Sports

[gardenman]

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@Spurt wrote:

I dont know who I want to win this Super Bowl.....I just hope it's an exciting game..........

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Yeah, there are pros and cons to both teams. Tampa fans haven't had a Super Bowl since Jon Gruden's days there. It would be kind of neat for the home team to win the Super Bowl. Brady winning would further irk Bill Belichick and anything that irks Belichick is a good thing.

KC's fans are some of the most loyal and I like Andy Reid. Another Super Bowl win would confirm Andy as one of the all-time great head coaches. They've been the best team all season, so it is fitting for them to win the Super Bowl. 

I also just hope it's a really good, exciting game. 

[Ladybug724]

While I'm still feeling the sting of disappoint at the Brown's loss to KC, I'm looking forward to this SB. Should be a good game and it will probably come down to the last second.

I do think the refs will show favoritism towads Tampa because of Brady. I don't trust him- he's cheated in the past. 

I can't bring myself to root for KC though, since the Browns lost to them. There were some questionable calls/non calls in that game. Like I said, it still stings.

I think it would be nice for Tampa to win, since they haven't won a SB in years. Also, it would drive home the point to Belichick that he should never have let Tom go-he did the same thing to Bernie Kosar in the 1990's. You would think he'd know better. I should mention, after Belichick released Kosar (thinking he was too old and had his best days behind him, same as Brady), Bernie went on to lead the Cowboys to a SB win the next year.

[gardenman]

The Eagles have a QB coach. It's Brian Johnson, the former Utah QB, who backed up Alex Smith in college. He coached Dak Prescott in Dak's junior and senior seasons in college. He's been the OC in Florida before joining the Eagles. He's another young guy at 33. This is turning into a frat boy coaching staff. Not much of a veteran presence on the staff. 

[Patriot3]

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@Ladybug724 wrote:

While I'm still feeling the sting of disappoint at the Brown's loss to KC, I'm looking forward to this SB. Should be a good game and it will probably come down to the last second.

I do think the refs will show favoritism towads Tampa because of Brady. I don't trust him- he's cheated in the past. 

I can't bring myself to root for KC though, since the Browns lost to them. There were some questionable calls/non calls in that game. Like I said, it still stings.

I think it would be nice for Tampa to win, since they haven't won a SB in years. Also, it would drive home the point to Belichick that he should never have let Tom go-he did the same thing to Bernie Kosar in the 1990's. You would think he'd know better. I should mention, after Belichick released Kosar (thinking he was too old and had his best days behind him, same as Brady), Bernie went on to lead the Cowboys to a SB win the next year.

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@Ladybug724   Agree w/you about Tom Brady.  Don't like him because I think he is shady.  Don't think it's fair for SB to be in Tampa.  I know those sites are planned years in advance, but think there should be a contingency in place just for situations like this.

I, too, feel bad that Cleveland lost, but they showed us a superb season........one we have been missing for years!

I want KC to beat TB......love Patrick

[gardenman]

The Eagles are continuing to poach coaches from the Colts by signing away their tight ends coach. Frank Reich is pretty much having to rebuild his staff on the fly this offseason. Which brings up an interesting question. Why are so many coaches anxious to leave Indy?

Some are getting promotions, so that makes sense, but others aren't. The coaches are uprooting their families, leaving a playoff caliber team, and coming to a team that most people viewed as one of the least desirable jobs. They're coming to a city with a very negative media focus, high taxes, not so great living conditions, etc., and a poor record. The team is in all kinds of cap trouble. The roster is generally viewed as being old and under-talented, but Nick Sirianni has had no trouble convincing coaches in seemingly better circumstances, to drop everything and come join him. Is he a pied piper of some sort? Or do those coaches know something the rest of us don't?

Our new QB coach was the offensive coordinator for Florida. He's stepping back from OC to QB coach. He likely made more money as OC at an SEC school than he will as a QB coach at the pro level. (By the way, he's known Jalen Hurts since Hurts was four and recruited him to Mississippi State, but Hurts opted for Alabama instead.)

Nick Sirianni seems to be able to get every coach he wants to come join him and that all by itself is kind of impressive. Coaches are leaving seemingly better jobs to come to Philly and work with Nick. It'll be interesting to hear him talk about things if they ever hold an introductory press conference. The players who have talked with him seem wildly optimistic. He's getting whichever coaches he wants. He impressed the owner and GM. I'm anxious to hear him talk. (The local press says the press conference will be this week, but I suspect he's going to be at the Senior Bowl, so it could be next week.)

The Senior Bowl is historically a job fair for out of work coaches or coaches looking to move on from their current team. Pretty much every NFL head coach is there and looking to fill out or upgrade their staff. You'll hear of lots of assistant coaches signing new deals next week after talking at the Senior Bowl.

The Texans have finally signed a new coach in David Culley. Not necessarily a hire that will inspire DeSahun Watson to stay in Houston. I've never heard anything bad about Culley, he coached under Andy Reid in Philly, but I've also never heard him mentioned as an aspiring head coach. He's 65, so  he's not an up and coming kid full of fresh new ideas. It's an interesting hire. The Andy Reid coaching tree is pretty solid, but I'm not sure how great a hire this will be.

[Spurt]

@gardenman 

Yep, the Texans hire was a bit bizarre...and to think they had a whole "committee: to help them ?!?!?!?!?!? (including the Spurs RC Buford)......I hope Houston's ready to join the basement dweller teams because DeShaun will probably leave for sure now....And Eric Bieniemy was shut out from all those jobs...SMH, but with no cap space and little talent, it may be a blessing in disguise for Bieniemy! 

Jason Witten is retiring....he bombed out of broadcasting so I wonder what he will do next....

Coach Rivera and the WFT new front office staff with start laying out plans ..... they need a QB, MLB, and said they want to revamp the offense, and add depth at the OL.....

[Spurt]

@gardenman  @teganslaw @redwingsgal 

Well a 1/3 of the nfl teams have inquired about Matthew Stafford......But there's an interesting name on the list

Among the teams that have been mentioned as potential trade partners for the Lions are the Colts, 49ers, Broncos, Patriots, Football Team, Panthers, Raiders, Rams, Texans and Cowboys.

So is this a negotiating strategy for the Cowboys??? Or have they decided Dak's gotten too expensive with all their needs on defense and cap issues....very interesting!

And if the Raiders want Stafford shoot Id take Derek Carr for my WFT...

Some folks are saying Stafford and Colts would be a great fit and he would have a good OL too...

[gardenman]

@Spurt 

Dak has the Cowboys by the throat and they know it. They either have to pay him whatever he asks for or move on. Moving on is a viable option for them. I think he'd get $37 million this year and $54 million next year if they tag him again. He reportedly wants $40 million a year guaranteed. You're talking some pretty serious money.

Stafford's cash cost is $20 million in 2021 and $23 million in 2022. DeShaun Watson's contract has cash outlays of $10.54 million in 2021, $35 million and $37 million in 2022 and 2023, then $32 million in 2024 and 2025. (I don't see the Texans trading Watson to the Cowboys though.) Carson Wentz has cash outlays of $25.4 million in 2021, $22+ million in 2022, $27 million in 2023, and $26 million in 2024. Aaron Rodgers has cash costs of $23.22 million in 2021 and $25.5 million in 2022 and 2023.

Do you pay Dak $40 million a year over that time period? Probably not. Can you negotiate him off his $40 million a year price tag? Not if his agent has a clue, and his agent is very smart. Dak and his team have the Cowboys backed into a corner. Dak can just play on the tag this year and pull in $37 million. If they try to tag him next year his price climbs to over $50 million. ($54 million is what was quoted online earlier, but that number could change.)

If you're the Cowboys you have to examine your options. They did okay with Andy Dalton who's not a great QB. Stafford, Watson, Wentz, Rodgers are all better QBs than Dalton. (You might add Jimmy G, Goff, Cousins, and a few more guys on the outs with their team to the list of guys better than Dalton.) Are they better than Dak? Hard to say. Is Dak worth $40 million a year? Maybe.

Dak's got the Cowboys in a tough spot right now though and they know it. They have to decide if they'll pay him whatever he asks, or let him go. There are going to be viable QB options out there on the open market. They'll come with a high price in draft picks though. (People are saying a single high first-round pick for Stafford. I think the price will be substantially higher. They'll ask for multiple firsts and more.) The Cowboys have the tenth pick in the draft. Do they bundle that pick with others or with players to try and get one of the lower cost guys? If you can save $10 million or more in salary over the next few years, that lets you shop in free agency and perhaps get a guy who's as good as what you'd get in the draft at ten.

This is going to be on crazy offseason. The Rodgers and Wentz contracts had people thinking their teams were crazy, but now those contracts look like bargains. Trading for an upper-tier QB who will cost you around half of what you'd have to pay Dak isn't such a bad idea for the Cowboys. Even the DeShaun Watson contract, the most cash-heavy of the ones out there, would be less than Dak is asking for.

Dak is playing this situation perfectly. The Cowboys are backed into a corner with just two options. Pay Dak or let him walk. JJ hates to let star players walk. It might be his smartest move though. If Dak becomes a free agent, watch out! The bidding war for his services will get crazy. This is shaping up to be one of the crazier offseasons we've ever seen when it comes to QBs.

[teganslaw]

It seems that other teams think highly of the Colts' coaches, so that's why there were so many interview requests. I don't know why several of them wanted out of Indy; other than promotion or pay raise, can't think of a reason. They seemed to get along with Reich and Ballard, and I haven't seen reports of unrest within the organization. 

DeShaun Watson has  officially requested a trade. He couldn't have been happy with Cullen. Houston will want the moon and stars for Watson, though, so I wonder what teams will go for it. 

@Spurt , something cute: my cat, Simone, who usually isn't interested in the TV, was glued to the screen when the WFT played in the Wild Card. She didn't care about any of the other teams during the playoffs, but only showed interest when Washington's offense was on the field. Maybe she's a fan of that team, and I never knew it. 

[Spurt]

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@teganslaw wrote:

It seems that other teams think highly of the Colts' coaches, so that's why there were so many interview requests. I don't know why several of them wanted out of Indy; other than promotion or pay raise, can't think of a reason. They seemed to get along with Reich and Ballard, and I haven't seen reports of unrest within the organization. 

DeShaun Watson has  officially requested a trade. He couldn't have been happy with Cullen. Houston will want the moon and stars for Watson, though, so I wonder what teams will go for it. 

@Spurt , something cute: my cat, Simone, who usually isn't interested in the TV, was glued to the screen when the WFT played in the Wild Card. She didn't care about any of the other teams during the playoffs, but only showed interest when Washington's offense was on the field. Maybe she's a fan of that team, and I never knew it. 

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@teganslaw 

Oh how cute, Simone is a fan of my team....

😻 💗💗💗.....maybe she's drawn to our colors..or... wants to be the team mascot....😸