NFL - Are You Ready For Some Football?! - Regular Season

[Koyaanisqatsi]

The biggest problem is the number of veterans that has left the team: Seymour, Bruschi, Vrabel, Harrison and to lesser extent James Sanders and Ellis Hobbs. Those are big shoes to fill but it's a transition that's been in the works for the last two years.

True, with the exception that Sanders is still around. From a leadership perspective it's important, but if this is really a transition to 4-3 for the Pats that makes it a little better since the vets had limited 4-3 experience anyway.

[Zopperoni]

Oops, I thought Sanders was gone too

Seymour and Bruschi did have 4-3 experience since that was the old base package before Warren and Wilfork were drafted and the conversion was completed. But yea, losing all the LBs (including Seau) puts the Pats thin at LB for running 3-4 packages.

Funny, now I think of it: the Pats got Derrick Burgess from Oakland for a 2010 third and fifth rounder and handed back Seymour for a 2011 first rounder...

[Koyaanisqatsi]

Also, Seymour may very well have been the wrong kind of 'veteran leadership' from the team's perspective. His successful run at a big contract may be one of the things that is motivating his good friend Wilfork. Seymour is also believed to be one of the guys Hobbs was talking about in an interview not long ago when he said there were players slacking and faking injuries in NE.

[snoopy369]

Not entirely sure what to make of the Seymour thing...I've thought for a while that Jarvis Green did at least as much as Seymour when he was hurt, but it's not like Seymour can't play at all. But he was almost certainly gone next year anyway, so picking up a 1st is ridiculously good value, and with more 4-3 coming there were too many DTs anyway. I just hope long term planning doesn't hurt the short term the same way it may very well have hurt them when Asante left.

Picking up an OAK first round pick (assuming it was their pick and not a previously traded pick) is absolutely ridiculous value. The #3 pick in the draft at worst? If this were fantasy, I'd vote against that trade in a minute as being unfair.

[Ben Kenobi]

Edit, moved to the other thread..

[-Jrabbit]

Nice post, Ben.

We need to keep our FF and our NFL posts in separate threads.

Regular season now one day away!!

[Ming]

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL

Less than two hours away now... It's been a long off season, so let the games begin.

[SlowwHand]

Go Titans!

I have to cheer someone.

[snoopy369]

Ben, you do know you can 'vote' for who you think will win in the actual FF app, right?

[Ben Kenobi]

That's cool.

[snoopy369]

Also, you seem to have not noticed JR's comment. This thread is intended for discussing actual games, not Fantasy - there's another thread for Fantasy ...

[Lord Avalon]

BOOM!

In other news

Madden joins NFL in advisory job

John Madden is back in the NFL as an unpaid "special adviser" to commissioner Roger Goodell.

The league announced Thursday that Madden, who retired as a broadcaster earlier this year, would advise Goodell on "matters pertaining to the game, including competitive issues, coaching and personnel development, technological innovations, player safety, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame."

"When I retired from broadcasting, I didn't retire from my passion and interest in the game," Madden said in a statement. "This position enables me to continue that."

Madden, in his unpaid position, will chair the coaches' subcommittee to the competition committee, which reports in prior to the league's annual meetings. He also will participate in meetings of the general managers' advisory committee and be part of a weekly call with Goodell or someone on Goodell's staff.

"It was an offer we couldn't refuse," Goodell said in a statement.

[Guynemer]

If I were teh gay, I'd be totally gay for Polamalu.

[Ben Kenobi]

Polamalu I'm lovin' it.

[Lord Avalon]

You guys can kiss his knee and make it all better.