NFL 2012

[Paelos]

The Falcons and Houston are due to be picked up on fraud charges in January.

[Paelos]

I love a good Eli fuckup in the first drive! Merry Christmas!  

EDIT: 14-0 Falcons...and the Giants are missing FGs to boot. This is a brilliant start.

EDIT2: 24-0! The Giants are making that ice thinner and thinner for their division lead.

[sickrubik]

Am I finally allowed to get excited? The defense is alive.

Also...



And CBS just switched games. Lawl.

[Paelos]

The Falcons are dismantling the Giants. They may get shut out. This is an early Christmas present that keeps on giving!

[Trippy]

If the Cowboys win it'll be a 3-way tie for first place in the NFC East (not including tie breakers), with 2 games to play after this week

[Paelos]

First time the Giants have been shut out since 1996. Ahhh, if the Cowboys win this may be one of the best days in December in a long while.

[Trippy]

Am I finally allowed to get excited? The defense is alive.

Also...


And CBS just switched games. Lawl.

Here's a better look at what's happening there:

[Paelos]

I've seen that before when he did it at UGA  

[Paelos]

OT! 

[naum]

Mike Tomlin needs to go, along with Todd Haley and the rest of the Steeler coaching staff.

Both ends of the game, from acquiring and slotting players to the even more atrocious game management. Well, not totally, as they seem to perform well in the last two minutes of the 1st half. Rest of the game, staff looks unprepared for down & distance situations (last week failing to go for 2 to pull within 16 after running hurryup, then in post-game saying game was already gone -- what? why was your starting QB still out there then?), running stale predictable plays (which most of the league seems afflicted by too now), etc.…

Romo looked good today, but those were 5th and 6th string CBs he was throwing against…

And Troy Polamalu seems to lost his tackling ability…

[Paelos]

Mike Tomlin needs to go, along with Todd Haley and the rest of the Steeler coaching staff.

I really hope that was a joke. You can't be serious.

[ghost]

The Steelers don't change coaches after a bad season.  They've had 3 coaches since 1969.  And Tomlin has the best winning percentage of all of them. 

[Ginaz]

The Steelers need an offensive line that will prevent Ben from being getting injured and missing starts.

[Chimpy]

So the Patriots are the best team in the NFL, right?

[Paelos]

Everyone always wants to give the Patriots a pass on their shitty defense until they get exposed and face a balanced team. Unfortunately it's usually in the playoffs before that happens.

SF is probably the most balanced team in the NFC. They will absolutely struggle against any team with a competent secondary and a good run defense. That's why St. Louis gave them fits. The best defense they've faced is the Bears, but they played them when their starting QB was out...

PS - I still think GB and DEN are the best teams in the league.

EDIT: And now SF has decided to go into a shell, and play zone defense on the other end. Um, that's a TERRIBLE IDEA YOU IDIOTS.

[Chimpy]

Ugh. Get a first down SF, Jesus.

[Paelos]

Nope. Tied.

Wow SF. Harbaugh and the entire coaching staff for the niners took their foot off the gas. GUESS WHAT FUCKHEADS? YOU CAN'T DO THAT ON THE ROAD.

EDIT: And now NE gets torched again. This game is hilarious.

[Ingmar]

Mike Tomlin needs to go, along with Todd Haley and the rest of the Steeler coaching staff.

You cannot be serious.

[sickrubik]

Pats losing at home to the 49ers?

Yup. I think the Niners will get pressure on Brady and force some turnovers. It'll be close, but I feel that the Niners pull it off.

 

Even if I SHOULD have been wrong about it being close.

[Surlyboi]

Lolpatriots.

[Paelos]

If you give up points in the 40s in the NFL, you should lose.

This puts Denver in the drivers seat for a bye now.

[Sjofn]

Someone post a sad Eli picture or .gif for me, I am too lazy to look for one to cheer myself up.

[K9]

Pats losing at home to the 49ers?

Yup. I think the Niners will get pressure on Brady and force some turnovers. It'll be close, but I feel that the Niners pull it off.

 

Even if I SHOULD have been wrong about it being close.

Hat tip to you sir.

[Chimpy]

Ahh thank you football gods. I had to turn the game off when the Patriots got the ball back down 7 because I thought that the lolzone was going to give up a dozen more points.

[JWIV]

Wow did the Ravens just completely back into the playoffs.  No O-line, defense is garbage, and the game is back to being too fast for Flacco.  Just   

[naum]

Mike Tomlin needs to go, along with Todd Haley and the rest of the Steeler coaching staff.

You cannot be serious.

Yes I am serious.

They are a bad team -- winning only 2 of last 6, and those 2 were against the awful Kansas City (in OT) and a team in freefall (Baltimore).

Losing I can accept, but worse is the (a) players not able to tackle, which is a Steeler trademark even in bad seasons, (b) continuous inability to block and/or address offensive line woes, and (c) game management which has been simply atrocious and indefensible.

Yeah, Tomlin has a great record since taking over in 2007, but how much of that is due to the talent acquisition and coaching efforts of the previous regime? How many players of significance has Tomlin drafted (besides the receivers who are overrated, drop passes in critical situations and worse cannot hold onto the football or even possess any game time awareness)? The standouts on defense and offense both are slowing, aging and there is no suitable replacement transition happening.

8-8 seasons might be acceptable fare in other NFL cities, but not in Pittsburgh. When Noll had it happen a couple of years, he was gone, despite the 4 SB rings. It nearly happened to Cowher too, and if it wasn't for Roethlisberger (who Cowher did not want, preferring Tommy Maddox) he would have exited before his SB victory in 2005 season.

[ghost]

It apparently took close to ten 8-8 type seasons for them to get rid of Noll.   

Even if you want him gone for a mediocre year, it's not going to happen unless he does something completely stupid off the field. 

[sickrubik]

Someone post a sad Eli picture or .gif for me, I am too lazy to look for one to cheer myself up.

[Paelos]

Yeah, Tomlin has a great record since taking over in 2007, but how much of that is due to the talent acquisition and coaching efforts of the previous regime? How many players of significance has Tomlin drafted (besides the receivers who are overrated, drop passes in critical situations and worse cannot hold onto the football or even possess any game time awareness)? The standouts on defense and offense both are slowing, aging and there is no suitable replacement transition happening.

Well for starters they drafted Maurkice Pouncey, who is a 2 time pro bowl center in 2 seasons. So...yeah. Your defense is still top 10 in the league in points allowed, and #1 in yards allowed.

The problem is you have a new offensive coordinator who doesn't get it, and got fired from the Chiefs (why you hired this asshole I have no idea). On top of that, you have zero running game. Your playcalling is 60/40 in terms of pass/run. HOWEVER, the production is 78% of your yards through the pass, 28% through the run. You see the problem? It's not Tomlin, it's the asshole you hired who refuses to either abandon the run in favor of a great QB with one of the better passer ratings in the league.

[naum]

It apparently took close to ten 8-8 type seasons for them to get rid of Noll.   

Even if you want him gone for a mediocre year, it's not going to happen unless he does something completely stupid off the field. 

86-88 were bad years, yes, but Noll had 4 SB legacy and '87 was a strike year, with the replacement player fiasco. In 1989 Brister & Steelers caught fire at end of season, even upsetting Cleveland (yes, Cleveland once had formidable squad in the modern era) in the playoffs before narrowly losing to Elway Broncos. Followed by 9-7 season where there were some big wins and they actually tied for division lead (losing on tiebreakers). By 1991 and a 7-9 showing it was enough.

OK, Pouncey was a star pick.

Defense yards allowed are meaningless to all but the stat chuckleheads -- look at how the D performs in 4th quarter, or protecting a lead, or getting turnovers. Yards are not created equal -- and situational context much more important than yards yielded. Granted, defense is still slightly better than average, but it's best performers are players in the twilight of their career.

[Paelos]

No. The point is your offense is the problem. Don't look just at the losses. Look at how you got some of your wins. You only scored 16 on the Eagles? The league has done better than that against that shitty Philly squad. You had to go to OT to beat the freaking Chiefs with 16 points. You lost to the Ravens because you could only put up 10. Only 14 against Cleveland.

Buffalo scores better than your offense right now. No, I'm not making that up. If you're relying on the defense to get turnovers just so you can score, that's not a defensive problem.

[HaemishM]

Great EliFace.

So the Steelers. Do not fire Mike Tomlin. But you better get rid of Todd Haley, because like most former Belichek assistants, he is shit without Bland Bill and the Bradinator. How do I know this? Because the Steelers let Bruce Arians go and he's got the 2-14 Colts on the brink of the playoffs with a rookie QB (arguably the best-rated rookie QB in a decade but still... rookie). Haley, meanwhile, with much of the same cast as last year's playoff team can't get them anywhere near the level they were at last year. Addressing the Rapist's health is another thing that needs to happen. I firmly believe the Steelers had a better chance to win that Super Bowl against Green Bay if the Rapist hadn't been battered to shit all year. They cannot afford to lose him. Even when he's been in there, Haley's offensive schemes have not been good. That they might miss the playoffs is LOLWORTHY.

The Ravens, oh boy the Ravens. Apparently it doesn't matter who your OC is, there is just an aversion to giving Ray Rice the rock. I don't understand it. I think he touched the ball 3 times in the first fucking quarter. 15 touches the whole game. They started the game throwing the ball. I don't understand. This is the same shit Cameron was doing. FLACCO CANNOT WIN THE GAME THROWING 40 FUCKING TIMES, at least not against good defenses. He's not a bad QB but they keep putting him in situations that do not play to his strengths. RUN THE FUCKING BALL. Their first few runs were with this Pierce guy and not Ray Rice. What is so fucking hard to understand about this team offensively? Run the ball, wear down the defense, chew up the clock and keep the ball out of Peyton Manning's hands. Their defense though, it's even worse. Everybody on that defense got OLD and BUSTED and now they are running out guys like Kerry Williams who GIVES UP ON PLAYS. Decker is not fast enough to have beat Williams on that long TD if the CB actually stays with the play. Baltimore ought to be fucking embarrassed because they are a better team talent wise than they showed yesterday.

Fuck you, Giants. Since you hold a tiebreaker over the Pack in the playoff race, I hope you lose the division. Also, you assassinated my fantasy playoffs.

I turned the New England/SF game off at 31-24 when the 49ers looked dead set on losing the game by not making a first fucking down. Otherwise, they were fucking dominant and should never have let the Pats back in that game. Kaepernick continues to impress, though. His touch on long passes is pretty goddamn good. Alex Who?

I'm going to go ahead and call it now. Kirk Cousins will be Arizona's starting QB next year. Or somebody's because he isn't going to start in Washington short of RGIII's death or retirement and he's looking like he deserves to start. For all their lack of talent at wideout, their defense is solid and Washington owned them. The offseason is going to be a fun one for trades/free agent QB's because right now I see Matt Flynn, Alex Smith and Kirk Cousins being seriously hot commodities. Arizona, KC, Minnesota, Tennessee, Jacksonville, the Raiders (maybe), Baltimore (maybe), and Philiadelphia (maybe), they are all going to be looking for a starter and there isn't much in the draft to be excited about.

PACKERS WIN THE NORTH. Cutler sacked 4 more times, looks like his neck/shoulder may be hurting more than he's letting on. Minnesota leapfrogs the Bears in the wildcard spot. These are all good things.

Tonight's game will be unwatchable, so I won't watch it.

[Paelos]

Hey diddle diddle Ray Rice up the middle.

Unless it matters then it's Flacco manning the failboat.

[sickrubik]

Hey diddle diddle Ray Rice up the middle.

Unless it matters then it's Flacco manning the failboat.

Depends on which Manning you get....

That's what you were referring to, right?

[Malakili]

I think the Patriots are still a serious threat and the fact that they got to play the NIners now is great for them if they end up seeing them in the Super Bowl.  Kaepernick is still in that part of his career where there isn't a lot of film on him and he is giving team fits right now because they are giving some strange looks.  We see this with a lot of "dual threat" QBs, but eventually the film gets out there and they remain very good, but not the unstoppable forces they sometimes appear to be at first.  See also: Cam Newton.  If they Patriots play them again in the Super Bowl, which is a real possibility, I think you'll see a better game plan.  The Patriots defense is a real problem, for sure, but I still think they are as likely as anyone from the AFC to make it to the Super Bowl.