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

[Al B. Sure!]

That reinforces the fact that Flutie starting made them a game better over Flutie starting 2/3rds of the season, and about 3 games better than 8-8, that they would have been without Flutie.

I just noticed this and wanted to point out (to drive the point even further) that the claim that without Flutie, the 99 Bills would have gone 8-8 is so absurd for the reason I showed... if the Bills went 8-8 without Flutie, it would have been the only time in those 11 years that I sampled (and there's no reason to think it wouldn't hold true for the entirety of NFL history) that the #1 NFL defense finished the season at .500. Granted, I know a QB's play CAN affect the defense's production to an extent but it's very telling that Quincy Carter's Cowboys went 10-6. Hell, that year, Carter threw 21 INTs to only 17 TDs AND Troy Hambrick (WHO?) was the team's leading rusher yet the Cowboys still went 10-6.

Let that sink in for a second. Quincy ****ING Carter, one of the worst QB's ever!, throws 21 interceptions, Troy Hambrick is plowing along at a low 3.5 yards per carry and didn't even get 1000 yards on the year, and the #1 Defense still CARRIES the Cowboys to a 10-6 record yet somehow, the Flutie-less Bills who not only had the #1 Defense but also the #8 rushing team would go 8-8.

It is virtually impossible for the #1 defense to finish a season at 8-8. I suppose the Jets came close to it last year but the Colts and Bengals helped them out to 9 wins... but we also know that this team still ended up good enough to make it deep in the playoffs and were only hamstringed a bit with their end of season record by some bad throws from their rookie QB.

For the most part, the #1 defense going 8-8 won't happen and I am pretty certain has never happened. I highly doubt a Flutie-less Bills would have been the first and only team to manage this feat.

[Al B. Sure!]

Okay, I was wrong.

2009: Jets 9-7 lost in AFC championship game (rookie Sanchez)
2008: Steelers 12-4 won SB (Big Ben)
2007: Steelers 10-6 lost in wildcard round (Big Ben)
2006: Ravens 13-3 lost in divisional round (near retirement McNair)
2005: Buccaneers 11-5 lost in wildcard round (Chris Simms and Brian Griese)
2004: Steelers 15-1 lost in wildcard round (rookie Big Ben)
2003: Cowboys 10-6 lost in wildcard round (QUINCY ****ING CARTER)
2002: Buccaneers 12-4 won SB (Brad Johnson)
2001: Steelers 13-3 lost in AFC championship game (KORDELL ****ING STEWART)
2000: Titans 13-3 lost in divisional round (Steve McNair)
1999: Bills 11-5 lost in wildcard round (Flutie)
1998: Chargers 5-11 (Leaf and Whelihan)
1997: 49ers 13-3 lost in NFC championship game (Young)
1996: Packers 13-3 won SB (Favre)
1995: 49ers 11-5 lost in divisional round (Young)
1994: Cowboys 12-4 lost in NFC championship game (Aikman)
1993: Vikings 9-7 lost in wildcard round (McMahon and Salisbury)
1992: Cowboys 13-3 won SB (Aikman)
1991: Eagles 10-6 did not make playoffs (McMahon)
1990: Steelers 9-7 did not make playoffs (Brister)
1989: Vikings 10-6 lost in divisional round (Wilson)

The 98 Chargers were the #1 Defense but still went 5-11. I think this is a complete aberration though since Whelihan and Leaf combined for only 10 TDs and 34 INTs! 34! Whelihan somehow managed to throw 19 in only 7 games! (that was almost 3 interceptions PER GAME!) It was the ONLY time in the past 21 years that the team with the #1 defense finished the year below 9-7 and it's obviously clear why that was... I never heard of this Whelihan before but looking at his game stats... Wow.

So I guess it IS possible after all for the team with the top ranked defense to go below .500; still, it takes absurdly bad QB play for it to happen. Unless Leaf or Whelihan played for the 99 Bills in Flutie's stead, the Flutie-less Bills were not going 8-8.

The average wins for those 21 teams was 11.14 wins. Flutie's Bills went 11-5. That is around what you would expect of a team with the #1 defense, regardless of if their QB is Steve Young or Chris Simms, unless it's Leaf or Whelihan.

All Flutie had to do was not play like Craig Whelihan.

[SlowwHand]

This has turned into a pieceof**** thread. Why didn't you just start a Bash Flutie thread?

[Al B. Sure!]

This has turned into a pieceof**** thread. Why didn't you just start a Bash Flutie thread?

Did you read everything, Sloww?

By the way, how would you describe the talent level of quarterback Quincy Carter?

[SlowwHand]

He sucked, sucks and will always suck.

[Imran Siddiqui]

This has turned into a pieceof**** thread.

Seriously.

[-Jrabbit]

Alby clearly has too much time on his hands.

In actual football news:
Basically, the entire Colts RB corps, plus 2 WRs, (Joesph Addai, Donald Brown, Mike Hart, Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon) are all listed as "questionable" (50/50 to play) this week.

[Al B. Sure!]

Come on! I completely destroyed Ben! I've systematically proven that Doug Flutie was a mediocre QB. Granted, that's something that doesn't require much analysis to prove since a normal person would know it, but still.

Alby clearly has too much time on his hands.

In actual football news:
Basically, the entire Colts RB corps, plus 2 WRs, (Joesph Addai, Donald Brown, Mike Hart, Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon) are all listed as "questionable" (50/50 to play) this week.

And that means what? There is only one player on that offense who would affect the team's production by getting hurt... everyone else, the offense isn't even fazed in the slightest.

Although I do wonder about the RB's... all three? Not that they need them anyway, really

Oh and Blair White will just get 100 yards and a touchdown.

[-Jrabbit]

Yes, congrats, man. You have made a compelling argument that everyone on this board -- except Ben -- agreed with before you made it. And that hasn't changed.

I had two points in posting the Indy injury news:

1. Turning the conversation away from the past and back to the present.
2. The NFL injury list is basically worthless.

[Al B. Sure!]

oh yeah. Especially the Patriot's. Brady is on it every week.

[Tuberski]

Which is his career passer rating. If you were referring to passer rating plus, you'd have said it was 97. Yeah I read it wrong, but you completely misunderstood I was referring to passer rating plus until I told you what I was doing. You'd also have said it was 112 instead of the number you did cite, which is exactly what you did do in the next post to save face. So why play the fool? I knew you'd do exactly that, and then go back and say what you just did to try to convince people you meant something else. Don't bother.

It doesn't help or strengthen your argument.

Honestly, I don't need to strengthen my argument. Why argue with someone that is delusional, in more ways than one?

You weren't using the QB+ ratings either, dip****, you were using numbers pulled out of your ass.

ACK!

[Solomwi]

Actually, I believe it was Solomwi this time.

I deserve the blame for starting it, but it still went farther than I would have taken it alone.

[duke o' york]

I am stunned by how many NFL QBs have ****ing as their middle name.

I mean, apart from Matthew Broderick, I can't think of another person - what's the national average?

[Al B. Sure!]

They're saying Collie and Garcon are both playing, JRabbit.

[-Jrabbit]

Doesn't really matter to me; I was just trying to change the subject.