NFL 2017: And Now It Begins!

[James Arryn]

NFLPA named Colin Kaepernick week 1 community MVP. 

 

 

[briantw]

3 hours ago, Manhole Eunuchsbane said:

Nah, they're much like the Texans in that their defense puts them in the next tier up. They've given up 33 points in 2 games. Their offense is probably among the worst, especially given how much talent they have, but overall, the team is not in the bottom 4.

You mean the Texans defense that was so good they gave up 29 points to the fucking Jaguars?

I'm also not convinced as to how good the Bengals defense actually is.  In week one they played a Ravens offense where Flacco is still recovering from a back injury and in week two they played against a rookie QB with no offensive line who seemingly has the arm strength of an eighty-year-old woman with a calcium deficiency. 

[Bronn Stone]

37 minutes ago, briantw said:

You mean the Texans defense that was so good they gave up 29 points to the fucking Jaguars?

 

Good point, except for being totally misleading.

The Jags first half included 19 of the 29 points.  6 (plus an XP) were the result of a defensive score.

Texans first half drives.

3 and out 3 times
3 and fumble once
5 and fumble returned for TD once
9 and punt once
2 and end of half

When your offense is giving up the ball EVERY DAMNED TIME, no defense can hold long

Also, one of the second half scoring "drives" was post interception for seven yards then a field goal.

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

6 minutes ago, Bronn Stone said:

Good point, except for being totally misleading.

The Jags first half included 19 of the 29 points.  6 (plus an XP) were the result of a defensive score.

Texans first half drives.

3 and out 3 times
3 and fumble once
5 and fumble returned for TD once
9 and punt once
2 and end of half

When your offense is giving up the ball EVERY DAMNED TIME, no defense can hold long

Also, one of the second half scoring "drives" was post interception for seven yards then a field goal.

And their best defensive player dislocated his finger early in that first game and had one tackle. And I'm not saying the Texans are good, I'm saying they're not as bad as the Colts. Same with the Bengals. As bad as those two teams may turn out to be, both of them will finish with more than twice the wins that the Colts will. Granted, that might be 4 wins, but that's still twice as many.

[Bronn Stone]

Were I the Defensive Coordinator for the Texans, I would have given the defense a solid B grade for that game.  You don't get A's when you lose, and a team doesn't point fingers and does its best to cover for the failures on the other side of the ball, but c'mon man.  There's only so much that can be done.

[briantw]

19 minutes ago, Manhole Eunuchsbane said:

And their best defensive player dislocated his finger early in that first game and had one tackle. And I'm not saying the Texans are good, I'm saying they're not as bad as the Colts. Same with the Bengals. As bad as those two teams may turn out to be, both of them will finish with more than twice the wins that the Colts will. Granted, that might be 4 wins, but that's still twice as many.

I don't know...I could easily see the Colts with Luck back, assuming Luck comes back in a few weeks or so, beating the Bengals and the Texans.  They also play the 49ers, the Jaguars (twice), the Bills, and the Ravens.  Those are all winnable games, even for this shit Colts team.  Assuming Love is back, of course.  Without him, they damn well may go 0-16.

They play the Browns too next week, but I'm guessing Luck won't be back yet.

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

1 hour ago, briantw said:

I'm also not convinced as to how good the Bengals defense actually is.  In week one they played a Ravens offense where Flacco is still recovering from a back injury and in week two they played against a rookie QB with no offensive line who seemingly has the arm strength of an eighty-year-old woman with a calcium deficiency. 

They gave up 20 points to the Ravens after their offense turned the ball over 5 times. Much like the Texans loss, it's pretty hard to pin that one on the defense.

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

4 minutes ago, briantw said:

I don't know...I could easily see the Colts with Luck back, assuming Luck comes back in a few weeks or so, beating the Bengals and the Texans.  They also play the 49ers, the Jaguars (twice), the Bills, and the Ravens.  Those are all winnable games, even for this shit Colts team.  Assuming Love is back, of course.  Without him, they damn well may go 0-16.

They play the Browns too next week, but I'm guessing Luck won't be back yet.

Yeah, this is all based on a Luckless Colts team. That said, I don't think he comes back this season.

[briantw]

Just now, Manhole Eunuchsbane said:

Yeah, this is all based on a Luckless Colts team. That said, I don't think he comes back this season.

That's definitely possible.  And yeah, if he doesn't come back, they're probably the worst team in the NFL this year.  It'll really piss me off if they end up getting another franchise QB out of this.

[Mexal]

1 hour ago, briantw said:

You mean the Texans defense that was so good they gave up 29 points to the fucking Jaguars?

I'm also not convinced as to how good the Bengals defense actually is.  In week one they played a Ravens offense where Flacco is still recovering from a back injury and in week two they played against a rookie QB with no offensive line who seemingly has the arm strength of an eighty-year-old woman with a calcium deficiency. 

Bengals defense is good. Tough to score on. With Burfict back, they will be even better.

[Kalbear]

Gods, this talk is horrible. Talking about how these completely shit teams might be slightly less shitty than thought...oy. 

When the last few good NFL QBs leave, the NFL is going to be really tough to watch. Rodgers and Brady can't carry a league. 

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

24 minutes ago, Kalbear said:

Gods, this talk is horrible. Talking about how these completely shit teams might be slightly less shitty than thought...oy. 

When the last few good NFL QBs leave, the NFL is going to be really tough to watch. Rodgers and Brady can't carry a league. 

Yeah, when Bradford, Alex Smith and Stafford were like the 3 best QB performances in Week 1, you might be in trouble.

[Joe Pesci]

4 hours ago, Tywin et al. said:

@Joe Pesci,

How do you think this weekend’s Vikings-Steelers game is going  to play out?

I'm expecting a close game, and I believe this game could go either way tbh. It'll hinge on what shape Bradford's knee is really in, and if it is really limiting him significantly (reports I've seen are conflicting on the severity), that would be what tips the scales for the Steelers imo. I know the Vikes O-line was bad last year (no clue about this years group), and the Steelers pass rush was great against a vastly improved Browns line last week. If they can get to Bradford quickly before he gets rid of the ball and keep pressure on him, it'll be an uphill climb for the Vikes. On the other side, I am really looking forward to seeing how the Steelers offense matches up with the Vikes defense, especially Brown vs Rhodes. Do the Vikes keep Rhodes on the opposing teams top WR all game or only when it fits their scheme?  

 

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

23 minutes ago, Joe Pesci said:

I'm expecting a close game, and I believe this game could go either way tbh. It'll hinge on what shape Bradford's knee is really in, and if it is really limiting him significantly (reports I've seen are conflicting on the severity), that would be what tips the scales for the Steelers imo. I know the Vikes O-line was bad last year (no clue about this years group), and the Steelers pass rush was great against a vastly improved Browns line last week. If they can get to Bradford quickly before he gets rid of the ball and keep pressure on him, it'll be an uphill climb for the Vikes. On the other side, I am really looking forward to seeing how the Steelers offense matches up with the Vikes defense, especially Brown vs Rhodes. Do the Vikes keep Rhodes on the opposing teams top WR all game or only when it fits their scheme?  

 Looking forward to this one and GB @ Atl and Dallas @ Denver. 

[Rhom]

12 hours ago, Kalbear said:

Gods, this talk is horrible. Talking about how these completely shit teams might be slightly less shitty than thought...oy. 

When the last few good NFL QBs leave, the NFL is going to be really tough to watch. Rodgers and Brady can't carry a league. 

I've heard many talking heads discussing the poor QB situation.  No one seems to have a firm grip on it.  Everything from college offenses not lining up with a pro style to the NFL limits on practices and their effect on offensive lines have been discussed.  I think its likely a combination of all these things that is leading to the problems, but make no mistake... its a real problem and the NFL will be feeling the effects in just a few years.

[Jace, Extat]

4 hours ago, Rhom said:

I've heard many talking heads discussing the poor QB situation.  No one seems to have a firm grip on it.  Everything from college offenses not lining up with a pro style to the NFL limits on practices and their effect on offensive lines have been discussed.  I think its likely a combination of all these things that is leading to the problems, but make no mistake... its a real problem and the NFL will be feeling the effects in just a few years.

Some teams, like the Jaguars, can actually thrive in such a league if they continue to buff their defense and RB's. Teams that continue to sell out for fools gold QB's at the expense of roster integrity will forever be punished.

I'm cool with the league being less QB dominated except for the few true greats.

[DireWolfSpirit]

Fantastic news here on safer helmets ! http://money.cnn.com/2017/09/16/news/companies/vicis-nfl-helmet-concussions-safety/index.html

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

9 hours ago, Pony Queen Jace said:

I'm cool with the league being less QB dominated except for the few true greats.

Yeah, I'm not sure how big a deal this is. This Sunday alone we get Rodgers vs Matty Ice and Brady vs Brees. There's still plenty of top QB talent playing. And you've got some promising guys who are still early in their careers.

[sperry]

Bradford out with a knee injury lol.  Figures.

[Jace, Extat]

It's early, but the Cardinals look like dogshit.