NFL - Discussion Thread

Decided to stick with my original picks for the Wild Card Round: Houston, Dallas, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Wouldn't be surprised if all four games went the opposite way though, really decent match ups.

Looks like we all got burnt by the Colts beating the Texans. That was a difficult game to pick, ultimately I opted for the wrong team. It?s 21-7 Colts wit 6 minutes left to play. Pretty sure Indianapolis can hang on from there. Dallas vs Seattle was also tough to pick, have to wait and see on that one.

I see the Redskins are interested in getting Antonio Brown, what?s the point of having a great receiver if you haven?t got a quarterback who can get him the ball.

The Colts just won. Houston was way too slow out of the gate. Watson has been off all game. Like half his throws have been in the dirt, most of which he was not under any press. I would not be surprised if they fire their head coach after a loss like this.

I originally picked Indy because I thought this kind of performance by Houston could've happened, but I changed because when I thought to myself 'would I be surprised if Houston won' and the answer was no. I thought being at home, and having a supposedly good defense, they could do enough.

This is a fantastic result though. Indy have done so well since starting 1-5 (10-1, and in their 1 loss, their opposition scored 0TDs). Now they will travel to Kansas City, assuring New England of a matchup against either Baltimore or LA Chargers.

This is all on Houston, this result. They had the chance to guarantee the #2 seed by beating Philly a few weeks ago, but their defense crumbled. And when leading 30-29, they couldn't stop a final drive. I find is bizarre that Lamar Miller got 5 carries for the entire game... There will be some soul searching for Houston this off-season...

I've still got Dallas for tonight.

And lol. Dennis, that would be a horrible decision by Washington. I mean, they already sign players who have had controversial pasts. They don't need a selfish diva too.

« Last edited by Matt77 on Jan 5th 2019 »

What!!! No onside kick? Another strange ending to an NFL game, I?m beginning to think some of these games are rigged. The Seahawks score risky two 2 point conversions against a decent Dallas defense but don?t attempt the onside kick with the season on the line. Bizarre to say the least, I wouldn?t be happy if I was a Seahawk fan.

John Gruden should be NFL manager of the year, by getting rid of his two best players he?s made two playoff teams in Dallas and Chicago. I bet Raiders fans are not happy seeing that as both those teams were nowhere to be seen during the post season last year.

The normal Seattle kicker was injured, so punter Michael Dickson was doing the kicking duties. Maybe they thought he couldn't do it? But still, that would be bizarre. It's not hard to kick the ball 10-15 yards, especially since he can do drop kick kickoffs. Having watched Dickson's former sport, I am certain he could've pulled off an onside kick of some sort. It just would've been a case of whether the Seattle players could recover it.

That was bizarre with the 2 point conversion. If they had missed it Seattle would've needed a touchdown from the onside kick, but by making it, all they needed was to recover the kick, move 15-20 yards up to DAL 35 (they had 1m 16s left), and kick for the win. Pete Carrol said during the past fortnight that if Janikowski got injured, Dickson would do the field goals. Strangely, they abandoned that plan completely.

Scratch what I said earlier. I watched it, and they tried to kick onside, but it failed miserably.

First the Seahawks choose to do a horrible onside dropkick, and now the Chicago Kicker hits the uprights for like the sixth time this year alone. Dear lawrdy. At this moment, probably leaning towards all the home teams next round. I want so bad for the Saints to destroy the Eagles.

My bad Tipping luck continues, what were the chances of Chicago hitting the uprights in the final minute of the game to deny them the win when you consider the kicker has hit them 5 times before during the season. unbelievable, I think the expression on the Chicago coach?s face said it all, the poor guy was in shock, he. Ouldn?t believe it either.

I?m not convinced the Saint?s will beat the Eagles next week, it?s looking like the Eagles are hitting form at just the right time whilst the Saint?s are iin the midst of a slump. Whatever happens I don?t think the Eagles will be hanging onto Nick Foles next season, he?ll be the starter at an NFL club. The guy may not be the greatest quarterback in the world but he knows how to win important playoff games unlike the Minnesota quarterback who just knows how to put up good stats during the regular season.

Or... Perhaps... Wentz won't be with the Eagles next season...

You have to admit, Foles does seem to fit their system a little better than Wentz does.

Never thought of it like that before, would the Eagles management be brave enough to rid of him though? I can't see it myself unless Foles wins another Super Bowl, then it would become a reality and they could justify it to the fans. What would they expect for Wentz? A 1st round, 2nd round and 5th round maybe? The Raiders have the capacity to put a good deal on the table if they are unhappy with Carr.

God...poor Cody Parkey. This is what happens when kickers have good rookie seasons and the next season are signed by a different team, in a different city. Parkey was great for Miami, but there's a big difference between the two cities. I hate how the Chicago fans notoriously booed their own player after he ran off the field, when in fact vision showed it was a tipped kick. And still, they can't blame 1 miss. That's unfair. There are several critical chances missed:

- (PHI 3, CHI 0) After recovering a Philly punt at PHI 48, Chicago gained 4 yards for no score
- (PHI 3, CHI 3) After having a 1st and 10 at PHI 24, Chicago gained 6 yards and had to kick a FG
- (PHI 3, CHI 3) Trubisky threw an interception from CHI 21, but the decision was reversed. They didn't capitalise
- (PHI 3, CHI 6) Poor time management at the end of the 1st half meant they had to kick a FG
- (PHI 3, CHI 6) After having a 1st and 10 at PHI 49, Trubisky took a sack and they had to punt
- (PHI 10, CHI 9) After having a 1st and 10 at PHI 21, they gained 5 yards and had to kick a FG
- (PHI 16, CHI 15) They failed to stop Foles completing a 3rd and 9 at CHI 13. Philly then scored the go-ahead TD
- (PHI 16, CHI 15) On a 3rd and 2 at PHI 25, Trubisky attempted a deep pass instead of making Parkey's kick easier
- (PHI 16, CHI 15) Parkey missed the game-winning FG, as the ball was tipped, and bounced off both the upright and the crossbar. He kicked the winner as Philly called a timeout

Notice that every time Chicago failed in the redzone, Parkey bailed them out. To be honest 75% accuracy is what is expected for FGs anyway, given the number of misses players make. Chicago missed 9 good opportunities to either score or create momentum. Singling out 1 isn't fair.

And geez, let's be real please. Once they teach Wentz to pass to receivers not named Ertz, he will be fine. I don't trust Foles to stay consistent for an entire season. I mean, Philly should've been eliminated from playoffs last season when Julio Jones dropped an endzone pass, and this season when Chicago choked on several occasions

« Last edited by Matt77 on Jan 7th 2019 »

Matt, I can think of two instances straight of the top of my head where the highly touted former first round quarterback has been dropped for an unknown. Drew Bledsoe was a former first pick in the draft and after getting injured he lost his place to some guy named Tom Brady. Then there was Robert Griffin III who lost his place to guy named Kirk Cousins nobody had heard of before. If Foles wins another Super Bowl he joins only a handful of players to ever do it which turns him from a one season to a legend in Philadelphia. What has Wentz done that makes him so indispensable?

In the 2017/18 season, Wentz was the favourite to win the MVP after throwing 33 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. This season he went for 21 and 7. Outside of his rookie season, he is 54:14. He's just a sound QB.

Robert Griffen III had an even better rookie season in 2011 and look what happened to him.
4,293 yards 37 Touchdowns 6 Interceptions

You just never know...

That was 1 season. Wentz has had 3 seasons, and he increased his production from year 1 to 2. I just think they are very different players. Wentz is a classic pocket passer, whereas RG3 was a running QB who constantly took hits.

Obviously if Foles leads the team to another SB, conversations will have to happen and Wentz will be gone. But I seriously doubt they can win 5 consecutive sudden death road games (their first was @ Washington in week 17). I can guarantee if Philly had conceded that last-second FG and lost to Chicago, we wouldn't be having this conversation.

Still, my argument is flawed because the moment Wentz got injured Philly won @ LA Rams, vs Houston, @ Washington in a shutout victory, and @ Chicago. There were several key chances Philly had to win more games, but they didn't come up clutch. The team rallies around Foles, and makes those clutch plays.

- After scoring first in OT @ Tennessee, they conceded several 4th down completions and lost 23-26
- After leading 17-0 at home versus a woeful travelling team in Carolina, they lost 17-21
- They allowed a Dallas team low on confidence to win away from home in a shootout
- They lost in overtime, again to Dallas

Philly should've won at least 3/4 of these. Maybe that's the problem with Wentz. He doesn't come up clutch. If they had won these, they would've finished 12-4.

If Foles wins another Super Bowl, yeah, they'd have to consider keeping him as the Starter. However, I don't think he can take out the Saints. Anyone picking any of the road teams? An upset can happen at any time, but I'm still leaning towards all the home teams.

Indy @ Kansas City will be tricky, only because of past history. KC historically fail in playoffs, and the last postseason meeting had KC at home leading 38-10, and losing. As bad as the KC defense is, I can't see Indy scoring enough to keep up. KC are 7-1 at home and Indy 5-4 on the road. KC 33 IND 27

LA Rams should take care of business very easily here. This could be a blowout. Dallas are terrible away from home (3-5) whereas LA Rams are 7-1 at home. LAR 34 DAL 20

This is by far the most difficult to pick. Make no mistake, NE are a big chance to lose. While they are 8-0 at home, LA Chargers are 9-0 away from Los Angeles. I'd expect NE to get the job done, but we haven't seen LAC in playoffs for a while and don't know what to expect. NE 24 LAC 20

I am tempted to back Foles once again, but I can't go against Brees. The last time these 2 played, it was a 48-7 drubbing. There's a new QB, but Philly still have a spotty defense. New Orleans are 6-1 at home when trying, and Philly are 5-4 away. New Orleans will pick Foles off once or twice, and that will be the difference. NO 30 PHI 23

« Last edited by Matt77 on Jan 8th 2019 »

I don't think the Eagles can take out the Saints in their backyard. In November it was 48-7 which is pretty convincing and I don't think the Eagles have improved that much under Foles so I think it will be more of the same this weekend.

Colts vs Chiefs is an interesting game though. I'm wondering if the Chargers can take out the Patriots, New England are definately not the team they were.

Dallas vs the Rams is also interesting, the Rams have looked a bit vulnerable in recent games unlike the dominant team that started the campaign. Can Elliot run against the Rams defense and Prescott hit his recievers? I doubt it but I wouldn't be surprised if Dallas did pull of the upset.

It's interesting that you think Dallas have a chance. I am 90% certain they will lose that matchup. The 2016/17 Dallas team plays when they're at home, but the 2017/18 Dallas team plays when they're away. On the road Dallas are a VERY different team:
8-16 loss @ Carolina
13-24 loss @ Seattle
16-19 (OT) loss @ Houston
17-20 loss @ Washington
27-20 win @ Philly
22-19 win @ Atlanta
0-23 loss @ Indy
I didn't include week 17 since that was a meaningless game with several starters missing. They're 2-5 away from home with starters playing, and both wins involved late game-winning scores. I would be absolutely shocked if Dallas won.

On another note, 3 teams have signed new head coaches. Green Bay got Matt LaFleur, the former offensive coordinator of Tennessee (averaged 19.4 PPG, ranked 27th). Arizona hired Kliff Kingsbury from Texas Tech. And Tampa Bay hired Bruce Arians.

« Last edited by Matt77 on Jan 9th 2019 »

The thing about the playoffs though Matt is anything can happen. I have seen some strange results over the years. It tends to be the heavily favoured home team that gets upset, usually because they feel the pressure because they are expected to win. Like I said in my previous post, the Rams have been looking a bit suspect lately, are they feeling the pressure, as nearly everyone is expecting them to win the Super Bowl.

Although Dallas have lost all those games you mentioned, nobody blew them away.

« Last edited by Sanzano on Jan 9th 2019 »