The National Football League-that was the week that was
- Thread starter AAAintheBeltway
- Start date
Quote from armoured saint:
uh oh a brownie hound
what's the diff..
if they sneak in the backdoor, they won't make it any further
they are loosers
Well AS, you said they would not make the playoffs. I am telling you that there is a very, very good chance they will and will do it on Sunday.
So, you are WRONG.
Question for all you "pros" out there: Who will sit or play only a little bit if any in week 17?
Specifically, what are your thoughts on the following players:
Brian Westbrook (Eagles)
David Garrard, Fred Taylor (JAX)
Ryan Grant (GB)
Najeh Davenport (PIT)
Aaron Stecker (NO)
Jason Witten (DAL)
I'm concerned that all the above with the exception of Stecker & Westbrook have clinched playoff berths and standings, and thus may not play next week.
This is for my fantasy league. I'm all alone in 2nd place, one game behind the leader.
Thanks in advance.
p.s. As for the Browns game, I have this to say: (Al Pacino voice goes here) You broke my heart, DA. You broke my heart.
Specifically, what are your thoughts on the following players:
Brian Westbrook (Eagles)
David Garrard, Fred Taylor (JAX)
Ryan Grant (GB)
Najeh Davenport (PIT)
Aaron Stecker (NO)
Jason Witten (DAL)
I'm concerned that all the above with the exception of Stecker & Westbrook have clinched playoff berths and standings, and thus may not play next week.
This is for my fantasy league. I'm all alone in 2nd place, one game behind the leader.
Thanks in advance.
p.s. As for the Browns game, I have this to say: (Al Pacino voice goes here) You broke my heart, DA. You broke my heart.
Disastrous day for me yesterday, with one win and three humiliating losses. Jacksonville took care of business and crushed Oakland, but that was the end of the good news.
Cleveland looked awful in losing to Cincy. The Browns have had a lot of great spots during the season but this was not one of them. Derek Anderson looked lost, and the Browns came up woefully small in a very winnable game to put them in the playoffs.
GB looked even worse, losing 35-5 at chicago. I haven't been all that impressed by GB during the season and consider their record a matter of a lot of luck. Look for an early playoff exit for these quitters.
At least Brett Favre played the whole game. Coach Jon Gruden chose to sit Jeff Garcia and some other starters for most of their "game" against SF. Coach, this is the regular season, not the preseason. If you're going to throw the game, at least announce it ahead of time. NFL investigation would not be out of line here. Anyway SF won 21-19. Here's hoping the Bucs go out at the earliest possible moment in the playoffs.
Color me very unimpressed by teams that can't get motivated to clinch a playoff berth or home field advantage. You can put NO in that category, although I didn't expect much from them.
Let's look at a couple of teams that did show up. The New York Giants played a good Buffalo team in typical Buffalo weather, driving snow, fell behind early and had every opportunity to pack it in. Instead, they manned up and won the game. Good job Coach Coughlin.
I fully expected the Falcons to get blown out again in Arizona, but they played a tough game and lost a heartbreaker in OT.
Indy put in a full day's work and blew out Houston.
Seattle, another team that I am not overly impressed with, blew out Baltimore by three TDs. The misery continues for the Ravens.
And of course, the Redskins surprised a lot of people by defeating Minnesota rather easily last night. Give Coach Joe Gibbs and his staff plenty of credit for an effective, if obvious, game plan that stacked the box on defense and bottled up AP.
Cleveland looked awful in losing to Cincy. The Browns have had a lot of great spots during the season but this was not one of them. Derek Anderson looked lost, and the Browns came up woefully small in a very winnable game to put them in the playoffs.
GB looked even worse, losing 35-5 at chicago. I haven't been all that impressed by GB during the season and consider their record a matter of a lot of luck. Look for an early playoff exit for these quitters.
At least Brett Favre played the whole game. Coach Jon Gruden chose to sit Jeff Garcia and some other starters for most of their "game" against SF. Coach, this is the regular season, not the preseason. If you're going to throw the game, at least announce it ahead of time. NFL investigation would not be out of line here. Anyway SF won 21-19. Here's hoping the Bucs go out at the earliest possible moment in the playoffs.
Color me very unimpressed by teams that can't get motivated to clinch a playoff berth or home field advantage. You can put NO in that category, although I didn't expect much from them.
Let's look at a couple of teams that did show up. The New York Giants played a good Buffalo team in typical Buffalo weather, driving snow, fell behind early and had every opportunity to pack it in. Instead, they manned up and won the game. Good job Coach Coughlin.
I fully expected the Falcons to get blown out again in Arizona, but they played a tough game and lost a heartbreaker in OT.
Indy put in a full day's work and blew out Houston.
Seattle, another team that I am not overly impressed with, blew out Baltimore by three TDs. The misery continues for the Ravens.
And of course, the Redskins surprised a lot of people by defeating Minnesota rather easily last night. Give Coach Joe Gibbs and his staff plenty of credit for an effective, if obvious, game plan that stacked the box on defense and bottled up AP.
Let's talk PLAYOFFS !!!!!!!!
In the AFC the Browns lost was devastating to them. Not only did the lost kill there chances of the division, they did not even get into the playoffs this week and worse of all the BROWNS lost control of their destiny.
There is great hope this week for the BROWNS, they get a walkover vs the S.F. niners and the TITANS must win on the road at the Colts.
Can them TITANS beat the Colts????? possible, but you are talking about a team that squeeze by those powerful Jets by a score of 10-6.
While the Colts might not play the starters the entire game still, do you think the TITANS can win against the Colts back-ups???
Now the NFC:
What is going on with those SKINS back-to-back road wins against two good teams. Where has this been all season??
Win at home and they are in. Question??? Is Todd Collins that good or was Campbell just that bad???????
While I am upset the Steelers won that division at least they get the JAGS in the first round. Steelers worst nightmare them JAGS running up and down the field and being beaten by an unknown QB.
Looking forward to Playoffs round 1. JAGS crush Steelers. 35-10 !!!!!
In the AFC the Browns lost was devastating to them. Not only did the lost kill there chances of the division, they did not even get into the playoffs this week and worse of all the BROWNS lost control of their destiny.
There is great hope this week for the BROWNS, they get a walkover vs the S.F. niners and the TITANS must win on the road at the Colts.
Can them TITANS beat the Colts????? possible, but you are talking about a team that squeeze by those powerful Jets by a score of 10-6.
While the Colts might not play the starters the entire game still, do you think the TITANS can win against the Colts back-ups???
Now the NFC:
What is going on with those SKINS back-to-back road wins against two good teams. Where has this been all season??
Win at home and they are in. Question??? Is Todd Collins that good or was Campbell just that bad???????
While I am upset the Steelers won that division at least they get the JAGS in the first round. Steelers worst nightmare them JAGS running up and down the field and being beaten by an unknown QB.
Looking forward to Playoffs round 1. JAGS crush Steelers. 35-10 !!!!!
Magna
Administrator
Agree, they did a helluva job. Unfortunately I was rooting against them, and when they fell behind 14-0 playing in that nasty weather in Buffalo I thought they were goners. Too bad they didn't lose because that would have given them supreme inspiration this Saturday night playing the undefeated Pats. They would have needed that game to get into the playoffs and might've just put a blemish on the Pats season. But because of their win in Buffalo they're in the playoffs as the top wildcard seed and this final game is completely meaningless to them. I suspect they'll rest a lot of their regulars to prepare for the first round of the playoffs, and in the process give the Pats a ridiculously easy win. Tis a shame.
Didn't know your expertise stretched to football magna. I see it differently, probably not surprising. Giants are in the playoffs, so they have nothing to lose now. They can play with reckless abandon. The only player who may sit is Burress, and he can be replaced. The Giants present a strong defense and that's a big problem for the Pats. The Pats are expected to win, they're chasing history, and they probably will be alittle tight. Pats have no room for error, Giants do.
Prediction: Giants win.
ps I also see Jacksonville knocking off New England in the playoffs.
No picks this week. Crazy spreads on some games, with teams locked into the playoffs planning to sit their starters, etc.
To recap the season, I posted picks here for ten weeks' games. My best week was the first week, when I was 5-1. My worst was last week at 1-3. The total was 24 wins, 13 losses and one push. That's a 64.8% winning percentage, woefully short of the guru services who claim to be 90% correct, but my picks were out there every week for everyone to see. If you wagered $100 on each pick, you'd have made $970, plus been one of your bookie's few customers who made regular money all season. It doesn't sound like much money, but anyone who has ever played the games seriously knows that it is very hard to break even. The last two weeks really hurt me, as I lost five games over that span against only three wins.
One of the keys to doing well is spotting teams that are "undervalued" by the linesmakers. Sometimes the linesmakers just are slow to appreciate a team. Sometimes they have to post a line that will equalize the betting, even if they know it is bogus. This year the Pats have been the best example. They covered for the first 8 or 9 weeks I believe, as the linesmakers could not bring themselves to post 22 point spreads. The Browns, GB and Bills surprised people on the upside, as did the Bears, Ravens, Dolphins and Falcons on the downside. The result is that betting becomes harder as the season progresses, and my results confirm that.
All in all, an interesting season, although one that will be remembered with sadness because of the Sean Taylor tragedy.
To recap the season, I posted picks here for ten weeks' games. My best week was the first week, when I was 5-1. My worst was last week at 1-3. The total was 24 wins, 13 losses and one push. That's a 64.8% winning percentage, woefully short of the guru services who claim to be 90% correct, but my picks were out there every week for everyone to see. If you wagered $100 on each pick, you'd have made $970, plus been one of your bookie's few customers who made regular money all season. It doesn't sound like much money, but anyone who has ever played the games seriously knows that it is very hard to break even. The last two weeks really hurt me, as I lost five games over that span against only three wins.
One of the keys to doing well is spotting teams that are "undervalued" by the linesmakers. Sometimes the linesmakers just are slow to appreciate a team. Sometimes they have to post a line that will equalize the betting, even if they know it is bogus. This year the Pats have been the best example. They covered for the first 8 or 9 weeks I believe, as the linesmakers could not bring themselves to post 22 point spreads. The Browns, GB and Bills surprised people on the upside, as did the Bears, Ravens, Dolphins and Falcons on the downside. The result is that betting becomes harder as the season progresses, and my results confirm that.
All in all, an interesting season, although one that will be remembered with sadness because of the Sean Taylor tragedy.