The Sports Random Thought Thread

[Tomb1]

Much needed win by the Bills today as they played today like the Bills of week 2 and not the Bills of week 1.

I think the commentator said that there's about a 5 percent conversion rate on 3rd downs against Bills defense this season and it showed. Panthers had a tough, tough time trying to convert on 3rd downs and 4th downs. Clutch sack by Obada in the 4th quarter on 4th down and clutch throw by Allen to Davis for TD on 4th and 2. Overall, that number 1 ranked Bills defense spelled total horror for Action Cam.

I can't take nothing away from the Panthers' defense, though. That first Bills drive they just bulldozed right through that Bills offensive line. But soon as Singletary rushed for a TD in the 1st and found his run game, Bills offense fell into place. Teams are only as strong as their weakest link. When Singletary doesn't show up for the Bills, a simple man-to-man coverage defense is enough to beat 'em with. Allen ends up having to run the ball like a maniac or their receivers have to pole vault to catch a throw....That didn't happen today.

Once Bills found their running game, Allen had an easier time finding all those weapons on the Bills offense....Davis, Beasley, Diggs....not to mention tight end Knox. The commentator mentioned Knox leads tight-ends in Touchdowns which I did not even realize.

Huge game next week against the Pats...that run game needs to show up again for the Bills.

 

[Stigmata]

This will probably go down as one of the wildest weekends in NFL history.

 

[Tomb1]

This Christmas holiday season gave me a chance to catch up on the 85 superbowl when Bears buried the Patriots....what a defense the Bears ran as they really smashed the Patriots' squad. That's not an easy defense to execute but when well-executed obviously very effective.

Green Bay-Browns...As sucky as Mayfield played (like 3 sacks, 4 interceptions), Browns surely got screwed on that throw in Mayfield's final drive as that was clear pass interference. I stepped out at the top of the 4th quarter and came back to see that....I was pretty sure Browns still had their challenges when I left...fact they did not challenge that final play is crazy unless within the time I stepped out they had used up all their challenges. I hope they did because Browns needed to be all over that...Ref fell asleep at the wheel on that one.

COVID is still a big factor headed down the final stretch of the season....Bills will be without Davis or Beasley tomorrow two receivers that tend to come through big when Singletary runs the ball well. Even assuming Singletary runs the ball well tomorrow, Allen won't have many targets out there except Diggs who will probably be under intense coverage from J.C. Jackson. It'll have to be the tight end Knox that really shows up, and of course that No. 1 Bills' defense needs to do what they do best.

Cardinals-Colts just startin'....I want to see a big game out of Jonathan Taylor. This guy has been a top-notch running back.

 

[Tomb1]

That was a horrid performance by the Cardinals. Athletically a top notch and gutsy team, but not always the brightest.

What a throw by Wentz in the 4th for the TD.

Wentz makes terrific throw on TD pass to Dezmon Patmon - ESPN Video

Carson Wentz puts the Colts in prime position to get the win on this great 14-yard touchdown pass to Dezmon Patmon.

www.espn.co.uk

 

[Tomb1]

Buffalo Bills offense showed the B's today with those four 4th down conversions.

Singletary and Moss both got the run game going for the Bills just enough to keep the Pats defense off-balance as to the Pass Game. Even though Beasley was out, his replacement Isaiah McKenzie played as good if not better than Beasley. Turned out Allen did not even need to over-rely on Knox. McKenzie made tremendous catches.

Patriots defense made a crucial error not putting double man coverage on Diggs especially on 3rds and long....with just man to man on Diggs that also took some of the pressure off Knox because as good as JC Jackson is he can't keep up with Diggs when Diggs is fired up. Knox put one helluva blocking clinic on at the line against Matthew Judon throughout the whole game.

Bills defense definitely showed why they are the no. 1 defense. The backfield coverage was pretty invincible that Jones had no real avenues to connect deep on....Rousseau and Hyde were everywhere. Damian Harris made some nice break-out runs but other than Damien Harris the Patriots' offense presented no real consistent and/or credible scoring threat. Mac Jones hasn't been too dynamic since that game in Buffalo when Bellichik essentially clipped him of passing plays because it was too windy out

Allen gave a strong, gutsy performance in both the pocket and on the scramble and in the rush. Allen never dodged accountability throughout the season for losses...that good leadership ability paid off with a big win today. 33 points against that Pats defense is not easy to do

 

[Stigmata]

That was a horrid performance by the Cardinals. Athletically a top notch and gutsy team, but not always the brightest.

What a throw by Wentz in the 4th for the TD.

Wentz makes terrific throw on TD pass to Dezmon Patmon - ESPN Video

Carson Wentz puts the Colts in prime position to get the win on this great 14-yard touchdown pass to Dezmon Patmon.

www.espn.co.uk

The Cardinals came back for earth, man. Pretending a one and one postseason performance now that they've lost the 1st seed.

They've got some good pieces in Arizona, though, and as soon as they get some solid coaching down there, I imagine they will be a legit contender.

Also, totalling hoping the Jaguars pick Doug Pederson to be their next coach after watching the NFL documentary on the 2017 Eagles superbowl team. Trevor Lawrence could benefit from having a coach who was a prior QB steer him back on the right track after the absolute derailing of his talents this year, yet without the abrasive pseudo tough guy shtick Urban Meyer tried to impliment down there in Jacksonville. Pederson seems like a coach who is humble enough to operate more on a collaborative style, and allow Lawrence to give input on the playcalling and play to his strengths. Needless to say, there won't be any quick fixes down there (I still think you have to launch Trent Baalke, the GM), but the right coaching staff is absolutely necessary into stopping the bleeding amd beginning the turnaround.

 

[Stigmata]

This is foreshadowing into what kind of shenanigans we can expect in 2022.

Mike Tomlin deserves coach of the decade for managing to keep this dude, Ben Roethlisberger, and Le'veon Bell lucid enough to not only compete in an NFL game, but actually be very successful at doing so.

 

[Tomb1]

here is one of those tremendous catches McKenzie made last week and shows what a play-maker Allen is in the pocket...that doesn't look like it was fixed route.

[video]

I would love to see Beasley go next season and that start go to McKenzie. McKenzie more than earned his bones against the Patriots tough defense and left Bryant in the dust on a number of plays. Even if Bills go nowhere in the post-season, fact they beat the Patriots in that huge game and in the way Allen did especially on 4th downs solidifies, for me, Allen as the no. 2 QB in the NFL this season.

I got Mahomes No. 1. Mahomes and Allen both led their teams out of the pits this season with not so great of an offensive line to work with and especially with Mahomes coming off a brutal loss in the Superbowl. That shows great leadership, even if Bills and/or KC go nowhere in the post-season, Allen and Mahomes both showed what they are made out of when their backs are up against the wall and having to play under a lot of pressure, throw from awkward positions and make plays on the scramble, to yard by yard clinch a spot in the playoffs. Just about everybody and their mother jumps on the Brady and Rodgers train but let me see the 2 primadonnas Rodgers and Brady play with the crappy offensive line and no running game that Allen has been stuck with the entire season.

Prescott has had an incredible season....no question Cowboys (along with the Rams) spiced things up this season, but Cowboys fell short against Tampa, KC and now Arizona. Prescott has not yet come through in those big games

 

[Tomb1]

Cream rose to the top tonight as Josh Allen played a perfect game and delivered Mcdermott a crushing victory over the Patriots. Seven drives, seven touchdowns, no interceptions, no sacks. But what makes this blow-out particularly timeless is the fact that the Patriots defense is legit second best in the league and the blow-out was against Belichick.

Funniest moment is when Jones faked a spike only to get sacked by Hughes. That Belichik thought he would fake out the best defense in the league is just bad judgment. Pats were lucky to get out of that first half with a field goal. Jones got off to a good start on the first drive but after that interception by Micah Hyde, everything about the Pats offense went downhill…one more interception to follow, three or four sacks, and lot of gang-tackles later…that Bills defense really put on a master clinic.

Allen has so many weapons on that field to score with….Knox, Davis, Beasley, Diggs, Sanders, even McKenzie…. Hell, even the Bills lineman Tommy Doyle scored a Touchdown. The key for the Bills offense, like I been saying all season, is they need to get the run game going, and here Singletary showed up big time…best time to peak is in the post-season. Singletary’s aggressive runs gave the Bills that short game to grind out the 1st downs, and McKenzie had a lot of good runs….he doesn’t have the moves of a running back but makes up for it by being the fastest guy on the field. Allen too was leaving pats defenders in the dust…which kept the Pats off-balance to big plays in the back-field. Pats defense had no answer to either the run or the pass. Diggs proved too much for JC Jackson to cover in that pro-bowler match-up, and with all those weapons available to Allen, it was just a walk in the park for Allen to score at will and set all kinds of new post-season records nobody ever heard of. By the 4th quarter Belichick still had no answer. That’s what Belichick gets for his 160 million dollar 2021 spending spree, a vicious beating in the first round of the playoffs.

 

[Tomb1]

Michael Holley loses this debate when it comes to Patriots defense but wins it when it comes to the Patriots offense:

[video]

I see it this way....Patriots defense is legit second best in the league. Allen still had to throw under a lot of pressure and improvise...Allen made that "lob" pass to Knox on the first drive for TD while Allen was on the scramble towards the sideline....then on the second drive he threw that gutshot to Knox for TD....nothin' easy about that. Bills receivers were still leaping for catches and puttin moves on the Pats' defenders....but Allen just had too many weapons to choose from and can improvise big plays on the spot and under unscripted conditions which is the ultimate measure of a quarterback's ability. The Pats defense did not suck so much as Allen was just that much better.

On the other side, although Bills run the best defense in the NFL...Pats' offense need to contend with some issues in the off-season imo. With exception to Bourne, there were a lot of slippery hands on the Patriots offense last night...the cold weather is no excuse as the Bills' receivers had no problem with the football slipping through their fingers. Some bad calls...the fake spike, punting at 4th and 1 in the first quarter, punting at 4th down in the 3rd quarter down all those points when there is nothing to lose was... Virtually no run game from either Harris or Stephenson came to fruition which is the bread and butter of the Pats' offense, and after Mac Jones got knocked down on that first drive by an interception, he did not brush that off until later in the second half thanks in large part to Bourne...neither Jones nor Belichick appeared inspired to win....to lead the team back to victory. And geez, in fairness to the Bills starters that final TD Pats scored came against the Bills' backup guys.

 

[Burning Paradigm]

Big sad for Derek Carr; Raiders' secondary and O-line stay letting him down. The only reason they were close in the first place and able to claw bag against Cincinnati was Maxx Crosby and the D-line creating pressure in the red zone.

I think the 49ers can upset the Cowboys *knock on wood* Let's see if I eat my words later.

 

[Burning Paradigm]

I think the 49ers can upset the Cowboys *knock on wood* Let's see if I eat my words later.

Vindication

 

[Tomb1]

Obviously no beating this first playoff round will top the beating that the Bills dished out on the Patriots' elite defense but them Rams really stomped out the Cardinals last night. I want to see them beat Tampa next round.

 

[Tomb1]

I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the two top seed teams get taken out over the weekend. Green Bay really fell apart and Tannenhill just choked. Rams really spiced things up this season, and what a great QB rivalry between Allen-Mahomes. Those guys'll be battling for AFC supremacy for years to come....

 

[Stigmata]

I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the two top seed teams get taken out over the weekend. Green Bay really fell apart and Tannenhill just choked. Rams really spiced things up this season, and what a great QB rivalry between Allen-Mahomes. Those guys'll be battling for AFC supremacy for years to come....

Watching Brady and Karen Rodgers lose in the divisional round was worth the price of admission in and of itself. Absolute heartbreaker for Buffalo -- Tony Romo said at the beginning of the game "the last team to have the ball is probably going to win..", and that's exactly what happened. That will go down as one of the best games in NFL history.

 

[SD45T-2]

It's been 30 years and this is still probably the most entertaining boxing match ever.

 

[Burning Paradigm]

Tom Brady has retired from the NFL.

Love or hate him, it's really the end of a damn era. Someone get Skip Bayless on life support when LeBron retires.

 

[Tomb1]

It didn't take long for the NY Giants to sign Brian Daboll up as their head coach after that high-octane, nitro charged performance by Josh Allen two weekends ago in KC and then a week before that in New England. I would like to see the Bills do more with Isaiah McKenzie next season...what McKenzie lacks in moves he makes up for with tremendous speed.

LA Rams have truly spiced things up this season with their Blue Chip talents Odell Beckham Jr. and Cooper Kupp

 

[Stigmata]

I think Sean Mcvay is finally going to get over the hump this year -- even though the Bengals have made it this far, they haven't exactly been world beaters, as each game has been extremely close and pretty much come down to the last few plays in every game. Sports media is already trying to preemptively crown Joe Burrow, who I think is phenomenal, but, especially as it pertains to the Chiefs game, his opponents have lost themselves the games with turnovers moreso than the Bengals have played all that well.

 

[Stigmata]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1488614519400280069

LMAO!!!! Belichick is at the center of this story and it's not even his team, all due to him having a boomer moment and texting the wrong Brian. You can't make this stuff up. Also, if this all comes out to be true, Stephen Ross and the Dolphins are in some major trouble for both tampering with a contracted player, and intentionally losing games.

Brian Flores also alleges he had a scheduled interview with the Broncos a few years ago in which Broncos management showed up late and hung over, interviewing him only to fulfill the Rooney Rule.