National Football League

[Merckx index]

Nice way to JUMP to a conclusion. You was already planning the foreheads defense.
Al Jazerra might end up changing that story since the source seems to be saying it was not the forehead.

Al Jazeera doesn't have to change anything. They have Sly on tape saying these things, apparently Sly is now changing his story, saying that he was just lying through his teeth all that time.

What I find most interesting about Manning’s response to the allegations is that he doesn’t deny that HGH might have been sent to his wife (which is what the story actually alleges):

It makes me sick that it brings Ashley into it, her medical privacy being violated, that makes me sick.

Any medical treatments that my wife received, that’s her business and has got nothing to do with me. Nothing that’s ever been sent to her or nothing that my wife has used have I ever taken. I have my treatments that I do, she may have hers and that’s her business. There’s no connection between the two.

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/peyton-manning-responds-to-hgh-allegations-in-espn-interview-175613751.html

There are medically approved uses of HGH, but most are for children. The uses for adults are mostly for rare and fairly serious diseases, e.g., muscle degeneration that can accompany AIDS. I wouldn’t say it’s impossible that Manning’s wife was using HGH with a doctor’s approval, but I would say it’s quite unlikely, and if she were, she would almost certainly be suffering from a disease so serious that Manning himself would know about it.

If the story were total BS/fabrication, wouldn't Manning's wife have told him that, told him to tell the press that she never received any of these substances? The fact that he doesn't say this certainly stands out to me, he's practically verifying that she did receive these substances.

The story certainly calls to mind Rumsas and the trunk full of drugs that he said were for his mother-in-law.

Edit: Good discussion of this in the Clinic, where it obviously belongs. Another poster also points out that it's highly unlikely Ashley Manning would be prescribed HGH, and particularly by an anti-aging clinic.There's now a link to the Al Jazeera report: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJRPxmTuxoI

Other football players mentioned by Sly include Justin Keller, Mike Neal, Clay Matthews, Julius Peppers. Sly says when he told Neal to bring his friends over "half the [Packers] came along."

Man, you need a Ph.D. in math to figure out the playoff tiebreakers. This is what has to happen for the Colts to win their division, thanks to the strength of schedule comparison, which changes weekly depending on who wins and loses:

Would clinch the South and No. 4 seed with a win against the Titans and Texans loss to the Jaguars and Bengals loss at the Broncos and Bengals loss to the Ravens and Jets loss at the Bills and Saints loss at the Falcons and Broncos win against the Chargers and Dolphins win against the Patriots and Chiefs loss to the Raiders and Steelers loss at the Browns.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nfl-playoff-picture--who-needs-what-to-reach-the-postseason-074412089.html

This strength of schedule rule makes just about every game important for every team. E.g., the Falcons' upset of Carolina apparently prevented the Texans from clinching their division, though those teams aren't even in the same conference as Houston, let alone their division.

Seattle had already clinched the playoffs, but their loss means they’re more likely to finish as 6th seed, meaning instead of playing Washington, they’ll play the NFC N winner, probably GB. Then again, the way GB has been playing recently, that game might not be any harder to win than vs. Washington. If SE wins as no. 6, they will definitely play the no. 1 seed next, probably Carolina, but the way AZ is playing now, maybe that’s preferable, too.

With the Vikings looking like winners tonight, all six NFC playoff teams will be set with a week go go, which is unusual. Though the rankings are still not settled. Washington is the only team whose ranking is known, so they get to rest all their starters next week.

Eli doing his best so that his big brother won't lead the NFL in interceptions this year. Eli has three so far tonight, bringing his season's total to 14. Big brother has 17, despite playing only about half the season, and Matt Ryan has 15. The Manning boys could finish 1-2 in that stat this year.

So the winner of the Vikings-Packer game next week wins the NFC N, and probably hosts SE. The loser is a WC, and probably goes to Washington. If I were either of these teams, I think I'd rest my players and not worry about losing.

Good news for Amster: the only way SE plays at Washington is if they beat AZ next week, and MN loses to GB. The SE vs. AZ game could have been a really intriguing matchup, but by the time the game starts, the Carolina game will probably be over, and assuming the Panthers win, the game will be meaningless for AZ. The MN-GB game will also be over, and unless MN loses, the SE-AZ game will be meaningless for SE, too.

 

[jmdirt]

Crazy day in the NFL, and I was stuck skiing with my in-laws in 10 degree temps with 30 mph winds on marginal snow. Not to mention the torturous 50 minute ride each way with their monster children.

 

[Semper Fidelis]

Big deal with respect to Manning? LMAO you guys go to this stuff like it is the National Enquire. Al Jazziebell is a trash news agent so you are right they will not change anything.

I'm sorry you are still bitter about getting ruled by drug cheats. I got over it after I crossed into old age.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Hi. Some really poor picks from me this week. Some quick thoughts.

Did Carolina benefit from losing? Maybe. The pressure for perfection is off. But Atlanta also showed other teams perhaps how to beat the Panthers. They contained Cam on defense, and on offense they offered stellar pass protection, until coverage repeatedly broke down. But the Panthers were also a little flat after a while, which makes me think the last few weeks have taken a toll.

Arizona's firepower was very impressive. If Carson Palmer wanted to put a stamp on rights to MVP, I think he made it. And this is a pretty good Packers team they flattened. Arizona's pass rush was just savage, and despite losing Mathieu, their secondary played great.

Speaking of firepower, the Vikings sure had it last night. The Giants looked like they quit midway through the 2nd quarter. Just an ugly loss. Great win for the Viks though heading to GB for the final.

In another strange win, the Ravens looked like the team we expected them to be all season. And Ryan Mallet played like he had a chip on his shoulder, repeatedly rifling tight passes into small spaces. After all their momentum, the Steelers may have just lost their season.

Yes, Ryan Mallett. And did you see Brandon Weeden dissect the poor Titans defense? Granted, the Titans are the worst team in the NFL, but he had some sweet throws. Can he do this in the playoffs though, if Hoyer can't return?

Speaking of momentum, the Chiefs win again. Granted, it was against the Browns, and the score looked closer than it was. The Cheifs just keep winning, over and over, and may actually take the division at this point.

Regarding Seattle sleepwalking against the Rams. I am not that worried about that one either, and think they will rebound. However, with their playoff position almost entirely set, they may play the Cardinals next week to "prep" for the playoffs, more than to win, same with Arizona. It may look like a pre-season game, with starters resting after a quarter or half, and predictable play calling.

That coin toss call in New England was something. Did they really call to kick in OT on purpose? Belicheck and players say yes, no controversy. He trusted his defense, and they didn't hold. That was what Tony Dungee asserted. But it's still a strange call to me though as the new OT rules say a TD ends the game, and the Pats gained nothing by field position (recall the OT game in the cold wind against Denver 2 years ago). I don't like this OT rule, and agree with what Bob Costas said that in the playoffs it should go back to where both teams get the ball once. But still, what a strange call.

More bad news for the Patriots as they now look like they've lost Sebastian Vollmer maybe for the season, as he was carted off the field with what looked like an ankle. MRI today. His replacement, LaAdrian Waddle, then went down. Still, with so many players sitting, and so many hurt, the Patriots almost beat the Jets anyway. If they can field enough healthy guys in the playoffs, I still think the Patriots can beat anyone. But that's maybe a big if.

Let's try to keep the Manning doping talk in the Clinic. Here's a link to the thread:

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=11396&start=2800

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

Speaking of Sleepwalking Seattle, they were only missing LT Okung on the O-Line. But they couldn't block a bear's bung in hibernation against a very stout Ram defensive front. That's a sign of things to come. I still have confidence in Tom Cable's coaching ability, just not his choice of offensive line personnel. The Cable experiment (converting non-offensive linemen to play line, and low round picks) needs to end if they want to have any success.

 

[Amsterhammer]

A splendid summary as usual, Alpe. However, I missed any mention of the new NLE division champs, or of the stellar performances being put up by a certain, unsung, unfancied QB.

I could imagine a worse play-off match-up than the current Packers - and thanks to Merckx for explaining that convoluted play-off picture.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

National League East champions? Does that division have a winner?

All joking aside, they're playing very well and deserve it. Written off by many, laughed at with the entire RG3 benched for Cousins issue, they've won 4 of 5, and 5 of 7 games. Only two bad losses all season, at New England, and at Carolina.

You may also recall I was one of the early singers of praise for Kirk Cousins. I liked him coming out of college, at the combine into the draft, and if I had the energy to dig it up, I'd find a post where when he was on the bench behind RG3 I said he would start for some team and if I were a team looking for a QB, I'd trade to get him. But Washington was smart not to give him up. Way smarter than given credit for. And big props to Jon Gruden for making the unpopular call and turning the offense over to him, and sticking with him. They're likely to have to pay him a Ryan Tannehill / Andy Dalton type contract to keep him ($15+ mil, $5m guaranteed), but trading RG3 will help with that.

 

[Merckx index]

Re:

Big deal with respect to Manning? LMAO you guys go to this stuff like it is the National Enquire. Al Jazziebell is a trash news agent so you are right they will not change anything.

Got some evidence that AJ is a trash news program? I watch it occasionally, they're reporting seems very much in the same league with other major news organizations.

To repeat: they have Sly on tape saying all these things. Then he recants, which this "trash news agent" also puts on the program, so viewers can decide for themselves. Which version of Sly is more likely? Let's see, if he didn't recant, he would definitely be out of business, no athlete is going to buy stuff from someone who has a previous record of snitching. Obviously he denied his earlier allegations in an attempt to save his butt.

That doesn't mean everything he originally said was truthful, of course. He's a salesman, and made some exaggerated claims about delta-2 and other substances. He might well have thrown out some names just to impress a potential client, make him think he's the guy all the best athletes buy their stuff from. I certainly don't rule that out. But bringing Ashley Manning into it doesn't fit with that scenario, it certainly sounds as though he has inside information. And until Ashley herself denies that she received HGH--if it's not all ready too late to do that with any credibility--that is very damning.

I'm sorry you are still bitter about getting ruled by drug cheats. I got over it after I crossed into old age.

I'm not bitter at all, just following an interesting story. If you mean by "got over it", got used to athletes doping, well, I got over it, too, which is exactly why I suspect Manning, of course.

Denver's position may be unique. With two games left to play, they could finish anywhere from top seed to out of the playoffs. Has any other team in NFL history faced such a wide spread of possible outcomes with just two games left? The only thing one can predict for sure is that they won't be the fourth seed.

In my previous post, I said that the MN-GB game would be over before SE plays AZ. But the former game has been moved to Sunday night, so those two teams will know exactly what they're playing for. If MN wins, the Packers go to Washington, and MN hosts SE, no matter what. But if GB wins, the outcome of the SE-AZ game affects who GB, MN and Washington play.

As for which team looks the best going into the playoffs, there is a large element of chance even in "must win" games, so I wouldn't read much into recent results. After whomping GB, AZ is the new darling. Everyone has already forgotten how they barely squeaked past MN a few weeks ago, at home, after the Vikings were thrashed at home by SE. In the NFL, you're only as good as your last game.

 

[Semper Fidelis]

Re: Re:

Big deal with respect to Manning? LMAO you guys go to this stuff like it is the National Enquire. Al Jazziebell is a trash news agent so you are right they will not change anything.

Got some evidence that AJ is a trash news program? I watch it occasionally, they're reporting seems very much in the same league with other major news organizations.

To repeat: they have Sly on tape saying all these things. Then he recants, which this "trash news agent" also puts on the program, so viewers can decide for themselves. Which version of Sly is more likely? Let's see, if he didn't recant, he would definitely be out of business, no athlete is going to buy stuff from someone who has a previous record of snitching. Obviously he denied his earlier allegations in an attempt to save his butt.

That doesn't mean everything he originally said was truthful, of course. He's a salesman, and made some exaggerated claims about delta-2 and other substances. He might well have thrown out some names just to impress a potential client, make him think he's the guy all the best athletes buy their stuff from. I certainly don't rule that out. But bringing Ashley Manning into it doesn't fit with that scenario, it certainly sounds as though he has inside information. And until Ashley herself denies that she received HGH--if it's not all ready too late to do that with any credibility--that is very damning.

I'm sorry you are still bitter about getting ruled by drug cheats. I got over it after I crossed into old age.

I'm not bitter at all, just following an interesting story. If you mean by "got over it", got used to athletes doping, well, I got over it, too, which is exactly why I suspect Manning, of course.

Denver's position may be unique. With two games left to play, they could finish anywhere from top seed to out of the playoffs. Has any other team in NFL history faced such a wide spread of possible outcomes with just two games left? The only thing one can predict for sure is that they won't be the fourth seed.

In my previous post, I said that the MN-GB game would be over before SE plays AZ. But the former game has been moved to Sunday night, so those two teams will know exactly what they're playing for. If MN wins, the Packers go to Washington, and MN hosts SE, no matter what. But if GB wins, the outcome of the SE-AZ game affects who GB, MN and Washington play.

As for which team looks the best going into the playoffs, there is a large element of chance even in "must win" games, so I wouldn't read much into recent results. After whomping GB, AZ is the new darling. Everyone has already forgotten how they barely squeaked past MN a few weeks ago, at home, after the Vikings were thrashed at home by SE. In the NFL, you're only as good as your last game.

Lots of words just to say you like al jazzeras. Anyhow there is a report today that supposedly this guy sly says he made it up to smoke out Collins.

Yeah glad to see you got over it.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Solid win for Denver. After a great start, McCarron and the Bengals just fizzled. One can only wonder if they had Dalton, and how they're going to do without him until he can play.

 

[Billie]

The Steelers

Easy game coming of a big win and they don't even bother to try. Happens every time. Trademark Tomlin.

Still wouldn't surprise me if the Rex Ryan and the Bills beat the Jets.

 

[jmdirt]

Re: Re:

Big deal with respect to Manning? LMAO you guys go to this stuff like it is the National Enquire. Al Jazziebell is a trash news agent so you are right they will not change anything.

Got some evidence that AJ is a trash news program? I watch it occasionally, they're reporting seems very much in the same league with other major news organizations.

To repeat: they have Sly on tape saying all these things. Then he recants, which this "trash news agent" also puts on the program, so viewers can decide for themselves. Which version of Sly is more likely? Let's see, if he didn't recant, he would definitely be out of business, no athlete is going to buy stuff from someone who has a previous record of snitching. Obviously he denied his earlier allegations in an attempt to save his butt.

That doesn't mean everything he originally said was truthful, of course. He's a salesman, and made some exaggerated claims about delta-2 and other substances. He might well have thrown out some names just to impress a potential client, make him think he's the guy all the best athletes buy their stuff from. I certainly don't rule that out. But bringing Ashley Manning into it doesn't fit with that scenario, it certainly sounds as though he has inside information. And until Ashley herself denies that she received HGH--if it's not all ready too late to do that with any credibility--that is very damning.

I'm sorry you are still bitter about getting ruled by drug cheats. I got over it after I crossed into old age.

I'm not bitter at all, just following an interesting story. If you mean by "got over it", got used to athletes doping, well, I got over it, too, which is exactly why I suspect Manning, of course.

Denver's position may be unique. With two games left to play, they could finish anywhere from top seed to out of the playoffs. Has any other team in NFL history faced such a wide spread of possible outcomes with just two games left? The only thing one can predict for sure is that they won't be the fourth seed.

In my previous post, I said that the MN-GB game would be over before SE plays AZ. But the former game has been moved to Sunday night, so those two teams will know exactly what they're playing for. If MN wins, the Packers go to Washington, and MN hosts SE, no matter what. But if GB wins, the outcome of the SE-AZ game affects who GB, MN and Washington play.

As for which team looks the best going into the playoffs, there is a large element of chance even in "must win" games, so I wouldn't read much into recent results. After whomping GB, AZ is the new darling. Everyone has already forgotten how they barely squeaked past MN a few weeks ago, at home, after the Vikings were thrashed at home by SE. In the NFL, you're only as good as your last game.

For world conflicts, they are above average reporting, below average investigating. For sports, especially USA sports, they are poor. I didn't fact check this, but someone on another site posted that A didn't even have a "Sports" link on their America home page until recently. This whole thing just smells funny to me.

EDIT: Sly comes across as a "lie to be cool" kind of guy. I wouldn't believe what he said then, nor now.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Guys, let's try to keep the doping talk in the Clinic, and just talk football here, unless there is any sort of actual news regarding this issue.

I linked the Clinic thread above, use it.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Not every scenario here, just likely winners this coming week. I (barely) like the Jets over the Bills. This is a real tough call though.

AFC

The Jets (or Steelers) will play at the Bengals in the first WC round. Dalton is highly doubtful for this game, but I'll take them anyway with their defense.
The Texans will host the Chiefs. Will Hoyer be back for Houston. It may not matter. I think KC is not quite as good as their win streak, but they find ways to win. And I like them over Houston.

This would send KC to New England, and Cincy back to Denver...but this time with Dalton.

NFC

If the Packers beat the Vikings, they will host them again the following week.
If the Vikings beat the Packers, they will host Seattle IF Seattle beats Arizona.
If Arizona beats Seattle, the Seahawks go to the winner of GB/Minn.
The loser of GB/Minnesota goes to Washington.

I like Seattle on the road against a partially resting Cardinals team this week, and I like Green Bay at home against the Vikings. In the wc round, I like Seattle over either NFC North team, and I like Washington at home over Minnesota, and maybe Green Bay. All three of these teams are wishy washy.

This would mean Seattle goes to Carolina, which would be a great game, and Washington goes to Arizona, where they would be big underdogs.

 

[Merckx index]

Re:

If the Packers beat the Vikings, they will host them again the following week.
If the Vikings beat the Packers, they will host Seattle IF Seattle beats Arizona.
If Arizona beats Seattle, the Seahawks go to the winner of GB/Minn.
The loser of GB/Minnesota goes to Washington.

You got it mostly backwards. I explained this upthread, but will go through it again. GB and MN each have won 10 games, SE has won 9. The Packers hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over SE, and SE holds it over MN. Therefore, the Packers have clinched a higher seed than SE, so if they lose to MN, they go to Washington, definitely, and MN hosts SE, definitely. In this scenario, the outcome of SE-AZ is irrelevant. If GB beats MN, SE must beat AZ to win the tie-breaker with MN, in which case they go to Washington. If SE loses to AZ, then they lose the tie-breaker and go to GB.

I like Seattle on the road against a partially resting Cardinals team this week

The Carolina game should be about over when the SE-AZ game starts. If Carolina wins, AZ will be locked into the second seed and should be in full rest mode. As in, maybe Palmer plays the first quarter, but that's about it.

 

[Billie]

Lurie fired Chip this sucks

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

Re:

Lurie fired Chip this sucks

You must be joking about the sucky part.

Not surprised it happened. A bit surprised it happened now instead of after the last game. Maybe USC talked Lurie into the early release if it was bound to happen anyway.

 

[Billie]

It doesn't make sense. I started reading Schefter's tweet assuming the statement announced they had fired the DC. Almost fell out my chair.

ALso pretty strange that it happens 15 games after Lurie choses Chip over Roseman he reverts on his decision and gives all power back to him.

Chip is a good coach. Double digit wins in his first 2 seasons should have bought him an extra year. Not sure where the win now expectations came from considering the qb hadn't played an nfl snap for almost 2 years and the roster was heavily overhauled. I ddin't even mind any of the personnel moves he made. This whole Chip the GM has killed CHip the coach is *** also. Not sure who started it but boy does every journo/analist love writing/saying it. People blame him for destroying the Oline but don't realise the two guys he let go, one was cut by the colts and the other sits ont he sidelines for the broncos, two teams with lines much worse than the eagles.

Off the guys he let go all of them have played either much worse than with the eagles and many of them have been benched in some form really. Only real exception being Maclin who they actually wanted to resign but chose the chiefs because they offered 5M more.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

A little surprising in that he wasn't that bad, and had a few years left on his contract. But I agree being GM may have done him in, if only in perception. He was probably no better or worse than most. But It is in some ways with some of his moves, as if he felt he could outsmart other teams the same way he recruited in college, and it never quite panned out to the hype. Though the same could be said about John Elway in Denver, who has mortgaged much more in future cash.

Jay Glazer says Chip wants to stay in the NFL, and there will be takers. I think there's plenty chance he ends up in Tennessee next season, reunited with his old QB. Miami could be another spot. So could SF. And almost any team would take him as an OC, if he's willing to accept such a job.

As to the playoffs, I tried to use the playoff predictor on The NFLs own website.

http://www.nfl.com/playoffs/playoff-picture/predictor

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

Re:

It doesn't make sense. I started reading Schefter's tweet assuming the statement announced they had fired the DC. Almost fell out my chair.

ALso pretty strange that it happens 15 games after Lurie choses Chip over Roseman he reverts on his decision and gives all power back to him.

Chip is a good coach. Double digit wins in his first 2 seasons should have bought him an extra year. Not sure where the win now expectations came from considering the qb hadn't played an nfl snap for almost 2 years and the roster was heavily overhauled. I ddin't even mind any of the personnel moves he made. This whole Chip the GM has killed CHip the coach is ****** also. Not sure who started it but boy does every journo/analist love writing/saying it. People blame him for destroying the Oline but don't realise the two guys he let go, one was cut by the colts and the other sits ont he sidelines for the broncos, two teams with lines much worse than the eagles.

Off the guys he let go all of them have played either much worse than with the eagles and many of them have been benched in some form really. Only real exception being Maclin who they actually wanted to resign but chose the chiefs because they offered 5M more.

I would say Chip's a good coach too. He understands how to generate success from a coaching standpoint. Heck he couldn't have done well at UO without being good. Although I'm not sure his college brand of fast-paced quick scoring offense is one that works well in the NFL. That is, a problem with quick scoring offenses is the defense has to get back out there on the field, possibly wearing them out. When it comes to clock management, sometimes the offense just has to be able to sit on the ball.

I would just say he's not such a great GM, as shown by some of the roster moves he made. And some of those moves, like Mathis, who Kelly released for missing OTAs, were sort of knee jerk quick decisions. How many guys miss OTAs? In Spring? Happens all the time. Most don't get released for that. There were other options that Kelly could have made, including letting it play out a bit, like Michael Bennett in Seattle who did the same and a lot of squawking but who showed up for camp in August. But dealing with players in certain ways like that, and other ways, runs the risk of stirring up discontent among players and undoing all the culture development Chip was trying to instill.

Here's an article that is not too bad on why Chip did not work out in Philly: (http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/14463652/why-chip-kelly-experiment-work-nfl). If you go there, I liked what John Clayton (video segment) had to say with one exception, that Chip "dealt too many players". In Pete Carroll's first year in Seattle, he and GM Schneider made over 120 roster moves and that wasn't too many. GMs just have to make the right moves. I believe John Clayton meant that Chip made too many of the WRONG moves. And I think the way he did it was not received well by the other players. All that just contributes to bad chemistry within the organization (not necessarily between players). The article that went with the Clayton interview was pretty good too.

New Year's cheers to all. Hope Chip finds some of that too.

 

[jmdirt]

Re:

Guys, let's try to keep the doping talk in the Clinic, and just talk football here, unless there is any sort of actual news regarding this issue.

I linked the Clinic thread above, use it.

Alpe, my response to MI isn't about doping, its about a publication that is talking about NFL players.

 

[Merckx index]

Re: Re:

Alpe, my response to MI isn't about doping, its about a publication that is talking about NFL players.

And your response is largely irrelevant. You don’t have to know squat about American sports to run an investigation into doping by American pro athletes. You don’t have to know who the best teams are, when the season is, or even how the sport is played. All you have to be able to do is confirm that individuals buying performance enhancing substances are in fact playing for some pro team. If AJ had tried to argue that HGH was responsible for Manning having perhaps his best season ever in 2013, you might have a point, but they didn't. In fact, as I pointed out in the Clinic thread, one GH researcher argues that the substance probably wouldn't have had a significant effect on Manning's performance. But AJ never said that it did. All they said was that Ashley Manning received HGH, and that it's not legal for use for other than a few relatively rare and serious disorders. No one has yet rebutted either of those claims.

Your point that AJ is below average in investigative journalism is relevant, but you didn’t provide any evidence for what I assume is simply your opinion. I prefer to judge the story on merit, not on the basis of who did the investigation. Ask yourself this: if the same story had been reported by some other news organization that you think more favorably of, would that affect your opinion of its validity? Why should it? Sly didn't know that Collins was working for AJ. He didn't know that Collins was working for any news organization.

 

[infeXio]

Re: Re:

I like Seattle on the road against a partially resting Cardinals team this week

The Carolina game should be about over when the SE-AZ game starts. If Carolina wins, AZ will be locked into the second seed and should be in full rest mode. As in, maybe Palmer plays the first quarter, but that's about it.

The Bucs@Panthers game has been moved and is played at the same time as Seahawks@Cardinals, and wisely so.

 

[The Hitch]

Re: Re:

The Carolina game should be about over when the SE-AZ game starts. If Carolina wins, AZ will be locked into the second seed and should be in full rest mode. As in, maybe Palmer plays the first quarter, but that's about it.

I don't know if its a good idea to rest if you have a bye. Bruce Arians said yesterday that 1 week rest is great but if you have 2 you could lose your rythm.

So I think Arizona may very well play their starters and go for the win. At Green Bay they kept their starters in longer than I thought they should have as well.

 

[jmdirt]

Re: Re:

Alpe, my response to MI isn't about doping, its about a publication that is talking about NFL players.

And your response is largely irrelevant. You don’t have to know squat about American sports to run an investigation into doping by American pro athletes. You don’t have to know who the best teams are, when the season is, or even how the sport is played. All you have to be able to do is confirm that individuals buying performance enhancing substances are in fact playing for some pro team. If AJ had tried to argue that HGH was responsible for Manning having perhaps his best season ever in 2013, you might have a point, but they didn't. In fact, as I pointed out in the Clinic thread, one GH researcher argues that the substance probably wouldn't have had a significant effect on Manning's performance. But AJ never said that it did. All they said was that Ashley Manning received HGH, and that it's not legal for use for other than a few relatively rare and serious disorders. No one has yet rebutted either of those claims.

Your point that AJ is below average in investigative journalism is relevant, but you didn’t provide any evidence for what I assume is simply your opinion. I prefer to judge the story on merit, not on the basis of who did the investigation. Ask yourself this: if the same story had been reported by some other news organization that you think more favorably of, would that affect your opinion of its validity? Why should it? Sly didn't know that Collins was working for AJ. He didn't know that Collins was working for any news organization.

WOW, irrelevant! Should my feelings be hurt? Investigating is not their strong suit period. That they decided to make their USA sports splash with this story is strange at best. If ESPN would have done the investigation of course I would view it differently because...wait, that is obvious and doesn't require an explanation.

Actually, you were the one on this thread who concluded that PM was the one who used the contents of the package sent to his wife in FL. I see what type of reporting you prefer, this is why this story is worthy to you. Please provide evidence that they are even average at investigating.