NFL 2008 Season

[Volourn]

Damn. Giants lost. I guess 2 superbowls in a row would have been too much.

 

 

"There is quite a bit of mystery, or mysticism"

 

Mystery, yes. Mysticism, no. Any tean can lose, or win for the most part. That's life. Not magic.

 

 

"It's a good thing Eli Manning didn't choke, or things could have gotten real ugly in the Giants game."

 

He didn't choke. He had a bad game. It happens.

Edited January 12, 2009 by Volourn

[Hurlshort]

I looked up choked on dictionary.com, and right at the bottom is "to become too tense or nervous to perform well: Our team began to choke up in the last inning. "

 

I also noticed that many words have more than one definition, such as mysticism. So maybe we can stop arguing about vocabulary and go back to discussing football.

 

edit: Mystical can mean obscure in meaning; mysterious.

Edited January 12, 2009 by Hurlshot

[Laozi]

Nice games yesterday. The Philly/NY tilt was everything it should have been, a battle between two disciplined teams. Both offensive lines played well and both defenses did a good of forcing the offenses to do thing other then what they're comfortable with. The fact that McNabb doesn't rely on one guy to make the passing game go was the big difference in this game. Bunkley and Gocong, two guys who are usually up and down during the course of the game, both turned in rock solid efforts. Those two forth down stops are already a part of playoff history. This is the best Eagles defense, coincidentally, since they were beaten in St. Louis by the Warner led Rams.

 

I

[Aristes]

I'm just amazed. The only two games I got right were AFC. What are the predictions now? It looks to me like we have two teams with a lot of "momentum" battling for the conference title on the NFC side. The Ravens won the Division, but they didn't look all that great doing it. In particular, the first half didn't make the Ravens look very good and the Titans came across as complete yutzes. We have to give credit to the Raven's defense, but I don't think the Steelers are going to fail to take advantage of the same scoring opportunities the Titans did. If you just looked at just about every stat on the Ravens/Titans game, Baltimore should be headed home.

 

Neither NFC game had the same sort of disconnect. The Cards crushed the Panthers. The Eagles didn't exactly demolish the Giants statswise, but they were in control of the entire game. Philadelphia never gave up the lead from the first quarter and ended up winning by 12.

 

Clearly, I haven't done a very good job predicting the games, but I'm going to say that the Steelers look good and they're the only team that hasn't succumb to the Cindarella syndrome so far. I'm taking them over the Ravens and I hope they take the championship as well. It would be pretty funny to see Arizona win, though.

[Hurlshort]

I hope we see an NFC Superbowl champ, I like to see new teams win and both AFC teams aren't far removed from their championship.

[Aristes]

In that case, Arizona must really be your team.

[Hurlshort]

I'd be happy to see Arizona win, but I wouldn't mind Philly getting its due either. They've been close, and Andy Reid might not have another season in him. Seriously, he's a big guy, I'm not sure how his heart can take another year of football.

[Aristes]

Come on, guys, give us some predictions. Preferably scoring predictions. I don't think anyone can brag about last week, although some folks had good points that bore out during the games.

[Volourn]

"Philadelphia never gave up the lead from the first quarter"

 

Huh?

 

 

Anyways, my predicitions for next week's game which I dunno why i bother since I'm having a poor showing this post season going a measily 3-5 including having my Giants being dejected.

 

PIT over BAL: No offense to Kerry Collins who I like but Ben is a better QB, and he'll be up to the task versus the Baltimore D. And, the Steeler D is solid too so goodbye Flacco. 31- 17 final score.

 

ARI over PHI: Anyone's ball game. I see this as a high scoring game. McNabb didn't have his best game versus the Giants; but he did enough to win since Eli was even worse so i expect him to rebound. Warner is awesome, and Arizona has nothing to lose. It'll be a close but highs coring game that either team can win. 34-31 final score.

[Aristes]

Sorry, I was thinking too much of the quarters. I only managed to see the two AFC games. The others I had to check scores throughout the day and see the highlights. I simply can't watch football if the wife is home. Marital bliss is more important than watching a sporting event.

 

I know, I know! I'm so unamerican I'm almost a commie!

[Volourn]

That's okay! I'm not even Amerikan! I'm a traitor to my own country's football league which I find unsufferably boring for the most part!

[Enoch]

I despise them, but I have to admit that Philly is most likely going to wipe the floor with Arizona. The Cards have had a nice run, showing that they can convincingly beat teams that have a good running game, one great WR, and shaky QBing (an effective descriptor of both the ATL and CAR offenses). But there is every reason to believe that the run ends this weekend. The Eagles offense presents problems unlike those they saw in ATL and CAR. Also, the Cardinals' playoff victories to date have been predicated on the opposing offense turning the ball over a lot, and the Eagles are not particularly likely to do that. There's always the chance of an upset in the NFL, but the smart money's all on the Eagles. (I feel dirty just writing that.)

 

BAL-PIT is another matter entirely. 8 quarters of play between these teams so far this season shows that these two are as close as teams get. Neither is perfect (PIT has OL issues in pass-blocking; BAL only has 1 decent receiver), but they're both very strong squads. The Steelers are at home, and looked more impressive last week (most of which is attributable to playing lesser opposition), but I'm taking Baltimore on a hunch that a Roethlisberger sack-fumble turns the game the Ravens' way.

Edited January 13, 2009 by Enoch

[Dragon Lord Jones]

3 out of 4 teams are birds ........ could this be the bird bowl?

 

ravens - steelers game should be awesome. going with the steelers ..... ? could easily go the other way

 

going with the cards just because I don't care for mcnabb ........ otherwise i would take the eagles

 

 

 

cards - steeler superbowl ....... no favs just picking for shoots and giggles

[Kelverin]

NFC - Eagles

AFC - Steelers

 

 

 

Marital bliss is more important than watching a sporting event.

Blasphemy

[Aristes]

Hey, at least I'm not a traitor like Vol.

[Laozi]

Well, here we are with the NFC Championship tomorrow. This is a tough game to pick, every week I've been picking Philly to win and they haven't let me down, conversely I've also picked Arizona to lose and they have proven me wrong, something has to give. People like to talk about how much Jim Johnson likes to blitz when they talk about how tough the Philly defense is, but that's not really the case at all. Sure he likes to bring the horses on third and long, but most every team likes to do that. You don't give the receivers enough time to get far enough into their routes and as long as you trust your team to tackle in space it's solid scheming. What Johnson is really good at is forcing you into a position where he can exploit your weaknesses, for Arizona that's pass protection. Philly will likely drop a lot of defenders back into coverage and force Warner to sit and wait for Fitzgerald and Bolden to come open. If the Philly D-Line can get a good pass rush then their DBs should have a lot of opportunities to make plays on the ball.

 

On the other side of things Arizona has benefited from playing against two teams that primarily get their offense from two sources, the running game and one speedy receiver. Both Atlanta and Carolina were classic offenses in an NFL sense and are not much like what they'll see tomorrow. Philly likes to spread it around and make you cover the whole field. Even if Arizona can take away the running game the way they did the first two weeks, the Eagles offensive line won't collapse from having to do a lot of pass blocking. Philly will dime and dunk and try to establish their version of ball control football.

 

Philly wins 30 - 17

[Aristes]

I dunno. Smart money is on the Eagles, but I'd like to see the Cardinals win. I just think it would be damned funny to see Arizona go home with an NFC championship. I'm still for the Ravens or the steelers to win the Super Bowl. The idea that I'll get to see the game tomorrow is laughable at this point, but I'll catch all the scores as best I can through the day.

 

I like it when folks put forward scores. I think it's fun and it's even better if they're right. So far, Enoch and Laozi say it's Philly. I hope you guys are wrong.

[taks]

ahem... warner is now a shoe-in for first ballot entry into the hall of fame.

superbowl party at my house. of course, i had to curse bill bidwell when he was holding up the trophy.

 

taks

[Volourn]

Meh. Warner was already a shoo in for the HOF, anyways. SB ring, 2 MVP awards, almost always puts up big numbers, etc., etc. And, consideirng how horribly the teams he's played for have treated him, his never say die attitude is even more awesome.

 

 

Anyways, i went a perfect 2-0 this round to even my record up at 5-5. However, the Super Bowl tiebreaker while fitting is gonna be tough to call. Either team can.

 

What to do, what to do.

 

I'm going to get with the non upset upset pick as everyone is basically expecting a repeat of the Giants' super bowl victory.

 

PIT over ARI with the final score 27-21. Big Big wins superbowl #2 but King Kurt performs admirably.

 

Yet, i would not be surprised if Arizona wins so toss up. *shrug*

[Aristes]

All right, what is it with all the underdog stories this year? Half the teams were down and out early in the season and now we've got the Cards who've been supposed to be beat every time whipping on the Eagles. ...And I tell you, whatever we've been saying, Vol's right about Warner. The guy has come through when it counts. (We also say coming through in the clutch, but that's just slang for keeping his head about him in vital games. haha)

[Hurlshort]

Warner's biggest hurdle for getting into the Hall of Fame was likely going to be his relatively short career, but taking Arizona to the Superbowl makes him a definite lock. Fitzgerald rocks! I was a bit worried in the 3rd when the Eagles basically woke up, but the Cards found a way to put together another drive. I think McNabb actually played decent, so it will be interesting to see what happens to him in Philly.

 

I don't think they can beat the Steelers though. I'd love to see it, but Pittsburgh is better than any team they've faced.

[Laozi]

Yeah, I'd say throwing for 375 yrds. and 3 TDs is a pretty nice game. McNabb will be back next year, it seems likely that as long as Reid is there Donovan will be. The Philly offensive line, specifically at tackle, really looked old at times in this game. Both tackles are free agents and likely have played their last games as Eagles, I wonder if the same is true for Brian Dawkins. It will be a long offseason, but there are a few bright spots. Desean Jackson and Brent Celeck both made big strides during the year and the Iggles have two 1st round picks in a very deep draft.

[Volourn]

"it seems likely that as long as Reid is there Donovan will be."

 

Is this the same Reid who benched him earlier this season because he and the stupid Philly fans thought McNabb sucked? L0LZ

 

McNabb should try to leave as soon as possible. Eagles fans don't deserve a player of his calibre. They never have.

[Hurlshort]

What do you guys think of the Boldin situation? Is it just the makings of another prima donna receiver, or are the Cards really not giving him his due?

[taks]

Meh. Warner was already a shoo in for the HOF, anyways.

a shoe-in for the HOF, yes, but not a shoe-in for first ballot entry, which is what i was getting at.

 

^hurlshot: um, 11 seasons really isn't all that short. though it's not exactly long, either, it is longer than the average. he did have a few years in which he didn't play much, too. he's probably got 2 seasons left, maybe three depending upon how each of the next 1 or 2 go, which will put him in league with aikman who had only 12 seasons. i think it also depends upon what happens with leinart who has, to date, not shown the ability to be a starting QB (IMO).

 

taks