Football (american football to those across the pond!)

[J-Sun]

Dang. Just missed the edit cutoff, I guess. Anyway - shades of Roethlisberger and, IMO, this arguably makes it worse, if true:

Kyle Williams may have injured shoulder

If so, maybe he did it diving for the one he misjudged and maybe that's why he didn't feel like returning the next one but his shoulder couldn't have caused the misjudgment and it couldn't have caused him to play chicken with the ball and it couldn't have caused him to carry the ball on the last return like it was hot and he didn't really want it - away from his body in the fingers of his hands.

Anyway - just thought that was a bit of reporting that should be included since Williams senior put it out there.

[jojajihisc]

The new kickoff rule appears to have had had little to no effect on scoring so far. Average points scored per team per game went from 22 last season to 22.2 this year.

But it's true, nobody wants the tiresome advertisements that come with the game, although since I got a DVR I haven't had that problem for a few years now. I will take some touchdowns with my games if it can be helped though. I don't want the arena league track meet where the punter doesn't even see the field but once or twice and I sure as hell don't want the 9-6 field goal struggle. Neither extreme is ideal. What I'd like is to see multiple touchdowns from each team with moments of great defensive plays mixed in.

I would've rather seen Patriots vs. 49ers for the east vs. west coast representation as opposed to a repeat of a game four years ago.

The match-up might appear to promise some points just not necessarily from both teams. There's been a smattering of competitive games in recent history but more common is the fairly dull one-sided game and in several cases thorough beat downs. I do think this one will be close though because of the way Eli Manning has been playing.

[jojajihisc]

Another strange rule was mentioned in the NFC game - teams may only use towels to attempt to keep game balls dry when raining. What's the point? Who cares what they use, the ball still has to go out on the field for play and presumably get wet doesn't it? A case where a rule simply isn't needed.

[Parson]

I was assuming that there was another technology which might impart an advantage, like blow drying with blow dryer which would soften the ball. Maybe?

[Parson]

Well, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, especially the poor Parson who went for the win and picked against instincts and instead of being in third is now at the bottom of the barrel. For the first time this year form held and all of the favorites won so.....


WrSr ... 2-0 ... 15 pts.
Culh ... 2-0 ... 14
JSon ... 1-1 ... 09
Joja ... 1-1 ... 09
Ursa ... 1-1 ... 07
Grim ... 0-2 ... 07
Pars ... 0-2 ... 05


----------------


Superbowl, baby.....


New England vs. New York


This is a real world wide, errrr nationwide, errr east coast errr, ahh, New England battle.

[Winters_Sorrow]

Well true to my formula (such as it is) I'm betting against lightning striking twice and what people consider the "form" team and going for the Patriots. Once more, I will be delighted to be proven wrong.

Patriots to win.

[J-Sun]

Originally Posted by Parson

JSon ... 1-1 ... 09

I was 0-2. I figured NY/NE would win, but picked BAL/SF because that's who I wanted to win.

Originally Posted by Parson

This is a real world wide, errrr nationwide, errr east coast errr, ahh, New England battle.

Yeah - quite an epic scope, huh? Good thing it's never been done before. It's also the unHarbaugh bowl. I bet the networks would have preferred my picks to be right.

[Parson]

Originally Posted by J-Sun

I was 0-2. I figured NY/NE would win, but picked BAL/SF because that's who I wanted to win.



Yeah - quite an epic scope, huh? Good thing it's never been done before. It's also the unHarbaugh bowl. I bet the networks would have preferred my picks to be right.

I could not find your picks and went by trying to discern what you picked by how the splits were set up. Sorry.

I doubt that the networks would have preferred your picks. Which cities are larger? Which teams have the greater national stature? No, I think that the networks were pleased as punch to have New York and New England be the two teams.

[J-Sun]

Well, they might have liked the Harbaugh storyline and the fact that they could pull coast to coast with less familiar teams. As is, it's a regional rematch between teams I'd hope casual fans were getting sick of. (I mean, the truly casual fan wouldn't even really keep up with anything and serious fans don't work that way but I'm theorizing about the "average casual fan".) New York/Boston has a large population but two markets might not counterbalance what they might lose by having the western half of the country not much care.

But you're probably right - it's just a theory. And most definitely personal bias.

[Culhwch]

I think the 'brother bowl' the networks wanted would have featured two teams that didn't even make the playoffs in the Jets and Cowboys...

[J-Sun]

True - that would have had it all (in the non-football sense). You get your New York team, your mid-country team that all the world loves or hates but watches either way (still setting viewer records despite being a mediocre team getting blown out and whatnot), and a couple of loud personalities (not to mention the endlessly quotable (if not comprehensible) lunatic Jerry). No telling what kind of pre-game craziness would have made it even richer. Such as whatever Rex would say when someone brought up Namath's guarantee. Definitely a ratings juggernaut.

[Grimward]

I see no reason to break with tradition now.....

Patriots over Giants. Don't we need to give total points or something like that?

And congrats WS, w/honorable mention to Cul.

[Culhwch]

Are you assuming that I'll pick the Pats, Grim? I can still beat WS, after all...

[Grimward]

Argh, that's right; the Super Bowl's included. I keep thinking we're handling it separately. Sorry Cul!

[Ursa major]

Sentiment means that I want ABTG - Anyone But The Giants - to win, which means, in this game, the Patriots. That's who my now-severely-embarrassed system goes for too, so:

New York Giants .. 27 - 34 .. New England Patriots.