The Frankish Reich

I watch the NFL in which Doug Marrone went all in (see Darius, Marcel) when he thought the Jags were right there. And the one in which the Vikings went all in on Kirk Cousins for the same reasons. This isn’t Tom Brady or Peyton Manning you’re picking up. It’s a 33 year old who’s never won a playoff game (and yes, he did play for some good teams), who’s taken a beating, and who really isn’t a huge upgrade.

It makes perfect sense based on where the Lions are right now. Worst case scenario: they’re stuck with Goff for 2 more seasons - 2 seasons in which they don’t have a realistic chance of competing. Then comes 2023 - 2024, they can move on from Goff, they’ve go the draft capital to do a whole lot of interesting things, Aaron Rodgers (and Kirk Cousins to the extent that even matters) are gone, and unless they do something totally idiotic (not impossible) they are poised for a run. You can say they’ll screw up the draft, etc. And yes, but lots of people said the same things about the Bills. Until they didn’t.

Agreed. It usually doesn’t end well for teams that get into this “OMG our best players are moving out of their prime years and the salary cap hammer is awaiting, we have to go for it right now with the best player available” mode.

Boebert's from my state. It's been amazing watching this slow speed car wreck play out ever since she won the Republican primary against one of the boring old Republicans her district usually delivers. The evolution of her Wiki page is fun to watch too. Here's how it reads now: Boebert dropped out of high school her senior year (she would have graduated in 2004) because she had a child, and took a management role at a McDonald's in Rifle. She obtained her GED in 2020, about a month before her first election primary.[14] "I was a brand-new mom, and I had to make hard decisions on successfully raising my child, or getting to high school biology class. And I chose to take care of my child," she said.[15] She later got a job filing for a natural gas drilling company and then became a pipeliner, a member of a team that builds and maintains pipelines and pumping stations. Before she got much attention, she and her campaign people obviously were the primary authors. It said something like, "She left high school to begin a family." Most of us would say she dropped out because she got pregnant. But hey, she got her GED ... a month before the primary election.

So .... this is hilarious because he didn't say "million" after he said "300?" That's it? On the gaffe scale, that's even lower than saying "herd mentality" instead of "herd immunity." (Which Cap'n Trump said twice. In a row.)

I find this Watson thing fascinating. We really haven't seen this in the NFL before: elite QB demanding a trade, implying that he'd sit out rather than continue playing for his current team. It's not a money/restructure my contract thing; it's a "I don't want to play for this stinking franchise anymore" thing. It's commonplace in the NBA, and it works (see most recently Harden, James). If it works for Watson it will set a precedent.

Exactly. When you look at the personnel, he didn't have all that much to work with. Finishing 9th overall says he did a good job. That would be kind of like firing Brian Daboll for one of his bad calls in the AFCC game. Or Leslie Frazier for one of his. Then again, I guess that's what some people are calling for ....

This argument always has a kind of surface appeal - them's the rules, you knew them, you broke them, end of story - but it talks past the larger issue: does the NFL have a rational approach to the kinds of off the field actions that ought to get one excluded from the league? Or for that matter, on the field actions too (Gronk's arm brace to the head of Tre White comes to mind). That's what some of us are trying to say.

Roberts stuck only because he has a well-deserved reputation for not fumbling punts and for exercising good judgement on when to return/fair catch/let it roll. McKenzie had kind of the opposite reputation with the Broncos. But that was when he was a rookie. Roberts isn't the breakaway threat he was in his prime. The job should be McKenzie's, and I hope we work him into the offense a bit more too.

At the risk of reopening that whole can of worms yet again (please don't) ... you're right. I guess Ray Rice too. Aldon Smith signed with the Cowboys this year after: - a DUI arrest - an illegal weapons conviction (after people were shot and he was stabbed at his home) - another DUI arrest/MJ possession - an altercation at LAX where he was accused of saying he had a bomb (he denied it) - another DUI arrest/hit & run conviction this time - a domestic violence incident in which he may or may not have bitten his girlfriend's wrist - a violation of a restraining order stemming from that incident As far as I can tell, Gordon has no dangerous offenses other than (arguably) one driving while ability impaired arrest in 2014. He just seems to be a cannabis addict. If Aldon Smith can play, well, probably Josh Gordon should play too.

You knew it was gonna happen: presenting your newest Fox News insider analyst! Basically her same old job, better pay. Maybe they'll even give her the "leg chair" - that oughta be worth a little bonus. https://www.thedailybeast.com/kayleigh-mcenany-likely-to-join-fox-news-because-of-course

Great comment. Sometimes I wonder why I post things on forums like this. Is anybody ever persuaded by anything? But then sometimes someone posts something that helps me to learn something, or at least understand something better. Thank you.

McKenzie is more of our Mecole Hardman. Punt returner, end around, bubble screen, etc., etc. Actually preceded Hardman at Georgia. Not as flat-out fast as Hardman, but very slippery. He just needs to catch those punts cleanly and it's goodbye Andre Roberts. I'd love to see him re-signed and given more touches per game.

Nicely done. But I think we have to go with Lemmy since Keith's drug of choice was somewhat different in the 1970s: https://www.nme.com/blogs/lemmy-biopic-motorhead-hawkwind-2690187 I only know this because I was able to binge some of the recent wave of rock star bios during the months of COVID shutdowns.

I think you only get one arch rival. So that's gotta be the Bears, or maybe the Vikings. OK, two arch rivals. But definitely not three.

I think we've seen that it can't. I was willing to give him a long leash - 19 years old when drafted and all that. And he's still young. But I don't see the growth happening. If we were talking about a guy with, say, a defensive tackle's body (Ed Oliver?) that would signal that maybe he's as good as he'll get. But Edmunds is a freak. There's a position for him on the football field where he'll excel, and if that position isn't one that exists in any standard approach, well, maybe you ought to think about creating one for him. I hate to see that kind of talent squandered. But as I've said, I think someone will find the right position/role for him. I just don't think it'll be McDermott and the Bills.

If only we could create another one. And that's kind of my point: Luke Kuechly wasn't so much created by the Panthers. He arrived fully formed as one of the most skilled, disruptive forces in football. Tremaine has the athletic talent, but simply doesn't have anywhere near the understanding of the game.

The aging curve for WRs isn't terribly promising now. I don't see many Jerry Rices or Marvin Harrisons performing at a Pro Bowl level into their mid-30s. Diggs is still young (just turned 27) so the Bills don't have to confront that issue, but it's something to keep in mind.

I don't think anyone believes Elway actually "gave away control." He may listen to his new GM now, but that GM ain't gonna make a decision that John don't agree with. And by the way, the Broncs probably should give away the next two drafts if they could get Rodgers. They are the classic "decent QB play away from being a contender" team. And Rodgers is still a good bit better than decent ...

Or maybe the Niners post-Jimmy G?

Rodgers on Indy instead of Rivers would scare the crap outta me.

Yep, he's still stuck on that Luke Kuechly substitute idea. McD: you'll only have one Luke Kuechly in your career. They don't make many of 'em.

^This. It wasn't so long ago that Andy Reid was considered the worst in-game decision maker around. That reputation was built early on: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/151719-evaluating-andy-reid-the-worst-decisions-of-reids-coaching-career That bleacher report article was from 2009, and it was "Part 1" ... And the reputation followed him: https://ftw.usatoday.com/2019/10/nfl-chiefs-andy-reid-mistakes-packers-punt This was McD's 4th season as a HC, first real SB contending team. Let's hope it doesn't take him a decade or two like it did with Andy.

I think that's right. It's the old Branch Rickey baseball line: better to trade a player a year too early than a year too late. I sense that Beane/McD aren't of that nostalgic mindset and will be willing to make the tough calls here. One reason why: McD certainly showed no interest in sticking with a high paid player when he was outcompeted by a lower paid player or rookie. See Trent Murphy, Tyler Kroft.

I usually take my gut (after watching every Bills game, but not the All 22s) and weigh it against other opinions just to see if I'm way out of line. (This works really well for defensive ratings in baseball; not so good for football). Here, my gut is neither one was particularly good. And a quick check of the dreaded PFF agrees - both were below average. Kind of in JAG territory which sucks because they were supposed to be impact players. Before everyone gets on me for citing PFF: I'm willing to listen to what other so-called professional observers say.