NFL 2012

[sickrubik]

This sums up everything for me yesterday.



I am over the moon right now with how well the defense is starting to gel. Yes. It was the saints, but they still rank(ed) as the #1 passing offense, and we held them to their lowest of the season. Meanwhile, Manning is back. He doesn't have the same zip, maybe, but he seems more methodical than ever. He's going to destroy a LOT of Broncos records. This probably has to do a lot with an offensive line that is absolutely dominating. I'm now dreading even more not paying Clady LAST off season, because he's going to command a lot this next off season.

Still having a lot of bizarre turnovers, but this team was much more improved from the previous week and is just getting better each week. Thomas and Decker are becoming a lethal 1-2 receiver combination for manning. I admit, I can not at all be objective about this. Just a solid god damn win, and I am excited for the rest of the season. Easiest SoS in the league from here on out and the Chargers have completely fucking melted down. Does Norv Turner survive the season?

[HaemishM]

Does Norv Turner survive the season?

He shouldn't have survived last season, much less this one, so who knows? I see no reason to keep him when their offense lead by an elite QB can't even manage 10 points against one of the worst teams in the league.

[sickrubik]

Does Norv Turner survive the season?

He shouldn't have survived last season, much less this one, so who knows? I see no reason to keep him when their offense lead by an elite QB can't even manage 10 points against one of the worst teams in the league.

The first part of that sentence doesn't match up against the second one. Rivers is done.

[HaemishM]

Oh I know he's done NOW. But all the punditry talks about Philip Rivers as an "elite QB" and he hasn't been that for at least a season. What they forget is he's had fuckall to throw to in that entire team. Vincent Jackson and Gates were his best targets and Gates has declined rapidly with injury while Jackson just didn't want to be in San Diego. He doesn't have a true #1 and I'd argue he doesn't have a #2, so it may not be all his fault. I blame Turner and AJ Smith more than Rivers. But yeah, Rivers isn't elite by any stretch of the imagination anymore.

[sickrubik]

Yeah, his targets suck, but an "elite qb" can find at least a couple #2s. I have a feeling San Diego will shed Turner this year, and possibly go into rebuilding mode. The way they played, they won't even up #2 in the AFC West.

[Cyrrex]

I think you have good reason to be up on your team, Sick.  Manning's greatest asset by far has always been his brain, so the (exaggerated) decline of his body isn't as huge an issue as the talking heads would have us believe.  With a solid defense and an offense that continues to come together under Peyton?  I wouldn't want to face that team on any given Sunday.  Who in the AFC is clearly better than Denver?  Houston I guess, but not by much.

[sickrubik]

I think you have good reason to be up on your team, Sick.  Manning's greatest asset by far has always been his brain, so the (exaggerated) decline of his body isn't as huge an issue as the talking heads would have us believe.  With a solid defense and an offense that continues to come together under Peyton?  I wouldn't want to face that team on any given Sunday.  Who in the AFC is clearly better than Denver?  Houston I guess, but not by much.

Baltimore may be done for the year, but they can still be dangerous, and New England is... well, New England. I have big hopes but I know it's far from over. But, I'm now optimistic about 11-5/12-4.

[Paelos]

Judging by league, I think the best teams by what I consider to be the most playoff relevant stats are:

GB, Houston, Atlanta, Giants, Denver - in that order as my top 5 super bowl contenders.

[HaemishM]

You shouldn't leave out the 49ers, but other than that, I agree with your assessment.

[Paelos]

You shouldn't leave out the 49ers, but other than that, I agree with your assessment.

I leave them out for one reason. I think they are overblown in their defensive set. They have some gaudy numbers in pass defense rating that I believe are very much part of their schedule, and not their skill. Even with that, they haven't produced the sack numbers I want in a super bowl defense. My consistent rating is look at the teams that are top 5 in sacks and/or top 5 in offensive passer rating, and you have a pretty good shot at being great in the playoffs. If you have both, it's VERY good and you're likely a super bowl team.

Right now Green Bay tops the list, if I'm putting money on any team going deep in the NFC, it's them.

[sickrubik]

Adam Schefter reported this morning that Sean Payton is a free agent after the season. Goodbye Jason Garrett.

[Draegan]

I doubt it very much.

[Paelos]

Sean wouldn't take that job. No head coach that's established himself wants to work for Jerry after what happened with Parcells.

[Paelos]

The NFL has apparently told the refs that the Giants need a misery win due to the storm. Holy shit that's a series of epic bad calls.

[Draegan]

Only bad call was the PF in the endzone against Cruz.  The rest can be called either way.  The PI was tickytacky but technically correct. 

And it was a fumble.  He just punched it forward.

[Paelos]

They call that "fumble" incomplete and it's incomplete. That's a bad call because they are required to let those plays go now, but always defer to the call on the field. It's a stupid double standard in the replay rules.

The PF call was a joke. That series was dead. Game should be tied.

[Draegan]

The fumble call was the correct call.  The ball was out of his control at that point. 

[Paelos]

Yeah, and blindside blocks are now apparently a personal foul.

I mean FFS.

[Bungee]

The fumble call was the correct call.  The ball was out of his control at that point. 

Mike Pereira doesn't agree with you there:
Phil Simms came back & said that he agreed with the fumble call. As much as I like Phil, I have to disagree. He did not loose control.

Tuck rule says "empty hand moving forward" as the implication that it was a fumble. How often have you seen QBs just kicking the ball forward after their arm was hit? I'm just glad they still got away with the W. But contrary to most "experts" I don't see it as that big a victory- after all I can only speculate as to how much time the Giants actually spent on preparation for this game.

[shiznitz]

The entire NFC East lost this weekend and Philly plays tonight.  I love the rumblehouse that is the NFC East.

[JWIV]

God the AFC North is unwatchably bad right now.  The entire division went into the shitter this season.

[HaemishM]

God the AFC North is unwatchably bad right now.  The entire division went into the shitter this season.

The entire AFC has gone to the shitter. I still think Houston is a good team but it would be good enough for a wildcard in the NFC.

The Packers took care of business before the bye which could not have come at a better time. Jordy Nelson, Bryan Bulaga and Clay Matthews all left the game with injuries (not even sure why Nelson was playing TBH). Their offense didn't look great against the Cardinals at times, but it was good enough to get a big win, especially when their defense just smothered the crappy-ass Cardinals. This is the kind of game Green Bay SHOULD be winning by 2 TD's.

I only watched about a half of the Falcons/Dallas game and it was pretty dreadful. Man, watching the Cowboys is painfully boring. The team just doesn't have an offense, which makes no sense whatsoever.

[Paelos]

It's the haves and the have nots in the NFL this year (and for the last 2 years tbh). Forget about parity in a lot of divisions, forget about "any given Sunday" if you're playing a division leader, and forget about the AFC for the most part.

10 teams in the AFC has .500 records or worse. 9 teams in the NFC have the same. That means only 13 teams have true winning records. Of those 13, 3 of them are in the NFC North. The AFC East, AFC West, NFC South, and NFC East only have one team with a true winning record.

The bottom 8 teams in the AFC are a combined 19-47. The bottom 8 teams in the NFC are a combined 27-39.

[Nevermore]

In other news...

Peyton Manning has thrown for 2404 yards and lead the Broncos to a 5-3 record.
Andrew Luck has thrown for 2404 yards and lead the Colts to a 5-3 record.

[sickrubik]

God the AFC North is unwatchably bad right now.  The entire division went into the shitter this season.

The entire AFC has gone to the shitter. I still think Houston is a good team but it would be good enough for a wildcard in the NFC.

HEY, we're not all bad.

But, I think that says more about the strength of the NFC in general this year.

[Paelos]

I'm taking the Saints tonight. I don't feel good about it, but I question Philly scoring on the road without tripping over their own dicks.

[HaemishM]

I think it'll be a high scoring game with lots of turnovers and will be fucking awful to watch. So I won't be watching. I'm still hoping someone lets a rabid bulldog out onto the field to end Vick's career but watching him fail so spectacularly is quite fun as well.

[ghost]

I think it'll be a high scoring game with lots of turnovers and will be fucking awful awesome to watch.

[Tannhauser]

Not going to watch it, it'll be like two special needs kids fighting over a beach ball.

[Paelos]

Saints pick came through. As expected it was all because the Eagles couldn't do anything in the red zone, and they turned it over twice.

If not for a stupid Brees fumble, the game could have been a lot worse.

[WayAbvPar]

Andy Reid is so getting fired.

[K9]

Looking at the Falcons schedule, is there anything realistically standing between this team and a perfect season? Their remaining games are Saints (twice), Bucs (Twice), Panthers, and Cardinals. They only two tough-looking games are Giants in week 15 at home, and the Lions away in week 16.

[01101010]

Looking at the Falcons schedule, is there anything realistically standing between this team and a perfect season? Their remaining games are Saints (twice), Bucs (Twice), Panthers, and Cardinals. They only two tough-looking games are Giants in week 15 at home, and the Lions away in week 16.

I would say the Saints and Bucs both are unpredictable, thus dangerous games. Should win is not will win.

[Cyrrex]

Yeah, they could (and possibly should) easily lose three of those games.  5 games against division foes?  I don't think they will make it out of that so cleanly.  Add to that the fact that they will lock up the division very early, and you are probably looking at 14-2 or 13-3.

[JWIV]

Oh god iggles - really?