Alabama could not beat a NFL team: Chiefs would kick their you know what

South Carolina ball coach Steve Spurrier’s comments last week sparked a national debate over Alabama. Can the No. 1 team in the nation beat the worst NFL team, say the Kansas City Chiefs? Let’s look at a few things.

Alabama is currently 9-0. They are the best defensive team in the BCS. They have given 82 total points this season. They score an average of 38 points per game. And let’s point out that in the most recent draft class, 15 players in the NFL come out of the Crimson Tide program.

The Chiefs are the worst team in football, having never held a lead in regulation this season. They are 1-7. Their only win came in overtime against the New Orleans Saints, which statistically has the worst defense in the entire NFL. The only bright spot for them is their running game, which is ranked third in the league.

Numbers are great but only a few that matter for this argument. A game between these two teams would be won on the line. The battle between lineman is the real issue for this.

Kansas City and Alabama have near identical defensive lines. Both teams run a 3-4 scheme with their front seven. The defensive ends are bigger for Kansas City, but Alabama’s linebackers are bigger.

‘Bama couldn’t handle Winston. He’s just too big and too strong. Someone would get hurt. (Wikipedia Commons)

The offensive lines are similarly matched. Both teams have lineman that average (6-5, 305). This means we can assume that both teams will be able to make good running lanes and provide a good, consistent pocket.

Alabama has one major matchup problem;  Eric Winston. Winston is  right tackle (6-7, 317), too big for Alabama’s line to push past. Kansas City could feel free to run to the strong side as many times as they want. Winston would seal in the defensive ends and leave a wide open space for Jamal Charles to run through.

Offensively the game comes down to the run. Neither team is a even ranked in the top 50 percent for passing. So let’s look at the running backs.

Jamal Charles vs. Eddie Lacy. Who wins that matchup? Charles. Charles is faster than Lacy, who can’t quite outrun a linebacker. Charles hits the edge and is gone, which shows why Eric Winston is a nightmare for Alabama. Lacy is more of a smash mouth runner. He runs through defenders instead of around them. That strategy won’t work too well against an NFL defensive line.

AJ McCarron and Matt Cassel is an interesting comparison. Statwise, McCarron crushes Cassel, but playing against Western Kentucky can make that easy for any passer. Cassel is the third worst passer in the league. So we can take the aerial attack of the table.

The Chiefs are a running team. Alabama is a running team. The Chiefs are one of the best rushing team in the NFL. Alabama isn’t even in the top ten in rushing in the BCS. Jamal Charles against a college defensive line, even if it is Alabama, might break all kinds of rushing records.

Here’s one more interesting statistic. The Chicago College All-Star Game was the last time college all stars and pros played each other. It ran from 1934 to 1976. Out of the 33 times the game was played, the college all stars won nine times. The last time it happened was 1963. A college team hasn’t beaten a professional football team in more than 50 years, and that won’t change any time soon.

It wouldn’t be close –  Chiefs in a laugher by 40 or more points.

College All-Star games: Check it out.

Date played Winning team Losing team Attendance
August 31, 1934 College All-Stars 0 Chicago Bears 0 79,432
August 29, 1935 Chicago Bears 5 College All-Stars 0 77,450
September 2, 1936 College All-Stars 7 Detroit Lions 7 76,000
August 31, 1937 College All-Stars 6 Green Bay Packers 0 84,560
August 31, 1938 College All-Stars 28 Washington Redskins 16 74,250
August 30, 1939 New York Giants 9 College All-Stars 0 81,456
August 29, 1940 Green Bay Packers 45 College All-Stars 28 84,567
August 28, 1941 Chicago Bears 37 College All-Stars 13 98,203
August 28, 1942 Chicago Bears 21 College All-Stars 0 101,103
August 28, 1943 College All-Stars 27 Washington Redskins 7 48,437
August 30, 1944 Chicago Bears 24 College All-Stars 21 49,246
August 30, 1945 Green Bay Packers 19 College All-Stars 7 92,753
August 23, 1946 College All-Stars 16 Los Angeles Rams 0 97,380
August 23, 1947 College All-Stars 16 Chicago Bears 0 105,840
August 22, 1948 Chicago Cardinals 28 College All-Stars 0 101,220
August 22, 1949 Philadelphia Eagles 38 College All-Stars 0 93,780
August 11, 1950 College All-Stars 17 Philadelphia Eagles 7 88,885
August 17, 1951 Cleveland Browns 33 College All-Stars 0 92,180
August 15, 1952 Los Angeles Rams 10 College All-Stars 7 88,316
August 14, 1953 Detroit Lions 24 College All-Stars 10 93,818
August 13, 1954 Detroit Lions 31 College All-Stars 6 93,470
August 12, 1955 College All-Stars 30 Cleveland Browns 27 75,000
August 10, 1956 Cleveland Browns 26 College All-Stars 0 75,000
August 9, 1957 New York Giants 22 College All-Stars 12 75,000
August 15, 1958 College All-Stars 35 Detroit Lions 19 70,000
August 14, 1959 Baltimore Colts 29 College All-Stars 0 70,000
August 12, 1960 Baltimore Colts 32 College All-Stars 7 70,000
August 4, 1961 Philadelphia Eagles 28 College All-Stars 14 66,000
August 3, 1962 Green Bay Packers 42 College All-Stars 20 65,000
August 2, 1963 College All-Stars 20 Green Bay Packers 17 65,000
August 7, 1964 Chicago Bears 28 College All-Stars 17 65,000
August 6, 1965 Cleveland Browns 24 College All-Stars 16 68,000
August 5, 1966 Green Bay Packers 38 College All-Stars 0 72,000
August 4, 1967 Green Bay Packers 27 College All-Stars 0 70,934
August 2, 1968 Green Bay Packers 34 College All-Stars 17 69,917
August 1, 1969 New York Jets 26 College All-Stars 24 74,208
July 31, 1970 Kansas City Chiefs 24 College All-Stars 3 69,940
July 30, 1971 Baltimore Colts 24 College All-Stars 17 52,289
July 28, 1972 Dallas Cowboys 20 College All-Stars 7 54,162
July 27, 1973 Miami Dolphins 14 College All-Stars 3 54,103
July 26, 1974 Canceled due to 1974 NFL strike
Game was originally scheduled between the Miami Dolphins and College All-Stars
August 1, 1975 Pittsburgh Steelers 21 College All-Stars 14 54,562
July 23, 19761 Pittsburgh Steelers 24 College All-Stars 0 52,095

One thought on “Alabama could not beat a NFL team: Chiefs would kick their you know what

  • December 17, 2012 at 4:07 AM
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    NO college team would come within 30 points of ANY NFL team in a real game.. The old super bowl/college all star game had modified rules..A real game NEVER

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