NFL Conference Championship Games

[R_of_G]

Anybody have any thoughts on the championship games this Sunday? Is Arizona for real? Is this finally McNabb's year? Could anything be more exciting than seeing Pittsburgh's defense against Baltimore's defense? What do you think will happen.

For the record, I am picking Baltimore and Philadelphia. Should the Cards win, I won't be shocked though. Warner is a winner and that defense is better than people think it is. The AFC game I am looking forward to more than any game so far. To see the two premier defenses in the league match up is a treat.

Go playoffs!:dude:

[marnold]

I actually am looking forward to the NFC game more because the offenses are better. Pittsburgh has a semi decent offense. Baltimore has none to speak of. It's going to be a 13-10 game, methinks. I'd really like Arizona to make the Superbowl since they are one of the "futile four" who have never played in the game.

[R_of_G]

13-10 would be a lot of scoring for those two teams. That's what intrigues me about it. I tend to prefer 3-0 to 48-10. I would like to see Arizona win because I've known so many Eagles fans and they haven't made me want to wish success on their team (the Eagles fans here are cool though). With Warner at QB, anything is possible.

[Tim]

Pittsburgh vs. Baltimore

[Tim]

Pittsburgh Steelers going hunting;

[R_of_G]

This year has shown me that the NFL instant replay rules are a joke. Whether it was the so-called forward pass call which cheated San Diego against Denver early in the season, the kickoff which never touched the Eagles player or went out of bounds today or any of the many plays in between, I have seen far too many incorrect calls on plays that are "not reviewable".

So I ask, what is the point of having "not reviewable" situations? By allowing any form of replay at all, the league acknowledges that its officials make mistakes and that these mistakes should not necessarily affect the outcomes of the games. Therefore, why would the system provide for situations in which a mistake must be accepted?

Let me state, I am not for reviewing every play every time from the booth. I am not for changing the way it works now with the one challenge per team per half. The only change I want made is that ANY call can be challenged. To isolate any type of situation as "not reviewable" makes the entire concept of review preposterous.

On another note, where is this spectacular Eagles' defense I keep hearing about? I've talked a lot about the two D's we will see this evening in the AFC game, and I've read and heard a lot about how "the Eagles are being overlooked and are playing the best D right now." Ok, where is it? It looks to me like the Cardinals can pretty much do whatever they want out there. Interesting to me that the Eagles are giving up a lot of points because that cannot be blamed on McNabb (everyone's favorite scapegoat).

[Blaze]

The Cards are on !!

[R_of_G]

That game was a good appetizer. Now on to the main course, defensive football!

[luvmyshiner]

WOW! What a game. This has been a very close and exciting season. If y'all will excuse me, I have to go watch the next one.

[marnold]

Way to go Cards! The futile four is now the futile three.

[just strum]

Pittsburgh Steelers going hunting;

Very creative.

[R_of_G]

And as a Tampa resident I am glad the Cards won so my city is not overrun by Eagles fans for the next two weeks! Like I said, the Eagles fans at this forum all seem like good people to me, but my many experiences with Eagles fans outside of this forum (including many games at the Vet) have not been pleasurable.

It will be intriguing to see the Cards' high-test offense against either Pittsburgh or Baltimore!

Go football!

Game time... see you later.

[just strum]

13 - 0

you haven't given up on the game already, have you?

[Blaze]

Good Super Bowl to come , Pittsburg should win this by 17 points ..

[piebaldpython]

Kudos to the Cards for beating us fair and square. I'm glad that the IGGLES made a game out of it in the second half and yeah, their vaunted D shut the Cards down until the last drive.

As to McNabb, the best thing to happen to him was getting benched at half time of that game 5 weeks ago. It woke him up and he's played better since. With all due respect, McNabb and Reid deserved every bit of BLAME that they got over the past years. Sometimes they go "braindead" at the worst times.

R of G....you went to games at the Vet?? 700 level?? Dude, I wouldn't have sit in those seats if you paid me to. :D Rabid fanaticism coupled with too much Beer or Jack Daniels makes for an UGLY scene. Which is why they they wound up having a JUDGE at the stadium for our unruly fans. UGH!!

[R_of_G]

As to McNabb, the best thing to happen to him was getting benched at half time of that game 5 weeks ago. It woke him up and he's played better since. With all due respect, McNabb and Reid deserved every bit of BLAME that they got over the past years. Sometimes they go "braindead" at the worst times.

If you guys don't want McNabb anymore, I would gladly see him in a Jets or Bucs uniform next season. :D



R of G....you went to games at the Vet?? 700 level?? Dude, I wouldn't have sit in those seats if you paid me to. :D Rabid fanaticism coupled with too much Beer or Jack Daniels makes for an UGLY scene. Which is why they they wound up having a JUDGE at the stadium for our unruly fans. UGH!!

I did. One of my former employers is as rabid an Eagles fan as they come and he brought me to several games. It was humorous and terrifying at the same time.

[R_of_G]

I was holding off on posting about this until it was official (even though ESPN broke the story last night that it was probably going to happen) because I didn't want to jinx it.

Rex Ryan has agreed to a 4 year deal to become the next head coach of the New York Jets. I am thrilled! You all know by now that I am much more concerned with defense than offense and I don't think there is a better defensive mind in football than Rex Ryan (not counting his father Buddy who was an absolute genius). When I wanted Mangini fired two seasons ago, it was Ryan I was hoping the Jets could go after to replace him. Here we a whole season later and it's finally happened. Hopefully it will be worth the wait.

If nothing else, I look forward to the Jets building a strong defense. The return of Gang Green!

So thank you Steelers for ending the Ravens' season so Ryan could officially be hired. J-E-T-S, Jets! Jets! Jets!

Is it draft day yet?

[just strum]

I was holding off on posting about this until it was official (even though ESPN broke the story last night that it was probably going to happen) because I didn't want to jinx it.



This is going to be interesting to watch leading up to the new season and results during the season. I'm not familiar with players on the Jets, what does he have to work with coming out of the gate?

I too have something to announce until it was reported on ESPN. It's official, the Browns are tied for 1st place going into the first game of the 09/10season - savor the moment.

[R_of_G]

I'm not familiar with players on the Jets, what does he have to work with coming out of the gate?

They have Calvin Pace (LB) and Kris Jenkins (DT) as vets to work with. Both are star quality defensive players. They also have Darelle Revis (CB) who will be going into his third year. I watched plenty of Revis in college at Pittsburgh and he has been exactly what I hoped he would be. He's turning into one of the higher quality cornerbacks in the game. Teams are throwing to his side of the field less and less as time goes on. There is some other talent on the D but I would like to see that side of the ball addressed a lot more in the upcoming draft and through free agency as there is really nobody else that I would say should be guaranteed a spot on the roster for next season.

I've said before that I hope the Jets draft Ray Malaluaga if he is still available when they use their first pick, but he may not make it down that far in the draft. The key to a Rex Ryan defense is an outstanding middle linebacker and I think Malaluaga would fit the bill perfectly.

There are also three outstanding free agents on the Baltimore defense that I wouldn't mind if at least one of them follows his coach to the Jets. I am sure Baltimore will offer Suggs however much money he wants, but Bart Scott would be a nice pickup for the Jets and Ray Lewis, while not the player he used to be, would be exactly the kind of veteran defensive guy who can teach the younger guys to act like winners.

And hey Strum, the Jets are in the lead today too!! Next year's AFC championship game Jets v Browns? It'd be fun to try to stick it to Mangini. :rotflmao:

[birv2]

As a lifelong Eagles fan, I'm heartsick today. I'm sure I'll get over it someday but...

But I've got to chime in on McNabb and Reid -- yes, they go braindead at the worst times, but we've been to 5 (or is it 6) NFC championships in the last 10 years. We've got a chance to do something every year, and not a lot of teams can say that. How would you like to be a Browns fan? Or Lions?

I get frustrated with Reid and McNabb, but they would both be snapped up in a heartbeat if we ever let them go. Philly fans don't know how good they've got it. Do you really want to see Kevin Kolb running the offense next year (shudder)?

Maybe getting this close will be the motivation we need to win it all next year.

[R_of_G]

Well said Birv.

It's why I would take McNabb on either of my teams in a heartbeat. He's been key to the success the Eagles have had over the last decade. They may not have been able to win the championship games or Super Bowl, but they've gotten there in large part because of his play.

Not every QB makes the right decisions all the time, but McNabb seems to make plenty of them and his athleticism is an intangible which greatly benefits the Eagles. If they were to drop him, then what? There is no free agent of his caliber available so that leaves Kolb. Kolb may be good someday, but I don't think a team that just made the NFC championship game should be at a "rebuilding" stage just yet.

[Tynee]

This year has shown me that the NFL instant replay rules are a joke. Whether it was the so-called forward pass call which cheated San Diego against Denver early in the season, the kickoff which never touched the Eagles player or went out of bounds today or any of the many plays in between, I have seen far too many incorrect calls on plays that are "not reviewable".

So I ask, what is the point of having "not reviewable" situations? By allowing any form of replay at all, the league acknowledges that its officials make mistakes and that these mistakes should not necessarily affect the outcomes of the games. Therefore, why would the system provide for situations in which a mistake must be accepted?

Let me state, I am not for reviewing every play every time from the booth. I am not for changing the way it works now with the one challenge per team per half. The only change I want made is that ANY call can be challenged. To isolate any type of situation as "not reviewable" makes the entire concept of review preposterous.

On another note, where is this spectacular Eagles' defense I keep hearing about? I've talked a lot about the two D's we will see this evening in the AFC game, and I've read and heard a lot about how "the Eagles are being overlooked and are playing the best D right now." Ok, where is it? It looks to me like the Cardinals can pretty much do whatever they want out there. Interesting to me that the Eagles are giving up a lot of points because that cannot be blamed on McNabb (everyone's favorite scapegoat).

Yeah, they screwed them both up. The thing is, how would you correct it? The reason that some plays are unreviewable is because they are blown dead too early.

For example, lets say there is a Cardinal's player standing close enough to grab the ball after it bounces. The Eagle's player hears the whistle and quits on the play, but the Card grabs the ball and runs into the endzone with it. In a perfect world, they could go back and say, "the whistle shouldn't have blown, so the Card's get 6" except that the Eagle's player would have kept playing if the whistle hadn't blown, so maybe he would have gotten the ball instead. Sometimes, you can review it all you want, but there's no FAIR way to fix it, so you chalk it up to human error and move on.

That's my take on it, anyway. Either way, it was good football this past weekend, and the SB should be entertaining with a really good O matched up against a really good D, and an ok O matched up against an ok D.

[R_of_G]

It's a good point you make Tynee. I'm not sure how I would address a situation like that, but there's got to be a better way than the way it is now. I'll have to give it some more thought.