line, the Bengals blitzed 3 and doubled Kupp, leaving Jalen Ramsey on Tyreek......but Hill got free and Jackson found him for the 9 yard TD. 14-3 Patriots Rodgers looked to rally the home team and completed 4 straight passes including to Chark for 15 and 11 yards. But 2 consecutive holding penalties on the Bengals OL stymied the drive and the home team had to settle for another Fairbairn FG. 14-6 Patriots NE responded in the final minutes of the 2nd quarter, thanks in large part to the legs of Lamar Jackson, who broke off runs of 14, 19 and 18 yards within the span of 4 plays. Ekeler capped the drive with a 4 yard TD run and it was 21-3 NE headed to halftime. Other than a Bengal FG in the 3rd quarter, there was not much offense to speak of. But, with a 21-9 lead, NE was threatening toward the end of the quarter as Jackson found Kupp for 8 and 15 yards to move into Bengal territory. NE would have the ball at the Bengal 27 yard line as the game transitioned to the 4th quarter. After a holding penalty on the defense, Jackson quickly connected with Cooper Kupp for 22 yards and a TD to extend the Patriot lead to 28-9. Aaron Rodgers would lead the Bengals on consecutive TD drives in the 4th quarter to narrow the gap to 28-23, but there wasn't enough time for another Bengal possession and the Patriots would hold on for the 5 point win. The Bengals finished with 350 yards of net offense to the Patriots' 305. Each team made it into the Red Zone four times, with the Patriots scoring 3 TDs to the Bengals 2. Individually, Lamar Jackson had 3 passing TDs and 69 yards rushing, while Kareem Hunt ran for 61 yards on 10 carries. Aaron Rodgers completed all but 7 of his 32 pass attempts for 215 yards and a TD pass to Travis Fulgham. Ronald Jones was a beast on the ground for the home team, rushing for 126 yards on 20 carries in the losing effort. Congratulations to John on another strong season in Cincinnati, and as always, for running an outstanding DKS league. 
EAGLES 20 WASHINGTON 13 Ryan Tannehill's 70 yard TD pass to Tim Patrick just before the half proved to be the difference.
The Washington Football Team would invade Lincoln Financial to face their NFC East rival, the Philadelphia Eagles, for the 3rd time this year but this time it would be for a chance to go to the Super Bowl. The Eagles were able to win both regular-season games which would make it that much harder to advance to their 1st IFL Super Bowl.
WFT would win the toss and elect to defer. Eagle QB Ryan Tannehill and company would take the field. So far, Tannehill has not been what he was in the regular season and he was looking to turn that around. On their first possession, the Eagles would move down the field but it would mostly be behind the legs of RB Adrian Peterson as WFT would employ a mostly pass defense. The drive would stall at WFT's 36 and Eagle K Harrison Butker would come on and kick a 54 yard FG to give the Eagles an early 3-0 lead. WFT and their vaunted run game would take the field on their first possession and, thanks to RB Aaron Jones 46 yard run, get into Eagle territory quickly. The Eagle defense, as it has done all season, would bow up and cause WFT to kick a FG of their own. WFT K Joey Slye would kick a 43 yarder to tie the game at 3. The Eagles were unable to move the ball on their next possession and would punt it back to WFT. WFT would waste no time mixing their run game with QB Dak Prescott's timely passes. Early in the 2nd quarter, deep in Eagle territory, the Eagles were caught napping looking for a Damien Williams run. Prescott would fake it and hit WR Tee Higgins on a 31 yard out route to give WFT a 10-3 lead. Tannehill would get things rolling on their next possession and hit a couple of medium-range passes. However, it would be the running of Peterson and Brian Hill that would get the job done as Peterson would take it in from 2 yards out to tie the game at 10. Washington would once again move the ball and stall out. This time Slye would hit a 49 yard FG to put WFT back in the lead 13-10 as halftime was closing in. Attempting to move the ball quickly down the field, Tannehill would make a mistake. Looking for standout WR Brandin Cooks, Tannehill would let it fly. The pass appeared to fall incomplete but WFT star corner Xavien Howard looked to have gotten his hands under the ball for an interception. After review, Howard would indeed have the INT setting up WFT in good field position to score before halftime. After a couple of untimely penalties (a big story of the game) and a negative loss on 1st down, WFT decided to run clock. The Eagles would use all of their timeouts plus the 2-minute warning to get the ball back. With one more shot before halftime, Tannehill would try to at least get 3 more points for the home team. After a WFT roughing penalty on 1st down and a Vita Vea sack on the next play, Tannehill would line up in shotgun position. As he stood in the pocket, he would find WR Tim Patrick on the medium crossing route. Patrick would make a couple of defenders miss and 70 yards later, hit paydirt! With:36 left in the half the Eagles would be back in front 17-13 and that would be how the half ended. The 3rd quarter saw WFT, with their ball-control offense, move twice into Eagle territory. The first possession would end with a pooch punt putting the Eagles inside their own 5. After getting a couple of 1st downs. the Eagles would punt it back. WFT would again stall out but this time they were close enough for a chip shot FG. Unbelievably, Slye would shank the 25 yarder and the score would remain 17-13 Eagles as the 4th quarter began. The Eagle's offense would get things rolling and move into WFT territory. Attempting to eat away some clock, they would mostly stick to the run game. After a penalty and a couple of incomplete passes, Butker would come on and nail a 40 yard FG to extend the Eagle lead to 20-13. WFT would have one last chance to tie the game and take it into OT or win it with a 2 point conversion. Unfortunately, 2 holding penalties and DT Deforest Buckner's sack of Prescott would mean that WFT would have to punt especially since they had all 3 of their timeouts. After a 1 yard Peterson run, followed by a WFT timeout, Coach Mason decided to take a chance by throwing the ball. Tannehill would fake it to Hill, who had replaced Peterson and find WR Julian Edleman (in his final season) on a crossing route for a 27 yard gain. The 1st down would mean that WFT couldn't stop the clock. The Eagles would let the clock run down and the celebration would begin! Final score 20-13 Eagles! Congrats to Coach Heaton on a well-played game and a great season. He is one of the toughest coaches in the league. His team was hampered by 10 penalties for 85 yards and a couple of missed opportunities. The Eagles go to their 1st ever IFL Super Bowl. I got into this league in 2008. (Yikes) It is every coach's goal to get to the big dance and after 14 years it feels mighty good to be there. We shall see if this Eagle team can finish it out. IFL DIVISONAL ROUND
PATRIOTS 21 JETS 20 New England's Cooper Kupp scores the go-ahead touchdown with just 12 seconds remaining.
New England travels to visit the Jets in the 3rd matchup of the season between the two teams. Jets won the opener in Week 1, while New England squeaked out an overtime win in the second matchup. Neither team had lost another game all year heading into this one.
Jets take the opening kick and move into NE territory behind completions from Watson to Robert Woods for 10 and 13, and a 16 yard pass play to Marvin Jones. Facing a 4th and 1 at the NE 32 Watson dives up the middle for 10 yard.......but the play is negated by an Iupati holding penalty. Jets forced to punt. Patriots go 3 and out on their first drive, as do the Jets on their next drive, and the Patriots on THEIR next one............scoreless game after the first quarter. Jets have the ball at their own 25 to start the second quarter. On 3rd and 1, Watson took it himself once again but no penalty this time as he rushes for 16 and a 1st down. A 15 yard facemask penalty on Whitney Mercilus on a screen to Melvin Gordon brought the Jets to the NE 28. Watson took a shot down the middle of the field for Robert Woods, hitting him in stride for the 28 yard TD. Hopkins would miss the XP however. 6-0 Jets. A penalty on the return sets NE back deep in their end. Pats then go 3 and out and hand ball right back to NY near midfield. Watson breaks off a nifty 14 yard run to get the Jets into Pats territory, but a Tuitt sack a couple plays later stalled the drive. Jets attempt a pooch punt to pin NE again, but Rashan Gary races from the outside and blocks the kick, setting NE up at their own 48. Lamar Jackson starts the drive with an 11 yard carry, followed by completions to Kareem Hunt for 19, Tyreek for 14 and then an 8 yard TD strike to Kupp. Pats convert the XP and lead 7-6. Jets take over at their own 25 with under 4 minutes to play. Consecutive passes to Woods for 11 and 14 yards have NY in Pats territory. On 2nd down at the NE 40, Watson looked for Jones but was picked by Darious Williams ending the drive. Patriots would go 3 and out giving it back to NY with a chance to take the lead before halftime. Completions to Jones Jr. and Woods had NY at the Patriot 38 yard line with 29 seconds to play. Short pass plays to James White failed on consecutive attempts setting up 3rd and 10. Looking to catch the NE defense creeping trying to prevent a more makeable field goal, Watson looked for Jones on a fly pattern and CONNECTED inside the 10 yard line....but Ronald Darby tripped him up at the 7 yard line with 6 seconds to play!! NY would try to get back to the line but with no time outs the clock would run out. 7-6 Patriots headed to the locker room. Pats take the initial possession and on 3rd down, Lamar looks to make something happen on a fly pattern to Richie James - who hauls it in for a 20 yard gain on 3rd down but then lays it on the ground..............mad scramble...........and the Jets recover!! First and 10 Jets at the NY 38. Jets take advantage, with consecutive completions to Higbee from Watson for 11 and 13 yards, followed by runs by Melvin Gordon of 15 and 5 yards (of his 117 on the day) setting up a Watson to Jones 15 yard TD strike. Hopkins hits the XP and Jets lead 13-7. Pats look to respond but on their first play Jamie Collins sacks Jackson, setting NE back and sabotaging the drive. Patriots punt to NY who get a nice 15 yard return by Berrios. First and ten at the NY 26. Jets took to the ground, with runs by Gordon of 14, 4 and 11, 7 and 10 on 5 of the next 6 plays. A Watson 17 yard run on the other play had NY inside the red zone once again. Then, Watson found Jones on a quick out which he took to the house for the 11 yard score!! Jets up 20-7. Patriots looked to draw closer and faced a 3rd and 1 at their own 49 yard line. The give to Hines was sniffed out by the defense bringing up 4th and 1. NE decides to go for it, but with the Jets keying on him, Kareem Hunt was stopped short and the Jets would take over with :18 seconds to play in the 3rd. Tyson Alualu sacked Watson to put NY in a deep hole entering the 4th quarter, forcing the punt. Starting at their own 13, Lamar Jackson raced outside for a 13 yard gain. After a 2 yard gain by Hunt (who was being swallowed by the Jets D line all day), Lamar looked downfield to Hill.....who got by Bradberry and caught the pass in stride for the 73 yard TD!! Jets lead cut to 20-14 with 12 minutes remaining. A couple Watson to Jones passes had NY out near midfield once again, but on 3rd and 2 Gordon was stuffed forcing the punt back to NE with 7:40 remaining in the game. An Ekeler 11 yard run followed by a pass play to Hayden Hurst for 11 had the Patriots out to their own 45 yard line quickly. A holding penalty by Quenton Nelson killed the drive for NE however, as they'd punt it back to NY. With 5:23 to play NY looked to kill some clock with Gordon. Runs of 0 and 3 yards brought up 3rd down, and Watson failed to connect with Jones forcing a punt. Patriots take over with 4:20 to play trailing by 6. After a Jackson 5 yard rush brings NE to their own 21, Shelby Harris sacked Lamar setting the Patriots back at their own 12 facing a 3rd and 14 with the clock ticking toward the 3 minute mark. Lamar created a little magic however, hitting Hill for 14 yards and a first down. After an 11 yard Jackson rush, the Pats were stuffed on the next play and faced a 2nd an 10 from their own 41. TWO MINUTE WARNING. Jackson checked down to Ekeler for 8 yards on the next play bringing up 3rd and 2. Clock ticking.......... Jets decided to key on Hunt again but this time Jackson faded back and hit Kupp for 14 yards to the NY 37 yard line. NE uses their first time out and its first and ten with 1:15 to play. A reverse to Tyreek Hill from his own 37 gains 11 yards......but clock is still ticking............ On the next play, Jackson sweeps right for 16 before heading out of bounds at the 10 yard line. 28 seconds to play................ An incompletion to Hunt in the flat brought up 2nd down, but on the next play Jackson tried again and Hunt caught the pass and ran for 6 yard to the NYJ 4 yard line. Timeout NE with 19 seconds to play........................ On 3rd and goal from the 4 yard line..............Lamar rolls out looking for an open man.......buying time with his legs he lets it fly................ Streaking across the end zone is Cooper Kupp who grabs it between two defenders for the TD!! With 12 seconds to play, the Patriots were an XP away from taking the lead. Justin Tucker would line up....................and nail it to send the Patriots on to the AFC Title Game! Final Score Patriots 21 Jets 20 Jets outplayed NE for most of this one, with 24 first downs and 414 net yards offense to only 14 and 289 for NE. Unlike the regular season however where Lamar Jackson was picked off FIVE times in two games by Jet defenders with only 1 passing TD, he tossed 3 TDs (2 to Cooper Kupp) today without an interception to help NE rally with 14 unanswered points in the final quarter. Each team would turn the ball over once and penalties were essentially even. The missed XP in the first quarter was huge, as was the Gary blocked punt which helped set up the Pats initial TD. DeShaun Watson threw for 255 and 3 TDs in a fine game for him. Marvin Jones caught 8 of 11 targets for 116 and 2 TDs, while Robert Woods hauled in 7 for 93 and a score. Other than Lamar's 57 yards rushing (most late in the game) the Patriots running game was throttled by the NY defense. Avoiding the key turnovers was key on this day, as was a couple special teams miscues for the Jets. Congratulations to Bob for a fantastic season, and for being a good sport after a tough end result. The Jets have certainly been good enough to win an IFL Title two consecutive seasons now, and but for a missed XP might have moved on from this one. Pats will face off with the Bengals next week for the chance to defend their title. BENGALS 34 RAIDERS 20 Brandon Wilson's 103 yard kickoff return proved to be the difference as the Bengals advance to the conference finals.
The IFL Bengals traveled to Las Vegas to face the #2 seed Raiders. In a week 11 trip to Vegas, Cincinnati fell 35-31. The Raiders performed like a well oiled machine during their opening drive, going 89 yards in nine plays with Matthew Stafford finding Greg Ward from five yards out and a 7-0 lead with a little over nine minutes remaining. After the Vegas defense forced a three and out Stafford was intercepted by Bengal safety Micah Hyde and Cincinnati set up shop at the Raider 11. One play later Aaron Rodgers connected with Diontae Johnson for the tying score with six minutes remaining in the opening quarter. Las Vegas was able to reach the Cincinnati 37 but had to settle on a booming 55 yard Jason Myers field goal to regain the lead 10-7.
Rodgers and D.J. Chark Jr. were able to connect on a couple completions for 20 yards with the second going for six as the Bengals took their first lead 14-10 with a little less than 12 minutes remaining in the half. After forcing a Raider punt Cincinnati stalled at the Las Vegas three and played it safe with the Fairbairn 21 yard field goal to extend their lead to 17-10 with less than two minutes remaining in the half. The half would end with the Bengals holding on to the seven point lead. Cincinnati fumbled on the opening drive of the third quarter with the Raiders recovering at the Bengals 30. Three plays later Stafford connected with Marcus Johnson for the nine yard tying score. But the Bengals answered with a 10 play 75 yard drive as RoJo went in from four yards out to regain the lead at 24-17. Another booming Myers field goal, this time from 59 yards out cut the Cincinnati lead to 24-20. However, the Bengals special teams once again came up big in the postseason as Brandon Wilson returned the kickoff 103 yards to extend the Cincinnati lead to 31-20 with 30 seconds remaining in the quarter. (A small group of IFL Bengal fans that made the cross country trip got beat up by a hoard of Raider fans for celebrating a little too much). The only scoring in the final quarter was another Cincinnati field goal for the 34-20 final. Rodgers finished 23 of 30 for 239 yards and two TDs. RoJo rushed for 84 yards and a score. Stafford went 21 of 38 for 229 yards and two TDs but also three interceptions. Kamara rushed for 52 yards. Congratulations to Keith on another fine season. The Bengals wait to see which monster they will face in the conference final; hoping they have one more sling shot in their arsenal.
WASHINGTON 23 BUCCANEERS 14 Washington's Aaron Jones rushed for 181 yards and two TDs as the Football Team advances past Tampa Bay.
After a home win in the wildcard round Washington would head to Tampa to face off against the #1 seed who had an impressive regular season.
Tampa would win the toss and elect to defer giving Washington first crack at it and the theme would become clear very early in the game. Aaron Jones right side for 12 yards. Then another carry for 12 yards. A quick pass to Higgins and a 24 yards pass interference for 24 yards and Washington was quickly at the 11 yard line. 3 more jones runs and they were in the endzone with a 7-0 lead. Tampa and Washington would then exchange 3 and outs. Following a nice punt return the Bucs would gain nice field position at their own 39. On 2nd down Tillery would come up big with a sack pushing them to 3rd and 3 in an obvious passing down. Fitzpatrick would look for Lockett on the crossing route but would be picked off by Minkah Fitzpatrick. Harris would then take his shot in the backfield with carries of 10 and 22 yards to bring the ball to the 5 yardline. However a 5 yard penalty for Washington for running a play for 12 yards (and embarrassingly failing to score despite the advantage) would force a 28 yards field goal that Joey Slye would hit. Tampa would start to move the ball with the next drive utilizing their run game and tight ends to get the ball down to the 35 yard line but on 1st down Carr would attempt to go deep to Marqise Brown and be intercepted by Darqueze Dennard. Washington would move the ball into no-mans land and be forced to attempt a 4th and 7 which would bounce of Higgins hands turning the ball over on downs. Despite back to back interceptions ending drives the Bucs faith in Carr did not dimmish as he just kept slinging it. Tampa would find some success utilizing the middle of the field with both Cook and Henry to get the ball to the 48yard line. From there Carr would reward Henry for his hard work for an 8 yard TD with 3:35 to go in the half. Washington would take the next drive starting at the 25 and would attempt to eat some clock as they tried to tack on a score. On 3rd down Aaron jones would break out a big run for 63 yards getting knocked out at the 6 yard line. 2 carries later and he was in the endzone for the second time today to put Washington up 17-7 with 1:35 left in the half. Tampa would try to drive down the field to at least put a FG on the board but the drive would fizzle out on the 47 with 3 seconds left. From there Washington would take a page out of Joe Judge’s playbook and shockingly call a quick kick to end the half. Tampa would get the ball to start the second half and it was clear they worked something out during the half because Carr marched the ball right down the field to put up a quick TD to make it 17-14 and put pressure on Washington to respond. Following the kick Washington would go right back to what had worked all game long: the run game. The WFT would run the ball on the next 8 consecutive plays getting the ball all the way down to the 24 yard line. After picking up a crucial 3rd and 7 with a dump-off pass to Aaron Jones, Dak Prescott would find Tee Higgins on the play action pass for 6. And it would only be 6 as it was time for both Washington and Tampa Bay to put on a special teams clinic. Joey Slye would shank the extra point to keep it a 9 point game with 3:47 to go. Patterson would break off a nice return on the kickoff but unfortunately, they were flagged for an illegal block putting the ball at the 5 yardline. A quick 3 and out would force them to punt from their own 13 giving Washington great field position and a chance to put the game away. Unfortunately for some inexplicable reason Xavien Howard decided to play a little special teams and lined up offsides giving the Bucs a first down. The Bucs would take advantage of their new found life and get the offense in gear pushing the ball down to the 39 yardline. A sack by Chubb would cause the drive to stall out and force Tampa to settle for a 49 yard field goal with their reliable kicking Boswell. Unfortunately, at this point quality special teams play had gone completely out the window and Boswell would one up slye and shank the FG. Following the missed field goal Tampa would get the ball two more times but with the defense knowing they had to throw they struggled to protect Carr long enough to make anything happen as they would fall 23-14. Washington will head to Philly for a 3rd meeting this year. The Eagles already have two impressive wins over Washington on the year so it will be an uphill climb. EAGLES 17 SAINTS 14 (OT) Harrison Butker's game winning overtime field goal allows Eagles to slip past Saints.
I've played many Action PC football games over the years and I'm sure I have had some important games that came down to the wire. However, I can't remember anything like the contest completed last night vs Jim Rice's Saints especially with a chance to get to the NFC Conference Championship. I think we both aged about 10 years by the time the final whistle blew. It was an epic game with lots of twists and turns. The write-up follows but I'm not sure I'll be able to do it justice.
The weather conditions in Philly were cold and rainy at game time. Both teams knew that was going to be difficult conditions to compete in but both teams had to deal with it. The Saints would win the toss and elected to defer. Starting from their own 25-yard line, the 1st mistake of the game would be made by Eagles QB Ryan Tannehill. On 2nd and 12 from their own 38, Tannehill would look for WR Julian Edleman and what seemingly was an incomplete pass would be intercepted by Saint LB Jordan Hicks to set the Saints up in Eagle territory. However, the Saints would be unable to move the ball and would punt it back to the Eagles. The next 4 possessions would be defensive stands by both teams. After the Eagles pinned the Saints deep in their own territory, they got field position on a 3 and out. Starting from the Saints 48, Coach Mason decided to let Tannehill air one out on 1st down. With the Saints keying on RB Adrian Peterson, Tannehill would fake it and hit a streaking Brandin Cooks on the post pattern for a TD. The Eagles go up 7-0 heading into quarter 2. After another 3 and out from the Saints, the Eagles decided if it worked once why not try it again. This time, from their own 28, Tannehill would hit Edleman on a post fly pattern for a big 50 yard gain setting them up deep in Saints territory. 2 plays later, Tannehill would hit WR Tim Patrick on a 9 yard out pattern for a 14-0 lead. The Saints would take the ensuing kickoff and get their first great drive of the game. However, at the Eagle 18, the weather conditions would kick in and Saint QB Cam Newton would fumble with the Eagles recovering. The half would end as it started with the teams exchanging punts except for a Newton int late in the half. The halftime score would stay 14-0 in favor of the Eagles. The 3rd quarter would begin with the Saints receiving the ball With a mix of runs by RB's Edwards-Helaire and John Connor along with timely passes by Newton, the Saints would move methodically down the field, consume 9:20 of game clock and score their 1st TD of the game on a Newton to WR Cole Beasley pass of 8 yards. Saints cut the lead to 14-7. The 3rd quarter would end that way. Entering the 4th quarter, the Saints were on the move again. They would get to the Eagle 21 before being stopped. Saints K Brandon McManus would line up for a FG and make it. However, a holding penalty would push the Saints back and another try would have to come from the Eagle 31. This time McManus would shank the kick and the score remained 14-7. On their next possession, the Eagles would move into Saint territory only to be stopped at the Saint 36. Eagle K Harrison Butker would line up for the long FG and he would make it! However, the Eagles would encounter the same fate as the Saints did. A holding penalty would take them out of FG range and the Eagles would punt it back to the Saints. With time beginning to run out on the Saints, Coach Rice would call a deep ball of his own. Newton would hit WR AJ Brown on a 44-yard bomb to set up the Saints for a game-tying TD. It would only take 3 plays for Newton to connect with Brown again on a 13-yard hitch and the game would be tied at 14 with just over 3 minutes left in the game. The two teams would trade punts and the Eagles would get the ball with a little over a minute left in the game and two timeouts. Attempting to move into FG range for Butker, Tannehill, who did not have one of his better games, would do the unthinkable and throw an interception to Saints S Darian Thompson. Set up on the Eagles 49-yard line, Newton would run for 11 yards and Edwards-Helaire would run for another 3 to put the ball on the Eagles 35-yard line and :03 left in the game. McManus would line up, the snap, the kick... wide left! We go to OT! The Eagles would win the toss in OT but go 3 and out. The Saints could not move the ball either and go 3 and out as well. Behind the legs of RB Adrian Peterson and the arm of Tannehill finally hitting his stride, the Eagles would move the ball to the Saints 16-yard line. After 1 run by RB Brian Hill, Coach Mason would send Butker in. The kick would go straight down the middle and the Eagles would escape with a 17-14 OT victory! It was a hard-fought game with lots of nail-biting moments. Congrats to Coach Jim Rice who called a great game and got the raw end of the game engine a couple of times. The Eagles move on to the NFC Conference Championship and await the winner to Tampa-Washington. IFL WILD CARD WEEKEND
BENGALS 33 TEXANS 20 D.J. Chark Jr. caught 7 passes for 134 yards and 2 TDs as Bengals down Houston.
The Texans travel to Cincinnati to face the Bengals in the wild card round of the IFL playoffs. Houston got the best of the Bengals in week 13 of the IFL season, 28-13. After multiple exchanges of punts, the Texans took a 3-0 lead at the 5:40 mark of the opening quarter. Cincinnati answered with a 15 play-75 yard drive as Rodgers connected with Diontae Johnson from nine yards out for a 7-3 Bengals lead with 10:57 remaining in the half. After forcing another Houston punt, Cincinnati extended their lead to 14-3 as Rodgers found Chark from 19 yards out. The Texans cut the Bengals lead to 14-10 as Cousins connected with Ridley for the 13 yard score just after the two minute warning. Cincinnati was able to add a field goal as time expired at the half as they went into the locker room up 17-10.
After forcing a Cincinnati punt, the Texans went on a 10 play-69 yard drive capped off by a Cousins six yard scoring strike to McLaurin to knot things up at 17 with about six minutes remaining in the quarter. The Bengals marched to the Houston 20 but Texans corner Mike Hilton intercepted a Rodgers pass to end the threat. However, Houston was forced to punt once again. After a third down conversion, Rodgers hit Chark in stride for the 46 yard score to regain the lead at 24-17 with 11 minutes remaining in the game. A poor kickoff return by Claybrooks and a holding penalty resulted in Bengal safety Micah Hyde catching Cousins off guard with a blitz and a safety to extend the Cincinnati lead to 26-17. The Bengals would add another touchdown and Houston would end the scoring with a field goal for the 33-20 final. Cousins finished 17 of 28 for 203 yards and two TDs. Ridley led the Texan receivers with five catches for 73 yards and a score. Rodgers went 28 of 34 for 329 yards and four TDs with an INT. Chark finished with seven receptions for 134 yards and two scores. Congrats to Pete on a fine season. PATRIOTS 33 JAGUARS 13 The Patriots Lamar Jackson throws for 312 yards and 4 TDs as New England defeats the Jaguars.
Jaguars travel to Foxboro looking to spring the upset. DKS had the game with an EVEN line, so it seemed something might be up here......
It wouldn't take long for the visitors to strike. On their first play, Josh Allen found Rashard Higgins for 48 yards. Two plays later, David Johnson broke loose for a 27 yard TD run and it was 7-0 Jaguars. Patriots would respond with a 13 play drive on their first possession. A nice balance of run and pass had them at the Jax 18 yard line. Lamar Jackson misfired on passes to Tyreek and Kupp however and the Pats had to settle for a Tucker FG. 7-3 Jaguars. Jaguars looked to extend their lead on the next drive but ultimately had to punt it away after an Allen to DK Metcalf pass play came up short of a first down near midfield. Patriots took over at their own 13 yard line. With the D spying on Lamar, Jackson fired one deep hitting Tyreek Hill in stride for the 87 yard TD........10-7 Patriots. The two teams would exchange punts and the Jags would take over looking to tie or take the lead. An Allen to Antonio Gibson 29 yard pass play had the visitors near midfield. Gibson would tear off a 10 yard run on the next play, ultimately setting up a long 54 yard field goal attempt, but Randy Bullock would miss and the game remained 10-7 NE. With under 4 minutes to play the Patriots took over inside Jax territory after a 14 yard Nyheim Hines punt return. On 3rd and 1, Jackson found Cooper Kupp for a 24 yard TD. 17-7 NE. Josh Allen would hit 5 straight pass plays to bring the Jags into field goal range before halftime. Randy Bullock would come on for the 40 yard FG attempt, but again, he would miss. (it was at this point that Coach Dave would share with me the most amazing factoid I've heard surrounding DKS....possibly ever. Jacksonville went the entire IFL 2021 season without attempting a single field goal. Their first two attempts came in this playoff game. Both misses) The Patriot D stiffened in the 2nd half, allowing two Bullock field goals but not much else. Lamar Jackson tossed a couple more TD passes while the defense added a safety to boot. Final Score: Patriots 33 Jaguars 13 Lamar Jackson threw for 312 and 4 TDs. Tyreek hauled in 3 passes for 156 yards and 2 TDs.
SAINTS 27 PACKERS 17 Cam Newton throws two touchdowns and runs for another as Saints down Green Bay.
The Packers would come into New Orleans for the wild card round in which seemed to be a pretty even matched game. The Saints would defer to Green bay and we were off. Green Bay would make a statement in their first drive taking the ball right down the Saints throat 60 yards ending in a Big Ben to Emanual Sanders 5 yard TD. 3 encroachment penalties showed how over anxious the Saints D was. 7-0 Green Bay. The Saints would get the ball at their own 25 and answer the bell, driving 75 yards ending in a 4 yard TD from Cam to Beasley. This was almost a 7 minute drive. The 2 teams defenses settled down and they would exchange 2 punts each, which takes us to 10:47 left in the 2nd quarter. The Packers had made it clear they were here to stop the #1 run offense. The Packers would then take a 17 play, almost 9 minute drive down the field. Big Ben would then hit Emanual Sanders for his 2nd TD of the game. 14-7 Pack. The 2 teams would exchange punts and we would go to half time. The Saints would get the ball the 2nd half and come out aggressive and on the 3rd play Cam would hit AJ Brown slanting over the middle and he would break a tackle and go 69 yards for a TD. All notched up at 14. Coach Conners was not even phased and his Pack would drive down the field and retake the lead on a Mike Nugent FG from 40. 17-14 Green Bay. The Saints would get the ball back and waste no time, throwing a bomb to AJ Green for 48 yards down to the Packs 27. Looks like we are at least tied. Oh wait. The Packers defense sack Cam on first down for -9, and then a botched snap for -4, and then a -1 yard carry by Johnson would take that away. Then the Saints would kick a potential inside the 10 kick into the end zone. Coach Rice thought this was a huge missed opportunity. We would then have our first big game changing play as the Packers would be 3rd and 14 from their own 28. Big Ben would make his first mistake of the day, throwing a pick to veteran AJ Bouye at the 37. the Saints would capitalize as Cam Newton would rush it in on a scramble from 13 yards out on the first play of the 4th quarter. Saints first lead 21-17. Green Bay would start at their own 40 after an out of bounds kick and Big Ben would make another mistake, throwing a pick to rookie CJ Henderson at the Saints 38. Cam would return the favor 2 plays later throwing a pick to Peterson at their own 48. What a crazy game. Ok wait for it....Big Ben would then return the favor 2 plays later and throw a pick to Marcus Maye. Thsi time the Saints would hold on to the ball and McManus would kick a huge 45 yard FG giving the Saints a TD lead. 24-17 with 9:20 left. The Packers would then loo for a game tying drive. New Orleans D would come up big stopping them at their own 42 and force a punt with 5:04 left in regulation. The Saints would get shut down and have to punt on a 3 and out setting up another chance for Green Bay. Green would field the punt at his own 31 and out comes the ball and the Saints recover. the offense would hold the ball for 3 minutes and McManus would kick another big FG from 37 yards out giving the Saints the 10 point lead. Saints 27-17. Green Bay would have the ball the rest of the game ultimately running out of time. New Orleans wins 27-17. For the Pack Big Ben would throw for 275 yards and 2 TD's a long with 3 costly Ints. Emanual Sanders had 12 catches and 2 TDs. For the Saints Cam would throw for 242 yards and 2TDs. Beasley would catch 7 balls and a TD. The Packers D would hold the #1 rushing offense to just 70 yards in an awesome job. It was a great job coaching by John but 4 turnovers was just to much to overcome.
WASHINGTON 24 RAMS 17 Micah Fitzpatrick's 47 yard pick six turns out to be the game winner as Washington gets past the Rams.
Rams and Washington meet for the 2nd time this season. Betters had the line as even and the Rams would receive the ball first. On the opening drive the Rams 3rd and 8 pass would fall incomplete however the refs would flag Minkah Fitzpatrick for pass interference giving the Rams a first down. This would continue the season long theme of Washington of shooting itself in the foot. 2 plays later Sanders would run for a 56 yard TD. Washington would seem to right the ship and respond with a quick 55 yard TD to Hockenson which would be followed up by a 7 yard Aaaron Jones TD reception and a long 55 yard FG by Joey Slye with the wind at his back. Things would look pretty good for Washington but that whole self destructive thing would rear its head again. Washington would first receive a penalty on the punt return backing them up to their own 12. They would then go 3 and out and prepare to punt from their own 20. However a bad snap by the longsnapper would result in a block by rookie Josh Uche and covered up for a Rams TD. Washington would follow that up with a holding penalty and a false start on back to back plays forcing another quick 3 and out. The Rams would take advantage of the short field and Succop would a short FG to tie the game.
Washington’s 2 minute drill would fail to pickup a first down and force another punt. The Rams would attempt to run their 2 minute drill when Taysom Hill would throw an INT to Minkah Fitzpatrick who would return it for TD to put Washington up 24-17 at the half. Washingtons first drive in the 2nd half would show some promise getting the ball to the 28. But third and 5 a great defensive play call would bait Prescott into throwing a pick at the 2 yard line. The defense would respond though and stop the Rams in their tracks and secure what would be good field position. However this being Washington there was still work to be done and on a 4th and 4 they would jump offsides and give the Rams a first down. The Rams would then march the ball down to the Washington’s 29 yard line and face a 4th and 8. Unfortunately for the Rams they were unable to bleed enough time to end the quarter so he would have to kick the 47 yarder into a 5-15mph wind and he would shank it. Washington would move the ball a little but the dysfunctional offense would bog down again and be forced to punt. The Rams would get their first penalty of the game at the start of the 4th quarter which would be a hold again their tackle. This would set them up for a 3rd and 19 which would look like a daunting ask but as usual Washington would do what they could and let Perine pick up 24 yards on the run to keep the drive going. Washington and the Rams would trade some punts and with 2:53 left Washington would be unable to pickup a first giving the Rams one last chance. The Rams drive would quickly begin to head towards disaster with a sack by Chubb and then a personal foul on their tackle setting them up with a 2nd and 28 with 1:21 left. But as with every down circumstance the rams found a way with a 32 yard draw by Daniel Jones to tak ehtem to the 45. They would then complete a couple of passes to Get the ball to the 27 yard line with 18 seconds left. However they would be unable to complete another pass and turn it over on downs with 1 second left. Ryan coached a great game (better than me) and used every player he could but despite all their timely plays they couldn’t overcome their inability to throw the ball. Employing a QB rotation the Rams QBs went 19-42 for 117 yards 1 INT(for a TD) and 3 Sacks. Washington offensively was brilliant on the first 3 drives and then quickly became incompetent. Jones was highly ineffective as a runner finishing with 16 carries for 61 yards with 1/3 of that coming on 1 run. Washington will head to Tampa to play the top seed Tampa and if they continue to play like they have most of the year they will be taking a vacation shortly after. WEEK 16 RECAP Taysom Hill throws for one touchdown and runs for another as the Rams earn a playoff berth.
Game Scores
Los Angeles (N) 24 Green Bay 20 36 0-10 Rams came in fighting for their playoff lives and jumped out to an early 7-0 lead thanks to a Taysom Hill to CeeDee Lamb 6 yard TD pass on the visitors second drive. Big Ben and company were befuddled by the strong Los Angeles defense for most of the first half but finally put together a nice drive before the break while trailing 10-0. Unfortunately they would have to settle for a short FG to cut the score to 10-3 with 1:53 left the 2nd Q. Rams got a HUGE play just a few seconds later when Daniel Jones got flushed out of the pocket and scampered 60-yards right through the Green Bay defense to extend the lead to 17-3. The silence was deafening at Lambeau going into the locker room. The Packer offense finally produced a big play on the opening drive of the 3rd when Phillips Lindsay took a pitch 46 yards to the house. Extra point was missed 17-9 Rams. After an L.A. drive stalled, Green Bay moved the ball again on the stingy Ram defense, going 80 yards in 15 plays. On 4th and goal from the 3, Coach Conners decided to go for it down by 8. Roethlisberger's pass was just out of the reach of Darren Waller's fingertips. Blown opportunity, the score remained 17-9. After that big defensive stand, the Rams offense went to work. Deebo Samuel caught passes of 42 and 41 yards to set up a short Hill TD run to open the 4th, 24-9 L.A. After a quick Green Bay 3 and out, this one seemed to be over. However, on the next play Daniel Jones was picked off by LB Nick Kwiatkowski at the Los Angeles 31. Packers would have to settle for a Robbie Gould 47 yard FG. 24-12 Rams On the next series the Pack got another break when Hill was picked off by Patrick Peterson after going to the Deebo Samuel well once to often. Host would capitalize when Big Ben found A.J. Green from 12 yard out. Dalvin Cook ran the 2pt convert to cut the lead to 24-20 with 6:17 left. We had a ball game. Packers defense forced a 3 and out and the offense got the ball back with 3:17 left, needing a TD to win it. Aided by a pass interference penalty, Green Bay moved into Rams territory. Facing a 3rd and 7 at the L.A. 32, with 20 seconds left, Big Ben was picked off by little known CB Amani Oruwariye. Final score 24-20 Rams. Daniel Jones was named the game star (16-22, 166, 1 int) but it was Deebo Samuel who really stood out 8-141 Dalvin Cook had 116 yards of total offense but had to work for every yard of it. A.J Green hauled in 6 passes for 65 yards With the victory the Rams (11-5) advance to the playoffs and face The Washington Football Team (11-5). Green Bay (11-5) backs in as the 6th seed and will travel to New Orleans (11-4-1) Carolina (11-5) becomes the first I can remember to miss the playoffs with 11 wins. Eliminated by the Rams on the first tiebreaker, due to being swept in their head to head series. Dallas 10 Houston 17 70 Calm Texans score 10 unanswered points in final five minutes to rally past Dallas. Washington 24 Los Angeles (A) 7 77 Calm Washington clinches a playoff spot as it cruises against a tired and beat up Chargers team. Tennessee 26 Buffalo 24 25 0-10 In maybe the wildest 4th quarter I've ever played the Titans come away victorious 26-24. Heading into the 4th the Bills held a 17-13 lead, with 7:36 remaining the Titans cap off a 71 yard 12 play drive on s Matt Ryan to Fant 6 yard pass to give the Titans a 20-17 lead. The Bills then go on a 9 play 85 yard drive with Murray hitting Arnold on 7 yard pass to give the Bills a 24-20 lead with 1:02 left on the clock. With Titans backed up at their 7 yard line and the Bills playing a dime prevent defense Matt Ryan hits Kalif Raymond for 93 yards as the Bills secondary whiffed on a number of tackles to give the Titans seemingly a victory, the extra point was missed to make it 26-24 Titans. With 42 seconds to work with the Bills start from their own 25 and after not moving an inch the Bills on 4th down Kyler Murray hits Tyron Johnson for 49 yards to the Titans 26 as the Bills call their final timeout and bring on Jake Elliott for a 44 yarder to win it, the kick had the distance but was wide right! Both teams end the season at 7-9. New Orleans 16 Chicago 3 23 5-15 Bears were hanging around, 3-3 at half. Then the Saints brought in their starters on defense & won 16-3. Pained me to watch Cam Newton play so well. San Francisco 13 Minnesota 16 68 Calm In a game that set professional football back 50 years, the Minnesota Vikings managed to eke out a win over the 49ers. The 49ers ran of clock trying to run their field-goal team. Tampa Bay 20 Carolina 17 63 0-10 In a battle of division leaders, a hard fought struggle goes down to the wire. Both teams traded blows and went into the half tied at 10 a piece. Tampa takes control in the second half with a TD from Adams on a pass from Carr, and then a field goal with 5 minutes to go in the game to push the lead to 20 to 10. Wilson, who had struggled all day, finally found a little mojo and drove the Panthers down field and capped the drive with a 6 yard TD pass to Schutz to draw within 3. The Bucs recover the onside kick however, and run out the clock to preserve the win. Tampa Bay 20 Carolina 17 For Tampa, the dynamic duo of Lockett and Adams lead the way with 98 and 100 yards receiving respectively. For Carolina, Henry rushed for 82 yards and 1 TD. Philadelphia 20 Denver 27 47 Calm Denver ends their eight game losing streak as they win after a fumble recovery scooped up by safety Karl Joseph and goes 91 yards for the go-ahead score in the 4th quarter. Baltimore 3 New York (A) 28 36 10-20 The Baltimore Ravens came to New York to play the Jets, and to finish the regular season for both teams. New York received the opening kickoff, and matriculated 65 yards down field in 5 minutes to open the scoring. The scoring came on a 31 yard pass from Watson to Woods…7-0 Baltimore was held to a 3, and out on their first possession. This time the Jets went 80 yards in 6 plays to make it 14-0. The Ravens picked up a FG on the second possession making it 14-3 Jets. Again New York moved the ball into the red zone, and scored on a Watson to Woods pass…21-3…Jets. The second half included a turnover by each team, 2 punts by New York, and Baltimore turning it over 3 times on downs. New York tacked on a touchdown to make the final 28-3…Jets. Baltimore finished their season 6-10. New York ends up 15-1, with their only blemish an overtime loss at New England. Jacksonville 28 Miami 21 78 0-10 In the last game of the season for Miami, the Dolphins host the Jaguars in south Florida After each Team punting on their opening possession, Miami gets a rare Allen interception and return it to the Jags 16 yd line and on 3rd and 10 Goff finds Shepard from 16 yards out and the Dolphins take the early 7-0 lead. On the next possession Miami gets the ball back on a recovered fumble and go the 49 yards to pay dirt, finishing with a 20 yard Tua to Hardman TD pass on the first play of the 2nd quarter and the Dolphins take the 14-0 Lead. Jacksonville then gets on track and goes 77 yards and get the TD to cut the Dolphins lead to 7 points at 14-7. After exchanging punts the Jags get the ball back with 1:36 at their own 38 and quickly go the 62 yards and score the TD with 14 seconds left in the half to deadlock the score at 14. After a scoreless 3rd quarter, the Dolphins mount a drive and again on the very 1st play of the 4th quarter get the TD, to regain the lead at 21-14. On the ensuing Jaguar drive, they respond with a 79 yard drive and get the score to once again notch the score at 21 with 7:38 left in the game. On the second play of the next Miami drive, Jacksonville gets the 34 yard pick six and take the lead for the 1st time in the game. that would be the last scoring as the Dolphins would get 2 more cracks at it in the last 6:20 but are unable to get back to the end zone and Jacksonville leaves Miami with the 7 point win and appears to secure their playoff spot. Miami finishes a dismal 4-12 on the season and looks forward to next year. New England 31 Cincinnati 10 29 0-10 The Bengals closed out the 2021 IFL season hosting the defending champion Patriots. Receiving the opening kickoff it did not take New England long to draw first blood. Isaiah Rodgers had a nice kickoff return to midfield and five plays later Lamar Jackson connected with Cooper Kupp from 21 yards out. After forcing a Cincinnati punt, the Pats were back in business as Jackson dumped it off to Kareem Hunt for a 26 yard gain. However, Chidobe Awuzie intercepted the Jackson pass on the next play. The Bengals got into field goal position but Ka'imi Fairbairn shanked the kick. New England took over but Jackson was picked again! This time by rookie Isaiah Simmons. Cincinnati took advantage as Aaron Rodgers connected with Diontae Johnson for 14 and two plays later Rodgers scampered in from nine yards out as the quarter ended tied at seven. This seemed to wake up the Pats as another Jackson to Kupp pass from 25 yards out capped an 8 play-72 yard drive to regain the lead 14-7. After forcing a Cincinnati three and out, Jackson connected with Hill for 53 and then Kupp again for the 15 yard score, 21-7 New England. The Bengals were able to add a field goal to make it 21-10 at the half. The Pats would add 10 more in the second half for the 31-10 final. Jackson finished 13 of 20 for 233 yards, 4 TDs and 2 INTs. He also rushed for 126 yards on 13 attempts. Rodgers had a rough game as Ronald Jones was sidelined and New England played pass. He finished just 14 of 27 for 151 yards and an INT. Arizona 13 Kansas City 20 31 5-15 Kansas City held the ball for close to 42 minutes and then had to endure a furious rally led by Patrick Mahomes, but the Chiefs prevailed by stopping the Cardinals at the 14 yard line with a minute left to secure the 20-13 victory. Mahomes finished with 281 yards passing but was sacked 4 times. Andy Dalton went 36-28-198 for KC. Pittsburgh 27 Indianapolis 3 69 Calm Indianapolis comes in looking for their first win of the season hoping not to end the year winless. Pittsburgh was hoping to have their most wins since Coach Alberry Sr took over midway through the 2018 year as they sit at 6-9 . No scoring through the first with multiple punts . Pittsburgh gets the offense rolling in the second and puts up 17 points with 2 TD tosses to Jefferson . In the third the Colts manage a FG to make it 17-3 . But late in the quarter Brady sneaks it in from one yard out making it 24-3 and pretty much the ball game . Lots of running in the fourth by both teams the Steelers get in FG range making the final score 27-3. Good luck to all the playoff teams! Until the draft next year take care and Happy Holidays. Atlanta 22 Detroit 0 70 Calm In a battle of pride, Atlanta and Detroit did their best to finish the season strong. Each team during the game was hit with injuries and usage difficulties. More so for Detroit than Atlanta and that proved to be the turning point. The Rivers-Fitzgerald farewell tour had an encore as Rivers won Game MVP with 28-36 for 274 yards and 1 TD. Fitzgerald had 6 catches for 65 yards and led all Atlanta receivers. Though Detroit gave up 22 points, on defense Wagner was a star accounting for 19 tackles in this game with 2 stuffs. He accounted for 19 of the 60 total tackles Detroit made! Both first year coaches are looking forward to next year. Atlanta ended up 7-9 in the brutal NFC West and ended the last 8 games at a 5-3 clip, and the Lions ended 4-12 in the Central division. Las Vegas 26 New York (N) 17 34 0-10 Heavy Rain Raiders kicker Jason Myers boots four field goals including three from 50 plus yards out to help Las Vegas get by the Giants. Rushing Leaders Jackson,L(NE) 13-126 Chubb,N(LAC) 13-111 Gibson(Jax) 20-106 Mostert(Atl) 18-103 Receiving Leaders Woods,R(NYJ) 10-157 2 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week Kupp(NE) 5- 85 3 TD Passing Leaders Jackson,L(NE) 20-13-233 4 TD 2 Int Defensive Standouts Johnson,A(Cin) 16 Tk Wagner,B(Det) 19 Tk Gregory,R(Pit) 5 Tk 1 Sk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week Special Teams Myers,J(LV) 4-4 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week FINAL 2021 IFL STANDINGS
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