# Richard Sherman: Sherman picks the Chiefs to beat the Bills in the AFC Championship Game despite Buffalo's turnover dominance, and picks the Commanders to upset the Eagles in Philadelphia in the NFC Championship Game. He also expects Saquon Barkley to win Offensive Player of the Year, though he hedges that voters may give it to Lamar or Josh Allen. **Claimed:** Jan 25, 2025 **Pundit:** Richard Sherman — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/richard-sherman **Outlet:** The Herd with Colin Cowherd (podcast) — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/the-herd-with-colin-cowherd-podcast **How it reached us:** said on air or in an interview **Original:** https://omny.fm/shows/the-richard-sherman-podcast/richard-sherman-podcast-nfl-championship-round-pre 11 checkable claims — 4 trade and signing calls, 2 conference champions, 2 game outcome picks, 1 award pick, 1 depth chart call and 1 season win total — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet. It names 12 players and teams, each linked to their own record. All 11 have settled, averaging 59.1 out of 100, against 45.2 for a naive guess at the same calls. > But I gotta go with Kansas City. I think Kansas City finds a way to get this done. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Detroit Lions to finish with 15–16 wins** - Kind: Season Win Totals · About: Detroit Lions - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 5 for a naive guess - **Sam Darnold to move to New York Jets** - Kind: Trade and Signing Calls · About: Sam Darnold, New York Jets - Verdict: scored 0 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess - **Charvarius Ward to move to San Francisco 49ers** - Kind: Trade and Signing Calls · About: Charvarius Ward, San Francisco 49ers - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess - **Sam Darnold to move to Las Vegas Raiders** - Kind: Trade and Signing Calls · About: Sam Darnold, Las Vegas Raiders - Verdict: scored 0 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess - **Sam Darnold to move to New York Giants** - Kind: Trade and Signing Calls · About: Sam Darnold, New York Giants - Verdict: scored 0 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess - **Washington Commanders to beat Philadelphia Eagles** - Kind: Game Outcome Picks · About: Washington Commanders - Verdict: scored 0 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess - **Washington Commanders to reach the Super Bowl** - Kind: Conference Champions · About: Washington Commanders - Verdict: scored 50 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess - **Kansas City Chiefs to beat Buffalo Bills** - Kind: Game Outcome Picks · About: Kansas City Chiefs - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess - **Kansas City Chiefs to reach the Super Bowl** - Kind: Conference Champions · About: Kansas City Chiefs - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess - **Saquon Barkley to win Offensive Player of the Year** - Kind: Award Picks · About: Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess - **Sam Darnold to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Sam Darnold, Minnesota Vikings - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 91.67 for a naive guess ## Who this take is about - Detroit Lions — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/lions - Sam Darnold — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/sam-darnold - New York Jets — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/jets - Charvarius Ward — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/charvarius-ward - San Francisco 49ers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/49ers - Las Vegas Raiders — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/raiders - New York Giants — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/giants - Washington Commanders — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/commanders - Kansas City Chiefs — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/chiefs - Saquon Barkley — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/saquon-barkley - Philadelphia Eagles — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/eagles - Minnesota Vikings — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/vikings ## What others said about the same people - Chris Simms on Kansas City Chiefs: Simms went through the entire Week 3 slate with straight-up winners and predicted final scores, taking Jacksonville, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle, the Giants, Baltimore, New Orleans, Minnesota, San Francisco, Denver and Philadelphia. He also expected Zay Flowers and Puka Nacua to sit, Kyler Murray to play, and said Marvin Harrison Jr. projects as no better than a good No. 2 or high-end No. 3 receiver. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/662b7ba3-1bf6-4ad0-9f93-9f2ab83143fd (scored 100) - Connor Rogers on New York Giants: Rogers picked Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle and the Giants to win their Week 3 games, saying the Chiefs win by two touchdowns and the Giants by a field goal. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/83d1e88b-95a0-45ba-83d3-f86297170c6c (scored 100) - Chris Long on Detroit Lions: Long liked the Rams over the Broncos on Sunday night even without Puka Nacua, and expected the Bills to beat the winless Chargers in Buffalo. He also backed the Bengals over the Steelers, expected an angry Detroit team to handle the Jets, and still thought both the Lions and Vikings could win the NFC North. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/3df9ea25-e57f-4fd7-b20c-c910a1c3633a (scored 100) - Steven Ruiz on Las Vegas Raiders: Previewing Week 3, Ruiz picked the Ravens to beat the Cowboys in Brazil, Jacksonville over New England in a low-scoring game, an upset by the Broncos over the Rams, the Raiders over the Saints, the Eagles over the Bears, the Lions over the Jets, and his Hail Mary that Houston beats Indianapolis by two touchdowns. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a30ff469-4972-4c48-855b-ba984e4de9d0 (scored 100) - Nate Tice on Detroit Lions: Tice matched his guest on every Week 3 game, picking the Ravens over the Cowboys, the Jaguars over the Patriots in a close game, the Broncos to upset the Rams, the Raiders over the Saints, the Eagles over the Bears and the Lions over the Jets. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b8378e16-ea5c-4107-a883-28aaf0e71134 (scored 100) - Sam Monson on Minnesota Vikings: Monson picked the Chargers to beat the Bills outright (jokingly crediting Buffalo's gray 'Nickel City' jerseys), took the Vikings to win outright in Tampa, and said Seattle would destroy Washington. He also reiterated his Super Bowl pick of Denver over the Rams, called the Dolphins destined for the No. 1 overall pick, and said the Saints are a worst-to-first candidate in the NFC South. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/0b810ffd-fd93-4ea2-a208-b1353dea5fb0 (scored 100) ## More trade and signing calls The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - David Droegemeier on Mekhi Becton: Drogemeier says the Chargers cutting Mekhi Becton is a foregone conclusion, freeing nearly $9 million in cap space, and only a matter of when. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c5f92029-fa26-4c4f-9c27-ab127b7301a8 (scored 100) - Mina Kimes on Mekhi Becton: Kimes projects Washington receiver Denzel Boston as a second-half-of-the-first-round pick and expects the Chargers to move on from Mekhi Becton. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/313774ec-4795-434d-9f21-6ec534873000 (scored 100) - Bryan DeArdo on Darius Slayton: A CBS Sports piece on the Giants releasing Darius Slayton predicts he will be signed by another NFL team fairly quickly, and lists possible landing spots without committing to one. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/3f1834cd-6520-4f07-9efc-4060a6b5cb1c (scored 100) - Noah Strackbein on Darius Slayton: Strackbein says Pittsburgh views Roman Wilson as its No. 3 receiver behind DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr., but argues the Steelers should add released Giants veteran Darius Slayton as insurance, expecting Slayton to sign cheaply on a veteran-minimum deal, and refers to 2026 as Aaron Rodgers' final season. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c6348972-c1bf-48f1-ba03-d5c2ef44561a (scored 100) - Patricia Traina on Darius Slayton: Traina writes that the Giants may make more trades before the roster cutdown and names the players she sees as the most likely candidates to be dealt: kicker Ben Sauls, one of receivers Darius Slayton or Darnell Mooney, offensive lineman Jake Kubas, and linebacker Darius Muasau. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/970d968f-3133-436c-a8a6-114412a9f178 (scored 100) - Greg Auman on Will Levis: Auman predicts that Will Levis, released by Tennessee, will almost certainly be claimed on waivers by another team. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/55b7732a-4131-430b-adbf-a33c60c47dc0 (scored 100) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=richard-sherman