Then people wonder if those four lucky clubs are going to be rusty when they return in the divisional round.The football world finds out this weekend when the Chiefs http://www.cardinalscheapstore.com/zach-allen-jersey-cheap , Patriots, Saints and Rams get into postseason action.That January week off is coveted for a variety of reasons. Playing one less game decreases the chances of getting knocked out of the Super Bowl chase. Healing injuries is a critical piece of the puzzle. Extra time to strategize, particularly against an unfamiliar opponent, is a bonus.And yet, there’s always the question of getting stale.“I think, really, you could look at it where if you want to maintain your rhythm and your routine and being able to play — it’s been a couple weeks off —but I think the players would say that the rest is definitely the best way to go,” Rams coach Sean McVay says.“Getting as healthy as possible for us where we’re about as healthy as you could ask to be going into the divisional round. So, I know we’ve certainly looked at it as a positive. It’s been a good chance for guys to kind of get refreshed, rejuvenated. There’s a good buzz in the building this week building into Saturday night.”That would be when the Rams (13-3) host the Dallas Cowboys (11-6), who eliminated Seattle in the wild-card round.The other matchups are AFC top seed Kansas City (12-4) hosting Indianapolis (11-6 after beating Houston) to open things. On Sunday, it’s New England (11-5) at home for the Los Angeles Chargers (13-4 after winning at Baltimore), andNFC top seed New Orleans (13-3) home for defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia (10-7 after a victory at Chicago).So what if Neil Young was correct that rust never sleeps? Are the Chiefs, Patriots or Saints in need of some WD-40?New England safety Patrick Chung notes the bye was “a good time to rest up, hang out with my family Andy Isabella Jersey , chill out, get my mind off football. We’re locked in now.”Teammate Phillip Dorsett senses the opposite of rustiness: “Having a week off from football, it’s tough, but a lot of guys wanted to go back out there, it’s a big game coming up … definitely excited to go out there and start playing.”INDIANAPOLIS AT KANSAS CITYThe Colts are 4-0 in the postseason against the Chiefs, 2-0 at Arrowhead Stadium. They are on quite a roll after going 1-5, with an efficient offense that protects its quarterback better than any team, allowing sacks on only 2.7 percent of Andrew Luck’s passes. That could be a key because the Chiefs’ defense is one-dimensional, with a strong pass rush but otherwise plenty of holes.Of course, keeping pace with Kansas City’s dynamic offense led by All-Pro quarterback Patrick Mahomes is a major challenge.Kansas City scored a franchise-record 565 points, third most in NFL history. Mahomes led the league with seven games with a 100-plus passer rating (Luck was third with five). Mahomes set a franchise record for TD passes (50), touchdown-interception differential (plus-38) and 300-yard passing games (10).Worth focusing on: The tight end production for Indy’s Eric Ebron, who had 15 touchdowns this season, and KC’s Travis Kelce, second among TEs with 1 Jamel Dean Jersey ,336 yards receiving. He has a catch in 79 straight games.DALLAS AT LOS ANGELES RAMSThese franchises have split eight postseason games, and the Rams are the most frequent playoff opponent for Dallas. The Cowboys last won a road playoff game in 1993 on their way to a Super Bowl title, but their next playoff victory will be their 36th, tying Pittsburgh for the most in NFL history.Rams All-Pro defensive tackle Aaron Donald topped the NFL with 20 1-2 sacks, nearly twice as many as Cowboys leader Demarcus Lawrence’s 10 1-2. Under former Dallas coach Wade Phillips, LA’s defense had 41 sacks to the Cowboys’ 39, yet the Rams had 97 more sack yards.Worth focusing on: This game could be decided on the ground, which means All-Pro Todd Gurley for the Rams and second-teamer Ezekiel Elliott for the Cowboys. Elliott won the rushing title for the second time in three years, but Gurley was sidelined late in the schedule by a knee injury. Gurley led the league in touchdowns with 21, 17 rushing.LOS ANGELES CHARGERS AT NEW ENGLANDNew England was 8-0 at Gillette Stadium, the only perfect home record in the league. And the Chargers were a league-best 7-1 on the road — some say they don’t really have home games considering they play in a temporary stadium built for soccer — and won at Baltimore last Sunday.Quarterback Philip Rivers enters Sunday’s game with a 1-7 record against the Patriots, including 0-4 in Foxborough and 0-2 in the playoffs. There is concern about leading rusher Melvin Gordon, who hurt his knee in Baltimore.Conversely, Tom Brady is 2-0 in the playoffs and 6-2 in regular-season meetings.Worth focusing on: The secondaries. If the weather is decent, Brady and Rivers will be testing defensive backfields of varying accomplishments. There often have been gaping holes in New England’s coverages D.K. Metcalf Jersey , while the Chargers have an All-Pro in rookie safety Derwin James, and another standout back there in Desmond King.PHILADELPHIA AT NEW ORLEANSThey call him St. Nick around Philly, and the way Nick Foles has performed, why not? He guided the Eagles to the championship and was Super Bowl MVP last year after replacing an injured Carson Wentz. This time, with Wentz sidelined again, Foles got the struggling Eagles into the postseason, then helped them beat the Bears in the wild-card game.He’ll need to be plenty, well, saintly against New Orleans and its collection of Saints, the league’s top team in the regular season. Drew Brees has had perhaps the best season of his Hall of Fame-caliber career. And of all the teams coming off byes, New Orleans is the most balanced. Oh, yeah, the Saints also routed the Eagles 48-7 in November, before Philly won six of the next seven, including the 16-15 verdict in Chicago.Worth focusing on: Again Nick Bosa Jersey , the secondaries. The Eagles have prospered despite a rash of injuries there, and the Saints’ DBs can be had when the guys up front don’t get in a QB’s face. KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kareem Hunt went from the Kansas City Chiefs‘ practice field to looking for a job in about six hours, a spectacular fall for the NFL’s reigning rushing champion.The Pro Bowl running back had been preparing for Sunday’s game at Oakland when a months-old video surfaced online. The footage from a Cleveland hotel security camera showed Hunt shoving and kicking a woman, with police ultimately responding. No charges were filed.The Chiefs immediately sent Hunt home as the TMZ video rippled across social media. An organization that prides itself on providing second chances said in a statement late Friday it had released the 23-year-old star. The team was traveling Saturday.The NFL had no comment Friday night beyond saying Hunt was on the commissioner’s exempt list, meaning he can’t play or attend games while the league investigates.The question now for both the Chiefs and Hunt is simple: What’s next?The Chiefs (9-2) are barreling toward the No. 1 seed in the playoffs, and the loss of their leading rusher is substantial. Hunt already had run for more than 800 yards and had 14 total touchdowns, helping Kansas City form one of the league’s most dynamic offenses.His ability to churn out yards on the ground helped the Chiefs put away several games. His ability to catch passes out of the backfield had been just as useful.Yet the falloff to Spencer Ware isn’t that significant.The Chiefs’ backup was the unquestioned starter heading into last season, even after the team made Hunt their third-round pick. It wasn’t until Ware — whose skill set closely mirrors that of Hunt — went down with a season-ending knee injury in the preseason that the rookie took over.“There was a question whether he would be able to come back from that injury. It was a pretty tough injury to come back from,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said recently. “The last couple weeks he has played good football. You can see where he is more confident each week here.”The Chiefs are also confident in backups Damien Williams and Darrel Williams. And with a soft schedule down the stretch, including two games against the Raiders, there is plenty of time for their offense to adjust to life without Hunt in the backfield.So that is what’s next for the Chiefs. What happens to Hunt?The Chiefs and the NFL knew what happened in February in Cleveland, and the organization spoke to Hunt on several occasions before handling discipline internally. But neither the team nor the league had seen the video before it became public Friday.The NFL made multiple attempts to obtain it, a person familiar with the case told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation. The hotel informed the league that corporate policy allowed the video to be given only to law enforcement.The NFL then contacted Cleveland police http://www.cardinalscheapstore.com/byron-murphy-jersey-cheap , the person said. Police declined to provide the video. Police and hotel officials have not commented.The video showed Hunt lunging toward a woman and several others in a hotel hallway, and the player being restrained several times before knocking two people down. Two police reports were filed in which each person accuses the other: Hunt is listed as the suspect in one; a woman, Abigail Ottinger, is the suspect in the other.In its grainy and graphic footage, the video brought a new dimension to developments, showing that what Hunt had told the Chiefs was not the case. The team said he was “not truthful in those discussions.”The matter brought immediate comparisons to the video of Ravens running back Ray Rice punching a woman in an elevator, which ultimately led to a long legal saga that ended with him never playing in the NFL again.The big difference between Rice and Hunt, though, is this: Rice was on the downward side of his career while Hunt was on the ascent.Being on the exempt list does not prevent another team from taking a chance on a player. That was the underlined when the Washington Redskins signed linebacker Reuben Foster, who had been cut last week after he was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence.The Redskins faced harsh public criticism, and there will no doubt be a similar outcry if a team signs Hunt. But balancing such opposition against the benefits of a young star in his prime is a delicate decision for team executives.Hunt issued a brief apology late Friday, a small first step toward getting another chance. But as the Chiefs get ready to play in Oakland, Hunt will be watching on television.There are many more steps before Hunt takes the field again.If it ever happens.
