77 replies to this topic

[CRASHER]

Jesus where does it all go?? I guess it's a sign of getting old (but you'll WISH you could be as active as I am at near 39 years old, but that's moot right now....)

....bye weeks....fish n chip football and a croissant-free Sunday of football!! Isn't it all so exciting?

Well the Sunday and Monday Night games sure do SUCK, need to have fun somewhere!!

Sunday October 23:

1pm:

Redskins at Carolina:

Joe Theismann said something that pissed me off this week (this is nothing new, he's a dick....hell if you ever saw "the Replacements" (a 5-star sports movie mind you), I swear the "Martel" character is based on him)....he went on to call the Panthers "the best 1-5 team in football"....SO WHAT??? You're still 1-5!!!!! The 49ers are the WORST 5-1 team I've ever seen (ok that's much but it's an Anti-Alex Smith thing), but they're STILL FIVE AND FRAKING ONE.....you are what your record is.....then again, they're playing a team now who's starting QB wasn't admitted to the team's training facility to start training camp....that will always amuse me! The Panthers do keep everyone close (you know that old good enough to lose thing), and it does seem to be the goal in the NFC East that every team is gonna do their damndest to keep this thing interesting (and that comes with as much futility as humanly possible)....looks like to me I'm leaning towards sCam-a-mania here..... plus I'm due a good Dave meltdown!

Winner: Carolina

Game Quality: **

Seattle at Cleveland:

Oh boy!! FOOTBALL FUTILITY IS BACK!!!!!! Two amazingly flawed 2-3 football teams, though if you merged the franchises, Holmgren running the offense, Carroll on the D....and Colt McCoy QBing the Seattle offense....damn you'd have something good....but we don't, and no one's calling these stiff teams "the best 2-3 teams in football), I just can't take either Seattle QB seriously, and even despite having NO ONE to throw to, the Browns will be a .500 football team by the end of the week.....God help us all.....

Winner: Browns

Game Quality: **** (now THIS is anti-football!!!)

Atlanta at Detroit:

Once or twice a season you get one of these make or break games....the Falcons are seeing the NFC South and playoff hopes slip away, soft play, lack of offensive focus, bad QB play, and worse play calling....meanwhile the Lions got a handshake and a pat on the back....and it pissed them off!! (losing their first game of the year don't help none either).....the Lions will be motivated and "ready to roar" (don't get mad I'm gonna shoot myself after I wrote the rest of the preview for that awful "10:00 news pun")....and Atlanta just seems to be coming up soft this year and I think Matt Ryan's gonna have a rough day from the Lions front 4.....

Winner: Lions

Game Quality: *** (desperate vs PIST....always fun!)

Denver at Miami:

Man can it get worse for Miami?? Yeah they could win 3-4 games and be out of the Suck for Luck....#irony......

All the cards are stacking towards Denver here.....the Dolphins are honoring the National Championship team that Tebow QB'ed (coincidence, or desperate ploy to sell tickets...hrrrmmm), the building's gonna be FULL of Teebow guys, Miami fans WANT the team to lose and rip it apart, and hell I need a Michael Vick-light game outta the White Vick this week.....this would be a nail in the coffin game for Sparano, but he damn well DESERVES to get his fat ass fired by now anyway....no I won't be impressed with Denver winning this game, but they damn well BETTER win it....it's got some drama and some anti-football charm, so you know I'll be watching this!!!!

Winner: Denver

Game Quality: *** (Teebow-palooza!)

Chargers at NY Jets:

The NY Post said it all about this game "A No-Ring Circus"...though typical Rex, beats a horrid Dolphins team and leaves the filter at home....and probably not the best of ideas to wake up what might have been a sleepy San Diego team coming across the country (and man I think that whole "traveling cross country to play football" thing is so overrated....good teams do well on the road, bad teams don't and it's not like you play 2-4 games a week with the travel, come a day early and you're FINE)....and if the Jets play like they did last Monday (from what I saw standing in Floyd Hall Arena in my skates and all that hockey jazz), they're gonna get smashed by the Chargers, the week off helps and Ryan Matthews is VERY quietly having an awesome year for the Chargers, I'm still not convinced the Jets are playing solid enough football on offense or defense...San Diego does have a habit of special teams meltdowns which COULD keep the Jets in this....but I'm not convinced this week.....

Winner: Chargers

Game Quality: *** 3/4 (you know you're watching this post-game handshake!)

Bears vs Tampa via England:

Boy I feel bad for England....it rains a LOT there, it's soggy, they have no hockey, and love sports like cricket (I'd bash soccer too but I actually kinda like it now)....and on top of all that they always seem to get crappy football games over there....too good to be anti-football....but not good enough to be game of the week worthy, but I guess this is the best game we've shipped overseas so far in this awful Fish N Chips special of the week, the Bears still can't block or protect Jay Cutler....and Tampa played a gutty, tough physical game last week and beat up on not only the Saints, but made Sean Peyton the first coach in the NFL to end up on the injury report (and admit it, that had to HURT LIKE HELL)....maybe they can run some plays at Mike Martz...nah, that would only make the Bears better.....and let's see...Chicago beats bad teams and loses to good teams....Tampa >> Chicago...so.....

Winner: Tampa Bay

Game Quality: * 1/2 (these games in England ALWAYS suck)

Houston at Tennessee:

Oh boy, the Texans are still beat up and missing their two best players, soft QB play....vintage Gary Kubiak Texicans (as much as Sporano needs to go, I wanna see the naked blackmail pics that Kubiak has to keep HIS job....seriously....they gotta be good)....while the Titans are playing decent solid football, and to be honest about it, the better the Titans do this season, the more the luster comes off the awesome job Jeff Fisher did with this team (to be fair the last QB Fisher had that was as good as Matt Hasselbeck, ended up with a few bullets in his chest...yeah I went there....SO??), if you've been reading these for any amount of time, you KNOW how down on the Texicans I am....and this game is no exception....there's no big game out there that the Texans won't come up soft and short in and this will be no different!

Winner: Titans

Game Quality: ** 3/4 (if this wasn't for the division you'd piss on this game!)




4pm:

Steelers at Arizona:

To think this game was a Super Bowl recently.....Kurt Warner leaves the team and it all goes to hell in Arizona (yes that's a Jesus Pun people....), what in the blue hell happened to Kevin Kolb? And why in the hell did I EVER draft Larry Fitz? Ah, dammit.....gotta love FF FAILS, I don't really have much to say about this, I still don't love how the Steelers are playing...least Mendenhall seems to have found his game, and yes the Steelers are still flawed, but the Cardinals are super-awful NFC West worthy PUTRID, and that makes this an easy pic without mass over-analysis! Maybe this is why Theismann called the Panthers a good 1-5, cause this is a HORRID 1-4 team....

Winner: Steelers

Game Quality: DUD


Chiefs at Raiders:

This is a must watch game....seriously....I wanna see how Carson Palmer goes from being on the couch and surfing, and maybe playing Madden, to running a real NFL offense, learning the plays, the system and the timing of the most complex position in pro sports (not to mention not being CLOSE to game shape either)....this makes this a FASCINATING game....though being it's the awful Chiefs it's a perfect game to be eased into the NFL again, and then a bye week, so Carson should have ample time to get his sh!t right...a little fun fact, the Chiefs have been outscored 150-77 this year....oi....can we at least let Jackie Battle have a good game rushing with Frank Gore off this week?? Probably not, hasn't been my fantasy year so far....least I'm out there playing ACTUAL sports too....and oh yeah....the Chiefs SUCK.....


Winner: Raiders

Game Quality: **

Rams at Cowboys:

You know...the fact that I am LOOKING for reasons to pick the Rams should be telling....the reason that I cheered three putrid dive into the A-gap runs last week with the game and maybe the season on the line....should be telling.....the fact that it's better to get beat via 80-yard drive (nice way to show up when it counts defense!) is telling....the fact that Dumbo's still allowed to be under center...it's telling! But I look at the Rams, and they have an injury list the length of my ARM (they remind me of those old pre-Ovechkin Caps teams that always lead the NHL in man games missed to injury....)....the Rams are BAD people....and it's gonna take 3 Tony Romo INTs run back for six to blow this...oh....wait....that was the Lions game.... *cringe*....my bar tab might be high this week, hell I haven't even ranted about my bad luck with St. Louis women (then again I'm still steaming from losing Andy Greene on facebook *sob*).....I really want to pick .....no...noo...NOOOOOOOOOO < / end Darth Vader>

alright....I can't do it.....(good God the Rams have only 49 points this year)


Winner: Dallas (DAMN I want to pick the Rams SO BADLY)

Game Quality: ** 1/2 (+ 2 stars for my meltdowns alone)

Packers at Vikings:

Man, is it fair that the Super Bowl Champs get such a cream puff schedule? Probably not....I only wish I could hear that steaming Douche Paul Allen have to call this as the Packers beat their faces in....Christian Ponder?? Ponderous....effing Ponderous (ah, a joke back when Opie and Anthony were funny...) anyway, I got work today I ain't wasting time here......


Winner: Packers

Game Quality: DUD




8pm:

Colts at Saints:

Sean Peyton will be sitting far away from this game watching this one at a safe distance.....we all should do the same on this one....the Colts are trying to out-inept the Dolphins, which is no easy task at all! And the Saints need a nice feel-good bounce back type game after losing to the Bucs last week (you gotta think having a coach who is so close to Drew Brees did affect the Saints last week)....wait, why am I killing myself breaking THIS down?? Oh Al Michaels you will need some filler for the end of this game......


Winner: Saints

Game Quality: DUD




Monday October 24:

Ravens at Jacksonville:

I go on the ice at 10:40 Monday Night....this game should be LONG over by then....the Jaguars are the worst offense in the AFC in every aspect, and this is one of those game the Ravens will fatten up on an awful team on offense and puff out their chests and re-proclaim their greatness....but yeah, find something else to watch if your fantasy teams are done....this won't be fun either (hey Ray Rice, how about a 200 yard 3 TD game, would ya?)


Winner: Ravens

Game Quality: DUD (my rec league ice hockey game will be better...)

NFL Power Rankings, Week 6:

AFC:

1. Patriots.....a familiar spot for them.....

2. Ravens....feasting on the weak....

3. Chargers....feasting on the even weaker.....

4. Bills....lost 2 out of 3, don't stop Bill-ieving!!!!

5. Raiders.....stupid, crazy and desperate enough to start CP-9 this week!!




NFC:

1. Packers....zzzzzz, beating EVERYONE will be like that

2. 49ers....Brain....can....not...accept....Alex....Smith....being.....GOOD....

3. Lions....shake hands and move on boys.....

4. Tampa Bay....GUTTY win last week, talk about being coach-killers!

5. NY Giants.....the best of the worst?

[Devils Dose]

Over/under 67% of the crowd in Miami cheers for Tebow to win the game, including the Phish fans in attendance...

[CRASHER]

I'll take it one step further and say the ONLY person who wants Miami to win in the ENTIRE building is Sporano

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Re: the Jet game, I have a feeling this will be the game that decides what road their season takes. If they win, I think they go on a roll...maybe not a prolonged winning-streak kind of roll, but a grind-it-out, 6-out-of-9 kind of thing...add that to a 4-3 start, suddenly they're looking at a respectable 10-6 season. There's very winnable games in those next nine:

AFC opponents (in no particular order): Buffalo (H&A), Miami (A), Denver (A), NE (H), KC (H). They could win at least four out of six here, provided they beat Miami, Denver, and KC. It goes without saying that it would greatly help their cause to try win at least two AFC East games.
NFC opponents: Washington (A), Philadelphia (A), Giants (H). Can't see why they can't win two out of three here.

They lose, they're not done, but then they're 3-4 (2-4 in the AFC), looking at having to win 7 out of 9...could be too much to ask.

Edited by Colorado Rockies 1976, 21 October 2011 - 02:44 PM.

[NJDevs4978]

Seattle at Cleveland:

Oh boy!! FOOTBALL FUTILITY IS BACK!!!!!! Two amazingly flawed 2-3 football teams, though if you merged the franchises, Holmgren running the offense, Carroll on the D....and Colt McCoy QBing the Seattle offense....damn you'd have something good....but we don't, and no one's calling these stiff teams "the best 2-3 teams in football), I just can't take either Seattle QB seriously, and even despite having NO ONE to throw to, the Browns will be a .500 football team by the end of the week.....God help us all.....

Winner: Browns

Game Quality: **** (now THIS is anti-football!!!)

That's because the Cowboys are the best 2-3 team in football

[nmigliore]

Falcons/Lions should be good; I'm going to take the other side of the coin and say Atlanta wins. Defense is an issue, no question. But Matt Ryan is due to turn things around, especially when you have talented recievers like Roddy White and Julio Jones. Their running game powered by Michael Turner is also due for a big game against the Lions who are giving up the 2nd most yards per rushing attempt.

Ah, an Andrew Luck Bowl Game between the Broncos and Dolphins... I'm not a Tebow fan, but I'm interested in his debut. Kyle Orton may still be better, but he's NOT the future in Denver. At least the Broncos are getting a nice, 11 game sample to see what Tebow is (or isn't). And hey, if he sucks, they'll get that much closer to Luck and/or some of the other good QB's in the draft like Matt Barkley, Landry Jones, etc. .. Miami is a mess.

Agreed on the Jets. A game like that gets you by the Dolphins, but it won't get you by the Chargers. Sanchez has actually been OK this year (best passer rating of his career so far despite Plaxico Burress being invisible).. hopefully the running game starts working, and I think I'm going to punch my TV if I see more than one 3-and-out to start the Jets' offense.

Wanna talk about a RB quietly having an awesome year? How about Matt Forte? 5.3 yards per rush, 908 total yards from scrimmage (tops in the league).. IF the Bears can protect Cutler, he's shown he can throw the ball around pretty well too (and don't act like Minnesota is garbage at putting pressure on the QB - they held the league leader in sacks to a pretty quiet game last week). Tampa's defense is bleh (3rd highest in yards per play against) and they'll be missing Blount again .. Better hope Josh Freeman has a big game or Cutler is made into a Chicken Cutlet by the Bucs' pass rush.

Still shocked Chris Johnson is averaging just 3 yards per carry... that's gotta change.. Right?

Carson Palmer is now supposedly NOT going to play. So much for the interest in that game. The Raiders should still win that game with a tackle dummy at QB; just give the ball to McFadden 30 times.

Hello, Christian Ponder. Now here's your first NFL test: the defending Super Bowl Champs who are CLEARLY best team in the league right now - the Packers. Yikes. Maybe there is one silver lining for Ponder: the Packers have given up the 2nd most passing yards this year.

Crappy Sunday Night game. Brees is probably pumped to play better after his not-Brees-like performance last week... and he gets to do it against a team he could beat in his sleep. Poor Colts... they'll probably be 0-7 after this shellacking, but I don't think they are the worst team in the NFL.

And wow, the Monday Night game is actually worse. The Ravens are awesome; the Jaguars couldn't be more opposite. I mean, this is a team so desperate they signed MIKE SIMS-WALKER... yeah, the wide receiver the winless, punchless RAMS threw to the curb. Holy hell. As usual, their only chance of winning is handing the ball off to MJD 25-30 times.... and that probably won't work against the Ravens.

----

You should add a Suck For Andrew Luck Power Rankings!

I'm actually cool with your AFC rankings. I still might be tempted to rank the Ravens #1, but 2nd to the Pats is justifiable.

I'm starting to believe in the 49ers... Alex Smith has been very well-utilized under Harbaugh, Frank Gore has been ridiculous over his last few games, and they have a defense that ranks in the top 1/3 of the league in yards per play. They should get Braylon Edwards back soon too. Very well balanced.

Edited by nmigliore, 21 October 2011 - 03:27 PM.

[NJDevs4978]

wow, the Monday Night game is actually worse. The Ravens are awesome; the Jaguars couldn't be more opposite. I mean, this is a team so desperate they signed MIKE SIMS-WALKER... yeah, the wide receiver the winless, punchless RAMS threw to the curb. Holy hell. As usual, their only chance of winning is handing the ball off to MJD 25-30 times.... and that probably won't work against the Ravens.

LOL, the Jags themselves kicked him to the curb in the offseason. Guess he knows the system at least.

[nmigliore]

...the Jags themselves kicked him to the curb in the offseason.

That just makes them look even more desperate.

[nmigliore]

Hey, I made the right choice picking the Falcons. As a defense, I wonder what it feels having the 250 pound Michael Turner running at you in late in the game. Must not be very fun.

Hey Crash, how were your Titans today? Hasselbeck came back down to Earth and Chris Johnson STILL can't do anything running the ball. That's going to be problematic; they really need Johnson to figure out but they also could really use another WR; I'm sure Terrell Owens, for good or bad, will be on their radar. Schaub and Foster absolutely TORCHED the Titans' defense too. The best team in that division should be mighty clear right about now.

LOL Tim Tebow: sub-50% completed passes, 161 yards, 7 sacks, a fumble .. against a terrible Miami team. Unfortunately the come-from-behind win ("HE JUST WINS GAMEZ!!") is going to completely mask the fact he wasn't any good... Okay, he didn't turn the ball over -- I'll give him that -- but he won't win many games in the NFL if he plays the way he did today. It's just not going to work. But who am I to rain on his parade - the Broncos are at least doing the right thing getting a good, honest look at Tebow and deciding if he's their future at QB. And wow, I know I just said this a few sentences ago, but Miami is terrible. It's almost like they are TRYING to tank. Clear Andrew Luck favorites.

Very, very happy with the Jets' performance today. First half was meh, 2nd half was excellent. Sanchez wasn't amazing but he made it work. And FINALLY Plaxico shows himself, and in the situations the Jets needed him for in the first place - the endzone! Love what Greene did on the ground; he fought hard for every extra yard and despite hurting what I believe was his ankle, he was dying to get back in and go back to work. Jets' defense was good too, especially in the passing game. It's not easy to make Philip Rivers look as bad as he did, especially late in the game when the Jets picked him off twice.

Jay Cutler was only sacked twice, and according to ESPN, hit just 4 times... yet he kind of stunk. I can't figure this guy out; he's so Jekyll and Hyde. Good thing they have one of the best all-purpose RB's in the game in their backfield in Matt Forte. Picking off Freeman 4 times and facing the Bucs' 3rd string RB helps a lot too. They almost choked this one away after being up 16 points at the half...

I'm only looking at numbers here, but yeah, that Cam Newton guy... 18-for-23, 11.1 yards per attempt, 1 passing TD, 59 rushing yards and 1 TD on 10 attempts. So much for that brief 2 or 3 game stretch where he struggled.

Oh, what a debacle in Oakland. 28-0.... against the CHIEFS. Yikes. Kyle Boller: 7-for-14, 61 yards, 0 TD, 3 INT. That sad part? Carson Palmer, who came in after the half, was actually worse than Kyle Boller. I'll give Palmer the benefit of the doubt here, but I saw some of his throws.... and he looked pretty damn awful. Oh yeah, more bad news: McFadden is hurt. Awful day for Raider Nation.

Yawner in Dallas except for one thing: DeMarco Murray; 253 yards and a TD on 25 attempts. I think Felix Jones is pretty decent (if hurt too often), but Dallas must be happy about having a couple of good options to play with at RB.

I watched the Minnesota/Green Bay, which was surprisingly closer than anyone expected. Christian Ponder made a lot of poor decisions (expected for a rookie QB making his 1st start), but I thought he looked at least a little better than his numbers say he was. Aaron Rodgers on the other hand... just amazing. At least 3 or 4 of his 6 incomplete passes were not even his fault. And I think he got bored when Green Bay went up 33-17, hence Minnesota's comeback attempt.

[NJDevs4978]

Yawner in Dallas except for one thing: DeMarco Murray; 253 yards and a TD on 25 attempts. I think Felix Jones is pretty decent (if hurt too often), but Dallas must be happy about having a couple of good options to play with at RB.

Has Felix ever got HALF that total in a game? They have to give Murray a shot at being the go-to guy from here in, especially with the fact Felix is made of glass.

Oh, what a debacle in Oakland. 28-0.... against the CHIEFS. Yikes. Kyle Boller: 7-for-14, 61 yards, 0 TD, 3 INT. That sad part? Carson Palmer, who came in after the half, was actually worse than Kyle Boller. I'll give Palmer the benefit of the doubt here, but I saw some of his throws.... and he looked pretty damn awful. Oh yeah, more bad news: McFadden is hurt. Awful day for Raider Nation.

Maybe they should have tried Lechler at QB, he had a nice TD pass last week

And wow, I know I just said this a few sentences ago, but Miami is terrible. It's almost like they are TRYING to tank. Clear Andrew Luck favorites.

The one time I'm rooting for these clowns and they spit it up...you would think the players (half of whom aren't going to be around next year at this rate) and coach - who doesn't want 0-16 on his resume - would have enough pride to try, and they did get up big but bad teams find ways to lose those games. And as much as people may scoff, Tebow does seem to have a little magic in him. Even last week he was ugly but almost brought the Broncos back against the Chargers.

Edited by NJDevs4978, 23 October 2011 - 07:18 PM.

[nmigliore]

Has Felix ever got HALF that total in a game? They have to give Murray a shot at being the go-to guy from here in, especially with the fact Felix is made of glass.

Well, Jones does have a career 5.1 yards per carry average. But yeah, he's made of glass, and I'd probably be inclined to go with Murray. Regardless of who they go with when Jones is healthy again, it's a good problem for Dallas to have though, IMO. Even if their record doesn't show it (yet), I think they have a really well-balanced team.

And as much as people may scoff, Tebow does seem to have a little magic in him. Even last week he was ugly but almost brought the Broncos back against the Chargers.

I'm not saying Tebow won't work at all, but having seen some of the highlights from today and looking at the numbers, in addition to what we saw against San Diego, it's hard to see how that will work consistently in the NFL. It should be at least entertaining, though.

Edited by nmigliore, 23 October 2011 - 07:31 PM.

[CRASHER]

It's funny how much BETTER the Falcons look without Julio Jones....if only they could go back to that draft eh??

Yeah I'm VERY letdown with the Titans (and I started Hasselbeck this week in one league....least I still won)

Tim Tebow is the White Vick without throwing the ball deep...ever....his accuracy is PUTRID.....we watched that ENTIRE game....it was the only game I really got into last week...I don't wanna hear "this guy just wins".....BULLsh!t, Miami's this bad....sadly Detroit might be too.....man they miss Javid best and Harrison really screwed them failing that physical (shame the league didn't allow them a chance to re-do that deal due to circumstances).....Let Sporano stay and run to the 0-16 destiny....harrass him about getting fired all season....he deserves it!

Speaking of teams trying HARD to be as bad as possible....hellloooo Colts.......

As much as it was a good effort from the Jets...you just shake your head watching that game and go typical San Diego....not to mention the shine is coming off Phillip Rivers this year...he has NOT been good.....

Speaking of not good....hi Mister Culter....the problem is there's so many WORSE QBs out there you gotta stick with him.....

Didn't see much of Skins and Panthers....but this is what you get in Washington when you start a guy at QB who security didn't wanna allow in the building for training camp.....to coin another internet icon...."are you serious bro??"

Guess when you won 10 in a row in the AFC West, this is how the wheels come off..and now you see why they didn't wanna play Palmer.....he wasn't ready and hard to blame him, he doesn't know the offense, or the receivers....he SHOULD be better after the bye and a mini-mini-camp.....

Yawner in Dallas except for one thing: DeMarco Murray; 253 yards and a TD on 25 attempts. I think Felix Jones is pretty decent (if hurt too often), but Dallas must be happy about having a couple of good options to play with at RB.

I don't trust this team to be smart enough to realize this.....and not to mention the Rams are a 53-man bye week....amazing that three teams in the NFL are 0-16 worthy......

it's really been too easy for the Packers this year, but holy hell they are GOOD

.....too many fun to watch teams were on bye this week....this might be the worst week of all around football I can remember sitting through.......

[CRASHER]

The one time I'm rooting for these clowns and they spit it up...you would think the players (half of whom aren't going to be around next year at this rate) and coach - who doesn't want 0-16 on his resume - would have enough pride to try, and they did get up big but bad teams find ways to lose those games. And as much as people may scoff, Tebow does seem to have a little magic in him. Even last week he was ugly but almost brought the Broncos back against the Chargers.

Denver had like 3-4 chances of WIDE OPEN guys....but Teebow can't piss on the broad side of a barn after pint night at the local Roadhouse, least he got me my Vick-like cheap points running the ball against a Miami team that stinks, doesn't care and has tuned out their idiot coach....poor Brian....he wasn't having a WORD of me saying that it's for the best to just go 0-16 and Suck for Luck at this point (I think my Teebow celebration might have irked him too )

[nmigliore]

Reading Peter King's MMQB, I had to post this excerpt:

The Carson Palmer trade this week got me to thinking about the Plunkett deal, and about the subsequent deal the Niners made for O.J. Simpson two years later. And it caused me to reassess my opinion of Bill Walsh, and to think of him as greater than I'd thought of him over the years -- and my opinion of him already couldn't have been much better. Let me explain.

Thirty-five years ago, front offices in the NFL obviously had much different views of draft choices than they do today. In 1976, Plunkett was a 28-year-old quarterback who had bottomed out in New England. Still, San Francisco traded quarterback Tom Owen, two first-round picks in 1976, and first- and second-round picks in 1977 for Plunkett ... and released him after he went 11-15 in two seasons.

If it's possible, the Niners made an even worse trade for the battered and used-up O.J. Simpson in 1978, even after the Plunkett trade stripped them of the chance to pick four top prospects. For Simpson -- who would be 31 when he took the field for the Niners, and shot after a career on the artificial turf in Buffalo -- the Niners dealt second- and third-round picks in 1978, first- and fourth-round picks in 1979, and a second-round pick in 1980. Simpson wound up struggling behind a bad line and gaining just 1,018 yards in two years before retiring.

So for two players who essentially helped the franchise regress, this is what San Francisco paid in a four-year period:

First-round picks: 4. Second-round picks: 3. Third-round picks: 1. Fourth-round picks: 1.

Walsh arrived in 1979; he must have been in agony seeing the first overall pick go off to Buffalo because of the mind-blowingly expensive trade for Simpson. (The Bills had their own problems in the front office; linebacker Tom Cousineau was Buffalo's pick, with that top pick acquired from San Francisco, and he never played a snap for the Bills. He signed in Canada. He later had his rights dealt for the pick that became Jim Kelly, so it wasn't a total washout for Buffalo.) Forced to improvise for a quarterback on draft day 1979, Walsh picked Joe Montana in the third round. Finally back with a full load of picks in 1981, Walsh took Ronnie Lott in the first round. I find it amazing how quickly Walsh restocked a bad team and made it a champion.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/peter_king/10/24/Week7/index.html#ixzz1biCQ8tu9

What the hell were teams (or just San Franciso?) thinking back then with dumping draft picks? That's crazy.

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Guess when you won 10 in a row in the AFC West, this is how the wheels come off..and now you see why they didn't wanna play Palmer.....he wasn't ready and hard to blame him, he doesn't know the offense, or the receivers....he SHOULD be better after the bye and a mini-mini-camp.....

He actually made some good throws. What I would worry about is that the word out of Cincy was that Palmer had lost a lot of zip off his fastball. The pick-6 was horrible...reminded of me of Chad Pennington, when he'd try to zip one to the outside and would see it come back for 6, simply because he couldn't throw it hard enough.

[CRASHER]

Reading Peter King's MMQB, I had to post this excerpt:


http://sportsillustr...l#ixzz1biCQ8tu9

What the hell were teams (or just San Franciso?) thinking back then with dumping draft picks? That's crazy.

I'd have to assume that scouting and development were NOT as big or important back then....not to mention players didn't have gigantic contracts and were considered more interchangeable and moved left right and sideways.....what are the odds in the modern day of scouting (and more important, just about EVERY college football game is on national TV) do you think Joe-Mo falls to the 3rd Round? Highly unlikely....yeah you can say Brady did but even THAT was over 10 years ago too.....

[CRASHER]

He actually made some good throws. What I would worry about is that the word out of Cincy was that Palmer had lost a lot of zip off his fastball. The pick-6 was horrible...reminded of me of Chad Pennington, when he'd try to zip one to the outside and would see it come back for 6, simply because he couldn't throw it hard enough.

He threw enough ducks to fill a pond though......I got into that game since all the 1pm games were pretty crappy and I was following my NJDevs starting QB
It's gonna be interesting (and in interesting I mean painfully brutal) to see him against a VERY angry and borderline dirty Lions front 4 next week......

[MantaRay]

Reading Peter King's MMQB, I had to post this excerpt:


http://sportsillustr...l#ixzz1biCQ8tu9

What the hell were teams (or just San Franciso?) thinking back then with dumping draft picks? That's crazy.

You can not compare the two era's. Back then NFL players were typically inexpensive, so picking up a "name" player could sell tickets.

[MadDog2020]

Yesterday was the first time since the merger in 1970 that a team had a 15 point lead with under 3:00 to play and lost. The Dolphins don't just lose- they lose historically. And I witnessed it in person. Suck for Luck baby.