National Football League

[Alpe d'Huez]

The thing with Cam is he's "only" owed $18m (a $21m cap hit) next year, and it's the last year of his contract. In some ways it benefits Carolina to keep him, without extending him. It's a roll of the dice though, for if he plays quite well, he's a UFA after the 2020 season, and the Panthers will end up in a bidding war to keep him.

Teddy is on a one-year, $7.25m contract. I can't possibly see the Saints able to pay him anything close to what any number of teams will dole out next season, if Brees stays in NO. While some teams will only look to the draft to find a QB (my gut says only Burrow and Herbert go in the 1st round), any number of teams will be interested. Denver, Miami, Cincinatti, Tampa, Steelers, Panthers come to mind. Colts, Raiders, Chargers an outside thought as well.

The wrench in the motor is that Dak is a free agent after this season. His rookie contract ends. He made a paltry $2m this year, and merely $3.6m over the last four years. What will Dallas, Jerry, and their new coach want to do? Want to pay him?

Finally, some crazy numbers on who is getting paid, and who isn't. Is Joe Flacco really worth $62m guaranteed?? Smart/Lucky Alex Smith (remember him?) is on a $94m deal through 2023, with $71m guaranteed. Meaning, all he has to do is continue to rehab, show up to meetings, and he gets paid.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

CAR@ATL - One coach gone, another fighting for his job.
IND@TB
MIA@NYJ
SF@NO - Game of the week, should have been the flex game. 49ers more consistent, but Saints are quite good, and NO is very tough to beat at home when playing well.
DET@MIN
DEN@HOU
BAL@BUF - Intriguing game, as well as Allen has been playing, and I think Buffalo can score some, I don't see their stellar defense stopping Jackson enough to win. Warmish weather helps Ravens.
CIN@CLE - Browns clinging to life, Bengals fighting for top draft pick. But Dalton may be putting on his best suit here, and against a Garrettless Brown defense may do well.
WAS@GB - Packers quietly go to 10-3.
LAC@JAX - Poor Nick Foles, weak OL, few targets. As bad as the Chargers have played, they still win here.
PIT@ARI - Steelers on a bit of a roll towards a WC spot.
TEN@OAK - Titans on a roll towards a WC spot too!
KC@NE - Chiefs had a few dud games in there, and their defense is sketchy, but Mahomes is back on, and the Chiefs are 5-1 on the road. Pats however are 5-0 at home, and very hard to beat in Foxboro late in the season. So this pick may be an upset.
SEA@LAR - Here's another potential upset. I think the Rams are looking to derail Seattle and for revenge, they are also a game out of a WC spot still, at home, on TV.

NYG@PHI - Jones out, Eli back, as Eagles fight for first place...at 5-7?

 

[Irondan]

A lot of us have complained about this before. In 2010, the 7-9 Seahawks got to host the 11-5 Saints in the WC game, and ended up winning it. In 2013, the 12-4 49ers had to go to 8-7-1 GB, and in an ice bowl, barely won on a last second FG. As Alpe says, the NFL should at least let the team with the better record host the game, as they do in the NBA, where division winners automatically make the postseason regardless of their record.

---Shortened for brevity---

Since you mentioned that game in 2010 when the Seahawks beat the Saints at home in Seattle as a division winner with a losing overall record, it's worth seeing the Beastquake run that launched Marshawn Lynch into NFL history as one of the most brutal, physical, awe inspiring, downhill running backs that the league has ever seen, and perhaps will ever see.

This play never gets old, unless of course if you're a Saints fan...

The Beastquake, with Marshawn Lynch - NFL Films

- For those that can't get enough...

 

[Koronin]

The thing with Cam is he's "only" owed $18m (a $21m cap hit) next year, and it's the last year of his contract. In some ways it benefits Carolina to keep him, without extending him. It's a roll of the dice though, for if he plays quite well, he's a UFA after the 2020 season, and the Panthers will end up in a bidding war to keep him.

Teddy is on a one-year, $7.25m contract. I can't possibly see the Saints able to pay him anything close to what any number of teams will dole out next season, if Brees stays in NO. While some teams will only look to the draft to find a QB (my gut says only Burrow and Herbert go in the 1st round), any number of teams will be interested. Denver, Miami, Cincinatti, Tampa, Steelers, Panthers come to mind. Colts, Raiders, Chargers an outside thought as well.

The wrench in the motor is that Dak is a free agent after this season. His rookie contract ends. He made a paltry $2m this year, and merely $3.6m over the last four years. What will Dallas, Jerry, and their new coach want to do? Want to pay him?

Finally, some crazy numbers on who is getting paid, and who isn't. Is Joe Flacco really worth $62m guaranteed?? Smart/Lucky Alex Smith (remember him?) is on a $94m deal through 2023, with $71m guaranteed. Meaning, all he has to do is continue to rehab, show up to meetings, and he gets paid.

Don't think Jalen Hurts will go in the first round?

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

Love to watch this kind of OL play. The play ends up not gaining much because Sea's WR (#14) DK Metcalf does not hold his block.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1202692745820659712

View: https://twitter.com/CorbinSmithNFL/status/1202692745820659712?s=09


4 can't miss games:
SF@NO - too important a game for SF.
BAL@BUF - BUF might win in an upset, but the BAL O & D just too much for me to pick the home team.
KC@NE - home team.
SEA@LAR - a lot depends on whether Sea defenders Clowney & Ansah can play. ATM, both are questionable, Ansah having re-injured his surgically repaired shoulder. LAR in an upset if SEA do not get pressure on Goff.

Too bad for Riverboat Ron. He will end up somewhere next year as HC. Maybe to the Giants, or Browns. Either of those teams getting Ron would not surprise me. Or Dallas or Atlanta, but those would be less likely to me.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

My gut tells me Lincoln Riley will be the Browns coach next season. They wanted him this year, but he wasn't quite ready to make the jump to the NFL.

Hurts is going to get drafted for sure, I just don't think the first round. Mel Keiper says rounds 4-6, and he's often wildly wrong, so he could go in the first!

 

[Nomad]

Don't think Jalen Hurts will go in the first round?

No...maybe mid 2nd or so as of now. Tua was supposed to be the crown jewel (#1 or 2 OA) but that's all changed with the major injury he sustain last month (hip dislocation/posterior wall fracture). It's unknown if Tua is still going to declare for the draft or comeback and play out his senior year, or if he'll even be able to return to pre-injury level.

Joe Burrow has now become center stage as the top QB prospect. It'll be another circus in next year's draft watching all the lousy teams that need a QB fighting over him. Lol.

 

[movingtarget]

Kansas offense against the Patriots defense should be interesting. The question mark will be the Patriots offense as it has been all season. Can't see it improving too much with the players they have. Buffalo and Ravens should be a very interesting game as will the Saints and Niners. I pick the Chiefs, Ravens and the Niners. Saints defense has looked a bit patchy lately. They should have lost to the Panthers but the Panthers kicker had a shocker of a day. The Eagles and Cowboys are so mediocre it's too hard to call which team will qualify for the playoffs. Raiders have hit the wall and the Chargers already had. Rams game could also be an interesting one if Goff can get his offense back on track. Looked better against the Cardinals who were pretty terrible on the day.

 

[Koronin]

No...maybe mid 2nd or so as of now. Tua was supposed to be the crown jewel (#1 or 2 OA) but that's all changed with the major injury he sustain last month (hip dislocation/posterior wall fracture). It's unknown if Tua is still going to declare for the draft or comeback and play out his senior year, or if he'll even be able to return to pre-injury level.

Joe Burrow has now become center stage as the top QB prospect. It'll be another circus in next year's draft watching all the lousy teams that need a QB fighting over him. Lol.

You know as well I do that when a bunch of teams are looking for QB's they get drafted higher than they likely should.

I agree about Tua. Unfortunately he basically suffered the same injury as Bo Jackson. I realize there have been a lot of medical improvements since then, but it's hard to imagine he'll be able to play anytime in the "near" future with that injury.

After tonight's game Barrow is definitely the top QB going into the draft.

 

[SHAD0W93]

Again stuck with a Raiders game. The Ravens vs Bills could be a big defensive game.

 

[jmdirt]

Caught this while eating breakfast this AM:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-en...s-physical-and-mental-recovery-from-football/

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

Sad to see Rivera go from my Panthers, he always seemed a genuinely decent guy but it’s a results business and the new owner understandably couldn’t stomach another losing season. It’ll be interesting to watch the situation with Cam play out over the coming months. If he’s fit and healthy, I still think he has to stay.

Carolina would probably like to trade Cam in exchange for the farm.
(http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...l-hold-out-for-large-deal-to-trade-cam-newton).
I don't think Carolina can get the farm, since his play has eroded and his Lisfranc injury that will require surgery. But I don't think his Lisfranc is that bad, and chances for a full recovery should be good. Even though those ligaments are in a very tight space between bones and typically cannot be sutured. Surgical procedure usually just cleans up the area, places frayed/torn ends together, then stabilizes the whole area by insertion of a plate that is screwed down to the big blocky cuniform bone and adjacent metatarsal bones. Later, 2-6 months after ligaments heal, the plate would typically be removed to improve mobility for running. Surgical success varies widely (from career-ending to return to action in several months) depending on sererity of the injury. Le'Veon Bell had a Lisfranc sprain in 2013-ish that he recovered pretty quickly from. Cam's might be a slightly damaged. Here's Bell's case with explanation of the Lisfranc injury: https://www.espn.com/blog/stephania...veon-bell-injury-details-lisfranc-explanation

 

[jmdirt]

Since you mentioned that game in 2010 when the Seahawks beat the Saints at home in Seattle as a division winner with a losing overall record, it's worth seeing the Beastquake run that launched Marshawn Lynch into NFL history as one of the most brutal, physical, awe inspiring, downhill running backs that the league has ever seen, and perhaps will ever see.

This play never gets old, unless of course if you're a Saints fan...

The Beastquake, with Marshawn Lynch - NFL Films

- For those that can't get enough...

Certainly 'one of', but my memory has Earl Campbell and Bus Bettis ahead of him.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

SEA@LAR - a lot depends on whether Sea defenders Clowney & Ansah can play.

Sunday morning I'm starting to agree with you. I also see the Rams having a hard time stopping the Seattle run onslaught, and especially Wilson late.

Tua was supposed to be the crown jewel...It's unknown if Tua is still going to declare for the draft or comeback and play out his senior year, or if he'll even be able to return to pre-injury level.

True, and true. I think he should declare, it will mean a team probably headed into rebuilding but not in desperate shape will take him, still in the 1st or 2nd round. He'll be able to sit/play as he fully heals, and not expect to start and save a team in his first season as a rookie. His doctors say he'll make a full recovery, but he questions his ability for full rotation. Still, in the situation I describe, he could still end up an NFL star.

After tonight's game Barrow is definitely the top QB going into the draft.

Definitely looked like a pro out there, making some excellent throws, and the leader of the his team in a crucial game.

 

[Koronin]

Baltimore/Buffalo gets the award for one of the more humorous things of the season when some papers that have overhead pictures of plays blowing out onto the field.

 

[Irondan]

Certainly 'one of', but my memory has Earl Campbell and Bus Bettis ahead of him.

I'm definitely not so ignorant of the NFL's long and beautiful history to boldly claim the beastquake run as the "best ever" or Marshawn Lynch being the "best of" anything, but he certainly deserves his place among the all time greatest power backs in NFL history, which of course will always include (not exclusively) Earl Campbell, John Riggins, Walter Payton, Eddie George and of course the LEGENDARY Jim Brown, however my deep hatred of the Pittsburg Steelers clouds my vision when looking at this list the same way mostly everyone else does that includes Jerome Bettis, although I can concede that he was pretty tough to stop so his nickname was fitting.

So yeah, we're pretty much in agreement.

 

[Koronin]

49ers/Saints game proved neither team has much of a defense.
Buffalo is a good team.
Baltimore is the team to beat in the NFL.

 

[The Hitch]

Sean Payton absolutely blew it for the Saints today. For some reason going for 2 pts at the beginning, which cost them dearly at the end .

And then the extremely dumb fake punt on 4th and forever.

Saints can also feel very aggrieved by the ref call that gave SF a TD in the 4th quarter.

 

[Irondan]

49ers/Saints game proved neither team has much of a defense.
Buffalo is a good team.
Baltimore is the team to beat in the NFL.

I'm shocked at the collapse of the 49'rs defense, if collapse is the correct word at all considering that Drew Brees has been shredding great defenses for his entire career with today being "just another day" in the life of a first ballot Hall of Fame quarterback. But, I thought the athleticism, speed and quickness of the SF defense would have fared better against Brees who up until this morning was thought to be in decline, but 6 total touchdowns in a game will quiet that noise temporarily.

 

[Koronin]

I'm shocked at the collapse of the 49'rs defense, if collapse is the correct word at all considering that Drew Brees has been shredding great defenses for his entire career with today being "just another day" in the life of a first ballot Hall of Fame quarterback. But, I thought the athleticism, speed and quickness of the SF defense would have fared better against Brees who up until this morning was thought to be in decline, but 6 total touchdowns in a game will quiet that noise temporarily.

I'm not sure, but obviously the 49ers defense wasn't as good as was thought at least today. Yes Brees is really good at shredding defenses, but a top defense can slow down that offense.

 

[SHAD0W93]

Crazy game in Buffalo with that fumble being the deciding factor. Saints with a heart break loss (which they seem to get a lot of), dolphins almost with the win, crazy game in Oakland, and I don't think I see the patriots offense at all (maybe they should do MI's idea).

The Chiefs vs Patriots game just came on and holy jeebus this is crazy. According to Twitter Patriots had 2 touchdowns either reversed by penalty or whistled before play was over. They just showed one were they ruled Harry out of bounds and he wasn't but Pats were out of challenges. Three rough loses but they tried to bring it back all three. Just need to focus on winning next three and getting second seed.

 

[F_Cance]

I'm not sure, but obviously the 49ers defense wasn't as good as was thought at least today. Yes Brees is really good at shredding defenses, but a top defense can slow down that offense.

I don't think that one can say that. The D was legit in almost every game before. Only few teams are more banged up than the Niners and of course at some point they can't hide it anymore. The Saints are a very good team and it's not easy to play in their dome.

Dee Ford out, K. Alexander out (both big FA additions and important parts of the D), today Tartt out too, while Sherman, Bosa, Jones, Witherspoon all missed some snaps today (some a few more) and all of them are starters.
That's only one part of it though and sure Saleh has to find some answers.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Niners v Saints was a really enjoyable game, hopefully they meet again in the new year, I wouldn’t judge the Niners defence just on today, they’ve been excellent to date.

Tough loss for the Pats after 2 bad calls, but you always run that risk when you’ve used up challenges. They did well to even give themselves a chance after a really poor first half.

Shock loss for the Texans and those two games against the Titans coming up are huge for play-off implications.

 

[jmdirt]

AM games: I spent flipping between BAL/BUF and SF/NO (primary game) which made for an entertaining morning. The KC/NE game was 'odd', but OK (BB shouldn't have used a challenge to argue a yard early in the game). There isn't a poop emoji so I'll have to type that SEA looked like poop! WTH?!

I still can't believe how many calls the officials flat out miss, plus how many they get wrong. I want to quit complaining about this but its awful!

 

[SHAD0W93]

I still can't believe how many calls the officials flat out miss, plus how many they get wrong. I want to quit complaining about this but its awful!

Even worse with the reviewable penalties rule now. I forgot which game it was but they overturned a noncalled penalty as DPI for the first time. Then you have the different perspective penalties on different refs thinking differently on something. Guaranteed if you had two ref teams watch video of a game they will have different penalties called on some things. On top of player biase on how that player treats refs. Take an example of a Youtube video used of Brady vs Newton: Brady is more likely to get calls benefiting his team because he is nicer to the refs compared to Newton.

It's all crazy and the arguments can go either way like the catch rule from before.