24 is the true number of the Beast. GO HAWKS!

I suppose it wasn't as bad as the hook & ladder game, but oh my goodness, that was bad. Ugly. Very bad. OTOH, the Pats will probably exit the playoffs early which might be a blessing. Edelman is clearly hurting pretty bad and I wouldn't be surprised if Brady is actually hurt (as opposed to being listed on the injury report every week out of habit or tradition or whatever). I'm sorta hoping that Gilmore is hurting too. How else to explain his worst performance of the season by several orders of magnitude? And now no extra week to heal. Not good.

beantownbubba wrote:I suppose it wasn't as bad as the hook & ladder game, but oh my goodness, that was bad. Ugly. Very bad. OTOH, the Pats will probably exit the playoffs early which might be a blessing. Edelman is clearly hurting pretty bad and I wouldn't be surprised if Brady is actually hurt (as opposed to being listed on the injury report every week out of habit or tradition or whatever). I'm sorta hoping that Gilmore is hurting too. How else to explain his worst performance of the season by several orders of magnitude? And now no extra week to heal. Not good.

On pins & space needles here. Nobody is giving the Seahawks much of a chance. This might not be a bad thing. The team seems to thrive with a chip on their shoulder in the Pete Carroll era. Should be a good game tonight. Aside from Packers, rest of day has been kind of dull. You have to admit that the coach in Miami has done a pretty good job with limited resources. AFC East could be much better in a few years.

Seahawks would have an easier first round game if they lost today cannot if they win.

The Titans have the NFL’s leading rusher, a rookie wide receiver with 1,000+ yards, and an MVP-level quarterback in Ryan Tannehill, just like we all predicted at the start of the season.

Nothing a cigarette and a Fresca won't cure.

Sterling Bigmouth wrote:The Titans have the NFL’s leading rusher, a rookie wide receiver with 1,000+ yards, and an MVP-level quarterback in Ryan Tannehill, just like we all predicted at the start of the season.

Haha. They better hope they can sign Tannehill after the season. Looks like he's for real unlike Mariotta. After Dan Fouts, OR QBs have been not so great playing with the grown ups. You get the beloved Yoda award for predicting this season!

scotto wrote:Nothing a cigarette and a Fresca won't cure.

the pause that refreshes!

chuckrh wrote: You have to admit that the coach in Miami has done a pretty good job with limited resources. AFC East could be much better in a few years.

Oh yeah, Miami has come a long way in a short time and is presumably heading in the right direction. The AFC East may not be better overall next year but if that's the case, it will be because the rise of the Dolphins & Bills (still not ready to believe the Jets) may be matched by the Patriots fall but if you mean that the Patriots dominant run is over I think that's pretty clearly true.

During yesterday's game the announcers referenced some stat about Belichek's record against former assistants. I don't remember the number but it was very close to .500. I'm not sure how to evaluate that but it sure seems interesting.

Seahawks @ Eagles. Let's get it on, Chuck!

Clams wrote:Seahawks @ Eagles. Let's get it on, Chuck!

Bring it on! The 1 positive thing from last night is it showed that Marshawn Lynch still has something left in the tank. I was hopeful but had my doubts. The Hawks may get a few key guys back from the injured list. Given how beat up both teams are, they should be pretty evenly matched. Can't wait. GO HAWKS!

Seahawks (+7) and Texans (-7) have the weakest point differentials of any playoff teams

Somehow the Cowboys went 8-8 despite a +113 differential

from MMQB site, haha:

Man, That Tom Brady Is One Pathetic Loser: Go home to your six Super Bowl rings and undisputed standing as the greatest player of alltime and billionaire supermodel wife, loser.

who dat!!

Sad but unsurprising end to an era last night. The loss to the Dolphins pretty much pre-ordained how this was going to play out. Even so, if Julian Edelman doesn't drop that pass that he catches 99.9 times out of a hundred...

What does surprise me is that the Kraft/Belichek organization, the kings of being three moves ahead of everyone else, don't seem to have a plan or a direction. They've surprised me before and I hope they do so again, but right now I'm concerned.

I have no idea what Brady is going to do. As a sentimentalist, I hope he ends his career w/ the Patriots whether that's now or in the future. As a realist, I hope he comes back because he's easily the best quarterback available to the Patriots right now (barring some Kraft/Belichek magic). Unless the plan is to tank and rebuild the team from scratch in which case any journeyman will do but I don't expect the Pats to go in that direction.

Nantz and Romo are always competent and often excellent, but damn did they blow their reporting of the multiple delay of game strategy Vrabel pulled out. Never mind that they couldn't articulate the rules and the permutations, they didn't once mention the irony that Belichek invented this strategy and said at the time that the rules should be changed to prohibit it.

Good to see Vrabel, O'Brien and their staffs and teams full of ex-Pats doing well.

Oh, btw, Deshaun Watson escaping that sack is the stuff of legend. An incredible play.

I'm getting psyched for the PHI - SEA game. Sick as a dog. Actually, if I were a dog they would put me to sleep. The hazards of a suppressed immune system, I shouldn't leave the house often this time of year. Bundled up with the magic meds bag close at hand. Nonetheless, in full playoff mode! Actually, being down means don't have to honour a social commitment. The game would've been on but with distractions. This game commands my full attention! The pregame rituals have begun. So, let's have the healing power of a big win! GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!

chuckrh wrote:I'm getting psyched for the PHI - SEA game. Sick as a dog. Actually, if I were a dog they would put me to sleep. The hazards of a suppressed immune system, I shouldn't leave the house often this time of year. Bundled up with the magic meds bag close at hand. Nonetheless, in full playoff mode! Actually, being down means don't have to honour a social commitment. The game would've been on but with distractions. This game commands my full attention! The pregame rituals have begun. So, let's have the healing power of a big win! GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!

Good luck. We busted out all our tried and true pregame and game time rituals, but alas, they were completely ineffective. I hope yours work better for you. And feel better soon.

Mike McCarthy to the Cowboys, per ESPN

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/284 ... -new-coach

chuckrh wrote:I'm getting psyched for the PHI - SEA game. Sick as a dog. Actually, if I were a dog they would put me to sleep. The hazards of a suppressed immune system, I shouldn't leave the house often this time of year. Bundled up with the magic meds bag close at hand. Nonetheless, in full playoff mode! Actually, being down means don't have to honour a social commitment. The game would've been on but with distractions. This game commands my full attention! The pregame rituals have begun. So, let's have the healing power of a big win! GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!

Congrats Chuck. That game was over the minute Clowney knocked out Wentz. Hard to believe that play went down without even a penalty flag. Eagles defense played pretty well. If Wentz played the whole game I think the outcome would've been different.

Death, Taxes, the Vikings beating the Saints in soul-crushing fashion.

Let's hope they don't lay the egg they did the last time something like this happened. SKOL!

Clams wrote:

chuckrh wrote:I'm getting psyched for the PHI - SEA game. Sick as a dog. Actually, if I were a dog they would put me to sleep. The hazards of a suppressed immune system, I shouldn't leave the house often this time of year. Bundled up with the magic meds bag close at hand. Nonetheless, in full playoff mode! Actually, being down means don't have to honour a social commitment. The game would've been on but with distractions. This game commands my full attention! The pregame rituals have begun. So, let's have the healing power of a big win! GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!

Congrats Chuck. That game was over the minute Clowney knocked out Wentz. Hard to believe that play went down without even a penalty flag. Eagles defense played pretty well. If Wentz played the whole game I think the outcome would've been different.

the bad calls affect everyone. the best hope is they even out in the end. don't think clowney meant to hurt him. also, the seahawks had an unreal good 3rd down conversion rate. wentz had nothing to do with that. think the difference in the game was russell wilson again. beast mode had a couple of great plays. he's probably performing better than expectations. & dk metcalf was awesome. a star is born. can't believe he lasted until end of the second round in the draft. 8 receivers were taken ahead of him. i like our chances against GB. GO HAWKS!

Well, typical Chiefs playoffs, one and do...--wait, what? Holy. Fucking. Shit.

So, I think I'm ready to accept my Ravens' loss yesterday. That one really stung.

Still, I guess that shakes the bandwagoners from the team. Still a great season and run.

scotto wrote:Holy. Fucking. Shit.

I'd say that sums that one up pretty definitively.

Flying Rabbit wrote:That one really stung.

A total mystery. I guess it has to be filed under "that's why they play the games." The Titans are starting to take on that team of destiny look. I'm happy for Mike Vrabel, but I'd really rather see a better team win the big one.

Flying Rabbit wrote:So, I think I'm ready to accept my Ravens' loss yesterday. That one really stung.

Still, I guess that shakes the bandwagoners from the team. Still a great season and run.

That really surprised me. I guess it was just a matter of time before the young guy finally had a bad game. I thought the Ravens were going to take the whole thing.

beantownbubba wrote:

scotto wrote:Holy. Fucking. Shit.

I'd say that sums that one up pretty definitively.

Flying Rabbit wrote:That one really stung.

A total mystery. I guess it has to be filed under "that's why they play the games." The Titans are starting to take on that team of destiny look. I'm happy for Mike Vrabel, but I'd really rather see a better team win the big one.

Destiny, schmestiny, I'd say coming back from 24 points down to win 51-31, getting both the No. 2 seed and the host site for the conference championship in the most unlikely manner, having a POSSIBLE Super Bowl birth in Miami thanks to (POSSIBLY) Miami, and facing (POSSIBLY) a rematch of Super Bowl I are also destiny-worthy.
That said, Vrabel & Co. are fucking scary.

scotto wrote:

beantownbubba wrote:

scotto wrote:Holy. Fucking. Shit.

I'd say that sums that one up pretty definitively.

Flying Rabbit wrote:That one really stung.

A total mystery. I guess it has to be filed under "that's why they play the games." The Titans are starting to take on that team of destiny look. I'm happy for Mike Vrabel, but I'd really rather see a better team win the big one.

Destiny, schmestiny, I'd say coming back from 24 points down to win 51-31, getting both the No. 2 seed and the host site for the conference championship in the most unlikely manner, having a POSSIBLE Super Bowl birth in Miami thanks to (POSSIBLY) Miami, and facing (POSSIBLY) a rematch of Super Bowl IV are also destiny-worthy.
That said, Vrabel & Co. are fucking scary.

Derrick Henry is a baaaaaad man!

Iowan wrote:

Flying Rabbit wrote:So, I think I'm ready to accept my Ravens' loss yesterday. That one really stung.

Still, I guess that shakes the bandwagoners from the team. Still a great season and run.

That really surprised me. I guess it was just a matter of time before the young guy finally had a bad game. I thought the Ravens were going to take the whole thing.

I'm blaming it on how many days they had off. It *had* to have affected them. As cardiac-inducing as it is, I prefer the #6 seed, must win, shock the world placement. As cool as it was to think about Baltimore hosting an AFC Championship--our teams have traditionally done better with their back against the wall.

I'm ready.