Bengals’ Chidobe Awuzie wins 2022 BlitzChamps to be crowned best chess player in NFL

On Sunday, Chidobe Awuzie of the Cincinnati Bengals was named the first-place winner of Chess.com’s BlitzChamps, which sought to identify the best chess player in the NFL.

Six NFL players, including Awuzie, competed in a recent competition on Chess.com called BlitzChamps for $100,000 in charity, with the winner having won $25,000. The remaining players on the field were wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, a future Hall of Fame, edge defender Kayvon Thibodeaux of the New York Giants, wide receiver Amari Cooper of the Cleveland Browns, cornerback Will Davis of the Miami Dolphins, and defensive lineman Arik Armstead of the San Francisco 49ers.

Two groups of three players each were assigned to the players. Cooper, Awuzie, and Thibodeaux made comprised Group A. Fitzgerald, Armstead, and Davis were in group B.

Longtime rivals in the locker room, Awuzie, and Cleveland Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper faced off in the final in a rematch from Saturday’s group round. This time, though, it was Awuzie who got the better of his opponent, winning 2-0 and earning $25,000 for his charity.

While Cooper became the first competitor to defeat a last-minute ring-in, retired cornerback Will Davis, 1.5-0.5, Awuzie’s road to the final was outstanding as he had to defeat semifinalist and future “hall-of-fame” Larry Fitzgerald.

Semifinal 1: Cooper-Davis 1.5-0.5

Semifinal 2: Awuzie-Fitgerald 2-0

Final: Awuzie-Cooper 2-0

Cooper was defeated by Awuzie on the chessboard. On Halloween, at Monday Night Football in Cleveland, they will square off on the football field. On December 11, they will do so once more in Cincinnati. However, Awuzie now holds the title of king. Cooper was checkmated.

Image Credits – AP

Unfortunately, Arik Armstead had to attend to a personal problem, which prevented him from playing Kayvon Thibodeaux in the consolation round. Despite the match not taking place, the participants decided to divide the $22,500 consolation prize evenly among respective charities.

With the announcement of “call me Thanos,” Awuzie could not help but add one more amusing moment that commentator Rensch would have appreciated.

Cooper, the tournament’s runner-up, was open about his chess objectives. He said that blitz and quick events are “a fantastic way to achieve that” and that he wants to “see people love watching chess and being a part of the chess community.”

 

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