http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000869752/article/texans-trade-tackle-duane-brown-to-seahawks

Texans trade tackle Duane Brown to Seahawks

By Around The NFL staff NFL.com

• Published: Oct. 30, 2017 at 07:09 p.m.

[URL='http://www.nfl.com/player/duanebrown/808/profile']Duane Brown is on the move.

The veteran tackle has been traded to the Seattle Seahawks, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported.

ESPN first reported the news.

Brown returned last week from a prolonged holdout. Now he'll be getting up to speed with a new team, which he coincidentally just faced on Sunday.

Around The NFL will have more on this story shortly.
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WARNING: this thread will be useless, and unproductive, but it will be fun and will waste your time... If you continue reading, don't say i didn't warn you.

So at work today some co-workers and myself got to talking football, and the question popped in my head, if all the NFL teams mascots were to have a battle royale, which would come out on top...Now to make it fair we were thinking to add some stipulations in so that it could be fair (so the jets couldn't just shoot missiles at everyone) Now the way we thought about it, was that each team was represented by whatever their name is, and if you couldn't tell by that (IE: the Browns, Steelers, Chargers, ETC) then we would resort to whatever their mascot is...

So just for fun here is what we came up with, plus the stipulations... The main stipulation though was that there was only going to be one of each, IE not a band of vikings or raiders, just one...

So think of it as a hunger games style of arena, all mascots are dropped into a bubble and can stay around the elements that they have to in order to survive...

NFC WEST:
LA Rams: Obviously would just be a Ram.
Arizona Cardinals: A stupid useless cardinal, would be the first eliminated more than likely.
Seattle Seahawks: See above, although i could see a Seahawk doing more damage than a cardinal
SF Whiners: Would be a Miner with a pickaxe

NFC EAST
Dallas Cowboys : Simply just a cowboy, with a 6 shooter and no spare ammo.
New York Giants : To make this one fair, we simply made him more realistic, Andre the Giant size
Philadelphia Eagles: Yet another bird, although probably the most powerful of the birds
Washington Redskins: An Indian with a bow and arrow or other native american weaponry

NFC North
Chicago Bears: A full grown grizzly bear
Detroit Lions : A full grown Male lion
Green Bay Packers: Literally nothing, no mascot, automatic DC lol.
Minnesota Vikings: One fierce viking, armed with sword and shield among other blunt weapons.

NFC South
Atlanta Falcons: Yet another bird
Carolina Panthers: A full grown black panther
New Orleans Saints: Haven't really figured this one out, possibly the pope? lol
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Just one singular pirate, armed with a blunderbuss or other weapon, what the heck we'll even give him a ship lol.

AFC EAST
Buffalo Bills: One adult full grown American Blue Buffalo
Miami Dolphins: One adult Dolphin, maybe he could take out the buccaneer? lol
New England Patriots: One revolutionary war patriot, armed with a sword and musket.
New York Jets: The most difficult one, but a fighter jet only armed with 2 missiles and limited fuel, but is allowed to eject and fight hand to hand afterwards. lmao

AFC NORTH
Baltimore Ravens : I'm so tired of birds
Cincinnati Bengals : One full grown bengal tiger
Cleveland Browns : A bull Mastiff
Pittsburgh Steelers: A steel worker armed with welding tools


AFC South
Houston Texans : a full grown bull
Indianapolis Colts: Just a horse, cooler because its blue? lol
Jacksonville Jaguars: An adult Jaguar
Tennessee Titans: Another tough one, we made him the same as the Giant, but armed with a sword and shield.

AFC WEST
Denver Broncos: Another horse, pretty basic
Kansas City Chiefs: An Indian chief, just like the redskin, same weapons.
Los Angeles Chargers: I guess just a lightning bold shaped guy that charges people?
Oakland Raiders: A crazy, psycho raider lol.

i just wanted to see what y'all thought, as dumb as this was, we talked about it for a while and was quite amusing (love government work, lots of free time lol) like i said, stupid and unproductive, but it was damn funny to go through all the scenarios.

I see the remainder of your schedule and at least 3 losses with losing to Houston, Philly and Seattle and maybe even one more. In all likelihood is 10-6 still good enough for a wild card this year in the NFC?

(@RamsNFL) Login to view embedded media View: https://twitter.com/RamsNFL/status/925028551719391232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Not one word from Giants fans so far about the Rams, not that I blame them. It has been a dismal season for the Giants. They are currently 1-6 with the outlier game being a 23-10 win at Denver. They are 0-3 at home losing to the Lions, Chargers, and Seahawks, and 1-3 on the road with losses to the Cowboys, Eagles, and Bucs.

On their forums the common cry is for the firing of their GM Jerry Reese and their head coach Ben McAdoo. The fans are sensing the end of Eli Manning's tenure with the Giants and they are looking forward to a complete housecleaning and the 2018 draft. This should all sound familiar to long-suffering Rams fans.

The Rams should thoroughly dismantle the Giants on Sunday but if we lose to this pathetic team I will be shocked.

Here are some articles and threads on the current state of the New York Football Giants. Hopefully their fans will chime in during this week.
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http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/f...d-grading-big-blue-bye-week-article-1.3595356

Giants Report Card: Grading Big Blue at the bye week

The Giants are 1-6 at their Week 8 bye, so it’s time to grade the players, coaches and management individually to reveal the biggest disappointments and the silver linings.

Players are listed by percentage of snaps played, rounded down, to illustrate both their durability and importance. They are evaluated by their play on the field and are not penalized for injuries. Here we go:


Head coach Ben McAdoo
(DUSTIN BRADFORD/GETTY IMAGES)

MANAGEMENT

Jerry Reese, GM Grade: F

Misjudged team’s quality and needs, stuck with poor O-line, prioritized Brandon Marshall in free agency.

Ben McAdoo, Head Coach Grade: D

Poor play-calling, stubbornness, inconsistent discipline, 30th-ranked offense (16 points per).

Steve Spagnuolo, Defensive Coordinator Grade: D

A mystery why Giants defense forgot in offseason how to tackle, stop the run and protect leads.

OFFENSE

Eli Manning, QB (100% of 445 offensive snaps played) Grade: C-

Ranks 19th in NFL with 86.1 QB rating. Seven turnovers to 11 TDs. Let down by O-line & defense, too.

Ereck Flowers, LT (100%) Grade: D

Cost Giants enormously in Weeks 2 and 3. Tackles’ pass protection problems forced McAdoo to change entire offense.

Justin Pugh, RT/LG (91%) Grade: A

Tough, versatile, durable and the Giants’ most consistent lineman. Moved from left guard to right tackle.

John Jerry, LG/RG (87%) Grade: D+

Involved in a lot of the failed stunt block pickups and culpable in the poor run game.

Evan Engram, TE (80%) Grade: B+

Special talent. Had growing pains, early TD celebration penalty and some drops, but he’s the offense’s best option and leads all NFL rookies in receiving yards.

Brett Jones, C (73%) Grade: A-

Beaten for a big Manning fumble in Week 7, but Jones’ strong play at center in Weston Richburg’s absence has been eye-opening.

Sterling Shepard, WR (61%) Grade: B+

Was on his way to a big season until he reinjured his left ankle. Has played well when healthy.

Brandon Marshall, WR (57%) Grade: F

Never acclimated fully, dropped passes and looked disengaged. Preseason shoulder injury may have affected him more than he let on.

D.J. Fluker, RG (56%) Grade: C+

Has helped run game, but this team needed Fluker to have a better training camp to start in Week 1.

Weston Richburg, C (54%) Grade: A-

Again the Giants’ second-best lineman behind Pugh before he suffered a concussion.

Roger Lewis Jr., WR (51%) Grade: D+

Great TD catch vs. Chargers but made two huge mistakes as punt gunner: overran Detroit’s Jamal Agnew on TD return and failed to down ball outside end zone in Tampa.

Odell Beckham Jr., WR (47%) Grade: B

Game-changer when healthier (Weeks 3, 4) but had dog-peeing TD celebration and six drops, per Pro Football Focus.

Rhett Ellison, TE (46%) Grade: C+

Big missed tackle on Agnew’s punt return TD in Week 2. Valuable run blocker but underutilized early.

Bobby Hart, RT (36%) Grade: F

Though it’s a small sample size, when healthy, Hart has been even worse than Flowers.

Shane Vereen, RB (31%) Grade: D

Hasn’t made a noticeable difference. Lots of late-game yardage.

Paul Perkins, RB (24%) Grade: D

Can’t give Perkins an ‘F’ with how poorly line blocked for him and how few screens McAdoo called for him, but needs to be better when healthy.

Tavarres King, WR (23%) Grade: C

Like Lewis, needs to make more of a difference as one of leaders of new receiving corps.

Orleans Darkwa, RB (23%) Grade: A

His 5.4 yards per carry average is no joke. Dropped a few passes in Week 5, but Darkwa, Pugh and Engram are the offense’s best.

Wayne Gallman, RB (21%) Grade: C+

A hard, encouraging runner but has to work on ball security and needs to pop some big gains.

Travis Rudolph, WR (12%) Grade: D

Can’t understand why he and Manning were on such different pages against Seattle.

Jerell Adams, TE (8%): C-

Huge catch vs. Lions but whiffed on his man on Seahawks’ blocked punt.

Matt LaCosse, TE (5%) Grade: B

Entered the offensive rotation with the three-TE set vs. Seattle. Has talent.

Shane Smith, FB (2%) Grade: B

Smith mostly blocked well before being released to practice squad. Special teams hurt him.


Steve Spagnuolo/Newsday

DEFENSE

Eli Apple, DB (93%) Grade: C-

First 3.5 weeks were horrible. Last 3.5 weeks he’s been better, sometimes excellent. But not enough.

Landon Collins, SS (93%) Grade: B-

Still a stud but beaten by Bucs’ Cameron Brate to seal Week 4 loss. Strong vs. Seattle but has more.

Darian Thompson, FS (93%) Grade: D+

Really difficult start. Seems to have corrected his tackling, but it hurt Giants badly early.

Jason Pierre-Paul, DE (92%) Grade: B-

Still a handful for opposing tackles, but hasn’t disrupted games often enough and did nothing in Tampa.

Janoris Jenkins, DB (82%) Grade: B

Still a top corner. Not the reason the Giants defense has struggled, other than Eagles’ final pass that Jenkins and Apple couldn’t knock down.

B.J. Goodson, MLB (58%) Grade: C+

Mean and tough and likeable leader but has struggled in pass coverage.

Devon Kennard, LB/DE (57%) Grade: C+

Quietly has played well at points, but needs to make more big plays like he did at times vs. Seahawks.

Damon Harrison, DT (57%) Grade: A

The only Giant defender to consistently dominate. Quiet most postgames, though.

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, DB (55%) Grade: F

The last thing this team needed at 0-5 was a veteran walking out of the facility in a huff.

Jonathan Casillas, LB (54%) Grade: D+

Not sure he was ever healthy, but struggled with tackling.

Dalvin Tomlinson, DT (53%) Grade: B

Athletic, disrupts offenses.

Keenan Robinson, LB (52%) Grade: C+

Back from a concussion, Robinson has been just OK but improving.

Olivier Vernon, DE (41%) Grade: B

Ankle injury was a killer. He’s a monster.

Jay Bromley, DT (37%) Grade: C+

Played well vs. the Seahawks.

Kerry Wynn, DE (32%) Grade: A

Giants’ most underrated player this season in terms of consistency, effectiveness and effort.

Ross Cockrell, DB (27%) Grade: D

Not a fan. His alarming decision to avoid a tackle against Detroit is impossible to forget.

Avery Moss, DE (20%) Grade: B-

Hard-nosed player but lack of speed has kept him from contributing on special teams.

Robert Thomas, DT (18%) Grade: D+

Not having a great year in limited playing time.

Calvin Munson, LB (18%) Grade: B-

Smart and diligent, a good special teamer, poised in Week 2 when starting at MLB.

Romeo Okwara, DE (15%) Grade: C-

Hasn’t had impact on games like he did as a rookie, took bad angle on Agnew’s punt return.

Donte Deayon, DB (12%) Grade: B-

Deserves more playing time.

Andrew Adams, FS (10%) Grade: B-

Hasn’t excelled in minimal defensive play but leads entire team in special teams snaps, a good backup.

Curtis Grant, LB (6%) Grade: B-

Want to see Grant play more. Has speed on special teams, just got into defensive rotation vs. ’Hawks.

Nat Berhe, SS (6%) Grade: B

Berhe isn’t on the field with the defense much, but whenever he is, he seems to make a play. Big special teams contributor.

Michael Hunter, DB (7%) Grade: A-

Had a great camp, lightning fast as a gunner in Denver. Deserved more opportunities before he got hurt.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Aldrick Rosas, K Grade: C-

Has missed a field goal in three straight games. Refused to address media after loss in Tampa.

Brad Wing, P Grade: D+

Shanks vs. Philly and Bucs cost Giants dearly.

Zak DeOssie, LS Grade: B

Reliable snapping and leadership but also victimized on Agnew’s return in Week 2.

Dwayne Harris, WR (45%) Grade: B-

Made several plays as a gunner, didn’t cost team with bad return decisions, but didn’t break any big ones before his season-ending toe injury.
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No more false hope, Giants’ season is officially over

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/f...pe-giants-season-officially-article-1.3581745
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http://www.nj.com/giants/index.ssf/...s_flopped_this_season.html#incart_river_index

The 9 biggest reasons the Giants flopped this season
By Dan Duggan | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Giants general manager Jerry Reese had the unenviable task of trying to explain his team's 1-6 start on Tuesday. Reese strained credibility by attributing the team's flop to players "buying into some of the hype."

If only it was that simple. The truth is that it took a perfect storm for a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations two months ago to flame out before the midpoint of the season. Here's a look at the nine biggest reasons for this debacle:

Offensive system

John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

The play-calling has drawn the most attention, and it was long overdue for head coach Ben McAdoo to delegate those duties to offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan. But Bill Walsh couldn't light up a scoreboard while calling plays off of McAdoo's diner-sized play sheet.

The flaws run deeper than the play calls to the fit of McAdoo's West Coast offensive scheme to the team's personnel. McAdoo wants to run a pass-happy offense with a leaky offensive line and an immobile quarterback. That combination is a recipe for disaster.

Most opponents caught on quickly that they could play zone coverage to take away any deep threats because the line can't protect long enough and the Giants don't have the ability/desire to make them pay on the ground.

The brilliance of wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has masked the offensive limitations to an extent, but his season-ending injury has made this offense's ineptitude painfully obvious. The Giants are averaging 11 points and 160.7 yards passing in the three games Beckham has missed this season, compared to 19.8 points and 279.5 yards passing in the four games he played in.

Maybe McAdoo can at least find a way to eliminate the 2-yard throws on third-and-8 from the playbook over the bye.

Regression to the mean

The Giants' crash back to earth after an 11-win season blindsided most. But stat geeks warned this could happen. The Giants went 8-3 in games decided by seven points or fewer last season and seven of those wins featured a late stand by the defense. It's impossible to sustain that level of success in close games.

The Giants have lamented their inability to close out games this season, as they lost three games by a combined 10 points in Weeks 3-5. But it shouldn't be a surprise. The law of averages promised to even things out and the belief that the Giants could rely on their defense to close out tight games every week was misguided.

Personnel decisions

It took injuries to numerous starters before McAdoo found his best offensive line combination and featured his top running back. The offensive line has performed significantly better after Justin Pugh moved to right tackle and D.J. Fluker took over at right guard. And McAdoo finally started using Orleans Darkwa (5.4 yards per carry) after Paul Perkins suffered a ribs injury (1.9 ypc) in Week 4.

Who knows what would have happened if the Giants made those changes sooner, but it's troubling that it took so long for McAdoo to replace under-performing players.

Offensive line woes

Has the offensive line made some strides in the last few weeks? Sure. But don't get carried away. This is still an under-performing unit. The Giants rank 27th in the NFL in rushing and they're tied for 16th in sacks allowed.

The middle-of-the-pack sacks stat is a bit misleading because the Giants' offense is predicated on getting the ball out of quarterback Eli Manning's hands in an instant. And game plans still have been altered to try to hide the offensive line's struggles in pass protection, which may lead to lower sack totals, but also less overall production.

Defense decline


Brad Penner | USA TODAY Sports

The defense carried the Giants last year. The burden has been too heavy this season.

The Giants have dropped to 17th in the league in scoring defense (22.3 points per game) after ranking second last season (17.8 ppg).

A lot of blame has been directed at the defense for blowing late leads in the close losses in Weeks 3-5. While that's technically accurate, it's a bit unfair to pin the 27-22 loss to the Chargers in Week 5 on the defense after Manning fumbled on the Giants' 11-yard line late in the fourth quarter to set up LA's game-winning touchdown.

The inept offense has left the defense with no margin for error the past two seasons. The defense hasn't been up to that challenge this season.

Eli's performance


Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

It's been an odd season for Manning, who has clearly missed Beckham. The Giants have gone into a shell offensively since losing Beckham and Brandon Marshall to season-ending ankle injuries in Week 5, as well as Sterling Shepard to a sprained ankle that has sidelined the slot receiver for the past two games.

Manning had the crucial fumble late against the Chargers in Week 5 and he had another killer fumble in the fourth quarter of last Sunday's 24-7 loss to the Seahawks when the Giants were trailing by just three points.

Manning is the highest-paid player on the team, which brings high expectations. While he's not in a great situation, Manning has failed to raise his level of play.

Game management

McAdoo hasn't been pushing the right buttons this season. He was clearly pressing early in the season, which has led to a horrendous rate on fourth downs (1-for-8). McAdoo repeatedly left points on the board in games that were decided by less than a touchdown.

McAdoo also continues to struggle with when to challenge calls. On the topic of calls, wouldn't it be nice to see a bit more emotion from the coach on the sidelines? It might not accomplish anything if McAdoo threw a tantrum over a blown call, but it'd be a better look than having his face buried in the play sheet after a major moment in the game.

Injuries


Robert Deutsch | USA TODAY Sports

No one wants to hear this, but it can't be ignored: Injuries have contributed to this horrendous start. Beckham missed the opener and was less than 100 percent in Week 2. Now, the Giants still lost the next three games with Beckham close to full strength (before his season-ending injury late in Week 5). But the Giants simply aren't a functional offense without Beckham, which is an entirely different problem.

The mounting injuries are going to be what results in this team being in contention for the top pick in the draft. The roster isn't that bad, but there's clearly not enough depth to overcome the absences of Beckham, Marshall, Shepard, defensive end Olivier Vernon, center Weston Richburg, linebacker Jonathan Casillas and other starters who have missed a game here and there.

An underrated piece of the Giants' success last season was a remarkably healthy roster after years of being the NFL's most-injured team. As was the case with the close wins, the Giants have regressed toward the mean on the injury front this season.

Not so special teams

Brad Wing shanked punts in the fourth quarter of close games in consecutive weeks. Rookie kicker Aldrick Rosas has missed pressure field goals in the fourth quarters of two games the Giants eventually lost.

Meanwhile, the coverage units rank near the bottom of the league and the Giants' next big return will be the first of the season. The Giants have enough deficiencies on offense and defense without the kicking game complicating matters.
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Should we see what Webb can do ?
http://boards.giants.com/forum/new-...otball/2991011-should-we-see-what-webb-can-do
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Giants end bye week in search of any hopeful sign amid disaster
http://boards.giants.com/forum/new-...k-in-search-of-any-hopeful-sign-amid-disaster
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Wake me up when Eli is gone and we get a real coach
http://boards.giants.com/forum/new-...e-up-when-eli-is-gone-and-we-get-a-real-coach
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Eli trade proposal
https://corner.bigblueinteractive.com/index.php?mode=2&thread=559212
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A lot of us want to see MacAdoo gone...
https://corner.bigblueinteractive.com/index.php?mode=2&thread=559161

is he trade bait, or will we see him on the field for the Rams this week?

These are excerpts. To read the whole article click the link below.
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https://www.si.com/nfl/2017/10/30/houston-texans-seattle-seahawks-russell-wilson-deshaun-watson-mmqb

Watson, Wilson, Wow: Seahawks Edge Texans to Top Wild Weekend of NFL Action
By Peter King


JONATHAN FERREY/GETTY IMAGES

I’m not sure if it was the Arena-Football-like 952 passing-rushing yards between Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson … or the cumulative effect in the second half of this game of tie, Texans lead, tie, Seahawks lead, Texans lead, Seahawks lead, Texans lead, Seahawks lead, Seahawks win … or Jimmy Graham and Wilson meeting on the sidelines after the game-winning pass and the boom mike catching them making this collective sound at their top of their lungs: “AHHHHHHHHHHOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!” …

or maybe the seven or eight heartfelt seconds Richard Sherman embraced Watson, the new great lion among NFL quarterbacks after only six starts, a sign of true respect by a cornerback who does not give respect easily.

“What’d you say to Watson?” I asked Sherman two hours after the game.

“I’ll tell you,” Sherman said. “‘You played the best game any quarterback has ever played against us, and we’ve played all the legends. I respect how you hung in there and kept battling and battling.’”

Think of that: The nucleus of this defense (Sherman/Thomas/Chancellor/Wagner) has been together since 2012, and it has played Tom Brady three times and Aaron Rodgers five times in those six seasons. Richard Sherman told Watson his game Sunday was better than any of those eight games Brady and Rodgers have played against Seattle since then.

And Watson lost Sunday. The winner played the game of his professional life. This was Wilson’s 99th NFL game, regular-season and playoffs, and it was his first 400-yard passing game. He threw for 453, which is 68 yards more than his previous best.

Numbers … meh. The drama of the game, the sheer drama, in such a loud place. Watching Watson, 22, duel Wilson, 28, you wanted it to never end. Couldn’t there be overtime? Quintuple overtime? The college overtime? The Buffalo Wild Wings never-ending overtime?

In the last 11 minutes, Watson drove Houston 71 yards to go up 31-27, and Wilson drove Seattle 75 yards to go up 34-31, and Watson drove Houston 75 yards to go up 38-34, and Wilson threw an interception (“Just trusting it, and lettin’ it rip—one bad play,” he said), and it looked over. Houston ball, 2:49 to play. Two first downs, and they could run out the clock. They got one. Houston punted.

“No doubt we’d get it back,” Wilson told me. “I had no doubt. In fact, I went to the bench to prepare for the two-minute drive. I went over to the receivers. I said, ‘Hey, we’re probably gonna get the ball back with maybe a minute-thirty left, probably no timeouts left. Maybe one timeout. Be ready for these calls. Be ready for this, be ready for that.”

Seahawks ball, their 20-yard line, 1:39 left. No timeouts. “That was cool,” Wilson said. “It actually happened that way.”

On first down, Wilson, who throws one of the prettiest deep balls in football, lofted a tight spiral 52 yards in the air, straight down the middle, to Paul Richardson, running a skinny post. “My second read there,” Wilson said.

But Richardson was single-covered, and Wilson knew, jumper that Richardson is, he’d have a good chance at a 50-50 ball against safety Marcus Gilchrist. Two plays later, no one covered Graham, trolling the middle alone, and Wilson hit him for the easiest touchdown of the day.

“This game’s one of the best for sure, one of my favorites,” Wilson said. “All I know is it was THIS game, the only game today that mattered. The only one. If you have that mentality, hopefully all the good games will add up.”

This was an emotional game for Wilson. Graham is his best friend on the team, and before the game, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported the Seahawks have had discussions with Houston concerning left tackle Duane Brown; Rapoport hinted that Jimmy Graham might be on the trading block for Seattle. Seattle GM John Schneider said Sunday that Graham would not be traded.

In any case, Wilson’s very aware of the world and the business around him, and he certainly knew of the report, and certainly reveled in the fact that Graham, who has underachieved in Seattle, was the receiving hero of the game, with two touchdown catches in the fourth quarter, in the game right before Tuesday’s trading deadline.

Knowing Wilson, there’s no way, even for a good left tackle, he’d want Graham out. Graham was in Wilson’s 2016 wedding. Wilson went to the funeral of Graham’s manager and mentor in 2015.

Knowing Seattle GM John Schneider, if he thinks he can get a tackle like Brown, just coming off a long holdout in Houston. The Seahawks are snug up against the salary cap, and if they want Brown, they may have to redo Brown’s deal and redo some of their own contracts. That’s, of course, if Schneider can find a deal to satisfy the Texans by the 4 p.m. ET trade deadline Tuesday. My money’s on Schneider.

It may be moot. But I don’t think so. Schneider is one of the most aggressive GMs in recent NFL history. He knows his offensive line is the major Achilles heel on the team, the one thing standing in the way of what could be the last deep playoff run for an aging defense.

To beat Philadelphia’s outstanding front seven, Schneider knows he might have to go get a tackle by Tuesday’s deadline. Joe Staley’s overpriced in San Francisco (and suffered a reported suborbital fracture under his right eye on Sunday), and Cordy Glenn not likely to be freed up in Buffalo. It might be Brown or Colt Anthony Castonzo … and Brown’s better. We shall see.

Wilson made sure he found Watson on the field after the game. “He’s a special, special player, and I’m going to love watching him play in the next few years,” Wilson said. “He was so good today, so special. I told him on the field, ‘God is good. Keep putting the hard work in. It’ll keep showing.’”

Wilson is special too. In a crowded field led by Philadelphia quarterback Carson Wentz, Wilson’s an MVP candidate for getting Seattle to 5-2 while playing several Sundays in survival mode for getting hit so much. In this game, he put up 41 points … while his running backs rushed 16 times for five yards. That is not a misprint.

Maybe Watson studied Wilson playing hurt. He was doing it too. Sherman was impressed that, late in the third quarter, Watson seemed to hurt his ankle or calf, and it didn’t affect how he played the rest of the game. During a TV timeout, Sherman went to Watson and told him, “Hang in there! Ain’t no time to come out of the game!’”

Said Sherman: “My God, Houston’s so lucky. By next year he’s going to be a top-five quarterback in this league, and that includes the two big dogs [Brady and Rodgers]. He makes you dig to the deepest part of your competitive juices to beat him.”

You know the biggest shame of this day? Because the NFL schedules cross-conference games once every four years, barring a Super Bowl meeting, Wilson and Watson won’t face each other again until they play in Houston … in 2021. So keep this game on the DVR. Cue it up on some ugly February or March day. Maybe you’ll yell at the TV the same way you did Sunday.

* * *

Roger Goodell’s Future: Mostly Cloudy


GETTY IMAGES

It was notable enough to dive into the inner battles over the national anthem issue between the league office and owners in a Seth Wickersham/Don Van Natta story for ESPN last week. But it seemed more jarring Sunday when Adam Schefter and Chris Mortensen reported that 17 owners participated in a conference call Thursday to explore roadblocking what seemed to be an imminent five-year contract extension for commissioner Roger Goodell.

Last month, Atlanta owner Arthur Blank, the chairman of the league’s compensation committee, told me he believed the Goodell extension absolutely would get done. Another source said he believes Goodell could sign it at any time but has some minor points in the deal he still wants to address. But the dissatisfaction of strong owners like the Cowboys’ Jerry Jones cannot be discounted.

It’s unclear whether the discord between the league office and some owners could lead to the dissolution of the Goodell pact, though it seems unlikely. But the fact that the past five or six weeks have gone by without a resolution of the contract makes it rise in significance as a story.

Jones is a leader and probably the leader against the extension, or at least against the extension in the way it has been presented. In the Wickersham/Van Natta story, Jones was quoted as saying the Goodell contract “is the most one-sided contract ever.” Goodell made about $65 million in salary and benefits in 2014 and 2015, and Jones said he wanted Goodell’s salary to be more incentive-based.

Because it’s uncertain now if Goodell’s contract is fit to be signed today, or if the owners can still try to negotiate the deal down, it may be a moot point. But as one ownership source told me Sunday, Jones wouldn’t be going to this extent if he didn’t think he could affect the final number on Goodell’s deal—or whether there’s a deal at all.

This source also said he thought Goodell would react badly to taking any significant pay cut. The league’s total revenue has risen from about $6 billion when Goodell took over the job in 2006 to between $14 billion and $15 billion this year. The source said Goodell thinks he’s done the job the owners hired him to do: markedly increase revenues and be a discipline-minded steward of the game.

Jones is angry at Goodell for suspending the Cowboys’ star running back, Ezekiel Elliott, for six games, which Elliott has fought and won so far; but if he loses another appeal this week, Elliott could miss Dallas’s next six games. Further, it is believed that Jones feels Goodell is too iron-fisted with player suspensions.

Until recently, Jones was a steadfast backer of Goodell. But the suspensions have made him increasingly angry. “Jerry [Jones] is on a mission,” said this ownership source. “I’ve been in the league a long time, and this is as passionate and vocal as I’ve seen him on anything.

I don’t believe any ownership effort has the 24 votes necessary to force out Goodell. I also don’t believe there are 24 votes to slash Goodell’s compensation right now. And however some owners feel about Goodell, it’s going to be hard in an era of huge NFL wealth to slash his compensation … particularly when the contract extension is going to cover the next labor negotiations, which could be hugely rancorous.

But I’ll repeat something that one owner told me before the last New York meetings 13 days ago: Goodell has so few friends on the player side—he has a cold relationship with union chief DeMaurice Smith—and he’s feeling the cold shoulder from more and more owners that he doesn’t have the chips to call in to make tough deals right now.

On Sunday, one prominent club official said he’s reached out to owners and some executives in the league in the past few days, just to ask how they think Goodell’s contract—is going to play out. He said he hasn’t gotten one definitive answer. Just guesses.

And he said the other interesting thing is there’s no logical candidate who could build a consensus to be the next commissioner if Goodell is ousted. It’s a confusing time, in part because it’s unclear whether Goodell and his administration are going to be able to do enough to make the players actually trust the league.

* * *

Browns Tackle Joe Thomas: New MMQB Columnist


COURTESY OF JOE THOMAS

We have a new columnist at The MMQB. Browns tackle Joe Thomas, who sat for the first time in his 11-year NFL career on Sunday, will be giving us some observations, semi-regularly, between now and the Super Bowl.

I’ve always admired Thomas, going back to the spring of 2007, when I went to Madison, Wisc., to write about himas one of the top five prospects in the 2007 draft—and found several interesting things in his off-campus home: a keg in the kitchen sink, a deer head with a red padded bra hung on an antler, and Thomas’s laptop elevated by four rolls of toilet paper on the desk in his unkempt bedroom.

I asked Thomas to write about what it was like to get hurt and see his NFL-record streak of 10,363 straight plays snapped—and about what it was like to watch the Browns on TV for the first time since he was drafted 10-and-a-half years ago.

Below is a quick taste of his first column. For the column in full, click here.

CLEVELAND — It’s strange what you think about when your season is over prematurely—really strange for me, considering in 10-and-a-half seasons with the Browns, since opening day 2007, I never missed a single play. That’s 10,363 consecutive plays, the longest streak in NFL history. That changed last week. I tore my left triceps trying to push away linebacker Brian Orakpo on a running play against Tennessee.

Over and over in the day or two after my tendon snapped, the same words kept coming into my mind: “Move the drill.”

I thought of those words Sunday night, processing the injury. I thought of them when the pain woke me up Monday morning, and before I went into surgery Tuesday to have the tendon repaired. Move the drill.

In high school in Wisconsin, I remember a teammate getting hurt in practice, and laying on the field in the middle of a team drill. The whole practice stopped. Everyone wanted to see how the injured guy was doing. When that happens in high school, when someone is hurt seriously, sometimes the practice just ends. But my first year at the University of Wisconsin, I remember a guy going down in practice, and he was in pain laying there on the field, and everybody stopped to look. After a couple of seconds, one of the coaches hollered:

“MOVE THE DRILL!”

We all just moved about 30 yards down the field and continued practice. I thought to myself: “This is the most savage thing I’ve ever seen in my life!” That was my welcome to big-time football. As a human being, that is really rough. That’s the day I learned: The train keeps going. I’m not the train, I’m a passenger.

Last Monday, I was at our team facility, but I wasn’t in the meetings; I was getting tests, and getting ready to have surgery Tuesday. But the team had to go on. They now have a new left tackle, Spencer Drango. I saw him. I said, “You’ll do a great job Sunday against Minnesota. Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.” But everyone in there … they were just moving on.

Here I am, confronting my career mortality, and no matter how you prepare yourself, it comes down to this: You’re not that important. When you’re one of the biggest guys on the team, you can think, I’m more train than passenger. As much as your teammates, coaches and friends reach out to you to tell you they’ll miss you, the show goes on. They’re playing. I’m not. Over the years, I’ve seen it: It’s the thing players have the toughest time accepting.

They moved the drill. I’m 32, and I’m the one who’s left behind now.

* * *

The Award Section

OFFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

LeSean McCoy, running back, Buffalo. McCoy reminded me of Emmitt Smith in the 34-14 rout of the Raiders. Not just because of his 151-yard day. If you recall when Smith was at his best, he was great in so many second halves. Jimmy Johnson would use him to bleed the clock in win after win after win. And it was McCoy, with 19 carries for 120 yards (including a 48-yard insurance TD run) in the second half alone, helping the Bills to a 35:37 time of possession and a dominant win. The Raiders knew McCoy was coming, play after play after play, and just couldn’t stop him. Don’t look now, but Buffalo is 5-2 and just a half-game behind the Patriots in the AFC East.

Russell Wilson, quarterback, Seattle. Threw for 453 yards, by far the most in his 99-start career, and put up 41 points on a day when Eddie Lacy and Thomas Rawls ran 12 times for minus-one yard. “If there was ever any doubts about what Russell can do, there is no limit,” said coach Pete Carroll.

Deshaun Watson, quarterback, Houston. Threw for 402 yards, by far the most in his six-start career, and put up 38 points on the best defense in football over the last five years. “He threw a couple of picks, and nothing changed. He was just totally unafraid,” Richard Sherman said.

DEFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Earl Thomas, free safety, Seattle. Smartest safety in football versus the phenom quarterback. Deshaun Watson got the edge first—not sure who was culpable—with a 59-yard TD throw to Will Fuller IV to start this showdown of hot offense and strong defense. On Houston’s next possession, Watson spied DeAndre Hopkins on an incut, and he apparently spied him too much. “[Thomas] is reading the eyes of the quarterback the entire way,” analyst Rich Gannon said on CBS, and Gannon was absolutely right. Thomas got a great head-start, steaming in from his 15-yard line and picking it off with a running start at the 22. The 78-yard touchdown was vintage Thomas.

Carlos Dunlap, defensive end, Cincinnati. The eighth-year pro from Florida has always been the kind of athletic pass-blocker and pass-rusher who can make a big play at any time. Any time, in this case, was with 7:05 left in the fourth quarter against upstart Indianapolis, with the Colts up 23-17. Jacoby Brissett threw, the ball bonked off Dunlap’s outstretched forearms. The ball bounced straight up, and Dunlap caught it and returned it for a 16-yard touchdown. The winning score, as it turned out. Dunlap added a sack of Brissett too.

Marshon Lattimore, cornerback, New Orleans. Saints 20, Bears 12, 1:22 left, Bears driving in Saints territory. On second down, Mitch Trubisky fires deep downfield … and Lattimore, already one of the best corners in the game as a 21-year-old rookie, picked it out of the air at the Saints’ 27. Ballgame.

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Tyrone Crawford, defensive lineman, Dallas. With the Cowboys flailing around and on the verge of being down 16-7 at the half against injury-decimated Washington, Crawford blocked a Nick Rose field goal try, and Orlando Scandrick returned the ball 86 yards to the Washington four-yard line. After Ezekiel Elliott scored a moment later, this was the effect of the Crawford blocked field goal: A nine-point Washington halftime lead turned into a one-point Dallas halftime lead. Crawford added a sack and forced fumble in an excellent all-around day.

COACH OF THE WEEK

Pat Shurmur, offensive coordinator, Minnesota. Shurmur thought he’d have Sam Bradford or Teddy Bridgewater playing quarterback for him this year. Through the first half of the season, the Vikings are 6-2, and Shurmur mostly has had the well-traveled/abandoned Case Keenum playing some of the best football of his itinerant career. What’s most notable is the varied play-calls with injuries (to Stefon Diggs, most notably, and of course quarterback), and the Vikings enter their bye week and the second half of their season as the clear favorite in the NFC North.

GOAT OF THE WEEK

Travis Benjamin, punt returner/wide receiver, San Diego. In a 7-7 game in the first half at Foxboro, Benjamin fielded a punt at his 11-yard line, and promptly began running laterally, and then back, and then back some more, until he was a foot deep in the end zone and tackled for a safety. I praised him for his two-touchdown game last week, and even though he added a touchdown reception at Foxboro on Sunday, the 11-yard loss for a safety was absolutely inexcusable in an eight-point loss to New England.

* * *

“I’m not going to play Debbie Downer. There’s lot of teams that would like to be 5-3 right now.”

—Carolina quarterback Cam Newton, after the Panthers beat the Bucs to keep pace with New Orleans in the NFC South. The top three teams—Saints, Panthers, Falcons—are, respectively, 5-2, 5-3, 4-3.

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* * *

Things I Think (Plus My Weekly Butt-Kissing Of Tom Brady Because That's How I Roll)

1. I think I’ve got one more thing for your to-do list this fall: Get “Football’s Greatest,” the revised and updated version of this 2012 book by Sports Illustrated editors. I’ll give you a good argument starter: How about the top 10 quarterbacks of all time? 1) Tom Brady; 2) Joe Montana; 3) Peyton Manning; 4) John Unitas; 5) Otto Graham; 6) John Elway; 7) Dan Marino; 8) Brett Favre; 9) Sammy Baugh; 10) Bart Starr.

2. I think that leads me to four salient points that I’d love to argue about:

a. Two Packers quarterbacks on the list, 8 and 10, and Aaron Rodgers isn’t?

b. Drew Brees and Fran Tarkenton out. Sammy Baugh in? I’ll defend Baugh, because I believe he was the best all-around player in history. In 1943 he led the NFL in punting, in completion percentage (and was second with 23 TD passes in 10 games) and, as a safety, with 11 interceptions. Excelling on both sides of the field and special teams puts him on this list.

c. Otto Graham over Elway? History, dear students. History. Executed Paul Brown’s offense to a T, won seven league titles in 10 years, and led his league in passing in four of those 10 years.

d. Brady, number three on the list five years ago, jumped over Unitas and Montana today, after his fifth Super Bowl win. Like that? Or no?

Go buy the book. And send your arguments and your rage to talkback@themmqb.com.

3. I think these are my quick thoughts from Week 8:

a. Lovely toe-tap-in-the-side-of-the-end-zone touchdown for Andre Holmes of the Bills. Perfect mechanics.

b. Speaking of lovely: What a throw by Deshaun Watson, rainbowing the TD bomb to Will Fuller. Perfect pass.

c. What a bummer. Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson don’t play each other again until 2021, unless they meet in the Super Bowl.

d. Watching the Eagles’ defensive front this year, all I can think of is brute strength.

e. I’d like to see Aaron Rodgers come back late this year if for no other reason than to see the Saturday night national game in Week 16: Vikings (and Anthony Barr) at Green Bay, Dec. 23.

f. Do not let the weekend go by without thinking of Dont’a Hightower gone for the year with a torn pectoral muscle, and his contributions to two Patriots Super Bowls wins in the last three years. His tackle of Marshawn Lynch at the 1.5-yard-line in Super Bowl 49 made the Malcolm Butler pick possible. And then the crucial strip sack of Matt Ryan in the midst of the Pats’ comeback in Super Bowl 51.

g. Sure sounds like Adam Gase thinks he’s got some lazy students on offense in Miami. He was beyond pointed about it in the wake of the 40-0 loss at Baltimore.

h. You don’t lose 40-0 in this league unless you either stink, or your game plan stinks, or you make a slew of mental errors. My money’s on the last in Miami.

i. Relax, Steve Smith.

j. The Browns are 1-23 since passing on Carson Wentz, 0-8 since passing on Deshaun Watson. Not that I’m keeping track.

k. This is not insignificant: Stephon Gilmore (concussion) missed his third straight game Sunday. In 5.5 NFL seasons, Gilmore has missed 17 starts due to injury. That’s a full season missed, in effect.

l. Beautiful, textbook drive—New Orleans’ second TD drive of the game against the tough Chicago front, ending with a 1-yard Mark Ingram touchdown dive—and a drive made possible by superb run-blocking.

m. San Francisco center Daniel Kilgore is not going to enjoy watching how Fletcher Cox absolutely abused him on a second-quarter sack in Philly. Cox is such a force.

n. Did you know that when the weather is nice Eagles rookie wideout Mack Hollins rides his bike to Lincoln Financial Field?

o. Joe Mixon, play-action, screen. Gain of 67. Wow.

p. Now that was cool: Tight end Zach Ertz caught a touchdown pass in Philly and found season-ticket-holder/AL MVP Mike Trout in the end zone, and handed him the football. Trout looked like a 12-year-old, cradling the ball happily.

q. Seven games, eight Jameis Winston fumbles (two lost). Not good.

4. I think Seattle has good backs, but the Seahawks definitely should have kept Alex Collins over Eddie Lacy. Collins is more talented.

5. I think if I were advising Cam Newton, I’d tell him one thing: Answering questions you might think are beneath you twice a week for a total of 25 minutes is a very small price to pay to stay out of controversy. Be benign. Be fairly nice. Be there.

They shut down the seachicken's run game but is that because they are that good or is Seattle's run game that bad? We will find out in a few weeks. I know Richardson made some circus catches but for the most part those Seattle receivers were wide open.

Where does he fit in our offense? Gurley is already so good out of the backfield.

So I know we’ve got the Giants on docket, and they certainly won’t be a push over. That being said, I live in Houston, and this Texans offense scares me. The days of them having ineptitude at the quarterback position is over. I don’t quite understand how Watson does what he does, but he’s doing it, and looking unstoppable. Really want to see how Wade schemes our guys for them next week.

Maybe it was just yesterday’s game being extremely unique, in that both teams were completing deep balls to guys in coverage, with it working more times than not. I dunno. But that Texans offense is averaging over 30 by now, and I hope Fuller and Hopkins don’t give us fits.

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The comments are hilarious lol.

I am admitting I was wrong about Jared Cook.
The ironic thing is, he was Fisher’s guy, and Fisher did not have the offense to use him properly.
I don’t know why Green Bay let him go - may have been a money thing. They are notoriously cheap.
He’s a good player.

The Top QB's in the NFL are slinging it this season but I still prefer our guy without any hesitation...



I have missed you good folks on the great ROD forum and I'm very anxious to see our Rams bring their A game to New York next Sunday.

Go Los Angeles Rams !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Guess who, Pete the little cheer leader Carroll runs out on the field to kiss Sherman after his interception.

Here ya go.....Texans can't beat the hated Hawks, and other games with playoff seeding implications didn't go our way....and why the h.ell is Game of Thrones over already...?

Only two afternoon games this week.

I want to thank everyone who posted in my "thinking of moving" thread.

Just got back last night from my second trip to Minneapolis (Yesterday was my 28th Wedding Anniversary!!!) and now that the wife and my youngest are all in, I'm stoked to get started and really do what has to be done in order to move.

We had an amazing trip, even though it was only basically two days.

Thursday, it was PERFECT fall weather, between 58 degrees and about 40. I didn't even need to put on a jacket and only put on my sweatshirt hoodie when it started to steadily sprinkle. I didn't want to catch cold going into and out of warm/cold with a wet long sleeve shirt.

Friday was the first snow of the year and it was truly picturesque. Temps got down to about 28 and I was fine in my sweatshirt and I had a shell to keep out the snow/wind. Even my youngest who's petite and gets cold super easily was fine.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the drivers in MN. They actually make room for other drivers, use their turn signals (mostly) and don't tailgate. Drove for 7 days total for about 800 miles and didn't see one accident. We saw multiple accidents our first day in FL and I can't remember a time when we had to drive 30 mins we didn't see at least one fender bender.

Coming back to Florida, that steamy humidity that seems to be ever present put me into a bad funk. Can't stand the humidity anymore. Like plenty of the people, but Minny's gonna be home soon enough.

And no worries, brothers... RAMS NOW! RAMS FOREVER!!!!

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We need some legit TE action, I don't trust Higbee, and Everrett is nowhere to be seen since the Redskins game (aside from that TD in Jaguars game).

When McVay was with Cowerd and the others, he couldn't resist telling the world that the Patriots offense was the best in the NFL. Then he drops asides like "Everyone thinks Drew Brees is leaving New Orleans. I don't." No one even asked him that question, but he isn't the center of attention in this format and felt he needed to get that in...

When sitting down with the others, he is on the side, and when they break for a commercial he turns his whole body toward the camera. It distracts when he does that, but that's what he wants..a "look at me" moment...lol

....and why am I pulling against Carson Wentz?

http://theramswire.usatoday.com/201...run-stopping-linebacker-in-the-nfl-right-now/

Mark Barron has become one of the best linebackers in the NFL

Just five years ago, Mark Barron was a rookie safety out of Alabama’s powerhouse defense who’d been taken seventh overall in the draft but was floundering in Tampa Bay. Now, as an inside linebacker on Wade Phillips revamped Rams defense, he’s proving himself worthy of that top ten draft pick.

Back in May, Pro Football Focus already had their eyes on Barron as a leader in defensive stops among all NFL linebackers, as he’d recorded more than all but two linebackers since Week 5 of the 2015 season.

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However with Phillips playing him as a more traditional inside linebacker – he’s actually stepped up as a run stopper in addition to his exceptional abilities in pass coverage. Barron is the league’s second most efficient run-stopping linebacker through Week 7.

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The crazy part is, he’s still one of the best linebackers in coverage in the NFL as well. He already has two interceptions, his career-best for a season, and the Rams have only played seven games.

Barron’s overall PFF player grade of 83.7 makes him the 7th highest-graded linebacker on the season thus far. After two pretty good seasons on Jeff Fisher’s talented yet underachieving defense, he’s having the best year of his NFL career thus far – and as the defense continues to jell in Phillips’ system, it’s fair to expect that he’ll only continue to get better.

SportsBook wagers here;

http://www.ramsondemand.com/sportsbook/