2016 NFL Playoffs

[infrared41]

15 hours ago, slapshot said:

 

I'm old enough to remember the Patriots' 2-14 season. And the other 2-14 season. And the 1-15 season. And the sexist razor-company owner who looked the other way when a female reporter was harassed in the locker room. The threats to move the team to Hartford. And the year they finally made the Super Bowl, only to get blown out by 36. And then to return 10 years later, and get blown out again, because the coach was too busy thinking about his next job.

 

Between 1960-1985, the team won TWO playoff games. They went 36 years for their first home playoff win. Everyone talks about how the franchise has been good forever, and I remember when they weren't. I remember when the only time I could see their home red jerseys was during the sports segment of the local news, because the team was bad and home games were blacked out.

 

Apparently, these people think history began in 2001. When I was a kid and starting to get into the NFL in the '70's, the Patriots were basically a slightly better version of the current Browns. They were awful. I remember it being a really big deal when the Pats went 11-3 and made the playoffs in 1976. They had a couple good seasons towards the  end of the 70's, but for the most of the decade, they were terrible.

 

The 80's were better, but the Patriots were hardly the 49ers or Dolphins. I'd say they were similar to the current Chiefs or Texans - pretty good, but not any serious threat to win a Super Bowl. They went completely off the rails (again) to start the 90's, improved a little, but still only managed four winning seasons in the entire decade. People also forget that the Pats went 5-11 the year before they won their first Super Bowl.

 

This current stretch is the only time in their history that the Pats have been consistently good. Point being, the current Pats are basically this era's version of 1981 - 1998 49ers. NFL fans survived the Niners and we'll survive the Patriots. It's an incredible run, but as the current 49ers have illustrated, it will end. 

[bosrs1]

15 hours ago, 2001mark said:

 

 

You've got to love Bill. THIS Is why the Pats are the perpetual force to be reckoned with in the last 17 years. Belichick never sleeps. He'll rest when he's retired.

[bosrs1]

1 hour ago, McCarthy said:

 

My issue isn't with the dyed in the wool Pats fans like yourself. Anyone who supported the team through those years has my respect. My ire with Pats fans is entirely directed at the 20 year old bros who don't know what it's like to watch a bad team and Bill Simmons who despite all the success bitches about 07 and 11 like you never won any other Super Bowls.  

 

Everyone should have to experience a 2-14 season. Builds character. 

 

This I can somewhat agree with. As one of those Pats fans who has been around since before the B&B era, I can understand why people might have an issue with the Pats bandwagon. I mean it's an over 16 year old bandwagon at this point. I'm sure we've accumulated more than our fair share of annoying Bros that piss off other fan bases.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

Eh.....That's enough praising the Pats fan base. They've had it good for 17 years. I know that the one thing Boston sports fans like more than winning is being consoled for losing, but that's especially unseemly now after the Falcons' hearts were Ralph Wiggumed in front of 100 million people. There's no reason at all to tap the "we lost in the 70s and 80s" well. You never get to do that again. That's the price, such as it is, of being the NFL's greatest dynasty.

 

I haven't read any post mortems of the game, but two things stood out to me near the end:

- on one of the Falcons' last fourth quarter drives, a lineman hurt his leg or ankle after a run, which stopped the clock

- the amazing Amendola catch came with 2:05 or so on the clock. If they hadn't stopped to review, it would have taken them to the two minute warning. Instead, Brady made another first down the the two minute warning came at 1:57.

 

In a game of clock management, that's two major opportunities lost for the Falcons to have the clock work in their favor.

 

Of course none of that excuses them for not just running the ball three times after the Jones catch (I think the lineman injury came then).

 

[infrared41]

22 minutes ago, DG_Now said:

I haven't read any post mortems of the game, but two things stood out to me near the end:

- on one of the Falcons' last fourth quarter drives, a lineman hurt his leg or ankle after a run, which stopped the clock

- the amazing Amendola catch came with 2:05 or so on the clock. If they hadn't stopped to review, it would have taken them to the two minute warning. Instead, Brady made another first down the the two minute warning came at 1:57.

 

In a game of clock management, that's two major opportunities lost for the Falcons to have the clock work in their favor.

 

Of course none of that excuses them for not just running the ball three times after the Jones catch (I think the lineman injury came then).

 

 

Not to mention, the challenge cost the Falcons their final timeout. The Falcons got the ball with :57 left after NE tied it up. That timeout could have made a big difference. 

 

Yup. With four minutes and change left, Atlanta was in position to kick a 38 yard FG that would have basically iced the game. 3 runs up the middle and we're watching a parade in Atlanta. It was that simple. Instead, the Falcons went backwards and here we are. I'm thinking Kyle Shanahan outsmarted himself. 

 

Anyway, Super Bowl LI has to be the worst gut punch game ever, right? 

[bosrs1]

10 minutes ago, infrared41 said:

 

Not to mention, the challenge cost the Falcons their final timeout. The Falcons got the ball with :57 left after NE tied it up. That timeout could have made a big difference. 

 

Yup. With four minutes and change left, Atlanta was in position to kick a 38 yard FG that would have basically iced the game. 3 runs up the middle and we're watching a parade in Atlanta. It was that simple. Instead, the Falcons went backwards and here we are. I'm thinking Kyle Shanahan outsmarted himself. 

 

Anyway, Super Bowl LI has to be the worst gut punch game ever, right? 

 

For the Falcons fans I'd have to say so. For Pats fans it was the most improbable comeback of all time.

 

As for Shanahan, I can't deny his play calling was a big part of why the Pats were in a position to make that come back. Have to wonder how enthusiastic Niners fans are about having him running their shop now.

[FinsUp1214]

5 hours ago, infrared41 said:

 

Apparently, these people think history began in 2001. When I was a kid and starting to get into the NFL in the '70's, the Patriots were basically a slightly better version of the current Browns. They were awful. I remember it being a really big deal when the Pats went 11-3 and made the playoffs in 1976. They had a couple good seasons towards the  end of the 70's, but for the most of the decade, they were terrible.

 

The 80's were better, but the Patriots were hardly the 49ers or Dolphins. I'd say they were similar to the current Chiefs or Texans - pretty good, but not any serious threat to win a Super Bowl. They went completely off the rails (again) to start the 90's, improved a little, but still only managed four winning seasons in the entire decade. People also forget that the Pats went 5-11 the year before they won their first Super Bowl.

 

This current stretch is the only time in their history that the Pats have been consistently good. Point being, the current Pats are basically this era's version of 1981 - 1998 49ers. NFL fans survived the Niners and we'll survive the Patriots. It's an incredible run, but as the current 49ers have illustrated, it will end. 

 

Keep in mind though, for a lot of younger football fans like myself, that kind of is when it started for us give or take. At least, what we can remember. The earliest I can remember watching any football is '96, but I didn't get as really into it as I've been until '98-'99 or so. Consider that the dynasty first began with the 2001 season, and they've been The Patriots for 15 of the 18 or so years I've really watched football. For slightly younger fans, that makes up thier whole football fandom.

 

That longevity is both a testament to how truly great they've been for so long, but also that when some of us younger fans talk about how they've always been in the mix, we aren't kidding as far as our experience is concerned.  

 

EDIT: Explained hopefully much better than this a few posts down....

[Jimmy!]

54 minutes ago, infrared41 said:

 

3 runs up the middle and we're watching a parade

 

That's gotta be a copy and paste from two years ago. :-)

 

For as much as I dislike the Patriots, that game was incredible, and the second-best playoff game I've ever seen (#1 being January 3, 1992).

[dfwabel]

Bomani Jones wants an apology from Falcons fans and rehashes their "Greatest Hits" after warning them back in December.

[Sport]

1 hour ago, infrared41 said:

 

Anyway, Super Bowl LI has to be the worst gut punch game ever, right? 

I say yes. The Falcons led by enough points for long enough to allow their fans to feel like they had it locked up. They had about an hour to start making parade day plans only then to have it stolen through a series of unfortunate events and bad coaching decisions all going against them. When your team is melting down in front of your face and you can't do anything to stop it is the worst feeling as a sports fan. 

 

As far as Super Bowl gut punches go here's my list*:

- Falcons Choke

- Montana's Drive Against the Bengals

- Norwood Wide Right

- Santonio Holmes Tiptoes

- Titans One Yard Short

- Seahawks Goalline Interception*

- Officials Hand Game to Pittsburgh

 

*if the team won a recent title it is difficult to experience a "gutpunch" loss, but I was there in Seattle for this one and it was like everyone got hit by a bus. 

[DG_ThenNowForever]

The SB49 loss sucked in the moment, but these many years later it's definitely buoyed by the 48 demolition of the Broncos.

 

The Hawks have been knocking on the door ever since too but injuries have been a problem. Staying in the picture helps too.

 

Lynch should have run the ball though.

[Dnice]

Man this :censored: sucks, still.

[JWhiz96]

1 hour ago, McCarthy said:

- Officials Hand Game to Pittsburgh

3 hours ago, DG_Now said:

Eh.....That's enough praising the Pats fan base. They've had it good for 17 years. I know that the one thing Boston sports fans like more than winning is being consoled for losing, but that's especially unseemly now after the Falcons' hearts were Ralph Wiggumed in front of 100 million people. There's no reason at all to tap the "we lost in the 70s and 80s" well. You never get to do that again. That's the price, such as it is, of being the NFL's greatest dynasty.

Pats fans don't have the right to tote the "70's and 80's" card anymore. They've been to a Super Bowl at least once per decade since the 80's, and since 2001 they've been to the big one a whopping seven times, winning five of them. Any and all complaints they may have had are now erased with the greatest comeback in SB history. Of course Pats fans aren't the only fanbase in the NFL that doesn't have the right to complain, there are a few others that don't (including my Steelers). But still, I won't hear it anymore.

[infrared41]

2 hours ago, FinsUp1214 said:

 

Keep in mind though, for a lot of younger football fans like myself, that kind of is when it started for us give or take. At least, what we can remember. The earliest I can remember watching any football is '96, but I didn't get as really into it as I've been until '98-'99 or so. Consider that the dynasty first began with the 2001 season, and they've been The Patriots for 15 of the 18 or so years I've really watched football. For slightly younger fans, that makes up thier whole football fandom.

 

That longevity is both a testament to how truly great they've been for so long, but also that when some of us younger fans talk about how they've always been in the mix, we aren't kidding as far as our experience is concerned.  

 

No offense, but that's bull-. I wasn't alive in the 50's, but I still know Mickey Mantle and the Yankees were really good. Sorry, but the fact that you were born after it happened is no excuse for not knowing history. Sports or otherwise. 

[Jimmy!]

I so wanted to see a Patriot Beebe him from behind.

[FinsUp1214]

1 hour ago, infrared41 said:

 

No offense, but that's bull-. I wasn't alive in the 50's, but I still know Mickey Mantle and the Yankees were really good. Sorry, but the fact that you were born after it happened is no excuse for not knowing history. Sports or otherwise. 

 

Oh sorry, I completely wrote that wrong. I can see the misunderstanding here and I'll try to explain it a little better.

 

I meant more so our own personal experience with sports, like the history we've experienced in real time ourselves. Of course we should know and appreciate sports history and I'm a sports history lover myself (I'm partial to baseball in the 30's, 40's and 50's much more so than today, BTW - if you need proof of that, I think Charley Gehringer is a criminally underrated player  ). You are absolutely right. I meant my point to be that I can't relate to the bad Patriots teams of the 70's and 80's like you all can because I never experienced that. I of course know they were bad, I'm not oblivious to that history by any means. I know that possibly one of the greatest players of all time (John Hannah) played his entire career there but never gets referred to much by the present generation because he played on poor, forgettable teams. I get the history. But I can't refer to it in live memory like you can, so I have no reference for experiencing what they were like with my own eyes. The only point of reference I've experienced for myself in my lifetime is that save a couple of Bledsoe-era years I do remember, they've been the premier team in the NFL. They're the only Patriots I've lived through and know for myself. So when the 70's-80's Patriots get referred to, of course I get what you mean but I didn't live through that, so I don't share the referenced experiences you do, only the ones I know for myself. Does that make sense?

 

Again, my original post was very poorly written and I can definitely see the misunderstanding here. My apologies!

[habsfan1]

 

[infrared41]

1 hour ago, FinsUp1214 said:

 

Oh sorry, I completely wrote that wrong. I can see the misunderstanding here and I'll try to explain it a little better.

 

I meant more so our own personal experience with sports, like the history we've experienced in real time ourselves. Of course we should know and appreciate sports history and I'm a sports history lover myself (I'm partial to baseball in the 30's, 40's and 50's much more so than today, BTW - if you need proof of that, I think Charley Gehringer is a criminally underrated player  ). You are absolutely right. I meant my point to be that I can't relate to the bad Patriots teams of the 70's and 80's like you all can because I never experienced that. I of course know they were bad, I'm not oblivious to that history by any means. I know that possibly one of the greatest players of all time (John Hannah) played his entire career there but never gets referred to much by the present generation because he played on poor, forgettable teams. I get the history. But I can't refer to it in live memory like you can, so I have no reference for experiencing what they were like with my own eyes. The only point of reference I've experienced for myself in my lifetime is that save a couple of Bledsoe-era years I do remember, they've been the premier team in the NFL. They're the only Patriots I've lived through and know for myself. So when the 70's-80's Patriots get referred to, of course I get what you mean but I didn't live through that, so I don't share the referenced experiences you do, only the ones I know for myself. Does that make sense?

 

Again, my original post was very poorly written and I can definitely see the misunderstanding here. My apologies!

 

It makes perfect sense. Sorry that I misunderstood what you were saying in the original post. Thanks for clearing it up. 

 

Also, I think it's awesome that you're into baseball history. So am I. I do find it interesting (and really cool that you even know who he is) that you think Gehringer is underrated. It seems to me that his name is almost always in any conversation about the greatest second basemen of all time. But that's a conversation for a different thread. Or you can PM me and explain why you think he's underrated. Seriously, I'd really like to find out why you think that. 

[HedleyLamarr]

So....did I miss anything??

 

On 2/5/2017 at 9:19 PM, Alex Houston said:

Yea, I've decided to tune it out for the remainder. Hell of a performance by Atlanta. I'm sure Hedley is going to be drunk on adrenaline and overpriced beers, though the experience he's going through is undoubtedly one he will remember for the rest of his days. 

On a separate note, nothing to hang your head about for Pats fans. Quite frankly, I'd love to be a fan of an empire if it meant I had the greatest period of success in league history. 

 

On 2/5/2017 at 10:28 PM, Bucfan56 said:

LOL!!! You wasted TEN GRAND on this garbage, Hedley. your stupid ass Falcons. 

 

On 2/5/2017 at 10:39 PM, Cosmic said:

Two hours ago, Hedley was my hero.  Now, he's a cautionary tale I'll tell my kids when I want to scare them.

Aside from the result of the game, this was one of the best experiences I've ever had, to be honest.

 

No regrets at all about going.  I would do it again.  There is no guarantee, knowing the history of the Falcons, that they'll be back in the Super Bowl any time soon.  If you can afford to go, you don't have children to worry about, and one of your bucket list items is to see your team play in the Super Bowl...you do it.  It's a life experience that isn't like any other football game you've been to before.

 

Early in the week, my Falcons guy gives me a call and says "Hey {Hedley}, I know you're going to the game.  A guy in our department isn't going because his wife is due any day now.  Want his room at the team hotel?"  "Hell yeah!" "Cool. You'll get to partake in our VIP deal too." "We're in."  So we got to stay at this 5-star place, decorated in Falcons banners, complementary room service and dining, swag bags full of Super Bowl gear, and transportation to the game.  We got hooked the hell up.  We got to Houston early afternoon Saturday, napped a little, then enjoyed the festivities of the night before the game.  Then took a leisurely drive home yesterday.  (Good thing we drove...we'd have needed a suitcase just for all the items we acquired in Houston.)  The whole trip was a bit of a blur, but fantastic nonetheless.

On 2/5/2017 at 10:49 PM, C's said:

I'll give Hedley $10,000 if he goes to New England and finds a Patriots fan who existed before 2001.

Don't write checks your ass can't cash.  I'll gladly take you up on this offer if serious!

On 2/5/2017 at 10:53 PM, Bucfan56 said:

 

He barely existed  as a Falcons fan before 2001. Boo hoo.

If you're referring to me not being a Falcons fan before Vick, you are sadly mistaken.  Proud fan since 1990-91, dude.

 

Especially rich coming from you, seeing as how you change fandoms of teams as often as folks change their underwear.  I chose my one team to support, my home town team, for each sport.

On 2/5/2017 at 11:19 PM, BlueSky said:

On another note, Hedley should probably be on suicide watch...

Why?  I just had one of the most fun weekends of my life.  Sports is, ultimately, just entertainment.

On 2/6/2017 at 8:33 AM, BringBackTheVet said:

Think about the last two big games played at that stadium:

 

Villanova wins nat'l champiohship on 3-pointer as time expires.

Brady wins Super Bowl in OT.

How about this?  Wes Durham does the play-by-play for the Atlanta Falcons.  He also did the North Carolina "Team Stream" TV telecast for CBS/Turner for the Final Four.  So in both of these games, he was at the microphone for the team that lost these games.  As he put it himself, "I've had enough of NRG Stadium for a while.".

[Cosmic]

Glad you had a good time @HedleyLamarr