As we try to catch our breath after a wild football weekend, Ian Beckles starts off Monday's Halftime Heat with an ode to Bills' Mafia, while Jay Recher shares his list of the top 10 sports stars of this incredible sports weekend!
IAN BECKLES:
I am hardly a Buffalo Bills fan, but NFL fans have to feel for the Bills Mafia.
First of all, y’all celebrated a victory that didn’t happen, and that has to hurt.
I’ve watched numerous posts of Bills fans celebrating after the final Gabriel Davis TD and justifiably so.
The Bills played well enough to win that instant classic, but we have to give credit to the WELL-COACHED Andy Reid-led Chiefs.
They are hardly the Dallas Cowboys.
How many teams still scare you with 13 seconds left with your team kicking off?
The Chiefs led by Patrick Mahomes, Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce with Andy Reid as the play caller would be my first choice in that situation.
And they proved why last night.
Josh Allen finally got the Bills over the hump, but unfortunately he can’t play defense.
I was yelling "there are still 13 seconds!!" while they were all hugging and exchanging pleasantries on the Bills sidelines.
Yes, they should have squib-kicked the kickoff and yes they should have only rushed two or three to make Mahomes hold onto the ball longer.
But I feel for the Bills Mafia. I know a few LOYAL Bills fans and I appreciate their loyalty. I also won’t contact them about the loss, because I know that loss is cutting deep right now.
It’s hard to get to the dance and it’s even harder to win in the big game and there's no better example than the Buffalo Bills.
Josh Allen couldn’t have done any more to help his team, but he still won’t have a great sleep this whole off season because of last night's game.
One Love Bills mafia; and in the words of the great philosopher Chaka Khan “I feel for you.”
JAY RECHER:
All right, it’s time for my Top 10 Stars of the Weekend!
#10 Marcus Rashford - Manchester United's #10 scored in the 93rd minute, to secure a 1-0 home victory for the Reds over West Ham. Rashford now has FOUR goals in stoppage time, the most in Premier League history.
#9 Clark Gillies - the Islanders Hall of Fame winger passed away over the weekend at 67. He was the true definition of a "power forward," winning 4 Cups with the Isles.
#8 Jayson Tatum - 51 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists for the Celtics star in Boston's 116-87 win yesterday. Ballin!
#7 Leon Draisaitl - after a combination of 7 losses and 10 postponements, the Oilers finally have a win, a 5-3 victory over the Flames. And the much happier Leon had two goals & two assists.
#6 Matt Frevola - after a two-game skid, the UT grad got back to his winning ways with a thrilling 1st round TKO win over Genaro Valdez at UFC 270 in Anaheim. Great job Steamrolla!
#5 Hudson Swafford - the 34-year-old Tallahassee native won the PGA Tour's American Express for the second time in five years. What was special for him? Being his first win since his father passed away in early December.
#4 Gabriel Davis - I know, I know, they lost. But, 8 catches for 201 yards and FOUR tuddies. Freakin' incredible.
#3 Evan McPherson - "Looks like we're going to the AFC Championship" is what the Bengals rookie kicker said on the sideline before kicking Cincy to victory. Money Mac is making all Bengals & Gators fans proud.
#2 Bruce Pearl - I joked that Auburn isn't a Football school anymore on Friday and Coach Pearl and his Tigers came through with a 80-71 win over #12 Kentucky. The leading man of the #2 team in the land said after the win on the hardcourt, "We're a football school, but we're also an everything school."
#1Ayoka Lee - the Kansas State center scored 61 points, a new NCAA Division I women's basketball record, in the unranked Wildcats 94-65 blowout victory over #14 Oklahoma.
Cover Photo: Getty Images