***OFFICIAL NFL Opener Thread***

[Transamws6]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXPPj-ADB7w[/ame]

[0rion]

I saw that today on espn and although I think he's a shitty QB I don't think it's right for the reporter to call him out like that. The reporter got exactly what he wanted. So what the guy was laughing on the side line...big deal. Maybe the other guy told him a good joke to cheer him up because he's a shitty QB.....it worked.

[Schmalgar]

Yeah what do these guys expect them to do? When a game isn't going their way, they're supposed to sit there with a dejected look and their heads hanging? Jeez, even if losing they're still playing a GAME that they're supposed to love. He should be allowed to act like he enjoys the game, even if he hates losing it...

Media asswipes. Like you said, he got what he wanted. It's all about getting a good soundbite to sell.

[Y2KPewterSS]

Out of that list the only team I wouldn't want to face in the playoffs are the eagles. Falcons and Packers are marginal IMO....they're decent teams but I don't think they have what it takes to get over the hump and are fairly predictable game plan wise. The eagles on the other hand can be explosive if you're not careful and have a ton of speed. Game planning for vick has got to be a nightmare. I have a lot of faith in Sean Payton and he will have those guys motivated. You also have to keep in mind that BOTH starting RB's have been out most of the year and a huge portion of their DB's have been in and out all year. They've played games without a true safety in there....last week Jenkins and Sharper were both out. All that said and they're 8-3 and looking better each week. They'll make a push.

I agree with all the above. I will say this though, the Saints need to go into Atlanta and win there so they have a shot to win the division. If they don't win that game, you can essentially give Atlanta the division crown and probably home field advantage throughout the playoffs. If the Saints have to enter the playoffs as a wild card, I think their chances of repeating drop drastically. If they can win the division and possibly get a first round bye, their chances are greatly enhanced. I agree with your comments on the Eagles too, they are easily the most explosive team in the NFL and coming up with a defensive scheme for them is tough. They have too much speed everywhere to try and shut down one aspect.

[importhater81]

Dallas has talent, but they also have some big time problems, first and foremost being an aging offensive line that is marginal on its best days. Until they fix the line, they are not a playoff contender. The linebackers are aging and suspect and the secondary has some talent, but also has some big problems there too.

From a neutral perspective, the Saints are not nearly as good/dominant/hungry as they were last year. The Vikings are a terrible team, and probably every bit deserving of biggest disappointment title this year. And their future is very bleak looking as well. They have no QB and the defense has looked "old and shaky" as the year has progressed.

I see 4 teams with a shot to win the NFC this year, Falcons, Packers, Eagles and maybe the Saints. The Bears maybe, but I am not sold on them yet. They have looked great at times, but also have looked flat out awful at times. Their remaining schedule is fairly tough as well, games with the Jets, Patriots, at GB, at Minn(I think) and the Lions. I don't see them finishing out real strong.

Chicago is a tough team to predict.They have as good as chance as the falcons and the saints to win home field advantage from a record stand-point, although they do have to beat some tough competition down the stretch.

I will say this....if the bears do clinch home field throughout the playoffs,it won't be easy for the saints or the falcons to go into chicago in january and win.

[0rion]

I agree with all the above. I will say this though, the Saints need to go into Atlanta and win there so they have a shot to win the division. If they don't win that game, you can essentially give Atlanta the division crown and probably home field advantage throughout the playoffs. If the Saints have to enter the playoffs as a wild card, I think their chances of repeating drop drastically. If they can win the division and possibly get a first round bye, their chances are greatly enhanced. I agree with your comments on the Eagles too, they are easily the most explosive team in the NFL and coming up with a defensive scheme for them is tough. They have too much speed everywhere to try and shut down one aspect.

yeah, they gotta beat atlanta (who has a bad ass home record) in order to have much chance. There's going to be a lot riding on that game for both teams. I don't think a loss there is necessarily the end of it for either team but whoever wins that game will definitely have some swagger to carry into the playoffs.

[0rion]

Chicago is a tough team to predict.They have as good as chance as the falcons and the saints to win home field advantage from a record stand-point, although they do have to beat some tough competition down the stretch.

I will say this....if the bears do clinch home field throughout the playoffs,it won't be easy for the saints or the falcons to go into chicago in january and win.

yeah, chicago in Jan. is a tough one. I don't think it'll come down to that though. Like preston said earlier....chicago has a nasty ass schedule coming up. They have really 4 tough games ahead of them....the 4th being that Lions divisional game. It can be done but they'll have to be on their A game the rest of the season.

[Y2KPewterSS]

Chicago is a tough team to predict.They have as good as chance as the falcons and the saints to win home field advantage from a record stand-point, although they do have to beat some tough competition down the stretch.

I will say this....if the bears do clinch home field throughout the playoffs,it won't be easy for the saints or the falcons to go into chicago in january and win.

I can see the Bears not making the playoffs all together. With the Bears remaining schedule, its possible the final meeting of the season between the Bears at GB is for the division crown. Say GB wins that which gives them the division. The NYG have a head to head win over Chicago so if they end up with identical records, that would put the NYG in ahead of the Bears as a wild card. I am assuming both Atlanta and New Orleans make the playoffs from the south as well.

I am not setting here saying all that will happen. I looked at the last 5 games for the NFC playoff contenders and I would say Chicago has the toughest schedule of those teams. Philly has Dallas twice, which should be two wins, but they lost to Dallas 3 times last year, so who knows really. There are a ton of key matchups left during the last 5 weeks among those teams, so they really all control their own fate. I could see the Bears going 2-3 in their last 5 didn't make the playoffs, looking ahead.

Tampa Bay should win 3 of their last 5 making them 10-6, so they aren't out of the picture either. The NFC is clearly the best division in the NFL this year.

[Y2KPewterSS]

yeah, they gotta beat atlanta (who has a bad ass home record) in order to have much chance. There's going to be a lot riding on that game for both teams. I don't think a loss there is necessarily the end of it for either team but whoever wins that game will definitely have some swagger to carry into the playoffs.

I was just looking through the last 5 weeks of schedule. The NO at Atlanta game is going to be a MNF game. With the Jets at NE this coming week and NO at Atl, we have some damn good MNF games coming up

[0rion]

I think too that you're not giving dallas enough credit here. That thursday game impressed the hell out of me. What was it 20-6 at one point. A couiple weeks ago they would've rolled over but JG has them guys believing they can and wanting to win. You could just see the momentum changing throughout the second half. Philly being a division rival you can bet they're gonna play hard.
The NFC west is screwing everything up right now....a sub .500 team out there has the chance to keep a better team out of the playoffs.

[Y2KPewterSS]

I think too that you're not giving dallas enough credit here. That thursday game impressed the hell out of me. What was it 20-6 at one point. A couiple weeks ago they would've rolled over but JG has them guys believing they can and wanting to win. You could just see the momentum changing throughout the second half. Philly being a division rival you can bet they're gonna play hard.
The NFC west is screwing everything up right now....a sub .500 team out there has the chance to keep a better team out of the playoffs.

Garrett has done a much better job than I would have hoped for. I still am not convinced he is the long term solution though. Right now, I think the players are playing their asses off because they are afraid JJ is going to axe them. I think their enhanced play is more a result of that fear than what Garrett is doing, but I will say Garrett has had a positive influence. Dallas really needs to address some areas at year end, most definitely offensive line. They will be competitive the rest of the season, might sneak in another win or two, but they don't have the personnel to run with Philly. The only way they could sneak a win over Philly is if DeMarcus Ware has a monster game, similar to what Julius Peppers did to Vick this week. If Philly keeps Ware in check though, the Dallas secondary and LBs will get TORCHED by Phillys speed.

The NFC west is a complete disaster, easily the worst division in the NFL. The only team halfway worth a shit is the Rams, at least you can see they are putting forth heart and effort. They aren't long on talent yet, but Bradford is playing as well as any rookie QB has in the last 10-15 years. His numbers are indicative of that as well. That Danny Amendola kid plays his guts out every damn play and they have Stephen Jackson. They are on the right track to being good in the next 2-3 years and I hope they do win the west this year. The other 3 teams in that division are complete shit, have no heart, no QBs, play effortless, and did I mention are complete shit. They really should consider having a rule that if you win your division and don't have a .500 record, then another team that is 9-7 gets a wild card instead. Buffalo has more heart and gives more effort than the Niners, Seahawks and Cardinals. I don't think you could combine the rosters and coaching staff of those 3 teams and make a good team, they all suck worse than Oprah Winfrey.

[0rion]

Typical response from the eternal un-realist.

Usually, you never answer or respond, but rather make a different back-handed comment.

Were you beaten as a child?
In case you're too inept to figure it out, I was talking about YOUR Aint's.

Lost to Cleveland at home
Lost to Arizona on the road
Had Roy Williams give the ball away on the 7 yard line that should've ended the game
Barely beat Carolina by the skin of their yellow teeth
Should've lost to the 49ers as well

lets leave this kinda stuff out of the conversation.....everyone in here gives each other shit over their teams but no reason for personal attacks. Don't take it so serious.

[Schmalgar]

yeah, they gotta beat atlanta (who has a bad ass home record) in order to have much chance. There's going to be a lot riding on that game for both teams. I don't think a loss there is necessarily the end of it for either team but whoever wins that game will definitely have some swagger to carry into the playoffs.

Atlanta's remaining schedule is bearable. The Saints are by far their toughest remaining game. Then the Bucs at Tampa. But the rest are 2 games against Carolina and 1 against Seattle. The game against the Saints is a toss-up I think, with the home field advantage for Atlanta hopefully making the difference. The Tampa game is I'd say 60-40 in favor of Atlanta, though the Bucs are another team that often has Atlanta's number. And then, although Seattle is a bit unpredictacle, Atlanta should win the other 3 games.

I think 12-4 for Atlanta is very realistic, with a decent chance for 13-3.

I haven't checked the Saints' remaining schedule, dunno how it compares to Atlanta's...

OK scratch that, I just checked. I think NO has a harder remaining schedule than Atlanta. They should roll over the Bengals and the Rams, but then they have Ravens and Falcons on the road, and the Bucs at home. I think those final three will all be tough.

[FasstChevys]

Houston at Philly tomorrow night - that should be interesting.

I'll take the favorite, but that could be a huge game for the other NFC playoff teams if Houston can pull one out.

[0rion]

L.A. Vikings??
http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angele...ory?id=5868477

I figure this is a ploy to get a new stadium built in Minnesota. Kinda shitty IMO. With the way to economy is there is no reason a sports team that pays people millions of dollars every year should ask the public to pay for a new stadium. There are people right now that don't have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of and they want a brand new stadium when the one they have is still functional.

[Schmalgar]

Oh yeah I get sick of hearing all these teams whine for new stadiums. With all that's wrong in our country, why should 500 million in tax money go to a new stadium? Especially when the current stadium is fine. These greedy ass owners just think that a new stadium will = greater turnout for their games. It's no problem for them, get the city/county to pay for a new stadium and then they get to reap the financial benefits of increased attendance. Jerks.

Hell here in Atlanta, the damn Ga Dome is only 20 years old and they're bitching for a new stadium to be built for them. Remember when teams used to use a stadium for 50, 60, 100 years? Now 20 is too long? I've read an article somewhere that quoted somebody as saying they needed a new 'modern' stadium. Yeah because 1990 is like the stone age...

[0rion]

they'll get it too....they'll just leak an aritcle that they're leaving town and the community will vote in the tax hike. Whatever happened to nostalgia and history? Now they just blow them up like they meant nothing.

[FasstChevys]

L.A. Vikings??
http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angele...ory?id=5868477

I figure this is a ploy to get a new stadium built in Minnesota. Kinda shitty IMO. With the way to economy is there is no reason a sports team that pays people millions of dollars every year should ask the public to pay for a new stadium. There are people right now that don't have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of and they want a brand new stadium when the one they have is still functional.

For comparison reasons:

Building Target field was a good thing for the Twins, and for the people in Minnesota. Just a few years ago when it was a struggle to get 10,000 people in the stands with a contending team, and now having a packed house and people everywhere for all 82 games has boosted the downtown business and has more than paid for it's self in a sharp upturn in sales/tax revenue.

I think they should just revamp/update the current stadium(as Green Bay did). Building a brand new stadium for the Vikings isn't as good of a sell since they already sell the place out for every game.

[0rion]

For comparison reasons:

Building Target field was a good thing for the Twins, and for the people in Minnesota. Just a few years ago when it was a struggle to get 10,000 people in the stands with a contending team, and now having a packed house and people everywhere for all 82 games has boosted the downtown business and has more than paid for it's self in a sharp upturn in sales/tax revenue.

I think they should just revamp/update the current stadium(as Green Bay did). Building a brand new stadium for the Vikings isn't as good of a sell since they already sell the place out for every game.

the main problem I have with it is the teams using public money for that....they already get the publics money in ticket sales. It's like they're double dipping. You want a new stadium to make YOU more money....then fork out the cash and build yourself one......don't ask the public ( which is going through hard times) to build it and then they'll raise ticket prices anyhow due to the new convenience of the stadium. Don't even get me started on how much a beer and burger costs at these places.

[FasstChevys]

the main problem I have with it is the teams using public money for that....they already get the publics money in ticket sales. It's like they're double dipping. You want a new stadium to make YOU more money....then fork out the cash and build yourself one......don't ask the public ( which is going through hard times) to build it and then they'll raise ticket prices anyhow due to the new convenience of the stadium. Don't even get me started on how much a beer and burger costs at these places.

And yea, I agree - in the Twins' instance, it brought a LOT more money to town. So, not only did it make the owners more money, it made the businesses downtown more money and helps the state.

I can't say a new Vikings stadium would have nearly the impact that Target field has.

I don't like the $7 dollar beers at the dome either, but I still buy 'em. Not to mention that's only the price for three hours or so..........the price in the tailgating lot is much less.