2021 Miscellaneous NFL News

[DuWayne Steurer]

In most seasons, playing a team like Philly or Pitt is going to be a minor speed bump for a 2 seed on the way to the divisional round. Yes, getting an injury to a key guy would definitely suck if it would occur, I'm not discounting that. Barring that, these games have sucked, and there's nothing on that wasn't exceedingly predictable as far as philly and pitt getting curb stomped.

 

 

ETA : I feel like the HFA throughout was already a pretty good prize for grabbing the #1 seed. The format was solid as it was. We have had, what..... one sub-500 team make the playoffs in the 6 team era? With this format we're grinding closer and closer to rewarding some junk team for an 8-9 season (Philly was 9-8 lol) just so they can squeak into the playoffs and get heel-stomped by a 2 seed for no reason other than a network pocket ad money and someone gets a home game. It's dumb, boring, and stupidly unnecessary.

[PinaMadness]

The Steelers offense is the anti-Bills offense. Punt on every possession.

[DuWayne Steurer]

This escalated quickly

[DuWayne Steurer]

KC has scored 35 points in the last 11:46 of game time.

[PinaMadness]

The Chiefs are about to send Ben out the way the Jags sent out Marino.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Well, it's a 2 v 7. The 2 should win. Last year, Indy very nearly took out Buffalo in that game. I don't think one season where 7 stomps 2 in both conferences is some big condemnation of the format. It just sounds like an overreaction to a weekend mostly filled with bad games. The two close games were pretty bad until the way end. NE didn't even show up.

 

I like it though. I'll never complain about getting 6 games WC weekend; this year they just weren't very good. And I maintain that I like having the best record meaning you're the only team with a week off.

[PinaMadness]

The Chiefs are just rubbing it in now. Was that really necessary?

[OldSchoolSnapper]

I'm fine with embarrassing the Steelers.

[Vgmastr]

It makes me very happy to see Roethlisberger's final game be a humiliating playoff blowout.

[DuWayne Steurer]

The Chiefs are just rubbing it in now. Was that really necessary?

 

 

Normally, no. It's Ben Rothlisberger, so yes.

[AKCheesehead]

I’m staying tuned in case we get to see him crying at the end.

[DuWayne Steurer]

Mahomes has 6 more completeions than Rothlisberger for 236 more yards.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Saturday

3:30: CIN@TEN

7:15: SF@GB

 

Sunday

2:00: LAR/AZ @ TB

5:30: BUF@KC

 

Packers get Buck and Aikman.

[DuWayne Steurer]

Shocker. McCarthy said the refs messed up on the final play, when clearly they did not.

[Joseph Zarr]

Holy hell I just caught up to what happened during the final drive for Dallas. If that isn’t the single biggest Big Mac thing ever...I don’t know what is. And then defending the decision? Amazing. Never change Mac. Never. Good grief.

[adambr2]

"Do you want to be running a Hail Mary play from the 50-yard line or do you want to run five verticals form the 25-yard line?" McCarthy said. "So, that's the decision, it's the right decision."

 

 

You know you were at the 41 yard line, right, Mike?

 

Your point sucks if you have to start it with a huge exaggeration.

[logan82]

The 49ers are a different team with Bosa on the field. He is a game changer.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

I mean it is about a 50- or 55-yard throw into the end zone from the 41. I see why they wanted to run a more realistic play from closer in. But Dak has to get down maybe a little earlier and then get the ball to the ref. They all lined up way forward of where he began to slide too. That official was hustling to get a play off, the players didn't know what they were doing.

 

They were basically at the limit of being able to try that and get one more snap, and it could have worked, but it looked as if nobody talked about what everyone had to do right after the play.

 

And then they spiked the ball at 0. That whole play would have been illegal anyway but they didn't even have time to spike it.

[adambr2]

I mean it is about a 50- or 55-yard throw into the end zone from the 41. I see why they wanted to run a more realistic play from closer in. But Dak has to get down maybe a little earlier and then get the ball to the ref. They all lined up way forward of where he began to slide too. That official was hustling to get a play off, the players didn't know what they were doing.

 

They were basically at the limit of being able to try that and get one more snap, and it could have worked, but it looked as if nobody talked about what everyone had to do right after the play.

 

And then they spiked the ball at 0. That whole play would have been illegal anyway but they didn't even have time to spike it.

 

Well Mike didn't say a 50 yard throw, he said the 50 yard line so from the get-go his explanation looks like he's grasping at straws.

 

The opponent's 41 is perfectly reasonable Hail Mary range. I remember Rodgers completing a Hail Mary to Janis against Arizona from their 45 with pressure in his face almost immediately. I don't know how much of a difference a little extra yardage makes at this point. I'd rather have 2 to 3 shots from the 41 than 0-1 shots from the 25 or 30. It's not like the defense can't get far enough back to guard the goal line either way.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

I think most would take the 2 shots from farther out but realistically the first attempt is fairly likely to get picked off. If they had a timeout I'd definitely want to get closer first. With the way that play unfolded and the time left when he went down, it did actually look possible to run another play. But they just looked completely out of sorts trying to get up and get the snap off.

 

McCarthy is always trying to be some grandmaster of genius and do things differently.

 

I think he's going to be given one more season and then fall from grace and work as a position coach if at all. He did always seem fairly good at keeping a team together through adversity. But he just cannot manage a game to save his life.

[MrTPlush]

Not sure McCarthy is really the guy to blame. Prescott is the one who messed up. He was the guy that ran as far as he could before he was going to get tackled. There is simply no excuse, at all, that someone like Prescott is not aware of the situation. Burning nearly half the remaining time running down field is a fail and why they lost. He didn’t leave enough time to.

 

I will say I have thought the refs did slightly screw them. The ref that had to touch it was standing in his original spot watching the entire play go downfield. I think…if I saw the replay on TV correctly last night. He should have had common sense and been running with the play knowing how much time was left and he had to touch the ball. Not blaming the refs, not the crime of the century…but unfortunate if you are the Cowboys.

 

Also think Prescott messed up spiking it in the end. They almost got the snap off before zero, but no where near having time to spike it. At that point he should have just taken the snap and prayed his guys started running/blocking. think one WR actually did.

[OldHeidelberg]

It was a dumb call, 14 seconds isn’t enough, and typical of MM to circle the wagons and defend it to the end. With the niners guarding the sidelines that was the best opportunity to throw in the end zone. It was a small miracle they got as close as they did and they pissed it away. Loved it.

[DuWayne Steurer]

Not sure McCarthy is really the guy to blame. Prescott is the one who messed up. He was the guy that ran as far as he could before he was going to get tackled. There is simply no excuse, at all, that someone like Prescott is not aware of the situation. Burning nearly half the remaining time running down field is a fail and why they lost. He didn’t leave enough time to.

 

I will say I have thought the refs did slightly screw them. The ref that had to touch it was standing in his original spot watching the entire play go downfield. I think…if I saw the replay on TV correctly last night. He should have had common sense and been running with the play knowing how much time was left and he had to touch the ball. Not blaming the refs, not the crime of the century…but unfortunate if you are the Cowboys.

 

Also think Prescott messed up spiking it in the end. They almost got the snap off before zero, but no where near having time to spike it. At that point he should have just taken the snap and prayed his guys started running/blocking. think one WR actually did.

 

 

If you watch the overhead angle of the play, both the back judge and whatever the other dude is called are running (actually running) forward before the play ended. The ref who was supposed to spot the ball was in position when there was 4 seconds on the clock but he had to get through the cowboys line. He then had to take it from the center, spot it with the side judge, and place it. If ANYONE on the Cowboys knew that the ref had to spot, touch and place the ball, they'd have had 2-3 seconds to run another play.

[RobertR]

Lots of undisciplined penalties. Questionable clock management. And an inexplicable play down the stretch. Yeah, that's the Mike McCarthy I remember.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

It was a dumb call, 14 seconds isn’t enough, and typical of MM to circle the wagons and defend it to the end. With the niners guarding the sidelines that was the best opportunity to throw in the end zone. It was a small miracle they got as close as they did and they pissed it away. Loved it.

 

It's risky but there's a decent record of teams doing it with 14 seconds or fewer. The Lions did it in 10, spiked it and kicked a winning field goal. At the point Dak goes down, it looked like they'd get the play off, even Romo was saying "this is gonna work." Their offense seemed unaware that the official had to spot the ball. If they'd gotten him the ball immediately as they should have, they probably do get the spike off.