NFL 2011 Season

[tim_m]

+1,000 to that Pilferk.

Articles like this should never happen, and it is the players  fault for taking the reporters bait.  That is who the Jets are though, and those are the types of guys Rex Ryan brings in there.  A team is a reflection of their head coach, and it couldn't  be more evident here. 

Also like you said, if you are going to say something about a teammate have the guts to attach your name to it.


I have no idea if Sanchez's work ethic is good or bad.  I do think it is a good idea to get a competent back up in there that pushes the starter to work harder to keep their job.  Not just for the Jets, but for every team, although I know competent back ups who can challenge a starter is not always an easy thing to find.  With the Jets, we always knew there was NEVER any chance of Sanchez getting benched, no matter how poorly he played.

As a Jet hater, I am enjoying this circus right now, but when articles like this happen, it is never good for the league.

The Jets are doing their best 2011 Boston Red Sox impression right now.  When does the chicken and beer story come out?

Seems some of the Jets players agree with me about Sanchez being, uh, not that good.  I'll take that.

I heard Shottenheimer wasn't coming back last night, by his own choice, but didn't hear anything more about it today.  Is that the case?

Yes, he is definitely out as O cordinator.

[tim_m]

+1,000 to that Pilferk.

Articles like this should never happen, and it is the players  fault for taking the reporters bait.  That is who the Jets are though, and those are the types of guys Rex Ryan brings in there.  A team is a reflection of their head coach, and it couldn't  be more evident here. 

Also like you said, if you are going to say something about a teammate have the guts to attach your name to it.


I have no idea if Sanchez's work ethic is good or bad.  I do think it is a good idea to get a competent back up in there that pushes the starter to work harder to keep their job.  Not just for the Jets, but for every team, although I know competent back ups who can challenge a starter is not always an easy thing to find.  With the Jets, we always knew there was NEVER any chance of Sanchez getting benched, no matter how poorly he played.

As a Jet hater, I am enjoying this circus right now, but when articles like this happen, it is never good for the league.

The Jets Center (who's name I can't remember) tweeted, and then made the talk show rounds today.  I heard him on Michael Kay's show this afternoon.

He said he thinks Sanchez work ethic is fine.  He seemed pretty pissed off that someone in their locker room would take this stuff to the press, rather than handling it in house, and he SPECIFICALLY mentioned that the O-line did not do it's job this year...both protecting their QB and opening up the line for the run.

In short, he manned the fuck up.  I might not be fond of the Jets, but I have a LOT of respect for their Center, right now.

That would be Nick Mangold you're thinking of. Considered by many the best Center in the game.

[pilferk]

The Jets are doing their best 2011 Boston Red Sox impression right now.  When does the chicken and beer story come out?

Waiting on that one, today.

Seems some of the Jets players agree with me about Sanchez being, uh, not that good.  I'll take that.

All things considered, I DEFINITELY prefer being on the "opposite side" of any Jet who contributed to that article.

And that's all I'm going to say about that.

I heard Shottenheimer wasn't coming back last night, by his own choice, but didn't hear anything more about it today.  Is that the case?

He resigned.

He has NO other prospective jobs in football (so he didn't leave to take something else).

The Jets owed him 3.2 million on his contract over the next 2 years.

So...either you take the "resignation" at face value (which no one really is) or you assume he was offered a golden handshake of some sort to walk away.  Especially considering the Jets had their new O-coordinator roughly 12 hours after the Shottenheimer announcement.

He was fired, I think, in everything but name.

Their O-line coach also quit yesterday.

[pilferk]

That would be Nick Mangold you're thinking of. Considered by many the best Center in the game.

Tell you right now:  I'd want him on MY team...

[LunsJail]

Someone said it on ESPN Radio this morning....."Shit flows downhill". Rex Ryan is a dumbass who spouts off at the mouth so why would you expect anything different from the players.

[pilferk]

I heard some (unfounded, to be 100% clear) speculation today, on a NYC sports talk show:

There were, apparently, 2 players (one "prominent" and one "not so prominent") and 2 "organizational" sources for most of the article we've been talking about.

The speculation is:  The 2 "organizational" sources were the O-coordinator....and the O-line coach.  It should be noted: Both of those guys were in varying degrees of hot water over last seasons performance/results.  They were postulating that the organization found out BEFORE the article was published, and was in the process of negotiating their exit...and timed the announcement accordingly.

The other bit of speculation is that the "prominent player" was Holmes...who has had interactions with the author of the article, before. Though, to be honest...the guy is the Jets beat writer for the News, so I'm not sure how many "prominent players" HAVEN'T had interaction with him...maybe the hosts were referring to something "more".  I don't follow the Jets closely...so I don't know.

I don't know if any of the above is true, either...but it's what they were talking about.

[tim_m]

That would be Nick Mangold you're thinking of. Considered by many the best Center in the game.

Tell you right now:  I'd want him on MY team...

Yeah, he's an all pro, pro bowl center. Dude is tough as nails. He missed his first ever games this season with a sprained ankle and fought tooth and nail not to have to sit.

[D]

http://donniehoward.blogspot.com/2012/01/nfl-playoff-predictions.html

NFL Playoff predictions

[faldor]

The Jets are doing their best 2011 Boston Red Sox impression right now.  When does the chicken and beer story come out?

Waiting on that one, today.

Seems some of the Jets players agree with me about Sanchez being, uh, not that good.  I'll take that.

All things considered, I DEFINITELY prefer being on the "opposite side" of any Jet who contributed to that article.

And that's all I'm going to say about that.

Maybe, but that doesn't mean that whatever the unnamed source had to say wasn't true.  It's kind of telling that Nick Mangold seems to be the only one supporting Sanchez to this point publicly.

[D]

Sanchez struck me as lazy on that Hard Knocks show.

[tim_m]

The Jets are doing their best 2011 Boston Red Sox impression right now.  When does the chicken and beer story come out?

Waiting on that one, today.

Seems some of the Jets players agree with me about Sanchez being, uh, not that good.  I'll take that.

All things considered, I DEFINITELY prefer being on the "opposite side" of any Jet who contributed to that article.

And that's all I'm going to say about that.

Maybe, but that doesn't mean that whatever the unnamed source had to say wasn't true.  It's kind of telling that Nick Mangold seems to be the only one supporting Sanchez to this point publicly.

He wasn't the only one to defend him in the article i saw. There were others.

[sandman]

predictions...

Saints 28-13.
Pats 31-20.
Texans 19-17.
Giants 23-17.

[pilferk]

Maybe, but that doesn't mean that whatever the unnamed source had to say wasn't true.  It's kind of telling that Nick Mangold seems to be the only one supporting Sanchez to this point publicly.

It doesn't mean it's not true, though, either.  Right?  The fact there were at least a couple guys, amongst the 50+ on the team, who think it's true doesn't MAKE it true.  Get any 50+ guys together, teammates or not, and you're going to find some pretty varied opinions.  Heck, this topic (and the baseball topic) have fewer posters than that, and look at the diversity we get.

But that wasn't my point.

My point had, really, nothing to do with our earlier discussion, and more to do with the fact that I'd rather be on the opposite side, given the character of those making the comments.  That was it.  It was me taking a pot shot AT THEM...not at your earlier posts.

BTW, there were a BUNCH of other Jets (Marcus Dixon, Matt Slauson, etc), in various TV shows, radio interviews, articles, etc....also defending Sanchez.  Mangold hasn't been the only one...but I think he's been the best at it.  Maybe the most visible.  Not the only guy, though.

 

[pilferk]

predictions...

Saints 28-13.
Pats 31-20.
Texans 19-17.
Giants 23-17.

I won't do scores...just pts won by:

49ers by 3
Pats by 21
Ravens by 6 (in a game where I'd set the over/under on total points by both teams at about 20).
GB (and this one HURTS) by 10

That said, I'm rooting for the 9ers, the Broncos (cause I hate the Pats more than I'm tired of Tebow-mania), the Ravens, and, of course, the Giants.

[faldor]

Maybe, but that doesn't mean that whatever the unnamed source had to say wasn't true.  It's kind of telling that Nick Mangold seems to be the only one supporting Sanchez to this point publicly.

It doesn't mean it's not true, though, either.  Right?  The fact there were at least a couple guys, amongst the 50+ on the team, who think it's true doesn't MAKE it true.  Get any 50+ guys together, teammates or not, and you're going to find some pretty varied opinions.  Heck, this topic (and the baseball topic) have fewer posters than that, and look at the diversity we get.

But that wasn't my point.

My point had, really, nothing to do with our earlier discussion, and more to do with the fact that I'd rather be on the opposite side, given the character of those making the comments.  That was it.  It was me taking a pot shot AT THEM...not at your earlier posts.

BTW, there were a BUNCH of other Jets (Marcus Dixon, Matt Slauson, etc), in various TV shows, radio interviews, articles, etc....also defending Sanchez.  Mangold hasn't been the only one...but I think he's been the best at it.  Maybe the most visible.  Not the only guy, though.

 

No it doesn't MAKE it true, obviously.  But there are a lot of people who seem to believe the accusations about Sanchez being lazy and not putting in the work to get better.  I'm not saying it's right the way the story came out, but where there's smoke, there's usually some fire.

I'll say this though, like with the Red Sox last season, fading terribly down the stretch will do this to a team.  Threats and accusations fly.  Excuses are made to try and explain the situation.  If the Jets had won ONE more game and made the playoffs, I doubt things would have unfolded quite the way they did.  Everything gets amplified when teams lose.

[faldor]

predictions...

Saints 28-13.
Pats 31-20.
Texans 19-17.
Giants 23-17.

I won't do scores...just pts won by:

49ers by 3
Pats by 21
Ravens by 6 (in a game where I'd set the over/under on total points by both teams at about 20).
GB (and this one HURTS) by 10

That said, I'm rooting for the 9ers, the Broncos (cause I hate the Pats more than I'm tired of Tebow-mania), the Ravens, and, of course, the Giants.

I like those picks.  Obviously New Orleans could end up killing the 9'ers, but I think a lot of people are underestimating them.  That crowd will be nuts.  It'll be an interesting game for sure.  The NFL's best offense vs. the best defense.  Defense wins championships!  Well, at least it used to.  We'll see if that holds true in this game.

I do see the Pats winning big, but anything can happen with that defense.  They have lost their last 2 home playoff games and have gotten off to slow starts all season long seemingly.  I could certainly see that happening again coming off the bye and with the Broncos riding high.  Wouldn't surprise me at all to see them go down early, I just hope they're able to rebound like they have the past few weeks.  Bottom line though, while they aren't a flawless team by any means, they're such a better team than the Broncos.  It's really not even close, so they should win pretty easily.

I expect the Texans to keep it close with the Ravens.  If it weren't for the Schaub injury, they'd be even scarier.  Ravens are an inconsistent team, but they should have enough to win this week at home.

The Giants seem to be the popular upset pick this week, so much so it almost seems like they're the favorite.  Jason Pierre Paul is guaranteeing a victory.  Slow your role, as Deion Sanders would say.  I definitely think the Giants COULD win, but I don't think they will.  Should be an exciting game though, and close for the most part.  I'd take the Giants to cover, but not to win.

[pilferk]

No it doesn't MAKE it true, obviously.  But there are a lot of people who seem to believe the accusations about Sanchez being lazy and not putting in the work to get better.  I'm not saying it's right the way the story came out, but where there's smoke, there's usually some fire.

So far, for me...it's more smoke than fire.  A few "unnamed" sources and ONE former player who had no real career seem to be the "smoke".  Now, there are plenty of people TALKING about the smoke...but no other real sources.  And there seems to be at least as many sources (who HAVE lent their names to their opinions) who disagree.

Again, I'm not surprised there are people out there who think it.  People have said the same thing about Eli, before.....but, personally, I wouldn't take this to bolster (or refute) anything.

Like with the Sox story....I'd take it all with large grains of salt.

I'll say this though, like with the Red Sox last season, fading terribly down the stretch will do this to a team.  Threats and accusations fly.  Excuses are made to try and explain the situation.  If the Jets had won ONE more game and made the playoffs, I doubt things would have unfolded quite the way they did.  Everything gets amplified when teams lose.

Probably true...but that sort of makes it's own point, doesn't it?  It was a point I made earlier:  Interesting how none of this was mentioned, by ANYONE, when the Jets were going to 2 straight AFC championship games.

I'd be less likely to use the word "amplified" and more likely to call it "blown out of proportion", in most cases. CERTAINLY that was true in the case of some of the stories that came out of the Sox clubhouse at the end of their season (or, rather, were leaked from ownership so they could run Tito out of town).  It certainly wouldn't surprise me if this were more of the same.

Edit: To be clear, by "more of the same", I don't mean ownership is involved this time.  Only that it could be overblown, too.

[pilferk]

I like those picks.  Obviously New Orleans could end up killing the 9'ers, but I think a lot of people are underestimating them.  That crowd will be nuts.  It'll be an interesting game for sure.  The NFL's best offense vs. the best defense.  Defense wins championships!  Well, at least it used to.  We'll see if that holds true in this game.

If you look at NO numbers outside the dome, they're a little more "mortal".  Still not bad, but not as crazy.

Weather is going to be warm, but there will be SOME wind...and the only 3 games NO lost were road games (granted, early in the season).

I think the 9er's benefit from the fact they didn't play NO in the regular season, too.

I think defense wins the game, but it's a squeaker.

I do see the Pats winning big, but anything can happen with that defense.  They have lost their last 2 home playoff games and have gotten off to slow starts all season long seemingly.  I could certainly see that happening again coming off the bye and with the Broncos riding high.  Wouldn't surprise me at all to see them go down early, I just hope they're able to rebound like they have the past few weeks.  Bottom line though, while they aren't a flawless team by any means, they're such a better team than the Broncos.  It's really not even close, so they should win pretty easily.

If the Pats/Broncos play 10 times, the Pats win 8 (maybe 9) times out of 10, IMHO.  While they're not flawless, they're a LOT LESS flawed than Denver is.

The key is going to be defense, on both sides of the ball.  If Denver can get the total points in this game down to less than 30...they have a shot.  If the Pats defense can shut down the Broncos run, and force Tebow to be a passing QB, the Pats will KILL them.  As much as I hate the Pats....Belichick is pretty darn good at defensive schemes.  I think that's the difference...and it's a big one.

I expect the Texans to keep it close with the Ravens.  If it weren't for the Schaub injury, they'd be even scarier.  Ravens are an inconsistent team, but they should have enough to win this week at home.

I think if you love defense, you'll love this game.  Other than the Giants game (maybe), THIS one is the game I'm looking forward to most.

The Giants seem to be the popular upset pick this week, so much so it almost seems like they're the favorite.  Jason Pierre Paul is guaranteeing a victory.  Slow your role, as Deion Sanders would say.  I definitely think the Giants COULD win, but I don't think they will.  Should be an exciting game though, and close for the most part.  I'd take the Giants to cover, but not to win.

The line keeps sliding toward the Giants, which means a LOT of folks are putting money on them.  I, too, think they CAN beat GB.  I don't think they will.  GB is a monster.  Yes, the Giants have been playing better the past few weeks (including the close game vs GB).  Yes, they're getting healthy again.  But....unless they can get to Rogers early and often....I don't think they got enough on the field to win.  I PRAY I'm wrong.

[pilferk]

Lines right now:

Saints are 3.5 point favorites.
Pats are 13.5 point favorites.
Ravens are 7.5 point favorites.
GB are 8 point favorites....7.5 in some places (in a line that opened at 10 points....9 in some places).

[GeorgeSteele]

I'm going out on a limb by making my picks before Axl4Prez makes his, so here goes:

Giants 24-16 ---- better QBs than Aaron Rogers have had their bad days and this will be his; G-men front 4 is unstoppable right now, so he's getting sacked at least 6 times, and he'll throw a couple picks.

Ravens 16-6 ---- my admiration goes to those who have the attention span to watch this entire game.

Saints 23-13 ---- Brees won't have a great day, but Alex Smith will crap the bed.

Broncos 29-28 ---- To paraphrase the great Roddy Piper, just when everyone thinks they have all the answers on Tebow, he changes the questions.