Official NFL Discussion Thread

[bigtplaystew]

Yea he was taken 25th issh something like that overall i believe and there were like 4 or 5 LBs that were taken ahead of him, all bigger (but much slower) and guys like Mel Kiper (who is perpetually wrong about 85% of the things he says btw) supposedly ran him down for being to small for the middle and too slow for the outside, but all i remember was people talking about what a beast he is, and what a mistake most teams had made letting him fall so far down the draft lottery.

 

Dude's been one of the most highly respected players at his position since his rookie year. He needs to give that crap a rest.

[lazorbeak]

Yea he was taken 25th issh something like that overall i believe and there were like 4 or 5 LBs that were taken ahead of him, all bigger (but much slower) and guys like Mel Kiper (who is perpetually wrong about 85% of the things he says btw) supposedly ran him down for being to small for the middle and too slow for the outside, but all i remember was people talking about what a beast he is, and what a mistake most teams had made letting him fall so far down the draft lottery.

 

Dude's been one of the most highly respected players at his position since his rookie year. He needs to give that crap a rest.

 

Yeah I just looked and that was a loaded draft. He was taken 26th, and not only were most of the guys taken before him highly productive, 13 were all pros at least once. A true underdog would be Zach Thomas, taken in the 5th round due to his size, by the Dolphins. Heck, Terrell Owens fell to 89th, and was actually the 12th wide receiver drafted, lower than Alex Van Dyke or Derrick Mayes (but still above Joe Horn, who was a 5th round Junior College draft). But whatever, like I said, I kind of like the Ray Lewis thing where he gets psyched up over nothing and can inspire others just by being a pro-wrestler/baptist minister hybrid. It's just kind of his deal at this point.

[Killagy]

Whoo! RAVENNATION! You can only guess how much fun I had rubbing it in all of my Pittsburgh relatives faces. We have to win this ring, not just for the city, but to send off our big guy on a hign note! Ray Lewis, The Raven King!

[moon_lit_tears]

Whoo! RAVENNATION! You can only guess how much fun I had rubbing it in all of my Pittsburgh relatives faces. We have to win this ring, not just for the city, but to send off our big guy on a hign note! Ray Lewis, The Raven King!

 

 

 

Are you from Baltimore?

 

They have been having some hellagood parties so I've been told....

[Mattywood]

Are you from Baltimore?

 

They have been having some hellagood parties so I've been told....

 

Do they teach people how to be involved with someone's murder and get away with it? :-X

[moon_lit_tears]

Do they teach people how to be involved with someone's murder and get away with it? :-X

 

 

No. I believe they teach that in Dallas...

[Mattywood]

No. I believe they teach that in Dallas...

 

You're getting that confused with getting smashed drunk and driving and accidentally killing your friend. Too soon?

 

And sounds like someone doesn't know the story on Ray Lewis and how that whole imbroglio has just been swept under the rug without nary a peep from him about everything that happened that fateful night, unless I missed something.

 

Speaking of Dallas and Baltimore, I'm not looking forward to the Super Bowl as much as I am to another possible Nasty Nestor/1310 the Ticket showdown. In TEW 2013 terms, Nasty Nestor would have a Hatred relationship with every Ticket employee.

[moon_lit_tears]

You're getting that confused with getting smashed drunk and driving and accidentally killing your friend. Too soon?

 

And sounds like someone doesn't know the story on Ray Lewis and how that whole imbroglio has just been swept under the rug without nary a peep from him about everything that happened that fateful night, unless I missed something.

 

Speaking of Dallas and Baltimore, I'm not looking forward to the Super Bowl as much as I am to another possible Nasty Nestor/1310 the Ticket showdown. In TEW 2013 terms, Nasty Nestor would have a Hatred relationship with every Ticket employee.

 

 

Ray isn't the only person who's had issues with hte law. Personally no one knows what happened but those involved. Ray hasn't spoken much because he's been told by his lawyers to keep quiet.

 

Lok at most of the teams and see here things are going crazy.

 

YOu have guys out there who have done so many things and have been outted yet they still have contracts and play weekly.

[Mattywood]

Ray isn't the only person who's had issues with hte law. Personally no one knows what happened but those involved. Ray hasn't spoken much because he's been told by his lawyers to keep quiet.

 

Lok at most of the teams and see here things are going crazy.

 

YOu have guys out there who have done so many things and have been outted yet they still have contracts and play weekly.

 

Trust me, I know all too well about all the crap that has gone down with the NFL, yet these players get a free pass, while wrestlers get dogged out by the media since it's "not a real sport" if they simply look at someone funny or fart in their general direction. I still remember how embarrassed I was to be a Cowboys fan when everyone was giving Michael Irvin a huge pop when he came back from his suspension for all his troubles(and this was before he supposedly found God and was making no apologies for what happened). I guess all this crap is part of the reason why I'm so jaded on NFL football that I hardly watch it anymore.

[bigtplaystew]

Enough about Ray Lewis' murder crap. He didn't kill anyone. It was a poorly reported incident in the first place that the media went insane over. He never killed anyone. Anyone who knows the case well enough knows this as fact. He might have known who did it lol, but that's besides the point.

 

Point is, it's hacky to attack the man's murder accusation. He was innocent and this was decided years ago. The man should be judged as the annoying, overdramatic nutcase he is and not the murderer he isn't :-P

[crownsy]

Enough about Ray Lewis' murder crap. He didn't kill anyone. It was a poorly reported incident in the first place that the media went insane over. He never killed anyone. Anyone who knows the case well enough knows this as fact. He might have known who did it lol, but that's besides the point.

 

Point is, it's hacky to attack the man's murder accusation. He was innocent and this was decided years ago. The man should be judged as the annoying, overdramatic nutcase he is and not the murderer he isn't :-P

 

While I agree the media should let it go, lets not change facts. He wasn't found "innocent" he plead out to lesser charges and turned states evidence to avoid prosecution on the murder charge.

 

Again, I agree with you that people should let it go and he didn't actually participate in the killing that night ( a killing, by the way, that the actual people who did the stabbing were found not guilty due to self defense.) but he was never found innocent. He took a plea deal.

 

I think the questions about PED's this week, however, are perfectly valid and his whole "this is god's time!" rhetoric to avoid them is as tired as lance Armstrong hiding behind the live strong foundation for years when he didn't want to address any relevant questions.

[Mattywood]

When you get down to it, what exactly is a PED these days? We have crooked judges letting psychopaths walk free, but heaven forbid we miss out on the billions of dollars that can be made by going after athletes who are only harming themselves by using whatever is a PED these days. Next thing you know, perfectly good multivitamins will be considered PEDs.

[bigtplaystew]

While I agree the media should let it go, lets not change facts. He wasn't found "innocent" he plead out to lesser charges and turned states evidence to avoid prosecution on the murder charge.

 

Again, I agree with you that people should let it go and he didn't actually participate in the killing that night ( a killing, by the way, that the actual people who did the stabbing were found not guilty due to self defense.) but he was never found innocent. He took a plea deal.

 

I think the questions about PED's this week, however, are perfectly valid and his whole "this is god's time!" rhetoric to avoid them is as tired as lance Armstrong hiding behind the live strong foundation for years when he didn't want to address any relevant questions.

 

OK, so when I said he's innocent of murder, then you say he never killed anyone... Aren't we saying the same thing?

 

And on Lance Armstrong, I have complicated opinions. See, he cheated and shouldn't have.. Then lied about it. Then aggressively went after anyone who accused him of cheating. So all that was wrong. However, everyone cheats int hat dumb sport and anyone who knows anything about that dumb sport knows it goes on.

 

In finding success in a silly bike race, Armstrong has raised more money for cancer research than any professional athlete to date. I work in a cancer hospital and I've always admired Lance for his work with the Livestrong foundation and countless other ways he's worked to fight cancer. NOTHING disgusts me more than the idea that he "hid behind" this foundation. He did more work for people with cancer while "hiding" than just about anyone I've heard criticize him. But we're getting dangerously off topic here so I'll go back and say GO NINERS! WOOOO!!!

[crownsy]

OK, so when I said he's innocent of murder, then you say he never killed anyone... Aren't we saying the same thing?

 

And on Lance Armstrong, I have complicated opinions. See, he cheated and shouldn't have.. Then lied about it. Then aggressively went after anyone who accused him of cheating. So all that was wrong. However, everyone cheats int hat dumb sport and anyone who knows anything about that dumb sport knows it goes on.

 

In finding success in a silly bike race, Armstrong has raised more money for cancer research than any professional athlete to date. I work in a cancer hospital and I've always admired Lance for his work with the Livestrong foundation and countless other ways he's worked to fight cancer. NOTHING disgusts me more than the idea that he "hid behind" this foundation. He did more work for people with cancer while "hiding" than just about anyone I've heard criticize him. But we're getting dangerously off topic here so I'll go back and say GO NINERS! WOOOO!!!

 

 

Not really, no. You can be guilty of murder without actually being the "trigger man". Here, the contention was always that the killings were carried out at the order of Lewis, not that he actually did the stabbing.

 

He plead out and maintained that his body guards got out of control all on their own.

 

But yes, we're getting off topic, and I still agree that the Media should let it go. the case is closed.

 

As to Armstrong, you can separate the two ideals. Armstrong is a scumbag who ruined peoples lives and careers often put himself up on the cross of the live strong foundation whenever pressed, using it to show what a awesome guy he was, and pointing to it to say how dare you question my moral fiber, look what I do for cancer research!

 

That doesn't invalidate the livestrong organizations mission, contribution to the cause, or tarnish it's image with me, it's bigger than Lance. Always has been. Just because Lance is a awful person doesn't suddenly mean what the livestrong foundation does isn't amazing.

[Comradebot]

OK, so when I said he's innocent of murder, then you say he never killed anyone... Aren't we saying the same thing?

 

And on Lance Armstrong, I have complicated opinions. See, he cheated and shouldn't have.. Then lied about it. Then aggressively went after anyone who accused him of cheating. So all that was wrong. However, everyone cheats int hat dumb sport and anyone who knows anything about that dumb sport knows it goes on.

 

In finding success in a silly bike race, Armstrong has raised more money for cancer research than any professional athlete to date. I work in a cancer hospital and I've always admired Lance for his work with the Livestrong foundation and countless other ways he's worked to fight cancer. NOTHING disgusts me more than the idea that he "hid behind" this foundation. He did more work for people with cancer while "hiding" than just about anyone I've heard criticize him. But we're getting dangerously off topic here so I'll go back and say GO NINERS! WOOOO!!!

 

Murdering someone and killing someone are not synonymous. Accidentally killing someone or killing someone in self defense are not murder, for example.

 

And as crownsy pointed out, you can legally be guilty of murder without actively killing them yourself. Like if you're part of a robbery that goes badly and one of your buddies shoots the clerk in the head, then all of you are capable of being charged for murder (at least here in the USA).

[Killagy]

Critics Who Bring Up Controversial Past Need To Get Facts Straight

 

I absolutely LOVED this article. All I have to say in Ray's defense is written perfectly here in that link. Towards the end is my favorite part:

 

"Role model."

 

For critics, those words sting.

 

Why attempt to tarnish Lewis’ character without reputable evidence to back that bitterness?

 

Where do critics believe Lewis deserves to be right now? Behind bars?

 

Fine. If wasting precious time and energy longing for a man to suffer while that same man continues to transform society in a positive manner is how his critics choose to live, then again, it's a free country.

 

Maybe 13 more years from now it’ll start to click that Lewis' story isn't about a professional athlete getting away with murder because he's a celebrity.

[Mattywood]

I don't know, I kinda like this article better.

 

http://deadspin.com/5980173/the-haters-guide-to-ray-lewis?utm_source=jalopnik.com&utm_medium=recirculation&utm_campaign=recirculation

 

And lastly:

 

[Killagy]

Ray Lewis makes Ravens fans 50 times worse. Oh, do you hate Ray Lewis? Well, Ravens fans would just like you to know that you are BUTTHURT (link via Mike Tunison):

 

 

'So why such a disconnect between how Ravens fans feel and the rest of the country? It all goes back to something that happened 13 years ago. Non-Ravens fans won't let it go… I call it jealousy.'

 

A Ravens fan is the kind of fan who loves his team the more everyone else hates it. "It's us against the world!" says the 400-pound asshole in purple camos. I hate that kind of fan.

 

I'm a good-sport, so I'm not ashamed to say that I died laughing reading that.

 

But it is indeed US AGAINST THE WORLD.

[Mattywood]

I will say this. I wish our local fans loved our teams like the Ravens fans love theirs. I just about wanted to puke when the Texas Rangers started their big run a couple of years ago; the Boston Red Sox come into town, and all these soccer moms, blue tooth dads, Jersey Shore-esque douchers and girls who just want to be seen all try to shout down Rangers fans by shouting "LET'S GO RED SOX!" when they never lived in Boston in their lives, hell probably didn't even watch baseball until the Yankees and Red Sox became the teams to watch. >_< The Fakers fans at Mavs games are even worse. Never lived a day in LA in their lives, have no connection to anyone on the team, they just like Kobe. And Fakers wasn't a dig at the Lakers, it's a dig at the fake fans I just went off on.

[bigtplaystew]

I was wrong in my usage of semantics I suppose, but Ray Lewis is both innocent and he also never killed anyone. So that's that.

 

I been raggin Ray Lewis because he's annoying me lately, but he is among the best LBs of his time, playing on one of the greatest team defenses over the period of time he played. Instant hall of famer. I just will laugh so hard if they lose on Sunday lol. Watching him cry and carry on will be worth it alone.

[damonster]

I'm not a huge football fan, but was that holding on crabtree or not? I keep on hearing both sides, some even saying pass interference.

[D-Lyrium]

Technically it probably was. But to call that with a minute and fourty seconds of the fourth quarter left, with the team at 4th and goal five points down in a Superbowl would take balls of adamantium so I'm not surprised it wasn't given.

 

Besides, who didn't enjoy the images of Jim Harbaugh raging on the sidelines, trying to cradle his dreams as they fell to pieces around him?

 

http://sinfl.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/jim-harbaugh.jpg

 

Ahhh. Kinda cathartic. I should point out that, as a Brit who only really watches superbowls and only 'supports' the Ravens because of the wrestler and the poem, I have no real reason to dislike Jim Harbaugh. I just find it hilarious whenever someone cries so much about something like that, especially given everything else that happened in the game. And especially given the fact that before the massive interval for the floodlight failure, the 49ers were stone cold dead. He really hasn't got much to whine about (but he'll do it anyway. He seems to be essentially a younger Alex Ferguson ¬_¬).

 

Kinda feel sorry for Colin Kaepernick though. If the 49ers won he was a shoe-in for MVP. He'd still have got it, if it followed the British tradition (ie, was given to the best player in the match, not just the popular guy on the winning team. ¬_¬). Nothing wrong with Flacco, don't get me wrong, he was my choice for Ravens' MVP even when others were picking Jacobe Jones. I just think Kaepernick deserved it more despite losing. But I guess he lost so he doesn't deserve recognition, because America.

[damonster]

if it followed the British tradition (ie, was given to the best player in the match, not just the popular guy on the winning team. ¬_¬).

 

or Canadian tradition with hockey, although that just given to the best goaltender in the final

[LoganRodzen]

I thought it was a heck of a game. The way the 49ers came back after multiple mental mistakes was inspiring. The penalties and turnovers decided this game before it was even over. The fact the 'Niners stayed in it was short of amazing. I like that nobody on the Ravens (besides Suggs maybe) is saying the power outage helped the 49ers because I don't think it did. Sure it gave them more time to figure out a gameplan but they had already done that at halftime. They came out of that 35-minute break and were stopped on the 3rd and 14 play, forcing them to punt. Had the power outage really played a signifigant role they would have charged the field on that drive.

 

One statistic that was mind-blowing was when ESPN said the Ravens offense had been off the field for about an hour and a half - that definitely played a role considering they were scoring big time before the power outage. The momentum certainly changed because of it and I can see people using that as an excuse had the 49ers pulled off the comeback.

 

Everyone is breaking down the final series for the 49ers and the final few plays they called. I think the ONLY mistake they made was not calling a timeout before the 4th down play that decided the game. I expected a hard count and a last second timeout (play clock at 1). That would have at least given them more time to figure out a better play call and more time to excecute it properly. They could have won that game last night but the Ravens truly deserved it... especially after that goal line stance. What a way for Ray to go out.

[LoganRodzen]

Kinda feel sorry for Colin Kaepernick though. If the 49ers won he was a shoe-in for MVP. He'd still have got it, if it followed the British tradition (ie, was given to the best player in the match, not just the popular guy on the winning team. ¬_¬). Nothing wrong with Flacco, don't get me wrong, he was my choice for Ravens' MVP even when others were picking Jacobe Jones. I just think Kaepernick deserved it more despite losing. But I guess he lost so he doesn't deserve recognition, because America.

 

Flacco was the MVP of not only the Super Bowl but the entire post-season. 11 touchdowns to 0 interceptions. He beat Manning and Brady on the road (both games nobody gave them a chance). He's a good QB who deserves recognition. Especially for how good he's been the past five years. I want to see Kaepernick play an entire season first. This pistol-offense won't last. The one guy who could run the option (Tebow) and also take the hits played about 20 downs of football this year while guys like RG3, Wilson, Newton, and Kaepernick are all being glorified for running a system Tebow helped expand. None of those guys can take 15+ hits a game all season long and still be a QB in five years. Will not happen.