# The 2020-2021 NFL thread



## Thomas Veil

Wow. Such a weird, different (but not necessarily bad) start to the season.

The Chiefs are playing the Texans before only 16,000 or so fans, and one thing that stood out is that when the PA announcer asked for a moment of silence to honor the ongoing fight for social justice...the stadium _literally fell silent_. I’ve never seen that before.


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## Eric

Thomas Veil said:


> Wow. Such a weird, different (but not necessarily bad) start to the season.
> 
> The Chiefs are playing the Texans before only 16,000 or so fans, and one thing that stood out is that when the PA announcer asked for a moment of silence to honor the ongoing fight for social justice...the stadium _literally fell silent_. I’ve never seen that before.



Interesting, I meant to tune in and check it out but got caught up in other things. It seems like they're trying to strike the right balance, we'll have to see how it turns out. Just keeping the players from getting it is a challenge from the sounds of it.


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## Citizenzen

I watched for a few minutes. My heart just wasn’t in it. The older I get (60 next birthday), the less sports interests me. I stopped following baseball decades ago, haven’t watched basketball for years, and wouldn’t be surprised if football is about to drop off my radar.  Golf is the one exception, because I play avidly.  But it might be time to bid football a fond farewell.  We shall see.


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## Alli

Citizenzen said:


> I watched for a few minutes. My heart just wasn’t in it. The older I get (60 next birthday), the less sports interests me. I stopped following baseball decades ago, haven’t watched basketball for years, and wouldn’t be surprised if football is about to drop off my radar.  Golf is the one exception, because I play avidly.  But it might be time to bid football a fond farewell.  We shall see.




I’m older than you, and have fallen back in the depth of my football love. I no longer follow the draft and then follow through pre-season to make sure my picks are the ones who get to stay.

That being said, I’m really excited about watching the Saints on Sunday.


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## SuperMatt

Even with the lower number of fans, the bathrooms alone at the stadium will be a super spreader event...


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## JayMysteri0

Thomas Veil said:


> Wow. Such a weird, different (but not necessarily bad) start to the season.
> 
> The Chiefs are playing the Texans before only 16,000 or so fans, and one thing that stood out is that when the PA announcer asked for a moment of silence to honor the ongoing fight for social justice...the stadium _literally fell silent_. I’ve never seen that before.



Yeah, about that...
https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1304222138551816193/


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## Alli

If you look at the response from Brian G. Nelson (with whom I’m unfamiliar), it is the same response we’ve been giving the whiners from TOP all along. A few moments before the game.


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## Thomas Veil

JayMysteri0 said:


> Yeah, about that...
> https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1304222138551816193/



*Sigh.* Mea culpa.

On reflection, I did at one point hear what I thought _might _be booing. (It sounded odd, not like normal booing, probably because of the sparse attendance.) I was hoping it wasn't that.

It was then that I heard it get silent,--but then I did start to hear that sound come back. It occurs to me now the "quiet" I heard wasn't silence.

There has been, for a while now, a problem with either my TV, my optical audio cable or my sound bar where the sound randomly dips down to almost nothing and then comes back again. It's not frequent but annoying as hell when I'm trying to listen to dialogue. 

I'm thinking that--of all times--_that _problem occurred just when the PA announcer started the "moment of unity".

In any case, it _was_ booing, and the Kansas City fans can go fuck themselves. The Chiefs are a great team, but their racist fans are an embarrassment and a disgrace.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised. It's Kansas, after all...a deep red state that elected Sam Brownback twice.

Great way to start the season, KC fans. You're all champions.


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## Chew Toy McCoy

Thomas Veil said:


> the PA announcer asked for a moment of silence to honor the ongoing fight for social justice...the stadium _literally fell silent_. I’ve never seen that before.




Interesting.  I don't follow sports, but I read it happened very differently in the form of people booing for the moment of silence.  So either that didn't happen, the mics couldn't pick up the booing from the limited crowd, or they turned off the mics during the moment of silence.


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## JayMysteri0

Chew Toy McCoy said:


> Interesting.  I don't follow sports, but I read it happened very differently in the form of people booing for the moment of silence.  So either that didn't happen, the mics couldn't pick up the booing from the limited crowd, or they turned off the mics during the moment of silence.



It didn't matter either way.  The rest of the country saw on live TV, clipped it, posted it on Twitter & anywhere else, and suddenly Kansas City fans were being called trash.  It didn't matter, they booed a moment of unity with Black & White players trying to send a message.  It didn't happen matter that it wasn't during the anthem, it didn't impact the game, what matters is that it happened.  A very White audience didn't care for it.  Not making it a good look for KC.  The announcers didn't escape notice as well, as Twitter dragged them as well.



> https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article245654820.html






> Kansas City received some unwanted national attention Thursday night when Chiefs fans could be heard booing on NBC’s broadcast as Chiefs and Texans players locked arms in a pre-game moment of unity.
> 
> The scene drew a wave of social media commentary, including a Twitter scrimmage between two prominent Missouri politicians.
> 
> Republican Sen. Josh Hawley defended the booing at Arrowhead, jumping on a Raw Story article that labeled the spectators “classless trash” in its headline.
> 
> The “classless trash” reference was from a Kenny King Jr. tweet; King, in his Twitter profile, identifies as a Las Vegas Raiders fan.
> 
> “’Classless trash’? The left showing their usual contempt for middle America,” Hawley tweeted Thursday night. “Missouri has the best fans in the country. Don’t blame them for being tired of NFL/corporate woke politics jammed down their throats.”
> 
> Former Democratic Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander poked some fun at Hawley a half-hour later.
> 
> “Josh Hawley: In favor of booing @PatrickMahomes.”
> 
> He included a well-known GIF from the 2004 film “Dodgeball,” where analyst Pepper Brooks — played by Jason Bateman — delivers the famous line: “That’s a bold strategy, Cotton. Let’s see if it pays off for him.”







> KC mayor Quinton Lucas also addressed the booing, calling it unrepresentative of the city.
> 
> “We’re a good city of good people. I heard boos too,” Lucas tweeted. “But we also have hundreds of thousands more around here who respect the message the players are sharing; who respect the rights of our players and people to voice a strong message and who are working to make us better each day.”




As I've said, if I were player out on that field as the fans booed, I would NOW look at everyone one of those KC fans much much more differently now.


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## SuperMatt

Lance Briggs of the Chicago Bears had some thoughts for those who want athletes to shut up and play.

https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1304226335242547200/


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## Thomas Veil

JayMysteri0 said:


> It didn't matter either way.  The rest of the country saw on live TV, clipped it, posted it on Twitter & anywhere else, and suddenly Kansas City fans were being called trash.  It didn't matter, they booed a moment of unity with Black & White players trying to send a message.  It didn't happen matter that it wasn't during the anthem, it didn't impact the game, what matters is that it happened.  A very White audience didn't care for it.  Not making it a good look for KC.  The announcers didn't escape notice as well, as Twitter dragged them as well.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> As I've said, if I were player out on that field as the fans booed, I would NOW look at everyone one of those KC fans much much more differently now.




Oh, it did indeed happen, as you posted elsewhere. And as embarrassing as it is for me to have written that totally incorrect lead-off post, it’s there and I said it and that’s the reality of it. I apologize for misleading anyone. 

It will be interesting today to see if there are any other planned pregame demonstrations of unity, and the fans’ reactions to them.

Lance Briggs is right: for some people the only thing black people are good for is playing football.


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## Alli

I’m almost sorry there will be no fans allowed in the Dome for today’s season kickoff between the Saints and Tampa Bay.


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## Thomas Veil

_No_ fans? Many teams are allowing _some.  _But then from what I’m hearing it varies by state health orders.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> _No_ fans? Many teams are allowing _some.  _But then from what I’m hearing it varies by state health orders.




None. And the players are angry that they will be pumping in fake fan noises.


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## Thomas Veil

Well, there I say let’s wait and see what happens.

If fans (where permitted) start crowding the front rows, just because they _can_—and with the way people have behaved that’s a real possibility—then no fans may end up being the case in more than a few stadia.


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## SuperMatt

Frank Reich, coach of the Indianapolis Colts, and famous for the greatest comeback in NFL playoff history, took a knee during the anthem on behalf of the team, in an attempt to show humility. Full story below:









						Doyel: Frank Reich kneels during anthem because it's not Black communities problem to fix
					

Colts found a unique way to protest social injustice before the Jags game: Players stood and linked arms for the anthem while coach Frank Reich knelt.



					www.indystar.com


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## Alli

I have no idea what my team did prior to the game, because Fox was so intent on showing us the ending of other games that they didn’t get to my game until the ball was already in the air for kickoff!

However, I can now say unequivocally that having fake crowd sounds in the Superdome is beyond stupid. You can’t replace a roar with a whisper.

On the bright side, we knocked that idiotic grin off Tom Hades Brady’s face.


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## Thomas Veil

*Sigh.* Another year, another Browns opening week debacle.


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## JayMysteri0

All I saw was lamentations for the 'No fun' Panthers, and Jerry Jones trending on Twitter for all the WRONG reasons.
https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1305300636536250368/


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## Thomas Veil

Even back at The Other Place, I’ve always wanted to say...I don’t know who does the graphic opening for NBC’s _Sunday Night Football_ (“Waiting All Day For Sunday Night”), but...that person isn’t paid enough.

The green screen in that intro, putting Carrie Underwood in a variety of CG backdrops, is just flat out amazing. Put that together with Underwood’s song and you end up watching the show just as much for that as the game.


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## Eric

When you record a game on Youtube TV it has a highlights section that shows all the key plays and scores in a period of a few minutes, it's an excellent way to just catch the highlights if you're not up to watching the entire game.


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## Alli

ericgtr12 said:


> When you record a game on Youtube TV it has a highlights section that shows all the key plays and scores in a period of a few minutes, it's an excellent way to just catch the highlights if you're not up to watching the entire game.




I would never record a game.


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## SuperMatt

Blake Bortles hired today. Colin Kaepernick still has no team. The NFL is flat-out lying that they care about racism. They are still blacklisting Kaepernick. Players should boycott.


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## Eric

SuperMatt said:


> Blake Bortles hired today. Colin Kaepernick still has no team. The NFL is flat-out lying that they care about racism. They are still blacklisting Kaepernick. Players should boycott.



No surprise here, they'll try to safe face but the reality is that no team will ever take him. IMO he made that sacrifice for the greater good.


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## SuperMatt

ericgtr12 said:


> No surprise here, they'll try to safe face but the reality is that no team will ever take him. IMO he made that sacrifice for the greater good.




When those KC fans booed their super bowl winning team because they dared to stand against racism... it really highlighted how many racist jerks there still are in America.


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## Thomas Veil

Teams obviously still want nothing to do with him because he brought all this controversy to the game. (The fact that it _shouldn't have been_ controversial is what makes it so racist.)

Now he's got the reputation of being a champion boat rocker, and as we've all seen, boat rockers (many of which aren't even principled like Kaepernick but are simply head cases like Antonio Brown) don't last long in the NFL.


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## Thomas Veil

Oh, sure! They just get me used to _Sunday Night Football_, _Monday Night Football_, _Tuesday Night Football_...and now they tell me there isn’t any Wednesday Night Football on tonight.


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## SuperMatt

Watching the Thursday night game instead of the debate. Saw a truly classic play which immediately blew up on Twitter. This is the NFC East in a nutshell in 2020....

https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1319466634986377217/


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## Thomas Veil

Yeah my wife and I laughed at that.

And yeah, the NFC East is absolutely pitiful.


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## SuperMatt

This season it's become obvious that Brady was carrying the Patriots along with their dominant D. Belichick had lots of talent for years. Not that the coach isn't good... But I think the dynasty is over.


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## Thomas Veil

It’s surprising to watch it happen this fast, but yeah.

It’s also looking like Joe Burrow is going to be a very, very good quarterback. But it also looks like the Bengals still need a lot of work.  We’re already hearing about Cincinnati players wanting out.

And Dallas...oy veh!!


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## Alli

SuperMatt said:


> This season it's become obvious that Brady was carrying the Patriots along with their dominant D. Belichick had lots of talent for years. Not that the coach isn't good... But I think the dynasty is over.



Was Brady carrying them, or were they carrying him? Right now it seems as though TB is just recreating the Pats in FL.


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## Thomas Veil

Another weird thing about this year—as if we didn’t have enough—is that we’re approaching the half way point, and a bunch of teams have winning records, a bunch of teams stink...and there are not many teams in the middle.

There are only five teams that are 3-3, 3-4 or 4-3. Everyone else is either doing well/okay or slumming.

That’s aside from the fact that this year you can probably win the NFC East with a 7-9 record.


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## Alli

And I’d rather hear an empty stadium than the joke of a crowd soundtrack played during games.


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## Thomas Veil

The game is not even at halftime but I am being treated to the bizarre spectacle of the beaten up 2-6 Cowboys dominating the *un*beaten 7-0 Pittsburgh Steelers.  Just as I wrote this the Cowboys added a touchdown to their field goal, and the hated Steelers are scoreless.

I’m guessing a large part of this is due to Garrett Gilbert playing backup quarterback. When he was with the Browns he actually exhibited a lot of skill. I’m sorry we traded him away to Dallas.


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> The game is not even at halftime but I am being treated to the bizarre spectacle of the beaten up 2-6 Cowboys dominating the *un*beaten 7-0 Pittsburgh Steelers.  Just as I wrote this the Cowboys added a touchdown to their field goal, and the hated Steelers are scoreless.
> 
> I’m guessing a large part of this is due to Garrett Gilbert playing backup quarterback. When he was with the Browns he actually exhibited a lot of skill. I’m sorry we traded him away to Dallas.



Looks like the undefeated team overlooked a humble opponent.

I am very very happy today because the Bills beat the mighty Seahawks!


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## Alli

SuperMatt said:


> Looks like the undefeated team overlooked a humble opponent.
> 
> I am very very happy today because the Bills beat the mighty Seahawks!



Any given Sunday.


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## Thomas Veil

The ‘Boys are still ahead but they’re starting to make costly errors.


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> The ‘Boys are still ahead but they’re starting to make costly errors.



The Steelers got some massive assists from the refs on the last drive...


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## Thomas Veil

Yeah, like not catching the Steeler face mask on Vander Esch.


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> Yeah, like not catching the Steeler face mask on Vander Esch.



And the “illegal contact“ penalty that took away the turnover... he hit him within 5 yards, so it should not have been called.


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## Thomas Veil

Aw, Dallas. You let me down. 

HOLD ON. Dallas is making a last gasp effort...

...dammit! 

Good game, though!


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## Alli

One of the advantages of having retired is that I can now stay up and watch Sunday, Monday, and Thursday night games.

Last night’s route of Tom Brady Tampa Bay by my beloved Saints was worth it. Holy shit! Gotta admit, I enjoyed it way more than I should have. The perfect ending to the perfect weekend.


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## Thomas Veil

Sorry I missed that.


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## Thomas Veil

There’s this pigeon that’s been wandering around on the field for pretty much the whole Browns-Texans game, blissfully unaware of the mayhem going on around him. 

This year just gets weirder and weirder.


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## SuperMatt

I watched the Detroit v Washington game - another crazy finish with Washington tying it with 16 seconds left, and they couldn’t keep the Lions off the board for even 16 seconds.

Bills just started and their QB Josh Allen CAUGHT a touchdown pass. Yep it’s a crazy week so far!


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## Alli

I was disappointed when Tampa Bay beat Carolina. I have a soft spot for Teddy Bridgewater.

Drew Brees didn’t play at all in the 2nd half against the 49ers after a rib injury. If the 9ers hadn’t been so bad (their QB was also out at one point), we would have lost. Winston is no Bridgewater.


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## SuperMatt

I was celebrating an imminent Bills win with 11 seconds and 50 yards to go for Arizona... the Hail Mary was unbelievably lucky for Arizona (of course couldn’t happen without them being super talented, but still). Oh well, would have been better to hit the bye week with a win, but the Bills are a very good team this year, and I think they will do some damage in the playoffs this year.


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## Thomas Veil

Alli said:


> I was disappointed when Tampa Bay beat Carolina. I have a soft spot for Teddy Bridgewater.



I do too, plus I'm always disappointed when a team with Tom Brady wins. 



SuperMatt said:


> I was celebrating an imminent Bills win with 11 seconds and 50 yards to go for Arizona... the Hail Mary was unbelievably lucky for Arizona (of course couldn’t happen without them being super talented, but still). Oh well, would have been better to hit the bye week with a win, but the Bills are a very good team this year, and I think they will do some damage in the playoffs this year.



Agreed. I did not expect the Bills to be a good team this year, but here we are. You can say they beat some mediocre teams, but they also beat Seattle, so there's that.

Speaking of wild endings, the Browns-Texans game had one, too.  With a little more than a minute left to play and Cleveland leading 10-7, RB Nick Chubb tore off a long run. He was all alone near the end zone and headed for a sure touchdown when he...purposely stepped out of bounds at the 1.

That had us scratching out heads here. I mean, why wouldn't Cleveland go for the TD so you could be up (with the extra point) 17-7?

And then the commentators explained, by stepping out of bounds, he stopped the clock with :50 left to play. Houston had no time outs, so all that was left was for Baker Mayfield to kneel on the ball twice and the game was over.

If Chubb had scored the touchdown, Houston would've had 50 seconds left to play with. While it's not likely, it's not out of the realm of possibility for Houston to score, recover an onside kick and score again. So Cleveland sacrificed the TD and the points for the sure win.

And while the commentators were congratulating Chubb on what they called a smart and selfless play, it turned out Baker Mayfield called that move in the huddle.

And now, the downside. In many places the line on the game was Cleveland by 4 points. So by avoiding the easy touchdown and leaving the final score 10-7, not only did Nick Chubb piss off anybody who had him in their fantasy league, but bettors who took the points _lost_ money because Chubb stepped out at the 1.

I think it might be healthier if Nick Chubb stays out of Vegas for a few months.


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> I do too, plus I'm always disappointed when a team with Tom Brady wins.
> 
> 
> Agreed. I did not expect the Bills to be a good team this year, but here we are. You can say they beat some mediocre teams, but they also beat Seattle, so there's that.
> 
> Speaking of wild endings, the Browns-Texans game had one, too.  With a little more than a minute left to play and Cleveland leading 10-7, RB Nick Chubb tore off a long run. He was all alone near the end zone and headed for a sure touchdown when he...purposely stepped out of bounds at the 1.
> 
> That had us scratching out heads here. I mean, why wouldn't Cleveland go for the TD so you could be up (with the extra point) 17-7?
> 
> And then the commentators explained, by stepping out of bounds, he stopped the clock with :50 left to play. Houston had no time outs, so all that was left was for Baker Mayfield to kneel on the ball twice and the game was over.
> 
> If Chubb had scored the touchdown, Houston would've had 50 seconds left to play with. While it's not likely, it's not out of the realm of possibility for Houston to score, recover an onside kick and score again. So Cleveland sacrificed the TD and the points for the sure win.
> 
> And while the commentators were congratulating Chubb on what they called a smart and selfless play, it turned out Baker Mayfield called that move in the huddle.
> 
> And now, the downside. In many places the line on the game was Cleveland by 4 points. So by avoiding the easy touchdown and leaving the final score 10-7, not only did Nick Chubb piss off anybody who had him in their fantasy league, but bettors who took the points _lost_ money because Chubb stepped out at the 1.
> 
> I think it might be healthier if Nick Chubb stays out of Vegas for a few months.



The Bills had to go for a TD since overtime against Arizona would almost certainly come down to the coin toss. Both teams have good offenses, and defenses are too tired to stop them by overtime. The Hail Mary... the guy was triple covered, they got a pass rush on the QB... the pass was wobbly, but Arizona got their miracle. Hopefully the Bills are saving some miracles for the playoffs!


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## Thomas Veil

Wow, I just saw that play during the SNF halftime show. Helluva throw and catch.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> I do too, plus I'm always disappointed when a team with Tom Brady wins.



A lot of people would be more than happy if Brady retired at the end of this season.


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## Joe

Packers looked like trash today, but I'll take an ugly W


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## Thomas Veil

Watching Ravens-Patriots and in the final two minutes it started raining so hard it was hard to see anything. There was a constant muffled banging sound not unlike fireworks, but it was almost certainly raindrops battering the roof of the broadcast booth. Unreal.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> Watching Ravens-Patriots and in the final two minutes it started raining so hard it was hard to see anything. There was a constant muffled banging sound not unlike fireworks, but it was almost certainly raindrops battering the roof of the broadcast booth. Unreal.



You’d think by now that every team would have an indoor stadium.


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## Thomas Veil

I remember that in Cleveland the idea was proposed and quickly rejected. Real men don't play in domes, they said.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> I remember that in Cleveland the idea was proposed and quickly rejected. Real men don't play in domes, they said.



What about real fans?


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## Thomas Veil

Same thing. Cleveland is a rust belt, hard hat city where you’re expected to freeze your ass off while cheering on your team. Done it myself a few times.

My own not-so-hard hat is off to the fans who stayed through this past Sunday’s game. That ending must have felt like a cold monsoon.

But FWIW, I’m with you. I’d have liked to see a dome. Ultimately it wasn’t just the macho factor, though. It was considered too expensive. Taxpayers mainly paid for the stadium.


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## Alli

I’ve sat through enough Ohio State games (even before they closed in the horseshoe!) to really appreciate the Superdome today. I would love to go to a game in that new Vegas stadium.


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## Thomas Veil

That’s not a stadium, that’s a shrine to the football gods. 

I’m still trying to figure out if it looks more like a flying saucer, Apple’s new HQ, or a giant-sized Roomba.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> That’s not a stadium, that’s a shrine to the football gods.
> 
> I’m still trying to figure out if it looks more like a flying saucer, Apple’s new HQ, or a giant-sized Roomba.



Definitely a shrine. Only Ohioans can understand.


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## Thomas Veil

LOL. Nothing like having the Dock show up in your live postgame press conference.


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## Thomas Veil

How it started.









						The Denver Broncos have no quarterbacks for Sunday's Saints game due to NFL Covid-19 protocols | CNN
					

The Denver Broncos have lost all of their quarterbacks for Sunday's game against the New Orleans Saints, after they were declared ineligible for play due to NFL Covid-19 protocols.




					www.cnn.com
				




How it ended.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> How it started.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> The Denver Broncos have no quarterbacks for Sunday's Saints game due to NFL Covid-19 protocols | CNN
> 
> 
> The Denver Broncos have lost all of their quarterbacks for Sunday's game against the New Orleans Saints, after they were declared ineligible for play due to NFL Covid-19 protocols.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> www.cnn.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> How it ended.
> 
> View attachment 1607​




"Broncos team with no QBs scored the same number of points against the Saints as a team with Tom Brady, Leonard Fournette, LeSean McCoy, Ronald Jones, Antonio Brown, Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Rob Gronkowski and Cameron Brate."


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## Thomas Veil

Oh that’s _right_!

That’s embarrassing—and I don’t mean for Denver.


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## JayMysteri0

This was my post about it elsewhere
https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1333202499038228482/

I told people, Kaep sent Denver's call to voicemail, in case the Jets called instead.


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## Thomas Veil

You gotta feel for the guy (Kendall Hinton). 1-for-9 for 13 yards, two interceptions and a stellar 0.0 quarterback rating, all while spending three hours being pursued by Saints pass rushers. Talk about taking one for the team.


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## JayMysteri0

Thomas Veil said:


> You gotta feel for the guy (Kendall Hinton). 1-for-9 for 13 yards, two interceptions and a stellar 0.0 quarterback rating, all while spending three hours being pursued by Saints pass rushers. Talk about taking one for the team.



The issue is did he REALLY have to take one for the team, or did the team throw him out there?


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## Thomas Veil

My understanding is that they did have a RB who could also serve as emergency quarterback. Who knows what the internal discussions looked like? Maybe they placed ‘em side by side and said, “Okay, who’s gonna be quarterback” and each guy pointed at the other.


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## SuperMatt

They could have forced Baltimore to play on Thanksgiving without any of their starters too. The NFL clearly favors some teams over others. And they’re delaying the Baltimore game yet another day until Wednesday. Bend over backwards for Baltimore and Tennessee, and stick it to Denver? Nice.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> You gotta feel for the guy (Kendall Hinton). 1-for-9 for 13 yards, two interceptions and a stellar 0.0 quarterback rating, all while spending three hours being pursued by Saints pass rushers. Talk about taking one for the team.



I felt so bad for him that despite being a long-time Saints fan, I was rooting for the Broncos.


JayMysteri0 said:


> The issue is did he REALLY have to take one for the team, or did the team throw him out there?



Good question.


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## Thomas Veil

Yesterday’s Ravens-Steelers game...

After all that moving around, I think there were probably forty live fans in the stadium to watch the expected result (Steelers win). And now RG3 is injured to boot.

Well, at least the game did inspire some internet humor.


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## Thomas Veil

https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1335710244840873985/

Words of wisdom, Lloyd. Words. Of. Wisdom.

​


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## SuperMatt

Buffalo Bills with a fantastic win on Monday night, exorcising the demons of the hail mary that burned them in the same stadium a few weeks ago!


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## Alli

And the unbeaten Steelers lose to a team with no name.


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## Thomas Veil

I missed the ending of the Bills game due to bedtime in the eastern time zone (though that rule won’t apply next week when the Browns welcome the Ratbirds), but I was confident they would win.

Of course I thought the same thing about the Steelers, so my wife and I were elated to see them lose and be denied, for now, the division-clinching win. I don’t seriously expect we’ll overtake them, but stranger things have happened. There are only five teams in the NFL with records equal to or greater than the Browns.

Kevin Stefanski seriously can’t buy a drink in Cleveland right now.

Oh...and then there was this from my man Steve Kornacki.

​


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> Oh...and then there was this from my man Steve Kornacki.
> 
> 
> 
> ​



OMG! That is hilarious!


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## Thomas Veil

Yeah he’s appearing on _Football Night in America_ now. Kudos to whoever came up with that idea.


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## Thomas Veil

LOL. Saw this tweeted after the Browns lost to the Ravens in a Monday night thriller.


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## SuperMatt

Watching a Saturday NFL game right now between Buffalo and Denver. I guess college teams are on a break until the bowl games, so the NFL steps in to get the Saturday sports fans. I hope the Bills win today, clinching their first division title in 25 years I think??? Surely seems just a short while ago that I was watching the Bills in the Super Bowl; time really flies.


----------



## Thomas Veil

Usually there's a courtesy agreement between the NFL and the NCAA so that when college games are over (for the time being), the NFL plays some Saturday games.

This year kind of threw all that out the window. I don't have NFL Network so I couldn't see those games, but I did get to see Ohio State-Northwestern, which looked very bad for OSU fans until the end. 

I did notice there are several other college games today. As I said, everything's different this year.


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> Usually there's a courtesy agreement between the NFL and the NCAA so that when college games are over (for the time being), the NFL plays some Saturday games.
> 
> This year kind of threw all that out the window. I don't have NFL Network so I couldn't see those games, but I did get to see Ohio State-Northwestern, which looked very bad for OSU fans until the end.
> 
> I did notice there are several other college games today. As I said, everything's different this year.



And over the past couple decades, the colleges have increased the number of games they play in a season too. I remember when college football ended at Thanksgiving and then the bowl games were the week after Christmas, ending on New Year’s day.


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## Thomas Veil

Excuse me if I rub my hands together and chortle that the Pittsburgh Steelers lost again...and to the Bengals, no less.

Sorry about the Saints, though, @Alli. At least you’ve got that playoff slot locked up.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> Excuse me if I rub my hands together and chortle that the Pittsburgh Steelers lost again...and to the Bengals, no less.
> 
> Sorry about the Saints, though, @Alli. At least you’ve got that playoff slot locked up.



Maybe we’ll even have a healthy team back by then.


----------



## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> Excuse me if I rub my hands together and chortle that the Pittsburgh Steelers lost again...and to the Bengals, no less.
> 
> Sorry about the Saints, though, @Alli. At least you’ve got that playoff slot locked up.



Steelers believed the hype. Even after consecutive losses, they still assumed they could easily beat the Bengals. Receivers acting like spoiled brats, and it appears Ben R. did something to annoy his entire team, because I didn’t see anybody talking to him on the sideline. His own center didn’t bother snapping him the ball correctly, and the Cincy cornerbacks showed more enthusiasm breaking on his throws than his own receivers. Can’t stand Tomlin or Ben R.


----------



## SuperMatt

Watching the Packers vs Titans on Sunday Night Football. They are playing in the snow which takes me back to my time as a kid when we’d play football in the snow without a second thought. Fun times...


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## Thomas Veil

Alli said:


> Maybe we’ll even have a healthy team back by then.



I find myself saying this about my Browns this week.

I know they didn’t play their finest game, but I don’t understand the NFL pulling the team’s _entire_ regular receiving corps at the last minute instead of postponing the game. Regardless of Kevin Stefanski’s coachspeak denial, that was a _big_ factor in their loss.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> I find myself saying this about my Browns this week.
> 
> I know they didn’t play their finest game, but I don’t understand the NFL pulling the team’s _entire_ regular receiving corps at the last minute instead of postponing the game. Regardless of Kevin Stefanski’s coachspeak denial, that was a _big_ factor in their loss.



This entire season has been crazy. No spring training. No pre-season. I don’t know how any team has managed to not forfeit multiple games due to Covid.


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## SuperMatt

They are showing Monday Night Football on ABC instead of just ESPN tonight; very happy I can watch with my antenna.


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## Thomas Veil

Their latest episodes of _Celebrity Newlywed Game_ and_ The Bachelor in Quarantine_ must not have come in.


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## DT

Thomas Veil said:


> Excuse me if I rub my hands together and chortle that the Pittsburgh Steelers lost again...













Thomas Veil said:


> ...and to the Bengals, no less.




Is that worse than losing to the Jets?


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## Thomas Veil

I’m not gonna make excuses for their bad play, but really, not having a receiving corps for Mayfield was a gift to the Jets. That game felt like being in a boxing match with one arm tied behind your back.

The Steelers are resting Roethlisberger this weekend. I don’t know whether that helps or hurts the Browns’ hopes.

Mason Rudolph is starting, which means right now Kevin Stefanski is probably designing a helmet for Myles Garrett that needs a ten digit password to remove.


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## SuperMatt

I am so excited about the Bills this year... games that they would have lost in prior years, they won. The defense had trouble in the first half of the season, but they have returned with a vengeance, and Josh Allen has to win the “most improved” award of all time compared to his first 2 seasons. Go Bills!


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## Thomas Veil

I’ve always had a soft spot for the Bills. Being in four Super Bowls and losing all of them...that was brutal.


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> I’ve always had a soft spot for the Bills. Being in four Super Bowls and losing all of them...that was brutal.



Even Sisyphus felt bad for them after the 4th loss... but those were great seasons to be a Bills fan - they were a fantastic team.


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## Mark

SuperMatt said:


> Watching the Packers vs Titans on Sunday Night Football. They are playing in the snow which takes me back to my time as a kid when we’d play football in the snow without a second thought. Fun times...




1  the Packers's best games are always best when the camera lens has trouble focusing due to reflecting off of snow flurries

2  playing touch football in the street in a snow filled and snow-bank filled winter is better than playing touch football in summer in the street, since, as we know, touch football played on summer streets has a way of resolving to tackle football in the street.


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## Thomas Veil

11-5 record. Win and in. The Browns finally break their playoff drought!

​


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> 11-5 record. Win and in. The Browns finally break their playoff drought!
> 
> View attachment 2359​



Congrats! Bills just secured the #2 seed; they play either the Colts, Dolphins, or Titans next week depending on the outcome of the afternoon games.


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## Thomas Veil

Wow! First the end of Flash...and now all this.

I think I’m going to cry.


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## Thomas Veil

​
I’d _bet_ on it.


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## Alli

I was worried this morning when I read six of the Saints RBs were out due to exposure from practice with Kamara. (Dumb kid.) But dayum! This team was hitting on all cylinders today despite being out most of the star players!


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## Thomas Veil

First I should start by confessing I was wrong: the Browns game will _not_ be on Nickelodeon. 

My main point is to say congrats to the Bills. I thought that referee call on Pascal’s fumble should have given possession to Buffalo, but I’m glad to see they won in spite of that call.


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## DT

Thomas Veil said:


> My main point is to say congrats to the Bills. I thought that referee call on Pascal’s fumble should have given possession to Buffalo, but I’m glad to see they won in spite of that call.




We did too (he was up and starting to run), but I can also see the Ref thinking, OK, I won't make a call to basically hand over the game, since it's close enough, let's let the game play out.

And ultimately, is was the same result.  Bills!

BTW, I thought it was funny that the game had the Buffalo Bills, and since it was on CBS, they were running spots for the new show, Clarice ... with the serial killer, Buffalo Bill ...


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## Thomas Veil

Oh, that _is_ kind of creepy.


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## SuperMatt

It was the first Bills playoff win in this century. I am over the moon!


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## DT

Meant to leave this here earlier ...


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## Thomas Veil

What?!?!? 

​


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> What?!?!?
> 
> View attachment 2621​



Steelers look like they aged 10 years since the 11-0 start... they are just plain bad.


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## Thomas Veil

Lotta unforced errors.


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## Yoused

I hope Rothy Benburger hoarded up enough TP to deal with what he did to the bed.


----------



## Thomas Veil

That very first play, with the snap sailing way over Roethlesberger's head into the end zone, wasn't his fault, but my wife and I were cackling with glee. Fourteen seconds in and we fell on the ball for a touchdown. Easiest, craziest seven points I've ever seen.

I'm sorry I missed the Saints game on Nickelodeon, only because I didn't get to see how zany they went with the presentation. I'm only seeing these after the fact, like, er, field goals...




...and Young Sheldon explaining what a penalty is for kids...




​But for true ridiculousness, I'm gonna have to go with the slime cannons and the light-up end zone.






Props to Sean Peyton for agreeing to take that slime bath at the end of the game.


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## Yoused

I was seeing footage of some team that won unexpectedly on the BoiseBlue turf, whereupon a barrel of French fries was dumped on the coach. Scratched my head on that one until I figured out the game was the Idaho Potato Bowl.


----------



## Alli

I know this is off-topic, but we don’t have (or need!) an NCAA thread. All I have to say is:

*Go Bucks!!*


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## Thomas Veil

Hey @Alli, was the regular game available to you, at least on a local channel, or did you _have_ to see it on Nick? Frankly this looks like it'd be cute for the first five minutes and then annoying for the other 175.



Alli said:


> I know this is off-topic, but we don’t have (or need!) an NCAA thread. All I have to say is:
> 
> *Go Bucks!!*



Yeah, the Browns went until after 11:30 last night, and now we've got Ohio State tonight.

These late nights are killing me.


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> These late nights are killing me.



The best part about being retired is being able to stay up for the night games!


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## Thomas Veil

Well, I'm only semi-retired, so I've still gotta get up in the mornings, LOL.


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## SuperMatt

Let’s go Bills!


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## Thomas Veil

Coming up on the 4th quarter and the Bills are pulling ahead, 17-3. The Ratbirds are in trouble and they know it.


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> Coming up on the 4th quarter and the Bills are pulling ahead, 17-3. The Ratbirds are in trouble and they know it.



And Lamar Jackson got a concussion... and just now their backup QB missed a sure touchdown with an overthrow... looking good for the Bills, but I will only relax when the clock hits 0:00!!


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## Thomas Veil

Oh man. Browns 17, Chiefs 22. So near and yet so far.


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## SuperMatt

Thomas Veil said:


> Oh man. Browns 17, Chiefs 22. So near and yet so far.



Oh well, I was hoping for the Bills to play the AFC Championship at home, but a Bills/Chiefs matchup is what everybody wants to see: they clearly are the best 2 teams this season.


----------



## Thomas Veil

SuperMatt said:


> Oh well, I was hoping for the Bills to play the AFC Championship at home...



Sorry we failed to oblige you there. It would’ve been a great game!

Congrats on advancing, and good luck next week.


----------



## Yoused

That seemed a tad close. The Chiefs were only able to squeeze out the Browns.

Wait, let me rephrase that ...


----------



## Joe

Go Pack Go


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## Thomas Veil

New Orleans is _out?? _


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## Yoused

Thomas Veil said:


> New Orleans is _out?? _



Say it Saints so!


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## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> New Orleans is _out?? _



So disappointing. And an awful final game for Drew Brees. Hopefully the team can stay healthy next year.


----------



## Joe

Funny story, but when I was in HS we played against Drew Brees in the playoffs when he was at Austin Westlake HS. 

At the time my team was ranked #9 in TX and his team was ranked #1. They killed us 41-0. I remember that score because at the time it was one of our worst defeats as a program and also a shutout. Westlake and Brees killed everyone that year and even won the State Championship by 40 points. So at the end, I didn't feel so bad losing to them by 41. They beat everyone by 40+ that year lol


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## Yoused

I remember when one of the area high schools faced a team from another state and broke their 212 game winning streak.


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## DT

Thomas Veil said:


> Oh man. Browns 17, Chiefs 22. So near and yet so far.




We were both cheering for the Browns, even though one of us is a Steelers fan  They came a long way, tough division (minus the Bungles ...), looked good against Pitt, bummer.

Who's the guy playing QB for Tampa Bay? Rookie?


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## Yoused

DT said:


> Who's the guy playing QB for Tampa Bay? Rookie?



I think he was a 6th-round draft pick, like even after all the other teams picked and there were some overtime picks.


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## Thomas Veil

Indulge me a bit here.

The term "long suffering Browns fan" has unfortunately been used so often it's almost a cliché. It's not just since 1999 when the expansion Browns came back; it was the three years before that when we didn't have a team. That's over two decades of bad or no football.

I'm old enough to remember the years we were in the AFC championship game and Bernie Kosar & company almost, _almost _took us to the Super Bowl. That was the last time we had a team that felt like a real winner, the way this one does.

For the last twenty years, Sunday afternoons for me have pretty much been a masochistic ritual of watching the game with a sense of dread, hoping against hope only to see us either getting blown out of the water or finding a creative way to lose a close winnable game. Just thinking about that tightens my gut, and for those twenty years the way I dealt with the anger--if it was warm enough out--was to go out and cut the grass, just to expend some energy and work off my mad-on. If it _wasn't_ warm enough, my wife knew to stay away from me for a few hours. 

I don't think many of us saw the recent 1-15 and 0-16 seasons as the beginning of better things. But we _finally_ got a front office that knew how to construct a team, and with the exception of one fallback year (thanks, Freddie Kitchens), we've been on an upward trajectory since.

This year we went 11-5 and never lost two games in a row. I've enjoyed (almost) every contest, and it finally feels like we've been released from football hell. I have a lot of faith in Kevin Stefanski. He's a young creative coach who, when he makes a mistake, makes _new_ ones. That's not a joke. When Belichick was here he kept making the same _old_ ones. Mention the words "Metcalf up the middle" to any Browns fan and watch them roll their eyes. At least Stefanski seems to learn from his errors.

All this is in the service of telling you that yesterday when we lost that game against Kansas City, I was surprised to find myself coming away _happy_. Oh, not about the loss. I'd have loved to have kept on going into _this_ year's championship game. But we put up a good fight. (Hell, we scored 14 more points than Baltimore did the day before!) And after 20+ years of gut-churning misery, I can finally look back at the season and think, "What a ride!" and look forward to the season to come instead of sulking about our biennial search for a new head coach and GM.

In northern Ohio right now and for Browns Backers everywhere, life is good.   



Alli said:


> So disappointing. And an awful final game for Drew Brees. Hopefully the team can stay healthy next year.



He's still a great player. I have no idea whether he'll come back or choose to retire before his skills diminish.



DT said:


> We were both cheering for the Browns, even though one of us is a Steelers fan  They came a long way, tough division (minus the Bungles ...), looked good against Pitt, bummer.



"Bungles"...now that's an AFC North person talking.


----------



## Alli

Thomas Veil said:


> He's still a great player. I have no idea whether he'll come back or choose to retire before his skills diminish.



He’s done. Sunday was his last game.


----------



## Yoused

Thomas Veil said:


> That's over two decades of bad or no football.



Well, there was '02, when they made the playoffs but were edged out in the first game by the [redacted] (I have developed a loathing for that team because of that stupid XL fiasco). And they were 10-6 in '07 but just missed the WC cut. So there were two or three non-horrible seasons in there. And, really, that 0-16 season generated a lot of empathy for them.


----------



## Thomas Veil

And now for something completely different: a Super Bowl with Tom Brady in it. 

I’m already rooting for the other side, whether it’s the Bills or the Chiefs.


----------



## JayMysteri0

https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1353483350556758016/


----------



## SuperMatt

Go Bills!


----------



## Joe

My Packers


----------



## Thomas Veil

Oh man. The Bills-Chiefs game is getting ugly.  I’m rooting for the Bills but....


----------



## SuperMatt

I feel sad but as a Bills fan I know there’s always next year...


----------



## JayMysteri0

https://www.twitter.com/i/web/status/1353492958377631744/


----------



## Thomas Veil

I'm watching with interest the DeShaun Watson and Aaron Rodgers situations in Houston and Green Bay, respectively. Neither one seems to be satisfied with how their teams are being managed.

I know Rodgers has been unhappy for at least a couple of years now with their frustrating insistence on drafting players like quarterback and not getting him any good receiver help. With Rodgers under contract through 2023, however, I don't see how he has any leverage except retiring. 

(And I'm not sure how that works. Can he retire to get out of his contract, and then _un_-retire after a certain period and sign with another team, with no consequences?)

Watson, on the other hand, is displeased with being sidelined on important decisions. He might get his wish and get traded if the Texans can find anybody willing to pay what will undoubtedly be a high price they set for him.


----------



## Thomas Veil

Lord this is turning out to be a lame Super Bowl. Brady’s running away with it , the halftime show was blah, and I’ve yet to see a memorable commercial, with the possible exception of the one with Patrick Stewart on top of a mountain for Paramount. (“You got us up here for a _metaphor_?”  )


----------



## Alli

I’m glad I decided not to watch. Can’t stand Brady.


----------



## Yoused

Stats show 110yds of yellow laundry for KC. I wonder if that is a SB record.


----------



## SuperMatt

Yoused said:


> Stats show 110yds of yellow laundry for KC. I wonder if that is a SB record.



As a Bills fan, that was very frustrating to watch. In the Chiefs/Bills game, their secondary was doing the exact same thing: holding receivers on every play. But the refs didn’t call it once. With Tom Brady as the opposing QB, they called it many times.


----------



## Yoused

I still have a great dislike for the Stealers, who had SB XL handed to them on a zebra-colored platter. The ref from that game apologized to the Seahawks a few years later for how badly that game was called.


----------



## Thomas Veil

Brady needs to effing retire already. But you and I know he’s going to keep on playing until he’s got a ring for each finger.


----------



## Thomas Veil

A couple of notes:

There _was_ one other funny commercial last night: the one with Will Ferrell grousing about Norway being so high-and-mighty over all their electric cars, and then getting there, all prepared to tell them off, and looking around at the attractive towns and the clean air and going, “Hey, this is _nice_.”

The other thing is, they didn’t show him, but it was really pathetic of 45th President of the United States Donald Trump to jump out of the stands and run across the field like that in a desperate bid for attention.


----------



## Joe

I’m still depressed. Should have been my packers LOL


----------



## Alli

JagRunner said:


> I’m still depressed. Should have been my packers LOL



I feel ya.


----------



## SuperMatt

JagRunner said:


> I’m still depressed. Should have been my packers LOL



Packers-Bills would have been a good super bowl


----------



## Alli

SuperMatt said:


> Packers-Bills would have been a good super bowl



Or Saints. Just sayin’.


----------



## Yoused

Curiously, when you average out the spread over a team's super bowl appearances, Tampa Bay is the highest. Buffalo's average spread is larger, but kind of in the wrong direction.


----------



## Alli

Another thought, of course, is just to have Brady be an itinerant QB for the rest of his career until he’s enabled every team to win a Super Bowl. Then he can retire.


----------

