NFL Pigskin Picks Week 1

[Jedi Master Carr]

I am going to try this this week to see if anybody is interested, not sure about prizes or anything like that yet, it will depend on interest in it. Okay well the first game is tomorrow at 8:30 EST, so for that game at least you will have to get your pick in before kickoff, for the rest of them you have until 1:00 EST. To help you out I am going to list all the games for this weekend.




Week 1

September 5 8:30 ET
San Francisco vs
NY Giants

September 8
1:00 ET

Arizona vs
Washington

Atlanta vs
Green Bay

Baltimore vs
Carolina

Detroit vs
Miami

Indianapolis vs
Jacksonville

Kansas City vs
Cleveland

Minnesota vs
Chicago

NY Jets vs
Buffalo

Philadelphia vs
Tennessee

San Diego vs
Cincinnati

4:15
New Orleans vs
Tampa Bay

Seattle vs
Oakland

St. Louis vs
Denver

8:30 ET

Dallas vs
Houston

September 9 9:00 ET

Pittsburgh vs
New England

[Sene Unty]

My picks. With a few opinions added

1) NY Giants...they got Shockey now.

2) Washington.....only because Arizona sucks.

3) Green Bay......come on its the Packers.

4) Carolina......its about time they won.

5) Miami......I will never pick against MIAMI .

6) Indianapolis......I don't like Jacksonville.

7) Cleveland..........The Browns are the team to beat this year...mark my words.

8) Chicago......DA BEARS!

9) NY Jets.......Bledsoe sucks.

10) Philadelphia.....The Eagles are damn good

11) Cincinnati.......come on their playin the CHARGERS!

12) Tampa Bay.......Tampa is good.....

13) Oakland....I could beat Seattle.....

14) St. Louis...the Rams are too good.

15) Dallas.....I hate them both so I just drew straws.

16) Pittsburgh.......Gotta love the Steelers. Plus they want revenge for the playoffs last year.


Those are my picks......I hope I did it right.

[JMK]

I like the road teams in alot of this week's matchups.
Edit: Arizona
1. San Fran
2. Green Bay
3. Baltimore
4. Miami (I'll never go against them either!)
5. Indy
6. Kansas City
7. Chicago
8. NY Jets
9. Philadelphia
10. Cincinnati
11. Tampa
12. Oakland
13. Denver (my huge upset of the week)
14. Dallas
15. Pittsburgh

[Daiquiri Van-Derveld]

1. 9ers, all the way. Gotta go with my sentimental favorite!

2. Im going to say AZ but I really think Washington will win.

3. Green Bay. I sat on the arm of my Dad's favorite chair and watched the first two Super Bowls with him! *sighs* Jerry Kramer, right guard #64 for the Pack...he still has the prettiest blue eyes :)

4. Baltimore (still should be the "Colts")

5. Miami

6. Indianapolis

7. KC but again, think they'll lose

8. Minnesota

9. Buffalo

10. Eagles

11. Chargers

12.Buchs

13. Raiders

14. I wish we had gotten those damn season tickets! Only 2 hours from home! St. Louis, hands down. (yeah, yeah...hush about the fans striking :mneh Still meant it, though)

15. Houston. I HATE Dallas!!

16. Patriots

[ReaperFett]

Still use Pig Skins? Savages ;) :)



1) San Fran
2) Washington
3) Green Bay
4) Baltimore
5) Miami
6) Jacksonville
7) Kansas City
8) Chicago
9) Jets
10) Philadelphia
11) Cincinatti
12) Tampa
13) Oakland
14) Denver
15) Dallas
16) Pittsburgh









Didnt Cleaveland or Chicago close?

[Jedieb]

I don't know if I'll be able to take part every week, but I'll try. I'll also offer up a carded COMMTech Stormtrooper and an AOTC action figure poster as prizes. Here are my week 1 picks:
Week 1

September 9 9:00 ET




San Francisco vs NY Giants

Arizona vs Washington

Atlanta vs Green Bay

Baltimore vs Carolina

Detroit vs Miami

Indianapolis vs Jacksonville

Kansas City vs Cleveland

Minnesota vs Chicago

NY Jets vs Buffalo

Philadelphia vs Tennessee

San Diego vs Cincinnati

New Orleans vs Tampa Bay

Seattle vs Oakland

St. Louis vs Denver

Dallas vs Houston

Pittsburgh vs New England

[Sene Unty]

Everyone seems to be voting against Cleveland but I really think they got a shot at doing really good this year. I don't know if I should be saying this in this thread because its only supposed to be for picks, but I think Butch Davis (former University of Miami coach) can make this team want to win. Kansas City can't seem to get theree act together....ever. Trent Green is not confident enough to lead that team to greatness. Then again this is just my opinion. I just felt like spewing my ideas.

[JMK]

Spew away. I've been wondering how many games Carolina is going to win.

[Jedi Master Carr]

Well as a Chief fan, I am not worried about Green, I am worried about our Defense if it plays as poorly this year as last year than we will be in a lot of trouble, Green does need to cut down on INT's well here are my picks

September 5 8:30 ET
San Francisco W
NY Giants

Arizona
Washington W

Atlanta
Green Bay W

Baltimore W
Carolina

Detroit
Miami W

Indianapolis W
Jacksonville

Kansas City W
Cleveland

Minnesota vs
Chicago W

NY Jets W
Buffalo

Philadelphia
Tennessee W

San Diego
Cincinnati W

4:15
New Orleans
Tampa Bay w

Seattle
Oakland W

St. Louis W
Denver

8:30 ET

Dallas W
Houston

September 9 9:00 ET

Pittsburgh
New England W

[Nathanial K'cansce]

San Fran - always a tough team to beat, and the giants won't be a good team this year... especially if Barber isn't healthy.

Washington

Green Bay

Baltimore - come on, they're playing Carolina :p

Miami

Indy - I don't think Jacksonville will be a contending team this year.

Kansas City

Chicago

Jets

Philly - prolly one of the better games this week.

San Diego

Tampa Bay

Oakland

St. Louis

Dallas

New England

[Jedi Master Carr]

Hey JMK you missed a game, I think you missed the Cinc-SD game, don't want you to be screwed out of a point.

[JMK]

No, I picked Cincinnati to win. Unless I've missed some other game. Thanks for keeping an eye out though. You can expect the bribe check in the mail soon. ;)

Uhh..avert your eyes everyone, you didn't read that.....

[Figrin D'an]

San Francisco (W) at NY Giants

Arizona at Washington (W)

Atlanta at Green Bay (W)

Baltimore (W) at Carolina

Detroit at Miami (W)

Indianapolis (W) at Jacksonville

Kansas City at Cleveland (W)

Minnesota at Chicago (W)

NY Jets (W) at Buffalo

Philadelphia at Tennessee (W)

San Diego (W) at Cincinnati

New Orleans at Tampa Bay (W)

Seattle at Oakland (W)

St. Louis at Denver (W)

Dallas at Houston (W)

Pittsburgh (W) at New England

[Jedi Master Carr]

I figured out which one you missed Washington and Arizona. And by the way your secret is safe ;)

[dbn]

September 5 8:30 ET
San Francisco W, hate the team, but they are the better!

Arizona W, cuz the Washington sucks!!!!

Green Bay W, with Brit Farvula you cannot lose;)

Baltimore W

Miami W

Indianapolis W

Cleveland W

Chicago W

Buffalo W

Philadelphia W

Cincinnati W

4:15
Tampa Bay w

Oakland W

St. Louis W

8:30 ET

Dallas W, cuz they are the best football team ever in NFL History-even if they have a few bad years, but they will come back THEY will always come back!!!!AHAHAHHAHAHAHH===let the Hate'n dbn fan club start:p

September 9 9:00 ET
New England W.

[sirdizzy]

San Francisco (Even though its in NY and they are doing all this stuff for 7/11 the Giants are way outmatched)

Washington (because their the home team and arizona sucks)

Green Bay (not even a contest)

Baltimore (carolina might be worse than the texans)

Miami (miami looks good, and detroit oh so bad)

Indianapolis (mister dungy has entered the building)

Cleveland (two bad teams give it to the home team)

Chicago (was chicago a fluke)

NY Jets (bills really truly suck even with bledsoe)

Philadelphia (eagles look tough)

Cincinnati (two bad teams give it to the home team)

Tampa Bay (Tampa should thank the league for their horrible division)

Oakland (oakland is sliding but their still at home)

Denver (people have already forgotten they picked denver to make the superbowl last year and everyone is healthy and back and they have improved)

Dallas (dallas sucks but the texans are just as bad)

New England (oh so tough go with the home team its time for kordel to choke again)

[JonathanLB]

How could anyone hate the Niners? Best team in all of football history except Green Bay I think. Well I like the Niners better, but the Packers are historic and Vince Lombardi is the man, plus they have great history too, but the Niners are best in history IMO. First team to 5 Super Bowl wins. Two decades of great football almost unrivaled in any sport.

There's nothing not to like about the Niners, plain and simple. The Cowboys were a team that most people hated though, outside of Dallas. I don't really hate them now because those players are mostly gone. I just as a tradition like to say I hate the Cowboys, hehe.

Well I have been so busy, didn't see this thread before really, so...

I miss a point on the Niners, even though you all know I would have picked them as I do every week, always, and always have. But ok :)

I'll pick the rest, as I did on the Swamps:

Jets
Vikings
Bengals
Browns
Packers
Eagles
Lions
Cardinals
Ravens
Colts
Bucs
Raiders
Rams
Texans
Steelers

[Sene Unty]

damn 49ers won. Damn good game though. Ended real exciting. But they still won. damn.....

[ReaperFett]

Should listen to me ;)

[JMK]

Jon, what possessed you to pick the Lions? Of course, should the fish lose, you'll look like a genius...

[JonathanLB]

Think about it ;)

Joey Harrington (Oregon Ducks, I'm from Oregon, hehe) is playing for the Lions. Of course, he isn't starting (to my knowledge), but it's my outside-chance pick of the week, haha. I think Miami will win but what the hell, might as well pick a underdog every once in a while just for the fun of it.

Likely that Miami wins by at least two TD's, though...

I think once Harrington starts for them, they're going to be at least alright. I mean I'd pick the Lions to go like 6-10 this year.

[Figrin D'an]

I don't know... I like Harrington and all, and I think he'll be a pretty good NFL QB in a few years... but Detroit has a horrible offensive line... hope Joey has hit the aerobic workouts, 'cause he'll be running around a lot this season if he gets the opportunity to play. ;)


and.... I'm going to change one of my picks... I'm going to take Denver to pull of the upset against the Rams... not because Denver is that good, but because St. Louis was sooo out of sync in the preseason and their starters didn't play much at all, I think it will take them at least through the first half to get the offense going, and Denver is always tough on defense at home. I expect Warner to get sacked a few times because St. Clair isn't going to be able to consistently stop the pass rush on Warner's blind side.

[jjwr]

My Fearless predictions, I had picked SF on Thursday but as I'm past there I'll just go with what I got!

Arizona vs
Washington (W)

Atlanta vs
Green Bay (W)

Baltimore vs (W)
Carolina

Detroit vs
Miami (W)

Indianapolis vs (W)
Jacksonville

Kansas City vs
Cleveland (W)

Minnesota vs
Chicago (W)

NY Jets vs
Buffalo (W)

Philadelphia vs
Tennessee (W)

San Diego vs
Cincinnati (W)

4:15
New Orleans vs
Tampa Bay (W)

Seattle vs
Oakland (W)

St. Louis vs (W)
Denver

Dallas vs (W)
Houston

September 9 9:00 ET

Pittsburgh vs
New England (W)


And a quite note, and this isn't to start a fight, on the San Fran thing.....I don't like them, I don't have to....heck I don't even need a reason not to like them. I dislike the Cowbows as well along with the Packers, Jets, Ravens, and Bronco's.

Who do I like, well Patriots of course, been a Pats fan for a long time, had to suffer through getting and losing the best coach in the NFL and losing the Superbowl at the same time then sinking into oblivion until Belechik took the reins and put this team back on track. Will they repeat this year....doubtfull, the schedule is killer but the team is better then last year and they've got a shot, I wouldn't discount these guys.

[JMK]

Ok, so you hate the Niners, Ravens, Broncos and whoever else. Big freakin deal. The real question is, what do you think of the mighty Dolphins???? o_O hmmmm?

[ReaperFett]

Hey, does Montana still play? WHen that Sandbox thing started, he was the only guy I recognised, so bought him for about three players :)

[jjwr]

The Dolphins? Nah I liked the Dolphins, Shula was always a class guy, sadly with Fiedler at the helm I don't see them going too far.

[JonathanLB]

Well you don't especially need a reason not to like a team, but I don't hate any teams in football really right now. I dislike Dallas, don't hate them anymore though.

I hate certain players on certain teams, and I hate some things people do. That whole Falcon Dirty Bird dance thing, my god, I wanted to pull out a shotgun and blow them away every time they did that. I hated the Falcons, because they SUCKED, and yet somehow they were winning games anyway. What a LOUSY football team that never deserved more than 5 wins in any season. But now, I don't hate them, because they suck again, just like they always have and should, lol.

I don't hate the Panthers, for instance, but I find them hilarious. They are a laughing stock. They're like the LA Clippers used to be in basketball, or like the Nuggets, or whatever other cruddy teams exist. They are doormats, and you have to love the doormats of the league. :) Free wins.

I don't like the Rams anymore. First, their uniforms suck. Badly. Worst uniforms in the league except the Browns. If you don't have a cool uniform, and I'm not from your city, then how do you expect me to be a fan?! The Niners have GREAT uniforms, they look classy, magestic, it looks like a WINNING team. The Broncos have a great uniform now, even though it used to suck badly too, and then you have plenty of other teams with fine uniforms, the Texans, the Cowboys even aren't bad, the Jets, the Bills, the Dolphins, they're all just fine. But it's when the uniforms are actually LOUSY that it bothers me.

The main reason I don't like the Rams anymore is because I'm sick of them being "on top" or at least being in contention every year. They are supposed to suck! That is the point. The Niners own that division. Who do they think they are? They are meant to be a doormat, and they think they are something more?! WTF? That's not right. They are not meant to win more than 4 games per year. It is an unwritten rule.

I used to really like Kurt Warner, but that guy needs to get a new wife, I'm tired of seeing her ugly face on TV, anyway we shouldn't be shown players' wives unless they are actually hot, in which case, eh, ok. Overall I like Warner, he's a good guy, and I like every player on the Rams, and they are not a dirty team, unlike some other ones. Nonetheless, they need to start sucking again, because I'm sick of them beating the Niners. They have no place doing that at all. ;)

[JMK]

I agree jjwr, as much as I hate to say it, the fish aren't going to win anything with Jay Fiedler running the show. They may as well give Lucas a shot, what can it hurt? Even with Ricky Williams, Fiedler is a slacker and the O-line concerns me. :(

[ReaperFett]

Montana anyone? :)

[JMK]

Montana hasn't played in years. Retired 10 years ago if memory serves...

[Jedi Master Carr]

Retired before the 95 season as a Chief, he could have played a couple more years but he want to spend time with his family.

[Daiquiri Van-Derveld]

No Joe no more :cry :cry

[ReaperFett]

SO WHO DID I BUY LAST YEAR? :)

[ReaperFett]

AITMEN! Does he still play? :)

[JMK]

Aikman has retired too. Fragile melon. He may attempt a come back one day.

[ReaperFett]

Dont think I know any players any more then. I feel oooooooooooold

[Daiquiri Van-Derveld]

Heh. >D

[Sene Unty]

The Dolphins dismantled the Lions. HeeHee. Go Dolphins!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Figrin D'an]

Week 1 tallies thus far (Steelers/Patriots yet to be played)

Sene Unty: 8-7
JMK: 9-6
Lady Daiquiri: 9-6
ReaperFett: 10-5
Jedieb: 8-7
Jedi Master Carr: 10-5
Darth Snack: 10-5
Figrin D'an 12-3
dbn: 6-9
sirdizzy: 9-6
JonathanLB: 6-9
jjwr: 8-7


Jon: Since we all know you pick the Niners to win every game, I counted it as a win for you.

jjwr: I'll take your word for it that you pick San Fran, so I counted that as a win for you as well.

[ReaperFett]

10-5 good?

[Nathanial K'cansce]

Yes

Wish my fantasy team did as good as what I did in this.... I'm getting skunked. *wishes I put Jay Fielder in instead of Kurt Warner*

Jay had 24 Fantasy points yesterday... Warner only scored me 3 thus far. >.<

[JMK]

Given time, Fiedler will screw up. :( Stick with Warner, its easy to get points against the Lions...

[Sene Unty]

I dont know about that. I would put in Fiedler until like October. The dolphins always start pretty good and they should be able to put some points on the board against Indy. Warner was looking horrible yesterday. I dont know who they play next week though.....

[Figrin D'an]

I wonder how many fantasy leaguers learned their lesson from last season and decided to start Priest Holmes at tailback... ;)

4 TD runs to start the season... damn...

If you need TD stats, he's your man... besides Tony Gonzalez, Holmes is the main offensive weapon KC has... he might make a run at Smith's single season rushing TD total this year.

I'm still gonna stick with Ahman Green though... he might not get as many TDs (10 last season), but he just might put up over 2000 all-purpose yards for the Pack this year.

And I agree... don't play Fiedler after late October... he always collapses late in the season stat-wise... that will be the time when Ricky Williams will prove his worth, because he'll have to carry the team into the playoffs.

[Sene Unty]

I agree with figrin.....I just hope this year will be different. With Ricky however Miami has its best chance at going far.....

[JMK]

True enough, the Dolphins will blast out to their yearly 7-2 and 9-3 starts, but they will fizzle come playoff time because Fielder IMO, just doesn't have those intangibles needed to win big games. Hopefully the addition of Williams and Norv Turner as offensive coach will push them over the hump. If they suffer another playoff massacre at the hands of a team like the Jaguars, I'll eat a football.

[Sene Unty]

I will aid JMK in eating that football. I couldn't stand another loss like that!!!!!

[JMK]

Are the fish your team as well? If so, then in the past 6 months, I've met 4 Dolphins fans whereas in the past 12 years I've met exactly none.

And damn those Patriots! Brady had a big game, Stewart sure as hell did not. Looks like the Pats are going to pick up where they left off. Why do I have to be in the toughest division? Grrrr! :grumble

[Jedi Master Carr]

Patriots played a lot better that I thought they would, I didn't expect them to beat the Steelers up, I expected a close game. So does that mean that last year is no fluke?

And now here is week 1's totals

Sene Unty: 8-8
JMK: 9-7
Lady Daiquiri: 10-6
ReaperFett: 10-6
Jedieb: 8-8
Jedi Master Carr: 11-5
Darth Snack: 11-5
Figrin D'an 12-4
dbn: 7-9
sirdizzy: 10-6
JonathanLB: 6-10
jjwr: 9-7

[ReaperFett]

Not bad :)

[JMK]

Do you follow American football Reap, or were you more or less guessing?

[ReaperFett]

50% guesses, 20% what you all said, 30% knowledge

[JMK]

Geez, you had those percentages all worked out before I even asked, didn't you?:lol

[ReaperFett]

Yeah, analysed ;)

[JonathanLB]

Well I got humbled there, huh? Hehe, probably my worst week ever predicting actually. I seem to remember doing quite well in past football pools, at least I was able to be right about 59% of the time if I recall. Over the course of a season, that's not too bad, football being so unpredictable.

I got raped this week, lol, my god. Figrin, you are the man for getting 12 right, my god... I don't know if I've ever had a week that good. I remember 11-5 weeks, but jeez. Thanks for giving me credit on my San Fran one too, and I will choose them each week this year of course. :) My Niners...

Well better luck to me this next week, I guess. I got killed even by Reaper here, haha.

I remember this time where a RANDOM coin flip actually beat a few analysts for the course of a year. Football is so hard to predict. I think sometimes it's pretty easy, like if I say that the Niners are going to win every game this year, then I'm going to be right probably 60% of the time at the very least. They are a good team. They will be 10-6 at worst, I would imagine. Then picking the Rams to win their games, overall that is going to be a good strategy. Except vs. the Niners, and I'm sticking with my Niners there. :) If they can't beat Denver, they can't beat the Niners either, haha.

Dang I just can't believe how hard I got rocked last weekend, but it could have gone either way. I called a lot of close games, like that Browns game, that should have been mine, and the Philly loss, there are plenty of other close calls too. I was dead wrong on my Lions one (I was just calling the underdog, I should have been smart, not fancy) and the Steelers played way worse than I expected, plus I don't know why I messed up that San Diego game so bad, haha.

[Jedi Master Carr]

Well for that Browns game you should have a word with Dwayne Rudd he is the idiot who took his helmet off that cost them the game, I was just glad KC won the game. That has to go down as one of the wierdiest endies in a NFL Game I think it will be shown for years on NFL films for years.

[Figrin D'an]

Well, I had a few close calls with some of my picks... if Chicago and Tenessee didn't make those comebacks, things would have been a little different. I picked the Browns... should have had that one if not for Rudd's celebration penalty... oh well. I was way off on the Monday Night game though... I anticipated a close ball game, fairly low scoring with a lot of hard hits and trash talk, with the Steelers pulling it out... now, part of it was Kordel Stewart looking like he had regressed back to a few season ago, but I have to admit, I, just like so many others, really underestimated the Patriots. Brady looked really solid in that game, the defense played stout, and they didn't make stupid mistakes. If they continue to play like that thoughout the season, they'll be a playoff team without a doubt...

The Packers got a scare this weekend too... that game was exciting, but so hard to watch as a Packer fan... in the end, the got the win, which is what really matters... Atlanta is better than expected though... Vick has really matured from the college QB that everyone saw scrambling around in the Sugar Bowl a few years ago... as much as I hate to admit it, the Falcons deserved to win that game... Vick had two sure TD passes dropped, and he had the Packers defense on their heals most of the game. Vick will be the difference in at least a couple of games this year...

[Nasseeri Haalleerraa]

*MUST beat Fett!! >_<

Yeah, I didnt expect Chicago to make that comeback either. Oh well, they got lucky and more than likely I'll still be betting against them, overall. :verymad

[JMK]

I don't like the Pats much, but it was funny to watch the #1 ranked defense totally dismantled and left with its head spinning and its tail between its legs. What kind of message did Pittsburgh just send to the rest of the league? We're ripe for the picking?
Execute 25 consecutive no-huddle passing plays and you'll beat us handily?

[Sene Unty]

He JMK I am indeed a fish fan and have been for a good length of time (MY WHOLE LIFE). No matter how much they screw up I can never really hate them. Oh and the reason you may have run into so many lately has to do with the fact that Dolphins fans are very finicky. They will go from love to hate in a blink of an eye. In fact all the teams in Miami suffer from this fan fallout. Miami can never be loyal for too long.......

[JMK]

The thing with me is that I've never even met a Dolphins fan in my life. I don't even know what got me into them. But the fans I've met this year have been as good and loyal fans as I have for years.

But I can understand the fickle fan argument. Montreal sports fans are horrendously fickle. Fans in this town will only support a winner, with the exception of the Canadiens. The Expos started sucking, now they can't give away tickets, and when our CFL team was sucking, the fans left and so did the team. Now the CFL team is back, and is probably the hottest ticket in town because they're a good team (10-1 this year already) and have more regular season wins since 96 than any other CFL team.

[JonathanLB]

The Steelers do not impress me. I won't be picking them again until they win a good game. I'm not picking them this week...

The Patriots, bah, I do not have any respect for that team and I still won't even if they win another Super Bowl, because if they did, it would be yet another lucky turn of events that never should have happened, just like last year. It's such a funny sport that the 5th best team in the league can win a Super Bowl. My god! Green Bay and the 49ers were vastly superior football teams, as was St. Louis, but nope, NE wins. The Steelers were better too. Actually so was Oakland. I don't even think I'd put the Patriots in my top 5 of last year. Lousy football team, can't believe they won anything. I won't be picking them this week either. I just think the Steelers suck, don't think the Patriots are in fact any good. lol.

In case I don't get to make my picks for this week or something, just covering my bases here...

Atlanta
Cleveland
Tennessee
Miami
Kansas City
Green Bay
NY Jets
Detroit
Tampa Bay
Seattle
St. Louis
Minnesota
Houston
San Francisco
Oakland

Philadelphia

[jjwr]

Sorry but I gotta jump all over this one....


The Patriots, bah, I do not have any respect for that team and I still won't even if they win another Super Bowl, because if they did, it would be yet another lucky turn of events that never should have happened, just like last year

Yup last year was all luck, the way they won their last 6 games of the season, including games over the Jets & Dolphins who both went to the playoffs.

Playoffs against the Raiders, yes that was a questionable call, I'm a Patriots fan but to me it did look like a fumble, the ruling was obscure but it was the correct call.

As for that game, how many teams can come from behind by 10 points in that kind of weather in the 4th quarter to win the game? The Raiders had every chance in the world to stop the Patriots but they couldn't, they were beat on the field.

Adam Vinatieri's 45yd field goal to tie the game was called by Chris Berman as probably the greatest kick in NFL history.

AFC Championship against the Steelers, those guys were 13-3, Number #1 Defense in the league, #1 rushing game and the Pats kicked the crap out of them. These were the same Steelers who were dominating everyone last year and the Pats went into their field and kicked their arses.

Superbowl......going into this Game Mike Martz had all the respect in the World for the Patriots, he called them the toughest team he had played all year and this was before the Superbowl. Belechik and that defense did what no other team in the NFL could do that year, and that includes the Niners, Packers, etc....they shut down the Rams and won the game.

Luck? 1 or 2 wins is luck, they're up to 10 in a row including their last 4 vs the Raiders, Steelers, Rams, Steelers....so of the top 5 teams in the league the Pats have taken down 3 of them in a row over 4 games. You call that luck?



It's such a funny sport that the 5th best team in the league can win a Super Bowl

Well they've got the trophy and beat the #1 & #2 seeds in the NFL....I think that gives them the right to be called the best team.


My god! Green Bay and the 49ers were vastly superior football teams

Too bad neither could handle the Rams.


as was St. Louis

Obviously not in the Superbowl


The Steelers were better too

Lets see, Pats have beat the crap out of the Steelers two games in a row....and the Steelers are better?


I don't even think I'd put the Patriots in my top 5 of last year

Most people wouldn't, thats what was so great about last years Patriots team, not a lot of great individual talent but they're a incredible team, Offense, Defense, Special Teams, top to bottom they were a great team.


Lousy football team

14-5, nine game winning streak, and the last team standing....yeah they suck.


I won't be picking them this week either. I just think the Steelers suck, don't think the Patriots are in fact any good. lol.

So now the Steelers suck? You just wrote they were better than the Patriots and one of the best teams in the league....heck they're basically the same team they were last year and have actually improved on offense and all the key defense players back.

The Patriots just flat out beat them, better offense gameplan, better defense gameplan, better execution.

Thats whats great about the Patriots, top to bottom they're not as talented as a lot of teams but they play great as a team, they have arguably the best coaching staff in the NFL and can put together a game plan to beat any team(check out the last two games).

Last year the Patriots biggest problem was their offense, 3 Offensive TD's in their 3 playoff games, one in each. They scored on Special Teams and Defense and thats what helped carry them through.

All of their key defensive and special teams players have returned, those units should be better.

That weak offense? Well they now have 3 quality Tight Ends on the Roster, added a 6'4" possesion/speed reciever and drafted a 5'9" lightning quick burner who is looking incredibly good. You add this to Troy Brown who is one of the best and most underrated WR's in the game and a very reliable and quick David Patten. All of a sudden a inept offense became very dangerous and basically took apart the vaunted Steelers Defense.

Brady is looking incredible, this guy is only going to get better and will be something special. I'm a huge Bledsoe fan, I'm still upset that he's gone but unfortunetly the team was not built to his strengths, the line could not hold on long enough and he was paying for it. Brady is quick and can get the ball out very accurately.

Next year watch out for Bledsoe & the Bills, that young line will be that much better and they're gonna be scary.

Onto my picks, I'm a bit dissapointed with my 9-7, I took a few chances and they didn't pan out, luckily in my other leagues/pools I didn't take those and got in the 11 range.

Ok here are my picks

Chicago vs Atlanta(W)
Cincinnati vs Cleveland (W)
Tennessee(W) vs Dallas
Miami vs Indianapolis(W)
Jacksonville vs Kansas City(W)
Green Bay(W) vs New Orleans
New England(W) vs NY Jets
Detroit vs Carolina(W)
Tampa Bay(W) vs Baltimore
Arizona vs Seattle(W)
NY Giants vs St. Louis(W)
Buffalo(W) vs Minnesota
Houston vs San Diego(W)
Denver vs San Francisco(W)
Oakland vs Pittsburgh(W)
Philadelphia(W) vs Washington

[JonathanLB]

That was not a questionable call. It was the incorrect call. Plain and simple it was an awful call that led to the wrong team advancing, and worse than that, WORSE than that was the fact that the team they just let advance ended up pulling off two more upsets and won the Super Bowl, totally ruining and tainting the entire season.

The Patriots are good, but they are not great. There are many better teams. The Steelers were good, LAST YEAR, and so far this year, one game, they look awful. Kordell better get into his mindset from last year and not the two years before that.

Winning the Super Bowl does not make any team the best and it never has. Winning an NBA Championship makes you the best team MOST of the time, ok, exception being last year's Lakers because they lost to the Kings already and therefore were not eligable to be in the finals. Well, with a little "manuevering" from the refs, i.e. cheating, they managed anyway. It's nice that now, after the fact, the rules were changed so that if any half-court shot like that goes in now, it won't be counted because it'll be reviewed. So let's see, let me think REAL hard here, that would have done what... umm... OH yes! That would have put the Kings on top 4 games to 1. So, no, the Lakers were not the best team. But hey, at least if you play 7 games you're more LIKELY to find the best team. Not so with 1 game, then 1 game, 1 game, etc. That doesn't work. It's fun, a lot of fun, I love the NFL, but it doesn't decide who is best. It decides who played the best on that given Sunday, which as anyone intelligent knows means nothing. One boxer can beat another much better boxer on a given day, but 9 times out of 10 he's going to get his butt kicked. That is true of the Patriots too.

They have no claim to being the best of anything this year. I wish that we could get a 49ers vs. Patriots matchup in the Super Bowl, then the Niners could kick those wussies back to where they belong.

[jjwr]

That was not a questionable call. It was the incorrect call.

Kinda funny, this guy that holds the title of NLF Head Referee's said it was the correct call. Again as a Patriots fan it looked like a fumble but I wasn't aware of the tuck portion of the rule, by the rules it was the right call. In fact they didn't even change the rule this year so the NFL also agree's with the rule.


totally ruining and tainting the entire season.

So a underdog team going in and as a team winning the Superbowl ruins the season?

What would you have preffered? The Rams go in and win 52-3?

After the game a lot of NFL writers, media, etc were talking about that being one of the best Superbowls ever.


Winning the Super Bowl does not make any team the best and it never has.

Umm....well when a given teams wins its league Championship that does in fact say they are the best team. No other team could do it but they could so why doesn't that make them the best? You said there were 5 better teams last year yet none won the championship. All that means is last year(any given year) the Patriots were the best team in the NFL. They've got the trophy.


that would have done what... umm... OH yes! That would have put the Kings on top 4 games to 1

To change subject for a second, thats a really big stretch, yes the 3 shouldn't have counted but to say if that 3 hadn't counted that they would have lost teh game is beyond anyone to know. That kind of extrapolation isn't really accurate, I've played a lot of basketball and depending on the events of the first half the 2nd half can be totally different, the making/missing of a 3point shot can really change the 2nd half when its at the buzzer like that. Using the same sort of extrapolation you could say that had the Lakers not missed shot x of quarter y they would have won the game. Well had they made that shot then the rebound wouldn't have been there and the ensuing play would be different, etc


One boxer can beat another much better boxer on a given day, but 9 times out of 10 he's going to get his butt kicked. That is true of the Patriots too

The Patriots are currently on a 11 Game winning steak, have beat the Rams, Steelers twice, Raiders, Jets twice, Dolphins and I'm not sure who else offhand, thats 7 playoff teams from last year.


I wish that we could get a 49ers vs. Patriots matchup in the Super Bowl, then the Niners could kick those wussies back to where they belong.

The Patriots are wussies? Please, have you watched either of their first two games this year? Before the season just about everyone picked the Steelers to win the AFC, a number picked the Jets. Most picked the Jets to win the AFC East ahead of the Patriots.

30-14
44-7

Total domination in two games, the games were not as close as the score, two teams that were supposed to be sure fire playoff teams were totally manhandled by the Patriots.

Yes its only 2 games and the season could change very quickly, then on the same note the 49er's are 1-1 and have been mediocre at best so far.

[Figrin D'an]

Just to clarify... the call made in the Raiders/Patriots playoff game last season was indeed the correct call. There is absolutely no dispute about that, regardless of what the Raiders and their fans may believe. The "tuck rule", as it is known, states that when the quarterback "brings the ball FOWARD & down and into his chest/stomach, it is part of the forward passing motion, and any subsequent release of the ball is ruled a pass." This means that if the ball is released from the QB's hand and hits the ground, it is an incomplete pass.

Now, I will admit, the rule is a bit quirky... but, it exists mainly as an appendage to the "forward arm motion" rule. If a QB's arm is hit, but his arm/hand is moving forward, the play is ruled a pass attempt no matter the trajectory of the ball. The ball could end up 10 yards behind the QB from slipping from his hand and tumbling down field... it doesn't matter, it's still would be ruled an incomplete pass. If the QB's arm is still moving backward, then a lost ball is ruled a fumble...

The tuck rule avoids a double standard by categorizing the forward arm motion of the quarterback under the same rule set... otherwise, the officials would have to attempt to judge the intent of the passer, which is extremely subjective and can vary greatly depending upon the view the officials have of the forward arm motion of said passer. That's why the NFL competition committee, during their off-season meetings, decided to keep the tuck rule as written.



On a different subject... I have to agree with jjwr... you don't win 11 of 14 regular season games after an 0-2 start, then knock off three of the best teams in the league in the playoffs to win a championship through luck alone. A little bit of luck, or fortunate bounces, are part of almost every championship run... but you still have to play hard, gameplan well, and avoid mistakes. The Patriots did that. Now, with their first two games this season, they have wanted to show the pundits that last season wasn't a fluke. New England is a very confident, hard-nosed and well-coached team right now. They have the Lombardi trophy, so they know they can win, and on top of that, they have plenty of motivation to prove the experts wrong. That's a dangerous combination for any opponent to face...

[JonathanLB]

I am not here to argue about last season or how pitiful the Patriots were compared to any other Super Bowl Championship team.

"There is absolutely no dispute about that, regardless of what the Raiders and their fans may believe."

No, it was not the right call, and yes, there is dispute about that. It was a lousy call. I don't care what they want to say, that was not the correct call whatsoever. It was clearly a fumble, that is just ridiculous. Anyone who says otherwise just didn't watch, it's that simple. And that is all I am saying about that.

[Figrin D'an]

That's not the point.... it's not what YOU personally believe, or what the average Joe Football-Fan believes. It's what the rule states. The NFL rulebook is very clear and concise on that type of play.

When I first saw the play, I was pretty certain that it was a fumble. It appeared to me that Brady had brought the ball down and had placed his non-throwing hand on the ball when Charles Woodsen hit Brady and the ball was knocked free. While this may have been true, Brady's arm was still moving forward and down when the ball came loose. That means that the "forward passing motion" rules come into play, which in this case means the tuck rule. The officials made the right call based upon the established rules of the game.

Is it a flawed rule? Maybe...
Should it be changed so that the officials can judge passer intent? Perhaps...
Was it the correct call given the rules? Absolutely.

[jjwr]

The intent of Brady is the only debatable aspect of the play, by his intent it did not seem like he was trying to throw, but he did have the ball tucked so the rule came into effect and the call was made.

JB: After your last paragraph its pretty obvious your sucking on some serious sour grapes there for whatever reason, your not a NFL referee or part of the NLF rules committee, they say its the correct call, simple as that.

As for the Patriots, I was checking out their schedule last night, man its ugly. I know they'll go into each game with the ability to beat every team they play but with that calibur of opponents they're gonna lose some and with a few bad breaks could finish 9-7 though I think they'll do better and go 10-6 or 11-5. Sadly the only gimme game looks like Detroit on Thanksgiving.

[Sene Unty]

Has much as I dislike the Patriots (the whole being in the same division as Miami forces me to hate the Jets, Bills, Patriots and Indianapolis, though they are no longer with the Dolphins.) they are a very good team. Brady has gotten more and more impressive and the way they play together is astounding. The fact that no one gives them credit is pretty crappy....they deserve it. Oh and winning the Super Bowl does make you the best team, that's the whole point.

[JMK]

Of course winning the superbowl makes you the best of that year. The team that can win when it really matters is the best team. As it has been said several times in this thread alone, the Pats beat ALOT of good teams to get there. They won when it was all on the line. That makes them the best. Saying otherwise is like saying that the dude who wins a million on who wants to be a millionaire wasn't the best that night. That's a false statement if I've ever seen one.

And don't look now, but the 2 teams everyone predicted to get to the superbowl are 0-2 and look awful. The respectless Pats are picking up where they left off and look tremendous right now. Early on, they look like the team to beat. As they should. They're the champs.

[jjwr]

What has really suprised me so far this year is once again all the teams seem to have flip-flopped, the teams that were supposed to be really good are struggling while some weak teams not picked for the playoffs are playing very well.

A few highly picked teams that are struggling include

Steelers - 0-2 in 2 ugly losses
Rams - 0-2 They're not quite done yet, start giving Faulk the ball!
Packers - 1-1 A trendy pick by quite a few to make the Superbowl, could easily be 0-2
49ers - 1-1 another team that could easily be 0-2

Then there are the suprises, Saints at 2-0, Pats at 2-0(well a suprise for most), Dolphins at 2-0 and playing really well.

Its early and I could see a lot of these records evening out with a few teams running off with huge records and a lot in the 8-8 to 9-7 range.

[Sene Unty]

I always expect the Dolphins to get to the Super Bowl!!!! :D

But I agree with jjwr, the teams that were supposed to excel have been sucking. The damn Saints are too damn good this season as are the Pats. *Crosses fingers that Pats will lose every game for the rest of the season.*

[JMK]

I'm not totally convinced that the Saints are for real yet...

[Sene Unty]

Yeah they looked sloppy towards the end of the Tampa Bay game but after they beat Green Bay....that was convincing!

[Figrin D'an]

Yeah, but Green Bay + playing in a dome = uh-oh...

The Packers do not play well indoors on turf... I've never really understood why, but the numbers don't lie... their most successful game in a dome with Favre at QB was Super Bowl XXXI. They beat the Lions because they suck, but they always have problems at the Metrodome against the Vikings, the last time the played the Indianapolis, they lost to the pre-Payton Manning laughing-stock-of-the-league Colts. And, of course, last year in the playoffs against the Rams...

Hopefully, Green Bay can get their defensive problems figured out this coming week, or it could be a long season... they should be mad enough this week to stomp Detroit, but they have to have a solid game all around... no high-scoring shootout stuff.


Bottom line... it's early... the difference between 2-0 and 0-2 throughout the league is pretty small... in many cases, many of those records could be reversed... I mean, Carolina is 2-0 ... :rolleyes

[Sene Unty]

Yeah Carolina's going all the way!!!!!!! :D

Yeah I can see some big changes in the NFL soon. Being 0-2 doesn't mean anything.....weren't the PATS 0-2 last season?