Are You Ready for Some Football - Week 13

[Jaguar]

Roethlisberger is the new Tom Brady.

Jaguar's Prediction: Steelers will eke out an AFC title game win against the NE Patriots. The score will be something like 24-21. Then they'll move on to beat the Green Bay Packers in the Superbowl, roughly 34-24.

[JohnT]

Originally posted by pchang
Peyton has the history that makes you believe this year is just a logical part of his ascension as a quarterback. Brees has the history that makes you think this is a career year for him and that he will revert towards his norm next year.

Peyton also has a history of choking in the big game. Perhaps he'll play long enough to get to two Super Bowls (he'll choke in the first, eke out a win in the second), but he is definitely my #1 pick of Great Player Who Will Never Win A Ring Except As A 40-Year Old Backup.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Peyton also has a history of choking in the big game.

Like Elway did?

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

And he had Jamal Lewis. Bettis may look good this year, but he's not like the Jamal Lewis who carried a weak Baltimore offense into the Superbowl.

Lewis had 1364 yards in 2000. If you take Bettis' yards per game in the 4 games he's started and extrapolated them out to a 16 game schedule you get 1924 yards rushing.

You know that's silly. He hasn't gotten more than 1364 yards since 1997, and his yards percarry is an uninspiring 3.5. He only got high numbers of total yards because the Steelers rush all the time to control the clock. Lewis ran for 4.4 yards per carry in 2000, and this year he's at 4.1. Lewis is by far the better back.

[pchang]

conversely Bettis' yards per carry is low because the Steelers run all the time and the defense knows this and stacks the box to stop it (and yet, the Steelers are able to get 1st downs and thus control the clock).

[Tuberski]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

Peyton also has a history of choking in the big game.

Like Elway did?

Elway never had a history of choking. Elway had a history of carrying an inferior team to Super Bowls.

They always got beat by a better team. They never choked.

ACK!

[pchang]

the real problem with Bettis is that he gets banged up and falls apart by the end of the season. having Duce Staley was great for Bettis because he is fresh. and now when Duce comes back, he will be fresh too.

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by pchang
conversely Bettis' yards per carry is low because the Steelers run all the time and the defense knows this and stacks the box to stop it (and yet, the Steelers are able to get 1st downs and thus control the clock).

The 2000 Ravens didn't run the ball all the time? Hell, look at the Ravens last year. They gave Lewis the ball 400 times that season, and he ran for 5.1 yards a carry.

[JohnT]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

Peyton also has a history of choking in the big game.

Like Elway did?

Yup. At least Elway could win when he had a world-class running back.

Also: What Tuberski said.

[pchang]

Can you say that Peyton choked when his teams had inferior defenses.

[JohnT]

I can say that he chokes because he implodes when the pressure is on. TN-NE 1997 national championship game, anyone? IN-NE, last year?

[Imran Siddiqui]

Elway never had a history of choking. Elway had a history of carrying an inferior team to Super Bowls.

They always got beat by a better team. They never choked.

Whatever you want to spin it is fine . Elways always had better defenses than Peyton did. And I think getting intercepted how many ever times by the Patriots isn't something utterly horrible. After all, they basically raped the Indy recievers.

[pchang]

what exactly do you mean by TN-NE?

[JohnT]

Tennessee vs. Nebraska, national championship game... 1997 season.

[Jaguar]

Ah, I see.