NFL 2010

[Brother None]

The Packers offense will be potent again. The defense remains to be seen.

I wonder if your 3-4 will survive the personnel changes.

But assuming your O doesn't break down like it did due to O-line troubles (and, well, sync troubles, if I look back to the Pack-Vikes games), that should be enough.

Will the magic stick on a 41-year old QB? I kind of assume it won't, but who knows. Regardless, you should be able to nab the division.

 

[Cimmerian Nights]

America is losing it's edge:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXMsmxWRLpY[/youtube]
How could our love of exploiting violence and sex for public consumption and profit possibly be outpaced by Eye-tralians?
A nation's shame.


edit:
OK ESPN Rant #54,873

NFL Live sucks tremendously. It's like a showbiz tabloid NFL show, it's almost as bad as TMZ. They take these "storiez" that don't actually exist, stories that the media has created, and perpetuated and keep alive (like Dungy vs. Rex*) and spend airitme in front of these million dollar sets and graphics asking douchebags like Mark Schlereth what he thinks. Huh? It's like sports talk radio only worse.

I'm up late last night watching it all baked, and maybe it was the herb, but the show was just so transparently amateur. It's hosted by Michael Smith who cannot speak, and has no evident talent or skill at anything, and they did this whole David Letterman Top10 list on what the 3 Vikes did when they went to go get Favre?
Wha?
Didn't spoof Letterman Top 10 lists become passe in the early 90s? And when was the last time Letterman was relevant? It was the most clumsy, awkward, stupid thing I've ever seen on ESPN, and that's saying a lot.

And then Schlereth goes off on how great Favre is, and how, and I quote "nobody in the history of the league has had as much fun or is more passionate about football than Brett Favre". Meanwhile, all they show in the background is footage of him making big plays. Yeah Favre makes plays occasionally, but he misses a shitload too, especially in big games.

Funny how this audio footage never gets airtime on ESPN:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo3mvfIy5Lg[/youtube]


And please make Suzy Kolber go away. If it's absolutely necessary to have chicks do sports, go the Foxnews route please. Wendy Nix, Rachel Nichols are cute. Lisa Guerrero was hot. But I really can't stomach getting NFL news from middle-aged, frumpy Jewish housewifes from Connecticut like Linda Cohn. Go away! If I wanted to talk football with my friend's mother, I would do it.

*Funny how a pious, self-righteous man-of-religion douche like Dungy can come out and openly bash homos, but Rex is a bad person for using "bad" words? Huh?
What the fuck is wrong with this country? Fucking bible-thumping heartland assholes make me want to move back overseas.
Or start a New England/Tri-state separtist movement.

 

[UniversalWolf]

Linda does look like a frumpy jewish housewife, doesn't she? One who's really into sports.

I wonder if your 3-4 will survive the personnel changes.

It can, but it will be different considering how they've moved players around. The weakest part is probably the d-line because they lack depth now that Jolly's out. Still, they surprised everyone with how good they were last year; I don't think they're any worse overall this year than last. I'm expecting lots of big plays made and more than a few given up.

GB special teams, on the other hand, looked bad last year and continued that trend in their game against Cleveland last week.

But assuming your O doesn't break down like it did due to O-line troubles (and, well, sync troubles, if I look back to the Pack-Vikes games), that should be enough.

The o-line got much better the second half of the season last year, but McCarthy has a bad habit of shuffling everyone around. He can't seem to decide whether Lang should play LG and Bulaga LT, or Bulaga LG and Lang LT. It might be a rough start again this year.

 

[Brother None]

And please make Suzy Kolber go away. If it's absolutely necessary to have chicks do sports, go the Foxnews route please. Wendy Nix, Rachel Nichols are cute. Lisa Guerrero was hot. But I really can't stomach getting NFL news from middle-aged, frumpy Jewish housewifes from Connecticut like Linda Cohn. Go away! If I wanted to talk football with my friend's mother, I would do it.

Hot chicks are a waste of time.

I wouldn't mind competent, knowledgeable women doing sports coverage. They can hardly to a worse job than the men. But they get kind of blocked out by ditzy, hot airheads.

WHY DO YOU EVEN PONDER PASSING!?

 

[UniversalWolf]

If you want good, insightful football coverage and hot women announcers, you have to get NFL Network. That's why it costs extra.

Anyone see the Packer/Seahawk game?

 

[Cimmerian Nights]

Naw, but '9ers D looked pretty tight last night. I can see them winning that division this year. Although, PC has been pretty aggressive in Seattle. Who the fuck is the strength and conditioning coach in Seattle? They find him in the local leper colony? That team is injury prone like a group of elderly at Six Flags.

Pat's preseason has me more optimistic than I'd thought about them. It's amazing how bad a couple lackluster drafts can put you behind, they finally have a nice class of rookies and 2nd year guys ready to step up. They definitely addressed the TE void, but pass rusher is still pretty thin. I think it was a great move them having dual practice/scrimmages most of the week leading up to their first 2 preseason games. Going up against SB champs and solid, fast team like ATL is invaluable for the youngins.

I love that the NFL is always trying to improve the product, but as ambivalent as everyone is about preseason games, I think they are a necessary evil to preparing teams for the season proper without exposing them to the grind of more reg. season games. This they should leave alone IMO.

 

[Sander]

Naw, but '9ers D looked pretty tight last night. I can see them winning that division this year. Although, PC has been pretty aggressive in Seattle. Who the fuck is the strength and conditioning coach in Seattle? They find him in the local leper colony? That team is injury prone like a group of elderly at Six Flags.

PC has been aggressive but I don't see it all coming together, really. Still a lot of holes on that roster.

Pat's preseason has me more optimistic than I'd thought about them. It's amazing how bad a couple lackluster drafts can put you behind, they finally have a nice class of rookies and 2nd year guys ready to step up. They definitely addressed the TE void, but pass rusher is still pretty thin. I think it was a great move them having dual practice/scrimmages most of the week leading up to their first 2 preseason games. Going up against SB champs and solid, fast team like ATL is invaluable for the youngins.

I love that the NFL is always trying to improve the product, but as ambivalent as everyone is about preseason games, I think they are a necessary evil to preparing teams for the season proper without exposing them to the grind of more reg. season games. This they should leave alone IMO.

Preseason games are also pretty essential in getting a good look at unknown talent. Without those preseason games it'll be a lot harder for undrafted and late-drafted players to make a roster.

 

[UniversalWolf]

Naw, but '9ers D looked pretty tight last night. I can see them winning that division this year.

I agree. I think Favre is going to get sacked many, many times this season. With Chester Taylor gone the Vikings don't have a good blocking RB. Patrick Willis made Peterson look silly.

I'm liking Coach Singletary. He might be the next Ditka.

Pat's preseason has me more optimistic than I'd thought about them.

I agree with this too, damnit. I've decided the Pats are underrated this year and the Jets are overrated. I don't know anything about Miami though.

I like Brady more now that he said he hates the Jets. That's funny.

 

[Sander]

I agree. I think Favre is going to get sacked many, many times this season. With Chester Taylor gone the Vikings don't have a good blocking RB. Patrick Willis made Peterson look silly.

I'm liking Coach Singletary. He might be the next Ditka.

So he'll trade away his entire draft for a crazy running back who'll be out of the game in a few years (and then back, and gone, and back).

 

[Cimmerian Nights]

I agree. I think Favre is going to get sacked many, many times this season. With Chester Taylor gone the Vikings don't have a good blocking RB. Patrick Willis made Peterson look silly.

Gerhard looked very underwhelming too, esp. as a 1st rounder.

There's something really wrong about having a starting QB that is a grandfather too. I would love to tee off on that old mofo...within the rules, the Saints crossed the line of good sportsmanship. But who's to argue with them now?

I'm liking Coach Singletary. He might be the next Ditka.

I visualized Swerski when you say that:

So he'll trade away his entire draft for a crazy running back who'll be out of the game in a few years (and then back, and gone, and back).

I wouldn't really characterize Ditka's career such, his run with the Saints is kind of a footnote. Both guys were Bears HOFers as players, intense dudes. Singletary's approach to coaching seems kind of comical from the outside, like he's going to get the '9ers to win by sheer force of will and intensity (they've actually accumulated some talented guys) but the guy has plenty of football acumen too.

I agree with this too, damnit. I've decided the Pats are underrated this year and the Jets are overrated. I don't know anything about Miami though.

Pats have practically totally rebuilt the defense in 2 years. With the exception of Vince Wilfork. Offense looks more versatile, balanced and unpredictable from last year. Can't wait to see the spread with Moss, Welker, Edelman and Hernandez. Belichik and Brady seem to have a sense of urgency this year. Lots of good games on the schedule this year, should be fun.

Jets - I don't know what to think. What motivates them - PR and PSL sales or winning games? I think this team is more about turning a profit and gaining market share from the Giants with publicity stunts than really building a long term, consistant, sustainable winning program (like the Giants). And that's been true since they were the AFL Titans.
They picked up some great talent, and when used in the proper situations could contribute (LT2, J. Taylor). They lack talent where a NFL team needs it the most though. At a certain point though, the games will have to be won by Mark Sanchez, and that's the Jets' downfall ultimately.

The really ironic thing that nobody ever talks about though, is how so-called respected franchise owning families like the Maras and Rooneys earned all their money in....gambling. An aspect of the sport that the NFL avoids like the plague, yet an aspect which accounts for a ton of viewership.

Dolphins are tricky to figure out. Henne should have a good year with BMarsh to throw too. How many games can Ronnie Brown give you? Secondary is always somewhat of a mess there and blows plenty of hard fought leads for them. But you give Parcells a few years and he's shown he can really change the culture and identity of a team in the winning direction. Then he leaves them at the altar, but that's another story...

 

[Sander]

Gerhard looked very underwhelming too, esp. as a 1st rounder.

Gerhart was drafted in the second round.

There's something really wrong about having a starting QB that is a grandfather too. I would love to tee off on that old mofo...within the rules, the Saints crossed the line of good sportsmanship. But who's to argue with them now?

Eh, the Saints played as close to the line as they could, and then a bit over it. But this isn't just any game, it's FOOTBALL. QB hits are a part of the game, really.

I wouldn't really characterize Ditka's career such, his run with the Saints is kind of a footnote. Both guys were Bears HOFers as players, intense dudes. Singletary's approach to coaching seems kind of comical from the outside, like he's going to get the '9ers to win by sheer force of will and intensity (they've actually accumulated some talented guys) but the guy has plenty of football acumen too.

His message is easy to love - play hard, play intense, play for the team, but it's not like other teams don't want to do that. Singletary's a lot more charismatic than other coaches, though.

Pats have practically totally rebuilt the defense in 2 years. With the exception of Vince Wilfork. Offense looks more versatile, balanced and unpredictable from last year. Can't wait to see the spread with Moss, Welker, Edelman and Hernandez. Belichik and Brady seem to have a sense of urgency this year. Lots of good games on the schedule this year, should be fun.

Eh, I don't see your defense clicking that well. D-line is a problem, especially with Ty Warren out for the year. Secondary should be better with more experience, but still not up to par. I really like the addition of Spikes to the linebacking corps, though. Dude's too slow for a 4-3, but he's perfect as an ILB in a 3-4.

Jets - I don't know what to think. What motivates them - PR and PSL sales or winning games? I think this team is more about turning a profit and gaining market share from the Giants with publicity stunts than really building a long term, consistant, sustainable winning program (like the Giants). And that's been true since they were the AFL Titans.
They picked up some great talent, and when used in the proper situations could contribute (LT2, J. Taylor).

I think they're trying to do both. It feels like they're trying to build a corps for the future, and they have a lot of young talent on that team, but they also think they can win a Super Bowl this year - and their offseason moves have been geared toward improving the team that way.
I think the lack of a salary cap this year helps them. I bet they'll let most of those free agent signings go as soon as a cap is reinstated.

They lack talent where a NFL team needs it the most though. At a certain point though, the games will have to be won by Mark Sanchez, and that's the Jets' downfall ultimately.

Sanchez is probably going to be the worst of the three sophomore QBs. His numbers were pretty much just as shit as Freeman's and Stafford's last year, but he was in a much, much better situation with better receiving talent, the #1 defense, the #1 rushing attack and not being asked to actually throw the ball (he threw the fewest attempts/game of anyone starting a reasonable number of games since 1994 or so).

Dolphins are tricky to figure out. Henne should have a good year with BMarsh to throw too. How many games can Ronnie Brown give you? Secondary is always somewhat of a mess there and blows plenty of hard fought leads for them. But you give Parcells a few years and he's shown he can really change the culture and identity of a team in the winning direction. Then he leaves them at the altar, but that's another story...

I wouldn't be too concerned about Ronnie Brown. If he goes down, Ricky Williams can pick up the slack - and they're not going to be anywhere near as run-heavy this year as they were the first half of last year.

 

[Cimmerian Nights]

Eh, the Saints played as close to the line as they could, and then a bit over it. But this isn't just any game, it's FOOTBALL. QB hits are a part of the game, really.

Sure they are, and I'm not going to argue with the methods of a team that won it all. But they crossed the line in planting/driving and hitting low/late - that's not clean hitting, it's cheap, and it had an appreciable effect on the outcome of a championship game, and that I don't really respect.

Anyway, that's all old news.

Pats have practically totally rebuilt the defense in 2 years. With the exception of Vince Wilfork. Offense looks more versatile, balanced and unpredictable from last year. Can't wait to see the spread with Moss, Welker, Edelman and Hernandez. Belichik and Brady seem to have a sense of urgency this year. Lots of good games on the schedule this year, should be fun.

Eh, I don't see your defense clicking that well. D-line is a problem, especially with Ty Warren out for the year. Secondary should be better with more experience, but still not up to par. I really like the addition of Spikes to the linebacking corps, though. Dude's too slow for a 4-3, but he's perfect as an ILB in a 3-4.

I wouldn't expect them to be worse, even w/o Warren, who is on the downside of his career, and I can't remember the last time he played a full, healthy season anyway. It's not as bad as losing Richard Seymour, and that didn't doom them either. Even still they were 5th in scoring defense last year. Not bad for a team in transition that lost all it's veteran leadership. They have a lot of rising yougins that are becoming more and more competent with every snap they get - Mayo, Meriweather, Butler, Chung, Spikes, McCourty, Ron Brace etc. I really like Leigh Bodden as a #1 CB. They also have this defensive coach that is pretty good at coaching up players and crafting a pretty solid system.

The bigger loss is Mankins, and it's tough shit you couldn't be an FA this year dude, but that's not the Pat's fault and they still offered him some $7M plus contract which is ridiculous for a guard. If he won't sign for that, fuck 'em. He'll probably get traded at the 11th hour like Seymour.
$7M for a guard is horrible value even if he is a top 3 or top 5, that's probably more than a lot of lines collectively get paid.
The Patriots always come out the better in these holdouts - D. Branch, Seymour, Ty Law, Lawyer Milloy, Vinatieri etc. Asante Samuel is the only one that has remained relevant after they dealt them, but was he worth overpaying for? Fucker cost us a SB. Tackles like my grandmother.

I don't think Mankins will ever be a Patriot again. Revis I do see signing, he's got the hottest, best defense in the league waiting for him to show up. He's got all the leverage there, Rex needs his shutdown ability to run his stunts. But really dude, holding out with 3 years left on your contract? Supposedly he wants a ridiculous amount of guaranteed money. I don't know how you can give $60M guaranteed to anybody when you're one wrong move away from blowing out your knee, that's not good business acumen. Revis is smart though, how'd you like to be Elvis Dumervil, sign your fat new contract, get seriously hurt before playing a game, and now you'll probably never see most of it.
Revis is the right guy at the right place and time to be holding out.

Revis is all over local TV here with endorsements, so I don't think he's hurting too bad for cash. You really are an island now dude.

 

[Brother None]

I wouldn't expect them to be worse.

Ah, here speaks a man whose D was just thoroughly depantsed by a rookie QB playing without receivers and without an O-line. Good show.

 

[Cimmerian Nights]

Sounds pretty bad Chicken Little, when should we have the funeral?

 

[TwinkieGorilla]

my fucking god was it fun watching Peyton throw fits and pout last night. intercepted and sacked by two rookies, one of them an un-drafted free agent (who's pretty likely going to make the team). at one point i started to almost feel bad for him because of the shitty new ref positioning rule, but then i thought "no. fuck that. half of these pussified rules we have to deal with these days are BECAUSE of Peyton. fucking karma, you spoiled fucking baby."

also, i know it's preseason...but 59 points? fucking lol.

alsoplustoo: my qb can beat up your qb. seriously, fucking Cool Hand Luke on my fucking team.

 

[Cimmerian Nights]

Wait, the Colts actually have to play against another team's best situational talent head to head? Absurd, how could Polian let this happen?

 

[TwinkieGorilla]

Wait, the Colts actually have to play against another team's best situational talent head to head? Absurd, how could Polian let this happen?

Peyton actually played into the 3rd quarter. not to mention our second team walked all over their 1st Def. we didn't even start off with all our starters on either side. lulz.

 

[Sander]

Sure they are, and I'm not going to argue with the methods of a team that won it all. But they crossed the line in planting/driving and hitting low/late - that's not clean hitting, it's cheap, and it had an appreciable effect on the outcome of a championship game, and that I don't really respect.

I guess, but it sure was fun to watch.

Wait, weren't you the one railing against those very rules before?

I wouldn't expect them to be worse, even w/o Warren, who is on the downside of his career, and I can't remember the last time he played a full, healthy season anyway. It's not as bad as losing Richard Seymour, and that didn't doom them either. Even still they were 5th in scoring defense last year. Not bad for a team in transition that lost all it's veteran leadership. They have a lot of rising yougins that are becoming more and more competent with every snap they get - Mayo, Meriweather, Butler, Chung, Spikes, McCourty, Ron Brace etc. I really like Leigh Bodden as a #1 CB. They also have this defensive coach that is pretty good at coaching up players and crafting a pretty solid system.

Yet their defense was the weak spot pretty damn often last year and they haven't really added much.

The bigger loss is Mankins, and it's tough shit you couldn't be an FA this year dude, but that's not the Pat's fault and they still offered him some $7M plus contract which is ridiculous for a guard. If he won't sign for that, fuck 'em. He'll probably get traded at the 11th hour like Seymour.
$7M for a guard is horrible value even if he is a top 3 or top 5, that's probably more than a lot of lines collectively get paid.

There aren't a lot of LTs in the league that get paid less than that, so your hyperbole is silly. Besides, Jahri Evans and Nick Mangold just got bigger contracts, and Mankins wants a long-term commitment, not a one-year stopgap.

I don't think Mankins will ever be a Patriot again. Revis I do see signing, he's got the hottest, best defense in the league waiting for him to show up. He's got all the leverage there, Rex needs his shutdown ability to run his stunts. But really dude, holding out with 3 years left on your contract? Supposedly he wants a ridiculous amount of guaranteed money. I don't know how you can give $60M guaranteed to anybody when you're one wrong move away from blowing out your knee, that's not good business acumen.

What? That's not exactly relevant, by that reasoning you don't want to give any player any money because they could just blow out a knee. It's just another risk that applies to any player in the league or any sport.

Revis is smart though, how'd you like to be Elvis Dumervil, sign your fat new contract, get seriously hurt before playing a game, and now you'll probably never see most of it.
Revis is the right guy at the right place and time to be holding out.

What? Why wouldn't Dumervil see most of his money? Only way he doesn't see most of his money is if his injury is so bad that the Broncos cut him, but that's not exactly likely to happen.

 

[Cimmerian Nights]

Wait, weren't you the one railing against those very rules before?

Their evolution, ratification and implementation, yes. But once they are codified you have to abide by them regardless if you like them or not. Nobody can unilaterally decide that the rules aren't what NFL says they are.

Yet their defense was the weak spot pretty damn often last year and they haven't really added much.

Like I said, the only thing being added is OJT for guys in their first couple years in the league. But I don't think Ty Warren's presence or absence is earth-shattering.

There aren't a lot of LTs in the league that get paid less than that, so your hyperbole is silly. Besides, Jahri Evans and Nick Mangold just got bigger contracts, and Mankins wants a long-term commitment, not a one-year stopgap.

He was offered $35M/5yrs, not a one year, it's his tender he's refused to sign - he wants a trade and has said so. 5yrs/$35M isn't fair for Mankins? It's not really the Patriots fault that the CBA robs him of FA this year or that another team sets the market price too high. How much better is a $7M guard to a $800K or $1.5 million guard when you have the offense that the Patriots already have? What are they losing in offensive production by not signing him? $7M worth of production missing w/o Logan Mankins? What are they losing in cap space that can be allocated elsewhere at more pressing positions that they'd forgo by giving Mankins his payday?

He's not worth that much in this system.

With a total team building approach and salary cap in mind, how does one justify paying a guard that much to the greater detriment of the rest of the team? If another team wants to do it great, I think it's a lopsided team building strategy. Certain teams have a very strong approach when it comes to team building and won't drop their pants for anyone who holds out - Steelers, Colts, Patriots, Eagles - and I think their success over the last decade speaks for itself.

Haven't you Europeans learned where appeasement gets you?
There's a salary cap dude, when you pay one guy too much, that means there's less to pay everyone else. And when you cave to the demands of a guy that doesn't understand what his union signed him up for, then you are setting very bad precedence and rewarding holdouts - not a great message to send.

What? That's not exactly relevant, by that reasoning you don't want to give any player any money because they could just blow out a knee. It's just another risk that applies to any player in the league or any sport.

Other sports have more powerful unions and get much more guaranteed money. Risk is an ubiquitous aspect of doing business, the point is how well you can mitigate it.

I don't think the Broncos are too happy that they rushed into tearing up Dumervil's old contract just to have him out for the year 3 weeks later - you give a guy a huge raise and 3 weeks later he can't work, but you have to pay him more for not working than if you hadn't rushed to renegotiate. If I'm Tannenbaum I see that as a bad move, and justification for not handing over $60M guaranteed, and if I'm Revis, it reinforces why I need guaranteed money and I dig my heels in more.

I really find these contract squabble to bring out the worst, I want the best possible talent available on the field at all times, I'd rather this petty shit didn't intrude on the game at all.

 

[TwinkieGorilla]

and yet another tedious, long-winded installment of "Guy Who Wears Shirts Like a Half-Retarded Toddler vs European With 1 Year of Experience in the Sport in Question"

fun.