For this special Whirled Bowl edition, we’ll take a look at the season to date for both Tokyo and Dublin, as well as a position by position comparison of the 2 teams.
#DUB
Dublin struggled mightily at the start of the season, twice falling 2 games under .500 and carrying a record of only 5-5 through 10 games. Most surprisingly, despite fairly consisting strong showings by the defense, it was the Dublin offense that was failing them, twice failing to break double digits. And then the bounty of the Week 11 draft came in the form of Jim Taylor, and the Damhas took off and never looked back. Six consecutive wins followed, with the only close game being the epic 59-56 shootout over Berlin.
Injuries have hit Dublin hard all year: starting LB Clay Matthews, Jr. was lost in the opening game of the season, and fellow starters Bryan Bulaga, Mike Michalske, and Darren Sharper all missed significant time. And, most notably, after week 16, defensive MVP candidate J.J. Watt was placed on IR, forcing him to miss the rest of the season as well.
#TOK
Tokyo inexplicably lost their 2nd game of the year to lowly Beijing, managing only 10 points in a 23-10 defeat to the Red Stars. That put them a game behind Addis Ababa, a position that held until the final week of the season. Throughout that time, the press remained skeptical of their ability to compete with the Emperors, something that only grew the chip on Tokyo’s shoulder.
While the offense got a lot of the press, the key to the Swallows season is their punishing defense, which held opponents under 20 points for 6 games during the season. Tokyo has been shockingly healthy all season: starting WR Rod Smith was injured on opening day and missed most of the regular season, but Kendall Wright and Demaryius Thomas both stepped right up. Other than that, of their starters, only Champ Bailey, Keith Traylor, and Julius Thomas missed significant time, with only Thomas still on the sidelines.
Here is how the teams match up, position by position.
#QB
Both teams have received great QB play, although in different ways. Tokyo’s George Blanda hasn’t thrown for a great completion percentage (only 52%), but when passes are caught, they are caught for lots of yardage: he’s averaging over 20 yards per completion, and has only thrown 11 interceptions to go along with his 45 TDs.
Aaron Rodgers, on the other hand, has been a consistent performer, completing over 60% of his throws with an even better TD to interception ratio (37 TDs, only 7 picks). Rodgers is also Dublin’s leading rusher, scrambling for almost 800 yards and 5 TDs on the season.
Still, Blanda’s numbers are just so impressive, allowing Tokyo to score quickly from anywhere on the field. Edge: Tokyo.
#RB
RB was the great disappointment for Dublin throughout the 1st half of the sason, as Eddie Lacy managed a miserable 2.9 yards per carry, and while Alfred Blue did well as a backup, nobody did much better as a featured back. And then came Taylor, who rushed for over 500 yards on 77 carries, and scored 8 TDs, taking Dublin’s ground attack from nonexistent to quite impressive.
For Tokyo, it’s a traditional thunder and lightning approach. Earl Campbell provides the thunder, gaining over 1100 yards and scoring 14 times while Leon Washington is the lightning, managing nearly 300 yards rushing to go along with 35 catches and over 400 yards receiving. Campbell, the subject of some regular season critique due to a low yards per carry average, has turned it on in the playoffs, gaining over 300 yards in Tokyo’s 2 games.
Still, Taylor has just been–until the Northish Championship game at least–unstoppable. Edge: Dublin.
#WR/TE
Andre Johnson caught 110 passes for Dublin and Randall Cobb added another 84. But their best receiver on the season was DeAndre Hopkins, who caught 83 balls for over 1300 yards and a team-high 14 TDs. Those three were one of the strongest trios in the league and, especially when Dublin had no running game, carried the team.Dublin’s TE’s were rarely asked to catch the ball, and often injured when they did, with both Garrett Graham and Ryan Griffin on the DL currently.
Tokyo, however, boasts one of the 3 top individual receivers in the league in Lionel Taylor, who managed almost 1700 yards and 21 TDs on only 68 catches. Demaryius Thomas thrived against single coverage all year, adding 47 catches and 975 yards, and Kendall Wright and TE Shannon Sharpe (whose brother Sterling will lineup occasionally at WR for Dublin) combined for 67 catches and over 1200 yards.
Still, it’s hard not to go with Dublin’s depth. Edge: Dublin.
#OL
The trio of Michael Roos, Mike Munchak, and Ryan Clady have been excellent all year for Tokyo and while Dublin’s Cal Hubbard, Josh Sitton, and Michalske could match them when healthy, they have not been together much all year. Dublin has gotten good fill in work from Brandon Brooks and Corey Linsley, but those guys have been solid, not spectacular.
Edge: Tokyo.
#DL
Tokyo’s Karl Mecklenburg–especially in Watt’s absence–has probably been the best defensive player in the league and Sean Jones led the Sparrows with 7 sacks (Mecklenburg had 6). Add in midseason addition Bud McFadin, and the Tokyo front line is dominant. Dublin gets good work from Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila and Mike Daniels on the end, but they are clearly the inferior squad here.
Edge: Tokyo.
#LB
Von Miller finished 2nd in the league in sacks for Tokyo with 14, and is supported by Kamerion Wimbley and Randy Gradishar, both of whom had excellent seasons. The problem for Tokyo is there isn’t much behind those 3.
Dublin, on the other hand, has fantastic depth at LB. It starts with Brian Cushing and Dave Robinson, who each finished with over 100 tackles on the season, and continues with A.J. Hawk and Brooks Reed. There is nobody to match Miller, but overall I would prefer Dublin’s contingent. Still, Miller is a force of nature. Edge: EVEN.
#DB
Tokyo’s leading tackler on the season was Chris Harris, Jr. So, good for him, but you that also means teams were completing a lot of passes against him. One reason was the presence of Jason McCourty, who was just about the hardest defensive back in the league to complete a pass against and added 5 picks to boot. Dublin’s LeRoy Butler and Casey Hayward both did well all season, but Tokyo’s best 2 players in the secondary were just better, as were their next 2 (T.J. Ward and Champ Bailey over Johnathan Joseph and Kendrick Lewis).
Edge: Tokyo.
#Special Teams
Keshawn Martin, back from injury for Dublin, has been among the most dangerous return men in the league. The battle between Dublin’s Mason Crosby and Tokyo’s Ryan Succop is pretty even: Succop has more points due to a better overall offense, but Crosby is more accurate. Dublin’s Tim Masthay holds an edge over Tokyo’s Britton Colquitt in the punting department, although it would be a shock if this game came down to the punter.
Edge: Dublin.
#Overall
Tokyo has to be the favorite here: Blanda is too dangerous, and the defense is just too good. Dublin will need to find a way to slow Tokyo down, and probably needs to not fall behind, using longer drives to control the game.
Prediction: Tokyo wins, 38-27.