nfl 2018-2019

[Mannock]

Yeah, as much as it tires me to see the Pats in the Superbowl again, they earned it. That was a thrilling game and The Goat and Co. converted every 3rd down conversion in overtime when they needed to. On the other side, the Rams were gifted a Superbowl trip via ridiculous non-call. I get that referees are human and calls are sometimes missed, I just don't understand how you miss something THAT blatant. No guarantee that the Saints win if that call is made correctly, but their chances would certainly have risen dramatically, since they would have been able to run a lot more clock and force the Rams' to burn their final timeout. Oh well.

Yeah, I've been thinking about that call. Another perspective is that Saints dominated in the beginning of the game (with a big help from the crowd) and they really failed to put the nail in the coffin. Saints can blame the refs all they want but they really blew it much earlier than that. They let the Rams get back into the game. Saints have to own up to their own shortcomings too.

 

 

And as for Romo; he's a god. I wish he would commentate every game I watch.

[Keyrock]

And as for Romo; he's a god. I wish he would commentate every game I watch.

 

Romo is terrific. He's been a breath of fresh air in an otherwise terribly stale NFL commentating field. I kind of wish Jerry would lure him out of the booth and have him be our QBs coach. Romo is obviously very intelligent and had a deep understanding of how the game works. Dak had his best year when Romo was still there to help guide him through games. Romo always had the mental capacity when he was QB he just sometimes fell slightly short on the physical talent end. Sometimes his brain would write a check that his arm couldn't cash.

[Hurlshort]

Yeah, I don't have a ton of sympathy for the Saints. You shouldn't be relying on the refs to make a call in order to win a game.

[Volourn]

It's not about 'relying'. It is about the refs doing their damn job. If they did their damn job the saints win.  PERIOD. The refs in that agme should be fired or at least demoted by being BANNED from playoff games for THREE SEASONS..

Edited January 22, 2019 by Volourn

[Hurlshort]

Which is worse, a bad call or a non-call?

Edited January 22, 2019 by Hurlshot

[Volourn]

Depends on the bad call or non call in question. Not to mention game situation also matters.

[Bartimaeus]

Have to agree with Volourn - they're equally as bad when their severity and importance are equal. Football is a game of inches, and if you give even a terrible team enough tries through phony penalties at an opponent's 1, even against an amazing defense, they're going to get it probably within a handful of tries at worst. Same way the other way around - even an amazing offense against a terrible defense can have their receivers illegally knocked over and tackled, and if it ain't called, there's not going to be much they can do about it. You're effectively playing different games at that point. In this case, the defender did not play or look for the ball, hit the receiver way before the ball arrived and made it effectively impossible to catch the ball, borderline illegally hit him when he a defenseless receiver, AND on top of it all, it was a helmet-to-helmet hit.

Edited January 22, 2019 by Bartimaeus

[Mannock]

Have to agree with Volourn - they're equally as bad when their severity and importance are equal. Football is a game of inches, and if you give even a terrible team enough tries through phony penalties at an opponent's 1, even against an amazing defense, they're going to get it probably within a handful of tries at worst. Same way the other way around - even an amazing offense against a terrible defense can have their receivers illegally knocked over and tackled, and if it ain't called, there's not going to be much they can do about it. You're effectively playing different games at that point. In this case, the defender did not play or look for the ball, hit the receiver way before the ball arrived and made it effectively impossible to catch the ball, borderline illegally hit him when he a defenseless receiver, AND on top of it all, it was a helmet-to-helmet hit.

I'm not saying there should be no rules, nor that the non-call was a good call.

 

What I'm saying is, it shouldn't have mattered. The Saints had a great start to the game but weren't able to keep going the full distance. It turned out into a poor performance way before the ref's made the bad call (non-call).

 

The Saints need to reflect on their own performance over all four quarters. Not nit pick at the ref's during the final minutes of the game.

[Bartimaeus]

Yeah, I wasn't responding to you - more on top of what Volourn was saying. In an ideal world, sure, the Saints would've already won and a single blown call wouldn't matter. But then I think of the 2009 Packers-Cardinals playoff game where Aaron Rodgers played some of the best football the world's ever seen for an entire game while his defense sucked dogbutt against Kurt Warner also going godmode, and they collectively have one of the best shootouts ever to happen in NFL history. Then they get into overtime, Rodgers gets blatantly facemasked and loses a fumble because of it, it's then run back for a TD and now the game has unceremoniously ended. It sucks as a fan, and I'm sure it sucks as a player, especially one of the offensive players who couldn't have realistically done anymore than they already did. So even though I wanted the Saints to lose, if they get that single blatant call, their winning percentage probably goes up to something like 99% and they almost certainly win, and it's crappy that it didn't. The whole thing about "should've already put away the game" is nice in theory, but in the most brutal of all modern sports (I think?), especially in the playoffs where literally every game is the end of your season if you don't win, it's just that: nice in theory.

Edited January 23, 2019 by Bartimaeus

[Mannock]

Yeah, I wasn't responding to you - more on top of what Volourn was saying. In an ideal world, sure, the Saints would've already won and a single blown call wouldn't matter. But then I think of the 2009 Packers-Cardinals playoff game where Aaron Rodgers played some of the best football the world's ever seen for an entire game while his defense sucked dogbutt against Kurt Warner also going godmode, and they collectively have one of the best shootouts ever to happen in NFL history. Then they get into overtime, Rodgers gets blatantly facemasked and loses a fumble because of it, it's then run back for a TD and now the game has unceremoniously ended. It sucks as a fan, and I'm sure it sucks as a player, especially one of the offensive players who couldn't have realistically done anymore than they already did. So even though I wanted the Saints to lose, if they get that single blatant call, their winning percentage probably goes up to something like 99% and they almost certainly win, and it's crappy that it didn't. The whole thing about "should've already put away the game" is nice in theory, but in the most brutal of all modern sports (I think?), especially in the playoffs where literally every game is the end of your season if you don't win, it's just that: nice in theory.

Ah, sorry. Thought you were refering to my previous post before Volourn.

 

I get what you mean, and no doubt would I've been very mad if it was the Packers that this happened to last weekend and not the Saints.

 

I just find it so easy to stare at the things happening at the last minutes/seconds of the game. But fact is that every minute and every second of the game counts. For example the fake punt, had the Saints just been more alert they could have stopped that and the Rams wouldn't have gotten the momentum they got at that point in the game. There are so many impactful moments through the entirety of a game.

 

But hey, different opinions, no problem. We can agree to disagree here.

[the_dog_days]

What do you know, Brady already had a pass more than 15 yards down field today and it's not even the 4th quarter. 

[Hurlshort]

The Halftime show was somewhat interesting when people not named Adam Levine were in frame. Seriously though, he seemed like he was trying hard, but it was pretty bad. Maybe a 3/10, with 10/10 being a guitar god shredding in the Purple Rain.  

[ShadySands]

Why can't I vote for Tony Romo at nfl.com/mvp?

[the_dog_days]

Welp. Looks like Goff choked like I thought he would. And to think that any offense from the Rams and they might've won.

[Volourn]

nah. Brady would have just done more. He seems to do what he needs to do to put his team in position to win. If the opponent scored score he'd be sure to score about he same and he'd leave the field with the lead then it would be up to the D to hold it./

[Keyrock]

I fell asleep during the first half. Was the second half any less boring?

[rjshae]

Dull game, dull half-time show, mostly dull ads. It was dull.

[Gfted1]

But if nothing else it generates delicious bitter tears about the equivalency of male / female nipples and Hyundai "vegan shaming". Bwahahahaha….

[Bartimaeus]

I fell asleep during the first half. Was the second half any less boring?

 

For playoff games that I don't want to see, I sometimes use a highly advanced strategic skill that I've spent many years developing that I like to call "taking a nap" before a game starts so I can just wake up near the end of the game or right after rather than sit through it. Sometimes, I'm pleasantly surprised - and sometimes I'm not. I have no regrets doing it for this year's Super Bowl - apparently, even Spongebob showing up was basically a scam, and I really think that would've just been too much for my little old young heart to handle.

Edited February 4, 2019 by Bartimaeus

[Mannock]

The game was in the middle of the night in my time zone, so I haven't seen it yet. Will watch it over the weekend, not as much for the game itself (which seems to have been dull) but more so for the fact that I will get to listen to Tony Romo's sweet voice a final time of the 18/19 season.

[Guard Dog]

Here is a thought that should strike terror i the hearts of all: The Boston Celtics are 34-19 and in 3rd Place in the East. The Boston Bruins are 28-17-7 and are in 4th place in the Atlantic. If each of their seasons ended today they would be in the playoffs and the Celtics would start at home. That means it is far from impossible that the Boston area could hit the pro sports Superfecta. All four major sports titles in one year. To my recollection it has never happened. 

 

You think New Englanders are an insufferable lot now? 

Edited February 5, 2019 by Guard Dog

[Volourn]

Bruins won't win. Celts have a shot but I don't see them betaing GS in a best of seven.

[Hurlshort]

Giants, Warriors and Sharks almost overlapped a couple years ago, but that's the closest the Bay Area has been that I can think of.