Not sure a home team winning is a "shock" Sure they are a small underdog (2.5), so it's technically an upset, but a shock would be the Steelers winning in Buffalo.
Not sure a home team winning is a "shock" Sure they are a small underdog (2.5), so it's technically an upset, but a shock would be the Steelers winning in Buffalo.
Fair enough. I don't see anyone picking the Texans but I agree with your assessment. Steelers would indeed be shocking.
Not sure a home team winning is a "shock" Sure they are a small underdog (2.5), so it's technically an upset, but a shock would be the Steelers winning in Buffalo.
Fair enough. I don't see anyone picking the Texans but I agree with your assessment. Steelers would indeed be shocking.
Who do you have?
My thoughts actually line up pretty much with yours. I expect Rams to knock off Detroit and Browns to win in Houston. Bills, Chiefs and Cowboys to roll. The MNF game is the tricky one. Philly is definitely the superior team, but has been abysmal the last 6 weeks, so I give Tampa a puncher's chance, though I ultimately see Baker trying to do too much late and making the big mistake that thwarts the final drive come back attempt.
Niners can't lose! (Always talk myself into the good chance of losing every playoff game prior to start time...playoffs are nervous energy/excitement time!)
Not sure a home team winning is a "shock" Sure they are a small underdog (2.5), so it's technically an upset, but a shock would be the Steelers winning in Buffalo.
Fair enough. I don't see anyone picking the Texans but I agree with your assessment. Steelers would indeed be shocking.
Who do you have?
My thoughts actually line up pretty much with yours. I expect Rams to knock off Detroit and Browns to win in Houston. Bills, Chiefs and Cowboys to roll. The MNF game is the tricky one. Philly is definitely the superior team, but has been abysmal the last 6 weeks, so I give Tampa a puncher's chance, though I ultimately see Baker trying to do too much late and making the big mistake that thwarts the final drive come back attempt.
That was pretty fast. I wonder when they did the requisite Rooney rule interviews.
And just reading apparently they didn't have to:
The Patriots were able to forgo the standard NFL hiring process and immediately hire Mayo because they established a succession plan in the contract extension he signed last offseason, similar to what the Baltimore Ravens did with their general manager position when Eric DeCosta succeeded Ozzie Newsome in 2019
That was pretty fast. I wonder when they did the requisite Rooney rule interviews.
And just reading apparently they didn't have to:
The Patriots were able to forgo the standard NFL hiring process and immediately hire Mayo because they established a succession plan in the contract extension he signed last offseason, similar to what the Baltimore Ravens did with their general manager position when Eric DeCosta succeeded Ozzie Newsome in 2019
Wouldn't the interviews be unnecessary given that Mayo is a minority? (That's the goal of the Rooney Rule, isn't it? To make sure that people other than fat, old, white dudes get to be coaches?)
That was pretty fast. I wonder when they did the requisite Rooney rule interviews.
And just reading apparently they didn't have to:
The Patriots were able to forgo the standard NFL hiring process and immediately hire Mayo because they established a succession plan in the contract extension he signed last offseason, similar to what the Baltimore Ravens did with their general manager position when Eric DeCosta succeeded Ozzie Newsome in 2019
It's being speculated that this was supposed to maybe happen after next year, but the 4-13 season sped that along... not sure how I feel about that after finding out Kraft forced Belichick to take on Bill O'Brien this year.
Kraft used the word 'collaboration' a bunch yesterday.. tells me him & Jonathan are going to meddle be more involved.
by all accounts Mayo is a brilliant man. I'm sure he will get buy-in and respect from his players from day 1.
Its a different beast though becoming a CEO of an NFL football program. The highs are high, lows are low. Lots of pressure and a standard of excellence in Boston.
Not sure a home team winning is a "shock" Sure they are a small underdog (2.5), so it's technically an upset, but a shock would be the Steelers winning in Buffalo.
Fair enough. I don't see anyone picking the Texans but I agree with your assessment. Steelers would indeed be shocking.
Who do you have?
My thoughts actually line up pretty much with yours. I expect Rams to knock off Detroit and Browns to win in Houston. Bills, Chiefs and Cowboys to roll. The MNF game is the tricky one. Philly is definitely the superior team, but has been abysmal the last 6 weeks, so I give Tampa a puncher's chance, though I ultimately see Baker trying to do too much late and making the big mistake that thwarts the final drive come back attempt.
Baker needs to practice today. As mediocre as he is, they don't have a chance without him. And he's hobbled either way.
by all accounts Mayo is a brilliant man. I'm sure he will get buy-in and respect from his players from day 1.
Its a different beast though becoming a CEO of an NFL football program. The highs are high, lows are low. Lots of pressure and a standard of excellence in Boston.
You are correct. However, growing up on New England it still makes me laugh to think back on what it was like when I was a kid. Boston teams not called the Celtics were total losers. Pats....bag over head fans. Red Sox - 1918 chants. Bruins - was my favorite team. They sucked.
Damn if they all haven't won, won, and won since the turn of the century.
by all accounts Mayo is a brilliant man. I'm sure he will get buy-in and respect from his players from day 1.
Its a different beast though becoming a CEO of an NFL football program. The highs are high, lows are low. Lots of pressure and a standard of excellence in Boston.
You are correct. However, growing up on New England it still makes me laugh to think back on what it was like when I was a kid. Boston teams not called the Celtics were total losers. Pats....bag over head fans. Red Sox - 1918 chants. Bruins - was my favorite team. They sucked.
Damn if they all haven't won, won, and won since the turn of the century.
Me too. I remember rooting for the Patriots against the Rams in 2001 for a scrappy team and tortured fans. Then rooting really hard for the Red Sox in 2003 and 2004 (I lived in Connecticut at the time and all my life any enemy of the Yankees is a friend of mine).
Then shit started to get old real quick when Brady, Belichick, and the Patriots beat the Bills for like the 20th straight time, the Red Sox werent cute anymore and spending money almost as bad as those pinstripe guys, the Celtics were winning, and the Bruins lept past the Sabres.
by all accounts Mayo is a brilliant man. I'm sure he will get buy-in and respect from his players from day 1.
Its a different beast though becoming a CEO of an NFL football program. The highs are high, lows are low. Lots of pressure and a standard of excellence in Boston.
Yeah, the locker room shouldn't be an issue for him, at least not right out the gate... but we also know taking over for a legend is always a tough spot. With this fanbase and media, there won't be much margin for error... He's not his predecessor, so he has that going for him w/ the media for now... It will be interesting to see how long that honeymoon lasts (take the under)
I've always liked Mayo, he's just an unproven commodity as a HC - I would be a lot more comfortable w/ Vrabel, or someone else who's had time to cut their teeth in that role elsewhere before taking the role, but c'est la vie.
That was pretty fast. I wonder when they did the requisite Rooney rule interviews.
And just reading apparently they didn't have to:
The Patriots were able to forgo the standard NFL hiring process and immediately hire Mayo because they established a succession plan in the contract extension he signed last offseason, similar to what the Baltimore Ravens did with their general manager position when Eric DeCosta succeeded Ozzie Newsome in 2019
Wouldn't the interviews be unnecessary given that Mayo is a minority? (That's the goal of the Rooney Rule, isn't it? To make sure that people other than fat, old, white dudes get to be coaches?)
Still have to interview minimum 2 minority candidates. But since Mayo was basically already told he had the job after Bill, the Pats were exempt from the interview process.
Is hiring an assistant off of a Belichick-staff a good idea? Nothing against Mayo, but the coaching tree has been pretty rotten.
I like the continuity angle... they had one hell of a defense this year and will want / hope to carry that over into the next year.
MayDay10 hit the nail on the head about Mayo getting respect from the other players... one of my concerns is the change in staff though... gotta think Belichick's sons go with him or at least to a team that didn't fire their father, and Steve Belichick has quietly been building quite the resume. There will be some other coaching changes as well, there always is.
I feel sad about the Lions losing. I just think they're gonna choke. Also the Flacco thing will come to an end. The Bills will be the only remaining chance at ending the forever Lake Erie Super Bowl jinx.
Spectrum 10/27/09; New Orleans JazzFest 5/1/10; Made in America 9/2/12; WF Center 10/21/13; WF Center 10/22/13; Baltimore 10/27/13; WF Center 4/28/16; WF Center 4/29/16; Fenway Park 8/7/16; Fenway Park 9/2/18; Asbury Park 9/18/21; Camden 9/14/22; Las Vegas 5/16/24; Las Vegas 5/18/24; WF Center 9/7/24; WF Center 9/9/24; Baltimore Arena 9/12/24
Tres Mtns - TLA 3/23/11; EV - Tower Theatre 6/25/11; Temple of the Dog - Tower Theatre 11/5/16
Is hiring an assistant off of a Belichick-staff a good idea? Nothing against Mayo, but the coaching tree has been pretty rotten.
I like the continuity angle... they had one hell of a defense this year and will want / hope to carry that over into the next year.
MayDay10 hit the nail on the head about Mayo getting respect from the other players... one of my concerns is the change in staff though... gotta think Belichick's sons go with him or at least to a team that didn't fire their father, and Steve Belichick has quietly been building quite the resume. There will be some other coaching changes as well, there always is.
Sometimes continuity isn’t a good thing. I guess we’ll see if he tries to be Bellichick or does it a different way. I think the Bellichick way has grown old on the players.
I wish I was a sacrifice, but somehow still lived on.
Is hiring an assistant off of a Belichick-staff a good idea? Nothing against Mayo, but the coaching tree has been pretty rotten.
I like the continuity angle... they had one hell of a defense this year and will want / hope to carry that over into the next year.
MayDay10 hit the nail on the head about Mayo getting respect from the other players... one of my concerns is the change in staff though... gotta think Belichick's sons go with him or at least to a team that didn't fire their father, and Steve Belichick has quietly been building quite the resume. There will be some other coaching changes as well, there always is.
Sometimes continuity isn’t a good thing. I guess we’ll see if he tries to be Bellichick or does it a different way. I think the Bellichick way has grown old on the players.
I wouldn't be so sure about that...
Yeah, there are always going to be malcontents like Trent Brown or Danny Amendola, but when you have current players like Jabril Peppers, David Andrews, Matthew Judon. and even Ezekiel Elliot constantly singing his praises, that can't be discounted. No one made those guys say what they did about Belichick... they went out of their way and made a point to go to bat for him. (& was the single biggest reason I wanted BB back for one more year... he may have lost a lot of the fans, but he didn't lose the team / locker room).
The players who criticize him & his approach are far outnumbered by the ones who praise him... Malcolm Butler, a guy who should have a chip on his shoulder towards BB more than anyone couldn't say enough good things about him on social media yesterday... all of that speaks volumes to me.
Is hiring an assistant off of a Belichick-staff a good idea? Nothing against Mayo, but the coaching tree has been pretty rotten.
I like the continuity angle... they had one hell of a defense this year and will want / hope to carry that over into the next year.
MayDay10 hit the nail on the head about Mayo getting respect from the other players... one of my concerns is the change in staff though... gotta think Belichick's sons go with him or at least to a team that didn't fire their father, and Steve Belichick has quietly been building quite the resume. There will be some other coaching changes as well, there always is.
Sometimes continuity isn’t a good thing. I guess we’ll see if he tries to be Bellichick or does it a different way. I think the Bellichick way has grown old on the players.
I wouldn't be so sure about that...
Yeah, there are always going to be malcontents like Trent Brown or Danny Amendola, but when you have current players like Jabril Peppers, David Andrews, Matthew Judon. and even Ezekiel Elliot constantly singing his praises, that can't be discounted. No one made those guys say what they did about Belichick... they went out of their way and made a point to go to bat for him. (& was the single biggest reason I wanted BB back for one more year... he may have lost a lot of the fans, but he didn't lose the team / locker room).
The players who criticize him & his approach are far outnumbered by the ones who praise him... Malcolm Butler, a guy who should have a chip on his shoulder towards BB more than anyone couldn't say enough good things about him on social media yesterday... all of that speaks volumes to me.
It’s not just the players you have on the team, it’s also the free agents you have to lure to want to play there. I’ll take your word for it though. I wear Red and Gold glasses so I don’t really know the vibe in Foxboro.
I wish I was a sacrifice, but somehow still lived on.
I think it's more likely Bill will go to Dallas. If they lose this weekend, I can see them canning McCarthy. He probably wants a team that's close to winning...that is not the Giants.
Is hiring an assistant off of a Belichick-staff a good idea? Nothing against Mayo, but the coaching tree has been pretty rotten.
I like the continuity angle... they had one hell of a defense this year and will want / hope to carry that over into the next year.
MayDay10 hit the nail on the head about Mayo getting respect from the other players... one of my concerns is the change in staff though... gotta think Belichick's sons go with him or at least to a team that didn't fire their father, and Steve Belichick has quietly been building quite the resume. There will be some other coaching changes as well, there always is.
Sometimes continuity isn’t a good thing. I guess we’ll see if he tries to be Bellichick or does it a different way. I think the Bellichick way has grown old on the players.
I wouldn't be so sure about that...
Yeah, there are always going to be malcontents like Trent Brown or Danny Amendola, but when you have current players like Jabril Peppers, David Andrews, Matthew Judon. and even Ezekiel Elliot constantly singing his praises, that can't be discounted. No one made those guys say what they did about Belichick... they went out of their way and made a point to go to bat for him. (& was the single biggest reason I wanted BB back for one more year... he may have lost a lot of the fans, but he didn't lose the team / locker room).
The players who criticize him & his approach are far outnumbered by the ones who praise him... Malcolm Butler, a guy who should have a chip on his shoulder towards BB more than anyone couldn't say enough good things about him on social media yesterday... all of that speaks volumes to me.
It’s not just the players you have on the team, it’s also the free agents you have to lure to want to play there. I’ll take your word for it though. I wear Red and Gold glasses so I don’t really know the vibe in Foxboro.
3 of the names I mentioned, Judon, Peppers & Elliot all signed as veteran FAs & they've all gone overboard talking about what playing for him means to them.
The first two have emerged as locker room leaders too... If such high praise from FA signings doesn't draw the interest of future free agents, what would?
I think it's more likely Bill will go to Dallas. If they lose this weekend, I can see them canning McCarthy. He probably wants a team that's close to winning...that is not the Giants.
Comments
Who do you have?
Bills, Chiefs and Cowboys to roll. The MNF game is the tricky one. Philly is definitely the superior team, but has been abysmal the last 6 weeks, so I give Tampa a puncher's chance, though I ultimately see Baker trying to do too much late and making the big mistake that thwarts the final drive come back attempt.
Bucs shock the Eagles
Lions
Browns
Bills
Chiefs
The Krafts have their yes man in place.
Ill go:
Texans
Chiefs
Bills (barely)
Lions
Cowboys
Eagles
Pretty boring, really. I would say the Chiefs could be beat, followed by the Bills due to the weather.
I wonder when they did the requisite Rooney rule interviews.
Kraft used the word 'collaboration' a bunch yesterday.. tells me him & Jonathan are going to meddle be more involved.
Its a different beast though becoming a CEO of an NFL football program. The highs are high, lows are low. Lots of pressure and a standard of excellence in Boston.
However, growing up on New England it still makes me laugh to think back on what it was like when I was a kid. Boston teams not called the Celtics were total losers.
Pats....bag over head fans.
Red Sox - 1918 chants.
Bruins - was my favorite team. They sucked.
Damn if they all haven't won, won, and won since the turn of the century.
Me too. I remember rooting for the Patriots against the Rams in 2001 for a scrappy team and tortured fans. Then rooting really hard for the Red Sox in 2003 and 2004 (I lived in Connecticut at the time and all my life any enemy of the Yankees is a friend of mine).
Then shit started to get old real quick when Brady, Belichick, and the Patriots beat the Bills for like the 20th straight time, the Red Sox werent cute anymore and spending money almost as bad as those pinstripe guys, the Celtics were winning, and the Bruins lept past the Sabres.
I liked Mayo as a player, hope he does well. Not Belichick well, but well.
I've always liked Mayo, he's just an unproven commodity as a HC - I would be a lot more comfortable w/ Vrabel, or someone else who's had time to cut their teeth in that role elsewhere before taking the role, but c'est la vie.
MayDay10 hit the nail on the head about Mayo getting respect from the other players... one of my concerns is the change in staff though... gotta think Belichick's sons go with him or at least to a team that didn't fire their father, and Steve Belichick has quietly been building quite the resume. There will be some other coaching changes as well, there always is.
- Texans
- Chiefs
- Bills
- Cowboys
- Rams
- Bucs
I feel sad about the Lions losing. I just think they're gonna choke. Also the Flacco thing will come to an end. The Bills will be the only remaining chance at ending the forever Lake Erie Super Bowl jinx.WF Center 4/28/16; WF Center 4/29/16; Fenway Park 8/7/16; Fenway Park 9/2/18; Asbury Park 9/18/21; Camden 9/14/22;
Las Vegas 5/16/24; Las Vegas 5/18/24; WF Center 9/7/24; WF Center 9/9/24; Baltimore Arena 9/12/24
Tres Mtns - TLA 3/23/11; EV - Tower Theatre 6/25/11; Temple of the Dog - Tower Theatre 11/5/16
Yeah, there are always going to be malcontents like Trent Brown or Danny Amendola, but when you have current players like Jabril Peppers, David Andrews, Matthew Judon. and even Ezekiel Elliot constantly singing his praises, that can't be discounted. No one made those guys say what they did about Belichick... they went out of their way and made a point to go to bat for him. (& was the single biggest reason I wanted BB back for one more year... he may have lost a lot of the fans, but he didn't lose the team / locker room).
The players who criticize him & his approach are far outnumbered by the ones who praise him... Malcolm Butler, a guy who should have a chip on his shoulder towards BB more than anyone couldn't say enough good things about him on social media yesterday... all of that speaks volumes to me.
The first two have emerged as locker room leaders too... If such high praise from FA signings doesn't draw the interest of future free agents, what would?
https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/a-jerry-jones-bill-belichick-partnership-isnt-as-crazy-as-it-sounds
Chiefs
Bills
Cowboys
Lions
Eagles
Pearl Jam bootlegs:
http://wegotshit.blogspot.com
I think close ones will be Texans, Dolphins, Bucs, Rams
think Bills, Cowboys will win by decent margin