Sports

[gardenman]

That was not a good first half for the Packers. The offense did okay except for a few mistakes. The Packer defense forgot to show up. They had chances for two or three interceptions that they didn't make and when the Falcons fumbled a snap, they weren't in position to recover it. The Packers have dug themselves a heck of a hole in the first half.

It's not over yet, but Green Bay really needs to make some plays now. Green Bay needs a touchdown on this first second half possession. Then they need their defense to make a quick stop and get the ball back. Then another touchdown and suddenly it's a ten point game. Then it's all up for grabs, but right now, the Falcons have things under control. The Packers will need to take it back and I'm not sure they have the manpower to do it.

[sunshine45]

well, this is NOT the kind of game i wanted to see today. 31-0 in the third quarter? so far, the packers have not even show up.

[Spurt]

WOW Falcons are SMOKING!!!  Who would've thunk it......disappointing game in terms of being competitive though....

Interesting article maybe my Spur's Coach Pop's tips helped ...........

In the wake of winning the World Series,  Chicago Cubs president Theo Epstein spent time reading up on the NBA San Antonio Spurs to study the organization’s culture, according to an article in The Athletic.

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich laughed and called Epstein’s actions “flattering.” But the truth is that several teams across numerous sports leagues have sought out the Spurs for advice on building a winning culture. For instance, Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Quinn has developed a bond with Spurs general manager R.C. Buford, who sent him a text message this week wishing him luck in the postseason.

“The culture that San Antonio has in their sport, although it’s different than our sport, is still about dealing with their players and coaches and how you want the organization to be seen,” Quinn told ESPN.com’s Vaughn McClure. “We can learn from everybody, man.”

http://www.espn.com/blog/san-antonio-spurs/post/_/id/1301/gregg-popovich-flattered-nfl-mlb-teams-mod...

[gardenman]

And so much for the hope that one of these games would be good. It looks like it'll be New England against Atlanta in the Super Bowl. Here's hoping that's a better game than what we saw today.

[Spurt]

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@gardenman wrote:

And so much for the hope that one of these games would be good. It looks like it'll be New England against Atlanta in the Super Bowl. Here's hoping that's a better game than what we saw today.

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@gardenman

I agree.....I can't believe how bad the games were.......this should definitely NOT help NFL's ratings.......    Hope the Super Bowl is at least competitive or millions of fans will be turning to the Puppy Bowl or Kitty Bowl instead.......

[sunshine45]

i feel like i wasted a sunday...... LOL.

oh well, at least i got some martinis in!

two unimpressive teams today lost......and it barely looked like they were even trying to win.

oh well, easy for me to root for THE FALCONS in two weeks.

PLEASE dont let it be a blowout though!

[gardenman]

They definitely weren't the best games we've seen this playoff season. Green Bay had potential, but the early mistakes got them behind and the mountain just became too big to climb. Atlanta had the most talented team of the two, but you hoped Aaron Rodgers could offset that, but he got very little help in the game. Green Bay's got some big holes to fill this offseason. Will they finally dive into free agency to help out Rodgers, or stick to building through the draft?

Add a DeSean Jackson or Alshon Jeffery to the lineup on offense and watch Aaron Rodgers' face light up. Pair him with an elite receiver and he'd put up incredible numbers.

Pittsburgh's in pretty good shape talent wise, but beating the Patriots in New England is a challenge using their preferred defensive scheme. Tom Brady is a surgeon who just picked apart Pittsburgh's zone defense. If you're going to stop Brady you've got to pressure the receivers at the line of scrimmage, and get quick pressure on Brady up the middle of the field. Those aren't areas of strength for Pittsburgh's defense. They prefer to play a zone defense and keep things in front of them and count on the other team making a mistake. Tom Brady makes very few mistakes.

There's some potential for a good Super Bowl. Both teams should be relatively healthy in two weeks time. The Patriots have an edge having been there quite a bit. If the Falcons can hang in there and be competitive through the first half, the game could be good.

[gardenman]

Well, that's intriguing. Apparently there was a discussion on some level between the Colts and Saints about the Colts trading for Sean Payton. (I wonder if that included Pagano going to the Saints?) The two teams that have largely cut the legs off of their coaches for the 2017 season and made them the lamest of lame ducks by making it clear both were on a very short leash and are/could be available, then tried to trade their lame ducks. There's a certain symmetry there that makes some sense, but both teams are giving a lesson in how to destroy a team from within.

I wouldn't be shocked to see the Colts and Saints competing for that first overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft. The front offices of both organizations are doing everything possible to sabotage their head coaches. I'm not sure why the Colts are so determined to undermine Pagano. They've got their quarterback in Andrew Luck so they don't need to sabotage the team to get a high draft pick to get a QB. 

The Saints could use a QB of the future, so their attempts to blow up Payton makes some sense. They've offered him to the Rams, Niners, and Saints, so they're making it clear he's not their coach of the future. They seem to be planning to throw away the 2017 season, get the top pick in the 2018 draft and grab the top QB prospect. I'm not sure who will be coming out in the 2018 draft, but the Saints look like a team that's setting themselves up for a miserable season in 2017.

Both teams are making it very, very clear to their players that the front office doesn't support the current head coach and their staff. That makes it hard for the players to lay it all on the line each Sunday for the coach. The difference between winning and losing is pretty slim and a team that isn't unified will lose. Expect to see the Saints at the bottom of the NFL standings next year. They've either got a brilliant plan, or are incompetent idiots, but either way they're likely to lose enough games in 2017 to get a very high, if not the first overall, draft pick.

[gardenman]

Steelers fans are having a mild heart attack today. Ben Roethlisberger is considering retirement and apparently the Steelers are telling teams that Antonio Brown is available. With Leveon Bell being a free agent, the Steelers could lose their three best offensive players. I suspect Ben will be back and no one will offer enough to pry Brown away, and the Steelers will likely tag Bell, so the team will likely return intact, but it's not a good news day for Steelers fans.

[Spurt]

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@gardenman wrote:

Steelers fans are having a mild heart attack today. Ben Roethlisberger is considering retirement and apparently the Steelers are telling teams that Antonio Brown is available. With Leveon Bell being a free agent, the Steelers could lose their three best offensive players. I suspect Ben will be back and no one will offer enough to pry Brown away, and the Steelers will likely tag Bell, so the team will likely return intact, but it's not a good news day for Steelers fans.

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@gardenman

WOW---that would really blow up the team if they lost all 3 and really put them in a non contender status......  but somewhere ya know that @sunshine45 and the rest of Raven Nation is smiling over the news....

Intresting info on Greg Manusky....the Redskin players really wanted him to get the DC job.....Also Greg played for the Redskins for a while under the Joe Gibbs era...He will stick with the 3-4 scheme but there will be definite differences.....Jim Tomsula has been hired to take over as D line coach, and Kevin O'Connell with coach the QB's.....Tomsula was with the 49ers with Harbraugh and the team had one of the best defenses at that time...

Here's an important re-signing.....the Redskins re-signed long snapperNick Sundberg......