NFL 2017 Divisional Round Thread

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It’s tough to say goodbye.

Except when it’s Jeff Triplette.

Triplette is famous for many things. Blinding a player with a flag. Blown calls. Losing control of games. It’s only appropriate that one of the key plays in his final game was a questionable forward progress call, meaning his refereeing career got to die as it lived; as incompetently as possible.

Blake Bortles won a playoff game. Actually, from an offensive perspective, that’s accurate; Bortles’s running ability made him clearly the best player on the Jacksonville offense. This is not a compliment to anyone. Bortles was 12/13 for 87 yards. And won. Tyrod Taylor? 17/37 for 134 yards. UGH.

Mariota catching his own pass was the best part of a close game that never felt like a good game. KC fell apart once Kelce went out, and, a few exciting Derrick Henry plays aside, the Tennessee offense was just kind of there.

The Falconsand Saints both won, indicating 2018 is going to suck just as much as 2017.

New Orleans Saints at Minnesota Vikings: The Vikings are going to the Super Bowl. Not that I think they’re a great team, it’s just that nothing would be more appropriate for Vikings fans than getting to the Super Bowl in their own stadium, and then losing to Tom Brady and the Patriots.

Atlanta Falcons at Philadelphia Eagles: If Nick Foles literally turned into a pumpkin on the first play from scrimmage, would it really impact the Eagles offense all that much?

Jacksonville Jaguars at Pittsburgh Steelers: Roethlesberger had an awful game last time these teams met, and the Jaguars won in Pittsburgh. That was back when Blake Bortles was in full Marginal Starter Mode, and he appears to be heading straight back towards Peak Blake Bortles Mode.

Tennessee Titans at New England Patriots: Magical things can happen in the playoffs, like amazing finishes, huge underdogs pulling off upsets, or, more likely, the Patriots winning yet again. Guess which of those seem most likely?

No point in starting picking now when we don't even count anymore.

So this week I'm having to root for the Vikings, Eagles, Jags and Titans?!

No wonder NFL ratings are down.

So are we ever getting pick em results?

LeapingGnome wrote:

So are we ever getting pick em results? :P

It's coming!

You think this is bad, I still owe the fantasy football people money.

3 day weekend. Catch up time.

New Orleans Saints at Minnesota Vikings: This one is interesting since the Vikings should win, but Brees can still carry the team and maybe Case Keenum turns back into a pumpkin as Cam Jordan flattens him. The Vikings losing at home is the perfect Vikings thing to do. Saints.

Atlanta Falcons at Philadelphia Eagles: One good game this weekend! Oh, wait, Nick Foles. Falcons quietly have a really good defense. And Julio Jones and Devonte Freedman. Falcons.

Jacksonville Jaguars at Pittsburgh Steelers: Let me know when this is over. Steelers.

Tennessee Titans at New England Patriots: I simply don't see Mularkey out coaching Belichick. Patriots.

Low key excited for the weekend games as I honestly think there's some upsets in the mix.

Not sure how much of an upset Philly over Atlanta is really but I could see them locking up Foles and just hammering Ajayi and Blount. Ryan has been all over the place this year.

Big Ben can stink out the joint and throw 3+ picks. He's thrown 3 picks 9 times 4 twice and 5 vs the Jags this year in his worst game.

I wanna believe Mariota can throw himself TDs and beat Brady. Would probably help if Murray was back. Just hammer Henry + read option and a dash of Murray? Knowing non Pats fans luck Henry will probably get stripped on the first play.

*Legion* wrote:
LeapingGnome wrote:

So are we ever getting pick em results? :P

It's coming!

You think this is bad, I still owe the fantasy football people money.

3 day weekend. Catch up time.

You don't do weekly threads anymore.
Fantasy Football is over and Grumps was doing it for you anyway.
You don't have kids.

What are you doing with all your free time?!? Don't tell me you're wasting your life working. Who does that?

Are we seeing the end of Brady?

But if we were to look at the half-empty glass, we can draw comparisons to the career arc of Brady’s former longtime nemesis, Peyton Manning. No, not the Manning we last saw in 2015, who somehow won a Super Bowl with play so poor that his league-leading defense was forced to overcome it. Brady’s 2017 season is actually eerily similar to the 2014 Manning, who was his typical dominant self for the first 11 games of the year before falling off a cliff that can be seen now only in hindsight. At the time, the poor play was attributed to nagging injuries and not the inevitable end of one of the NFL’s greatest careers.

More here.

Yes, he's 40 years old. My guess is we'll get two more years out of him after this one.

JeremyK wrote:

Yes, he's 40 years old.

Are you trying to give fuel to Guru's fire?

I'm not sure how else you'd classify it than the end. You have people that think he'll be done after this year and then the pie in the sky hopes of Brady himself of playing at a high level until he's 45. Either way I'd consider this the beginning of the end of his career so it's not exactly controversial.

Ah, you thought I was posting something controversial. Gotcha. I wasn't. I was trying to post something informative and probably didn't pull enough from the article.

IMAGE(https://espnfivethirtyeight.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/salfino-brady-2.png?w=1150&h=784&quality=90&strip=info)

Obv, they're both old, but the way they declined is similar. That's what the article is asking and that's why I thought it was worth a post.

Sorry, I'll find more controversy next time.

I'm not sure why you're taking that at as an attack when I answered your question by agreeing with you? I didn't take issue with the article or you posting it.

I agree with Jeremy on two years for Brady, with the last year being pretty bad. I think he is on the decline too and the team overall is playing well so it is not as obvious in the games. And I think Belichick knows it which is why he wanted to keep Garrapolo and probably start him next year.

Saints
Eagles
Steelers
Patriots (yuck!)

Just doing the eye test Brady's deep ball has been way off lately, like he has to put way too much effort into the throw which reduces accuracy. It definitely appears like he is feeling his age. However, in his determination to prove everyone is wrong, it wouldn't surprise me if he had a 450 yard game tomorrow. But if he comes out there and throws a dud the Garoppolo pain will be real.

In the spirit of this year, I am picking the opposite of everyone.

Saints
Eagles(sigh)
Jaguars
Titans

garion333 wrote:

What are you doing with all your free time?!?

Looking at Garoppolo pictures mostly these days.

JeremyK wrote:

I'm not sure why you're taking that at as an attack when I answered your question by agreeing with you? I didn't take issue with the article or you posting it.

Sorry, hadn't had coffee and thought you were dismissing it.

https://www.sbnation.com/2018/1/12/1...

If you haven't watched The Good Place, it's worth it.

Gawd.

He's still going to frat parties isn't he?

Just watch the whole thing, it's full of gems:

Eww, no, no Barstool Sports links. I won't even. If you're trying to get me to like this poor doofus, that video sure as hell ain't going to help your cause.

cube wrote:

https://www.sbnation.com/2018/1/12/1...

If you haven't watched The Good Place, it's worth it.

I always assumed that character was created by someone who knew Legion IRL.

"All the way up through the bottom."

Enix wrote:

If you're trying to get me to like this poor doofus,

I wouldn't say "like" is what I'm going for here.

Never seen The Good Place. Football is almost literally the only thing I watch from network TV, and even that's with a layer or indirection.

*Legion* wrote:

Never seen The Good Place. Football is almost literally the only thing I watch from network TV, and even that's with a layer or indirection.

Here's the scene. Caption is wrong. He yells "BORTLES!"

IMAGE(http://uproxx.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/bortles.gif?w=650)

Stele wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

Never seen The Good Place. Football is almost literally the only thing I watch from network TV, and even that's with a layer or indirection.

Here's the scene. Caption is wrong. He yells "BORTLES!"

IMAGE(http://uproxx.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/bortles.gif?w=650)

If it was Bortles, wouldn't the Molotov automatically gone into a dumpster?

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