NFL Playoffs Conference Championship Week: Can we have a controversy free weekend, please?

[Tyrion the Perfect]

Pretty much the worst possible hire, imo.

Fangio will definitely leave, offensive coordinators once again a yearly audition for HC elsewhere and no infusion of anything new. All the negatives of a 'continuity' hire while losing the best aspct of the present, the DC. Just...ugh.

Excellent post!

I can tell you that this is a very sad day for me. I haven't missed a 49er game whether on TV, on radio, or in person since Thanksgiving Day of 1972. I have seen this team when it was horrible in the mid to late 70's, and have watched when it was one of the greatest franchises in the history of professional sports.

I was a season ticket holder in the 90's,and had the privilege of seeing some of the greatest players this game has ever seen. For the first 10 years of this century we returned to being a really bad team, but Candlestick Park remained sold out all those years as well. The Faithful never turned their backs.

Sadly, I think it is fair to say that ownership has turned its backs on us. After a great 3 year run where we were once again amongst the elite of the game, the owner has decided to throw it all away.

It's not even the decision to remove Harbaugh that really gets to me, though that was clearly a mistake. What bothers me is for them to turn around and hire the one guy who was described as the man easiest for the front office to work with. Screw success, let's just make

sure the owner gets his ass kissed on a routine basis. Yes indeed, I think a very dark day for the Forty-Niner Faithful.

But all good things must end, and it has been an amazing 33 years since that first championship. I will continue to watch as I' am sure all the Faithful will. Still at some level I know it will never be the same.

[James Arryn]

I didn't make myself clear in the post. I was speaking of the decline into irrelevancy that my Cowboys have been going through over the last 20 years. It has been a long and hard road. I am looking forward to seeing this happen to the Pats at some point.

As far a liking what you wrote... Regardless of team allegiance, or any disagreements that I have, you are so precise and literate in how you communicate that I always look forward to reading your observations. You are a credit to these NFL threads, and I am always happy to interact with you.

Now, that said, The Patriots are still a bunch of cheating scum that have the most entitled fan base in all of sports (with the possible exception of Manchester United), and I will be putting a horseshoe over my door for good "Luck" come Sunday.

This was your 6666th post.

[Trebla]

Is this where we bring up how Eli Manning (file photo) singlehandedly ended the hopes for what would have been the undisputed greatest dynasty of all time. :P

Oh man, remember how obnoxious it was that first year? THE GREATEST TEAM OF ALLLLLLL TIIIIIIIME was proclaimed by mid-season and disagreeing with that brought thunderous response. It got so bad, a separate NFL thread was started just to talk about the Giants and that thread was invaded by already gloating Pats fan. And then the game happened. Ah...gooooood tiiiiiiiiiimes. :lol:

[James Arryn]

Excellent post!

I can tell you that this is a very sad day for me. I haven't missed a 49er game whether on TV, on radio, or in person since Thanksgiving Day of 1972. I have seen this team when it was horrible in the mid to late 70's, and have watched when it was one of the greatest franchises in the history of professional sports.

I was a season ticket holder in the 90's,and had the privilege of seeing some of the greatest players this game has ever seen. For the first 10 years of this century we returned to being a really bad team, but Candlestick Park remained sold out all those years as well. The Faithful never turned their backs.

Sadly, I think it is fair to say that ownership has turned its backs on us. After a great 3 year run where we were once again amongst the elite of the game, the owner has decided to throw it all away.

It's not even the decision to remove Harbaugh that really gets to me, though that was clearly a mistake. What bothers me is for them to turn around and hire

the one guy who was described as the man easiest for the front office to work with. Screw success, lets just make sure the owner gets his ass kissed on a routine basis. Yes indeed, I think a very dark day for the Forty-Niner Faithful.

But all good things must end, and it has been an amazing 33 years since that first championship. I will continue to watch as I' am sure all the Faithful will. Still

at some level I know that it will never be the same.

Cheers, and sympatico. I have never in my life switched teams, and never will...just not built that way...but the way the organization handled this made me want to be a 49ers fan less than ever before, much more than during all the losing. I seriously wondered what my investment was really in. It's just sad. I expect I'll get over it, but it all feels so hollow atm. All the off the field stuff, then the front office cynically sabotaging the head coach through a year long campaign of 'leaks', the completely false 'mutual decision' crap that fooled exactly no one, and then this.

If they were more competent in their fraudulence, maybe I'd feel better, dunno.

Now one note; Tomsula IS a yes man in terms of being the guy who gets along with the f.o. and so forth, but he's not a softie or w/e from what I understand. Will speak his mind. And it's probably good that York won't be asking him to glad hand and sell the new stadium as much as he apparently wanted from Harbaugh, because I don't think Tomsula's that guy. Without the narrative of organizational priorities, the most concerning aspect is that he has never worked for any other team. So we're probably looking at third tier options and/or not great functioning relationships when it comes to assistants. I'm hearing everyone but Rathman will be gone. Sealy, Fangio, everyone.

I am jealous of your experience, though. Never missed a game, actually walked blocks on crutches in winter to a house I shovelled driveways for to be able to see games on satellite when I was a kid, but never been to S.F. in my life, so you're very lucky. I became a fan when I was too young to even know why; first game I saw was a loss to Washngton, and my dad was a Browns fan, so can't remember exactly why...something to do with my Dad saying they were overrated, most likely. He says it's because I liked their uniforms, but that might be a shot.

God this sucks. Feel a bit bad for not giving Tomsula the benefit of any doubt, and you can get to the right place by the wrong path, so you never know. But this I am certain of: Jed York would absolutely have fired Bill Walsh or BB or almost any great coach I can think of. That really bothers me.

[Jace, Extat]

Oh man, remember how obnoxious it was that first year? THE GREATEST TEAM OF ALLLLLLL TIIIIIIIME was proclaimed by mid-season and disagreeing with that brought thunderous response. It got so bad, a separate NFL thread was started just to talk about the Giants and that thread was invaded by already gloating Pats fan. And then the game happened. Ah...gooooood tiiiiiiiiiimes. :lol:

This is a story I'm interested in hearing. Particularly whether the 'greatest team of all time' declaration happened before or after the Pats>Colts game. That remains my 3rd favorite game of all time. A fantastic display of footballing.

And now that I think about it, my 3 favorite games of all time were Colts vs Patriots... Wow, good fucking times...

[trickster]

This is a story I'm interested in hearing. Particularly whether the 'greatest team of all time' declaration happened before or after the Pats>Colts game. That remains my 3rd favorite game of all time. A fantastic display of footballing.

And now that I think about it, my 3 favorite games of all time were Colts vs Patriots... Wow, good fucking times...

Let me see, 2006 AFC championship game (held in 2007), 4th and 2, and this one. If memory serves me correct the Pats won 24-20.

[Jace, Extat]

Let me see, 2006 AFC championship game (held in 2007), 4th and 2, and this one. If memory serves me correct the Pats won 24-20.

You know me so well. Absolutely right.

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

Sadly, I think it is fair to say that ownership has turned its backs on us. After a great 3 year run where we were once again amongst the elite of the game, the owner has decided to throw it all away.

Yeah, that's the overriding sense that I'm left with as well. I swear Pants Stadium has created more problems than it has solved. York has shown himself to be far more concerned with profit than he is with the quality of the team itself. I guess it's pretty naive in this day and age to expect much else from an owner.

[James Arryn]

Jesus Christ in a tutu, York literally used the 'new coach' press conference to take shots at Harbaugh. There were things I liked and things I disliked about him as a coach, but I never thought it would be possible to turn him into this much of a sympathetic character/relative class act as a person.

Who does shit like this? If you can't be a football guy, Jed, at least learn the basics of business professionalism. God what an embarassment.

[trickster]

You know me so well. Absolutely right.

:kiss:

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

Jesus Christ in a tutu, York literally used the 'new coach' press conference to take shots at Harbaugh. There were things I liked and things I disliked about him as a coach, but I literally never thought it would be possible to turn him into this much of a sympathetic character/relative class act.

Who does shit like this? If you can't be a football guy, Jed, at least learn the basics of business professionalism. God what an embarassment.

Both York and Baalke did it at the last press conference as well. The whole thing came off as looking really petty to me. As big an a-hole as Harbaugh may have been, he's conducted himself with way more class than these two have throughout this whole ordeal.

I'm kind of torn here. As much as I want this whole thing to boomerang into York's face, I know that means watching this team suck for an indeterminate amount of time. :frown5:

Ah hell, that's likely going to happen regardless. Might as well enjoy that one small aspect of it.

[Matrim Fox Cauthon]

Already I can envision the Onion's upcoming article, "Nation sick and goddamn tired of hearing about the Seahawks' 12th man."

[James Arryn]

Both York and Baalke did it at the last press conference as well. The whole thing came off as looking really petty to me. As big an a-hole as Harbaugh may have been, he's conducted himself with way more class than these two have throughout this whole ordeal.

I'm kind of torn here. As much as I want this whole thing to boomerang into York's face, I know that means watching this team suck for an indeterminate amount of time. :frown5:

Ah hell, that's likely going to happen regardless. Might as well enjoy that one small aspect of it.

As shitty as it is, it kinda makes some perverted sense in a press conference about why you fired a guy. But to keep beating that drum weeks later when introducing the new guy is just pathetic.

My only bright spot is I always enjoy draft time.

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

Seeing as it's been awhile since Rockroi has gone ALL CAPS, Ray Lewis says the only reason we've heard of Tom Brady is because of the Tuck Rule:

http://s1336.photobucket.com/user/Lumpy67/media/tombradyrayresponse_zps1cfc8a51.jpg.html

/A murder case is the only reason we know who Ray Lewis is.

[Jaime L]

I am spending way too much time here . I mean I knew exactly what that photo was :lmao:

I'm so predictable.

Lulz. Nice retort, but I think this Elisha pic might trump that one...

http://s1336.photobucket.com/user/Lumpy67/media/NewYorkBozo_zpsa3c4f370.jpg.html

Ooh amazing derpitude.

As Rock noted, the Patriots might have blocked potential Rams and Colts dynasties but the fact their own was cut short by that is the ultimate retribution by the gods. Like Tywin fathering a dwarf, if the dwarf wasn't especially clever and known to do this and inspire artwork like this.

[Altherion]

Way more people - yourself included - are more interested in teams like the Seahawks - about Wilson defying odds, about Sherman playing the heel, about Lynch not talking to media. Or they're talking about coaches like Chip Kelly. The Pats aren't the evil new guys any more. They're just kind of there, like the Colts were with Manning or the Broncos and Bills were back in the 80s and 90s - a team that continually does well in the regular season and then fails in the playoffs. More teams are trying to emulate teams like the Seahawks - look at how many defensive coaches just got hired as an example.

Hmm... I don't think so. Rock is a true fan so he overestimates the Patriots, but they are nevertheless one of the more interesting teams in the league. For example, consider last Saturday's games. After the first drive of the third quarter, the Ravens had basically won. Yes, there was a lot of time left to play and yes, the Patriots had tied the game after being down by 14 earlier, but this last seemed to be as much as they were capable of because after that, Brady threw and interception and momentum had shifted back to the Ravens. Brady is still good, but he is 37 years old, the Ravens had been knocking him down the entire game, Flacco had simply outplayed him (well, that and the Patriot defense had been ineffective) and nobody gets 14 points back twice in the same playoff game. But then, Belichick more or less started doing magic. Linesmen somehow turned into receivers (confusing not just the Ravens, but also the commentators) while a receiver somehow turned into a quarterback and threw a perfect pass (WTF?!) and suddenly, the score is tied, Brady is playing like he is Flacco's age again, Flacco is a shadow of himself and the Patriots eventually win. That was one of the most bizarre and interesting games I've ever seen.

On the other hand, the Seahawks were expected to win and they won. I guess there were some hints at tension when near the end the Panthers were down by merely 14 and had a chance to make it merely 7, but the pick-six settled that pretty quickly. In terms of sheer quality, they are the strongest remaining team (does anyone think a hobbled Rodgers has any chance against them?), but they're just not that interesting.

[Kalbear]

For last weekend? Sure. For the season? When they were 6-4 and everyone wasn't sure that they were going to make the playoffs? When they got rid of Percy Harvin in the middle of the season and were throwing to a guy named Helfet? When there were rumors that Wilson wasn't 'black enough'? When Sherman and Baldwin held a press conference with a cardboard cutout?

The Seahawks have been way more relevant this season. The main thing the Pats have gotten news for this year is Brady's penchant for saying 'fuck' a whole lot.

[Rockroi]

The ravens thing is mostly Harbaugh getting apopleptic. The Pats ceased being the scary bugaboo after spygate. Beating the Greatest Show on Turf and whatnot? That happened 13 years ago. The Pats didn't kill Manning - hell, the last playoff game between the Pats and Peyton, Peyton won.

You are downplaying what Harbaugh was doing; he was bitter at Belichick for out-coaching him and decided to hit him in the "popularity" spot; just dredge up the appearance of cheating.

The Pats continued to be the scary bugaboo (your word) after Spygate- especially that 2007 season. Brady got hurt and there was a correction, butt hey are still the Gold Standad in the AFC and one of the best 3 franchises around. So...

There is a chance- small one - that more teams will try what Belichick did on Saturday. I'm not saying they will be good at it (and the NFL may overhaul the rule ... because innovation = bad) . And yeah, that all happened Saturday, not 10 or 13 years ago.

And the Pats have killed Manning two of the last three times they played him. You are right they lost a crappy AFC Championship game last season. /shrug. Not sure what that has to do with anything but it does seem to make you feel better, I hope you feel better. Do... do you feel better, kal?

As to 'define the game' - I don't think so. Way more people - yourself included - are more interested in teams like the Seahawks - about Wilson defying odds, about Sherman playing the heel, about Lynch not talking to media.

True... which is ... why I mentioned them...

Or they're talking about coaches like Chip Kelly.

Well... you are definitely talking about Chip Kelly. Others may be... or not depending on if he can improve the Eagles after this season's slump.

The Pats aren't the evil new guys any more. They're just kind of there, like the Colts were with Manning or the Broncos and Bills were back in the 80s and 90s - a team that continually does well in the regular season and then fails in the playoffs. More teams are trying to emulate teams like the Seahawks - look at how many defensive coaches just got hired as an example.

Well, no. I mean, again, the Pats are not just "doing well" They are probably going to the Superbowl for the third time in 7 years. Most teams are trying to emulate the Seahawks? I ... I don't know where I said otherwise or that other teams were trying to emulate the Pats. I will say, again, that I would not be surprised if other teams looked at that ineligible receiver thing and tried it out. They may, they may not. But I certainly was not saying that its the next "wildcat" (which lasted about half a season).

I mean, kal... I was responding to what another poster wrote about a friend of his hating the Pats because the Patriots cheated ... ON SATURDAY; that George RR Martin (you know? The guy whose books brought us all together) ran a post about how much he hates the Patriots and Bill Belicheat (that's what he called him) in a game where he had no legitimate rooting interest; about Harbaugh dredging up stuff about "deception" by the Pats after Saturday's game (like 96 hours ago); about Don Shula (a few days ago) calling Belichick "Belicheat"; about how Ray Lewis, yesterday, went ape-shit and said that without the Tuck Rule, we would not know who Tom Brady was.

So, when you say that the Pats are "kind of there" but nobody is talking about them.... that is being disingenuous- I just listed like 5 different things. A lot of people still have them on their mind. I mean, I must have missed all those time Dan Reeves was told he was being "deceptive" by other coaches who complained to the media or when we were told that "Without the fact that the 49'ers manipulated the salary cap. nobody would have ever heard of Joe Montana" or when they called Marv Levy, Marv "Cheety." But other than all that its "EXACTLY" like the Broncos of the 1980s or BIlls of the 1990s.

And then there is the whole "One-Game-Away-From-the-Superbowl" thing.

You've implied Peyton Manning is on or did HGH more than anyone I've ever seen.

ETA: Also I think you might be Bill Simmons in real life.

Worth noting again that its just a gigantic coincidence that in 2013 Manning threw for 55 touchdowns and in 2014 the NFL began testing for HGH and then, suddenly, Manning's decline went into free fall.

Again I used the words "gigantic coincidence."

As far a liking what you wrote... Regardless of team allegiance, or any disagreements that I have, you are so precise and literate in how you communicate that I always look forward to reading your observations. You are a credit to these NFL threads, and I am always happy to interact with you.

Now, that said, The Patriots are still a bunch of cheating scum that have the most entitled fan base in all of sports (with the possible exception of Manchester United), and I will be putting a horseshoe over my door for good "Luck" come Sunday.

This has to be what its like to win a Razzie. You know you've just been insulted but ... fuck... you also WON something!

[Kalbear]

Oh, the Pats are being talked about this week. But it's just this week. The rest of the season it wasn't that big of a deal. The Pats were going to win the AFC East, they'd do well, and once again probably fail in the playoffs just like they had for the last 10 years. I agree that they were being talked about for that ineligible receiver thing - but all the rest? No one cares. No one thinks about that. And again, most people aren't talking about the ineligible receiver thing; they're talking about the Ravens and their weird-ass reactions to it. Which is mostly about Harbaugh, frankly.

As to the Reeves stuff, you don't really remember, do you? Or the 49ers? Apart from the fact that sports weren't as big a deal or talked about back in the day, there were quite a few stories about the 49ers - about Rice and Ronnie Lott, about Montana's appearances on SNL, about Kelly's inability to win the big ones or some of the running up the score stuff. You're just choosing to forget it because it isn't the narrative you want. I get that you want the Pats to be all special and awesome, and it was a cute rant. But that isn't what the Pats are anymore. They're not the Evil Empire of Microsoft. They got turned into IBM.

[Rockroi]

Oh, the Pats are being talked about this week. But it's just this week. The rest of the season it wasn't that big of a deal

You mean other than that week every sports-writer in America ran to their keyboards to write the "Patriots Dynasty is Over" Story?

Like here: http://http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/was-this-the-end-for-tom-brady-and-the-new-england-patriots--dynasty--032958660.html

And here: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2215366-embarrassing-mnf-blowout-loss-to-chiefs-sounds-death-knell-for-patriots-dynasty

And a video here: http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=11617663

Skip Bayless saying it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzUfbPnlatE

And here: http://www.realclearsports.com/2014/09/30/is_it_over_for_brady_pats039_dynasty_123083.html

And here: http://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/09/tom-brady-qb-controversy-jimmy-garappolo-new-england-patriots-benched (now this one even you have to admot was just inane- they asked the question "Do the Patriots have a QB Controversy" and the answer was "Yes, yes they do." I swear).

(And full disclosure, I got very panicky too after the Chiefs loss and said so; I am so silly!)

So, yeah... other than the gleeful, schadenfreude stories of the demise of the Pats coming from ESPN, Bleacher Report, Yahoo Sports ... other than all of those... NAH! Nobody cares! Now, you are correct that they were going to win the AFC East, but that was because- as another USA Today story said " The Patriots are bad; the AFC East is worse" - you can find that here: http://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/10/new-england-patriots-afc-east-odds-buffalo-bills-win .

No one cares. No one thinks about that. And again, most people aren't talking about the ineligible receiver thing;

Said.. the guy who is up at like 3AM arguing with me over the Patriots. At least I have an excuse; they're my team. You... you though ...

Again, I'm sure its all just a gigantic coincidence...

As to the Reeves stuff, you don't really remember, do you? Or the 49ers? Apart from the fact that sports weren't as big a deal or talked about back in the day, there were quite a few stories about the 49ers - about Rice and Ronnie Lott, about Montana's appearances on SNL, about Kelly's inability to win the big ones or some of the running up the score stuff. You're just choosing to forget it because it isn't the narrative you want.

Didn't Peter KIng win a Pulitzer for his work on that SNL skit story? Or was it Bob Ryan? IIRC it was called "Upstairs Masturbating: Why the NFL and SNL Can't Mix." God the controversy... that wasn't.

Whose narrative is going to work here? You're the one who is responding by talking about Jim Kelly running up the score- but I never mentioned Kelly- YOU DID! That would show "relevance" and that was my point. The Pats are still very relevant and - just like people complaining about Kelly- a player who was on a team YOU SAID was "just there"- in fact it shows how that was not the case.

I get that you want the Pats to be all special and awesome, and it was a cute rant.

... I'm sorry kal. I am. I'm sorry that I write stuff that people... like to read (seriously- I am a little stunned; I have received a number of compliments on what I write and frankly... its really nice of people... I didn't expect people to be so nice to what I write). I'm sorry that I have fun- mostly at my own expense. I'm sorry I am a Patriots fan- not like you; you're so above it all.

I'm sorry that John Harbaugh said what he said; I'm sorry that Martin said what he said; I'm sorry that Shula said what he said; I'm sorry that Ray Lewis said what he said. I'm sorry that you saw that and so moved the goal post and said "NO! What I meant was before this week the Pats were not relevant... " Which is hilarious.

Look, I don't think the Pats are the center of the NFL Universe... and .. I never said otherwise. That position belongs to the Seahawks (or Rodger Goodell's ego- one of the other). Again, I was talking about specific comments made by ... specific people... about the Patriots.

Again, I'm sure the fact that Lewis, Harbaugh, Shula et all said it was all just a gigantic coincidence. They don't care about the Pats... NAH!

But that isn't what the Pats are anymore. They're not the Evil Empire of Microsoft. They got turned into IBM.

Er... don't look now kal... http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2011/05/ibm-now-bigger-than-microsoft/