NFL Thread

[Danny Franks]

Here's my crazy overtime proposal - divide the field down the middle, give each team a ball and then they have to play offense and defense simultaneously, on a half-width field. First unit to score wins.

Edited March 8, 2021 by Danny Franks

[DoctorAtomic]

The entire birth of the NFL is due to gambling. If you're betting on money line - +550/-375 (which is where you make the real money) then you need the winner. The tie means the house pays out from my understanding. So you want to lower the chances of a tie. 

The spread is the spread, so the tie doesn't matter. It's also only -110 for any spread bet, so it's not much. 

[Popples]

 

[Moose135]

5 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

If you're betting on money line - +550/-375 (which is where you make the real money) then you need the winner. The tie means the house pays out from my understanding. So you want to lower the chances of a tie. 

I recognize all the words, but I have no idea what any of that means.

[xaxat]

I guess Russell can cross one off the list he has in the hypothetical case that he is traded.

Looks like Jerry cost himself some serious money not coming to an agreement earlier.

[Crashcourse]

Welp.  I guess Dak can feed his family now. 

[AimingforYoko]

Good on Dak. If any lesson was learned after this season, it's get as much money as you can while you can. Not everybody's Tom Brady.

[merylinkid]

Dak got paid!!!!!  Also allegedly a no tag, no trade clause.  Which means they can't tag him again and they can't trade him during the contract without his consent.

Jerry Jones sooooo wanted him to take a hometown discount.   But Dak was all "I leave the business side of things to my agent."  Apparently Jerry has a history of calling the players directly and convincing them to take a lesser deal to stay in Dallas.   Dak wasn't doing that.   So he got PAID.

[DoctorAtomic]

15 hours ago, Moose135 said:

I recognize all the words, but I have no idea what any of that means.

It means the NFL is going to make sure that the chances of a tie are very low.

[mojoween]

This meme PAINS ME but they’re not entirely wrong.

 

[merylinkid]

It's a leeeetttle more complicated than that.   But it is part of the picture.   

Salary cap set at 182.5 million.    Last year it was $198.2  so even with revenues allegedly down, they only lowered the cap about $16 million.   The NFL always finds a way to profit.

Edited March 10, 2021 by merylinkid

[xaxat]

Brady has also admitted that he can do that in part because his wife makes a lot more money than he does. Unique case in a sport where you need to get paid because you never know when it's going to end.

[basiltherat]

Hell, you could pay Brady in AVOCADOS and he would be happy to play.  He is a egotistical narcissist who is only in it for the adoration and cannot live without constant slobbering from fans and media.  I would be surprised if he and the Mrs. had a "normal" marriage.

[stealinghome]

2 hours ago, xaxat said:

Brady has also admitted that he can do that in part because his wife makes a lot more money than he does. Unique case in a sport where you need to get paid because you never know when it's going to end.

I don't disagree, but other top-tier QBs could take a little bit less to allow their teams more financial flexibility. It's not like these guys are stuck in a situation where their only choices are either "break the bank" or "take peanuts." There's a middle ground. Take Dak as an example. (And keep in mind I don't like Jerry Jones at all, so I LOVE that Dak got way more money from the Cowboys now than he would've if they'd just signed him a few years ago.) But if Dak had signed for (say) 4 years and $140 million, I'm not sure losing the $20 million would make a huge difference for him--but it sure might help the Cowboys build a better team around him.

Which is not to begrudge any player who wants to get paid the max they possibly can. I totally, totally get that, and frankly would probably be the same way as a player. But the numbers all pretty clearly indicate that it's virtually impossible to pay top dollar for a premium QB and win a Super Bowl. There were several pieces on it in the wake of this year's Super Bowl. So if the top QBs really, REALLY want to win a Super Bowl, they can help themselves by not being determined to be the next record-setter in terms of contract--since if you manage your money properly, one really good top-tier QB contract should more than set you up for life.

Edited March 10, 2021 by stealinghome

[DoctorAtomic]

The key point there though is that in taking the pay cut, or signing below your actual value, you do have the organization investing that money in building a winning team. That's not the case imo with a lot of organizations where they just want to stay above water and hope for a few breaks season to season and back into the playoffs. 

[AimingforYoko]

Julian Edelman demonstrates the definition of grace.

Better man than I am. Because eff that guy.

[Fukui San]

There is something to not having the highest paid QB for overall team success. Over the past four seasons, there have been only two team building structures that have resulted in a Super Bowl appearance. 

1. Have a young QB making lower half of the league starter money at best. (Mahomes didn't get paid a lot in 2020. His big $ kicks in next year)

2. Have Tom Brady as your Quarterback.

That's literally it.

Brady vs. Mahomes

Mahomes vs. Garrapolo

Brady vs. Goff

Foles/Wentz vs. Brady

Garrapolo the highest paid QB at the time of his Super Bowl appearance besides Brady. And Brady wasn't paid the most during the end of his NE tenure.

Matt Ryan is the last other highly paid at the time QB in the Superbowl. Then Manning/Newton the year before.

I do think Mahomes going forward has an excellent chance at breaking that cycle. He's great and his contract isn't as exorbitant as it could have been. 

Also, if Brees' play didn't fall off a cliff he might have made it last season. The team was strong around him though it'll get dismantled this offseason.

[Carey]

10 hours ago, stealinghome said:

12 hours ago, xaxat said:

Brady has also admitted that he can do that in part because his wife makes a lot more money than he does. Unique case in a sport where you need to get paid because you never know when it's going to end.

I don't disagree, but other top-tier QBs could take a little bit less to allow their teams more financial flexibility. It's not like these guys are stuck in a situation where their only choices are either "break the bank" or "take peanuts." There's a middle ground. Take Dak as an example. (And keep in mind I don't like Jerry Jones at all, so I LOVE that Dak got way more money from the Cowboys now than he would've if they'd just signed him a few years ago.) But if Dak had signed for (say) 4 years and $140 million, I'm not sure losing the $20 million would make a huge difference for him--but it sure might help the Cowboys build a better team around him.

Which is not to begrudge any player who wants to get paid the max they possibly can. I totally, totally get that, and frankly would probably be the same way as a player. But the numbers all pretty clearly indicate that it's virtually impossible to pay top dollar for a premium QB and win a Super Bowl. There were several pieces on it in the wake of this year's Super Bowl. So if the top QBs really, REALLY want to win a Super Bowl, they can help themselves by not being determined to be the next record-setter in terms of contract--since if you manage your money properly, one really good top-tier QB contract should more than set you up for life.

Very well put.  It's all about the middle-ground.  No one in this sport should settle for the bare minimum, but given this is the NFL and not Major League Baseball, there is only so much a star can make.  I get that the quarterback is the most important position.  However, this isn't Tennis; it's football.  It's a team sport.  You have to take care of other parts of the team if you want to win.  That, and you need very good coaching.

 

Two folks come to mind when it comes to someone "getting theirs" and that would be Barry Foster and Rob Gronkowski.  Unless I'm mistaken, the former only played half a decade at a position that resulted in a short life or short shelf-life.  As of 1995, Barry spent (or saved) his money wisely and got out before it was too late.  Looks like the guy was set for life (at the time, at the very least).  IIRC, Gronk has been rather conservative with his spending habits as well.  He could've quit after 2016 and still made it to Canton (maybe even in his first year of eligibility).  He stuck around for 3 more seasons, each ending in him playing in the big game, and winning a couple of those.

 

Needless to say, the Pro Football Hall of Fame is meaningless if Rob doesn't get in on his first year of eligibility.  Anyway, the reason why I brought up those guys is because, IMO, you don't need to be married to someone like Gisele in order for your team to win.  As Tom mentioned, it does help (and hats off to him actually saying it), but 1) It's not Brady's fault if no one else can settle down with someone else that's as successful as Bündchen, and 2) investing/saving is worth it (even though it's easier said than done.

 

I listened to a local guy over the past day or two discussing people and their "brand" including some wide receivers.  While I thought he would say it in advance, the best way to build one's brand, if not the one that produces the most accomplishments, is "winning", period.  Not tic tok, not Instagram, but winning championship level games.  While it's important to earn more when you can, it adds more respect when you do it on the field.  Antonio Brown might be, or was part of the Social Media group, but in his defense, he actually produced on the field in a big, record-breaking win.  More than enough to get to Canton, IMO.  Now he has a Super Bowl title, and it looks like the chance of "repairing" the image is heading into the right direction.

 

I don't know what'll happen in Dallas.  The Cowboys weren't winning last year anyway, but Dak's absence was a big deal.  Jerry probably overpaid him, but I guess Prescott deserved it.  FWIW, as mentioned, the NFC East is not great so that helps Dallas at least win that division.  I don't think the Cowboys can come out of the NFC unless someone, somehow takes out Green Bay & Tampa Bay in advance

[merylinkid]

19 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

The key point there though is that in taking the pay cut, or signing below your actual value, you do have the organization investing that money in building a winning team. That's not the case imo with a lot of organizations where they just want to stay above water and hope for a few breaks season to season and back into the playoffs. 

If you are paying your QB less you BETTER use that money to build a team around him.    NE did.   TB did.    And believe it or not, back in Dak's rookie season, one of the reasons he did so well was they built a decent OLine to protect the incredibly fragile Tony Romo.   That paid off big time by protecting WHOEVER was playing QB.   Clearly they let THAT fall by the wayside, because for in 2020 they HAD a DECENT backup for once in Tony Dalton (he consistently took his former team to the playoffs) but he could only do so much laying on his back.   

As others have said -- its a team sport.   So invest in the TEAM.   Not chortle you got a a top tier QB to take a hometown discount and point at how much salary cap room you have now -- which you are never going to spend.

[DoctorAtomic]

One could also invest their money well too, and let it make more money for them. 

Not all players want to win championships and are fine getting paid and racking up stats. 

I do think it comes down to the investment from management. Why should I take a pay cut when they're fine with going 8-8 every year? There's a reason all those old players took pennies to go to NE. There was a clear commitment to getting rings. 

[emmawoodhouse]

Drew Brees has announced his retirement. 

[AimingforYoko]

22 hours ago, emmawoodhouse said:

Drew Brees has announced his retirement. 

And already has his next job.

 

Edited March 15, 2021 by AimingforYoko

[Lady Whistleup]

Oh great. He can be another legendary player who becomes an awful color commentator. It's like a rule or something. 

[emma675]

Brees can't be as bad as Witten was at announcing, right? Right?!? 

[Carey]

Meh.  Drew will either make Cris Collinsworth look very good or very bad.  For the record, Brees had this position available to him a year ago; Cris isn't going anywhere yet, at least for the 2021 season, which is a Super Bowl year for NBC.  While it's likely Al retires after next season, I don't know about Collinsworth.  He's in his early 60s I believe, but based on how well Brees does with Notre Dame games, it could be a similar situation that CBS had with Romo and Simms.  Cris returns to the studio and Drew takes his spot teaming up with Tirico

[Fukui San]

Happy first day of free agency, everyone! Did your team sign anyone spiffy?

Patriots signed a whole bunch of guys, uncharacteristically. The one I'm happiest about is TE Jonnu Smith which is talent + area of need.

[Moose135]

2 hours ago, Fukui San said:

Did your team sign anyone spiffy?

 

The Giants signed the heaviest player in the league...

 

[morriss]

On 3/8/2021 at 1:24 PM, DoctorAtomic said:

The entire birth of the NFL is due to gambling. If you're betting on money line - +550/-375 (which is where you make the real money) then you need the winner. The tie means the house pays out from my understanding. So you want to lower the chances of a tie. 

The spread is the spread, so the tie doesn't matter. It's also only -110 for any spread bet, so it's not much. 

 

If betting the money line and game ends in tie,  the bet is a "push".  That means all bets are off and you get your money back.  It doesn't cost the bookmakers any money. 

[merylinkid]

But they don't make any either.   Considering the TEAMS can have betting licenses this is NOT about making sure the fans can have big wins but increasing revenue for the League.    

[mojoween]

If Kyler Murray can’t get it done this year, it’s never going to happen for the poor kid.

[Silver Raven]

2 hours ago, mojoween said:

If Kyler Murray can’t get it done this year, it’s never going to happen for the poor kid.

He's always got baseball to fall back on.

[Fukui San]

4 hours ago, mojoween said:

If Kyler Murray can’t get it done this year, it’s never going to happen for the poor kid.

I heard a lot of criticism for Kliff Kingsbury last year though, being unimaginative on offense despite having Kyler and Hopkins. Perhaps Kyler could still struggle this year but then excel under a different coach if Kingsbury gets canned?

[Johannah]

On 3/15/2021 at 11:34 PM, Moose135 said:

 

The Giants signed the heaviest player in the league...

 

Too funny.  Reminds me of a typo someone posted  from a weather forecast that showed 5 days and the typo showed 271 degrees for Tuesday.  The person said, "I wouldn't worry about Covid, apparently we are all going to die on Tuesday.". Still cracks me up.

 I'm easily amused.

Edited March 18, 2021 by Johann

[AimingforYoko]

Damn, those Manning boys are savage:

 

[xaxat]

On 3/17/2021 at 1:44 PM, mojoween said:

If Kyler Murray can’t get it done this year, it’s never going to happen for the poor kid.

He was offensive ROY a season ago. I wouldn't Darnold him quite yet.

21 hours ago, Fukui San said:

I heard a lot of criticism for Kliff Kingsbury last year though, being unimaginative on offense despite having Kyler and Hopkins.

Yeah, who would have guessed that a coach who was fired by his alma mater and couldn't find a head coaching job in the collegiate ranks might not be the best hire to run an NFL franchise?

Edited March 18, 2021 by xaxat

[grommit2]

On 3/15/2021 at 11:34 PM, Moose135 said:

 

The Giants signed the heaviest player in the league...

 

Hi Moose...Booker certainly is a very large man...2,019 pounds.
Wow...Just give him the ball and get out of the way!

[mojoween]

Buffalo wyd?

[AimingforYoko]

Thursday Night Football moves to Amazon amid NFL's new $100b television deal.

[Popples]

2 hours ago, xaxat said:

Yeah, who would have guessed that a coach who was fired by his alma mater and couldn't find a head coaching job in the collegiate ranks might not be the best hire to run an NFL franchise?

I was baffled at his hiring since Kingsbury has a sub .500 record and didn't win a bowl game.

Meanwhile Eric Bieniemy...

[meowmommy]

1 hour ago, grommit2 said:

Hi Moose...Booker certainly is a very large man...2,019 pounds.
Wow...Just give him the ball and get out of the way!

Well, hey, maybe it's real.  This is the same franchise that carried, so to speak, the late Jared Lorenzen on their SB winning roster.

[emmawoodhouse]

Deshaun Watson accused of sexual assault.

Gross.

[xaxat]

2 hours ago, AimingforYoko said:

Thursday Night Football moves to Amazon amid NFL's new $100b television deal.

Hmm, the announcement of the new media contracts came days after the calculation of the salary cap and the initial days of free agency. I'm sure that's just a coincidence. 

ESPN gets flex rights for late season Monday night games. I assume NBC will retain their flex rights as well. Which means Sunday afternoon games for the general fan will be trash. In addition, Amazon Prime apparently gets exclusive rights to Thursday Night games and ESPN+ gets rights to international games. So yeah, the goal is to dig deeper into your pocket.

 

[Bastet]

Quote

Amazon Prime Video gains exclusive rights to Thursday Night Football , which has aired on CBS, NBC and currently Fox in recent years.

And, whichever network was airing the Thursday games, you could also see them on NFL Network (which is where I watched).  Now they'll only be streaming, not also shown on NFLN?

I have access to Prime Video via a friend's account (I'd just have to temporarily move my Roku stick to my game room TV each week since it's attached to my bedroom TV), and NFLN is one of the reasons I have the programming package I have on Dish.  I'll have to go look at what else I get that I wouldn't get with the next package down and the cost difference between the two to decide if I still want it.

5 hours ago, emmawoodhouse said:

Deshaun Watson accused of sexual assault.

For the third time - and apparently six more are coming.

[Danny Franks]

1 hour ago, Bastet said:

For the third time - and apparently six more are coming.

Well, shit.  Bet Houston are wishing they'd traded him now.

[DrSpaceman73]

Also on the tv front rumors are directv is finally losing nfl Sunday ticket

https://www.nj.com/giants/2021/03/nfl-rumors-directv-is-losing-the-sunday-ticket-package.html

And call me sexist or whatever you want but I'm giving deshaun watson the benefit of the doubt on the sexual assault allegations until I hear more.  It was in a massage parlor reportedly, or masseuse.  Now yes there are legitimate massage parlors and that doesn't give him free reign to molest the masseuse, but it's pretty well known many massage parlors are just fronts for sexual favors.  Not legally, but it still happens.  

I don't have strong feelings one way or another about watson.  I like him just fine but certainly not a Texans fan, I'm a colts fan, division rival. If anything I'd he is still on houston next year would be great for the colts if he ends up with an nfl Suspension under the personal conduct policy.   But this one is want to hear more.  Was this all at the same massage parlor or company?   If so why did they keep doing his massages?   

Granted it's creepy. And paying for a sexual massage has all sorts of other issues.  But sexual assault depends on the type of massage he was expecting and they were known to provide. 

[merylinkid]

The masseuses came to his house.   But 1) the attorney representing the women is the next door neighbor of the late Robert McNair and 2) the texxt messages he has released that he claims SHOW the assault happened are pretty tame.   Asking if the masseuse is comfortable with massaging the glutes actually sounds pretty nice, like "I don't want to hire you for a massage and then ask you to do something you don't feel comfortable doing."    I also don't like his attorney is making all these announcements via Instagram and then is holding a press conference today.   Not a big fan of huge media hype over a case.

On the other hand, I totally believe that when one heard that someone came forward, the others felt comfortable coming forward.   Naturally they would go to the attorney already involved.   I find it ridiculous though in that scenario that he "carefully vetted each one."    This was only announced last week and he already has filed two other suits with more to come.   If the others only came forward after the first lawsuit that is awfully fast vetting for 8 other cases.   

On the OTHER other hand, just because we didn't hear anything before doesn't mean Watson isn't capable of this.   That it is multiple women with the same story means either 1) coaching or 2) the guy has an MO just like Kellen Winslow, Jr.  ETA:   Darren Sharper was really who I was thinking of.   First case came out -- then ALL the women felt safe coming forward.

I'm going innocent until proven guilty but willing to be swayed by actual evidence being produced.

Edited March 19, 2021 by merylinkid

[DrSpaceman73]

Ok so at his home and hired, not a massage parlor.  But the industry itself still isn't always the most legitimate. 

And I wouldn't claim he isn't capable of it.  Certainly could have happened.  

This is one though where it's a matter of what he actually hired them for and what did they think he hired them for.  A massage, or a 'massage' (wink, wink).   

[Irlandesa]

20 minutes ago, merylinkid said:

Naturally they would go to the attorney already involved.   

I think that's what makes me curious.  How did they all go to the same attorney?  But you say that this was announced last week? 

It says he flew a massage therapist from Atlanta to Houston.  That seemed strange.  It's not like Houston doesn't have a thousand legit massage therapists.

21 minutes ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

But the industry itself still isn't always the most legitimate. 

I think the industry is but some people use massage therapy as a cover for sex work. 

 

[mojoween]

I am curious that the media keeps carefully stating these are civil allegations.  *Were* there criminal complaints?  And if so, why is this just coming out now?

[merylinkid]

No criminal cases YET.   But considering what is being said about these women already, I can see their reluctance to go the police.   I don't take any lack of a police report either way.   Sure one HELPS.   But not having one considering how sexual assault victims are treated doesn't harm the claim.