2019 NFL Playoff Thread

[Cheese]

Originally Posted by browna

Comes down to a few plays, as always, in football. For all the back and forth all game, these plays happened at the end. Goff trying too hard to go back to the deep well after the first one should’ve been caught for a TD, and he half heartedly rainbows it for the INT. It was not necessary or desperation at that point to force it, since the Rams had momentum that drive, he really needed to check down on that pass or throw it away.

Rams then couldn’t stop the run as the Pats chewed up over 5 mins.

The Pats were blitzing him and he didnt have time to throw the ball. That INT was a defensive play by the Pats all the way.

[Senator Clay Davis]

With more time to think Goff deserves to get roasted, he missed at least a half dozen open plays simply because of the nerves. But really it's McVay that deserves it the worst. The first time all day the Rams actually made adjustments to their base formation they....kicked a FG and got inside the Patriots 30 on the next two drives. Despite having one of the elite screen games in the league and the Pats getting up the middle pressure a good chunk of the night, I cannot recall them running more than two of them all night. He took the penalty at the end there which was dumb because that means relying on an onside kick versus hoping you can drive 80+ yards with 1:10 and no timeouts (statistically far more likely than the onside kick I would guess).

And in general, the Rams game plan was preseason-esque, vanilla, bland, very conservative. I know Goff was a mess, but at some point you have to accept losing by 5 TDs is preferable to losing how they did. They were in it, but never really had a chance or you never thought they'd win. In some ways the worst thing that happened in that game was Brady being poor, because it kept the game close. Had the Pats been up 17-0 or worse at halftime like they should have been, at least then McVay probably goes FTW and starts opening up the playbook. But as it stayed close, he just decided he was going to hope the Pats make a mistake and playing it safe.

[habernac]

I keep saying everything is gravy now, I won't mind if they lose, yadda, yadda, yadda. That's BS. I want them to win every single time. They're the only team I cheer for that's been in anything for a long, long time. I will miss Belichick and Brady when they're done, what a treat they've been to watch.

I haven't seen the Pats d this good in years. Van Noy was great, Hightower looked good. Jason McCourty covering half the field to take a sure TD away. The huge Gilmore INT. And why wouldn't they be all over those Edelman routes? They knew he'd be doing that.

We're a spoiled fanbase. I'm going to enjoy every second.

[Weitz]

Its interesting though. I don't think the Pats played that great of a game. Especially on offense. If Goff connects those 2 TD passes they win the game. The Pats offense was pretty anemic. Pats D played well but Goff and McVay had terrible games so hard to really judge there.

[Erick Estrada]

Will be interesting to find out the story behind Todd Gurley. He claims his knee is all good and he had a great day against Dallas in their first playoff game and then they kind of stopped giving him the ball. Missing that dimension against the Patriots certainly didn't help Goff who struggled himself.

[DiracSpike]

I can't wait for Brady to retire so Bellichick can coach an entirely new roster to a SuperBowl win, and I'm the furthest thing from a Pats fan (love how many Pats fans there are these days, wonder what part of Massachusetts they grew up in before moving to Calgary). Brady throws 7 yard in routes to one guy like my flag football team while a mediocre defense gets coached all the way up by the real GOAT to stop the best offense in the NFL. Hoyer would have won that game for NE.

[Cheese]

Originally Posted by Weitz

Its interesting though. I don't think the Pats played that great of a game. Especially on offense. If Goff connects those 2 TD passes they win the game. The Pats offense was pretty anemic. Pats D played well but Goff and McVay had terrible games so hard to really judge there.

Well same thing in reverse, If the Pats score TDs in the first half the game is over at half time. There are no ifs ands or buts, the Pats took the game away from the Rams.

[habernac]

Originally Posted by DiracSpike

I can't wait for Brady to retire so Bellichick can coach an entirely new roster to a SuperBowl win, and I'm the furthest thing from a Pats fan (love how many Pats fans there are these days, wonder what part of Massachusetts they grew up in before moving to Calgary). Brady throws 7 yard in routes to one guy like my flag football team while a mediocre defense gets coached all the way up by the real GOAT to stop the best offense in the NFL. Hoyer would have won that game for NE.

Bill's a genius, but Hoyer couldn't beat the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

And Steve Grogan is the reason I'm a Pats fan. They had a cool logo and a guy named Steve as their QB. That's the reason I picked them. 20 years of suck before they ever won a Superbowl.

[Senator Clay Davis]

I still cannot get over that there was ONE play in the red zone by both teams in 60 minutes. I also think the perfect summation of the game last night was Devin McCourtey's "great play" on the Cooks pass breakup. Yeah, great effort and all but....Cooks is literally open right away. By like five yards. When Goff finally gets to him, he's still wide ass open but then Goff throws the duckiest duck that ever ducked (even Noodle Arm makes that throw) and McCourtey makes the play. Yeah, he "made the play", only because the offensive execution from the Rams was pathetic. If the Pats were playing the Chiefs or Saints that's an easy TD.

Last night was a good defense performance to be sure, but it was augmented by some truly shocking offensive football. That's why people thought it was the worst Super Bowl ever, we had the alleged GOAT and the alleged GOAT of offensive coaches, and offensively they looked like the pre-Baker Browns of the last 20 years.

[Cheese]

Originally Posted by DiracSpike

I can't wait for Brady to retire so Bellichick can coach an entirely new roster to a SuperBowl win, and I'm the furthest thing from a Pats fan (love how many Pats fans there are these days, wonder what part of Massachusetts they grew up in before moving to Calgary). Brady throws 7 yard in routes to one guy like my flag football team while a mediocre defense gets coached all the way up by the real GOAT to stop the best offense in the NFL. Hoyer would have won that game for NE.

Seems like a silly comment considering any Canadian NFL fan does NOT live in the city of the team they cheer for.
I do work for a company out of Boston and have been a Pats fan since the late 60's. I went through some Clevelandesque "decades" so I do not care in the least what other fans think about the Pats now. I hope they win the next five in a row as well.

Yes Bill is the GOAT for coaches, and Brady is bar none the GOAT of all QBs. That is not even a question.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by Cheese

Seems like a silly comment considering any Canadian NFL fan does NOT live in the city of the team they cheer for.

No kidding. Lots of guys around town with brand new Rodgers jerseys that have never been to Wisconsin.

[Senator Clay Davis]

Originally Posted by Cheese

Seems like a silly comment considering any Canadian NFL fan does NOT live in the city of the team they cheer for.
I do work for a company out of Boston and have been a Pats fan since the late 60's. I went through some Clevelandesque "decades" so I do not care in the least what other fans think about the Pats now. I hope they win the next five in a row as well.

Yes Bill is the GOAT for coaches, and Brady is bar none the GOAT of all QBs. That is not even a question.

Ironically Bill as GOAT is actually not debetable. Brady as GOAT? Yeah very debatable. Put it to you this way, in an alternate universe:

Tom Brady plays 2008-2019 on the Packers, exact same rosters verbatim
Aaron Rodgers plays 2008-2019 on the Patriots, exact same rosters verbatim.

Do you seriously think the Pats have any less than three Super Bowls? Nah. Rodgers can execute that dink and dunk just as well, while adding the freelancing greatness he has. Three is the minimum number of SBs for New England

Now on the flip side:

The Packers have Rodgers and Belichick, same rosters verbatim
The Patriots have Brady and McCarthy, same rosters verbatim

Do you seriously think the Pats have more than one SB? I'm not even sure they'd have one with McCarthy.

The debate is not close for coach, but very much up for debate for QB.

[Flabbibulin]

Originally Posted by DiracSpike

I can't wait for Brady to retire so Bellichick can coach an entirely new roster to a SuperBowl win, and I'm the furthest thing from a Pats fan (love how many Pats fans there are these days, wonder what part of Massachusetts they grew up in before moving to Calgary).

I'd say look at a map. "New England" is a region in very close proximity to a lot of eastern Canada- and those from eastern Canada no doubt relocate all over the place. A hell of a lot of Boston sports fans in the Maritimes.

That said, kind of silly for me to even make that point, because who cares?? it is a game and who knows how fans decide of their allegiance. Hardly serious business.

[Cheese]

Originally Posted by Senator Clay Davis

Ironically Bill as GOAT is actually not debetable. Brady as GOAT? Yeah very debatable. Put it to you this way, in an alternate universe:

Tom Brady plays 2008-2019 on the Packers, exact same rosters verbatim
Aaron Rodgers plays 2008-2019 on the Patriots, exact same rosters verbatim.

Do you seriously think the Pats have any less than three Super Bowls? Nah. Rodgers can execute that dink and dunk just as well, while adding the freelancing greatness he has. Three is the minimum number of SBs for New England

Now on the flip side:

The Packers have Rodgers and Belichick, same rosters verbatim
The Patriots have Brady and McCarthy, same rosters verbatim

Do you seriously think the Pats have more than one SB? I'm not even sure they'd have one with McCarthy.

The debate is not close for coach, but very much up for debate for QB.

Even Rogers himself agrees Brady is the GOAT.
from 2017 http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300...dy-is-the-goat


It is difficult to really say what happens when you reverse the situations, but based on what I have seen, Brady has elevated the team, has not put himself before others and has single handedly won games on his own.

Rogers is also awesome, and he had great teams to play for as well, but playing the "what if game" is simply a poor way to judge the GOAT because there is no way to know exactly what might or might not have been other than hypothesis. Brady actually won all these cups.

[trackercowe]

Originally Posted by DiracSpike

I can't wait for Brady to retire so Bellichick can coach an entirely new roster to a SuperBowl win, and I'm the furthest thing from a Pats fan (love how many Pats fans there are these days, wonder what part of Massachusetts they grew up in before moving to Calgary). Brady throws 7 yard in routes to one guy like my flag football team while a mediocre defense gets coached all the way up by the real GOAT to stop the best offense in the NFL. Hoyer would have won that game for NE.

What about the year Brady got hurt in the first game, and the Patriots missed the playoffs altogether? If it's all Bill and not Brady, then how come Bill couldn't will a Cassel led team to the playoffs? You're throwing Brady under the bus because of one below average performance (for Tom Brady) in the Super Bowl? Maybe we should do the same for Peyton Manning who was even worse in his four Super Bowl appearances.

[btimbit]

Originally Posted by DiracSpike

(love how many Pats fans there are these days, wonder what part of Massachusetts they grew up in before moving to Calgary).

I'll be honest I picked them as my team as a kid in the 90s simply because my favourite colour was blue. This was pre Brady and pre Belichick. I do have family ties to the Boston area though, hence my love of the Red Sox as well. My dad has a Bruins tattoo for crying out loud.

No question bandwagoners are everywhere, that doesn't mean it's everyone

[DiracSpike]

Originally Posted by trackercowe

What about the year Brady got hurt in the first game, and the Patriots missed the playoffs altogether? If it's all Bill and not Brady, then how come Bill couldn't will a Cassel led team to the playoffs? You're throwing Brady under the bus because of one below average performance (for Tom Brady) in the Super Bowl? Maybe we should do the same for Peyton Manning who was even worse in his four Super Bowl appearances.

The Cassel year is supposedly the silver bullet in the Belichick vs Brady debate but in spite of missing the playoffs due to bad luck with tie breakers the Pats finished 11-5 that year. This year their record was....11-5. That's more of a feather in BB's cap that a detraction.

[Weitz]

Originally Posted by trackercowe

What about the year Brady got hurt in the first game, and the Patriots missed the playoffs altogether? If it's all Bill and not Brady, then how come Bill couldn't will a Cassel led team to the playoffs? You're throwing Brady under the bus because of one below average performance (for Tom Brady) in the Super Bowl? Maybe we should do the same for Peyton Manning who was even worse in his four Super Bowl appearances.

They were the first 11 win team in the 12 team playoff system to not make the playoffs. They went 10-5 with Matt Cassel at the helm. To downplay that is ridiculous.

[ResAlien]

It’s like Cowboys fans in the 90s. No big deal, when this ride ends and another team runs the 2020s that team’s bandwagon will fill up. Sure some of the diehards will remain but whatever it’s sports and that’s how fandom works.

To paraphrase their coach “we’re on to 2019-20”. Now let’s go find that offseason thread!

[Cheese]

Originally Posted by DiracSpike

The Cassel year is supposedly the silver bullet in the Belichick vs Brady debate but in spite of missing the playoffs due to bad luck with tie breakers the Pats finished 11-5 that year. This year their record was....11-5. That's more of a feather in BB's cap that a detraction.

Cassel wasn’t a lousy QB; he went out and won the AFC West with Kansas City two seasons later with Todd Haley as coach, who is NOT Bill Belichick. Anyone who saw New England that year knows that Brady’s absence made the Pats a different team.