NFL Thread

[JTMacc99]

I don't know you guys. I think this year the Chiefs are operating on Mahomes and Reid/Spagnolo-created smoke and mirrors. To be fair, I guess that is a lot. They've managed to put together a terrific defense, and all three of those people will be back again.

It does look like they have quite a bit of wiggle room with cap space in 2024, so maybe they CAN significantly improve their playmakers. They sure as heck need to do so.

In separate Chiefs-related news:

Quote

Front Office Sports recently reported that Swift has created a “brand value” of $331.5 million for the Chiefs and the NFL, citing data from Apex Marketing Group.

Heh. I think that's probably a little low, but whatever. 

[Carey]

 

[Carey]

Well, so much for a "dead" week in the National Football League.  In brief, record ratings as the outcome for the conference title games, all 8 spots have been addressed, and Kansas City is a mess.  Though I still think San Francisco would've maintained their status as the favorites, I wonder if the line moves back to -2.5 without yet another case where one of the 2 faces of KC might be better off emulating Aaron Rodgers in terms of one's inner circle.

With Dan Quinn moving onto another NFC East franchise, it's probably the end of the McCarthy era in Dallas by this time next year.  TBH, I wouldn't be surprised if the other 3 teams in this division have someone new as the head coach around this time 18 months from now.

Apparently MacDonald getting the Seahawks HC job instead of Dan Quinn wasn't a big deal after all.  The latter ends up filling the final vacancy as he succeeds Ron Rivera as the Washington Commanders Head Coach (instead of Mike MacDonald).

I almost forgot: The Pro Bowl week(end) has come & gone.

[mojoween]

Me after releasing a week’s worth of takes 

For now, I will just say that if you know that your son is a week away from playing in the most important game of his sport, take a damn Uber.

[mojoween]

Did I watch the Pro Bowl Games?  Every bit of them. Rooted for the NFC the whole way.

Did I watch NFL Film Sessions of Super Bowl highlights on the NFL Network?  Sure did, and man is this a violent game when watched in slomo.

Am I going to watch Super Bowl  Opening Night and NFL Honors?  I cannot tell a lie.

This game.  It’s a sickness.

Edited February 6 by mojoween

[Carey]

To be honest, I don't plan on watching next year until Week 10.  Not a move that says I hate the modern day NFL.  That's not the case.  I may be one that enjoyed the past, but skipping it changes nothing.  It's a me thing, and nothing else.  The league will be around well after I'm gone.  That's a great thing.

The reason why I might not tune in until Week 10...well, there's more than one.  I think I've been burned out since the season seems so damn long.  I have other stuff as a fan that's great at doing something else.

A third reason is that the second half matters at least a bit more than the first half.  Teams like Philly, Cleveland, and Miami were great early on, but then Baltimore, Kansas City, Green Bay, and Tampa were decent in the second half.  I think you only had a couple teams that were decent throughout including San Francisco & Detroit, but for the most part, what you see early may not be the case later when it counts the most.

By the way, the doing something else is important since I love money too.  And time to where I put it to very good use.  Otherwise, I'm all in all the time.  Finally, I'll probably still catch the London games as well as those 4:25 GOTW

[Magog]

8 minutes ago, Carey said:

To be honest, I don't plan on watching next year until Week 10.  Not a move that says I hate the modern day NFL.  That's not the case.  I may be one that enjoyed the past, but skipping it changes nothing.  It's a me thing, and nothing else.  The league will be around well after I'm gone.  That's a great thing.

Well, my NFL Summer Vacation starts on February 19 & it ends on Labor Day. Other than important offseason news, I find tolerating some of that NFL Offseason nonsense to be migraine-inducing. 

Speaking of migraine-inducing, Super Bowl Opening Night is on right now. Yay. 😒

BTW, Roger Goodell had his annual Super Bowl news conference today. Thankfully, I didn't watch it because it sucks & he sucks. 

When the 2024 season starts, the Eagles will be playing in Brazil in Week 1 on Friday Night. We don't know yet who the Eagles will be playing against in Sao Paolo, Brazil. It will the first ever regular season game in Brazil.

[Carey]

It'll also be the first Friday game in at least a minute that early in the NFL.  Further ammo toward my "opinion" that the Friday following Turkey Day will not be close to the only Friday featuring NFL games in the future of football played within Planet Earth.

I'll probably tune into that game after the San Francisco or Kansas City game the day before.

BTW, I skipped the Media Day garbage.  It used to be so natural, and then they take a decent thing, turn it into a TV show, add a silly sponsor, and from there, I'll do something else on the way to Super Bowl 58

[Black Knight]

So, how is everyone leaning for the Super Bowl prediction? This is actually relevant to my job, because if I guess right, I'll save myself a ton of work, but if I guess wrong, I'll be doing a lot of work Sunday night after the game's ended.

I've been going back and forth, and I believe it'll be a close game that's decided late, possibly even in OT, but I'm currently leaning towards the Chiefs because I think their DC and defense are better than the Niners'.

[Carey]

This might be the toughest Super Bowl in terms of a prediction, Black Knight.  I'll admit part of that is due to being in the moment.  For me, it isn't easy.

I picked San Francisco to win it all before the season started.  However, I had them winning over Jacksonville.  Both those teams played each other so I'd have felt comfortable with my guess if that matchup happened.

So while I'd feel like a heel if I switched, it's Patrick Mahomes the Niners are facing, not Trevor Lawrence.  The offense is better for the 49ers this time around, but the defense is better for Kansas City.  Their offense isn't but it might not have to be.  It doesn't help that the NFC Champions are playing in a venue that the AFC Champions are 4-0 in since its debut at the beginning of the decade

[emma675]

Y'all, get serious. The NFL isn't going to let Taylor's boyfriend's team lose the Super Bowl. /s

But for real, I think it's going to be close and I really don't know who will win. KC has shown they aren't untouchable this season but I feel like SF also had its ups and downs. Hopefully it's a good game, with no injuries and Usher proves me wrong and has an entertaining halftime show.

[Dr Spengler]

13 hours ago, Black Knight said:

I've been going back and forth, and I believe it'll be a close game that's decided late, possibly even in OT, but I'm currently leaning towards the Chiefs because I think their DC and defense are better than the Niners'.

The Chiefs and 49ers are, statistically, very close defensively this year. Both excellent. But I agree 100% with the idea that Spagnolo (and Reid's influence) have shown a real knack for individual game planning that is a legitimate advantage.

It sure looks like a really close matchup, which means that one special teams blunder or great play, one ball bouncing off a facemask to either a WR or DB, or one unbelievable great play by a great player would swing the game one way or the other.

The important thing is that we're looking for quarters to end with SF 9 - KC 2 or SF 1 - KC 7.

 

[Black Knight]

Good luck with your bingo card, @Dr Spengler! One year I had 0-0 for a square and it actually worked out pretty well.

[Carey]

In the aftermath of Dan Quinn's Dallas exit, I didn't post about it when it became a story (non-official) somewhere last week, but one of the infinite examples of the NFL being a big things sans gameplay is Rex Ryan as the Cowboys DC

[Dr Spengler]

3 hours ago, Black Knight said:

Good luck with your bingo card, @Dr Spengler! One year I had 0-0 for a square and it actually worked out pretty well.

0-0 is the holy grail of Super Bowl box numbers! I'm glad you won some money with it when you got it! I've actually won money in two different Super Bowls with 9-0 as my numbers. The 9 isn't so hot, but the 0 is always in play.

I usually hit some kind of money about every 3-5 games with the 3-5 boxes I play every year. I think I'm due for a win.  

 

[DoctorAtomic]

We did a bingo card for giving out drinks instead of playing for money. I made jello shots (Pats-Panthers). It escalated quickly.

[Dr Spengler]

On 2/5/2024 at 8:42 PM, Magog said:

When the 2024 season starts, the Eagles will be playing in Brazil in Week 1 on Friday Night. We don't know yet who the Eagles will be playing against in Sao Paolo, Brazil. It will the first ever regular season game in Brazil.

We can run through the same speculation I've heard others do and look at the Eagles road opponents in 2024 and take a stab at who the opponent will be:

In addition to their division games, they have games against the Falcons, Panthers, Browns, Packers, Jaguars and Steelers.

I'm guessing Packers, Falcons, Commanders, or Browns in that order.

Got Packers as #1 because it's a good matchup, and it's their stray home conference game. Plus, the Eagles will play the Packers again in 2025, although it'll be in Green Bay. 

[Black Knight]

Any reason for not having the Jaguars in your ranking of likely teams? They'd be my first guess since the owner is more amenable to giving up home games. You're right that the Packers would be a good match-up, but historically the NFL hasn't really taken that into consideration for the international games.

[Calvada]

I agree with Dr Spengler - I think it will be the Packers, so the NFL can feature Jalen Hurts and Jordan Love in this standalone game.  Also, the Packers have historical weight as a franchise, as do the Eagles, that they could use to promote the NFL internationally.  I could see the NFL opting for the Steelers for that same reason, but would they take Steelers at Eagles out of the state of Pennsylvania?  I don't think it will be a division opponent, since the Eagles almost certainly would want to keep those games in Philly, at least I hope they would for their fans. 

Don't the Jaguars already have an international game?  Aren't they hosting a game in London?  Does the NFL make any team play two international games?  If not for the London game, I agree Jacksonville would be considered.  

 

[Carey]

Eagles & Steelers feel like a decent scenario, second to Green Bay.  As mentioned, I hardly think they're moving that Keystone matchup out of the state.  I could be wrong; after all, Pittsburgh was just in Philadelphia last year.

I do think, if I had to guess, it'll be Green Bay followed by Atlanta.  I'd put Carolina as the third likely team.  I do not believe they'll have an AFC team; if they do I'd pick Jacksonville before Cleveland.  Following a recent pattern since the 17th game showed up, I imagine the league would stick with NFC teams this year (AFC next year) in terms of international games.

[mojoween]

CJ Stroud looks absolutely adorkable in his glasses, but what I really leaned from his clip package is that the Texans wore some truly terrible unis this year.

[roamyn]

congratulations to CJ Stroud and Will Anderson as Rookies of the Year for the Texans.  They really nailed that draft.

[voiceover]

Go Tommy Go!!!!

Congratulations on Fan of the Year!!! 

[roamyn]

What a GREAT NIGHT!!

CJ gets ORoY

Miles finally gets DPoY

Kevin wins CoY

Jim Scwhwartz won Asst CoY

AND GROSSI WINS FANIOF THE YEAR!!!!

[roamyn]

FOUR FOR FOUR CLEVELAND!!!!!!
 

Congratulations Joe Flacco!  (Tho I thought Baker really was a better choice since he played the entire season)

[Carey]

While there are arguments on Social Media in terms of who won or should have won certain awards, 3 thoughts:

A. Everyone that won their award tonight earned it

2. Julian Edelman getting enshrined in at least a couple year will be legit, and

D. It's comical that the biggest complaint is 49 of 50 1st place votes for Lamar

 

I have no issue with the HOF class of 2024.  I think Rodney gets in next year.  It'll be a deep class, but I'd love to see him and Vinatieri inducted at the same time (if Adam gets there in a year).  Still everyone that got in...I think they got it right

[mojoween]

7 hours ago, roamyn said:

Kevin wins CoY

Justin told me that Steven won.  Snerk.

For a league that can provide 17 different camera angles of a guy’s toe on the sideline, the NFL Honors production value was surprisingly poor.

[mojoween]

WHOEVER could he be referencing here?  🤭

 

[baldryanr]

I have a feeling fans will also be having a very robust discussion too. 

After all, kickers aren't real NFL players!

In all seriousness, though, Vinatieri is pretty much the Mariano Rivera of the NFL.

[roamyn]

2 hours ago, mojoween said:

Justin told me that Steven won.  Snerk.

For a league that can provide 17 different camera angles of a guy’s toe on the sideline, the NFL Honors production value was surprisingly poor.

Whoever that Justin is (I've never seen him in anything) should've let FAN OF THE YEAR call out the winner's name.  Though Tom did correct him.  

And Maxx Crosby was a terrible presenter.

I thought Keegan did a good job (esp that Carolina joke), but I still think Steve Harvey has been the best monolger recently.

[twoods]

Vinateri is the reason Brady has half those rings- if he didn’t make those kicks they wouldn’t have won their games. Good for him. 

[Lamb18]

On 2/7/2024 at 8:48 AM, Dr Spengler said:

The Chiefs and 49ers are, statistically, very close defensively this year. Both excellent. But I agree 100% with the idea that Spagnolo (and Reid's influence) have shown a real knack for individual game planning that is a legitimate advantage.

It sure looks like a really close matchup, which means that one special teams blunder or great play, one ball bouncing off a facemask to either a WR or DB, or one unbelievable great play by a great player would swing the game one way or the other.

The important thing is that we're looking for quarters to end with SF 9 - KC 2 or SF 1 - KC 7.

 

I'll say the Chiefs will win. Rationale: Vikings beat the 49ers but lost to the Chiefs this past season. Also I'm looking forward to seeing the picture of baby Mahomes in a Twins uniform held by his unfortunate father.

I may be going to the Vikings game in London this fall. I probably won't be getting more info about it until the schedule is released in May.

[Carey]

12 minutes ago, twoods said:

Vinateri is the reason Brady has half those rings- if he didn’t make those kicks they wouldn’t have won their games. Good for him. 

If Adam doesn't make those kicks Brady would've had as few as 5 rings

[mojoween]

Going back a minute, I was thinking that we didn’t get Philly’s opponent in Brazil yet was because the league is waiting to see who wins the Super Bowl, and that will be the other team.

[Carey]

That shouldn't matter.  To clarify, none of the other games have disclosed the road opponents for those games either.

Two of the opponents slated to travel to Arrowhead host the Eagles in 2024.

Dallas would be the only team that fits the category if they actually are waiting for the conclusion of Super Bowl 58.  They have road games against both San Francisco & Philadelphia.  Though I would not bet on the Cowboys travelling to Brazil on that Friday

[mojoween]

I thought of something else - who else had the joy of watching Kirk Cousins dancing last night?

I’ll give him one thing, that he seemed to be enjoying himself.

[twoods]

6 hours ago, Carey said:

If Adam doesn't make those kicks Brady would've had as few as 5 rings

Eh if Brady didn’t start his career by winning SBs, he may not have had the same success. If you’re the guy that’s lost 2 SBs in a row would you have that same confidence to keep winning? Vinateri also saved their butts in plenty of playoff games.

[Carey]

Vinatieri did make a difference back when, and we'll see if the voters agree in a year.  Other than that, BS and Vinatieri were a big part of a segment that made a big section of the story of the National Football League a reality.  It took place on January 19th, 2002.  

To be fair, an Adam missed FG achieves a tie in both of those big games (Super Bowl games).

We'll never know, but some people (maybe yours truly) would site MJ getting owned by Boston and Detroit early in his career before good news took place.  So if the GOAT of one could do it, so could the other.  BTW, I might not call TB12 the MJ of the NFL.  Might be unfair, but New England lost to the Ravens.  Otherwise, I'd change my mind & call the Pats dynasty a 20-year one (instead, it's just at least 2 dynasties within 2 decades of winning).

Sometimes, it can be forgotten that Bledsoe was a part of that winning 2001 Patriots team.  About as much as Terrell Suggs being a part of the next dynasty pretty early in the years Kansas City started winning

[meowmommy]

5 hours ago, Carey said:

Sometimes, it can be forgotten that Bledsoe was a part of that winning 2001 Patriots team. 

I've always called Drew Bledsoe the Wally Pipp of his generation.  He came back after his injury to win the AFC title game for the Pats when TB 12 was injured, but by then Belichick had seen enough of his sixth-round draft choice to shuffle Bledsoe off to Buffalo.

[baldryanr]

14 hours ago, twoods said:

If you’re the guy that’s lost 2 SBs in a row would you have that same confidence to keep winning?

You don't make it to the pros without having a confidence in your ability that borders on irrational.  TB would absolutely believe he's the guy because you have to be doing something right to make it to the SB in the first place.  No one says Jim Kelly sucks because he went 0-4.  Now the fans, on the other hand?  Yeah, they'd probably turn a lot faster, but it's not like the Pats had this record of success pre-Brady.

[JTMacc99]

3 hours ago, baldryanr said:

You don't make it to the pros without having a confidence in your ability that borders on irrational.  TB would absolutely believe he's the guy because you have to be doing something right to make it to the SB in the first place. 

I think some of his confidence also drove him to keep working as hard as he did.

He also holds a grudge like nobody other than my ex-wife's family. He's STILL talking about getting passed over until the sixth round. Heh.

Vinateri deserves the recognition. I do think that it's important to recognize that in all six of the championships, the Patriots had a great QB in charge of a great overall offense, a great defense, great special teams, and great coaching.

That's the reason they won six championships. The damn team was across the board great.

[baldryanr]

43 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

He also holds a grudge like nobody other than my ex-wife's family. He's STILL talking about getting passed over until the sixth round. Heh.

You haven't seen the Last Dance, have you?  Jordan's pettiness and grudge holding is second to none.

[Salacious Kitty]

TB12 and MJ could have a contest.

 

[Carey]

While New England has the bragging rights (with 8 consecutive trips to the AFC Title game following wins in a round that seems to be the ceiling for Buffalo), video games (IDT) are not going to make up for how things would play out if the Patriots during their "second dynasty" faced this version of the Bills.  Of the 3 teams in the AFC East that haven't won anything recently, at least New York & Miami found some success.  Pretty much stretching the word some there.  New York might have a longer playoff drought than Miami, but they have won a playoff game more recently.

I'd guess Buffalo would get some wins against New England, but TBH, nothing changes in terms of total dominance.  Division football is legitimate

[DoctorAtomic]

Are we going to have a Superbowl chat thread? 

[Carey]

Here comes the NFL version of Did You Know.  Just in time for the 58th annual Super Bowl (Modern Day NFL Championship Game)

[Salacious Kitty]

4 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

Are we going to have a Superbowl chat thread? 

Probably not. There's no mods to lock it when the game is over. 

[Carey]

In non Super Bowl news, though related due to the venue and an individual who has played in the most of them, it appears that Tom Brady, who has a future with FOX, is expected to become a minority owner for the Las Vegas Raiders.  I'm not sure if it'll be a big deal or not, but apparently there are rules prohibiting people from owning a team & appearing on TV when the team is playing.  IOW, calling a game.  That was mentioned elsewhere, but while it seems professional, no source was linked to his post.

In Super Bowl related news, while I already picked a champion in the summer, Kansas City +1.5 to +2.5 and the under is the side.  Feels like a 23-22 or 24-22 score in favor of the NFC Champion, but smart money means Kansas City isn't having a team get to 20 (nobody got to 30 against them, and so far in the biggest games they haven't made a mistake)

[mojoween]

I love that in 102 years of the NFL we can’t do better to start the most important game of the season than a song created in 1969 (and when the game ends, there won’t be a better tune than one from 1977).

[Bastet]

I normally watch at my parents' house, but I'm watching at home this year, so figure I might as well do so in my office so I can be by the computer and chat with you fine folks at points throughout the game.  I hate the national anthem being played at anything other than the Olympics or another situation with a Team USA competing on behalf of the country against other countries, so my TV is on mute until that's done.