2017 NFL thread v. Patriots Dynasty

[pogoowner]

Yeah, Tomlinson didn't make a habit of saying anything too atrocious to the media, but he always came off as pretty whiny to me. Unquestionably one of the best players I've watched, though.

[KevShmev]

Jones aside (whose speech I did not watch), the speeches were all great last night. 

Taylor looked like the cat that swallowed canary and you could tell how much it meant to him just by looking at him.

Anderson brought some humor to the night.

Terrell Davis (my 2nd all-time favorite player) did a great job at telling his story; his induction was long overdue.  His kids hamming it up for the camera was awesome.

Tomlinson might have been the best. Such a class individual.

Warner's nod to Trent Green was one of the best moments of the night.  His wife's haircut was not.

[Dublagent66]

I didn't watch any of it, but congrats to those who actually deserved it.  LOL JJ 

[El Barto]

I'm kind of torn on the JJ thing. At first I was pretty pissed off about it. At the same time, under his leadership the league really has prospered. He didn't just turn the Cowboys into a 4 billion dollar team. He helped to change the league so that everybody prospers. The lowly Bills are worth a last place 1.5 billion dollars now. He obviously doesn't get credit for all of this, but he came in looking to change things up and certainly did.

[PowerSlave]

Vince Willfork retires. Very dominant player at his position. Great career.

[TAC]

I'm kind of torn on the JJ thing. At first I was pretty pissed off about it. At the same time, under his leadership the league really has prospered. He didn't just turn the Cowboys into a 4 billion dollar team. He helped to change the league so that everybody prospers. The lowly Bills are worth a last place 1.5 billion dollars now. He obviously doesn't get credit for all of this, but he came in looking to change things up and certainly did.

What did JJ do for his team that any other owner couldn't do?  Maybe supply his team with the most blow?

[El Barto]

I'm kind of torn on the JJ thing. At first I was pretty pissed off about it. At the same time, under his leadership the league really has prospered. He didn't just turn the Cowboys into a 4 billion dollar team. He helped to change the league so that everybody prospers. The lowly Bills are worth a last place 1.5 billion dollars now. He obviously doesn't get credit for all of this, but he came in looking to change things up and certainly did.

What did JJ do for his team that any other owner couldn't do? Maybe supply his team with the most blow?

Nothing. The point is the way he did things that others would not. He brought a level of aggressiveness to NFL ownership that was very different than what existed before. Personally, I think he's an asshole, but I won't deny that he changed the way the league operates.

[black_biff_stadler]

Yeah, I'm with Barto on this one. Owners are by and large such pampered lazy fucks that "could"/"couldn't" is seldom what makes the difference in how their performance should be judged and "would"/"wouldn't" is. The majority of owners treat their teams solely as a business asset and merely posture to whatever extent is necessary to keep the majority of the fan base from jumping ship.

[King Postwhore]

I always felt that.  I do feel differently about Kraft.  He's done great things for us N.E. fans (New stadium mostly on his dime, no PSL's, keeping the team in N.E.)

[KevShmev]

Cutler will lead the Dolphins to the Super Bowl now, right?

[Destiny Of Chaos]

He can certainly get them back to the playoffs. Miami is certainly as good or better than just about all of the teams that should be in the wild card mix.

[King Postwhore]

[black_biff_stadler]

Another fitting caption would be "Whaddaya mean I gotta play football?"

Dude has some of the most negative body language of any quarterback I've ever seen and that cig only furthers it all.

[Cable]

Vince Willfork retires. Very dominant player at his position. Great career.

Didn't want this to go unnoticed Powerslave! But I'm biased as I have the guy's jersey. Underrated due to his position too, even if he was more of a 4-3 DT at the end due to a decline. His retirement was interesting, I heard it called the first sponsored retirement!

Yeah, I'm with Barto on this one. Owners are by and large such pampered lazy fucks that "could"/"couldn't" is seldom what makes the difference in how their performance should be judged and "would"/"wouldn't" is. The majority of owners treat their teams solely as a business asset and merely posture to whatever extent is necessary to keep the majority of the fan base from jumping ship.

I always felt that.  I do feel differently about Kraft.  He's done great things for us N.E. fans (New stadium mostly on his dime, no PSL's, keeping the team in N.E.)

I'm with you Kings. As much as I have a certain political leaning, I am mostly against public money for professional stadiums. Kraft from what I remember financed Gillette all privately? The tax-payers should have put in an interstate bypass at least though. My gosh that traffic- I think it was easier for me to leave downtown Cincy after a game!

Going further on a tangent about owners, my running theory is that the owner often has a huge impact on how the team does. Financially of course, but winning wise. Being a spoiled NE fan, I have watched the thing turn under Kraft. He made mistakes- Parcells and Carroll and the people around them. Parcells is a putz though, so he would have left a team that won every year probably. But Kraft admittedly wanted to be a part of the transactions, and was too involved/controlling at first. But he got better, while finding the right person he can fully trust (Belichick). PIT has been successfully run since being founded basically, and I would extend further to NYG. And both teams have stable owners and administrations IMO. I would go with Denver as well.

Meanwhile, my hometown team has sucked since I started caring (Detroit). One playoff win in the SB era, one. All sorts of stupid draft picks, stupid contracts. And old man Clay Ford was heavily rumored to meddle in many drafts when he was alive. Dan Snyder is on par, if not lower or higher. WAS has done nothing but sucked pretty much, make bad drafts/signings, and be at the forefront of nickel-and-diming people. Throw in CLE and CIN. Cincy, there is an owner who in Mike Brown just barely beats out the Fords in my book, if only for the two SB appearances. Take those away and geez.

And I'll finish on Jerry Jones. Since he forced Jimmy Johnson out because he wanted full meddle powers, what has that team done since the big three retired/left? I didn't average in last year yet, but they literally averaged about 8-8 since 1996 I believe. But hey, America's team! Worth big money! Too bad the team goes no where, and I don't think it will with that man at the helm.

[King Postwhore]

The state did help with the infrastructure.   Look at the mall, restaurants and hotels Kraft built there now.  It used to be a wasteland there.   Now it's a thriving place to go to.

[Stadler]

The state did help with the infrastructure.   Look at the mall, restaurants and hotels Kraft built there now.  It used to be a wasteland there.   Now it's a thriving place to go to.

Relatively speaking, though, it's still a wasteland.   Some of the "attractions" were already there (Great Woods).  I wouldn't want anyone to leave with the impression that it is a City unto itself now.   

[Stadler]

Going further on a tangent about owners, my running theory is that the owner often has a huge impact on how the team does. Financially of course, but winning wise. Being a spoiled NE fan, I have watched the thing turn under Kraft. He made mistakes- Parcells and Carroll and the people around them. Parcells is a putz though, so he would have left a team that won every year probably. But Kraft admittedly wanted to be a part of the transactions, and was too involved/controlling at first. But he got better, while finding the right person he can fully trust (Belichick). PIT has been successfully run since being founded basically, and I would extend further to NYG. And both teams have stable owners and administrations IMO. I would go with Denver as well.

Meanwhile, my hometown team has sucked since I started caring (Detroit). One playoff win in the SB era, one. All sorts of stupid draft picks, stupid contracts. And old man Clay Ford was heavily rumored to meddle in many drafts when he was alive. Dan Snyder is on par, if not lower or higher. WAS has done nothing but sucked pretty much, make bad drafts/signings, and be at the forefront of nickel-and-diming people. Throw in CLE and CIN. Cincy, there is an owner who in Mike Brown just barely beats out the Fords in my book, if only for the two SB appearances. Take those away and geez.

And I'll finish on Jerry Jones. Since he forced Jimmy Johnson out because he wanted full meddle powers, what has that team done since the big three retired/left? I didn't average in last year yet, but they literally averaged about 8-8 since 1996 I believe. But hey, America's team! Worth big money! Too bad the team goes no where, and I don't think it will with that man at the helm.

I think owners DO impart a culture and a "vibe" for lack of a better word on their franchises; say what you want about them (or their methods) but Steinbrenner is a fantastic example.   He inherited (for what he paid, to CBS, it was akin to an inheritance) the Yankees, and restored the culture to the way it was in the 50's:  baseball first, winning first, and everything else - even some would say, classiness and sportsmanship - a distant second.   I grew up a Yankee fan, and while I don't always condone their methods (I grew to love the Red Sox in the late 90's because of the way they played and the players they invited to their squad; plus they play in the best park in the league) it's undeniable that it is the franchise that players go to when they want to win.

[King Postwhore]

The state did help with the infrastructure.   Look at the mall, restaurants and hotels Kraft built there now.  It used to be a wasteland there.   Now it's a thriving place to go to.

Relatively speaking, though, it's still a wasteland.   Some of the "attractions" were already there (Great Woods).  I wouldn't want anyone to leave with the impression that it is a City unto itself now.

i was just talking about Rt 1 where the stadium was but year.  That area is rural.

[King Postwhore]

[Cable]

The only weird thing to me about this are the trophies painted on. I know Belichick's boat is 7 rings, but that isn't landing in enemy territory 8+ times a year. Also kind of goes against his "we are on this year, we're not worrying about what happened in the past." Just my thoughts though, when I heard about it.

[King Postwhore]

Very true.  I would say it's a Kraft thing.  Not a Belichick thing.

[CrimsonSunrise]

Ready for Saturday's game against the Cowpokes!  Had a blast at the Joint Rams/Bolts practice yesterday.  Some shots I took.....









"One simply does not pick off one of my passes..."   

[King Postwhore]

Ah.  Football.  Even if it's pre season.

[TAC]

Great pics, especially the Rivers one.

[cramx3]

Those are some pretty cool pictures.  I can't wait for this season to get going.  The Giants have a lot of potential so it should be fun.

[mikeyd23]

Sounds like the NFL might stop jerking Martavis Bryant around, so hopefully he'll be ready to go for the opener. If so, the Steelers should, in theory, have a scary good offense. The D will be the question mark, hopefully a couple younger guys continue to grow up and develop and they will be solid.

[El Barto]

Watched the Patriots preseason opener last night, and I never noticed it before, but after a preseason game Bill is a little dour in his post game interview. Not like his regular season chipper self.

[PowerSlave]

Watched the Patriots preseason opener last night, and I never noticed it before, but after a preseason game Bill is a little dour in his post game interview. Not like his regular season chipper self.

Has he ever even smiled in a presser? 

[Dublagent66]

I think Barto forgot to use green.    No such thing as a chipper BB. 

[PowerSlave]

Ezekiel Elliot suspended. This one has been a long time coming, unfortunately. Talented kid, but he's a little bit of a mess.

[El Barto]

Ezekiel Elliot suspended. This one has been a long time coming, unfortunately. Talented kid, but he's a little bit of a mess.

Six games is excessive, but I doubt he serves them all. Jerry will remind Lil' Rog who's boss and it'll come down to 2 or 3 games. And has he actually done anything particularly wrong? From what I gather it's mostly just reports about his being a young, dumb knucklehead

[Dublagent66]

If a guy plays for Dallas and there's even a hint of wrong doing, a suspension is practically guaranteed.  It's just a matter of how long and the O-line is good enough to accommodate just about any decent to good RB.  Like Barto said, it'll most likely be less than 6 games.

[King Postwhore]

There's been whispers of a suspension this week.

[PowerSlave]

Ezekiel Elliot suspended. This one has been a long time coming, unfortunately. Talented kid, but he's a little bit of a mess.

Six games is excessive, but I doubt he serves them all. Jerry will remind Lil' Rog who's boss and it'll come down to 2 or 3 games. And has he actually done anything particularly wrong? From what I gather it's mostly just reports about his being a young, dumb knucklehead

There was a stink here in Ohio when he was in college about an alleged domestic assault, but from what I remember the details were fairly sketchy. The suspension looks like it might be an extension of that after he was drafted. However, he needs (needed) to extract himself from a situation where there were things that were going on that weren't in his best interest. It appears that he was foolish enough to stick around people that he should have "put in the rearview" so to speak. At some point you have to realize that it's only going to harm you and move on. He didn't, so he'll pay a price.

Note: The sketchy situation was his girlfriend (possibly falsely) accusing him of beating on her, and he stuck around etc. etc... The rumor was that she was making the accusations to manipulate him, and then trying to coerce people into corroborating the story. That's really all that I know, and it could be complete bullshit.

[mikeyd23]

On the EE suspension - let's remember this certainly isn't the first time the NFL has suspended a player based solely on allegations that never even went to court. Sounds about right to me.