The Boys are done-RIP.....The Fat Lady is clearing her throat, as I type this. I predict that they will not loose this coming weekend, but, after that, the coaches will already be focused on next spring's draft.
NFL 2016
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The Boys are done-RIP.....The Fat Lady is clearing her throat, as I type this. I predict that they will not loose this coming weekend, but, after that, the coaches will already be focused on next spring's draft.
His dad did it in AD 1970. You're in denial.
Jerry Shugart
Well-known member
That's what you said prior to the time when the Boys beat the Lions, who were in contention for their Division title, like a drum, 42-21!
You are right that the Boys will not lose this coming weekend because they do not even play a game this coming weekend!
As usual, your whole mind and spirit is focused on the allures of Aunt Bee when they should be focused on football!
Jerry Shugart
Well-known member
It will be hard for any team to beat the Falcons, no matter where they play! The only thing which I would worry about if I were you is the fact that Matty Ice seems to freeze up in every big game he plays.
beloved57
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I believe Matt will be fine this year, arguably the best year of his career. If we go to the Super Bowl and win, I predict Matt will be Mvp of the Super Bowl.
Nothing gets by you, JS...
Jerry Shugart
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That's what they say every year but nothing ever changes! He is just a choke artist.
Jerry Shugart
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Yes, and you are fooling no one when every night you say that you are going out to get some smokes and you do not return for several hours!
beloved57
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This is the first year I would have said that, I've always said he's overrated.This year he's seems to be playing with a lot of confidence.
I'm not sure about this year, though I can see you making the SB if things fall right. Now add a few pieces on defense and mature there a little and you might be a prohibitive favorite next year. There's a lot of mediocrity in play in the NFL right now. Most teams have glaring needs, like the Saints need for a defense to compliment the second best offense going.
Rankings... I thought it might be fun to approach this a different way. Looking at the differential between the offensive scoring and points allowed. The results aren't that surprising.
Twelve teams ended the year with a negative sum, largely from underperforming defenses.
The sink holes: SD, Car, Mia, TB, Det, Jac, SF, Cle, Chi, Hou, Jets, LA
That some of those still ended up in the playoffs tells you how weighted the game has become for offensive production.
The playoff crop:
1. New England: they're scary this year, with the best defense and 3rd best offense. At this point I just don't know who can beat them. In that diff they're a +12
2. Atlanta: if they had a reliable defense they could be the answer to "Who can beat the Pats?" As it stands I have them 8.4, leaving them a 3.6 dog on a neutral field.
3. Dallas: they have something to prove if they mean to keep Dak under center. With Romo there I can see them upsetting the apple cart. Dak is the future, but his present is more limited than Romo, physical gifts notwithstanding. The best hope for Dallas this year is a close halftime score in the first game with Dak underperforming and Romo coming in off the bench to ride them the rest of the way. In any event, they're 7.2 with need of improvement to challenge the Pats, though I'd argue Romo could be worth a fg and put them in a pick'em position.
4. KC: they'd be higher if I knew, knew I could rely on Smith in crunch time. Put Brees under center for them (or Romo) and they'd be as good as anyone (a theme in this tier). As it stands, on the diff, 4.9 and just better than a td dog to New England.
5. Pittsburgh: A top ten scoring machine with a top ten defense. That's potent and dangerous. 4.5 Coaching is a negative for them, comparatively at the top where it could matter, though Bradshaw overstates the case, as usual.
6. Sea: 3.8...a beast at home/not so much on the road, where they'll have to win against the best. A poor prognosis with or without the diff. They're looking more like that 85 Bears team than they want to.
7. GB: 2.7...better of late than these numbers. Better enough? We're about to find out.
8. Den: 2.2, they're capable of more and an offensive spark could make them the dark horse.
9. Gia: .6, but with Eli you never really know. If they do the post season dance they've done before, look out. I know Pats fans are praying that isn't the case.
The rest of the playoff bound:
10. Oakland: 1.9 before. Now? Not so much. A shame that dwarfs Arizona's wasted potential in the Palmer injury year.
11. Mia: -1.1, as with Houston, an argument for seeding by another means. There's talent on the team, but it's the same ol Fin story since Dan left.
12. Hou: -3.1, because that's how good this defense is...which in this period is really amazing. A shame they can't pool with the Saints. Then we'd have one relevant team instead of two head scratching wonders.
Jerry Shugart
Well-known member
At some point during the playoffs there will come a crunch time for Atlanta and Matty Ice will not be able to handle the pressure which will doom the team.
Wait and watch!
I think your team has as good or better chance to make the SB this year as anyone in the NFC picture. Your defense worries me though.
I'd say you need your best game throughout the playoffs on both sides of the ball. That's a tall order, but it can happen. Look at the two Giant's rings in recent history.
My gut tells me about half of the teams entering the playoffs could win it with a spark. I like the chances of the top three in my rankings, with an eye for spoilers like Denver and the Giants. I don't trust KC, even if my son is rooting for them. Pittsburgh...I never have gotten a consistent feel for them. But if everyone plays as they have going in, it's New England's to lose.
Jerry Shugart
Well-known member
Dak was not limited against the Lions, leading the Cowboys to 42 points. If the Cowboys can get their running game going against their opponents then the sky is the limit for them. And I have seen chinks in the armor of many of the defenses which will be in the playoffs, including both Atlanta and New England.
Denver is not in the playoffs. Right?
beloved57
Well-known member
We'll see
Detroit has a lower tier defense. They're 19th against the pass and 18th against the run. You field the 2nd best rushing attack in the NFL, opening up the lanes for the passing attack and mandating a lot of single coverage. You hit Detroit for over a buck fifty on the ground and a couple of tds.
I agree it's crucial. It takes pressure off of Dak and gives him that single coverage, easier reads.
So if you get Green Bay you'll be looking at the 8th best at stopping the run, but near worst against the pass, meaning Dak will have to win it. The last time that was the case it didn't go well for your boys. Romo is a better fit against GB. Now if you get Seattle...they're 8th against the pass and 7th against the rush. Meaning Romo, again, is your best bet to win the game.
Any way you look at it, the chances are you're about to be tested.
If you get to Atlanta and they survive to see a one seed match up, then it's more about your defense stopping them. You'll move the ball on them and score, but they're a pinball machine. If you can't stop their offense, I like their chances in a shoot out.
Best bet for Dallas if it comes to that is to use the running game to keep them sitting and win a lower scoring game. Back to my Giants game plan for Buffalo.
New England? Good luck. 3rd best against the run. 12th against the pass, but you'll need to soften the coverage up, which will be hard with the running game stuck and it's back on Dak again. Also, they have the best red zone defense in the NFL. And all that's before you consider stopping their offense, ranked just behind the pinball machines of Atlanta and New Orleans with the 4th best passing attack and the 7th best ground game.
Sadly, no. See my rep mea culpa. :chuckle:
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Jerry Shugart
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When we played them earlier in the season they were best in the league for stopping the run but we had no trouble running the ball against them.
Pinball machines seem to panic against Dallas because they eat up so much time on their scoring drives.
In a shoot out, yes. But if the Boys can control things with their running game then there will be no shoot out.
The Boys have the best rushing defense in the NFL so I think that Dallas has a better chance of making the Patriots one dimensional than the other way around. And the Boys have large number of players who can rush the quarterback so as the game wears on their pass rush gets stronger and stronger as the Pat's offensive line wears down.
Besides that, I do not think that the Pats have had to defend any team this year who has such a well balanced offense as does Dallas. I do not think that they have faced as a team this year with an offensive line as good as Dallas. Nor have they seen a running back with the combination of speed and size as that possessed by Zeke.
I would say that despite the stats the Boys will have an even chance to beat the Pats in the Super Bowl if both teams make it that far. I would rather see a Cowboys/Steelers rematch though!
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Jerry Shugart
Well-known member
Since the Steelers are the only "old" NFL team then I can only conclude that you are predicting them to win.
Right, Goober?
Or are you trying to have it both ways?
Earlier this season Minnesota was scaring the pants off of everyone.
I think that's your best game plan. Use that line and your able back to set up easier passing opportunities and eat the clock.
No offense, but it's a five yard difference and if both of you manage to significantly impact the running game it's a Dak vs Brady contest. And I think New England has the best coach in the tournament.
It's a strong case, but the Pats have faced pretty strong pressure teams, including Denver, the best team against the pass in large part because of that pressure.
I think you have arguably the best offensive line of anyone. I like your rb, but they've faced close enough in Bell and you haven't faced a team with the balance of New England either.
There's room for growth, but I'd say that as it stands, unless you put Romo in I have you at least a td in the hole.
That would be a fun game.
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