NFL Conference Championships and Super Bowl....

Demiurge

It's for the exact reason that everyone bags on Peyton Manning that I hope he wins it all and can raise the middle finger. If the Indy defense keeps playing like they have been, and his receivers start catching the football, it'll happen. The guy threw interceptions, so what? Is this the playoffs where you're playing against the best defenses as an offense? IIRC, McNair also threw 2 picks last Saturday...Hmmm...Only seems to be a problem when the Colts are losing, but so long as they throw up 42 points a game nobody pays any mind to it. If Manning solely chokes the team in the playoffs is he also responsible for the **** beatings they delivered in the regular season?

Brady is a great QB, and so is Peyton Manning. I also think Tom Brady has a great coach. Your gameplan is half the battle, and if anyone's game plan can beat a team it's Belichick. I think what they managed to do against San Diego was proof of that. We'll see how Tom Brady holds up after a few losing seasons when they eventually lose their current supporting cast and their coach. That is if Belichick doesn't do a Drew Bledsoe on Brady before he gets that chance. It's one of the things that will show us whether or not he has the character traits of a leader when things aren't peachy.

New England is a no name team?

Troy Brown
Corey Dillon
Asante Samuel
Tom Brady
Junior Seau (Albiet, he's a non factor since he's out)
Tedy Bruschi
Mike Vrabel

I'd say all of those guys have made a name for themselves in the league, and that's more than you can say for most teams. New England certainly has earned all it's accolades, but the modesty I'm hearing is killing me. It's not like they've ever been a true cinderella story in the past few seasons. I'm surprised they turned it around this year, but they certainly had the talent to do it.

shack

bobman1235 wrote:

BTW, if anyone hasn't seen it, I love the video of Peyton all but begging the Colts fans not to sell tickets to Pats fans. (Can't find a link to the video, it used to be on this page as "One on One with Peyton Manning") What a big baby that guy is. He's got amazing skills, but such a crybaby.

You wouldn't be just the least bit biased...being a NE fan and all...would you?

petrym

Oh, did I already mention
Da Bearsss!

bobman1235

Of course I'm biased But considering the entire country for the most part hates the Patriots (at least from every sports blog I've read in the past month) I figure it's OK.

Besides, there's lots of sports rivals that I think are fine people. I think Jeter is one of the best players in baseball. I think the Broncos are a fantastic team, and they should be more of a "rival" for us than the Colts are, considering that they have all but owned us through our entire Championship run.

I think Peyton seems like a nice funny guy from his ads and interviews, and I have NOTHING bad to say about his football skills - he's incredible. But he seems to me like a big crybaby.

hearingimpared

petrym wrote:

Oh, did I already mention
Da Bearsss!

Every time you write that, at first glance it looks like BEAR **** to me.:D

TroyD

The fact remains that if Manning can't win the big game, which to this point he hasn't...it doesn't matter how great a passer he is. Go back, oh, 15, 20 years. Marino and Montana. Fair comparison. Marino was a MUCH better quaterback. History will always favor the winner.

Losing his supporting cast? Brady has lost his entire receiving corps over the last few years. He's managed to make due pretty well this year with essentially no name receivers. As a post script, those big name receivers after leaving NE really haven't lived up to thier billing. Possibly because they don't have Brady throwing them the ball?

NE has good talent, however, they really don't have the marquis, franchise players now do they?

Brady having to prove himself? Are you shitting me? The man has OWNED the playoffs for the past 5 years? What the hell does he have to prove? You whine on the one hand that we everyone should give all this latitude to Manning, who hasn't won squat when in counts yet you want the guy with a 12-1 playoff record and 3 SuperBowl rings to prove himself? How can you reconcile that?

And for the record, the Colts SHOULD win. On paper, they own the Pats. Problem is, we don't play on paper.

I'm biased as well, hell, I've been a Pats fan for more than 30 years. I've seen some REALLY bad NE teams. I can recall with VIVID detail the **** beating that Chicago put on them in 1986. So, yeah, I'm enjoying this.

BDT

ohskigod

yeah, Peyton can come off as whiney.

I think the whole Manning family is a little wacky. look at the crap his little brother pulled when he was drafted by the Chargers. refusing to play for a team? you little ****!!!, what have you done in the NFL (meaning at the time he was drafted, but hey, 3 years later and he still really hasnt done **** but piss off Giants fans who wished they got Ben R or Phil Rivers instead of the lesser Manning!! )

anyhoo!!, either way, as I said before, both the Colts and the Pats have a chance of winning. and If I could only watch one of the 2 games, this is definitly the one I would watch.

doesnt matter though, the Saints are taking it all, and I seem to be the only person who will be right

Shizelbs

ohskigod wrote:

I think the whole Manning family is a little wacky. look at the crap his little brother pulled when he was drafted by the Chargers. refusing to play for a team? you little ****

IIRC, Elway did the same thing.

petrym

hearingimpared wrote:

BEAR **** to me.:D

LOL! I can see that now!

Da Superfans:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHvZ_Z0OgxA Sixty-two to tree
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GPsCkkct0A Michael Jordan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nmZBUzrSdQ The "Bear Bus"

ohskigod

TroyD wrote:

Marino was a MUCH better quaterback. History will always favor the winner.


BDT

eeeeeeesh, I dont know if I can roll with you on this tiger

maybe its just semantics. I'll give you the fact that Marino was a more flashy brilliant player, but I equate Montana's style in the same line as I do Brady's. Just from the standpoint of getting the job done....take what you got....what the other players got....and get the job done. That was Montana, and that is Brady currently.


Remember the age old saying, I'd rather win sh*tty than lose pretty anyday

ohskigod

Shizelbs wrote:

IIRC, Elway did the same thing.

well, Elways Karma was alot of losing superbowls. The lesser manning's Karma seems much worse, he is just SUCKING UP the joint.


Karma can be a ****! especially of your a Giants fan

Demiurge

Brady didn't win those Super Bowls on his own, and neither will Manning should they get to one. In fact it's their piss poor defense that's kept them out once they get to the playoffs. Winning 12-14 games a year against mediocre teams is different than winning one game agaisnt the best the NFL has to offer.

I also said we'll see what happens when Brady loses his team and his coach. He's been on Golden Paved roads with ESPN kissing his **** since he was picked to replace Bledsoe. He hasn't been through the losing seasons and **** coaching staffs like a Brett Favre, Dan Marino, or Joe Montana. It's way too soon to call Brady a great. He's still a youngster, and has no clue what's about to beat him upside the head if/whenBelichick desides to retire or leave the team, and the GM can't get the free agents to fill in all of the soft spots in the team.

Never said Brady wasn't good. I'm just tired of the attempt of Pats fans acting as if they're winning games with a lonely team of ex-truck drivers and grocery store stock boys. You guys have plenty of marquee players. Whatever that means -- Terrell Owens? Worked great for Dallas.

New England has a lot to be proud of, and should soak it up. Brady hasn't proven himself as one of the greats yet, but he's definitely one of the best in the NFL right now. Watching the Dolphins game this year showed me that he can't lose with grace. He blamed his team rather than himself.

VR3

GO BEARS!!

bobman1235

Video of Peyton whining about fans here. Click on the "Manning hopes to keep Patriots fans out of RCA dome" link.

Demiurge

That's whining? He had a smirk on his face the whole time, and do you actually disagree with the merits of what he's saying?

shack

If it were Brady, he would be "rallying the fans to get behind the team"....:rolleyes:

Hardly crying or whining...unless of course you are looking through Patriot colored glasses.....

TroyD

Demiurge wrote:

Brady didn't win those Super Bowls on his own, and neither will Manning should they get to one. In fact it's their piss poor defense that's kept them out once they get to the playoffs. Winning 12-14 games a year against mediocre teams is different than winning one game agaisnt the best the NFL has to offer.

I also said we'll see what happens when Brady loses his team and his coach. He's been on Golden Paved roads with ESPN kissing his **** since he was picked to replace Bledsoe. He hasn't been through the losing seasons and **** coaching staffs like a Brett Favre, Dan Marino, or Joe Montana. It's way too soon to call Brady a great. He's still a youngster, and has no clue what's about to beat him upside the head if/whenBelichick desides to retire or leave the team, and the GM can't get the free agents to fill in all of the soft spots in the team.

Never said Brady wasn't good. I'm just tired of the attempt of Pats fans acting as if they're winning games with a lonely team of ex-truck drivers and grocery store stock boys. You guys have plenty of marquee players. Whatever that means -- Terrell Owens? Worked great for Dallas.

New England has a lot to be proud of, and should soak it up. Brady hasn't proven himself as one of the greats yet, but he's definitely one of the best in the NFL right now. Watching the Dolphins game this year showed me that he can't lose with grace. He blamed his team rather than himself.

Again, I don't know what's left for Brady to prove.....should he be faulted for having a decent coach? Didn't Montana have great coaching? Marino? Don Shula?

Again, you are applying different standards to each, but, regardless it doesn't matter.

You ask me who I would want in the fourth quarter and time running out? I'm going with Brady every time. No disrespect to Manning but he hasn't been able to aquit himself of that one yet.

BDT

Refefer

Demiurge wrote:

Amazingly, despite the predictions that the Colts will lose, they're still going to show up to play the game. I heard San Diego couldn't lose either. :eek:

I knew you could make guesses about every game except that one... that one you just had to let play out.

Chargers have(had) great talent, but the head of the beast might very well be looking for a new job next year.

As for Brady being a golden boy, no, there's no doubt that Peyton Manning is a better QB than Tom Brady is. Winning the super bowl is a team effort, and that's what the Patriots, their GM, and Coach do best: They only have one pro bowler, but their combined efforts have been sufficient to net them 3 super bowl rings.

So what wins their games? The fact that they have the best defensive line in the game, and their secondary has time and time again stopped the offensive drives. THAT is their true strength. As for offense, the only thing Brady has to his advantage is that he becomes great when there's the pressure of a big game.

It's easy to shutdown a team with one or two all stars. It's hard to stop a team where everyone is equally capable.

Demiurge

TroyD wrote:

Again, I don't know what's left for Brady to prove.....should he be faulted for having a decent coach? Didn't Montana have great coaching? Marino? Don Shula?

Again, you are applying different standards to each, but, regardless it doesn't matter.

You ask me who I would want in the fourth quarter and time running out? I'm going with Brady every time. No disrespect to Manning but he hasn't been able to aquit himself of that one yet.

BDT

I'm just asking if Brady is really the leader you seem to say he is. We don't know because he's always had the GM that gets him the talent, and the best coach in the league. Will he still play and act like a champ when they're down or is he going to sink into oblivion? That's my question, and I think it's legitimate. Trent Dilfer in Super Bowl XXXV anyone? The NFL is full of championship QBs who were never considered great.

I can't argue with the stats there in the fourth quarter in playoff games. Brady has owned the Colts in the playoffs. Manning is the better QB overall statistically. Put Manning in New England and put Brady in Indianapolis, and we both know who flourishes. I think you're taking your coaching staff and GM for granted there in New England.

Good luck to your team on Saturday.

TroyD

Gets him the talent?
Terry Glenn - gone
Ty Law - gone
Lawyer Milloy - gone
David Givens - Gone
Deion Branch -gone
Adam Vinateri - gone
Willie McGinest - gone

So, yeah, the Pats have been fairly stable but to say that they haven't lost key players is bull. As a team though, they have managed to fill the gaps. Again, you can have the best coach and front office in the world but the game boils down to execution. In that department, Brady gets it done when he has to. That can't be disputed.

Manning has had much the same situation. They've been the preseason faves every year. They have been favored every time they play the Pats. That's a fact.

The Trent Dilfer comparison isn't valid. Well, it may be valid but, I mean, c'mon Brady et al have won THREE Superbowls in five years. 12-1 in the playoffs. That's dominance over the past 5 years. You can't argue with that.

Again, I'm not knocking Manning. Statistically, he is a better QB than Brady. However, I'll still take Brady based on his record of achievment. The Colts haven't gotten it done, historically, in the playoffs. On paper, they should have won the past four. However, it comes down to execution and they haven't executed.

Looking forward to a good game. For Manning's sake, I think it would be good to get the monkey off his back and it would be nice to see. However, I'm a Pats fan so I just hope it isn't this year.

BDT

Demiurge

Cheers!

bobman1235

Demiurge wrote:

That's whining? He had a smirk on his face the whole time, and do you actually disagree with the merits of what he's saying?

As said before, I'm COMPLETELY biased on this topic. But I think begging your fans to not sell tickets to a rival.... shows fear at the very least. I'm not saying it's a bad thing in theory, but it LOOKS bad for Manning is all.

TennesseeOutlaw

Arent the Pats given a "said amount" of tickets to the game to begin with?? The fact that the Colts EARNED the home field advantage and Peyton doesnt want Colts fans to fall into the Ebay trap of making a cpl grand for a set of tickets pisses Pats fans off?? Its just like a musician asking ppl to not d/l pirated songs from the internet... This makes him and them "whiners/cry babies?" I dont buy it..

Demiurge

The guy interviewing him was a local Indy TV station. It's a bit of a stretch to say he was whining in an act of desperation because he asked Colt's fans to fill the frickin' stands. I mean, c'mon...of all the things to bag on him about.

TennesseeOutlaw

Ok that wasnt the best analogy, but Ive had a cpl tonite and thats the best my buzzed arse could come up with.

Demiurge

January 19, 2007
Championship Sunday Preview: Peyton's Party



When Arizona Diamondback Curt Schilling was once asked about whether he was intimidated by the NY Yankees and their “Destiny” and “Mystique”, Schilling replied by saying all he thought of when he heard that was names of strippers.

The Yankees lost in 7 games that year. It happens. Great teams, with legacies, and all that, do lose.

Now, it’s the New England Patriots’ turn.

About damn, f’ing time, too!

Such is a rather unsophisticated way to look at the Colts and Pats on Sunday. If you want real “football meat” – so to speak, here’s your steak.

Rodney Harrison practiced this week, and will likely play. That’s huge for the Pats. He’s been the secondary key for the Pats in both of the Pats playoff wins vs. Peyton. But here’s the catch. You know he won’t be full speed with that knee. And Manning is going to torture him for that.

Manning has been patient like never before this year, taking whatever a defense will give him. And when you look at his post-season numbers so far, make sure to look at every other QB’s numbers too. Completion percentage among QB’s this Janauary is down ACROSS the board. Perhaps the refs are finally letting DB’s “play” a bit.

So doesn’t that help the Pats?

Um, no.

Here’s why. NFL referees are human beings, and they DO react to crowd reactions. So just WAIT until Marvin Harrison gets hit a second early on a play this Sunday. The crowd eruption may not get a call the FIRST time, but watch on the 2nd and the 3rd and the 4th.

Plus, Brady himself is down to just 57% in the post-season, and he was on his way to having a GOAT of a game before the Chargers defense collapsed on their own stupidity. If Reche Caldwell and Jabbar Gaffney have 17 catches again this week between them, I’ll chew an entire bail of hay.

While Eric Parker and Vincent Jackson were botching repeated first down bullets from Philip Rivers, glue-handed Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne will have a field day. I also see at least 2 plays of 20+ down the seam to Dallas Clark.

I’m troubled too by two Patriots games down the stretch.

They were trailing 3-win Detroit – DETRIOT! – at home in Week 13, and then got SHUT-OUT in Week 14 in Miami.

Shut….. out. When was the last time a Super Bowl team had a shut-out in their “file” before? (Please god, don’t say “last year.”)

Like when the Pistons finally conquered the Celtics, and the Bulls finally conquered the Pistons, I believe in the “succession” theory in sports.

It’s Peyton’s party, and he’ll cry if he wants too. He’ll just be crying tears of joy, holding the ugliest trophy in all of sports, and wearing a smile.

PICK: Colts 41-23.

>>>>>>>>>>>>

Good Rex. Gooooooood Rex! Here boy! Come on… that’s a good boyyyyyy!!!! Oooohhhh, Rex. You are such a good QB…. Good boy. Now sit. Siiiiiiitttt. Come now, SIT! Dammit Rex! Bad Rex! Baaaaaad Rex!

Rex Grossman, your starting QB of Super Bowl XLI.

Uh huh. I don’t think so. Sure, “worse” QB’s have started on Super Sunday than “barf-the-carpet” Rex, but few were as acutely aware of how much they SUCK than ol’ #8. Jeff Hostetler and Kerry Collins come to mind, but each of those guys at least had an unreasonably high opinion of themselves.

Which in a way, can actually help.

It wasn’t so much the passes Rex completed Sunday that meant something to me, it was the look in his eyes. I saw terror and shame. When you dump a pass into a 40 yard open space and don’t get called for Intentional Grounding, you are very lucky. When Jordan Babineux drops a momentum changing INT, you are very lucky.

And when your coach has a Thelma and Louise death wish with you under center, you are very lucky.

Rex Grossman’s luck is about to run out.

Remember when the Saints got screwed by the NFL and had to play 9 “road” games last year. The Gods, they were not pleased. This is how they get payback.

New Orleans is explosive on offense, and have a cold-blooded play caller with a baby face running the show. Since Thanksgiving, the Saints have posted 31, 34, 42, 10, 30, 21, and 27. Sean Payton is like that semi-novice card player, who is just stupid enough to think this whole head coaching thing isn’t all that hard.

I asked one of the Bears beat reporters from the Score in Chicago on my show: “Can the Bears find themselves on defense, for just one more game?”

The answer: a blunt and unflinching “no.” They are just not the same without Tommie Harris, and having Ogunleye a game-time maybe makes it even worse.

Put it this way, you want to bet against Drew Brees in this spot? I don’t.

It’s absurd to say, and even I didn’t dare say “Super Bowl” with this team when I picked them as a surprise 9-7 back in August. But guess what? They are the better team right now, with the better coach, the better QB, the better running attack, and a nice dollop of positive ‘mojo’ on their side.

PICK: Saints 24-16.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I pretty much agree with Steve Czaban's analysis on both of these games, but hey, that's why they play them.

Something to get you guys psyched for Sunday.

TroyD

I'd just add that Indy didn't exactly roar into the playoffs.....;)

Again, it's going to be a good game either way.

BDT

bobman1235

Hope everyone's ready for some Patriots!

reeltrouble1

Oh, lord this bear/saints game is killing me.................

RT1

BaggedLancer

Did the saints go home after the half?

Jeez.....