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2008-09 NFL Season Thread
- Thread starter MacNut
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My head is spinning at the moment so pardon if I say something crazy but those Panthers and Steelers will meet in the Super Bowl. Score is something about 17-12 Panthers win.
I can see that happening. And a strongly fought physical defense game through all four quarters. Maybe several sacks on both sides. Would that sound plausible?
Big Ben held to less than 150 yards passing, and maybe a Carolina defender catching a Steelers pass and running it back for a TD and getting MVP.
...and I wouldn't see this as a 31-28 type of game. Both QBs will probably post some of the worst numbers in SB history if this matchup happened, and defenses will post very impressive stats on both sides.
I can even see a 10-7 game if somebody or somebodies gets hurt and this thing really becomes physical.
I remember seeing a key game back in the Niners day and the score was 40 something to 3 or something with one team shutting down the other side's offense despite huge stars.
Please no! The hype would be even worse than usual. And I really don't like either of them so would have to spend the game hoping they both lost. I'm not convinced about the Giants without Burress and lacking a few linemen. They've started to look a lot ordinary.
I'm not ruling out the Ravens for the Super Bowl. They've been playing well with some good defense and arguably only lost to the Steelers on a non-conclusive overturned call. They've shown they can go to hostile places and win - who knows, perhaps they'll just sneak in.
Can't see the Cards getting far in the NFC. The Vikes, depending on what the hell Tavaris Jackson does, have a few slim hopes. The Panthers do look like the best bet (I was at the Super Bowl that they lost to the Pats) although the South will send another strong team that will be v familiar with the Panthers and if Delhomme's not 'the man' that day, who knows.
If we're going for over-hyped storylines then I'd rather see the Rookie Superbowl rather than the Manning one. Let's send Atlanta and the Ravens - rookie head coaches, rookie QBs
You can't blame this all on romo some of the passes he threw where on target but the receivers didn't catch them. And for once it is actually the coaches WTF is roy williams!!! He might as well have stayed in detroit to help give that team one win
I know I'm drunk but I must be seeing triple.
the server wouldn't send message, so I shut down, went to bed.
Please no! The hype would be even worse than usual. And I really don't like either of them so would have to spend the game hoping they both lost. I'm not convinced about the Giants without Burress and lacking a few linemen. They've started to look a lot ordinary.
I'm not ruling out the Ravens for the Super Bowl. They've been playing well with some good defense and arguably only lost to the Steelers on a non-conclusive overturned call. They've shown they can go to hostile places and win - who knows, perhaps they'll just sneak in.
Can't see the Cards getting far in the NFC. The Vikes, depending on what the hell Tavaris Jackson does, have a few slim hopes. The Panthers do look like the best bet (I was at the Super Bowl that they lost to the Pats) although the South will send another strong team that will be v familiar with the Panthers and if Delhomme's not 'the man' that day, who knows.
If we're going for over-hyped storylines then I'd rather see the Rookie Superbowl rather than the Manning one. Let's send Atlanta and the Ravens - rookie head coaches, rookie QBs
Ravens and Steelers have two things in common, amazing defenses and offenses consistently ranked in the worse half of the NFL. However, they can pummel QBs and dislocate a great offense.
Anyway, it's late enough in the season for a true fan to make a super bowl prediction. Nobody will laugh and one of us will be correct with teams and score.
So who will represent the NFC? Who will represent the AFC? What will the score be? And for kicks, estimate QB yards, runningback yards, and sacks. This is basically for bragging rights, not money as the FBI and MI5/MI6 would be all over our collective butts.
Today is going to be awesome. We got 15'' of snow in the past 48 hours and we're supposed to get another 4 or so during the Pats game today. Snow games are awesome.
The Steelers are going to win the Super Bowl. As they say, defense wins championships, and their defense is just ridiculous. I think the Titans peaked way too early.
The Steelers are going to win the Super Bowl. As they say, defense wins championships, and their defense is just ridiculous. I think the Titans peaked way too early.
Madden says, "Good defense ALWAYS beats good offense in the Super Bowl."
But I will ask him again, over a muffin, turkey leg, on the bench.
He lives in my home town and I see him at least a couple dozen times a year where he hangs out near his summer home in a 1,800 population tiny resort town/old age town where very few people care about football, but like polo and golf. Nobody bugs him and few recognize him, thus his summer home there.
If Big Ben's team wins, he will be the lowest rated QB in NFL history going into the stretch, next to Doug Williams to get a ring.
Doug had a high 70s QB rating (79?), then played a great game to get ring in Super Bowl. Ben is an 80.2 QB rating and he can repeat Doug William's feat. You don't have to be Warner, Young, or Brady coming in with a 98-115 QB rating to win a Super Bowl.
There have been several offenses ranked in the 20s into the stretch who won a ring and the Steelers would not be the first.
If the Steelers win, and I place my $100 today, my payback will be enough to buy a new Prius w/extras. If I had placed $100 a few weeks ago, I could have bought a small house. Man, I underestimated the Steelers but in one of my above posts, I put them in my top six teams right now. I think only Indy and the Titans are stronger than the Steelers in the AFC. All other teams in the AFC would likely lose over and over to the Steelers.
If I put $100 on the Arizona Cardinals today, well, the payoff is amazing.
I don't push internet gambling/investing or the California Lotto, btw. I am dubious about Las Vegas and Reno having gone online, too, but it's still legal. But I think, from what I have researched as a MBA/JD student, that a Californian cannot cross gamble with another nation. I gave a few tips to a young 21 year old about statistics, and he went, and goes over and over to Vegas and comes home a winner every time. Kind of amazing how math and basic knowledge of statistics (who some say is not math, or hard math) can help, sometimes.
The Jets and Vikings are not teams I think that can win the Super Bowl, but are better taking all odds sites I have seen collectively, than Arizona or the Steelers.
Some see the Vikings as the dark horse to win all. Giants may have a few cracks in their wall, as we all know, and Carolina may have ridden a mini high, which I think is the case. So Vikes can do it.
The Jets have resiliency and did better than most predicted. It's not the first time somebody underestimated the Jets for those of you old enough to remember. A severely injured and re-injured guy named Joe, and we are not talking Montana, did NY proud.
But I still put Arizona and the Steelers in my top six, right now, over the Vikes or the Jets. And I personally like the Vikes and Jets better.
My pics for those four teams:
Steelers 12-4, or 11-5 (lose in first playoff game in AFC they play)
Jets 11-5 (lose in first playoff game, and lose BIG)
Vikes 11-5(lose in first, or second playoff game they play)
Arizona 10-6 (lose in first playoff game they play by SMALL margin)
Man, I love statistics software. But I think it condones stupid gambling and gives people false hope like the stupid lottery.
But what factors are not present in the softwares out there? Oddly enough possession minutes and "intensity" of QB sacks. The statistical formulas are far too long for people not to use software, and that "hunch" guy from last year predicted every position of all AFC and NFC teams due to watching the stuff and getting a general feeling about who would win and how they would end all their seasons. Yes, maybe he was lucky beating all the supercomputers on this one, but computers have to factor in things like time of possession, weather, and intensity of sacks and tackles and I don't know if there is enough computing power to add in those few factors as that greatly increases the odds of error from typical statistical software available to us now.
We have already seen how "off" the statistical QB rating formula (see Wikipedia under QB rating or passer rating) has been on predicting actual win-loss ratios in games. This is why we will see QBs with 78, 79, 80, 81 QB ratings run an offense that wins in the Super Bowl.
We have seen many defensive stars play well most of the season only to be mediocre in the Super Bowl.
Some see the Vikings as the dark horse to win all. Giants may have a few cracks in their wall, as we all know, and Carolina may have ridden a mini high, which I think is the case. So Vikes can do it.
The Jets have resiliency and did better than most predicted. It's not the first time somebody underestimated the Jets for those of you old enough to remember. A severely injured and re-injured guy named Joe, and we are not talking Montana, did NY proud.
But I still put Arizona and the Steelers in my top six, right now, over the Vikes or the Jets. And I personally like the Vikes and Jets better.
My pics for those four teams:
Steelers 12-4, or 11-5 (lose in first playoff game in AFC they play)
Jets 11-5 (lose in first playoff game, and lose BIG)
Vikes 11-5(lose in first, or second playoff game they play)
Arizona 10-6 (lose in first playoff game they play by SMALL margin)
Man, I love statistics software.
But I think it condones stupid gambling and gives people false hope like the stupid lottery.But what factors are not present in the softwares out there? Oddly enough possession minutes and "intensity" of QB sacks. The statistical formulas are far too long for people not to use software, and that "hunch" guy from last year predicted every position of all AFC and NFC teams due to watching the stuff and getting a general feeling about who would win and how they would end all their seasons. Yes, maybe he was lucky beating all the supercomputers on this one, but computers have to factor in things like time of possession, weather, and intensity of sacks and tackles and I don't know if there is enough computing power to add in those few factors as that greatly increases the odds of error from typical statistical software available to us now.
We have already seen how "off" the statistical QB rating formula (see Wikipedia under QB rating or passer rating) has been on predicting actual win-loss ratios in games. This is why we will see QBs with 78, 79, 80, 81 QB ratings run an offense that wins in the Super Bowl.
We have seen many defensive stars play well most of the season only to be mediocre in the Super Bowl.
I love snow games... I'd love to go to a snow game and throw snow around after TDs. I'm watching it in a corner of my screen simply because there's snow!
I lived in UK for a semester during uni, but during warmer weather. Do they play "real" football in the snow? Or if so, how much snow? I am glad that there are Brits who like American Football and I know American Football has 100s of millions of players, fans, couch refs.
The bars in my town, very English but anyway 90+ percent white, is more full during real football games vs. American football games (NFL). Almost every bar has bar towels depicting some soccer team.
What I didn't know is that football, which we call soccer, has 4 billion players, fans, and couch refs, or those dudes who issue those "cards". I think the earth has 6.5 billion people?
Nope - in fact, if the ground is overly frosty or muddy, they won't play either. Big bunch of jessies - soccer players. The big clubs have underground heating on the pitches so that games don't get cancelled but it's v common to hear on TV that games in smaller grounds have been postponed if there's a heavy frost. Having said that, I have a vague memory of watching a game with a coloured ball so perhaps if it starts snowing during a game, they'll let them continue.
More bars show soccer here than the NFL but those that do are busy. I used to go out and watch it in a group but as people moved away, got married etc, it kinda broke up. And it used to be the only way to see more than one game. Now we have internet streaming of any game so it's easier to stay home and get to see your own team! Will be going out for the playoffs though.
I love when they throw the snow in the air. Best game that happened in was back in 2003 against the Dolphins. Bruschi picked off the Dolphins QB and ran it back for the touchdown.
Now back to today...
Welker caught a touchdown pass and then got a 15 yard penalty for making a snow angel in the end zone.
31-0 Patriots at halftime.
Yup... that's the mental picture I have of it. Looked like so much fun. You gotta give the cold-weather fans credit since it's a hell of a lot tougher to stay warm in the stands.
Snow as a prop... the No Fun League steps in again!
God almighty, that was an awful game today. Frankly I expected a fall-back year, but nothing like this.
I also think Crennel and Savage are not the worse problems this team has. If you asked me to name two people I don't want to see here next year, they'd be Dorsey and Edwards.
All four must go. I was in Cleve. this week and heard Edwards ripping Cleve. for not accepting him because he played for Mich. What a crock. Catch a ball loser and the Cleve. fans will love you. Crennel needs to shove his big ass foot up someones behind to let them know poor play is not acceptable. Another disappointing year.
Go Panthers.
Falcons up 17-7 on the Vikes at the half
Tampa Bay falls after Dallas falls...
Looking good for Atlanta right now
Woof, Woof - Dawg
Tampa Bay falls after Dallas falls...
Looking good for Atlanta right now
Woof, Woof - Dawg
America is funny with sports. It's such a big country, you can find all types of fans.
English soccer, my God, huge in Northern California, and since the semi-porno underwear ads of you know who, Beckham I think, he's as big as Tiger Woods, and all because of a 200 ft. tall poster in Union Square, San Francisco.
Football, I would say, in many areas, is the biggest sport, hockey in others.
Baseball, that is not a sport, not at all.
It's an American religion.
Nope, scratch that, it's an American cult of infinite proportions. People still talk about Babe Ruth or Joe DiMaggio as if they played yesterday. And the superstition mixed with graduate level stats/maths is beyond belief. With over 160 games in a season, it makes the Vegas bookmakers have wet dreams that warrant level 5 hurricane walls. Crazy and you have to live in SF, LA, St. Louis, Philly, Boston, or NY to know what I am talking about.
If dogfighting were perfectly legal in the US, and bullfighting was perfectly legal in the US, Budweiser, Target, and Wal-Mart would be buying 10 million dollar 15 second spots on the major networks. Heck, if naked female Playboy bunny mudwrestling was legal on prime time, that may surpass baseball.
Is your country as sports crazy with your biggest companies vying for ad time on games?