Official 2007 NFL season thread

[Joshawaggie]

Well, it wouldn't be Vikings football without a crappy ending to the season. No way Washingotn loses to Dallas' scrubs next week. The only chance the Vikes have (they have to win in Denver of course) is that Dallas hates Washington enough, that they try to keep them out of the playoffs, they already have the Giants in there, no way they want 2 division opponents in the playoffs.

[FiddySicks]

Eh Both my Christmas wishes got shot down. lets just say 15-0 and damn 49ers!

Hey...ease up on that second one there, pal. Yes, I know our team lost, but bear in mind that since the Buccaneers accomplished their regular season goal last week, Gruden pretty much pulled most of if not every key player from the game late in the first half. So really...this game was more or less a "throw-away" game in the grander scheme of things (for the Bucs, that is).

BUT...if it makes you feel better, and if you're one for moral victories, then there's this nugget: the backup QB, Luke McCown, and an offense chock full of backups and their backups came came THISCLOSE to tying that game up at the end there. Had Clayton gotten down in the end zone (damn shame how full of promise he was in his rookie year, and look at him now), it woulda been a tie game and TB probably could have even won the thing in OT.

Heh well...I still say TB is a dark horse to look out for in the NFC playoffs...and I still think they'll end up drawing the NY Giants down in Tampa in the wild-card round.

Hey hey now. Lemme just say sitting at Monster Park watching that game was damn near torture. That team looked absolutely miserable, reserves or not. It honestly left me with zero confidence going into the playoffs. And Clayton not getting both damn feet in bounds just about killed me. BUT, to make matters worst, I walked outta there looking like this.....

(And before anyone points it out, yes, I know I looked like a complete jackass, that was pointed out a few hundred times at the game. But that was pretty much the point. Hell, I only get to see my team in person once every few seasons, I might as well have as much fun with it as I can.)

[DEAD!]

... and with that picture, my screen just collapsed onto itself

[tBBP]

Eh Both my Christmas wishes got shot down. lets just say 15-0 and damn 49ers!

Hey...ease up on that second one there, pal. Yes, I know our team lost, but bear in mind that since the Buccaneers accomplished their regular season goal last week, Gruden pretty much pulled most of if not every key player from the game late in the first half. So really...this game was more or less a "throw-away" game in the grander scheme of things (for the Bucs, that is).

BUT...if it makes you feel better, and if you're one for moral victories, then there's this nugget: the backup QB, Luke McCown, and an offense chock full of backups and their backups came came THISCLOSE to tying that game up at the end there. Had Clayton gotten down in the end zone (damn shame how full of promise he was in his rookie year, and look at him now), it woulda been a tie game and TB probably could have even won the thing in OT.

Heh well...I still say TB is a dark horse to look out for in the NFC playoffs...and I still think they'll end up drawing the NY Giants down in Tampa in the wild-card round.

Hey hey now. Lemme just say sitting at Monster Park watching that game was damn near torture. That team looked absolutely miserable, reserves or not. It honestly left me with zero confidence going into the playoffs. And Clayton not getting both damn feet in bounds just about killed me. BUT, to make matters worst, I walked outta there looking like this.....

(And before anyone points it out, yes, I know I looked like a complete jackass, that was pointed out a few hundred times at the game. But that was pretty much the point. Hell, I only get to see my team in person once every few seasons, I might as well have as much fun with it as I can.)

Again, I say, it ain't like they really had much to motivate them. (I didn't actually watch this whole game; I had to follow it on PodCast...good thing I have friends with iPhones) Call it a lack of coaching motivation, and you probably wouldn't be too far off. BUT...at the same time, I can see why, if they didn't exactly play all-out, they didn't...risk of injuries or anything like that. And, if they played as miserable as you say they did (again...you saw it in person), but then STILL almost managed to pull out a win, then what is that saying? I'll take the moral victory.

And now...to switch gears. I'm only commenting on this since the CBS was actually showing this game (no surprise) up here in Pittsburgh. I'll just go ahead and sum it up like this, from my observations (and Massachusetts homers can dispute this all they wish):

The New England Patriots--or, more specifically, Tom Brady and Randy Moss--officially "fasted from eating humble pie".

Twenty-eight points scored in the first half. Not a nann scored in the second. And in that half, I saw something I really hadn't noticed much out of them all year: FORCING THE BALL DOWNFIELD. At some point in the third quarter, I think Tom Brady and Randy Moss knew that several individual records were within reach, and decided to collaborate to attempt to obliterate those records. I could tell by the number of balls Brady just launched downfield, probably thinking he could be to Moss what Randall Cunningham was to him a couple years ago...just throw it up there and let Randy go get it. Problem was...several of those balls were a good ways off the mark, and to make matters worse, a good many where thrown into TRIPLE coverage. Come on now...sometimes if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then what is it? It'd have been one thing if those two got those records in a good, crisp, clean fashion rather than trying to FORCE the issue, but that wasn't the case.

Here's the thing: the Pats still have a game in hand to try to achieve all those records, albeit against the New York Giants, who somehow managed to come back and win against the Bills yesterday, which is saying something about their mettle (being that, in the past, this team probably would have lost that type of game at this point in the season). That is why I ain't ready to concede 16-0 to the Patriots, especially since that game is IN New York (okay...technically it's in New Jersey, but still...). If New England wins, okay, I won't be mad. Hell...I ain't mad now (except that I'm tired of hearing about and seeing them all the damn time...but hey, they're the NFL's best team, so it comes with the territory). But um uh...if the Bears could somehow find a way to straight-up smash the Pack, then Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan, and them two beasts the Giants have at running back just might find a way to beat up on and hopefully beat down the Patriots. That is...if Laurence Maroney don't gash all through the Giants defense like he did the Dolphin defense today. Yikes...

Okay...rant over. Now back to your regularly scheduled Patriot praising.

[BlueSky]

It's absolutely ridiculous but the Saints are still in the playoff hunt at 7-8. Said it before, I'll say it again - no 8-8 team deserves to make the playoffs. Can't see the Redskins and Vikings losing while the Saints beat the Bears but stranger things have happened.

[TFoA]

ESPN has unwittingly given the kiss of death to the Patriots...they've started putting them in matchups against the greatest NFL teams of all time...

Anybody remember the last time that ESPN prematurely crowned a champion and compared them to the greatest teams of all time...*coughsoutherncalcough*

[PeytonManningRocks]

ESPN has unwittingly given the kiss of death to the Patriots...they've started putting them in matchups against the greatest NFL teams of all time...

Anybody remember the last time that ESPN prematurely crowned a champion and compared them to the greatest teams of all time...*coughsoutherncalcough*

Man I hope you're right about that one. And yes I was a bit weary about the Southern Cal talk in '05, and then when they lost to Texas that just made the fall even harder.

[Nick 1733]

Anyone else see Rivers talking crap from the sideline? What a classless jerk, he's not a good quarterback and he doesn't have the right to talk trash while playing, let alone while standing on the sidelines.

[DEAD!]

Anybody remember the last time that ESPN prematurely crowned a champion and compared them to the greatest teams of all time...*coughsoutherncalcough*

... umm... where's Dennis Green when you need him?

[DarkJourney]

Just wanted to thank Bryant Young for 14 great seasons as a 49er. Class player through and through.

[FiddySicks]

Anyone else see Rivers talking crap from the sideline? What a classless jerk, he's not a good quarterback and he doesn't have the right to talk trash while playing, let alone while standing on the sidelines.

Spoken like a true fan of the team that got absolutely hammered

[Nick 1733]

Anyone else see Rivers talking crap from the sideline? What a classless jerk, he's not a good quarterback and he doesn't have the right to talk trash while playing, let alone while standing on the sidelines.

Spoken like a true fan of the team that got absolutely hammered

I really didn't think the Broncos had a chance in this game, and they didn't, the loss isn't what upsets me.

The fact that the Chargers defensive players were continually trying to hurt Cutler and Rivers acting like a child.

[Coast2CoastAM2006]

Anyone else see Rivers talking crap from the sideline? What a classless jerk, he's not a good quarterback and he doesn't have the right to talk trash while playing, let alone while standing on the sidelines.

yeah he's a scrub. I don't even know if the Dolphins would take a chance on him, i think they rather have Cleo Lemon .

[tBBP]

ESPN has unwittingly given the kiss of death to the Patriots...they've started putting them in matchups against the greatest NFL teams of all time...

Anybody remember the last time that ESPN prematurely crowned a champion and compared them to the greatest teams of all time...*coughsoutherncalcough*

I saw that this morning and immediately looked outside to see if the sky was falling...

...one of these days, they'll get off the Patriots' collective d***s and cover more teams and more sports more thoroughly...or maybe not.

One must wonder, however: if this was, say, the Falcons, or the Seahawks, or the Chargers, or even the Packers, sitting at 15-0--or hell...even the Colts from two or three years ago that almost went unbeaten--would espn be launching this all-out praise-fest and love affair with any of them?

One just has to wonder.

[TFoA]

ESPN has unwittingly given the kiss of death to the Patriots...they've started putting them in matchups against the greatest NFL teams of all time...

Anybody remember the last time that ESPN prematurely crowned a champion and compared them to the greatest teams of all time...*coughsoutherncalcough*

I saw that this morning and immediately looked outside to see if the sky was falling...

...one of these days, they'll get off the Patriots' collective d***s and cover more teams and more sports more thoroughly...or maybe not.

One must wonder, however: if this was, say, the Falcons, or the Seahawks, or the Chargers, or even the Packers, sitting at 15-0--or hell...even the Colts from two or three years ago that almost went unbeaten--would espn be launching this all-out praise-fest and love affair with any of them?

One just has to wonder.

I know for a fact that the Colts weren't getting NEAR this much love ANY of the times that they threatened to go undefeated. IIRC, the Broncos didn't get this much adoration when they were threatening to do it back in the late 90s.

I know if the Falcons were to do it, it would've probably happened with Vick QBing, and we'd be known as the Atlanta Vicks more than ever. Nobody would notice if the Seahawks or Chargers did it, there'd just be endless "Who has what it takes to knock them off?" instead of a "Pursuit of Perfection."

I'd probably say that the Packers would get more love, only because sportswriters LOVE Brett Favre.

[BlueSky]

Just wanted to thank Bryant Young for 14 great seasons as a 49er. Class player through and through.

Isn't he the guy whose leg got snapped when a helmet hit him in the shin? I was watching that game and it was one of the most ghastly injuries I've ever seen. Right up there with Napoleon McCallum's knee bending the wrong way. Never saw Theismann's injury but heard it was pretty tough to watch also.

Even as a true 49er-hater, I have to salute Bryant Young. A worthy opponent.

[tBBP]

Just wanted to thank Bryant Young for 14 great seasons as a 49er. Class player through and through.

Isn't he the guy whose leg got snapped when a helmet hit him in the shin? I was watching that game and it was one of the most ghastly injuries I've ever seen. Right up there with Napoleon McCallum's knee bending the wrong way. Never saw Theismann's injury but heard it was pretty tough to watch also.

Even as a true 49er-hater, I have to salute Bryant Young. A worthy opponent.

Yep...that's the guy. I saw that game, too...I believe it was a Monday-nighter. Had to stick his leg in an air cast. That, along with Shaun Livingston's leg snapping the wrong way after he landed from making a layup last year, was just gruesome.

Either way, though...for him to have lasted this long...I salute you, Bryant Young. May the Niners retire your #97 so that all of 49erdom may remember you for the San francisco legend you are...or will be to come shortly.

[Jigga]

For all you NFL Network haters out there, I just heard the Patriots at Giants game will be simulcast on both CBS and NBC. So we all will get a chance to see history if the Patriots' Pursuit of Perfection perishes or perseveres.

[buzzcut]

For all you NFL Network haters out there, I just heard the Patriots at Giants game will be simulcast on both CBS and NBC. So we all will get a chance to see history if the Patriots' Pursuit of Perfection perishes or perseveres.

And here's the proof....straight from the NFL's mouth.

[Jigga]

So, is anyone watching the Patriots vs. Giants game?