2008 NFL Season Thread

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I think its their QB that needs to straighten up and actually win some games.

You now the NFL is unlike any other sport in rearguards to scape goats and cop outs. (Maybe baseball...those guys cry like bitches all the time) I never got how certain people can become a "cancer" or disrupt the chemistry of a locker room. He is a god damn WR. His job is simply to run route and catch balls, thats it and as much as I dislike TO he is damn good at it.

Yeah, TO is most likely a complete pain in the ass to be around but lets be real people its not like he can throw the ball to himself or change the plays in the huddle. Even if he has the worst attitude in the league as long as he comes to play then it should be fine.

Do like everyone else who has a crazy co worker....smile and nod when they talk but dont invite them to your birthday party. Case close. Same thing with Chad Johnson...how distracting can he really be? As long as they are still catching balls then they are doing their job.

They have bigger things to worry about than a disgruntled WR, they need to starting thinking about if they want to release Tony "No Win" Romo for a QB that doesnt completely and utterly embarrass himself and everyone else in Dallas when the pressure is on.

Teams need to start really thinking about what is messing up their chances of winning and fix them instead of blaming a guy who really has no control over anything.
 
As a bartender in Las Vegas, I am hoping/praying/planting magic beans that Philly and Pittsburgh win this weekend. I could deal with Philly/Baltimore ... but Arizona/Baltimore would be a good game for purists, but a bad matchup for ratings(tips).
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']I think its their QB that needs to straighten up and actually win some games.

[/QUOTE]

You love to find fault with everyone. First you rag on LT and say he doesn't show up in the playoffs. That is obvious. He doesn't show up because he is injured. You can't fault him for gimping his way into the playoffs the past two years. Also I wouldn't fault him for the other two playoff losses either. He doesn't kick and Marty didn't like being told he was too conservative.

Hating on Romo is ridiculous. Romo may have had a shitty December, but the blame shouldn't fall on someone dealing with a beat up offensive line and an anemic running game (Choice is decent, but running the ball out of the shotgun is not something that works on a consistent basis). Romo also didn't give up 10 points in the Steelers game in the last six minutes (he gave up seven after he knew he had to win the game right then and there) and he didn't let the Ravens gash him for two long TD's at a critical juncture in the game. For some reason people love to find fault with Romo and only Romo. I am not saying he is the perfect QB, but he is a damn good QB and makes a ton of plays that most other QBs cannot make. If anyone wants to find fault with the Boys, first they have to look at the fact that they need to get deeper. Injuries absolutely murdered this team. The lack of depth particularly at the QB and secondary positions really hurt. Along with this, the Cowboys need to make sure their offensive line is going to gel well. I know a lot of the problem was that Adams was playing injured, but they were no where near as solid of a unit as they were the prior year.

I just know that you and every other detractor is going to froth at the mouth to hate on Romo and point out his lack of success in the playoffs. People can point to that if they want to, but the record does note that he had his team in position to win at the end of two games that the Boys played badly as a team. There is a reason that the NFL instituted the K ball rule and when you can't get the running game going in the second half, it is hard to win.

Football is a team game and pointing out players on a team and offering criticism of their performance should be placed in the context of how good the overall team is. Dallas has had a lot of talent, but sometimes you have to falter before you can succeed.


Also calling him Tony "no win" Romo is one of the dumbest things I have ever read. This was the first year they didn't go to the playoffs with him at the helm and most of that had to do with the injury bug biting bad. Most QBs who can't win don't walk around with the best passer rating in the fourth quarter. Most QBs who can't win aren't in the top five in passer rating overall. He has done everything but put them over the top. I agree that he needs to win a playoff game and get better in December, but to act like he hasn't been the catalyst who turned around this franchise is ridiculous.

Edit: Part of the reaon that the Cowboys are considering getting rid of Owens is because he has lost a step and can't break out of bump coverage and be effective. He needs to work on his own game before looking to criticize others. They force him the ball and he gets thrown more passes than he deserves. He is a great player, but there is a reason the Cowboys got Roy Williams.
 
I had a feeling they would be talking over about LT after watching the Colts game. If I was building a team for a Championship, I would NOT put LT on it. He is injury prone and doesn't show up to the big games. Sorry but regular season stats mean shit if you can't play in the playoffs.

TO is not good anymore. He drops too many easy passes. What the Cowboys need to do is rebuild their O-line so Romo doesn't get sack every damn time. I see the linemen stand around with their thumbs up their ass most of the time. And get rid of Flozel Adams, dude has a false start in EVERY game I watched.
 
Adams was injured most of the year, but I do agree that he needs to work on his false starts. He does that way too much.

That is another thing that needs to change with the Cowboys. Their whole team was completely undisciplined. They had the most penalties in the league last year and shit like that kills your chance of winning. I really hope Garrett goes and gets a head coaching job so that Jerry will have the balls to fire Wade and bring in Shanahan.

Bill bought the groceries, Wade prepped dinner, but Shanahan is the one who should cook it.
 
[quote name='CaseyRyback']Edited out so the post can be smaller.[/quote]


Wow, can you fit any more excuse into that post? Whats next? Its not Romo's fault he cant win a play off game because the water boy didnt put his favorite Gatorade in the cooler?

Christ. I love the fact that people start pulling out this team game crap only when it applies to the QB they want to defend. Look, its fact, FACT that each win and each lose is solely placed on a QB shoulder especially in the playoff its part of being a QB. I didnt make it up the NFL and the fans did. Is it fair? No but who ever said that it was suppose to be. So dont sit there and pretend that I just said some crazy new idea that no one has ever heard of.

I love to find faults? Not really, I love to state what I think is the obvious. Calling Tony "No Win" Romo is the stupidest thing you ever heard of? Sorry its just a little easier to say than Tony "I cant seem to find a way to win in the entire month of Dec with a team that is bursting at the seams with talent" Romo.

But thats beside the point. For one I never hated on Tony Romo, I never said he was a bad QB so take your fanboy shades off for a second. He in my opinion is a pretty good QB he just might not be in the right stystem at Dallas and the Cowboys should stop ignore the fact that there is a problem with the guy and they need to take a long look at if they want to sit around and wait for him to finally get it or look for something else. Although I dont think there is a better bet right now than Romo.

Passer rating? Come on now, Ryback. Are you serious? Its the mother effing play offs right now and this guy is talking about regular season passer rating? Man, I dont know what to do but to shake my head. If the goal of football was to achieve the highest passer rating then yes I would put him and Phillip Rivers up there but unfortunately for you and Romo it requires you to win in the month of December and there after and get to this little game called the Superbowl. But I guess thats what you do when your team hasnt played a game passed Dec since the Mid 90's you sit around and talk about effing passing ratings. :roll:

As for LDT. You have nothing but more excuses, he is a HOF RB. Is it his fault he is injured? No, Yes, Maybe, who cares. The fact of the matter is your HOF RB is sidelined 2 years in a row when you need him most and you are forced to go with back ups (though I think those back up are more effective.)

My sole opinion of LDT is that he isnt worth his weight for a HOF player. When you have to give him 20-30 more attempts for him to get the same numbers as some of the other backs. LDT has been in the top 5 in attempts for a couple years now while guys like Turner and Sproles waste away as his back ups. LDT is a great player (but a classless bitch) that simply requires to much focus to be effective but when he is effective he is unstoppable. Which in my opinion leads to him getting injured. If LDT wasnt such a selfish prick he would be in the office telling SD that he cant go the entire season alone and to win they needed to go to a 2 back system years ago and like any leader take a pay cut so that they could keep some of these dynamic backs on the roster.

If they would have ran a real 2 back system with Michael Turner there is no doubt in my mind they would have went deep into the play offs.


Bottom line with all the "class," of LDT you can tell he isnt about winning because if he was he wouldnt allow SD to have a LDT all day everyday type of attitude. Pfft, you had the leagues second highest rusher on the same team as a HOF RB and you didnt even use him for anything other than clean up duty.
 
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[quote name='Soodmeg']Wow, can you fit any more excuse into that post? Whats next? Its not Romo's fault he cant win a play off game because the water boy didnt put his favorite Gatorade in the cooler?

Christ. I love the fact that people start pulling out this team game crap only when it applies to the QB they want to defend. Look, its fact, FACT that each win and each lose is solely placed on a QB shoulder especially in the playoff its part of being a QB. I didnt make it up the NFL and the fans did. Is it fair? No but who ever said that it was suppose to be. So dont sit there and pretend that I just said some crazy new idea that no one has ever heard of.

I love to find faults? Not really, I love to state what I think is the obvious. Calling Tony "No Win" Romo is the stupidest thing you ever heard of? Sorry its just a little easier to say than Tony "I cant seem to find a way to win in the entire month of Dec with a team that is bursting at the seams with talent" Romo.

But thats beside the point. For one I never hated on Tony Romo, I never said he was a bad QB so take your fanboy shades off for a second. He in my opinion is a pretty good QB he just might not be in the right stystem at Dallas and the Cowboys should stop ignore the fact that there is a problem with the guy and they need to take a long look at if they want to sit around and wait for him to finally get it or look for something else. Although I dont think there is a better bet right now than Romo.

Passer rating? Come on now, Ryback. Are you serious? Its the mother effing play offs right now and this guy is talking about regular season passer rating? Man, I dont know what to do but to shake my head. If the goal of football was to achieve the highest passer rating then yes I would put him and Phillip Rivers up there but unfortunately for you and Romo it requires you to win in the month of December and there after and get to this little game called the Superbowl. But I guess thats what you do when your team hasnt played a game passed Dec since the Mid 90's you sit around and talk about effing passing ratings. :roll:

As for LDT. You have nothing but more excuses, he is a HOF RB. Is it his fault he is injured? No, Yes, Maybe, who cares. The fact of the matter is your HOF RB is sidelined 2 years in a row when you need him most and you are forced to go with back ups (though I think those back up are more effective.)

My sole opinion of LDT is that he isnt worth his weight for a HOF player. When you have to give him 20-30 more attempts for him to get the same numbers as some of the other backs. LDT has been in the top 5 in attempts for a couple years now while guys like Turner and Sproles waste away as his back ups. LDT is a great player (but a classless bitch) that simply requires to much focus to be effective but when he is effective he is unstoppable. Which in my opinion leads to him getting injured. If LDT wasnt such a selfish prick he would be in the office telling SD that he cant go the entire season alone and to win they needed to go to a 2 back system years ago and like any leader take a pay cut so that they could keep some of these dynamic backs on the roster.

If they would have ran a real 2 back system with Michael Turner there is no doubt in my mind they would have went deep into the play offs.


Bottom line with all the "class," of LDT you can tell he isnt about winning because if he was he wouldnt allow SD to have a LDT all day everyday type of attitude. Pfft, you had the leagues second highest rusher on the same team as a HOF RB and you didnt even use him for anything other than clean up duty.[/QUOTE]

I think by your logic, Barry Sanders would be overrated too.
 
you could call LT selfish.. but you'd also have to call out SD for basically running him into the ground for the past 8 yrs.. eventually he was going to break.. it was just a matter of when..
 
[quote name='docvinh']I think by your logic, Barry Sanders would be overrated too.[/QUOTE]

I feel the same way. I don't see how someone is considered a loser when they have made the playoffs two out of the three years they have started and the one season he started every game they went 13-3 in the regular season. Using your logic the only QBs who can be considered decent would be the rock stars.

Also wins and losses are not placed on the QB. People only do that when they want to assign blame and are to short sighted to examine the whole picture. By your definition Trent Dilfer should be considered a god since he took the Ravens to the promised land in 2000. It wasn't the best defense ever or a 2000 yard rusher, but rather an average QB who was able to manage his way to Super Bowl victory.

It is people like you who gave Neil O'Donnell such a ridiculous contract.

More examples:

Who did the Niners sign the year they won their last Super Bowl? Deion Sanders.
Who did the Packers sign the year before they won their last Super Bowl? Reggie White
What happened the year that the Colts won the Super Bowl? Bob Sanders came back and led that team to the Super Bowl victory. Anyone who says it was Manning needs to be slapped, HARD.

Ignoring all aspects of the game aside from the QB and RB positions is ridiculous. Teams win championships based around strong defense, solid running attacks, and the ability to get teams to bite on the play action. That is the template. Without one of those areas sufficiently covered, teams falter.

As far as dismissing passer rating, it is a good statistic. Phillip Rivers had a very impressive season and his ability to lead and succeed is shown in this statistic. Romo's ability to lead his team down the field in the fourth quarter is shown in his passer rating. Passer rating shows that they understand the necessity to manage the game. Both of these guys did what they did with diminished parts as well, which shows just how skilled they are. Neither of them play defense or special teams, and these were the two aspects that burned them (SD in the divisional game and Dallas in many of their losses this year).
 
[quote name='docvinh']I think by your logic, Barry Sanders would be overrated too.[/quote]

Um, no? I dont see how you got that from what I said. Explain please.

[quote name='DJSteel']you could call LT selfish.. but you'd also have to call out SD for basically running him into the ground for the past 8 yrs.. eventually he was going to break.. it was just a matter of when..[/quote]

I agree fully. I do call out SD for being completely retarded in that fact. I still to this day dont understand why they feel they must pound LDT in to the ground every week when they had Turner and now Sproiles. Adjust your game plan accordingly damn.

I just feel that if he wanted to win he would demand that he get less reps or push for a 2 back system....or something to that effect.

[quote name='CaseyRyback']Long post.[/quote]

Spoilered to keep the thread neat.

What? I dont even know what points you are defending or going against or why you even brought up half the stuff you did. Are we talking about defense? I didnt think so, I thought we were weighing in on why Romo might not be the QB for dallas. What does Reggie White have to do with anything?

Football is a team game but at the end of the day it still comes down to individually performance. I am not saying a Rex Grossman cant ride his defense into a championship game, I am saying to get to multiple championship you are going to need yourself a franchise QB.

My bottom line for that is this. Can you can have your say right after but I wont respond on this subject (the importance of a QB/how much blame) because I think this is as true as you can get.

You can not build a franchise on any other position than a QB. You cant build one around a RB, ask the Vikings, cant build one around WR, ask the Bengals you cant solely depend on your defense either, ask the Bears.

The steelers and the Ravens are very close to each other personal wise but only the Steelers were a threat to go to the superbowl for the last few years, why? Because the Ravens didnt have a QB. And now that they have one look where they are.

I am not saying that a defense doesnt win Championship but you still cant throw anyone you want in at QB and think that you are going to get to the Superbowl every year. 1 QB mistake is 10 times as worse than any other positions because they have the greatest impact of whether you win the game or not.
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Now back to what I thought was the topic in the first place...the performance of Tony Romo. I think the biggest difference between myself and a lot of sports fans is that fact that I try hard to take the Good AND the Bad. I think a lot of people take the good and then completely downgrade the bad.

I didnt say Romo was a bad QB I said he was a good one but that doesn't change the fact that he cant find a way to win in Dec. And what Romo does is go from stellar to horrid as the season goes on. You cant just say he is great and down grade the fact that he cant get it done when it counts at the end of the season. This could be from any number of reasons, scheme, play calling, conditioning whatever but these are the facts and you have to included them when you talk about him.

Lets check the stats.

In DEC, he's 5-8 in 13 games, with 14 TD passes, 19 interceptions, and has fumbled 17 times. (recovered 12 of them)

Thats 24 total turnovers! How can you look at that and say he is a stellar QB? Thats more than what some full teams get in a complete season.

Again its the Good AND the Bad. You cant just take the first part of the season and say he is stellar look at all his numbers but then completely ignore the fact that he breaks apart easier than fucking balsa wood in Dec.

Same with LDT, the good he is a HOF running back the bad is that he ghost out when it comes to crunch time. You cant think of 5000 reasons why that happens but the fact of the matter it does happen and should be included when you talk about him. Thats all I am saying.

EDIT: Ryback this might be where we are having a break down of communication. In one breath you say its a team game and its all about the defense that wins games but in the very next one you boost about his passer rating? If I am understand what you say about defense winning championships/games than his passing rating could be a 12 and it wouldnt have that much impact on a game.
 
The reason why SD used LT the way they do/did is because he is a complete back with a combo of speed,power, great hands, etc.. So their thinking was we have to get the ball to this guy as much as possible, so he can make something happen.

Also, when LT came into the league, I don't think that the 2-back system was really popular. So it was basically you pick your guy and run him. I think that since the Chargers and other NFL teams now have seen the trend of the 2-back system(work), and based off of the backs they have/had the team should try to split the playing time more, that way both RB's will have a longer shelf life.

I remember watching the draft when the Chargers picked LT, The thing that surprised was he WANTED to be there. I remember on draft day he was actually excited to be drafted by SD! This is when they were the on a terrible streak of losing seasons + the Ryan Leaf fiasco:roll:. He had said something like"I want to help turn this team around, and make it a winner." but way more detailed. I thought that was great to hear a player say that and actually look forward to wanting to turn a terrible franchise around.

I know I would do the same if I had a talent like that. You also have to remember the lifespan of a RB in the NFL is very short I would think at 2-4 seasons.So it is important that the players have to get the most(money) out of it while they can.

The big question is it worth it to have two high paid RB's in the same backfield? I don't know if it's worth tying up that much money when that money can go to improve other parts of the team.
 
[quote name='H-Town Info']Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen were fired today from the Bucs.

I'm not a Bucs fan but Gruden just sucked ass after winning the super bowl.[/QUOTE]

Can only go down hill after that right?
 
[quote name='H-Town Info']Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen were fired today from the Bucs.

I'm not a Bucs fan but Gruden just sucked ass after winning the super bowl.[/QUOTE]

That one came outta the blue.

So both the GM and HC is gone... calling Mike Shanahan, Mr. Shanahan, your new team is ready.


Also, with all the coaching stuff going on... can someone please, please, PLEASE fire Ron Turner from the OC position on the Bears?
 
[quote name='H-Town Info']Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen were fired today from the Bucs.

I'm not a Bucs fan but Gruden just sucked ass after winning the super bowl.[/quote]

Jon Gruden is and has been overrated. He took Tony Dungy's team to the SB.
 
Ah, but I liked Jon Gruden. But it is true he hasnt done much of anything since winning the superbowl

Also JS1, I see what you are saying. But 2 back system doesnt mean 2 HOF high paid back system. Plus, they already had their guy in Turner and now in Sproiles they just refuse to use them.But anyway, I guess I am done with the SD talk for now as I have already said my peace on it so I will let it die. Oh, but NFL RB career is more like 8-10 years not 3-4 unless you are talking about actually being productive that entire time. It useally takes 4 years and 3 teams before they realize they actually suck.

How the hell did LDT even come up again? I thought we were talking about Tony Romo? :/
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']Um, no? I dont see how you got that from what I said. Explain please.



Same with LDT, the good he is a HOF running back the bad is that he ghost out when it comes to crunch time. You cant think of 5000 reasons why that happens but the fact of the matter it does happen and should be included when you talk about him. Thats all I am saying.
[/QUOTE]

You can easily say this about Barry. He only ever had one really great game in the playoffs, the rest of the time he was pretty much shut down and was a non-factor. Both him and Tomlinson have had about the same amount of touches at this point in their careers, and seriously, what running back is going to ask for a split backfield? I'm not saying that Tomlinson is the GOAT, but damn, he's still pretty far above the Larry Johnsons and Westbrooks of the world overall. Back to Romo, I think he sucks, but I may be biased as an Eagles fan.:)
 
Among us Bucs fan, the general consensus has always been that Gruden won the Super Bowl with Dungy's guys (and ironically, the Raiders got to the Super Bowl with Gruden's guys/system). The change in attitude and small tweaks to the offense are what won that team the Super Bowl - that, and he knew all the opposing team's plays.

I've always believed that Gruden is a great coach, but not a fit for the Buccaneers. He gave that team the kick in the ass they needed to get over the top and win the Super Bowl; however, his eccentricities (such as infatuation with old QBs) and his failure to get a good, consistent offense in play are his downfalls. In Gruden's defense, the defense looked lost after Kiffen announced he was going to Tennessee - that has to be a huge distraction given that Monty is such an institution in Tampa. I have never seen a Bucs defense look as dismal as they did the last four games this season.

I'm not sure why the GM had to go, the team had been making some decent picks the past few years (Adams and Talib) as well as finding gems in the free agent market (Antonio Bryant). Oh well.

Apparently the Bucs are promoting Raheem Morris to head coach and someone else from within to be GM. I think this is a mistake, they need someone from outside the organization, in my opinion. Morris could be great though, I just feel that there are some guys available that would be good in Tampa (Mike Shanahan :pray:).

Anyway, I think Gruden will still be a solid coach for some team - a decent team that needs a kick in the ass to get over the hump (San Diego, TO-less Dallas, Washington, New York Jets, to name a few) or even back to re-resurrect Oakland.
 
talking about coaching hirings. Steve Spagnoluo is now the new rams coach..and Dom Capers may repleace him as the D Cordinator in NY. Jim Fassel just got promoted to be the Raiders ST coach.
 
Well I guess I will see you guys after this wedding. Who the hell would plan a wedding during the play offs....so damn selfish.

When I am planning my wedding (which is soon) I am going to make sure its on a day that doesnt make my guest long to be somewhere else.
 
From what I see of that replay on the "out of bounds" kickoff return, it looked like it was heading the Cards' way, grazed the Eagles' guy's arm, and started going the other way when the Cards' recovered it. I don't know about him being out of bounds when it hit him, but if that means the ball is out, too, then that seems like the right call.

The Cards' offense has been great. Even Edgerrin's do very well on the run with some nice ~10+ yard runs.
 
And people thought I was crazy for picking the Cardinals to make it to the SuperBowl :p. 2 more quarters to go!!!

Oh and Demps should've been ejected.
 
The call where the ball hit the guy out of bounds was a good call because the ball did hit him. If you watch the replay of it, you can see that the ball spins a different direction after it hits his arm or hip.
 
[quote name='SoulReaver']Wow, that Jackson juggle catch felt like it lasted forever. My head went to the Dallas-Eagles game[/QUOTE]

Seriously. I was pretty sure he was going to drop it.
 
Great drive for Arizona when they needed it. Fitzgerald also got the postseason record for most receiving yards in a postseason, which used to belong to Jerry Rice, so that's a sign of how good he's been when they may still have one more game.
 
[quote name='FriskyTanuki']Turnover on downs! That was close to a pass interference.[/QUOTE]

He tripped, fell and was grabbing the guy just a little bit. It should've been a PI but Curtis should've caught that ball.
 
I don't even like football and had to watch the past two games, you get caught up into the hype I guess.

Shit is going off right now, fireworks going off in the streets.
 
Geezus christ... it it really take 20min. to get though 2min. of the last part of the game? I'm bored at work looking at Yahoo NFL. Not that I care about who wins or NFL anyway.
 
I never thought I'd see the day when the Arizona Cardinals would make it to the Super Bowl. It was a fun game, and I was rooting for them since, when there's not a team I love or hate in the game, I almost always root for the underdog. Here's hoping they can keep it up and make it a game against Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl. I predict the Steelers by 10.
 
Wow! All I have to say is wow!

That Cardinals-Eagles game was a true classic. Kurt Warner always puts on a good show in big games (his 2 Super Bowls and now 3 NFC championship games have all gone down to the wire).

That go ahead drive at the end should cement Warner's place in the Hall of Fame... just when the Eagles had all the momentum... he answered back! and, you've got to love the "Thank you, Jesus" at the end.

Really, I haven't been this excited about football since watching the 99 and early 2000 Rams (when Warner, Faulk, Vermeil, and Martz briefly reignited my faith in the Rams): Ricky Proehl's catch, Mike A. Jones' tackle, Warner's bomb to Bruce to win the super bowl... even the Super Bowl loss was exciting and came down to a last second FG...

Peyton Manning may be the greatest regular season QB of all time, but in the playoffs, I'd take Warner over Manning any day!
 
GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CARDS!
I really don't like them, I just HATE the Eagles.
The Vikings are the only team I love, so by default all the other teams are bad.
 
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