The NFL Thread: 2011

[Tracy 2112]

Kyle Orton's Farewell to the Denver Broncos

[walterfredo]

The NFL seriously needs to rethink the way they schedule Monday night football. Who wants to see San Diego vs. Jax? There have been far more shitty MNF games this year than good ones...so boring! They should make the schedule dynamic, a flex schedule like sunday night football, schedule the first few weeks and then select the games as the season unfolds.

[walterfredo]

Wow, literally minutes after I made the post above Colin cowherd just said the exact same thing!

[capt. scotty]

The NFL seriously needs to rethink the way they schedule Monday night football. Who wants to see San Diego vs. Jax? There have been far more shitty MNF games this year than good ones...so boring! They should make the schedule dynamic, a flex schedule like sunday night football, schedule the first few weeks and then select the games as the season unfolds.

Totally agree, and since Cowherd said it, totally disagree  ;). Its one thing to bump a teams game from 1 or 4pm to 8pm a few weeks in advance, but it is a bigger difference to flex a game to monday (likely because they are good) every week for the last 4-8 games of the season. If they flexed monday, I see at least 2-3 teams getting screwed for being good by getting a couple of their games (possibly away games), turned into MNF. If they varied it up enough with the flex, maybe it would work, but SNF is seemingly the NFC East every other week and the week in between is Brady, Brees, Rodgers, etc...I think they would overdo a MNF flex as well.

Dont get me wrong, Id love to have a great matchup on MNF every week, but doing that IMO would put at least a couple teams at an unfair disadvantage, annually.

[walterfredo]

Rams at Seahawks tonight, wow...another barn burner.  :yawn:

[Ruckus]

Man oh man what a nutty week!  I'm just glad I got Brees playing in a dome next week for one of my fantasy finals.  That is of course if I get 5.5 points from Pittsburgh and Vernon Davis tonight.

I wonder what's up with the Packers.  Are they getting it out of their system early and are the Saints peaking too early?  I keep hearing the same ole, "Yeah but the Saints in Lambeau in the winter" argument.  I just don't get it.  Yup, it's on the road and cold but I think the Saints have the better D and running game.  Who knows?  All I know is the playoffs are shaping up to be great in both leagues.  San Diego just may backdoor the playoffs again.  It's been frustrating watching the Bears blow the season but no one can really doubt the value of Cutler again.  He may be a douche but he's a hell of a quarterback.  You know how much it hurt Ray Lewis' fragile ego to come back after 4 games off in which the Ravens won all of them, only to get smoked by the Chargers?  And finally the Jets. :'( :-\ :embarassed: >:( :(

[Tracy 2112]

Saints tied with the 49ers for NFC playoff bye.....  :)

gulp....
  :-\


Go Steelers!  :o

[capt. scotty]

Last night was glorious. Hopefully we can pull it out tonight.

[walterfredo]

Last night was glorious. Hopefully we can pull it out tonight.

;) last night was indeed glorious.

[capt. scotty]

Last night was glorious. Hopefully we can pull it out tonight.

;) last night was indeed glorious.

More like frustrating, power outages aside...No doubt in my mind that if Roethlisberger was healthy we wouldve won. Really they shouldve of pulled him at halftime because he just couldnt get it done and was forcing passes that resulted in turnovers a few times. Refs were also pretty bad but cant control that.

[walterfredo]

Last night was glorious. Hopefully we can pull it out tonight.

;) last night was indeed glorious.

More like frustrating, power outages aside...No doubt in my mind that if Roethlisberger was healthy we wouldve won. Really they shouldve of pulled him at halftime because he just couldnt get it done and was forcing passes that resulted in turnovers a few times. Refs were also pretty bad but cant control that.

I think that's an extremely bold statement to say the least.  The 49ers defense is just insane, they were lights out last night.  I'm not going to say they would have won, without a doubt, with Big B at full strength because we'll never really know.  What if Pattrick Willis wasn't out of the game...arguably the best LB in the game right now?  You can do the what-ifs all day long, but it's the NFL and injuries are part of the game.  That said, of course it would have been a much closer game, you can't argue that.  Big B had very little mobility, which is typically one of his strengths.  I personally wish he was at full strength, just to see how it would have played out.  But, to say that without a doubt him not being at full strength caused a 17+ point swing is a bit of a stretch.  I will give it him though, the dude is one tough competitor. 

[Ruckus]

^^^ ;D ;D^^^

Did you just respond to the Cap with sound logic and facts Walter?  Ha!  I've been hearing the same thing all day from Stillers fans here about if Ben was healthy.  I will say that Willis' replacement was pretty badass when I was watching.  Last night, Baltimore was like San Fran's sister city.  Quite the spectacle to see a city band together for a night to become the biggest niners fans right of the bay area.

[walterfredo]

^^^ ;D ;D^^^

Did you just respond to the Cap with sound logic and facts Walter?  Ha!  I've been hearing the same thing all day from Stillers fans here about if Ben was healthy.  I will say that Willis' replacement was pretty badass when I was watching.  Last night, Baltimore was like San Fran's sister city.  Quite the spectacle to see a city band together for a night to become the biggest niners fans right of the bay area.

I can imagine!  Must have been very similar to how I felt in NYC during the T5 run...watching all of NYC cheer on the Giants as they handed it to the Phillies!  Good times...good times!

Yes, Grant was a beast last night. 

[capt. scotty]

Last night was glorious. Hopefully we can pull it out tonight.

;) last night was indeed glorious.

More like frustrating, power outages aside...No doubt in my mind that if Roethlisberger was healthy we wouldve won. Really they shouldve of pulled him at halftime because he just couldnt get it done and was forcing passes that resulted in turnovers a few times. Refs were also pretty bad but cant control that.

I think that's an extremely bold statement to say the least.  The 49ers defense is just insane, they were lights out last night.  I'm not going to say they would have won, without a doubt, with Big B at full strength because we'll never really know.  What if Pattrick Willis wasn't out of the game...arguably the best LB in the game right now?  You can do the what-ifs all day long, but it's the NFL and injuries are part of the game.  That said, of course it would have been a much closer game, you can't argue that.  Big B had very little mobility, which is typically one of his strengths.  I personally wish he was at full strength, just to see how it would have played out.  But, to say that without a doubt him not being at full strength caused a 17+ point swing is a bit of a stretch.  I will give it him though, the dude is one tough competitor.

Figured you'd bring up Willis, yet we were also missing Harrison and Pouncey and Woodley re-aggravated his hammy again. Harrison might have given us a chance to get consistent pressure, Pouncey wouldve likely at least made sure Aldon Smith got a hand put on him instead of going untouched thru the middle, but I didnt go there for the reasons you alluded to.

I dont see how just him being healthy (not even considering the other guys we had injured) is a stretch to think he would overcome a 17pt swing. For one, like you said he had almost no mobility, and with how bad our OL is and good your pass rush is, thats a terrible situation having him back there. Second, it was only 6-3 around 40 minutes thru the game. It could have been a totally different scenario if he were healthy and we were up 17-6 or something at that point (not to mention the bogus penalty on Timmons for leaping that gave you an automatic 1st down and lead to 1 of those TDs). For sure SF's D is very good, but I think Ben's 4 TO's had as much if not more to do with his injury/overcompensating as SF forcing them. He hadn't had more than 1 TO in a game since week 3. Then there are just the game numbers where PIT won nearly across the board: 20 first down to 17, 57% 3rd down conversion to 30%, 102 more total net yards, 3 more minutes time of possession....

It would have been a very, very different game if Roethlisberger was healthy

[walterfredo]

Maybe if the Steelers' players would have worked harder in the off season and been in better overall condition, they wouldn't be getting hurt so often (or in Harrison's case...being a dirty player).  ;)


Joking aside...it's week 16, EVERY team is riddled with injuries, all of them.  Part of the game.  The Steelers were outplayed last night, and subsequently lost the game.  They weren't the best team last night.  Maybe they should have suited up Bradshaw. (I keed....I keed).  Steelers fans are sensitive!  I guess I've become so insensitive to this type of jarring after a decade of being the joke of the NFC.   

[Tracy 2112]

Steelers fans are sensitive!

I noticed that too. More like crybabies.

Lighten up for Gods sakes with all your Super Bowl wins. jeeeez....

[capt. scotty]

Maybe if the Steelers' players would have worked harder in the off season and been in better overall condition, they wouldn't be getting hurt so often (or in Harrison's case...being a dirty player).  ;)


Joking aside...it's week 16, EVERY team is riddled with injuries, all of them.  Part of the game.  The Steelers were outplayed last night, and subsequently lost the game.  They weren't the best team last night.  Maybe they should have suited up Bradshaw. (I keed....I keed).  Steelers fans are sensitive!  I guess I've become so insensitive to this type of jarring after a decade of being the joke of the NFC.   

Thats the thing, I dont think we were outplayed which is why the loss is so frustrating.

On another note, I didnt understand our defensive gameplan at all either. I thought we figured out in the NE game that playing the DBs 10 yds off the line wasnt a good idea for our CBs. I could understand giving that kind of space to great QBs so you dont get beat deep (despite that being proven wrong vs our D), but I have no idea why that was the gameplan when SF's biggest weapon is Davis and it was highly unlikely Smith would be connecting on 30+ yard passes against our D and beat us that way.

Congrats on the win. I hope SF goes to the SB, but I dont see it happening vs a healthy Rodgers, Brees, Stafford, or Romo. They just dont have the offense to have them win that many games in a row against top QBs/offenses. It will help out a lot if they hold onto HFA and only have to play 2 games before the SB

[Ruckus]

Maybe if the Steelers' players would have worked harder in the off season and been in better overall condition, they wouldn't be getting hurt so often (or in Harrison's case...being a dirty player).  ;)


Joking aside...it's week 16, EVERY team is riddled with injuries, all of them.  Part of the game.  The Steelers were outplayed last night, and subsequently lost the game.  They weren't the best team last night.  Maybe they should have suited up Bradshaw. (I keed....I keed).  Steelers fans are sensitive!  I guess I've become so insensitive to this type of jarring after a decade of being the joke of the NFC.   

Thats the thing, I dont think we were outplayed which is why the loss is so frustrating.

On another note, I didnt understand our defensive gameplan at all either. I thought we figured out in the NE game that playing the DBs 10 yds off the line wasnt a good idea for our CBs. I could understand giving that kind of space to great QBs so you dont get beat deep (despite that being proven wrong vs our D), but I have no idea why that was the gameplan when SF's biggest weapon is Davis and it was highly unlikely Smith would be connecting on 30+ yard passes against our D and beat us that way.

Congrats on the win. I hope SF goes to the SB, but I dont see it happening vs a healthy Rodgers, Brees, Stafford, or Romo. They just dont have the offense to have them win that many games in a row against top QBs/offenses. It will help out a lot if they hold onto HFA and only have to play 2 games before the SB

I think there should be a breakdown of all games where a team that lost by 17 points but should have won.  That's what was soooo frustrating about the Cardinals/Steelers Super Bowl.  The Steelers didn't deserve it.  The Cardinals outplayed them but the undeserving team won and their fans should not be allowed to enjoy that victory because it was the Cardinals problems that made them lose and not the Steelers playmaking ability.

[Tracy 2112]

Maybe if the Steelers' players would have worked harder in the off season and been in better overall condition, they wouldn't be getting hurt so often (or in Harrison's case...being a dirty player).  ;)


Joking aside...it's week 16, EVERY team is riddled with injuries, all of them.  Part of the game.  The Steelers were outplayed last night, and subsequently lost the game.  They weren't the best team last night.  Maybe they should have suited up Bradshaw. (I keed....I keed).  Steelers fans are sensitive!  I guess I've become so insensitive to this type of jarring after a decade of being the joke of the NFC.   

Thats the thing, I dont think we were outplayed which is why the loss is so frustrating.

On another note, I didnt understand our defensive gameplan at all either. I thought we figured out in the NE game that playing the DBs 10 yds off the line wasnt a good idea for our CBs. I could understand giving that kind of space to great QBs so you dont get beat deep (despite that being proven wrong vs our D), but I have no idea why that was the gameplan when SF's biggest weapon is Davis and it was highly unlikely Smith would be connecting on 30+ yard passes against our D and beat us that way.

Congrats on the win. I hope SF goes to the SB, but I dont see it happening vs a healthy Rodgers, Brees, Stafford, or Romo. They just dont have the offense to have them win that many games in a row against top QBs/offenses. It will help out a lot if they hold onto HFA and only have to play 2 games before the SB

I think there should be a breakdown of all games where a team that lost by 17 points but should have won.  That's what was soooo frustrating about the Cardinals/Steelers Super Bowl.  The Steelers didn't deserve it.  The Cardinals outplayed them but the undeserving team won and their fans should not be allowed to enjoy that victory because it was the Cardinals problems that made them lose and not the Steelers playmaking ability.

Well, that and Tom Brady got hurt that season. No doubt in my mind that if Brady was healthy the Pats would have gone to the Super Bowl and won by 17 points.

[walterfredo]

Ruckus and Tracy, you guys bring the laughs! (and you're both right).

Capt., I totally agree with you on the niners and their likelihood of going for the long haul.  As a life long hardcore fan (I scream at the TV so loud my neighbors 3 houses away can hear it!) I know they're not going to pull it off, barring some insane luck and happenstance. It [normally] takes an elite/better than average QB to go all the way (that is unless you're Dilfer and the Ravens) to win the SB.  I've been fairly pessimistic all year, and still am to some degree.  Although, I've fully bought into their D, and you know how that goes (again, see the Dilfer/Ravens team).  Alex Smith is NOT the guy, he sucks.  He missed 2 ridiculously wide open TD passes on Monday, he's pathetic in the red zone.  But, I'm still enjoying this miraculous turn around, and it's made this season palatable to me, where as the last several years, 75% of the games I've turned off at half time while screaming profanities at the TV.  So at least my anxiety is down to a tolerable level. It would take a freaking miracle to get past the Pack.