The NFL thread 2008

[j_rud]

Man the Pats whomped ass on the Cardinals this weekend!  quote]
The Cards are a completely different team on the road. That was the first game that team has played in snow since 1983. They might win their wild card round game because its on the fast track at U of P Stadium, but the second they have to hit the road its over. I would absolutely LOVE for them to come to the Meadowlands in January. I'm praying the Giants get that matchup...

[Taterbug]

Da Bears.... I can't believe they won last nite.  They tried like hell to throw it away.  They still got a chance to make the playoffs. It's a slim chance.  GOOOO GIANTS.  

[j_rud]

Da Bears.... I can't believe they won last nite.  They tried like hell to throw it away.  They still got a chance to make the playoffs. It's a slim chance.  GOOOO GIANTS.  

This reminds me of last season when the Browns needed the Colts to beat the Titans to get in, but the Colts had their spot locked up so they rested their starters. Tennessee won and the Browns were on the bubble.

One might be quick to point to last season and say "Coughlin plays to win, he wont sit his starters, he didnt last year against the Pats when the Giants couldnt improve their playoff seeding", but its a completely different situation this year. Last year it was about building confidence and momentum heading into the playoffs. This is a different team and although I think all the starters who are not dinged up will see some action I doubt they play the entire game. Its important for the players to maintain their edge and rhythm, especially with the first round bye, but you dont want to take unnecessary risks either.

At this point I would expect Fred Robbins (shoulder, hands), Brandon Jacobs (knee), Aaron Ross (concussion), Justin Tuck (ankle, flu), Kevin Boss (ankle), and Barry Cofield to all sit out completely. Domenik Hixon may sit as well, Im not sure how extensive his ankle injury is. I'd expect Hixon and Ward to play perhaps a half, same for Eli.

[Taterbug]

Da Bears.... I can't believe they won last nite.  They tried like hell to throw it away.  They still got a chance to make the playoffs. It's a slim chance.  GOOOO GIANTS.  

This reminds me of last season when the Browns needed the Colts to beat the Titans to get in, but the Colts had their spot locked up so they rested their starters. Tennessee won and the Browns were on the bubble.

One might be quick to point to last season and say "Coughlin plays to win, he wont sit his starters, he didnt last year against the Pats when the Giants couldnt improve their playoff seeding", but its a completely different situation this year. Last year it was about building confidence and momentum heading into the playoffs. This is a different team and although I think all the starters who are not dinged up will see some action I doubt they play the entire game. Its important for the players to maintain their edge and rhythm, especially with the first round bye, but you dont want to take unnecessary risks either.

At this point I would expect Fred Robbins (shoulder, hands), Brandon Jacobs (knee), Aaron Ross (concussion), Justin Tuck (ankle, flu), Kevin Boss (ankle), and Barry Cofield to all sit out completely. Domenik Hixon may sit as well, Im not sure how extensive his ankle injury is. I'd expect Hixon and Ward to play perhaps a half, same for Eli.

I know it doesn't look good, I'm expecting Adrian Petterson to go NUTS and put the Bears on ice.  

[j_rud]

Da Bears.... I can't believe they won last nite.  They tried like hell to throw it away.  They still got a chance to make the playoffs. It's a slim chance.  GOOOO GIANTS.  

This reminds me of last season when the Browns needed the Colts to beat the Titans to get in, but the Colts had their spot locked up so they rested their starters. Tennessee won and the Browns were on the bubble.

One might be quick to point to last season and say "Coughlin plays to win, he wont sit his starters, he didnt last year against the Pats when the Giants couldnt improve their playoff seeding", but its a completely different situation this year. Last year it was about building confidence and momentum heading into the playoffs. This is a different team and although I think all the starters who are not dinged up will see some action I doubt they play the entire game. Its important for the players to maintain their edge and rhythm, especially with the first round bye, but you dont want to take unnecessary risks either.

At this point I would expect Fred Robbins (shoulder, hands), Brandon Jacobs (knee), Aaron Ross (concussion), Justin Tuck (ankle, flu), Kevin Boss (ankle), and Barry Cofield to all sit out completely. Domenik Hixon may sit as well, Im not sure how extensive his ankle injury is. I'd expect Hixon and Ward to play perhaps a half, same for Eli.

I know it doesn't look good, I'm expecting Adrian Petterson to go NUTS and put the Bears on ice.  

He can go nuts all he wants, if he doesnt hold onto the ball it wont matter lol. Im holding out the slim hope that the Giants can eke out a win because, no offense, I'd much rather see Chicago in the playoffs than Minnesota.

[j_rud]

Week 17...for some lucky fans (Giants, Titans, Steelers) today is a wash: playoff seedings are locked, first round byes are in place, and we have a stress free day of football ahead of us. Others are not so fortunate. The Eagles, Cowboys, Bears, Vikings, Dolphins, Jets, Patriots, Broncos, Chargers and others are still fighting for a spot.

Should be a fun day.

[TheBigChicken]

this IS a good day....MIA vs NY....chad v brett.....Tampa has to win and Dallas has to lose for a spot in the post season.....I don't think the Bucs deserve a spot in the playoffs :-/

[Ruckus]

All I wanted from Santa was a Pats loss and Jets win for my big present and a Vikings loss and a Bears' win for my little smaller present.

If I don't get these Santa, I will never believe in you again. >:(

[red]

everyone knows santa's a vikings fan.  

[aMillionDreams]

I just got back from the Bengals game.  It was nice to see a win but it was a bit depressing.  The general attitude of the fans was pretty apathetic, which is to be expected.  

I'll probably be back in here in a bit to talk mad shit about Brett Favre!

[capt. scotty]

Hah, Dallas misses the playoffs after probably 75% of people picking them to get to the super bowl. I dont care what Jerry Jones says, Wade Phillips is gone. I cant believe how useless Roy Williams has been for them either. I think the biggest reason is they dont seem to throw to him much (which doesnt make sense), but either way, they really lost on that trade.

And hopefully Big Ben is ready for the playoffs in a couple weeks. Seeing that happen this week was almost unbelievable. Even if he cant, I think Leftwich is perfectly capable of running our offense. I dont think he has the ability to make plays like Roeth, but I think he would make less mistakes.

[Jellyfish]

Go Dolphins!!!!!! ;D

[aMillionDreams]

Hah, Dallas misses the playoffs after probably 75% of people picking them to get to the super bowl. I dont care what Jerry Jones says, Wade Phillips is gone. I cant believe how useless Roy Williams has been for them either. I think the biggest reason is they dont seem to throw to him much (which doesnt make sense), but either way, they really lost on that trade.

And hopefully Big Ben is ready for the playoffs in a couple weeks. Seeing that happen this week was almost unbelievable. Even if he cant, I think Leftwich is perfectly capable of running our offense. I dont think he has the ability to make plays like Roeth, but I think he would make less mistakes.

I think Jerry Jones is the one who failed them this year, and he knows it.  What were his big moves this year?  Bringing in Pacman Jones, Tank Johnson, and Roy Williams. Way to go!

I agree that Williams could've been used better, but I don't think it's so surprising that Dallas didn't make the playoffs, what's surprising to me is how much media attention this overrated, mediocre team gets.

[brkndwnbus]

Hah, Dallas misses the playoffs after probably 75% of people picking them to get to the super bowl. I dont care what Jerry Jones says, Wade Phillips is gone. I cant believe how useless Roy Williams has been for them either. I think the biggest reason is they dont seem to throw to him much (which doesnt make sense), but either way, they really lost on that trade.

And hopefully Big Ben is ready for the playoffs in a couple weeks. Seeing that happen this week was almost unbelievable. Even if he cant, I think Leftwich is perfectly capable of running our offense. I dont think he has the ability to make plays like Roeth, but I think he would make less mistakes.

From all reports, Ben didn't suffer any further injuries, so it seems like he should be able to suit up in two weeks. Having Leftwhich as a backup is a better feeling than what most teams have, so I feel comfortable that even if Ben doesn't get the green light, the defense will stand strong and Leftwhich will do enough to get a victory in the second round.

[aMillionDreams]

Here's my Favre rant:

Let's recap shall we: so Favre makes the entire Green Bay organization look like villains because they wanted him to retire, which is what HE said he wanted to do.  Then he waltzes in to NY after missing nearly all of the preseason, they throw Chad Pennington to the curb like yesterday's trash, not even trying to get anything for him in a trade.  They just cut him and let him go to a divisional foe (ultimate sign of disrespect).  And what happens?  Jets don't make playoffs, Pennington's new team does, and Favre looks like the old, washed man who couldn't win a playoff game at home last year, only now he's even older and more washed up.  Favre far and away lead the NFL in interceptions this year, as I believe I predicted he would in this very thread.  And yet some of the media still defend him.  I hope he continues to play until he's 55.  At that point no one will pick him up and perhaps the media will get their heads out of their asses about this guy.  I understand he may be in Canton someday but let's all hope we never see him on a football field again, unless only to further embarrass himself and tarnish his "legacy".  Congratulations to Chad Pennington for making the Favre-sympathizers look like the idiots that they are.

Rant over.  But here come some statistics:

Favre's QB rating this year was 81.0, which was 21st in the NFL.  Pennington's was 97.4, second best in the NFL.

Favre threw 22 interceptions this season, most in the NFL.  That is 4 more than the next highest players who both had around 100 more pass attempts than him.

Favre joins Gus Frerotte and Marc Bulger as the only QBs (with more than 8 starts (and Frerotte barely had 8)) to throw as many INTs as TDs this year. What company to keep!

Favre is the record-holder for most career INTs in NFL history, so this is NOT a new development in his game.  The next highest person on the list is George Blanda who played in the NFL for 26 seasons had 26.970 attempted passes, Favre has 10,000 attempts after his 16th season.  

Finally, in the last five games of this season, when the team he was supposed to be the savior of needed him most, he threw 2 TDs and 9 INTs with a QB rating of under 60, leading a first place team to a 1-4 finish, out of the playoffs.

[bold99]

I'm so happy Dallas got killed.  There is no one in the NFL I hate more than Jerry Jones.  Even though I would've like to see TB in the playoffs instead of Philly.

I know a lot of people are all over Farve and its understandable but at the same time that is a move that you make before the season.  Nobody was talking about Pennington in a good way after last year.  Farve gave the Jets identity and a chance to win.  He didn't play well in the last month or so and he is old and probably should retire but a lot of Jets fans were excited about this move when the season started.  Pennington just had something to prove with Miami, I don't know if he would've played that well with the Jets this year.  Nobody knows that.  I think it is a joke that Farve made the Probowl though.

[aMillionDreams]

Yeah, Favre making the probowl over Matt Ryan was a damn shame that nobody's talking about because everyone's head is up Favre's ass.  Still! I don't get it.  If you had asked me before the season began I would have told you any team in the league would be better off with Pennington than Favre.  Just because Jets fans THOUGHT he could turn the team around doesn't make it okay for them to do what they did, it makes those people idiots who are apparently enamored by the persona of Brett Favre and don't realize somehow that he is an interception waiting to happen.  

Since it's on the last page, I'm going to repost my OP:

Let's recap shall we: so Favre makes the entire Green Bay organization look like villains because they wanted him to retire, which is what HE said he wanted to do.  Then he waltzes in to NY after missing nearly all of the preseason, they throw Chad Pennington to the curb like yesterday's trash, not even trying to get anything for him in a trade.  They just cut him and let him go to a divisional foe (ultimate sign of disrespect).  And what happens?  Jets don't make playoffs, Pennington's new team does, and Favre looks like the old, washed man who couldn't win a playoff game at home last year, only now he's even older and more washed up.  Favre far and away lead the NFL in interceptions this year, as I believe I predicted he would in this very thread.  And yet some of the media still defend him.  I hope he continues to play until he's 55.  At that point no one will pick him up and perhaps the media will get their heads out of their asses about this guy.  I understand he may be in Canton someday but let's all hope we never see him on a football field again, unless only to further embarrass himself and tarnish his "legacy".  Congratulations to Chad Pennington for making the Favre-sympathizers look like the idiots that they are.

Rant over.  But here come some statistics:

Favre's QB rating this year was 81.0, which was 21st in the NFL.  Pennington's was 97.4, second best in the NFL.

Favre threw 22 interceptions this season, most in the NFL.  That is 4 more than the next highest players who both had around 100 more pass attempts than him.

Favre joins Gus Frerotte and Marc Bulger as the only QBs (with more than 8 starts (and Frerotte barely had 8)) to throw as many INTs as TDs this year. What company to keep!

Favre is the record-holder for most career INTs in NFL history, so this is NOT a new development in his game.  The next highest person on the list is George Blanda who played in the NFL for 26 seasons had 26.970 attempted passes, Favre has 10,000 attempts after his 16th season.  

Finally, in the last five games of this season, when the team he was supposed to be the savior of needed him most, he threw 2 TDs and 9 INTs with a QB rating of under 60, leading a first place team to a 1-4 finish, out of the playoffs.

[Ruckus]

I'm so happy Dallas got killed.  There is no one in the NFL I hate more than Jerry Jones.  Even though I would've like to see TB in the playoffs instead of Philly.

I know a lot of people are all over Farve and its understandable but at the same time that is a move that you make before the season.  Nobody was talking about Pennington in a good way after last year.  Farve gave the Jets identity and a chance to win.  He didn't play well in the last month or so and he is old and probably should retire but a lot of Jets fans were excited about this move when the season started.  Pennington just had something to prove with Miami, I don't know if he would've played that well with the Jets this year.  Nobody knows that.  I think it is a joke that Farve made the Probowl though.

I've gotta say as a die hard Jets fan and secondary Bears fan, I must disagree.  I have been a Favre basher in his early years as a result of being a Bears fan.  However, his last 4 years have shown an increasing inability to reconcile what his eyes tell him on the field with his rapidly decreasing ability to deliver the ball where his mind tells him on time.  I was flat against the trade from the beginning and predicted that the Jets would succeed somewhat in comaparison to last year DESPITE FAVRE!

Whereas many Favre backers pointed to his numbers last year, many game watchers will tell you that at least 8-10 of his balls were flat dropped by defenders who he threw it to and would have put him right back up there among the INT leaders.

As for Chad Pennington, those that watched him regularly knew his strengths and weaknesses.  He still has the highest completion percentage of any NFL qb ever I believe with X number of attempts.  His glaring weakness was his ability to bring a team back late in a game where the ball had to be moved quickly and yes that is directly correlated to his arm strength.

But put him on a team with a good running attack (TJ, LWashington, Faneca, Woody, Mangold) and a somewhat improved defensed (Jenkins in particular) and they too have a better record by at least 2 games with Pennington.

Thanks AMD and Bold

I needed to get this off my chest and get ^*&&(&ng Favre outta town as soon as possible.  Leon Hess is turning in his grave and if Favre starts ^&&*ing crying again like he almost did yesterday and how he has 9x before at his multiple retirement press conferences, I will personally show up with a forged press pass and punch him in the ovaries and kick him in his vajajay!!! >:(

[corey]

FWIW, I've heard several people (maybe on the NFL network) talking about how silly it was that Favre made it to the Pro Bowl this year.

I'll go ahead and say it. I like the Cowboys. I can't believe they choked so bad. I mean, BAD. Romo's obviously got some problems with December/play-off games. I can't help but wonder how he would have played if he were completely healthy in the last month and a half or so. Maybe he could have made up for the last couple of years. But as it stands, he went out and played when he probably wasn't ready and now he has more shitty stats to add to his past.

I also can't believe that they traded all of those draft picks for Williams. That's gonna bite them in the ass. Hard. It hasn't paid off yet and I doubt it will pay off next year.

I think they Bears are on the right track for next year. The switch of putting Hester at WR seems to be doing well. I can only think that he will improve in the off-season and be even better next year. Also, Orton played pretty banged-up for the last month and a half or so. He was having a pretty good season up until that point.

I'm interested to see how the Titans do in the playoffs. They proved that they could hang with the tough teams (Steelers) that people said that they couldn't beat all season. But they also lost to the Jets who went on a downhill slide after beating us. Haynesworth and Vanden Bosch should be healthy before their first playoff game, thank goodness.

[aMillionDreams]

I'm so happy Dallas got killed.  There is no one in the NFL I hate more than Jerry Jones.  Even though I would've like to see TB in the playoffs instead of Philly.

I know a lot of people are all over Farve and its understandable but at the same time that is a move that you make before the season.  Nobody was talking about Pennington in a good way after last year.  Farve gave the Jets identity and a chance to win.  He didn't play well in the last month or so and he is old and probably should retire but a lot of Jets fans were excited about this move when the season started.  Pennington just had something to prove with Miami, I don't know if he would've played that well with the Jets this year.  Nobody knows that.  I think it is a joke that Farve made the Probowl though.

Thanks AMD and Bold

I needed to get this off my chest and get ^*&&(&ng Favre outta town as soon as possible.  Leon Hess is turning in his grave and if Favre starts ^&&*ing crying again like he almost did yesterday and how he has 9x before at his multiple retirement press conferences, I will personally show up with a forged press pass and punch him in the ovaries and kick him in his vajajay!!! >:(

No, thank you!  I needed to get that off my chest as well, and your reply just made my day!