NFL Thread

[JTMacc99]

1 hour ago, Lamb18 said:

ETA: I didn't get the part about Romo about being the demon curse for Vikings at first. Well if that's true, Vikings will just have to break the spell on Sunday.

I think the actual curse is that when Jim Nantz and Tony Romo are calling a Vikings game, it means that the game has a national audience... 

 

[mojoween]

@JTMacc99 Everything you said was excellent, thoughtful and helpful to the AFC South. Next week’s game will almost certainly not be flexed out of primetime.

But as far as tonight’s game goes, I just really want the Cowboys to lose.  

[JTMacc99]

On 12/27/2022 at 5:46 PM, meowmommy said:

DirecTV's gonna be in a world of hurting, though.  What percentage of their subscribers only stuck with them for football?

The internet says that it's estimated that 1.5M subscribers had Sunday Ticket, and that would be about 11% of their total subsribers.

6 minutes ago, mojoween said:

But as far as tonight’s game goes, I just really want the Cowboys to lose.  

The Cowboys do have a couple injury issues right now, but I can't imagine that they won't do that Cowboys thing they do sometimes and run up the score on the Titans tonight, given that the Titans have even more injury issues and absolutely no reason to play anybody in this game.

[bluegirl147]

7 minutes ago, mojoween said:

But as far as tonight’s game goes, I just really want the Cowboys to lose.  

I feel that way about any game the Cowboys are playing in.

[JTMacc99]

2 hours ago, bluegirl147 said:

I know nothing of Jarrett Stidham.  Is he good enough to be the starter next year or do the Raiders need to go on the hunt for a starter?

The Patriots fans can straighten me out here about Stidham, but I think the answer is probably not. After Brady left, the Patriots were all "We're going with Jarrett Stidham." And then in late June, "Cam Newton is our guy!"

From the few appearances he made in his career, I would think he's playing these two weeks to see if he's a viable backup going into next year.

18 hours ago, ChitChat said:

I'm really concerned for Tua Tagovailoa.  We didn't realize that he suffered another concussion against Green Bay. 

I saw the replay of the play when he likely suffered the concussion. It was not a violent hit. Being really concerned for him feels right. I haven't heard any opinions from experts, but it feels like he should be shut down for the year.

[DrSpaceman73]

38 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

So if I have this correct, it makes absolutely no difference what the 7-8 Titans and 7-8 Jaguars do this week. If they both win or they both lose, it all comes down to next week when they play each other.

If one wins and the other loses, it still comes down to the game next week. If the Titans win this week and next week, they finish at 9-8 and the Jags at 7-10. In the other case, the Jags win and the Titans lose this week, and then if the Jags win next week, they both finish at 8-9 and the Jaguars win the division on a tie breaker.

So regardless of what happens this week, the winner of next week's game is the division winner. (Don't ask me what happens if a tie gets involved.) 

You are correct next week's titans and jags game determines the division.  This week's games don't really matter

[Fukui San]

23 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

The Patriots fans can straighten me out here about Stidham, but I think the answer is probably not. After Brady left, the Patriots were all "We're going with Jarrett Stidham." And then in late June, "Cam Newton is our guy!"

From the few appearances he made in his career, I would think he's playing these two weeks to see if he's a viable backup going into next year.

Stidham has shown nothing in the few times he's got on the field, and was passed over in favor of Brian Hoyer when Cam Newton was injured that year. But, you never know.

[JTMacc99]

Since we're talking about teams who have nothing to play for this week, seems like a good time to share this. 

Today is the 15th anniversary of final game of the 2007 season, when the Giants faced the then 15-0 Patriots. Tom Coughlin decided to play his full team, resting nobody, even though the Giants were locked into the 5th seed.  The Giants had the lead going into the fourth quarter, but the Patriots came back and won the game 38-35 to finish 16-0.

Coughlin recently shared this story with Peter King:

Quote

"I gotta tell you one more story because this is what will be most meaningful," Coughlin said. "It was a great performance. I'm really proud of my team. That's a team that's 16-0, we know we can play with them. All that stuff. Next morning at 5 o'clock I come into my office and I see the red light's on the phone. A voicemail. I pick up the phone and it's John Madden. He's saying, 'Tom, I just wanted to call. Because I want you to know that is the greatest thing that's happened to the NFL in the last 10 years.' He said, 'This is the National Football League—we don't not play our players. We owe a responsibility to our fans to perform every day. That's what you did. I'm just so proud to be a part of that. I'm so proud of what you've accomplished and what your team has accomplished.' He said, 'I'm very emotional right now. But I want you to know how I felt.' I played it for my team in our next team meeting. It was moving. Very moving."

 

[Irlandesa]

2 hours ago, bluegirl147 said:

 

There are four 4 PM games and this is the only one that doesn't have an AFC team playing.  Weird CBS would make an all NFC game the game of the week.  Then I remembered the Pittsburgh Baltimore game was moved to Sunday night. I bet that game was supposed to be the CBS game of the week.  

The Packers-Vikings game was always scheduled to be played as the late afternoon game on CBS.  It's the only reason it would be on CBS.   

I remembered weird stuff happening like that before so I  googled it and while I still can't explain it very well, it is part of a cross-flex system the NFL put into place to spread out viewership between CBS and FOX. 

Speaking of weird, it sounds like Derek Carr has not only been benched but is stepping away from the team for the 2 weeks.  I don't remember that ever happening with a QB not on IR. 

[bluegirl147]

6 minutes ago, Irlandesa said:

Speaking of weird, it sounds like Derek Carr has not only been benched but is stepping away from the team for the 2 weeks.  I don't remember that ever happening with a QB not on IR. 

Especially when all he did was lose games.  I'm guessing this is because of money because most things are because of money.

[Salacious Kitty]

29 minutes ago, Irlandesa said:

Speaking of weird, it sounds like Derek Carr has not only been benched but is stepping away from the team for the 2 weeks.  I don't remember that ever happening with a QB not on IR. 

Carr claims that he didn't want to be a distraction. Sure Jan. 

The Raiders may be looking to trade up in the draft. At present, they don't have a serviceable QB. 

[xaxat]

That Carr/Raiders situation looks like a dude moving out of the house before his wife files for irreconcilable differences.

[Fukui San]

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

The Packers-Vikings game was always scheduled to be played as the late afternoon game on CBS.  It's the only reason it would be on CBS.   

I remembered weird stuff happening like that before so I  googled it and while I still can't explain it very well, it is part of a cross-flex system the NFL put into place to spread out viewership between CBS and FOX. 

Speaking of weird, it sounds like Derek Carr has not only been benched but is stepping away from the team for the 2 weeks.  I don't remember that ever happening with a QB not on IR. 

It happened to Marcus Mariota a few weeks ago. 

[Black Knight]

6 hours ago, bluegirl147 said:

I don't know where Derek Carr lands.  I know nothing of Jarrett Stidham.  Is he good enough to be the starter next year or do the Raiders need to go on the hunt for a starter?

Benching Carr in favor of Stidham has nothing to do with thinking that Stidham might perform better and prove himself worthy of being the starter next year. It's simply a matter of $40 million - that's the amount the Raiders would be on the hook for with Carr if he played either of the remaining two games and got injured.

The Raiders will try to sign a veteran QB for next year to be a bridge to the future. This upcoming draft isn't a good one for QBs; the 2024 one is better.

[Irlandesa]

16 minutes ago, Fukui San said:

It happened to Marcus Mariota a few weeks ago. 

But he at least decided to have a surgery so he could use that as an excuse rather than "distraction. "

[Chit Chat]

4 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

Coughlin recently shared this story with Peter King:

That's a nice story.  Thanks for sharing it.  I sure miss hearing John Madden's voice calling the games.  A true football giant.  

[JTMacc99]

1 hour ago, Black Knight said:

Benching Carr in favor of Stidham has nothing to do with thinking that Stidham might perform better and prove himself worthy of being the starter next year. It's simply a matter of $40 million - that's the amount the Raiders would be on the hook for with Carr if he played either of the remaining two games and got injured.

The Raiders will try to sign a veteran QB for next year to be a bridge to the future. This upcoming draft isn't a good one for QBs; the 2024 one is better.

That is 100% the reason. 
 

There are two veteran QBs available in 2023 who know that system. One is pretty old though. 

[Lamb18]

Week 17 picks:

Cowboys vs Titans
Cardinals vs Falcons
Dolphins vs Patriots
Saints vs Eagles
Colts vs Giants
Panthers vs Buccaneers
Broncos vs Chiefs
Bears vs Lions
Browns vs Commanders
Jaguars vs Texans
49ers vs Raiders
Jets vs Seahawks
Vikiings vs Packers
Rams vs Chargers
Steelers vs Ravens
Bills vs Bengals

[Bastet]

Here's the full transcript of John Madden's message to Tom Coughlin; I cannot tell you how many times I've re-read it since I first came across it about ten years ago:

Quote

Just called to congratulate you and your team for a great effort last night. Not good, but great. I think it's one of the best things to happen in the NFL in the last ten years, and I don't know if they all know it, but they should be very grateful to you and your team for what you did. I believe so firmly in this: that there is only one way to play the game, and it is a regular season game and you go out and win the darn game. I was just so proud being a part of the NFL and of what your guys did and the way you did it. You proved that it's a game and there's only one way to play the game and you did it. The NFL needed it. We've gotten too much of, "Well, they're going to rest their players and don't need to win, therefore they won't win." Well, that's not sports and that's not competition. I'm a little emotional about it. I'm just so proud. It's something we all need to thank you for, and I believe the NFL needed that.

 

[Lamb18]

The Titans are playing better than I thought they would. The defense, anyway. The offense has to get going, hard for the quarterback Dobbs, who's only been with the team for a few days.

Not everyone is Baker Mayfield.

[Lamb18]

Dallas turned over the ball at least three times. Too bad Titans can't capitalize more on these turnovers.

If Titans were playing their regular players on offense they'd have a good chance of winning this game. Funny if they did anyway.

[Lamb18]

Titans intercept Cowboys again!

First half over 10-6, Dallas.

[Lamb18]

Yes! Titans get a touchdown! Now it's 17-13, Dallas.

[Xeliou66]

Dak’s turnover issues are a major concern for the Cowboys, he’s not playing that well and I already don’t trust them in the playoffs. 

[Court]

14 minutes ago, Xeliou66 said:

Dak’s turnover issues are a major concern for the Cowboys, he’s not playing that well and I already don’t trust them in the playoffs. 

Agreed. It should be so concerning that the offense played like that against a team resting their starters. 

Unlike everyone else here, lol, I'm happy they got the win but I don't trust Dak at all. 

[twoods]

Josh Allen has the same problem- too many interceptions and fumbles. He can’t keep relying on his defense to bail him out in the playoffs.

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, Xeliou66 said:

I already don’t trust them in the playoffs.

I trust they'll get eliminated like usual, and all will be right in the football world.

[JTMacc99]

7 hours ago, Bastet said:

I trust they'll get eliminated like usual, and all will be right in the football world.

I think I heard somebody say yesterday that the Cowboys haven't been to an NFC Championship game since 1995. 

They do a great job keeping that brand popular, despite the lack of meaningful success.

And that was a pretty sad showing last night against that scout team that the Titans put on the field. But a win is a win. They can still win the division in the unlikely event that the Eagles lose to the Saints and then the Giants next week. Otherwise, they're locked in to the 5th seed and will be on the road in the wildcard round against the "winner" of the NFC South.

[merylinkid]

8 hours ago, Court said:

Agreed. It should be so concerning that the offense played like that against a team resting their starters. 

Unlike everyone else here, lol, I'm happy they got the win but I don't trust Dak at all. 

Dak has as many interceptions as Derek Carr this year.   Yet no one is talking about benching him.   One of the turnovers last night was not his fault.   He got the ball to the Dallas Player, the guy bobbled it and dropped it.   You gotta catch the ball that is thrown to you.

The problem is Dallas plays down to the level of the team.   They thought "oh well, Titans have a lot of injuries and are resting their starters, this should be a cakewalk."   And played with no urgency or concern.   There was talk before the game that they would pull their starters at halftime.   They were already thinking ahead instead of focusing on the game in front of them.   That ALWAYS leads to problems.   Last night should have been a blow out.   But instead they played like the game was NDB  and it showed.   Until they realized they could lose then they played like it mattered.

 

[roamyn]

1 hour ago, merylinkid said:

That ALWAYS leads to problems.   Last night should have been a blow out.   But instead they played like the game was NDB  and it showed.   Until they realized they could lose then they played like it mattered.

This is what the Cowgirls do.  It's hardwired into their DNA.  No matter how many times aft a game, it's brought up, the next game they still repeat the mindset.

Only the Iggles game did they keep focused.

That's why they never go far into the Playoffs.

[Popples]

 

[JTMacc99]

Eagles and Chiefs played like hot garbage in the first half of these games today. Fortunately for the Chiefs, the Broncos are hot garbage and refuse to take advantage of it. I’d also expect the Eagles to eventually win this game, although not sure if they’ll cover the 7.5 I need them to cover. 

[meowmommy]

I know it's the Colts, and I know the Giants will be one-and-done in the playoffs, but dammit, we Giants fans really needed this game...

[DrSpaceman73]

6 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

I know it's the Colts, and I know the Giants will be one-and-done in the playoffs, but dammit, we Giants fans really needed this game...

Colts needed this too for the draft pick. A Denver will as well and move ahead of them in the draft. 

[mojoween]

The New York Football Giants are going to the playoffs for the first time in six years!

So help me if one player goes NEAR a boat in the next two weeks I will flip my shit.

[meowmommy]

10 minutes ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

Colts needed this too for the draft pick. A Denver will as well and move ahead of them in the draft. 

They're gonna need a lot more than a #1 draft pick to fix that franchise...

[mojoween]

Tony Romo ‘bout to bust in here and try to harsh my playoff buzz but I WILL NOT LET HIM.  

[xaxat]

Jeff Saturday's agent had better be calling ESPN right now to see if they kept his seat open.

6 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

They're gonna need a lot more than a #1 draft pick to fix that franchise...

I don't think Irsay is going to be selling any time soon.

[meowmommy]

2 minutes ago, mojoween said:

Tony Romo ‘bout to bust in here and try to harsh my playoff buzz but I WILL NOT LET HIM.  

Well, don't switch over to Carolina - TB, if you don't want to be awash in rampant slurp....

[mojoween]

1 minute ago, meowmommy said:

Well, don't switch over to Carolina - TB, if you don't want to be awash in rampant slurp....

I’m safe so far, CBS switched to New England - Miami, a game which I do not care about.

[Kip Hackman]

If anyone was wondering why the Panthers were scouring coffee shops for secondary help, now you know.

[meowmommy]

13 minutes ago, Kip Hackman said:

If anyone was wondering why the Panthers were scouring coffee shops for secondary help, now you know.

Yeah, but mostly I was wondering what Josh Norman did with all his money that he was a barista at Starbucks...

[DrSpaceman73]

41 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

They're gonna need a lot more than a #1 draft pick to fix that franchise...

Of course they do but a top pick for a legitimate qb is badly needed. 

[Salacious Kitty]

1 minute ago, meowmommy said:

Yeah, but mostly I was wondering what Josh Norman did with all his money that he was a barista at Starbucks...

I think he owned the franchise. 

[DrSpaceman73]

21 minutes ago, Kip Hackman said:

If anyone was wondering why the Panthers were scouring coffee shops for secondary help, now you know.

Jesus.    Maybe some help over the top on evans!   

 

Three-times!  Ran straight by them!

[Lamb18]

I hope Romo's tongue-bathing of Rodgers puts a jinx on Packers.

Yay! Blocked Packer punt!

[JTMacc99]

1 hour ago, meowmommy said:

I know it's the Colts, and I know the Giants will be one-and-done in the playoffs, but dammit, we Giants fans really needed this game...

It’s only likely one and done if the Niners are the three seed. I’ll take my chances with any other nfc team. 

[DrSpaceman73]

And seriously brady couldn't be more of a whiny twit. 

Whined about a non call on a shove from a d lineman. Then gets up in the face of the d lineman yelling at him about it. 

That guy would crush him like a very old little bug given the chance if he tried to fight him. 

[Chit Chat]

Mike Evans was on fire today!! I need the Bucs to quit having to play catchup every game! A confortable lead throughout would be nice!

[JTMacc99]

Good lord 49ers. I need you to win and possibly move up to the 2 seed. Cut the crap and put away the Raiders. 
 

Green Bay and Minnesota are holding up their end of the deal.