NFL 2017

[bovine knievel]

Never before has a thrilling win in a huge game been so depressing. We'll miss you, Carson.

I became a fan of his for the way he plays the game. I'm bummed that I won't be seeing him on the field the remainder of the season.

[Iowan]

Wentz's injury is obviously a benefit to my team, but you hate to gain advantage in that fashion. It just really sucks for him. I respect his game a lot, and it's hard not for me to root a Midwestern kid.

[chuckrh]

bad on the hawks yesterday. its going to hurt the team but bennett needs to be suspended for a game or 2. when what he did happened to him last year, people went deaf from the whining. you don't go after a guy's knees like that. if wagner is out, hawks are done anyway. russell wilson has been remarkable but he can't carry the whole team, offense, defense & special teams. some of these guys need to get their egos in check & their heads out of their butts. will still root for the hawks but i am very disappointed in them. the jacksonville crowd didn't earn any good sport awards either.

[LBRod]

The legend of Jimmy G continues!

[Sterling Bigmouth]

Absolutely miserable last couple weeks for the Titans. From 8-4 leading the division to 8-7 and hanging on by a thread. If if they somehow make the playoffs by beating Jacksonville next week I hope they can get a new coaching staff next season. Mike Mularkey is a joke.

[beantownbubba]

Absolutely miserable last couple weeks for the Titans. From 8-4 leading the division to 8-7 and hanging on by a thread. If if they somehow make the playoffs by beating Jacksonville next week I hope they can get a new coaching staff next season. Mike Mularkey is a joke.

He's literally full of mularkey, which used to be an expression. Really.

[beantownbubba]

The Patriots have now benefited 2 straight weeks from apparent TD passes by their opponents being overturned on review. One reversal was clearly correct under the current rules and one was arguable, but the point is that the rules suck. IMHO, both catches should have been ruled complete, although the one in the Steelers game should have been marked down short of the end zone. I'm not sure exactly what the rule should say, but at the very least more catches that look to the eye of even sophisticated observers to be catches ought to be catches and I'll reiterate for the umpteenth time that if it takes infinite replays in ultra slow motion to make the decision, the decision should be upheld - it's football not life and death and that level of precision is just not required.

Is there any doubt that Brady is the MVP this season? The fact is that the Patriots just aren't that good and it's Brady who makes all the difference. Although Matt Patricia, D coordinator also deserves some credit for taking an awful unit made worse by numerous injuries and turning them into at least an adequate squad with moments at a way higher level than that. There are times that I haven't heard of about the half the players on the field for the defense at any given time.

Watching this very flawed Patriots team continue to win, it is very obvious that one of the biggest, and perhaps the biggest, difference between bad teams and good is that bad teams beat themselves all the time, either failing to make plays, giving up turnovers or taking bad penalties, usually at the worst times.

It will not be long before Patriots nation will be looking across the country to San Francisco and wondering "why can't we get guys like that?" Not that Garrapolo should be replacing Brady now, but one way or the other Brady's time is limited and Jimmy G is just getting started. An incredible, super impressive start for the kid and, from everything I've heard, well deserved. I will also take it as further evidence that the best thing that can happen to a young QB in the NFL is to sit on the bench for a couple of years.

That segues into the Adam Vinitieri news because the only 2 moves that Belichick has made that I really haven't understood were letting Vinitieri go and trading Jimmy G. Vinitieri, 44, just announced he'll be back next year, which does my heart good

It's pretty apparent that there are no great teams in the NFL (except the Patriots as being part of this incredible run) so the play offs should be wide open. Any team that gets in will have a shot. The Eagles w/ Wentz might have negated both those sentences, but alas...

[tinnitus photography]

The Patriots have now benefited 2 straight weeks from apparent TD passes by their opponents being overturned on review. One reversal was clearly correct under the current rules and one was arguable, but the point is that the rules suck. IMHO, both catches should have been ruled complete, although the one in the Steelers game should have been marked down short of the end zone.

why short of the end zone? if it was a completion, he had the ball over the goal line before anyone touched him.

edit - also, from what i've read, Belichik didn't want to get rid of Jimmy G, it was more of a Kraft-motivated move in order to appease Brady.

[Iowan]

Who wants to bet that when the Pats win the Super Bowl, an obvious passing TD is taken away from the losing team? Which I'm suspecting may be the Vikes, so I'm just preemptively getting ready for the painful Lucy pulling the ball away from Charlie Brown moment

The NFL needs to adopt the college completion rules, but keep the 2 feet in bounds requirement.

[tinnitus photography]

Who wants to bet that when the Pats win the Super Bowl, an obvious passing TD is taken away from the losing team? Which I'm suspecting may be the Vikes, so I'm just preemptively getting ready for the painful Lucy pulling the ball away from Charlie Brown moment

The NFL needs to adopt the college completion rules, but keep the 2 feet in bounds requirement.

when i was in vegas for psycho, i dropped $20 that the Pats would win the super bowl. gotta find my receipt...

[Iowan]

Who wants to bet that when the Pats win the Super Bowl, an obvious passing TD is taken away from the losing team? Which I'm suspecting may be the Vikes, so I'm just preemptively getting ready for the painful Lucy pulling the ball away from Charlie Brown moment

The NFL needs to adopt the college completion rules, but keep the 2 feet in bounds requirement.

when i was in vegas for psycho, i dropped $20 that the Pats would win the super bowl. gotta find my receipt...

Yeah, I'm thinking that'll pay out.


When you just look at it from a football perspective, I think the Vikes and Zimmer are capable of beating New England, but the cosmic force that prevents sports happiness has been fixated on that franchise since Day 1. Somehow, they'll fuck it up.

[beantownbubba]

why short of the end zone? if it was a completion, he had the ball over the goal line before anyone touched him.

talking about the steelers game, right? I thought his knee was down before he crossed the goal line. I actually thought that's what they were reviewing.

[tinnitus photography]

His knee was down but no one touched him. He extended into the end zone while going to th ground but didn’t complete the catch.

[Zip City]

No one in the nfl knows what a catch is anymore

[Iowan]

His knee was down but no one touched him. He extended into the end zone while going to th ground but didn’t complete the catch.

That looked like a completed catch to pretty much everyone.

Which is why the NFL rule needs to change.

[Zip City]

If the ground can’t cause a fumble, it shouldn’t be able to cause an incompletion (assuming the receiver has control before going to the ground)

[chuckrh]

RIP NFL season. Blair Walsh needs to go find his true calling in life. It ain't NFL kicker....

[Sterling Bigmouth]

Glad to see both the Titans and Bills end their playoffs droughts. A little worried the Titans brass will be tempted to extend Mularkey, but it will be nice watching them play in January for once.

[beantownbubba]

Watching the Patriots - Jets game I was reminded yet again that bad teams beat themselves as much or more than they are beaten by other teams. I lost count of the number of 3rd downs the Jets converted to Patriots first downs w/ defensive penalties. And I believe the Jets were 0 for third down conversions. ZERO! (Though they did convert 1 fourth down).

Based on a limited sample, James Harrison may well prove to be a factor in the playoffs. Let's hear it for the old guys! The Pats started getting some guys back from injuries and hearing the names again was a good reminder of what a great job the coaching staff has done this year and how much Brady has done to carry this team.

[Eyes Above It]

RIP NFL season. Blair Walsh needs to go find his true calling in life. It ain't NFL kicker....

Very true but they also need to put some more playmakers around Wilson. He can't do it alone.

[chuckrh]

every one i know goes away in the end (if we're lucky):

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/page/ho ... r-struggle

[beantownbubba]

Fascinating article. Obviously I have no inside knowledge, but this has the ring of truth to it, certainly in overall perspective even if not in every detail.

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/page/ho ... r-struggle

[chuckrh]

a good theme song for the KC/TEN game would be NIN "The Wretched".

[chuckrh]

while not an artistic display, the KC/TEN game turned out to be pretty good. the night cap was kind of a snoozer.

[Zip City]

Road teams are 2-0

[Clams]

Falcons at Eagles next week. I'm uneasy.

[John A Arkansawyer]

while not an artistic display, the KC/TEN game turned out to be pretty good.

I don't watch football, mostly, but even I saw that insane play where the Tennessee quarterback caught his own deflected pass and ran it in for a touchdown. I think that play might've gotten the "Too Cool To Call" exemption (which should be a real thing)--are you all sure he wasn't past the line of scrimmage when he threw it?

[Zip City]

Falcons at Eagles next week. I'm uneasy.

I was channel flipping, but when I was watching, I saw a LOT of impressive secondary play by Atlanta. They stacked the box against Gurley and left the receivers in single coverage, and Atlanta shut down a lot of the passing game.

[Iowan]

while not an artistic display, the KC/TEN game turned out to be pretty good.

I don't watch football, mostly, but even I saw that insane play where the Tennessee quarterback caught his own deflected pass and ran it in for a touchdown. I think that play might've gotten the "Too Cool To Call" exemption (which should be a real thing)--are you all sure he wasn't past the line of scrimmage when he threw it?

I think he was over the line, but it wasn't conclusive.

I'm still trying to figure out how it's credited statistically.

[tinnitus photography]

while not an artistic display, the KC/TEN game turned out to be pretty good.

I don't watch football, mostly, but even I saw that insane play where the Tennessee quarterback caught his own deflected pass and ran it in for a touchdown. I think that play might've gotten the "Too Cool To Call" exemption (which should be a real thing)--are you all sure he wasn't past the line of scrimmage when he threw it?

I think he was over the line, but it wasn't conclusive.

I'm still trying to figure out how it's credited statistically.

Mariota was credited for throwing and receiving a six yard touchdown.