The NFL Discussion Thread

[El Héroe Oscuro]

I thought that it would be a good idea to create a thread for the playoffs starting tomorrow, so feel free to commentate on the games, make your predictions who will win, and discuss all the playoffs in general here.

Patriots-Green Bay is my prediction for the Super Bowl, Pats winning it in a close one.

Edit Feb 3/2015: Making this a general NFL thread now that the playoffs are over.

 

[Pepperton]

you beat me to it, i thought about making a thread like this!

I already posted a blog about my predictions for the playoffs, and those, while possible, are more speculation and not truly what I believe will happen. Because Seattle got the 1st seed and the NFC runs through CenturyLink, it's hard not to see them in the SB again against the Pats. I also find it quite difficult to pick a winner for that game, but I'm going to with the Pats. It could go either way though, really.

My picks for tomorrow are Carolina and Pittsburgh.

 

[tittlemouse]

Well I said last year right after Seahawks won the Superbowl next year it would be Patriots v Seahawks with the hawks retaining so sticking by my prediction

Be warned my NFL play-off picks generaly are cursed 2 years ago I litreally got 0/10 correct
That being said I can not see past Cardinals in the early game surely have too much for Panthers in the evening game it will be closer and Steelers will win a close game

 

[Sloan Kettering]

As a Cincy fan, tomorrow will show me all I need to see. If they can actually not act like children and not give up when something bad happens when lots of people watch, they will dominate. Their biggest weakness is their inability to stay motivated. The Steelers are much weaker than their record shows; their losses against The Buccaneers, Browns and Jets are quite. Their other loss was to Baltimore. The Ravens have also been pretty weak, but they're on of those odd teams that turns shit around in the play-offs to kick-ass. If the Colts beat the Bengals, they'll instantly be swatted away just like the winner of the Steelers/Ravens game. Manning vs Brady for the AFC championship round 2? That would be too close to call. The Broncos aren't quite the force everyone expected, but this is still a classic match-up.

The NFC results are irrelevant; it's gonna be Seattle. The poor Cardinals are just limping at this point, Romo will choke, lolpanthers and eh...the Lions, idk, Green Bay and Seattle are just better.

As for the Super Bowl...I could see Seattle winning two years in a row.



As for this week.

Bengals > Colts

Ravens > Steelers

Cardinals < Panthers

Lions > Cowboys

 

[Pepperton]

Be warned my NFL play-off picks generaly are cursed 2 years ago I litreally got 0/10 correct That being said I can not see past Cardinals in the early game surely have too much for Panthers in the evening game it will be closer and Steelers will win a close game

Really? Ryan Lindley is a turnover machine, their whole team is ravaged with injury, while the Panthers are coming off an absolute domination over the Falcons, offensively and defensively. Mid-season, it would be Cards no question, but I can't see Lindley pulling off a win here. :/

As a Cincy fan, tomorrow will show me all I need to see. If they can actually not act like children and not give up when something bad happens when lots of people watch, they will dominate. Their biggest weakness is their inability to stay motivated. The Steelers are much weaker than their record shows; their losses against The Buccaneers, Browns and Jets are quite. Their other loss was to Baltimore. The Ravens have also been pretty weak, but they're on of those odd teams that turns shit around in the play-offs to kick-ass. If the Colts beat the Bengals, they'll instantly be swatted away just like the winner of the Steelers/Ravens game. Manning vs Brady for the AFC championship round 2? That would be too close to call. The Broncos aren't quite the force everyone expected, but this is still a classic match-up.

The Le'Veon news really hurts Steelers, to the point where I hesitate to pick them to get out of their first round (before Week 17 they were my SB pick). He's been the heart and soul of the offense, and their defense is sub-par at best, and that's being generous. I don't think it can compensate for such a devastating blow. Sorry to say, but I think Cincy loses its third straight tomorrow. I think it will come down to which QB throws less picks. It's obvious Cincy's D is far superior to Indy's, but Andrew Luck has been slinging it all year, and it's not like Dalton has played well in the playoffs, which gives Indy's defense more of a cushion. This one is hard to call, but I'm going with Indy. In my opinion, it depends which Dalton shows up.

The NFC results are irrelevant; it's gonna be Seattle. The poor Cardinals are just limping at this point, Romo will choke, lolpanthers and eh...the Lions, idk, Green Bay and Seattle are just better.

As for the Super Bowl...I could see Seattle winning two years in a row.

I do think Seattle has a serious shot at repeating, but I don't think it's 'irrelevant' to analyze the NFC. Green Bay has the best quarterback in the league, the Cowboys are very good and won't be recognized as such until they go deep in the playoffs because of past instances with Romo, but I have a feeling they squeeze past Detroit, Green Bay I'm not so sure about but we'll see. The only NFC team, in my opinion, that has a chance of beating Seattle at home are the Cowboys. It's not because the Cowboys are a better team; the match-up just favors the Cowboys. Take a look at their earlier meeting. If you watched the game, you'd know it could've easily been 30-9 if not for some special teams hiccups. We wrecked the 'Hawks.

 

[Emboar]

My playoff picks, which I spent about ten seconds thinking about, so don't yell at me if you disagree.

AFC Wild Card Playoffs:

Cincinnati never wins playoff games, so why start now? Indianapolis > Cincinnati.

Pittsburgh has a strong offense, which will be too much for the Ravens, especially in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh > Baltimore.

NFC Wild Card Playoffs:

Cardinals have no offense whatsoever, and the Panthers are hot, being on a 4 game win streak. Carolina > Arizona.

Detroit is not going to stop Demarco Murray. Dallas > Detroit.

AFC Divisonal Playoffs:

The loss of Bell is really going to hurt the Steelers in this game, especially at New England. New England > Pittsburgh.

Peyton and friends are going to run right over the Colts. Denver > Indianapolis.

NFC Divisional Playoffs:

The only team hotter than Carolina right now is Seattle. I do believe Kelvin Benjamin will make it to the endzone once in this game, even at Seattle. Seattle > Carolina.

Dallas and Green Bay

Aaron Rodgers doesn't seem 100% with that calf right now, but with an extra week to prepare, he should be good. Green Bay > Dallas.

AFC Championship:

Brady and the Patriots already kicked Denver once this season, and with the way they've been playing this season, they'll do it again. New England > Denver.

NFC Championship:

The Packers are stronger than they were in the first half of the season. Seattle is hot, but I think the Packers can pull off the win this time, in overtime. Green Bay > Seattle.

Super Bowl XLIX:

I just don't think the Patriots have enough on either side of the ball to match up to the '01, '03, or '04 teams. The Packers, on the other hand, have plenty of talent, especially at the skill positions. Green Bay > New England.

 

[Sloan Kettering]

The Steelers and Janay Palmer should form a support group for people abused by Ravens.

 

[Pepperton]

The Steelers and Janay Palmer should form a support group for people abused by Ravens.

Surprisingly, this is the first time the Ravens have beaten the Steelers in the playoffs. They looked a bit lost at times without Le'Veon, couldn't finish drives, and their defense was abysmal.

 

[Wicked3DS]

So I'm 2-0 in my picks for the playoffs. And the Ravens are my second team (Eagles :( ) so I was pretty happy about that.

Carolina's defense continued to be very strong like they have since their bye week (44 points or something like that in the last 4 games) and I think that will be the key to their playoff success. Of course, playing against Ryan Lindley and (insert running back here) will help you out a lot.

Baltimore also did very well on defense, but then again, without Le'veon Bell, the Steelers had zero running game. Pressure up front was getting to Big Ben the whole day, and I guess you can only slip away so many times before they get to you. Flacco and Harbaugh continue their winning ways in the playoffs.

Today I'm expecting the Colts to roll on the playoff-winless Andy Dalton and Marvin Lewis and the Lions to take it to the Cowboys at home. Please stomp them out Mr. Suh.

 

[Livewire]

My hometown Bengals don't have our go-to Tight End, best LB, best WR, and like 3 other starters for this game. They're going to literally need a miracle to beat the Colts in Indianapolis.

Also, I would watch out for Baltimore in the Playoffs gong forward - they're a dangerous team when they're a wildcard, as seen a few years ago when they won the Super Bowl. I think they can beat New England.

And Seattle will probably win the NFC again. I'm expecting an epic Seattle-Green Bay NFC Title game, although I'd rather Detroit get a little love and get there too.

 

[El Héroe Oscuro]

I had Cincinatti as my lock over Indianapolis, and it's looking good so far; they just need to keep the running game going and they should be fine.

 

[Pepperton]

Bengals are a better all-around team than the Colts, but QB play is heavily in Indy's favor. and T.Y. being active in this game is very important. The Bengal's secondary is mediocre, but I don't think it can keep the playmaker in Hilton from breaking off for a long TD in this game. However. Dalton hasn't made any cringe-worthy mistakes yet, so we might be in for a close finish.

I bought the chips and queso, gonna order some wings too, getting ready to watch my 'Boys tame the Lions ;]

 

[Livewire]

Ugh Marvin Lewis needs to be fired now

Luck had too many weapons and the Bengals were too beat up with injuries to stay with them. That, and poor play-calling and Andy Dalton being Andy Dalton. -_-

 

[Pepperton]

HOW BOUT DEM COWBOYS

before you all inevitably bring up the PI call - one call does not define a game, and to be honest i don't think there was that much there. if there was no flag at all, it wouldn't have been discussed at all. ALSO, pettigrew committed a holding penalty and would've cancelled the flag out. finally, dez running on to the field is legal because the play was dead.

BOOM

 

[Livewire]

Dallas at Green Bay should be a hell of a game if the Cowboys come to play. Seattle should beat up on Carolina without any problems so it's safe to say that Seattle will host the NFC Title game.

 

[Pepperton]

Dallas at Green Bay should be a hell of a game if the Cowboys come to play. Seattle should beat up on Carolina without any problems so it's safe to say that Seattle will host the NFC Title game.

Oh I think they'll come to play. At the beginning of this game, they looked like a team that had extremely high expectations weighing on their every move. But throughout the game, they shook off the jitters and played solid football. Now that we got a win under our belt in the playoffs, I think Romo and the rest of the crew will open up a lot looser in this game. No slow starts. The key will most likely be absolutely dominating time of possession and abusing Murray. Our defense won't be able to stop them, but if we can keep them to field goals on some drives, we'll have a shot.

Newton is too streaky and Seattle already has a superior D, so I agree with you there. Quite the easy road to the title game for them.

 

[Lizardo]

I hate the Cowboys with a burning passion and I hope Aaron Rodgers destroys their suspect secondary next week, but I'll admit that the team really came together in the second half and earned that win: botched PI call or no. But they'll actually need to start out strong in the Green Bay game. Another slow start like against Detroit, and Dallas will lose. Should be an interesting game, though: one team undefeated at home hosting a team that's undefeated on the road.

 

[obZen]

HOW BOUT DEM COWBOYS

before you all inevitably bring up the PI call - one call does not define a game, and to be honest i don't think there was that much there. if there was no flag at all, it wouldn't have been discussed at all. ALSO, pettigrew committed a holding penalty and would've cancelled the flag out. finally, dez running on to the field is legal because the play was dead.

BOOM

The PI call was much more impactful than an arbitrary holding call
It's MORE absurd because they took the flag away, and gave basically no real explanation

I hope the Packers eat the Cowboys alive
I really did feel bad for Detroit

Plus, my SB pick is the Patriots over the Packers, so

On another note, OMG what if Joe Flacco gets another ring?! Will ESPN explode?

 

[Pepperton]

The PI call was much more impactful than an arbitrary holding call
It's MORE absurd because they took the flag away, and gave basically no real explanation

absurd, sure, but it's 4th and 1. it's no secret the cowboys don't have a good d. at this point in the game, our offense was hot, and their defense was getting tired. they should've went for it. once they didn't, we outplayed them. if the punter didn't shank it, maybe their d would've stopped us? who knows. yes it was a big call but not nearly something that gave us the game.

 

[obZen]

absurd, sure, but it's 4th and 1. it's no secret the cowboys don't have a good d. at this point in the game, our offense was hot, and their defense was getting tired. they should've went for it. once they didn't, we outplayed them. if the punter didn't shank it, maybe their d would've stopped us? who knows. yes it was a big call but not nearly something that gave us the game.

It completely changed the tide of things. That would've been a first down, leading at least to a field goal. Instead, no change of score, and a miserable punt.
These kinds of events have a huge carryover effect.
Either way, the flag was picked up with no explanation..