The NFL 2011 Thread

CheesyPoof · 2012-01-02T11:55:07.000Z

Alan Dunkin:

Victor Cruz? That guy is NOTHING.

Yes, 3rd in total yards behind Calvin Johnson and Wes Welker. The guy is total crap.

Brandon_Clements · 2012-01-02T11:56:48.000Z

gameoverman:

I’d argue Denver is better than the Cowboys, by virtue of their coming back from 1-4 to having a .500 season(leaving the playoffs out of it since someone from the AFC West HAS to be allowed in).

So Denver sucked…at the start of the season but got at least semi-respectable by the end. The Cowboys? Well, for starters they got swept by the Giants and the Eagles didn’t they? The Broncos avoided that particular type of humiliation.

I think it’s obvious Romo is not a winning QB. He’s at best a Kyle Orton/Rex Grossman type- someone who can play the position better than the scraps you have on your practice squad but not someone who is taking your team to a championship unless you have the world’s greatest defense on your side too. Dallas is going nowhere until they face up to that.

While I’m not going to sit here and give you an passionate defense of Romo as the God-King of Cowboys quarterbacks, I ask where he was in coverage last night. 'Cause I sure as shit didn’t see him anywere near Cruz or Nicks.

Mark_Asher · 2012-01-02T12:24:27.000Z

Cubit:

Both Polians are out in Indy. Irsay is cleaning house big time.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/7414912/polians-relieved-duties-indianapolis-colts-source-says

A good move, imo. You can’t be a team that builds through the draft and keep having bad drafts. That is what has sunk the Colts and what made this season as bad as it was.

I wonder if this means the Colts still draft Luck? They could get a fortune in picks if they trade the pick. Irsay may feel Manning has another few years left. Certainly they wouldn’t keep both Luck and Manning beyond one year.

Bill_Dungsroman · 2012-01-02T12:29:16.000Z

CheesyPoof:

Yes, 3rd in total yards behind Calvin Johnson and Wes Welker. The guy is total crap.

I think Alan was being sarcastic there.

Shadarr · 2012-01-02T12:32:47.000Z

CheesyPoof:

Coming back to this, I think this is a ridiculous statement. The aforementioned Broncos are clearly the worst the to make the playoffs this year. That said the Giants played 4 of the divisions winners during the regular season and went 1-3 against them. Two of those losses came down to the last possession and I think they’re clearly capable of beating anyone in the playoffs. Their defensive secondary is pretty terrible for a playoff team and I won’t expect a miracle run for 2007 again, but I think they can win a game or two.

Yeah, I was just thinking of the NFC. The Broncos are clearly the worst team in the playoffs because Tebow is the worst QB to start in the playoffs in my lifetime. The rest of the Broncos are pretty solid, though.

This playoff is going to be interesting, because there are no complete teams in the playoffs. Maybe the Steelers and Ravens. But the Packers, Patriots and Saints have amazing offenses and amazingly terrible defenses for teams with so many wins. The Niners are the opposite of that, setting the record for most field goals in a season because of how much they choke in the red zone. As much as I want the Niners in the Super Bowl, it would be crazy to see the Packers play the Patriots. Two of the best passing offenses against the two worst passing defenses. It’d be like NFL 94 on Genesis: if you don’t score in one play your drive is kind of a failure.

CheesyPoof · 2012-01-02T12:35:19.000Z

Bill Dungsroman:

I think Alan was being sarcastic there.

I cannot underestimate the irrationality of a fan following a bitter defeat like that.

Sarkus · 2012-01-02T12:35:46.000Z

Depending on who you read, the Polian moves in Indianapolis mean different things. The PFT angle seems to be that it favors a committment to Peyton and thus signals the Colts would trade out of #1 to rebuild around him. But the NFL Network piece makes it sound like a move for a complete reboot, meaning a whole new organization and coach to start fresh with a new QB, Luck.

Either way, the Polians probably had to go given the recent mediocrity of their drafts under the junior Polian. Senior wasn’t going to let his son be fired, so he had to go with him.

CheesyPoof · 2012-01-02T12:37:42.000Z

Shadarr:

This playoff is going to be interesting, because there are no complete teams in the playoffs. Maybe the Steelers and Ravens. But the Packers, Patriots and Saints have amazing offenses and amazingly terrible defenses for teams with so many wins. The Niners are the opposite of that, setting the record for most field goals in a season because of how much they choke in the red zone. As much as I want the Niners in the Super Bowl, it would be crazy to see the Packers play the Patriots. Two of the best passing offenses against the two worst passing defenses. It’d be like NFL 94 on Genesis: if you don’t score in one play your drive is kind of a failure.

I looked at the PF/PA of the teams in the playoffs and it looks like the NFC teams scored a lot more points than the AFC team, but they also gave up the most points. I was trying to see if I could say the NFC was better/worse than the AFC but I can’t say that. I agree that it will be an interesting post season.

Mark_Asher · 2012-01-02T12:38:19.000Z

So no news about Norv in SD yet?

So we have St. Louis, Miami, Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, and Kansas City all looking for new coaches. There’s a possibility Indy and San Diego might fire their coaches too.

Shadarr · 2012-01-02T12:39:36.000Z

Mark Asher:

I wonder if this means the Colts still draft Luck? They could get a fortune in picks if they trade the pick. Irsay may feel Manning has another few years left. Certainly they wouldn’t keep both Luck and Manning beyond one year.

I don’t see why not, if both sides want Manning to stay. With the new CBA they don’t have to give Luck some ridiculous $70 million contract, so it just comes down to Manning’s bonus in March. The owner flat out stated that he already paid Manning $20 million not to play this year, so he’s ok with it. It would basically be like the Favre-Rodgers situation in Green Bay, and I bet that will get mentioned repeatedly if they decide to sit Luck for a few years. Because, I mean, there is really no way that could have worked out better for the Packers.

gameoverman · 2012-01-02T12:42:43.000Z

Alan Dunkin:

Yeah, just barely. The Broncos avoided that particular type of humiliation by being in a crap division and getting into the playoffs by losing the last 3 games of the season. Nice job. The Cowboys finished also at .500 despite being in a much tougher division.

9-7 won that division. That’s tough alright. C’mon, the Eagles never got off the ground and the Giants could still have been eliminated last night. That division was well within the grasp of the Cowboys, it was hardly a season long struggle against awesomeness that did the Cowboys in.

And with Romo it’s always something at the end, when his team needs him. That botched field goal years ago was not the anomaly people thought it was, it was the essence of Romo in one play. That’s why I compare him to those other types of QBs, the types that raise their fans hopes at some point but fail to deliver in the end. Tebow inherited a 1-4 team headed nowhere, they are now in the playoffs, something Orton can’t claim even if he won the last game.

Shadarr · 2012-01-02T12:43:25.000Z

Sarkus:

Either way, the Polians probably had to go given the recent mediocrity of their drafts under the junior Polian. Senior wasn’t going to let his son be fired, so he had to go with him.

I think it was this, and had nothing to do with Luck. When we on the internet start hearing about internal problems on a team, the writing is on the wall. I’ll be very surprised if Caldwell keeps his job, but it will be the new GM’s decision. Because that’s how good owners operate, Jerry Jones.

Bill_Dungsroman · 2012-01-02T12:53:33.000Z

gameoverman:

9-7 won that division. That’s tough alright. C’mon, the Eagles never got off the ground and the Giants could still have been eliminated last night. That division was well within the grasp of the Cowboys, it was hardly a season long struggle against awesomeness that did the Cowboys in.

And with Romo it’s always something at the end, when his team needs him. That botched field goal years ago was not the anomaly people thought it was, it was the essence of Romo in one play. That’s why I compare him to those other types of QBs, the types that raise their fans hopes at some point but fail to deliver in the end. Tebow inherited a 1-4 team headed nowhere, they are now in the playoffs, something Orton can’t claim even if he won the last game.

Not particularly happy with the coaching in Dallas either. This one game it all came down to in week 17 is an afterthought if Jason Garrett doesn’t ice his own kicker 3 weeks ago. This team is not well-coached. It has talent but not enough to save its own ass when the chips are down. How many big plays did any of the Cowboys’ wide receivers make last night? Any? They could still do great things but they need to make some changes, obviously.

CheesyPoof · 2012-01-02T12:55:40.000Z

Bill Dungsroman:

Not particularly happy with the coaching in Dallas either. This one game it all came down to in week 17 is an afterthought if Jason Garrett doesn’t ice his own kicker 3 weeks ago.

Not really. They would have been 1 game infront of the Giants, but if everything else was equal they would have tied in records and the Giants would get the tiebreaker by virtue of winning the head to head games.

Lorini · 2012-01-02T12:55:53.000Z

Big Ben is hurt, so I don’t see them going very far in the playoffs, we’ll see what he does against a fairly solid Denver defense. This may be another one of those 6-3 affairs.

By the way is there going to a pick 'em for the playoffs? I have picked in my mind both road teams for the AFC and both home teams for the NFC.

BaconTastesGood · 2012-01-02T13:01:50.000Z

It would basically be like the Favre-Rodgers situation in Green Bay, and I bet that will get mentioned repeatedly if they decide to sit Luck for a few years. Because, I mean, there is really no way that could have worked out better for the Packers.

The big difference is that Rodgers wasn’t the #1 overall pick. It’s much harder to keep a #1 overall pick sitting, although granted with the revamp of draft compensation it can make more sense (but still…not much).

Overall I think it’s shown to be more reliable for guys to sit then come in, but there’s a lot of conflicting data on that (i.e. for every Cam Newton there’s a Jim Druckenmiller).

robsam · 2012-01-02T13:02:37.000Z

Dez and Witten made several big plays, but the Dallas defense got schooled repeatedly by Manning and Cruz. The worst thing is that even the Arizona game, bad as it was, was one of several games the Cowboys should have won. They could easily have been 12-4 this year if they could have put anyone away once they got the lead. The Eagles crushed them twice, no excuses for those losses, but they gave away too many games in the fourth quarter.

robsam · 2012-01-02T13:03:33.000Z

Bill Dungsroman:

Not particularly happy with the coaching in Dallas either. This one game it all came down to in week 17 is an afterthought if Jason Garrett doesn’t ice his own kicker 3 weeks ago. This team is not well-coached. It has talent but not enough to save its own ass when the chips are down. How many big plays did any of the Cowboys’ wide receivers make last night? Any? They could still do great things but they need to make some changes, obviously.

Dez and Witten made several big plays, but the Dallas defense got schooled repeatedly by Manning and Cruz. The worst thing is that even the Arizona game, bad as it was, was one of several games the Cowboys should have won. They could easily have been 12-4 this year if they could have put anyone away once they got the lead. The Eagles crushed them twice, no excuses for those losses, but they gave away too many games in the fourth quarter.

Nawid_A · 2012-01-02T13:07:01.000Z

Bill Dungsroman:

Not particularly happy with the coaching in Dallas either. This one game it all came down to in week 17 is an afterthought if Jason Garrett doesn’t ice his own kicker 3 weeks ago. This team is not well-coached. It has talent but not enough to save its own ass when the chips are down. How many big plays did any of the Cowboys’ wide receivers make last night? Any? They could still do great things but they need to make some changes, obviously.

Actually, even if they had won their game, they would still lose the division due to the head to head tiebreaker.

Also, regarding Cruz, I’m not saying he’s not a beast. I’m just saying Eli is to the point where he is elevating his WRs and making them look better.

Brandon_Clements · 2012-01-02T13:08:51.000Z

robsam:

Dez and Witten made several big plays, but the Dallas defense got schooled repeatedly by Manning and Cruz. The worst thing is that even the Arizona game, bad as it was, was one of several games the Cowboys should have won. They could easily have been 12-4 this year if they could have put anyone away once they got the lead. The Eagles crushed them twice, no excuses for those losses, but they gave away too many games in the fourth quarter.

Not to mention teaching the center how to fucking snap a ball in shotgun formation. Dallas repeatedly shot themselves in the foot this year. I’m willing to give Garrett (for all intents and purposes a rookie head coach, and it showed) and Ryan (and his retardely complex system) a real non-lockout off season and camp to see how it all goes together.