NFL - Discussion Thread

I can see the Steelers and Patriots (maybe even the Raiders) going after Darnold. With the right coach and scheme, I think Darnold can turn his career around. He's never had anything to work with in New York, and it's amazing that he had as many wins as he did going into this year. But I don't even think the Jets will get a 3rd Rounder for Darnold at this point. Everyone knows they will be drafting Lawrence if he declares for the draft, and Darnold has had a pretty horrible year. The confluence of those two elements sees his value WAY down. It's not like Rosen with the Dolphins because he had only been in the league for a year and didn't have the worst numbers considering how horrible that Arizona team was a few years back (especially that OL). If they can get a 4th or 5th Rounder for Darnold, I'd see that as a win. At this point, however, I think there is a high likelihood he's simply released.

Here's Mel Kiper's (ESPN) First Officially Position Ranking For The 2021 NFL Draft:

Quarterbacks
1. Trevor Lawrence, Clemson
2. Justin Fields, Ohio State
3. Zach Wilson, BYU
4. Mac Jones, Alabama
5. Trey Lance, North Dakota State
6. Kyle Trask, Florida
7. Feleipe Franks, Arkansas
8. Dustin Crum, Kent State
9. Ian Book, Notre Dame
10. Sam Ehlinger, Texas

Running backs
1. Najee Harris, Alabama
2. Travis Etienne, Clemson
3. Javonte Williams, North Carolina
4. Jermar Jefferson, Oregon State
5. Kenneth Gainwell, Memphis
6. Demetric Felton, UCLA
7. Michael Carter, North Carolina
8. Javian Hawkins, Louisville
9. Chuba Hubbard, Oklahoma State
10. Jaret Patterson, Buffalo

Wide receivers
1. DeVonta Smith, Alabama
2. Ja'Marr Chase, LSU
3. Jaylen Waddle, Alabama
4. Elijah Moore, Mississippi
5. Terrace Marshall Jr., LSU
6. Rashod Bateman, Minnesota
7. Chris Olave, Ohio State
8. Kadarius Toney, Florida
9. Rondale Moore, Purdue
10. Nico Collins, Michigan

Tight ends
1. Kyle Pitts, Florida
2. Pat Freiermuth, Penn State
3. James Mitchell, Virginia Tech
4. Brevin Jordan, Miami (Fla.)
5. Hunter Long, Boston College
6. Quintin Morris, Bowling Green
7. Cade Otton, Washington
8. Jake Ferguson, Wisconsin
9. Noah Gray, Duke
10. Kenny Yeboah, Mississippi

Offensive tackles
1. Penei Sewell, Oregon
2. Christian Darrisaw, Virginia Tech
3. Samuel Cosmi, Texas
4. Dillon Radunz, North Dakota State
5. Alex Leatherwood, Alabama
6. Liam Eichenberg, Notre Dame
7. Jalen Mayfield, Michigan
8. Teven Jenkins, Oklahoma State
9. Brady Christensen, BYU
10. Walker Little, Stanford

Guards
1. Rashawn Slater, Northwestern
2. Wyatt Davis, Ohio State
3. Alijah Vera-Tucker, USC
4. Trey Smith, Tennessee
5. Aaron Banks, Notre Dame
6. Ed Ingram, LSU
7. Zion Johnson, Boston College
8. Deonte Brown, Alabama
9. David Moore, Grambling
10. Ben Cleveland, Georgia

Centers
1. Landon Dickerson, Alabama
2. Tyler Linderbaum, Iowa
3. Creed Humphrey, Oklahoma
4. Drew Dalman, Stanford
5. Nick Ford, Utah
6. Trey Hill, Georgia
7. Josh Myers, Ohio State
8. Michal Menet, Penn State
9. James Empey, BYU
10. Jimmy Morrissey, Pitt

Defensive ends
1. Jaelan Phillips, Miami (Fla.)
2. Gregory Rousseau, Miami (Fla.)
3. Kwity Paye, Michigan
4. Patrick Jones II, Pitt
5. Ade Ogundeji, Notre Dame
6. Carlos Basham Jr., Wake Forest
7. Joe Tryon, Washington
8. Rashad Weaver, Pitt
9. Payton Turner, Houston
10. Daelin Hayes, Notre Dame

Defensive tackles
1. Daviyon Nixon, Iowa
2. Christian Barmore, Alabama
3. Jay Tufele, USC
4. Levi Onwuzurike, Washington
5. Osa Odighizuwa, UCLA
6. Tyler Shelvin, LSU
7. Tommy Togiai, Ohio State
8. Bobby Brown III, Texas A&M
9. Marvin Wilson, Florida State
10. Haskell Garrett, Ohio State

Inside linebackers
1. Micah Parsons, Penn State
2. Chazz Surratt, North Carolina
3. Nick Bolton, Missouri
4. Jabril Cox, LSU
5. Tony Fields II, West Virginia
6. Dylan Moses, Alabama
7. Devin Lloyd, Utah
8. Ventrell Miller, Florida
9. Monty Rice, Georgia
10. Baron Browning, Ohio State

Outside linebackers
1. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Notre Dame
2. Joseph Ossai, Texas
3. Azeez Ojulari, Georgia
4. Zaven Collins, Tulsa
5. Chris Rumph II, Duke
6. Quincy Roche, Miami (Fla.)
7. Grant Stuard, Houston
8. Malcolm Koonce, Buffalo
9. Shaka Toney, Penn State
10. Elerson Smith, Northern Iowa

Cornerback
1. Patrick Surtain II, Alabama
2. Caleb Farley, Virginia Tech
3. Derion Kendrick, Clemson
4. Shaun Wade, Ohio State
5. Elijah Molden, Washington
6. Asante Samuel Jr., Florida State
7. Jaycee Horn, South Carolina
8. Kary Vincent Jr., LSU
9. Eric Stokes, Georgia
10. Robert Rochell, Central Arkansas

Safeties
1. Trevon Moehrig, TCU
2. Jevon Holland, Oregon
3. Talanoa Hufanga, USC
4. Caden Sterns, Texas
5. Hamsah Nasirildeen, Florida State
6. Richard LeCounte, Georgia
7. Paris Ford, Pitt
8. Andre Cisco, Syracuse
9. Richie Grant, UCF
10. James Wiggins, Cincinnati

I understand most of his rankings, but some picks are a little questionable. I'm guessing he's trying to factor in who will receive a boost after the combine. Anyway, looks like my Mock Drafts will begin to change. lol

Wow, Asante Samuel's kid is in college already? I remember when he was on the Eagles alongside Dawkins, Sheldon Brown, and Lito Sheppard. Brown's famous for that crazy hit on Reggie Bush. I have a fondness for those late 2000's Eagles teams, I live in Eagles country and my best friend is a diehard. They were always nuts in Madden with McNabb and Westbrook. My buddy would destroy me every game because I had no idea how to cover this one specific RB option play.

Those were the good old days where the madden play calling weren't as crazy as it is now. I don't think I ever called an audible; at most, I'd switch the main receiver's route or the direction the RB was going. Pretty much just did the play I selected despite what the defense looked like. XD

I miss those days. Miss NFL Street too.

Oh man, I had no idea how to play defense back then or anything about schemes or packages or anything. Every play I just played Quarters 2 Man Under, with two safeties in deep center zones, corners in man on the WRs, and a linebacker in man on Westbrook. Everyone was covered, so it was perfect right? Well he would run that RB option play, and the option was the RB would either run up the middle on a hitch or turn inside on a dig. Mcnabb had some speed, so he would always roll out to the right and I would have the MLB that was supposed to cover Westbrook in a spy. So he could either scramble with Mcnabb or throw it to a wide open Westbrook for at least 5 yards every play. I swear it took me that whole year to figure it out lol.

Playcalling is crazy now. I play Madden casually but my friend is still hardcore and plays in an online league, I watch him play sometimes and the amount of pre-play adjustments he makes on every single play is nuts. I miss Street too, I wish they'd do another. Doesn't seem likely with the league trying to distance from all the big hits and stuff. Madden doesn't have concussions or career-ending injuries anymore. You can emulate them on PC and make them look pretty good but it's not the same as a new game.

I think I always did Cover 3 in a 4-3 on every play on defense, seriously. lol I always played the Mike, so I would usually stuff the run or play cover depending on offensive play. I always blitzed with my MLB off the edge whenever opposing teams would run four or five wide. The good thing about Cover 3 in the 4-3 was that the other backers would pick up any extra WRs. Real base, basic defense. Made playing defense nice. XD

Street was awesome. Much like old madden, it was REAL simple to play call. Love playing pickup games. My younger brother and I would always make them interesting (all OL, all WR). Super fun. I always cheated and picked Randel El when we played all WRs since he actually played QB in college. lol

Antwaan Randle El was awesome, I'll always remember that pass he threw in the Steelers 2005 SB win. I always thought he was a great player but looking at his stats he was just average. Pretty good return man though.

Surprised no-one brought up the choke-fest in LA Chargers @ Las Vegas:
- LA Chargers missed a 46-yard FG with minutes left and the scores tied at 24-24
- Then Las Vegas were in FG range with minutes left, and a Las Vegas WR dropped a pass that was intercepted and returned for a 50-yard gain
- Then LA Chargers missed a 51-yard FG with 1 minute left
- Then Las Vegas tried a 65-yard FG but the long snapper fumbled and a kick was never made
- Then in OT, Las Vegas has possession first and had 1st & Goal. They then has 2 pathetic runs and a pass on 3rd down was broken up, so they settled for a FG
- Then Herbert passed for a 50+ yard gain which have LA Chargers a 1st & Goal. They too had 2 pathetic runs, but Herbert somehow got over the line on 3rd down for the 30-27 win

Las Vegas are 1-4 in their last 5 games, with their only win being handed to them on a silver platter by the blatantly tanking Jets. At 7-7 their playoff hopes are essentially over even if they finish 9-7. They will have to win out, and hope that 3 of Indy, Cleveland, Baltimore, & Miami all crumble.

Also notable that Carr exited the game injured and is expected to miss 1-2 weeks. It's a big boost to Miami, even though Mariota played well.

It was definitely an ugly game. Just be glad you didn't see it as it happened. lol

I don't really the view the Raiders as a threat towards Miami making/missing the playoffs. Now Baltimore is a whole different story. I think it's safe to say that Cleveland and Indianapolis will claim two of the three Wild Cards, meaning Miami will have to duke it out with Ravens to gain the last spot. The Ravens will likely win out with games against the Jags, Giants (both at home), and the Bengals, which will make things tough for Miami. Basically, Miami will have to win out if that turns out to be the case. That's rough, especially when considering they have to play Belichick (who's perfect against Rookie QBs) and then two road games against playoff teams or those in the hunt (Raiders & Bills).

Because of this, I'd have to assume Miami will miss the playoffs. It's not impossible, but that Broncos loss is coming back to haunt them.

« Last edited by Warrior13 on Dec 19th 2020 »

Lol Warrior, I watched the entire 4th quarter and overtime live xD

tl;dr - If Miami win their next 3 games, they WILL make the playoffs.

Miami will probably not make playoffs.
Baltimore are almost certain to make it, unless they lose to one of Jacksonville, NY Giants, or Cincy. That is not gonna happen. They will finish 11-5.
Cleveland are definitely making it, as they have NY Giants and NY Jets. They will finish 11-5 minimum.
Tennessee are definitely making it, as they have Detroit & Houston. They will finish 11-5 minimum.
Indy are definitely making it, as they have Houston & Jacksonville. They will finish 11-5 minimum.

I'm hoping that Miami can beat New England & Las Vegas, but they aren't set in stone at all. That would set up a game @ Buffalo with a 10-5 record. In theory Buffalo wouldn't be any chance of getting the #1 seed, and Pittsburgh will probably hold onto the #2 seed. Hopefully they rest starters and it allows us to get to 11-5.

Lets say all of Indy, Baltimore, Cleveland & Miami are 11-5:
- Baltimore would have the tiebreaker over Cleveland due to H2H
- Indy (7-5), Baltimore (7-5), Cleveland (8-4), Miami (8-4)
- Conference records: Miami (8-4), Cleveland (8-4), Baltimore (7-5), Indy (7-5)
- 5th seed: Miami (T-1st conference record, & Cleveland are behind Baltimore due to H2H)

And if it turns out that only Miami and Baltimore are 11-5:
- 7th seed: Miami (8-4 conference record vs 7-5)

Exactly. I'm hoping the Phins can do it, but it would've been much easier had they taken down the Broncos as they should have. My guess is that it will be the Ravens though.

All tied up. I originally went with the Cowboys, but switched after hearing Elliott was out. Guess they are better off without him. XD

Mullens can't even beat Dallas and that horrible defense. And still no Beathard until too out of sight. Clearly tanking.

Beathard actually came in at the end of the game and went 5/7 with a TD. Maybe he'll get a shot to start. And yeah, Elliott has been downright bad this year.

Another blown lead by the Falcons to Brady.

Jets just upset the Rams. I think that causes them to fall to #2 in the Draft. Typical Jets. XD

Atlanta choked a 24-7 lead, at home, to Brady. Forever chokers.

Houston had 1st & 10 at IND 20 with 1 minute left, trailing 20-27, and Watson fumbled again. He did the same thing in the reverse fixture. Houston could've legitimately swept Indy.

Jalen Hurts passed for 338 yards, 3TDs & 0INTs, as well as 63 rushing yards & a TD.

New Orleans lost 29-32 to Kansas City, but near the end of the first half they had a huge chance to score a TD off a lost fumble, but missed it and it was only a safety.

Hilarious choke by both LA Rams and NY Jets. There goes the Rams' chance of winning the division (unless they sweep Seattle), and NY Jets are looking unlikely to be able to draft Lawrence. Jacksonville have a much stronger strength of schedule, meaning the only way they move to pick 2 is through a win. Jacksonville's final 2 games are vs Chicago, and @ Indy.

Miami got a fortunate win against New England despite trailing 0-6 and 7-9 late in the 3rd quarter. Miami's final 2 drives were both rushing TDs by Tua, and the defense didn't concede a single TD. Miami need their injured players back asap.

Yeah, outside of the Chargers & Jets upsets, this week has been pretty cut and dry.

Steelers lose to the Bengals.

Yeah... This is what I meant by making sure they didnt spiral out of control...

How on Earth did the 2-10-1 Primetime Chokers, with their 3rd-string QB, beat Pittsburgh (who they never beat) in primetime????? Hilarious week of NFL

Before the game, Juju once again danced on the opposition's logo on the field. Then on Pittsburgh' first drive, he got tackled hard and lost a fumble, giving Cincy a platform to build a quick 10-0 lead.

Bad news for Miami. It means that unless Indy beat Pittsburgh, Buffalo will be playing their starters in week 17, and will almost certainly win.

If Indy beat Pittsburgh and Cleveland beat NY Jets (lol), then both teams will be 11-4 heading into the week 17 clash. Pittsburgh could lose the division title.

Pittsburgh's next 2 games are vs Indy and @ Cleveland. In this form, they are underdogs in both games. And you can put a lot of what's happened to injuries, so it's not like they can flick a switch and get back to their best.

Playoffs start now for Pittsburgh. If they are going to win the Superbowl, they will need to win 6 consecutive games against good teams.

« Last edited by Matt77 on Dec 22nd 2020 »

Chiefs are up two games on the Steelers and Bills. Pretty sure they clinch the first round bye with a win this week, and since there is only one bye to claim, I think that gives Miami hope. I really believe teams that clinched their division will rest sooner this year if they don't have a shot at the bye week. But we'll see.

Jets beat the Rams, how did that happen? I didn't realise the Jets invested heavily on Darnold. They had to trade their number one pick plus two number twos. I think they will be getting help for Darnold in the draft not getting Trevor Lawrence. It doesn't make sense for them.