Sports

[gardenman]

This had potential to be a trap game with Dallas coming in next week and the Cards not looking great, but we got the win. Now Dallas week starts in Philly and the fanbase will be especially rabid by next Sunday night. That will be an interesting game.

[Spurt]

Now that the Rams are 2-3 will this So-Fi Stadium look much like Washington's Fed Ex with more opponent fans than Ram's fans????  And perhaps some empty seats as well.....

[Spurt]

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@gardenman wrote:

This had potential to be a trap game with Dallas coming in next week and the Cards not looking great, but we got the win. Now Dallas week starts in Philly and the fanbase will be especially rabid by next Sunday night. That will be an interesting game.

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@gardenman 

The Philly fans gotta bring it!!!

[gardenman]

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@Spurt wrote:

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@gardenman wrote:

This had potential to be a trap game with Dallas coming in next week and the Cards not looking great, but we got the win. Now Dallas week starts in Philly and the fanbase will be especially rabid by next Sunday night. That will be an interesting game.

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@gardenman 

The Philly fans gotta bring it!!!

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The Philly fans will bring it! They'll start tailgating at five AM and not stop. Dallas week is always crazy, but with first place on the line and both teams playing well, they'll really bring it. That crowd Sunday night will be breathing fire. It'll be a fun game.

[soonersis]

I have only two comments tonight. One, the NFC East has certainly surprised everyone with its strength. And two, an injured Micah Parsons is better than some defensive backs at full strength.

[gardenman]

One of my favorite guys to watch on the Eagles right now is nose tackle Jordan Davis. He's just playing caveman football, but it's fun to watch. They aren't having him stunt or do anything fancy. He just grabs the center, and often the center and guard, and just shoves them back at the quarterback or wherever the running back is going. Holes that should be there, aren't there as he shoves the center and guard into them. The kid is just a beast.

After the first play where he kills a center, the QB will look at the center or center and guard and you can see them saying, "I got too high, I wasn't anchored, etc. I'll get him next time." And then on the next play, back they go again. And again. And again. It's like trying to block a bulldozer. Davis just takes them wherever he wants them to go. He steals their manhood from them. Forget trying to move him, they end up resorting to just trying to slow him down.

Teams pretty quickly decide to use more outside running and avoid the middle of the field. The kid is a game-changer at nose tackle. We've never had a guy like that before and it's fun to watch.

That wasn't the best game by the Eagles yesterday, but a win is a win and I'll take it. Now on to Dallas! That will be a fun Sunday Night game.

[gardenman]

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@soonersis wrote:
I have only two comments tonight. One, the NFC East has certainly surprised everyone with its strength. And two, an injured Micah Parsons is better than some defensive backs at full strength.

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Micah Parsons is the closest thing the league has had to Lawrence Taylor since Lawrence Taylor. The biggest issue the Cowboys will have with Parsons is finding the cash to pay him when his rookie deal is done. He's going to want top-tier QB money, and deservedly so. Top-tier QB money is about 25% of the cap these days. If they're also paying Dak at the top-tier rate, about half the salary cap goes out to just two guys. And no matter how good those two guys are, you don't win games with just two guys.

Something will have to give. And that something might be Dak. They may opt to move to a kid QB at a rookie salary and keep Parsons. Trade away Dak, get a handful of picks for him. Find a kid or castoff QB to hold things down and hope Parsons stays healthy. Parsons should easily be the highest-paid defensive player in the league in three years' time. Dak will have a new deal by then also, and JJ will have a big hole in his bank account.

A former GM described the Cowboys' cap management once as "stars and scrubs." They pay a few players a lot of money then don't have enough money to field a rounded-out team. Paying both Dak and Parsons will really make them a stars and scrubs team. Managing those two salaries is going to be a real challenge for the Cowboys. It'll be interesting to see how they pull it off. 

I think seeing Cooper Rush play as well as he has may have them rethinking the money they're spending on Dak. We've seen Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson get traded. Could Dak be the next big-name QB auctioned off to the highest bidder? 

[teganslaw]

The Cowboys need to keep Micah Parsons, even if they have to adjust contracts. They would be foolish to let him go.

According to Mike Florio from Pro Football Talk, Matt Rhule will be fired. It's a matter of "when", not "if." Several colleges are interested in hiring Rhule when the Panthers release him. Baker Mayfield isn't doing well. I don't know if he has regressed or if it's the coaching. 

The Ravens are lucky to have Justin Tucker. Neither quarterback played well, although the Ravens' defense stood out. I don't think Jackson will get all guaranteed money in his contract. The stand off will continue.

[Spurt]

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@teganslaw wrote:

The Cowboys need to keep Micah Parsons, even if they have to adjust contracts. They would be foolish to let him go.

According to Mike Florio from Pro Football Talk, Matt Rhule will be fired. It's a matter of "when", not "if." Several colleges are interested in hiring Rhule when the Panthers release him. Baker Mayfield isn't doing well. I don't know if he has regressed or if it's the coaching. 

The Ravens are lucky to have Justin Tucker. Neither quarterback played well, although the Ravens' defense stood out. I don't think Jackson will get all guaranteed money in his contract. The stand off will continue.

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@teganslaw @sunshine45 

Justin Tucker is AWESOME!!! Like the announcers mentioned first ballot HOF!  But they should require him to sing while he kicks so more of his many talents can be showcased 😉😀

As for Baker, I think its the coaching and perhaps hes just not comfortable with his new team and teammates......

[gardenman]

Yeah, if it comes down to Parsons or Dak, it'll probably be goodbye Dak. We'll know pretty soon. Dak's contract expires in 2024 and if the Cowboys want to keep him they'll work out a new deal in 2023. Parson's contract also expires in 2024, but he has the fifth-year option that the Cowboys will certainly use. They can still tag him in 2026 and 2027 if need be, but they'll prefer to have a new deal in place. I don't see how they can afford to keep both guys, so something will have to give.

There are likely to be quite a few coaches out of work this year. Matt Rhule is an easy call. Dennis Allen and Josh McDaniels will be tougher calls. Both could be out after one year though. Ron Rivera, and Frank Reich probably aren't overly comfortable right now.

Teams are starting to trade assets now. The Falcons have moved Deion Jones for a sixth and seventh-round pick. Teams will be moving their higher-priced guys who don't figure in the rebuild over the next couple of weeks and getting whatever they can in return. The Falcons know they aren't winning while the Browns still have some hope.

The only thing constant in life is change and the NFL has lots of change each year.