QB terrorizers Donald, Mack playing at MVP level
The NFL is built for scoring. Rules favor quarterbacks and receivers. Records are rewritten every week. A team scores 51 points … and loses to a team that scored 54.
But in a league dominated by O, the biggest game this weekend will be decided by the X factor.
Make that two bolded, underlined, highlighted Xs — a pair of defensive stars who have played their way into the MVP conversation.
Defensive end Aaron Donald of the Los Angeles Rams and linebacker Khalil Mack of the Chicago Bears will be on opposite sides of a pivotal NFC game on Sunday night, a matchup so compelling it was flexed into the national prime-time slot.
This season, nobody flexes like Donald and Mack, who play different positions but frequently wind up in the same place, wrapped around quarterbacks like boa constrictors.
“It’s rare when you have people like this where the offensive coordinators say, ‘How do I make sure these guys don’t wreck the game?’ ” NBC analyst Tony Dungy said.
Donald leads the NFL with 16½ sacks. The league’s reigning defensive player of the year also has the most quarterback hits (32), and has forced nine fumbles since the start of last season.
Mack, who arrived in Chicago this season via a trade with Oakland, leads the Bears in sacks with nine and is tied for second in the league with five forced fumbles. In the first month of the season, Mack became the first player with a sack and forced fumble in four consecutive games since Indianapolis’ Robert Mathis in 2005.
“You’d better concentrate on those guys or you’re not going to get anything done,” former Bears coach Mike Ditka said.
With quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes, Drew Brees, Philip Rivers and Jared Goff having phenomenal years, along with running back Todd Gurley and other offensive standouts, it’s unlikely that Donald or Mack will join Lawrence Taylor (1986) and Alan Page (1971) as the only defensive players to earn league MVP honors.
“They’re not going to give it to a defensive player,” Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips said. “Quarterbacks are always the guy, and probably well deserved. … The only chance that any player would have, and Aaron would have, would be to set the alltime record for sacks.”
To match the season sacks record set by the Giants’ Michael Strahan (22½), Donald would need six in the final four games.
Chiefs right tackle Mitchell Schwartz has played against both Donald and Mack this season, although at his position he found himself blocking the Bears’ standout a lot more.
“As a defensive end, if a guy is good at one or two things, there’s some element that you can stop or hone in on,” Schwartz said. “With (Mack), he’s able to do three or four different things. He’s got elite speed, elite get-off, quickness, all those athletic traits you want. … There’s really nothing he doesn’t do at an elite level.”
Schwartz said Donald “kind of ruins double teams,” even though teams constantly slide the center over to help the guard block him.
Donald has a knack for lining up in just the right spot, so he can split a double team, whether that’s between the center and guard, or guard and tackle.
“It’s kind of a game within a game with him,” Schwartz said.
For his part, Bears right tackle Bobby Massie didn’t sound overly concerned about Donald.
“I’m not taking nothing away from him, but he’s not God. He’s been blocked before,” Massie said. “He’s a damn good player. He’s an animal, and from the three-technique? He’s a dog. You’ve just got to get your hands on him and block him. At the end of the day, that’s what needs to happen.”
Whether it’s trying to block Donald or Mack, that’s easier said than done.
“Khalil Mack, he can run 40 yards in 4½ seconds,” said Arizona left tackle D.J. Humphries, who has played against both players. “Really, if you compact that down to what he needs to do to get to the quarterback, that’s maybe 7 to 10 yards he has to go.
“People say, ‘Just block that dude.’ I love that thought process. It’s like, yeah, this is the most athletic guy on the field. He’s 6-3, 260 pounds, and runs super-fast. And you want me to run backwards to stop him from going forward? These are the type of battles that offensive linemen are dealing with.”