Official 2012 NFL Discussion Thread

Week 2 right around the corner! Let's get a table going!

No matter what team you support, I think we all have to get behind Team Brad.

Week 2 (9/16/12)

Should be a great week of games. I love to watch any football games that my local market shows, but some of the ones I'm most interested in are:

Eagles vs. Ravens - Given how Mike Vick started the season, it will be interesting to see how he rebounds against a very good Ravens defense. I will also be keeping an eye on Joe Flacco and see if he can keep up this momentum after a great game on Monday night against the Bengals.

Steelers vs. Jets - After being beaten by the Broncos, the Steelers are going to be looking to rebound big time against the Jets. As far as the Jets are concerned, given how badly they looked in the pre-season (that shouldn't be expected as a prelude to the season but they did look terrible regardless) they exploded against the Bills last Sunday. Will Mark Sanchez make the right decisions against an angry Steelers defense? Will the Jets use Tebow to their advantage? This one is going to be a good one folks.

SNF: 49ers vs. Lions -

Yeah. I cannot wait.

MNF: Falcons vs. Broncos - Denver looked exceptional on Sunday night and any notions of how Peyton would look were quickly silenced. The Falcons looked well in their debut as well, but they always start strong but falter in the end. Will that change this season? Well, they can make a big statement on a big stage Monday night against the Broncos. It should be a great QB battle.

I hope everyone has a great Sunday and enjoy the games!

@rand0mZer00 said:

Should be a great week of games. I love to watch any football games that my local market shows, but some of the ones I'm most interested in are:

SNF: 49ers vs. Lions -

Yeah. I cannot wait.

I don't know what I'm more excited about: the game itself, the possibility of another coach kerfuffle, or ZODIAC_MOTHERFUCKER's live tweeting of the whole thing.

Got Saints vs. Panthers on the TV - sweet offensive battle going on here - and switching between Ravens-Eagles and Vikings-Colts on my laptop.

Biggest story of the day though is in New York. Maybe we all should have jumped on the Tampa Bay bandwagon after their busy off-season of acquisitions. Or maybe the Super Bowl hang-up strikes again, as it sounds like the Giants have just been flat today.

Did anyone see Joe Flacco's touchdown pass to Jacoby Jones? He stood strong in the pocket and made a hell of a throw to beat Nnamdi Asomugha's coverage. Could we really be seeing the beginning of an MVP season for Flacco? Was shaving off his sweet facial hair actually the best decision in football history?

Questions!

EDIT: ANDREW LUCK TO REGGIE WAYNE! GET IN THERE!

This Giants game is insane. I've been screaming at my TV for one reason or another for pretty much the whole game.

EDIT: OH WHAT THE FUCK

Since there's gonna be no NHL for a while, I'm giving your silly North American Football game a try. Enjoyed it last week, lets keep the good vibes coming. Go Broncos.

Updated to reflect the scores thus far.

That Raiders/Miami game was just painful. 2 red zone appearances where we settle for FG's, one where McFadden was clear for a TD. How do you not see the heart and soul of your entire offense is open for a touchdown? Palmer had some very impressive drives but just wasn't able to capitalize. The fact that we lost a 40+ punt return because of a penalty didn't help either. Ryan "Chiefs are in the NFC East" Tannehill beating the Raiders is almost as bad as the Chargers beating us on a home opener. Almost.

The Giants/Bucs game was an absolute blast. Manning has 3 interceptions, then reminds the world why he has 2 Super Bowl wins.

Pats lose at home. Saints are 0-2. Aside from the embarrassing Raiders, loss, it's been a pretty good Sunday.

@matti00 said:

Since there's gonna be no NHL for a while, I'm giving your silly North American Football game a try. Enjoyed it last week, lets keep the good vibes coming. Go Broncos.

I assume since you called it silly North American Football you are not from the US. How'd you end up rooting for the Broncos?

@ThePickle said:

@matti00 said:

Since there's gonna be no NHL for a while, I'm giving your silly North American Football game a try. Enjoyed it last week, lets keep the good vibes coming. Go Broncos.

I assume since you called it silly North American Football you are not from the US. How'd you end up rooting for the Broncos?

Don't worry, I'm not on the Peyton Manning bandwagon. I've got family in Denver and I'm a huge Colorado Avalanche fan. You've got to support the local team, even if they're not technically local to me. I can't stand rooting for a team just cause they're the best team going (Man Utd fans, Pittsburgh Penguins fans, etc.).

I'd probably have to stay up til at least 4am to watch all of the Falcons/Broncos game though, so I think I'm going to be watching it tomorrow morning.

@matti00 said:

@ThePickle said:

@matti00 said:

Since there's gonna be no NHL for a while, I'm giving your silly North American Football game a try. Enjoyed it last week, lets keep the good vibes coming. Go Broncos.

I assume since you called it silly North American Football you are not from the US. How'd you end up rooting for the Broncos?

Don't worry, I'm not on the Peyton Manning bandwagon. I've got family in Denver and I'm a huge Colorado Avalanche fan. You've got to support the local team, even if they're not technically local to me. I can't stand rooting for a team just cause they're the best team going (Man Utd fans, Pittsburgh Penguins fans, etc.).

I'd probably have to stay up til at least 4am to watch all of the Falcons/Broncos game though, so I think I'm going to be watching it tomorrow morning.

My brother was a huge shit-talking Colts fan until they lost P. Manning. Now, he likes basketball.

@ThePickle said:

@matti00 said:

@ThePickle said:

@matti00 said:

Since there's gonna be no NHL for a while, I'm giving your silly North American Football game a try. Enjoyed it last week, lets keep the good vibes coming. Go Broncos.

I assume since you called it silly North American Football you are not from the US. How'd you end up rooting for the Broncos?

Don't worry, I'm not on the Peyton Manning bandwagon. I've got family in Denver and I'm a huge Colorado Avalanche fan. You've got to support the local team, even if they're not technically local to me. I can't stand rooting for a team just cause they're the best team going (Man Utd fans, Pittsburgh Penguins fans, etc.).

I'd probably have to stay up til at least 4am to watch all of the Falcons/Broncos game though, so I think I'm going to be watching it tomorrow morning.

My brother was a huge shit-talking Colts fan until they lost P. Manning. Now, he likes basketball.

He'll be back next time the Colts get a QB who can be considered one of the best of all time. Sounds like Luck had a decent game today though.

I watched the Raiders/Dolphins game with my brother & dad (who are both Oakland fans) and man did it get brutal in the 2nd half.. At times, the Raiders had some things going for them especially the screen pass for TD. But the offense went 3 and out so many times that of course Miami was going to be able to capitalize. Reggie Bush took advantage of a tired Raiders defense and busted that game open for the Dolphins. Is it just me or does Darren McFadden look to be more conservative and not hitting the holes as much as he did last season? I understand that he is coming off an injury from last season, but if they think this is the best way to utilize him I think it's just wrong. If he's going to get hurt, he's going to get hurt regardless if you make him play it safe or not. It isn't going to be any easier for Oakland with Pittsburgh coming in next week. Congrats to Coach Philbin for his first win as head coach.

CBS then showed the last 2 minutes of the Eagles/Ravens game which looked like it was a great one. It's insane to think that the Eagles are 2-0 despite turning the ball over 9 times! Goes to show that it's the stats don't always tell the whole story.

I'm currently watching Seahawks/Cowboys and it ain't looking so good for Dallas. Let's see if they can turn it around in the 2nd half.

@rand0mZer00 said:

I watched the Raiders/Dolphins game with my brother & dad (who are both Oakland fans) and man did it get brutal in the 2nd half.. At times, the Raiders had some things going for them especially the screen pass for TD. But the offense went 3 and out so many times that of course Miami was going to be able to capitalize. Reggie Bush took advantage of a tired Raiders defense and busted that game open for the Dolphins. Is it just me or does Darren McFadden look to be more conservative and not hitting the holes as much as he did last season? I understand that he is coming off an injury from last season, but if they think this is the best way to utilize him I think it's just wrong. If he's going to get hurt, he's going to get hurt regardless if you make him play it safe or not. It isn't going to be any easier for Oakland with Pittsburgh coming in next week. Congrats to Coach Philbin for his first win as head coach.

I think the highlight of the game for me was when they showed the graphic for teams with the most penalties. Of the 10 teams, 8 were Raiders, including our record setting 163 penalty season last year.

@ThePickle: Yeah, I saw that. I don't know how a team could commit 163 penalties in a single season. I hope Reggie McKenzie has a good plan to turn the Raiders around, because they are a good team but they self sabotage themselves. A lot.

So glad my Giants won. Honestly thought we would lose today.

@Phatmac: That was a close one. I learned long ago not to judge how the Giants play during the season, They could start slow and be losing, but all of a sudden get on a roll and then it's a whole different story.

@rand0mZer00 said:

@Phatmac: That was a close one. I learned long ago not to judge how the Giants play during the season, They could start slow and be losing, but all of a sudden get on a roll and then it's a whole different story.

Even after 2 super bowls I still fall for the same tricks!

@Phatmac: Haha. It's understandable, everyone wants to see their team put forth a great effort in every game. I mean, my Green Bay Packers went 15-1 last year and lost. It's like that old saying "It's not how you start, it's how you finish."

@rand0mZer00 said:

@ThePickle: Yeah, I saw that. I don't know how a team could commit 163 penalties in a single season. I hope Reggie McKenzie has a good plan to turn the Raiders around, because they are a good team but they self sabotage themselves. A lot.

Dennis Allen's the man to make that change. Assuming they can keep a head coach for more than one season.

Texans looked fucking great or the Jags are just a burning pile of trash or both! I give the Gabshow two more years before they pull the plug. Should've stayed at Mizzou for his senior year...

Who's got it better than us!?

I hate fantasy football. 90% luck

49ers got this. Their defense is insanely good.

ZODIAC MOTHERFUCKER ‏ZODIAC_MF
THREE FOR THREE THESE SHITHEADS PICKING THE 49ERS. I SAY PISS IN ALL THEIR FUCKING EYES

ZMF already starting the night off great.

@ThePickle: Oh, I didn't mean no disrespect to Allen, because he seems like the kind of guy that doesn't take no crap from no one and that's the kind of coach I expect the Raiders to have, but McKenzie is gonna have to be the one to plan everything out for the team for the years to come.

@LooseChange: Yeah, Gabbert isn't looking too good right now. I also expect another 2 years before they start looking for another QB, though if Blackmon starts getting going that might change. But all of those plans might go out the window if they lose MJD. Texans are looking tough early in the season, I'm going to keep a close eye on them as the months go on.

Updated with all the latest scores. Now we just got Broncos/Falcons for Monday night.

Gotta say, even though the hype was absurd, the Lions/Niners game was a great watch. Everything on the Niners is intimidating.

Alright, I know I post a lot of ZMF's stuff, but this is just too fucking perfect.

@ajamafalous said:

This was awesome. So much concern for a frog haha

@hojufixter said:

@ajamafalous said:

This was awesome. So much concern for a frog haha

Hahahaha this is great. Foster is funny and a great player

@ajamafalous: The best. Does Arian Foster have a nickname? If not, a frog based one needs to be made. Arian Frogster is good, but I reckon there could be a better one.

A very crotch-centric week 2, that's for sure. Raiders loss was painful and next week won't be much better. We've already been put dead last in two power rankings for the week. Denver and Atlanta after that and we're looking at a 0-5 record.

MNF was an absolute riot. Falcons, along with the Cardinals, are quietly becoming one of the most intimidating teams in the league right now, but people ready to crown Matt Ryan Super Bowl MVP need to chill.

When Peyton threw 3 picks in the first 8 minutes I thought him and Eli pulled some hilarious Parent Trap-esque swap. I was looking forward to a last minute drive but Denver's D wasn't able to stop anything.

My Eagles doing good so far!

Peyton Manning is going to have to adjust his game for the rest of the season. He just has no zip on the ball beyond intermediate range anymore. The Falcons didn't give a cushion at all.

How about those refs eh?

God they were fucking horrible last night, I swear I didn't think the first quarter would end. The NFL doesn't give a shit about the "integrity" of the game, all they care is purely the bottom line and they are saving a good chunk of cash on these eighth grade refs.

Also my super bowl pick is Texans v. 49ers. Texans winning 13 - 10.

I think this year will finally be the Niner 's again, after that sad, sad Conference Final from last year. And it's about damn time after almost 20 years.
 
The ref situation is absolutely ridiculous though and I sincerely hope that the terrible substitutes won't ruin some teams seasons. The Rams' win this round was a sheer miracle after some simply horrible calls. (Aside from the fact, that the win itself was a miracle already.)
 
It's really amazing to me how a league that makes that much cash can't be bothered to provide for their officials.

@ajamafalous said:

@ThePickle: Oh, a Raiders fan? Perhaps you'll be interested in this power ranking.

Sounds about right

Can we get some of our old refs? Thanks.

Last week: OMG OLD PEYTON BACK.

This week: He's rusty blah blah.

Atlanta deserves more credit for their wild D.

Colts fan here and I'm pretty happy with the Colts first 2 weeks! I would love to get the old refs back cause a lot of times these guys are jokes! But something tells me it might be a little while still. Week 3 has some pretty good match ups (besides the Colts game) theres: Texans at Broncos, New England at Baltimore (Sunday night), and Packers at Seattle (Monday Night).

@LooseChange said:

How about those refs eh?

God they were fucking horrible last night, I swear I didn't think the first quarter would end. The NFL doesn't give a shit about the "integrity" of the game, all they care is purely the bottom line and they are saving a good chunk of cash on these eighth grade refs.

Also my super bowl pick is Texans v. 49ers. Texans winning 13 - 10.

Until Matt Schaub skins his knee and is out for the season. Then I'd have to put the Patriots back in the SB for the AFC.

@Miketakon said:

Last week: OMG OLD PEYTON BACK.

This week: He's rusty blah blah.

Atlanta deserves more credit for their wild D.

You are right. That Atlanta D was crazy, but it was great to watch!

Nice to see the Dolphins beat down the raiders. Hopefully we do the same to the jets this Sunday. I don't expect the Dolphins to do great this year, but I do think their better than everyone is making them out to be.

@foolkiller1 said:

Nice to see the Dolphins beat down the raiders.

Ban this man. BAN HIM!

Thursday Night Football is happening and I actually remembered it! But I'll be dumping out at about the half for PandR. Priorities.

Anyway, Giants at Panthers. Should be a fun one.

I'm so glad that I have NFL Network this year. Thursday Night Football!!

"Browns are ready to launch a new era in Cleveland football"

Ha ha. Ha ha.

No.

I understand trying to set up some hype for a Thursday night game, but don't be crazy NFLN. Even people in Cleveland can spot that bullshit.

I'm going to start week 3 on a somber note. If you've watched anything NFL-related in the last week, you'll know that Steve Sabol, co-founder of NFL Films, passed away on September 18th at age 69. He also wrote "The Autumn Wind", the greatest team anthem in sports history. NFL Films is responsible for the fantastic Top 10 series, the Top 100 Players of all Time series, Hard Knocks, Game of the Week, and year-in-review shows for several teams. He also helped create the NFL Network. It's not stretch to say he changed the way we view football. He saw it as more than a sport. He saw it as history. He saw the stories that could be told.

Week 3 (9/23/12)

If Cutler felt the need to start acting like a selfish, whiny bitch again, I'm glad he got it out of the way now and not during the home stretch of the season. Hopefully the Bears get it together against the Rams. I see the 49ers have a traveling bye week in Minnesota.