NFL Championship Games feature a different ‘Fearsome Foursome’

The numbers for the quarterback quartet playing on Championship Sunday of the 2021 NFL Playoffs are so amazing that you have to look twice.

There are four teams remaining in the pursuit of a Super Bowl championship. The Kansas City Chiefs (14-2), Buffalo Bills (13-3), Kansas City Chiefs (13-3) and wild card Tampa Bay Buccaneers (11-5) have combined for a gaudy 51-13 regular-season record.

Including the postseason, Sean McDermott’s club is riding an eight-game winning streak, the NFC North champion Pack has won seven in a row and the Bucs have prevailed in their last six outings, including road playoff wins at Washington and at New Orleans.

These are balanced teams that can all beat you in numerous ways. But in this instance, it’s hard to ignore the kind of seasons and postseasons the quartet of quarterbacks has enjoyed. The numbers are so impressive that, in some ways, they appear to be almost unfathomable.

Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers (70.7), Buffalo’s Josh Allen (69.2), Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes (66.3) and Tampa Bay’s Tom Brady (65.7) all completed at least 65 percent of their passes during the regular season.

Each threw for over 4,200 yards and a minimum of 37 scores, meaning the quartet averaged at least two touchdown passes per game. And when you combine their performances, there were 163 touchdown tosses as opposed to only 31 interceptions. To put that into some sort of context, current Saints’ quarterback Jameis Winston was picked off 30 times while a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2019.

But wait, there’s more. Led by Allen and his 421 rushing yards and eight scores via the ground, the fantastic four combined to run for 884 and 16 touchdowns. Now to be fair, this talented group did lose 11 fumbles (6 by Allen). Do the math and there’s 175 passing/rushing touchdowns and a mere 42 turnovers. All but Mahomes played and started all 16 games with the reigning Super Bowl MVP sitting out Week 17.

Then there’s the postseason, with Rodgers and Mahomes playing one game and Allen and Brady a pair. Each of these performers have run for a touchdown during this postseason and the quartet has combined for 10 aerial scores without an interception.

In fact, none of these quarterbacks have committed a turnover in the playoffs. In a combined six games by their clubs, there’s only been two miscues. Buccaneers’ running back Ke’Shawn Vaughn lost a fumble in the win at Washington and Chiefs’ backup Chad Henne was picked off by the Browns in the divisional playoffs.

These are the kind of overall statistics that would make fantasy football fans drool. And chances are if you had one of these players, you probably fared pretty well. But the reality is that on Sunday, there are four defensive units that will have their work cut out for them containing this outstanding group of quarterbacks.