National Football League

[jmdirt]

I tested a Spark 910 last summer and liked it a lot. I really liked their shock lockout system, a step up from what Giant has done. I also liked the way it was mostly a trail bike, but could be raced in something like XCM if one wanted. The only thing I didn't like about it was the front end seemed "floppy" to me. Granted, I'm coming from a 2014 Szd Camber, which most people think of as "twitchy". I also live in New England where there aren't a lot of trails with flow. We have endless tiny hills, but very few you can climb then bomb down, and most trails are tight, intricate and rocky/rooty. So if you didn't notice the "floppy" feel, I'd say go for it.

Wait, this is a football site. Why are we talking about cycling?

I love football!

The bike I'm riding now is a 2017 Spark 910, and the bike before that was a 2015 Spark 910 (I had a '14 Scale 910 at this point as well), and the bike before that was...yep you guessed it, a Spark (but that one had 26" wheels). The geometry is completely different now though that they split the Spark into two lines: Spark RC- XC race and Spark- trail. All of my Sparks are of the XC variety prior to the split (last year I believe). The 'relaxed' numbers (67, 74, 44 mm) have me thinking too much. I'm sure that it will be great, just different. Even the RC bikes are slightly more relaxed now too. The new one also has 20 mm more travel (120 mm) and room for more rubber, comes with 2.4. The RCs are still 100 mm and come with 2.25.

I love football!

 

[SHAD0W93]

Players use the trainer bike during the game= bikes are relevant. Come on Alpe don't be silly.

In fact, ask SAS what Jay Cutler was doing in the NFC championship game.

 

[movingtarget]

Players use the trainer bike during the game= bikes are relevant. Come on Alpe don't be silly.

In fact, ask SAS what Jay Cutler was doing in the NFC championship game.

Jay even managed to make using a trainer bike look like he was laying in bed................

 

[SHAD0W93]

Jay even managed to make using a trainer bike look like he was laying in bed................

That's just how natural he was, should have been a cyclist. Smoking Jay riding with ease away from the peloton, ahead or behind nobody knows.

He seems a lot more relaxed now than while playing and I haven't watched it but people love him on his wife's reality show.

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

I love football!

The bike I'm riding now is a 2017 Spark 910, and the bike before that was a 2015 Spark 910 (I had a '14 Scale 910 at this point as well), and the bike before that was...yep you guessed it, a Spark (but that one had 26" wheels). The geometry is completely different now though that they split the Spark into two lines: Spark RC- XC race and Spark- trail. All of my Sparks are of the XC variety prior to the split (last year I believe). The 'relaxed' numbers (67, 74, 44 mm) have me thinking too much. I'm sure that it will be great, just different. Even the RC bikes are slightly more relaxed now too. The new one also has 20 mm more travel (120 mm) and room for more rubber, comes with 2.4. The RCs are still 100 mm and come with 2.25.

I love football!

That kind of reminds me of "I'm just here so I don't get fined".

 

[Archibald]

That kind of reminds me of "I'm just here so I don't get fined".

Can I just mention that this is the 2nd time I've been on.... "

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

This whole Dak contract situation is nuts.
https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.c...3-million-per-year-in-new-money-in-september/

 

[jmdirt]

This whole Dak contract situation is nuts.
https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.c...3-million-per-year-in-new-money-in-september/

DAL should move on. That being said, who can they get? If they can get Teddy, that makes it easy to move on (he's under $10 Mil now). The super vets (TB12 and Rivers) don't make sense (too much $$ for a short return...IF), I don't think that there will be a gem late in the draft, Cam ($20 Mil, health concerns). Mariota...squinty face ($20 Mil).

If they pay him like he wants, they won't have the money to make the team good. He will complain about having no weapons (other than the other massive contract ZE) around him and not enough protection...but who can they get and still work under the cap (that's toooooo high).

This also slams me back to my annual rant (seven months early) about the stupid amount of money these guys demand and/or make.

 

[Nomad]

I wonder about Baker...if he had played behind a vet QB1 for a year , could he be better (add in at a better organization)? Is there still a chance for him? IMO no matter what he is no Pat or Lamar.

There are examples all over the board of ways that QB careers go: Troy Aikman (rookie start) could have just quit football after his rookie season, but we know how his career eventually turned out- SBs, HoF! Russell Wilson (rookie start) had a solid rookie season, went to the next two SBs (winning one). Now we have Pat and Lamar (rookie sit) who are tearing it up, but Rosen (rookie start) who is crushed. And, there are examples everywhere in between. Rodgers (behind Favre)? What a bout the other rookies struggling now? Obviously factors like the organization (coaches, GM, owner...), and the other 70 or so players play a role, but I wonder what the numbers look like? Merckx can you crunch those numbers?

EDIT: also obviously it depends on the individual persons' mentality of course (which bring the question back to Baker...)

Mayfield was supposed to sit behind a veteran QB for a year as Tyrod Taylor was named starter long before the preseason even started:

Cleveland Browns Say Tyrod Taylor Will Start Over Baker Mayfield

The Cleveland Browns have already named Tyrod Taylor their starting quarterback over rookie No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield. What does this tell us about Mayfield and the Browns?

www.forbes.com

But...Taylor gets hurt in week #3 and insert Mayfield and so much for any learning on the sidelines behind a veteran. Same with Rosen - he was supposed to sit behind Bradford, who ends up getting injured in week #3 (no surprises there. Lol).

LJ didn't sit for a full year...he started week #10 when Flacco got injured. But LJ lit it up going 6-1 in the final 7 games and taking the team to the playoffs. Flacco was cleared to play by the end of the season but his tenure as starting QB was all but history by then based on LJ's performance.

Funny situations with Allen & Jones. Allen was supposed to sit behind Peterman who had that outstanding preseason performance and impressed the coaches earning him the starting job. Sadly, it lasted one game as he was benched after finishing with a "0.00" passer rating in the opener! Lol. Though Jones also had an impressive preseason, Shurmur still named Manning as the starter. But after going 0-2, Manning is dumped and the Jones' show starts. Jones gets hurt later in the year and Manning is back, who still can't win and is benched again as soon as Jones is cleared to played. At the end of the day, Shurmur couldn't win enough games with either Jones or Manning which ultimately cost him his job. In his second season he did worst than his first season going from 5-11 to 4-12. Better luck with some guy named Joe Judge

The Mahomes situation with Alex Jones was quite unique and usually doesn't work that efficiently. For one, Smith stayed healthy for the entire season and two, the team was winning (11-5 & divisional title), which eliminated any pressure to make a QB change.

I'm sure this whole scenario is going to play out again this season with the four or so anticipated 1st rd pick QBs who'll end up starting sooner than later, and one way or the other.

 

[Nomad]

This whole Dak contract situation is nuts.
https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.c...3-million-per-year-in-new-money-in-september/

It's becoming a clown show with the QBs these days. So...33 mil isn't good enough for The Great Dak Prescott? That's just a few mil behind the highest paid QB in RW, who has done a hell of a lot better than DP in post-season performance and SBs. And 33 mil is still higher than the average of the top 5 paid QBs (RW/Rodgers/Wentz/Big Ben/Ryan) used for determining a salary for a franchise tagged player. What a mess Jerry Jones has - I wonder how Tom Landry would have dealt with this.

More satire out there:

Taysom Hill thinks he's a franchise QB now and wants out of NO:

Hill wants shot at QB, with Saints or elsewhere

Saints restricted free agent Taysom Hill recently told The AP on a podcast that he views himself as a franchise quarterback, and though he hopes his future is in New Orleans, Hill suggested he'd be willing to go elsewhere for the "right opportunity."

www.google.com

And Mayfield is back in the news again. Lol.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/busted...laims-she-had-affair-with-baker-mayfield/amp/ ju[/I]

 

[jmdirt]

(most) Pro athletes in general have gotten to the point that the number one priority is money (not only the massive amount, but also being more than others), and then winning is second (maybe).

I get wanting to make a lot of money, but give me $5 Mil and the chance to win 10 Superbowls and I'm in. I wouldn't know how to spend $5 mil in a lifetime, let alone in a year so I'll take the wins and live happily ever after on $50 Mil. $50 Mil! Even if my career gets cut short, I'll make $25 Mil!

I LOVE the way Hill plays, but come on man! You found your lane and now you are willing to chuck it out the window?! Will anyone take the risk on him being QB1? Maybe the LVN Raiders?

I feel like the NFL could be close to a tipping point. Fans can only afford so much.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

(most) Pro athletes in general have gotten to the point that the number one priority is money (not only the massive amount, but also being more than others), and then winning is second (maybe).

Is Matt Ryan worth $150m ? Is Mahomes worth the likely $200m deal they are working on now? What about Alex Smith and his $94m deal, while he's not even playing and he gets to keep a huge chunk of it as $50m of that is fully guaranteed, even if he never plays another down?

I'll ask something else, is Trevor Siemian worth $2m? Matt Schaub (yes, he's still in the league) $3.8m?

Is a nurse who works full-time year round saving lives worth a fraction of that at $70k a year? How about a teacher? We could go on and on.

Dak, like many others, "reject" contracts like this to test the market, but it's also very much a bragging contest. It's the same reason why agents gloat when they sign a huge deal to the players they represent. There are huge egos at play here, more than anything. Also, a lot of stars are surrounded by people who constantly stroke their ego, as well as try to leach off them. You tell a star QB he's going to be the best player in the NFL for the next decade he's so great, and he's worth $100m, and it's him and not really his offensive line or key players. After all, his name is what makes headlines, he's the one the reporters want to talk to etc., he soon starts to believe it. Not every player, but a lot of them.

I feel like the NFL could be close to a tipping point. Fans can only afford so much.

Classic capitalist economics 101. The players are testing what the owners will pay, and the league and owners are charging what the market (fans) will bear, and taking the risk the value won't decrease and people will continue to buy. Maybe they won't?

Let's not forget the league is filled with maybe even more self-congratulatory, megalomaniacal, greedy people than the players: The owners.

 

[Merckx index]

Classic capitalist economics 101.

Careful, Alpe. Under the new forum rules, we're not allowed to discuss economics. As I understand these rules, only a mod can initiate such a discussion and in this case, only if the discussion is solely about NFL players--IOW, as long as we don't delve into the root causes, and pretend that the NFL exists in a vacuum.

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

When comparing careers, I like to define "worth" as "the level at which someone deserves to be valued". The key is, valued to what end? To their team, or to society. If we forget about society for a moment, those players huge contracts probably do have value to their team, because without at least some high paid players many teams would not win as often. But adding value to society into the mix, then hands down IMO, teachers and nurses etc are far more valuable to society than NFL players. Unfortunately for teachers and nurses etc, hospitals and schools etc don't have that entertainment factor or huge TV revenues fueling their business. C'est la vie, I guess. Hopefully, and there are some, players give back to society some of what they've been gifted, even if it's just time.

 

[movingtarget]

Current market value and all that. But Dak thinks he is worth more than Russell Wilson and Jarred Goff ? Of course Mahomes will set the new standard and then the games continue. There is talk of Jimmy G taking a pay cut ! I will believe that when I see it and it only happens rarely and not usually to young QBs. Talk of Rivers being linked to Tampa and he has already moved to Florida. The Chargers are another team that needs to get the QB position sorted. As for Dak he turned down 33 million and Jerry has a way of usually stringing things along then paying them anyway. But I think 33 is probably a good payment for him and a fair one. 40 is just milking it and a bit ridiculous but Mahomes will be the first to break that barrier. What are the Cowboys options though ? At least the Bengals have Burrows through the draft. Not sure I 'd be signing Tua with his recent injury history, will be interesting to see how how far he falls in the draft order. Just the start of the QB follies I'm afraid................

 

[jmdirt]

Garrett is reinstated. I'm OK with that. On one hand I would like to see 8 games (1/2 a season), but I want the team to start loaded and ready so I'm willing to let two games slide. BUT, now the NFL had set the "helmet as a weapon" suspension at 6 games.

This is a follow up to a story that I posted a week or so ago:
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id...hearing-saints-emails-archdiocese-new-orleans

Could this help him reduce the number of interception that he throws?
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id...n-undergoes-lasik-eye-surgery-nearsightedness

 

[movingtarget]

Garrett is reinstated. I'm OK with that. On one hand I would like to see 8 games (1/2 a season), but I want the team to start loaded and ready so I'm willing to let two games slide. BUT, now the NFL had set the "helmet as a weapon" suspension at 6 games.

This is a follow up to a story that I posted a week or so ago:
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id...hearing-saints-emails-archdiocese-new-orleans

Could this help him reduce the number of interception that he throws?
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id...n-undergoes-lasik-eye-surgery-nearsightedness

Think he deserved more. As for Winston it will be interesting to see the results of the surgery. No doubt he is talented but he must be frustrating to coach. 33-30 is simply not good enough and Jimmy G was getting hammered for having half as many interceptions !

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Careful, Alpe. Under the new forum rules...

Good Lord.

Agree on Garrett reinstated.

 

[Koronin]

My take on the Lasik for Winston certainly can't hurt. No idea if it will help or not.

 

[jmdirt]

Think he deserved more. As for Winston it will be interesting to see the results of the surgery. No doubt he is talented but he must be frustrating to coach. 33-30 is simply not good enough and Jimmy G was getting hammered for having half as many interceptions !

More than six or more than eight? There is certainly part of me that would like to see 16, but that punishes the entire team. Now if the CBA had a clause for suspended players where the team could spend that money on a replacement (or multiple replacements), I would definitely say 16.

 

[movingtarget]

More than six or more than eight? There is certainly part of me that would like to see 16, but that punishes the entire team. Now if the CBA had a clause for suspended players where the team could spend that money on a replacement (or multiple replacements), I would definitely say 16.

Up to 10 would have sent a stronger message. Anything more would have been probably making an example of him. There was no proof of the racial abuse as stated by Garrett but he was adamant that it happened. Rudolph denied it so did players on both sides who admitted to hearing nothing like that but the crowd noise was probably also loud during the incident. Odd that Garrett did not state that immediately but days later which just created more doubt about Garrett's behaviour. Strange. The tackle itself was a bit over the top especially so late in a game that had already been decided. With Ben returning it seems that the Steelers don't have many options. Rudolph like Allen at the Panthers eventually showed his limitations. Wouldn't surprise me if they drafted a QB. Still have doubts about them making the playoffs. Many NFL talking heads seem to think that Ben hasn't deteriorated as much as others like Rivers but his stats for the past few seasons haven't been good.

 

[Koronin]

The Steelers are saying they are happy with their QB line up currently. So who knows, but if they draft a QB it won't be til rounds 6 or 7.

 

[jmdirt]

The US politics thread got shut down...I hope that they don't end up closing other (or all) non cycling threads! I enjoy talking non cycling with cycling minded people!

The Miles Garrett situation: I just watched a clip of his ESPN OL interview that really didn't shed any light on the situation, but it makes me wonder again, how did he lose it to that level? For the sake of argument, let's say that Rudolf did use a racial slur, why did that shut Miles' brain off? I've lost count of how many guys have spoken about what a nice guy he is so we aren't talking about Suh here.

One QB that we haven't discussed much this silly season is Andy Dalton. Will he stay in CIN in some role with the #1 draft pick? If he moves on, where does he go? Chargers? I've often wondered if he is better than what we see in CIN...could he be better in a different system? He's about $20 Mil I think so...

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

The peculiar thing about Garrett is if you have seen him interviewed in the past you wouldn't have possibly guessed he would have violently freaked out like that. He comes across as articulate and thoughtful.

You mentioned Suh. When I lived in Oregon he had a home there, or family there, and during the off season people would run into him and say what a nice guy he was. A gentle giant. But you get him on the field, even in front of football media people, anything football, and he turned into Mr. Hyde. Maybe Garret has that happen as soon as he runs on the field, or the ball is snapped? Cyclists may remember the late Laurent Fignon? Some athletes are like this I guess.

The problem with Dalton is that with a couple other FA QB's out there, who really wants to roll the dice on him? I think there's a good chance Rivers may end up in TB, that's possible. But is Dalton the answer for the Chargers, as they move into that beautiful brand new stadium, he will be the face of the franchise?

I actually think the Steelers will be good next year. The entire rest of their team played quite well the 2nd half of the season, and a slew of "average" players on defense looked like a real force the more the season went on. They are very well coached, well organized, and if Ben is at all healthy, and the receivers develop a little, they look like they could make a playoff run once again. But Ben is a big "if", isn't he? Let's not forget how many games he's missed in the past due to injury, and he must be slowing down. I agree that Rudolph didn't look like the answer, neither did JT Barrett. Hey, what about Andy Dalton heading to Pittsburgh?!

Don't care about the politics thread, and I can see why it got shut down. When I was a mod it was the worst forum to moderate, and it has nothing to do with cycling, sport, or much anything positive. This is at least a sports, athletics, fitness, competition, achievement thread. Few people here ever really argue with one another either. It's a very positive tone, and we're all very respectful of one another.

 

[jmdirt]

The peculiar thing about Garrett is if you have seen him interviewed in the past you wouldn't have possibly guessed he would have violently freaked out like that. He comes across as articulate and thoughtful.

You mentioned Suh. When I lived in Oregon he had a home there, or family there, and during the off season people would run into him and say what a nice guy he was. A gentle giant. But you get him on the field, even in front of football media people, anything football, and he turned into Mr. Hyde. Maybe Garret has that happen as soon as he runs on the field, or the ball is snapped? Cyclists may remember the late Laurent Fignon? Some athletes are like this I guess.

The problem with Dalton is that with a couple other FA QB's out there, who really wants to roll the dice on him? I think there's a good chance Rivers may end up in TB, that's possible. But is Dalton the answer for the Chargers, as they move into that beautiful brand new stadium, he will be the face of the franchise?

I actually think the Steelers will be good next year. The entire rest of their team played quite well the 2nd half of the season, and a slew of "average" players on defense looked like a real force the more the season went on. They are very well coached, well organized, and if Ben is at all healthy, and the receivers develop a little, they look like they could make a playoff run once again. But Ben is a big "if", isn't he? Let's not forget how many games he's missed in the past due to injury, and he must be slowing down. I agree that Rudolph didn't look like the answer, neither did JT Barrett. Hey, what about Andy Dalton heading to Pittsburgh?!

Don't care about the politics thread, and I can see why it got shut down. When I was a mod it was the worst forum to moderate, and it has nothing to do with cycling, sport, or much anything positive. This is at least a sports, athletics, fitness, competition, achievement thread. Few people here ever really argue with one another either. It's a very positive tone, and we're all very respectful of one another.

I don't see AD as the face of the franchise, but who is? He might be better than a lot of other possibilities. My niece's husband in SD really wants Dak to be a Charger. I thought that once one team made a move it would go crazy, but SD/PR didn't really even cause a ripple. Who will be the move that sets it off?