Countdown! Best Movies of the Past Few Years: Steinfeld Shines in "The Edge of Seventeen"

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I can't imagine the hell Kelly Fremon Craig had to go through to get this little movie made. 

Another teenage, high school comedy...and you want to produce this during the era of film where rom-coms go to die?

Talk about commitment to an idea. Prior to The Edge of Seventeen, she had written only one, full-length film -- Post Grad, which has a 5.3 rating on IMDb and an astonishingly low 8% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes -- and since it bombed, it took seven years to get her next screenplay made. Somehow, even though she had never been behind the camera, Fremon Craig ended up directing The Edge of Seventeen, which is perhaps the most honest movie I've ever seen about teens. 

SPOILERS AHEAD. 

There really isn't much to the story -- Nadine (an electrifying Hailee Steinfeld) lives with her mother Mona (a neurotic Kyra Sedgwick) and brother Darian (Blake Jenner, an absolute natural), and he's the favorite child. Nadine was daddy's little girl, but unfortunately her father (Eric Keenleyside - is that really a movie star's name?) passed away suddenly when she was young. That understandably left the household in shambles, and Darian's maturity and stability make him much easier for Mona to deal with. 

Nadine's saving grace is Krista (Haley Lu Richardson, making her second appearance on this list) her lifelong best friend. Krista always centers Nadine when things are rumbling off the tracks. I believe Nadine describes her as "an angel."

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That is, of course, until Krista sleeps with Darian. 

That dramatic event causes the acceleration of Nadine's downward spiral. But like I said, there really isn't much to the story. The beauty of this film is in the honesty and skill of Fremon Craig's writing, and the perfect symmetry of the knockout performances by Steinfeld, Richardson, Jenner, Sedgwick, Woody Harrelson, Hayden Szeto (as the other angel on Nadine's shoulder) and Alexander Calvert (as the devil). 

Fremon Craig builds a sensational protagonist here. Nadine can be impossible -- whining, complaining, always talking about me, me, me -- but we sense the vulnerability hidden behind her comedic exchanges with Mr. Bruner (Harrelson, her mild-mannered and sarcastic teacher) and piercing insults hurled at her "perfect" brother. She leans on Mr. Bruner when things get rocky with Krista, and he listens, but doesn't baby Nadine. He understands that she's an emotional teenager who is likely exaggerating the great stresses of her horrible life.

Steinfeld is simply fantastic. She came off as limited and annoying as a supporting character in Pitch Perfect 2, yet somehow here -- just a year later -- she's a powerhouse leading lady who should have been nominated for Best Actress. Ellen Page got the Oscar nom for Juno, and that role was much more of a gimmick. I like Juno, and I like Page, but Steinfeld's performance in Edge is more naturalistic and relatable to an everyday teen. On the whole, Steinfeld projects better as a long-term movie star: She's much better-looking and has a wider range of skills than Page. The latter hasn't been able to repeat her leading-lady success; whereas I think Steinfeld can. 

Richardson and Jenner are rising stars. They make for a cute couple in this film, and individually, you can see why their names are buzzing around Hollywood. Jenner nabbed the lead in Richard Linklater's Everybody Wants Some!! (well-received with an 86% score on Rotten Tomatoes) and his upcoming film American Animals is getting good early reviews. 

Richardson played a key role in M. Night Shyamalan's career-resurrecting Split, followed by a successful turn in Kogonada's Columbus. Both she and Jenner are naturals. Richardson has a warm, friendly smile and never overdoes anything. She's content settling into her role within the ensemble and shining without upstaging her co-stars. I think we'll be seeing her for a long, long time. 

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My reaction to Jenner in Edge was similar to my reaction to Lucas Hedges in Manchester By the Sea and Ansel Elgort in The Fault in Our Stars. If you've been watching films long enough, you know a movie star when you see one. And there are different ways to do it -- Elgort is a classic charmer, all smiles and looks and winks. Hedges is tricky; he never seems like he's acting at all, yet he can ping-pong between normal, everyday behavior and legitimate dramatic acting. Jenner is like Richardson. He doesn't overdo anything. His behavior and mannerisms scream likable guy. And at the end of the day, that's the key for actors, right? If you ain't likable, you ain't stickin' around. 

Szeto is another revelation in The Edge of Seventeen. I think now's about the time for me to shout out Melissa Kostenbauder, who did a helluva job casting this film. She's also been on the casting team for Ocean's Thirteen, The Hangover, The Hunger Games, 12 Years a Slave, Ex Machina, Fifty Shades of Grey, Steve Jobs and The Revenant...so yeah, I think she knows what she's doing.

Szeto (as Erwin, one of Nadine's love interests) is quirky, offbeat and quite funny. What he does in this film is a bit of a shtick; so I'm not sure he'll have the same long-term sustainability as Steinfeld, Jenner and Richardson, but he nails this part. He was absolutely perfect for the role, and Kostenbauder must have seen that from the get-go, because Szeto was the first actor cast in this movie. His chemistry with Steinfeld is fun, and he's just one of those kids you can't help but root for. 

Interestingly enough, the veteran actors -- Harrelson and Sedgwick -- probably put together the weakest performances in the film. Not that they are bad -- in fact, they are actually quite good -- but the young, rising stars don't seem to be trying as hard for our attention. 

Harrelson is such a chameleon -- I mean, how do you play Willie Schumann in Wag the Dog (a dangerous, funny, slow-witted supporting character), Galaxia in Anger Management (an over-the-top drag queen), Carson Wells in No Country for Old Men (a serious, well-spoken and wise bounty hunter), Tommy in Friends with Benefits (a gay art director for GQ, comic relief), Steve Schmidt in Game Change (Sarah Palin's overwhelmed campaign manager, a straight role) and Harlan DeGroat in Out of the Furnace (a despicable, certified psychopath of a villain)? -- that he knows exactly what he's doing as Mr. Bruner in Edge. He's going for understated laughs, and it plays that way. He's actually too big of a star for the role. His scenes sometimes take you out of the genuine, complicated world created by Fremon Craig, Steinfeld, Richardson and Jenner. But, like I said, Harrelson is still good. 

Sedgwick overplays her combustibility a bit, but she's also good. I like her scene during the denouement, when she's trying to figure out the right thing to text her daughter. Fremon Craig closes the loop of that character well. 

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In the end, The Edge of Seventeen can serve as a great lesson for teens who watch closely, and want to grow. The world doesn't revolve around you. Bad things happen. The question isn't whether or not you can unload all of your problems onto someone else. 

The question is...when everything seems to be going wrong, can you remain a good person?

** JOHNNY FRO'S RATING: 9 out of 10 **

Late-Night Boredom's Updated Rankings:

1. Up in the Air (9.5/10)
2. Steve Jobs (9.5/10)
3. Stay (9/10)
4. Gone Girl (9/10)
5. The Edge of Seventeen (9/10)
6. Tape (9/10) 

7. A Perfect Murder (9/10)
8. War Dogs (8.5/10)
9. In Bruges (8.5/10)

10. Split (8.5/10)

11. Bad Moms (8.5/10)

12. Basquiat (8.5/10)

13. Moonlight (8/10)

14. The Revenant (8/10)

15. The Shallows (7.5/10)
16. Focus (7.5/10) 

17. The Night Before (7.5/10)
18. The Walk (7/10)

19. 10 Cloverfield Lane (7/10)
20. Molly's Game (6/10)
21. The Boy (6/10) - No review available

22. Joy (5.5/10)

23. La La Land (5/10)
24. Why Him? (3.5/10) - No review available
25. The Program (3/10)
26. Shut In (2/10) - No review available

27. Rings (1.5/10)
28. Mother's Day (1.5/10)

Reviews to Come...

Hell or High Water

Sunshine Cleaning

Zero Dark Thirty
The Box
Annabelle: Creation
The Conjuring 2
Baby Driver
Body of Lies

Untraceable

The Wonder Boys

Jackie Brown

Mean Streets

Nerve

The Hateful Eight

The Seven Five

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates

How to Be Single

Deadpool

Ratatouille

The Spectacular Now
The Visit
Loving
Nocturnal Animals
The Purge: Election Year
And more...

Countdown! Best Movies of the Past Few Years: "In Bruges" and "War Dogs"

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As I mentioned in the first installment of Late-Night Boredom's "Best of the Past Few Years," these are films I've seen for the first time in the past few years; they didn't necessarily come out during that time period. That distinction is relevant to this edition because In Bruges was released a decade ago. 

As always, watch out for SPOILERS in my reviews...

9. IN BRUGES (2008) 

Nowadays, my movie standards are crystal clear: It needs to be well-acted, original, fast-paced, thought-provoking or all of the above. Martin McDonagh's In Bruges nearly connects on all four. It's a dark, funny, offbeat, twisted little film. 

Ray (a vulnerable Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson, at his best) are sent to "fucking Bruges" by their ruthless boss Harry (Ralph Fiennes on hyper-drive) to carry out a hit. Ray is none too pleased by this quaint, picturesque little city. Ken, on the other hand, is enchanted. As the killers await further instructions from their handler, they begin to explore Bruges, getting to know some quirky supporting characters along the way. 

In Bruges is a tricky movie to pin down. How, exactly, do we characterize it? It's a film about two professional hitmen waiting to kill someone in a foreign land. It's certainly a dark premise, but Farrell and Gleeson have a consistently amusing rapport, and Fiennes, while dangerous and (perhaps) deadly, is bursting with manic comedy. I don't really want to get too deep into the plot because it will ruin McDonagh's subtle surprises, but this is a movie that peels open rather pleasantly. 

Farrell seems at home here. Sometimes lost in stupid roles in stupid movies like Winter's Tale, Total Recall and American Outlaws, Farrell seems to tap into his true potential with better material like Crazy Heart, The Lobster and In Bruges. In this one, he mixes humor with vulnerability, bravado, bewilderment and despair. Gleeson's more grounded performance -- playing somewhere between a brother and father figure -- complements Farrell's indecisiveness and aimless search for meaning.

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I started writing this review awhile ago -- then got distracted by the NFL Playoffs (Conference Finals and Super Bowl) -- and since then I've been hearing an awful lot of hype about Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. That "little" film took home the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture Drama, and now it's picked up seven Academy Award nominations.

When I started writing this review I was thinking, Martin McDonagh seems like a uniquely talented writer/director...why hasn't his name popped up more often over the years?

Lo and behold, McDonagh is the man behind Three Billboards, the second standout film of his career. It's nice to see his talent getting some attention.

It's difficult to mix humor with high-stakes, life-and-death crime, and McDonagh somehow finds the right balance in In Bruges. It starts and ends strong, despite stumbling at times through the body of the story. Overall, it's an interesting film that showcases the talents of its director and his actors.

** JOHNNY FRO'S RATING: 8.5 out of 10 **

T-9. WAR DOGS (2016)

When War Dogs first reached HBO, there was a local buzz. Sam Ytuarte had mentioned it to me. "Have you seen War Dogs yet?" Frank Valeriano did the same. I think I heard Billy Valeriano and Doug Muhlbauer talking about it as well. 

I also remembered an interesting piece about it on The Ringer. I'm already a big Jonah Hill fan, and I like Miles Teller sometimes too, so it wasn't long before I sat down to find out what the mild buzz was about. 

And I REALLY enjoyed War Dogs that first time. I saw elements of a number of popular films in it -- Goodfellas, Scarface, The Wolf of Wall Street, Boiler Room and even Rounders -- and Hill's performance is really edgy and offbeat. 

Also, and perhaps most importantly, I like when a movie takes me inside a niche market or subculture. Boiler Room did that with pump-and-dump chopshops. Rounders did that for newcomers at the height of the poker boom. Wedding Crashers...do people actually do that? And on a more elevated level, there's All the President's Men for the world of nitty gritty investigative journalism. 

I mean, really, who the hell knew that tiny, two-man operations could sell guns and ammunition to the American government? 

I had no idea stuff like that was ever going on. Maybe I'm just ignorant. I don't really watch the news. 

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So Hill and Teller make for the classic "double act" -- one guy's over-the-top and the other plays it straight -- and the former has a lot of fun with his role. Efraim Diveroli is a slimy, dangerous douchebag, but Hill supplies him with undeniable charisma. We feel bad when he dupes David Packouz time and time again, but we're also like dude, why are you so gullible? Efraim clearly isn't a good guy, so why are you expecting him to behave as such?

The overall plot seems thin in hindsight, but Hill is a magnetic performer and Todd Phillips has become a really good storyteller behind the camera. I still love the original Hangover (and maybe I'm one of the only people who likes Hangover II), but the material of War Dogs is a bit of a departure -- perhaps even an ascension -- from those two comedies. It's even further from Road Trip, Old School and Starsky & Hutch. 

If you look closely at the canon of Phillips' career, you can see the evolution. It doesn't scream at you; but to me, The Hangover displayed far more skill than Old School, and Road Trip before that. He's refining his skills, and War Dogs is a little more serious than his predecessors. It's weightier, but subtly so. Apparently he's lined up to direct The Joker origin movie, and I'm certain that'll be heavier than War Dogs. Phillips is slowly opening up his range, giving himself opportunities for projects that would have been unfathomable in the past. 

So, all aspects considered, War Dogs is a stepping stone. It's a good movie. It's a fun movie. But it isn't great. We'll see if greatness is next on the menu. 

** JOHNNY FRO'S RATING: 8.5 out of 10 **

Before I wrap it up for this segment, a bit of housekeeping...

Rather than review every movie I've seen in recent years, I'll have to occasionally add to the Late-Night Boredom Rankings without a full-length piece. The Boy and Shut In are two horror/suspense films that Jen wanted to watch, and not surprisingly -- like many films in that genre -- they shared a number of similarities. The Boy was clearly the better of the two films, but there's no need to flesh out the reasons why. I'm tossing them into the rankings, along with Bryan Cranston and James Franco's shitty Why Him?

LNB's Updated Rankings:

1. Up in the Air (9.5/10) Archived here
2. Steve Jobs (9.5/10)
3. Stay (9/10) Archived here
4. Gone Girl (9/10) Archived here
5. Tape (9/10) Archived here

6. A Perfect Murder (9/10)
7. War Dogs (8.5/10)
8. In Bruges (8.5/10)

9. Split (8.5/10)

10. Bad Moms (8.5/10)

11. Basquiat (8.5/10)

12. Moonlight (8/10)

13. The Revenant (8/10)

14. The Shallows (7.5/10)
15. Focus (7.5/10) Archived here

16. The Night Before (7.5/10)
17. The Walk (7/10)

18. 10 Cloverfield Lane (7/10)
19. The Boy (6/10) - No review available

20. Joy (5.5/10)

21. La La Land (5/10)
22. Why Him? (3.5/10) - No review available
23. The Program (3/10)
24. Shut In (2/10)

25. Rings (1.5/10)
26. Mother's Day (1.5/10)

Reviews to Come...

Hell or High Water

Sunshine Cleaning

Zero Dark Thirty
The Box
Annabelle: Creation
The Conjuring 2
Baby Driver
Body of Lies

Untraceable

The Wonder Boys

Jackie Brown

Mean Streets

Nerve

The Hateful Eight

The Seven Five

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates

How to Be Single

Deadpool

Ratatouille

The Spectacular Now
The Visit
Loving
Nocturnal Animals
The Purge: Election Year
And more...

NBA Trade Deadline Analysis: It's the Cavs' World, and Everybody Else Is Livin' In It

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When rookie GM Koby Altman dealt Kyrie Irving to the Celtics for Isaiah "IT2" Thomas, Jae Crowder and a 1st round pick, I thought that was a pretty solid haul. Considering the fact that we knew Kyrie wanted out of Cleveland, IT2 -- coming off the best season of his career -- Crowder (a well-regarded, high-effort player) and a 1st rounder almost made it seem like Danny Ainge got the short end of the stick. 

But, I've learned never to doubt Ainge again. He may easily be the best executive in the NBA. That's a story for a different day. 

Now, we know Isaiah had a serious injury, Crowder got lazy and out of shape, and Kyrie has become a demigod in Boston. But it's easy to be a Monday morning quarterback. The reality is that Altman's deal made logical sense; it just didn't work out. 

So, the NBA Trade Deadline rolls around, the Cavs are spiraling out of control, and Altman tears the whole damn thing to pieces. "We were on a death march," he says. 

And what a FANTASTIC job this guy did. Again, even if it doesn't work out, unloading Isaiah, Crowder, Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade and Iman Shumpert in a 24-hour span is nothing short of a front office miracle. The fact that Altman got Jordan Clarkson, Rodney Hood, George Hill and Larry Nance Jr. in return makes his feat all the more impressive. 

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LeBron James, in the short term, seems happy. He said the moves make Cleveland "younger" and "more athletic" and GM LeBron is clearly correct. I've always been a Jordan Clarkson guy. He's an undeniably explosive athlete, and he has a lot of confidence in his offensive game. He's the type of kid where you just give him the ball, then let him use his quickness, speed, athleticism and leaping ability to create the play. Usually the play is for himself, but that's beside the point. LeBron and Clarkson should have fun together in the open court. 

** EDITOR'S NOTE: I began this story at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, February 10, but had to leave for the birthday of Matt Zylbert, one of America's greatest sportswriters. Therefore, well, some things have already changed since then. **

Hood is a streak scorer who can fill it up in bunches. I like that he's a lefty, giving opposing defenses a bit of a different look, and he (like Clarkson) is the type of scorer who can elevate your second unit. The question for Tyronn Lue is...who starts and who comes off the pine? And where does Hill fit in this guard/swingman rotation with LeBron, Clarkson, Hood, J.R. Smith, Kyle Korver and Jeff Green?

I guess these are good questions for Lue to have. 

My guess is that Hill finds his way into the starting lineup because he's a calm, seasoned vet (apparently this was on Rotoworld at 1:37. Nice job predicting something that already happened. I'm an idiot.) I like Clarkson and Hood's skillsets better next to LeBron, but something tells me Clarkson is stuck with that "bench scorer" stigma. I'd like to see him start and play a ton of minutes next to LeBron. I think he could average over 20 ppg in Cleveland, if handled correctly. Hill, Hood, Smith and Korver are going to cut into his production, though. 

In the end, I'm sure Lue and Coach LeBron will do a lot of mixing and matching. The conservative starting lineup would be Hill, Smith, Korver, LeBron and Tristan Thompson, with Clarkson, Hood and Nance coming off the bench. 

I wouldn't go that route. I would throw Clarkson and Hood -- the kids with the most upside -- right into the starting five. Clarkson, Smith, Hood, LeBron and Thompson, with Hill, Nance, Korver and Green on the pine.

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As for the departed players, Wade should help the Heat with Dion Waiters out for the remainder of the season. Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside will continue to lead the way for Erik Spoelstra's blue-collar club, but Wade will be a stabilizing force at the end of tight games. The East is a strange animal this season, so there's no telling who may end up making some noise in the postseason. For the mid-level playoff teams, as always, it will come down to executing down the stretch of nip-and-tuck games. D-Wade can help with that; but overall, I think this Heat team is a little light on talent.

As for Isaiah Thomas...I mean, it's clear that the guy likes being "The Guy." He complained in Sacramento when DeMarcus Cousins got all the attention -- sorry for your loss, Pelicans fans -- he pushed his way out of Phoenix because he didn't like sharing with Dragic, Eric Bledsoe and Markieff Morris, and he thrived in Boston when everything revolved around him. I guess that really does make him an Allen Iverson-type player. Some guys just play better when they are touching the ball all the time, and creating plays on their own. He'll get some chances to do exactly that in Los Angeles, but this is a short-term relationship. Especially if the Lakers have a real shot at LeBron during the offseason. 

He's barely important enough to write about, but Shumpert just isn't a good player. The Knicks may be the second-worst franchise in the NBA since the 2001-02 season, but ya gotta give that New York media some credit -- they know how to pump up the value of young, fresh-faced players. They did that for Landry Fields (who quickly fell off the face of the earth) and Shumpert, who was written about as a "great" or "impact" defender in hundreds of NY articles. So what? The kid was in good shape, and he stayed active on D. He has no impact on the game. He's a possible G-League player. But he quickly developed name value, and even that initially tricked GM LeBron. Good job Altman, dumping more dead weight. 

As for Rose, I think we can expect him to land in Washington. John Wall is already injured and sidelined, and Tim Frazier caught the injury bug last night. They are in obvious need of point guard help, and although Rose can always be a distraction with bizarre off-the-court antics, on the floor, he's still a quick penetrator and solid scorer when healthy. Clearly better than what The Wiz have without Wall. 

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The Elfrid Payton, Emmanuel Mudiay and Noah Vonleh deals were "Why Not's?" in my book. Payton is the current NBA point guard's version of the kiss of death: he can't make outside shots with any consistency. While stars like Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Kemba Walker, Kyrie, Chris Paul and Kyle Lowry are among the league leaders in threes per game, Payton is shooting 30.5% from beyond the arc for his short NBA career. Gross.

But, Payton was drafted 10th overall in the 2014 draft, and he has some ability getting to the rack. The Suns are buying low here, so I really can't fault them. I doubt this move has any serious long-term impact, though. 

The Knicks probably made out the best of the three. Mudiay has shown some positive flashes this season -- he scored double-digits in 8 out of 9 games from October 21 through November 4 -- and the point guard position is wide open in New York. Trey Burke was another savvy, low-risk pickup at that position, while Frank Ntilikina still has a long way to go. Frank doesn't want to shoot the ball. He doesn't really want to drive. I'm not sure I've ever seen a more passive young player with (relative) talent. The Knicks really only need Mudiay or Burke to stick. Turning one of those kids into long-term value is a win. 

Vonleh was selected one spot before Payton in the '14 draft. He, like Mudiay, has shown some flashes in limited time. He has 6 double-digit rebound games this season -- including 18 against the Grizzlies on Nov 20 -- but his minutes were limited whenever Jusuf Nurkic and Al-Farouq Aminu were healthy in Portland. Chicago is in the midst of a major rebuild, so there's no harm in giving Vonleh a look. Clearly, at some point, he was considered a top-flight prospect. 

In the end, Koby Altman was the star of the NBA Trade Deadline. Now the big question is...

How will it all work out?

11 Rapid-Fire Thoughts About A Wild Super Bowl and the Todd Frazier Signing

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It's 10:39 on a Monday night and I've worked 19 of the last 21 days -- my apologies if I can't put together a piece that flows from one paragraph to the next. Shootin' from the hip...

1. Signing Todd Frazier makes it nearly impossible for Jose Reyes to work his way into the Mets' starting lineup, and that is most certainly a good thing. Reyes should already have been behind Asdrubal Cabrera and Wilmer Flores in the 2B/3B platoon situation, but Frazier's full-time occupation of the hot corner pushes Jose, Jose, Jose into a deep hole on the depth chart. I've had enough of his laughable at bats with runners in scoring position. He doesn't hit, he doesn't walk, he gets thrown out stealing and makes a ton of blunders in the field. Enough of this guy already. My hope is somehow, someway he eventually ends up getting cut. 

2. Frazier is a respectable major league ballplayer, but he's also an easy out. This is a veteran who strikes out a ton. Like my great friend and fellow Mets enthusiast Steven Summer, I would have preferred Eduardo Nunez to Frazier. Nunez has a much, much higher contact rate, steals bases efficiently and would have fit perfectly atop Mickey Callaway's batting order. Right now, we don't have a leadoff hitter on the active roster. Michael Conforto could eventually fit the bill when healthy -- though do you really want to waste his potential RBI opportunities? -- but in the meantime we're talking about Amed Rosario, Cabrera, Juan Lagares and Brandon Nimmo as leading candidates for the 1-hole. Against right-handed pitchers, I'm sad to say I'd probably lean in Nimmo's direction. Yikes. We'll see what Callaway sees in Spring Training. 

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3. Are there too many strikeouts in this lineup? Yoenis Cespedes, Jay Bruce, Frazier, Travis d'Arnaud and Rosario; lots of swings and misses there. Who will the consistent contact hitters be? Will the low collective contact rate lead to the stranding of many runners in scoring position?

4. With Conforto expected out until late May or early June, here's the lineup I'd like to see against righties: Nimmo, Cabrera, Cespedes, Bruce, Gonzalez, Frazier, Rosario then d'Arnaud. 

5. Here's the lineup I think we'll see: Rosario, Cabrera, Gonzalez, Cespedes, Bruce, Frazier, d'Arnaud, Nimmo. I think Callaway is a manager who is going to show excessive confidence in his guys, which means he may want to pump Rosario up from the outset. I'd rather not rush him. I'd like to see a nice, comfortable approach hitting behind seasoned vets Cespedes, Bruce, Gonzalez and Frazier. I also think most big league managers are more likely to stagger righty-lefty than I am. I'd rather get Cespedes to the plate more often; I don't care if that leaves Bruce and Gonzalez (two lefties) back to back. 

6. That Super Bowl was AWESOME. Insane action, start to finish. We've seen great comebacks from the Patriots in the past, which meant all of the high-octane action exploded in the second half. Not this one, though. This one was wild from the get-go. What an epic game for the ages. 

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7. What the helllll happened with Malcolm Butler? Do we have any more solid information now, than we did five minutes before kickoff or an hour after the game? Ian Rapoport, one of the best and most reliable reporters in the game, offers a reasonable and well-researched explanation. He refers to it as a "perfect storm of issues" including illness, poor play and a costly violation of team rules. Former Patriot Brandon Browner thinks Butler was caught in possession of marijuana. That's loosely consistent with Rapoport's reference to a "minor violation" of team rules. Perhaps most importantly, Butler is now an unrestricted free agent. To me, it was just another example of Bill Belichick making a statement. If your performance is slipping and you're careless enough to be smokin' weed on gameweek, you haven't earned playing time in his Super Bowl. You certainly haven't earned a new, lucrative contract. I know what Belichick was doing, but I don't agree with it. I think a first quarter or -- at the most -- a first half benching would have been sufficient. Why cut off your nose to spite your face?

8. In hindsight, I kind of feel like the Patriots outplayed the Eagles. Philly's D was just downright awful. That may have been the worst defensive performance of all time. Everything Tom Brady, Josh McDaniels and Belichick did worked. Rob Gronkowski was somehow uncovered half the time. Danny Amendola was seemingly wide open every, single play. Chris Hogan was getting free releases downfield. On the flip side, Nick Foles really had to earn it. The Patriots covered the Alshon Jeffery touchdown well -- it was simply a spectacular hookup between The Iceman and his No. 1 receiver. The same goes for the Corey Clement TD; two defenders right on top of the play. It was an absolutely PERFECT throw. I like Nick Foles. I always have. He's a solid NFL football player. Calm demeanor, good leadership, above-average talent for his position. But I NEVER thought he could repeat that lights-out performance against the Vikings. I mean, the guy was droppin' dimes everywhere. Down the field, into extremely small windows with defensive help over the top. And what does he do? Goes and does the exact same thing in the Super Bowl. Give this man the respect he deserves! What a legendary individual performance for the history books. 

9. I am SO happy that Belichick is taking the vast majority of the blame for this loss...but...to be fair (for once)...is it really warranted?

10. I mean, was Eric Rowe really that bad? I truly don't think he was. He had 4 solo tackles and 2 passes defensed, including perfect coverage on a dangerous endzone fade to Jeffery. Sure Doug Pederson and Frank Reich picked on him (and rightfully so), but Matt Patricia's defense put together a poor performance on the whole. Eric Rowe didn't give up 41 points. Foles and Pederson earned this thing, and yet Belichick is taking the hit for benching Butler for Rowe. I honestly don't believe it had as big an impact as pundits are saying. Pederson made aggressive playcalls, Foles made big-time plays and the Eagles' D came away with a strip-sack at exactly the right time. Philly earned this. I don't think Malcolm Butler changes the outcome. 

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11. The controversial calls went in favor of the Eagles. Belichick is the scapegoat. Patricia is gone. McDaniels is gone. Jimmy Garoppolo is gone. Gronk mentioned the word "retirement."

The Philadelphia Eagles beat the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. 

Life is good. 

Johnny Fro's Super Bowl LII Prediction: Is This the Beginning of the End of the Patriots Dynasty?

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Winning cures everything. 

Just about a month ago, a number of scandalous stories popped up detailing a New England Patriots franchise in shambles. Apparently Tom Brady viewed Jimmy Garoppolo as a threat to his long-term seat on his throne -- and perhaps, rightfully so -- so he urged owner Robert Kraft to get rid of the young-and-talented gunslinger. 

Of course, an idea like that wouldn't make any sense from Bill Belichick's perspective. Brady still seems invincible at the moment, but he's 40 years old, and all Hall of Fame careers must come to an end. For Belichick, life goes on after Brady. I'm sure he's planning on a seamless transition following Brady's eventual retirement. Belichick expects the excellence to continue, and Garoppolo would have placed the Patriots franchise in a reasonable position to continue its dominance. 

But Tom Brady has pull. Jimmy Garoppolo is gone, and the Patriots are all-in on the now. 

We know there's been tension between Brady and mastermind OC Josh McDaniels -- who is on his way out the door, along with popular DC Matt Patricia -- and stars like Rob Gronkowski and Devin McCourty are getting older, and more beat up. 

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So, without a doubt, we're heading into the most pressure-packed Super Bowl appearance in the history of the New England Patriots. If things don't break right, this could be the beginning of the end. The playoff victories over the Titans and Jaguars have temporarily quieted some of the noise and negative news reports, but The Moment's here now. This is it. If they win, it's one big happy family for whomever is left. If they lose, well, what then?

Super Bowl LII: Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots @ U.S. Bank Stadium

Date, Time and Network: Sunday, February 3, at 6:30 p.m. on NBC

Lines and Movement: The Patriots have dropped from -6 to -4 (on some sites)

Public Percentage: 53% on the Eagles

The franchises that have had some success against the Patriots in the postseason -- the Ravens, Jets, Broncos and most prominently, the Giants -- all had one thing in common at the time of their victories: relentless, top-level pass rushes.

The first time around, the Giants' pass rush boasted Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck and for one magical play, Jay Alford. In their second awesome Super Bowl win over Belichick, Brady and the Pats, the G-Men had Tuck, Jason Pierre-Paul and Chris Canty applying the pressure. Keep in mind that New England scored only 14 points in their first loss to New York, and just 17 in the second.

In a 33-14 playoff drubbing of the Pats, the Ravens' ferocious pass rush was led by superstar Terrell Suggs, with assists from Haloti Ngata and Ray Lewis. The 2011 Jets won it with Shaun Ellis, Muhammad Wilkerson, Calvin Pace and David Harris buzzing around in the backfield. And lastly, the 2016 Broncos suffocated Brady and the boys with studs Von Miller, DeMarcus Ware and Derek Wolfe.

That brief history leads us to where we are now, with a Philadelphia Eagles defense that forced 14 fumbles during the regular season, batted down 106 passes (3rd in the entire NFL) and booked 19 interceptions (4th overall). Most importantly, DC Jim Schwartz's unit is scorching hot right now. They suffocated Atlanta in the divisional round -- a team led by superstars Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and Devonta Freeman -- and embarrassed Case Keenum, Stefon Diggs and the Vikings by limiting them to a measly 7 points in the NFC Championship Game.

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If Schwartz is going to lean on his pass rush the way the Giants, Broncos and Ravens have in the past, then Pro Bowler Fletcher Cox will have to be the first man through the door. Schwartz and Cox will also need Brandon Graham to snap out of his funk; he led the club in sacks with 9.5, but has just two tackles in two postseason games. He hasn't sniffed the quarterback, and if there were ever a time to wake up, it's obviously right now. Derek Barnett chipped in with five sacks during the year, and safety-and-leader Malcolm Jenkins was again selected for the Pro Bowl. This foursome, along with star CB Jalen Mills, are the defensive playmakers who will need to shine if the short-handed Eagles are going to shock the world. 

Offensively, HC Doug Pederson and OC Frank Reich must implore their guys to play EXACTLY as they did two weeks ago against Minnesota. Nick Foles MUST continue to throw the ball downfield. Foles doesn't seem like the type of guy who gets rattled very easily -- sort of like Eli Manning in that way, no? -- but players and teams tend to play differently against the Patriots in big spots. It's like everyone wants to bow down. Some teams seem like they are simply delaying the inevitable. I mean, did the Jaguars ever actually believe they were going to win? It almost seemed like they were killing time until the Patriots eventually won at the end. 

Well, the Eagles simply cannot do that here. I think they are the right team for the job. They've been playing with nothing to lose since surefire MVP Carson Wentz went down, and there's no reason to stop now. You can't pussyfoot around against the Pats. You have to take the game at them. You have to rush Brady, and make it hurt. You have to make him gun shy, even if it's only for a handful of plays. You have to throw the ball downfield, run the ball right at them and carry yourself with a swagger that says we don't give a shit about what you've done in the past. It's OUR time now. 

But, will the Eagles actually do that? Can Pederson, Reich and Schwartz communicate the right messages to their players? What if they get a lead...will they get complacent? We've seen it time and time again. If you have the Patriots down, you have to step on their throats. Otherwise, Belichick, McDaniels, Brady, Gronkowski, Danny Amendola, James White and Dion Lewis are going to steal that game away from you. This time around, the new faces to the Super Bowl are speedster Brandin Cooks, "Seven-Eleven" Chris Hogan and another back similar to White and Lewis, Rex Burkhead. 

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Damn, that's a lot of weapons. And that's what makes them so difficult to prepare for, defensively; particularly if you're ahead of them on the scoreboard. When Brady gets into his no-huddle, New England's offense moves faster than one of Dom Toretto's 10-second cars. The backs are match-up nightmares, Gronk would normally command a double-team, and Cooks, Amendola and Hogan provide variance in their routes and individual strengths. 

But above all, Tom Brady makes the f**king throws. Sure, the Jaguars got complacent and let that game slip away, but it still came down to Brady making a throw that most others wouldn't even attempt. Not in a spot like that. Not with everything on the line. But Brady fired an absolute seed into a crowded endzone, and Amendola secured an incredibly tough touchdown catch. 

That's what the Patriots do when everything is on the line -- they make plays. Year in and year out. 

But in the end, there's just something about this Eagles team. When Wentz went down, I counted them out. Didn't we all? I mean, who are we talking about here?

Alshon Jeffery was a solid addition overall, but he's not a superstar. Jay Ajayi hasn't exactly fit in since his acquisition from the Dolphins. Torrey Smith is nearing the end of his career. Nelson Agholor shows up sometimes, and completely disappears at others. LeGarrette Blount looked better on New England than he has for Philly. I mean, really, how do these guys do it?

Doug Pederson deserves a ton of credit. Again, I'm not sure how he does it, but everything seems to click for this particular Eagles group. 

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It's their time. I really think it is.

Matt Patricia is leaving. Josh McDaniels is right behind him. Jimmy Garoppolo is already gone. The relationships between Kraft, Belichick and Brady are strained. This unshakable virus finally seems to be running its course. 

When they lost Wentz, it would have been easy for the Eagles to think, well, we had a great year. We just got unlucky. There's nothing we could do about it. We'll get 'em next year. 

But they didn't let doubt defeat them. The Super Bowl is tomorrow, and the Philadelphia Eagles made it here with a back-up quarterback. 

They're here. They're ready. And they're just fearless enough to achieve the impossible. 

Let's all hope this is the end of an era. 

** Johnny Fro's Prediction: Eagles 27, Patriots 24 **