American Football

[Padkapow Guy]

You may be happy George but

AAAAAGGGGGHHHH!

I will be in mourning for the next cuple of days. My poor Steelers.

I have to admit that I did not have a warm and fuzzy feeling about them this year. It was like they lost there killer instinct.

I hope that I don't see the same thing with the Steelers as I did with Greenbay. They win the SB and next year or so they get a new coach who inherits a good team that keeps them in the hunt for a few years until they fall apart.

Sherman's lack of disipline wasted alot of Favre's talent on mediocre season. Sherman was a players coach who did not scream at the players and hold them accountable for their play and the Pack stumbled.

I hope that is not going to happen in Pittsburgh. There are some simularities with Sherman and Tomlin. The players all say they like him better than Cowher because he does not scream at them. Well I see alot of dumb penalties and lack of emotion out of the Steelers because they are not worried about getting their butts chewed on by their new coach.

I hope I am wrong about Tomlin. But now that the Steelers are done I will be jumping on the Packers band wagon. There coach is from the burgh so I feel the connection. Plus Favre Rules!

GO PACK GO

PKG

Steelers Rock!

Congrats to Brady and Moss for there new records. I can recognize greatness when I see it.

[Old Man River]

This is the problem we have with sports in America. Once the season is over, it is over for a long time. Two bad quarters by Ben Roethlisberger and one missed holding call by the officials and now the Steelers won't play a meaningful game for 8 months. My British friends have it better. With soccer, they have the FA Cup, then the Premiership, then the Euro Cup and there is always the World Cup which starts playing two years before the final. Their sport never ends. Ours ends far too quickly.

[patsfangr]

Back from a long non-fun 8 week stint in LA. At least I got to watch the games in roughly the same time zone. Man, after all the Jax hype, they didn't really show me much. All of BenR's INT's were balls that shouldn't have been thrown. Brady doesn't really do that so much. Good Jax QB pressure, but BenR repeatedly held the ball too long, another thing Brady doesn't do. It looks to me like Pats 33 Jax 17, unless the Titans pull out their game against SD. Not likely.

Still gonna remain antsy about the eventual Indy game till it's over.

All I can say to you is this. The next time you have something that requires an 8 week "non-fun" (work, I assume) trip to LA, just pay my expenses, and I'll be HAPPY to do it for you!!

As for the time zone problem, it was a bear of a weekend for me; with another coming this weekend. During the season, I'd usually pick one of the two games played on our Monday morning to watch, and watch the Tuesday morning "Monday Night Football" game. Not too bad. But this is the Playoffs! I slept for a few hours Saturday, and watched the 4:30 and 8:15 games Sunday morning. Then, I slept for a few hours Sunday morning, and pulled an overnighter to watch both the 1:00 and 4:30 games this morning. Got up about an hour ago. And I am, of course, my internal clock is totally out of whack! Such is the challenge of being a hopelessly addicted NFL fan in Thailand!

[patsfangr]

This is the problem we have with sports in America. Once the season is over, it is over for a long time. Two bad quarters by Ben Roethlisberger and one missed holding call by the officials and now the Steelers won't play a meaningful game for 8 months. My British friends have it better. With soccer, they have the FA Cup, then the Premiership, then the Euro Cup and there is always the World Cup which starts playing two years before the final. Their sport never ends. Ours ends far too quickly.

First of all, my dislike for the Steelers certainly doesn't extend to good NFL fans like you, OMR. I empathize with your pain over their loss. As a long time NFL fan, I'm sure you know how many years I suffered with horrible, or "just short" Patriots teams, prior to the Belichick era. It really hurts when you're a true fan. My condolences. Glad you have the Pack to fall back on a bit. Like you, I greatly admire Favre, and I'll be with you in cheering for the Pack to make it to the Super Bowl.

You have to become more of a "personnel" fan, PKG. Once the season ends, I get into close observation, and discussion with other Pats fans, of the off-season activity. Free Agency begins, and we start worrying about who we'll re-sign, and who may/will test the FA market. Add to that our speculation about which FA's the Pats will sign, and discussion of those they do sign. Then comes preparation for the Draft, the mini-camp, and the Draft itself at the end of April. May brings a little more FA activity, then another mini-camp. Then comes what is truly the only almost total downtime for the NFL. June is usually without much activity or news of any kind in the NFL. (It's Madden PC game time!) July, of course, brings Training Camp; and off we go again!

I got much more into the post-season activities when I stopped being a baseball fan (after the THIRD player strike!). That used to fill the gap, and keep me focused from February until the difficult "sharing" period for MLB and NFL from August - October. Now, as a "one trick pony" for sports (All NFL, All the time!), I go to the off-season activity, the preparation for the Fantasy Football games that I play, and a little Madden PC game (though I tend to get bored with that rather quickly).

(By the way, Fantasy Football is a great assist in keeping up with off-season activity, and being well prepared for the next season. As a FF player, you have to keep up with player movement in order to be ready to draft your team before the season begins. If you have any interest in getting invovled in it, let me know.)

[patsfangr]

PATRIOTS VS. JAGUARS PRE-GAME ANALYSIS

I expect a tough defensive effort, and a frustrating (for me) offensive performance from the Jags on Saturday night. The condition of Jags DT, Henderson could be a major key for them. Their defensive strength is definitely up the middle, which is the best way to limit Brady, who's ability to step up into the pocket is one of the major factors in his success. As has been the case all season, if Brady has time, it will be a very long night for the Jags DBs.

It will almost certainly be up to Brady and his receivers to provide the majority of the offensive success in this one. I'd be very surprised to see any degree of consistent success for our OL in opening holes for Maroney between the tackles. They haven't shown that ability this season against lesser middle defenses than the Jags will present. There could be more opportunity outside; but the Jags also have better than average speed to get out there. That speed will also limit the success of screens, and, to some degree, swing passes to the RBs. So, it all comes back to the WRs and TEs. I think that is the way we have to attack this defense; and that begins with a solid pocket for Brady. The running game, IMO, will only be a "keep them honest" contribution to this game.

The entire world knows that our defense will be focused on limiting the Jags' running game. The most effective way for us to do this is for Brady & company to get out in front by more than 1 score very early in the game. If we have limited offensive success, the Jags will likely have decent success, particulary early in the game, in chewing up yardage, and time, in big chunks on the ground (the "frustration" I mentioned). The Jags WR corps of Roydell Williams, Wilford, and Northcutt, is average, at best. Marcedes Lewis is a better than average, but not great, TE. Combine that with Garrard's conservative passing style, and I think the Patriots have an excellent chance to greatly limit the scoring, if not the yardage, of this offense. The key to this game may well be the most fundamental element of the defensive game - tackling. The Patriots players must execute well on the first hits on Taylor, Jones-Drew, and Garrard, when opportunities present themselves. Both RBs are extremely dangerous in the open field. They have to be stopped early in the play, or they may not be stopped at all. Garrard is a very dangerous runner out of the pocket, and I'm concerned over the less than stellar performance of our pass rush group in "wrapping up" against scrambling QBs this year. Let him escape, and he will hurt us. Tackle, boys. No shoulder bumps, or body rolls. Wrap 'em up and tackle!

I believe that BB and McDaniels will have the game plan ready for that fast start. The early weather forecast I see calls for partly cloudy, with temps in the low 30's, down to high 20's. If that lack of precipition holds up, the passing attack should be fine. I read last week that Belichick's first practices focused on "fundamentals". Hopefully, that included tackling. I'm going with the assumption that his will be his defensive point of emphasis this week. Given a fast start offensively, consistently solid "first hit" tackling, and successful containment of Garrard in the pocket, I see a few more errors by Garrard than usual, as the game progresses. At least a couple of picks by our guys, and possibly even a fumble or two by Garrard, as he tries to escape when his receivers are covered. The net result of all that could be a serious blowout in this one in the second half. (Oh, and with all those kickoffs by the Patriots, watch that coverage of Jones-Drew!)

I see it as 21 - 10 Patriots, at the half; with a final of Patriots 45 - Jaguars 17.

George

"I don't have a whole lot of what-ifs. We won three Super Bowls," (Tom Brady)

[lomatopo]

Weather for the Pats game, as forecast today, appears to be a non-factor. Thirties, no precip. Gotta love New England weather, I was there last week, low temps 4 F (actual, -15 C) with 20 mph winds, following heavy wet snow so everything was a frozen mess, and it will be 60 F tomorrow!

I got to see Patriots All Access, filmed after the Giants game, and it was great to see behind the scenes of this historic game. Great segments with Belichick, using film to illustrate 3rd down conversions and detailed explanations of defense/coverage/offense, Tom Izzo (best films of 2007?; he picked most of my favs including the hometown "Gone Baby Gone") and an interview Adalius Thomas. Great to see some old favorites: Mike Lynch, Mike Dowling, Steve Nelson.

[mauiguy90]

Wow! Great performance by the Giants against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers...the Giants defense really shut down the Bucs and Eli Manning turned in another good performance to followup his great game against the Pats last week. Looks like the Patriots game got the Giants believing in themselves. Don't know how they will do against Dallas but they've already done better than most have expected.

[calibanjr.]

Weather for the Pats game, as forecast today, appears to be a non-factor. Thirties, no precip. Gotta love New England weather, I was there last week, low temps 4 F (actual, -15 C) with 20 mph winds, following heavy wet snow so everything was a frozen mess, and it will be 60 F tomorrow!

I got to see Patriots All Access, filmed after the Giants game, and it was great to see behind the scenes of this historic game. Great segments with Belichick, using film to illustrate 3rd down conversions and detailed explanations of defense/coverage/offense, Tom Izzo (best films of 2007?; he picked most of my favs including the hometown "Gone Baby Gone") and an interview Adalius Thomas. Great to see some old favorites: Mike Lynch, Mike Dowling, Steve Nelson.

Loma, you feel confident about a forecast this far in advance? I don't, but I'll hope it's dry, that's all. Cold and snow even won't hurt Brady's game, just wind mostly and maybe sleet/slippery stuff. As I mentioned, from what I saw, unless there's a huge turnover discrepancy, it's gonna be the Pats, big. But I'm paranoid about the following week, till it's over.

[surface]

Wow! Great performance by the Giants against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers...the Giants defense really shut down the Bucs and Eli Manning turned in another good performance to followup his great game against the Pats last week. Looks like the Patriots game got the Giants believing in themselves. Don't know how they will do against Dallas but they've already done better than most have expected.

They did look good, but I can't imagine things looking the same against the Cowboys. The Pats game was surprising though, so maybe they're on a warm/hot streak at the right time.

Oh, and I wanted to check out the replay at Gulliver's, but things prevented that, leading me to have an ever better time at Hanrahan's(sp?) on Soi 4, where we had the upstairs sofa in front of the TV to ourselves, so nobody to come by and spoil the game for me like a couple of pricks almost did while getting off the BTS on my way there. I had to stick my fingers in my ears and mumble loudly to myself so I wouldn't hear what they were saying, much to the amusement of my girl and everyone else nearby. I'd gone the whole day avoiding anything and everything that might mention something about the game, and almost had it blown 30 minutes before it aired.

[Mikenmod]

It has been a wasteland as far as college football goes. ESPN usually shows some bowl games at the end of the year, but they are typically second or third tier. Forget about the big games...

But I'm wondering... Now that UBC has pay per view (I think they've shown or are showing Cricket) maybe, just maybe, they'll show some college football. I for one would be willing to pay for some games, depending of course on the price.

(No reason to believe that they actually will do this. Just a wild fantasy on my part.)

College Football, especailly the Bowl games, are pure pleasure. Maybe there are enough Americans who appreciate the greatest sport on earth to band together and watch the games. I talked to the manager in a new club in Bkk, the Sports Authority, you can see it on the second floor on Sukhumvit walking down the Asok skytrain station. He has a number of rooms that have Tv and could be rented for a reasonable fee. These are classy rooms, very sofisticated decor, as is the whole club. There's a pool table in each room and some comfy chairs. And of course the friendly and beautiful waitresses.

I'll be there looking for a Super bowl live showing.

If you haven't heard, LSU beat up on Ohio for the BCS Championship.

LSU Q's names is Flynn. MVP of the NFL's name is Brady. Tis a fine time ter be Irish.

[Mikenmod]

Weather for the Pats game, as forecast today, appears to be a non-factor. Thirties, no precip. Gotta love New England weather, I was there last week, low temps 4 F (actual, -15 C) with 20 mph winds, following heavy wet snow so everything was a frozen mess, and it will be 60 F tomorrow!

I got to see Patriots All Access, filmed after the Giants game, and it was great to see behind the scenes of this historic game. Great segments with Belichick, using film to illustrate 3rd down conversions and detailed explanations of defense/coverage/offense, Tom Izzo (best films of 2007?; he picked most of my favs including the hometown "Gone Baby Gone") and an interview Adalius Thomas. Great to see some old favorites: Mike Lynch, Mike Dowling, Steve Nelson.

Loma, you feel confident about a forecast this far in advance? I don't, but I'll hope it's dry, that's all. Cold and snow even won't hurt Brady's game, just wind mostly and maybe sleet/slippery stuff. As I mentioned, from what I saw, unless there's a huge turnover discrepancy, it's gonna be the Pats, big. But I'm paranoid about the following week, till it's over.

Tom Terrific is something like 32-1 when the weather is below 32 degrees F. But I have to agree that I'm not as confident as 6 weeks ago. But with the bye week, Evil Bill will have something special for the Jags. And pray for snow, cold, sleet, frozen rain, north-easter, you name it. The wind is called Myra (Bob Kraft's wife)

I think the Pats will live to host the Colts.

[Mikenmod]

PATRIOTS VS. JAGUARS PRE-GAME ANALYSIS

I expect a tough defensive effort, and a frustrating (for me) offensive performance from the Jags on Saturday night. The condition of Jags DT, Henderson could be a major key for them. Their defensive strength is definitely up the middle, which is the best way to limit Brady, who's ability to step up into the pocket is one of the major factors in his success. As has been the case all season, if Brady has time, it will be a very long night for the Jags DBs.

It will almost certainly be up to Brady and his receivers to provide the majority of the offensive success in this one. I'd be very surprised to see any degree of consistent success for our OL in opening holes for Maroney between the tackles. They haven't shown that ability this season against lesser middle defenses than the Jags will present. There could be more opportunity outside; but the Jags also have better than average speed to get out there. That speed will also limit the success of screens, and, to some degree, swing passes to the RBs. So, it all comes back to the WRs and TEs. I think that is the way we have to attack this defense; and that begins with a solid pocket for Brady. The running game, IMO, will only be a "keep them honest" contribution to this game.

The entire world knows that our defense will be focused on limiting the Jags' running game. The most effective way for us to do this is for Brady & company to get out in front by more than 1 score very early in the game. If we have limited offensive success, the Jags will likely have decent success, particulary early in the game, in chewing up yardage, and time, in big chunks on the ground (the "frustration" I mentioned). The Jags WR corps of Roydell Williams, Wilford, and Northcutt, is average, at best. Marcedes Lewis is a better than average, but not great, TE. Combine that with Garrard's conservative passing style, and I think the Patriots have an excellent chance to greatly limit the scoring, if not the yardage, of this offense. The key to this game may well be the most fundamental element of the defensive game - tackling. The Patriots players must execute well on the first hits on Taylor, Jones-Drew, and Garrard, when opportunities present themselves. Both RBs are extremely dangerous in the open field. They have to be stopped early in the play, or they may not be stopped at all. Garrard is a very dangerous runner out of the pocket, and I'm concerned over the less than stellar performance of our pass rush group in "wrapping up" against scrambling QBs this year. Let him escape, and he will hurt us. Tackle, boys. No shoulder bumps, or body rolls. Wrap 'em up and tackle!

I believe that BB and McDaniels will have the game plan ready for that fast start. The early weather forecast I see calls for partly cloudy, with temps in the low 30's, down to high 20's. If that lack of precipition holds up, the passing attack should be fine. I read last week that Belichick's first practices focused on "fundamentals". Hopefully, that included tackling. I'm going with the assumption that his will be his defensive point of emphasis this week. Given a fast start offensively, consistently solid "first hit" tackling, and successful containment of Garrard in the pocket, I see a few more errors by Garrard than usual, as the game progresses. At least a couple of picks by our guys, and possibly even a fumble or two by Garrard, as he tries to escape when his receivers are covered. The net result of all that could be a serious blowout in this one in the second half. (Oh, and with all those kickoffs by the Patriots, watch that coverage of Jones-Drew!)

I see it as 21 - 10 Patriots, at the half; with a final of Patriots 45 - Jaguars 17.

George

"I don't have a whole lot of what-ifs. We won three Super Bowls," (Tom Brady)

Hey George. Your analysis is right on. The talk here is that the Jags put a big hurt on you. But they played this weekend and the Pats were relaxing and healing. I think the pats will be laying on the hurt. And here's my take on the Evil One (BB). I think that the last four games, he played like it was exhibition seasn, know that it was good enough to win, and even if they lost one, not a big deal when holding the Lombardi Trophy high next month. He didn't show anything. Just watch what he comes out with for the next 3 games. In Bill, I trust.

[Old Man River]

First of all, my dislike for the Steelers certainly doesn't extend to good NFL fans like you, OMR. I empathize with your pain over their loss. As a long time NFL fan, I'm sure you know how many years I suffered with horrible, or "just short" Patriots teams, prior to the Belichick era. It really hurts when you're a true fan. My condolences. Glad you have the Pack to fall back on a bit. Like you, I greatly admire Favre, and I'll be with you in cheering for the Pack to make it to the Super Bowl.

Patsfangr, please don't get me confused with a Steeler's fan. I am a die hard Dallas Cowboys fan and have been for over 30 years. Given the history of these two teams, I respect the Steelers, but don't really like them. My comments related to how quick American football's season ends vis a vis soccer, which never ends. I used the Steelers as an example since their season is now over.

[Old Man River]

If you haven't heard, LSU beat up on Ohio for the BCS Championship.

LSU Q's names is Flynn. MVP of the NFL's name is Brady. Tis a fine time ter be Irish.

I didn't know Tony Romo was Irish.

[patsfangr]

It has been a wasteland as far as college football goes. ESPN usually shows some bowl games at the end of the year, but they are typically second or third tier. Forget about the big games...

But I'm wondering... Now that UBC has pay per view (I think they've shown or are showing Cricket) maybe, just maybe, they'll show some college football. I for one would be willing to pay for some games, depending of course on the price.

(No reason to believe that they actually will do this. Just a wild fantasy on my part.)

College Football, especailly the Bowl games, are pure pleasure. Maybe there are enough Americans who appreciate the greatest sport on earth to band together and watch the games. I talked to the manager in a new club in Bkk, the Sports Authority, you can see it on the second floor on Sukhumvit walking down the Asok skytrain station. He has a number of rooms that have Tv and could be rented for a reasonable fee. These are classy rooms, very sofisticated decor, as is the whole club. There's a pool table in each room and some comfy chairs. And of course the friendly and beautiful waitresses.

I'll be there looking for a Super bowl live showing.

If you haven't heard, LSU beat up on Ohio for the BCS Championship.

LSU Q's names is Flynn. MVP of the NFL's name is Brady. Tis a fine time ter be Irish.

OR, as long as you have a reasonably decent download speed, you could just watch the game via an internet video stream, as I did this morning. Enjoyable game. I transfer the picture from my PC to my big screen TV, and, except for the fact that the quality is not always the best, it's just like watching it on a normal TV broadcast. I watched a lot of NFL games this season via streams.

[patsfangr]

Tom Terrific is something like 32-1 when the weather is below 32 degrees F. But I have to agree that I'm not as confident as 6 weeks ago. But with the bye week, Evil Bill will have something special for the Jags. And pray for snow, cold, sleet, frozen rain, north-easter, you name it. The wind is called Myra (Bob Kraft's wife)

I think the Pats will live to host the Colts.

Easy there, Mike. This year's Patriots succeed with the passing game, not with the "physical game" of previous teams. We do NOT want moisture or wind! Cold is fine. But Brady and the receivers need a firm grip on that football.

[patsfangr]

First of all, my dislike for the Steelers certainly doesn't extend to good NFL fans like you, OMR. I empathize with your pain over their loss. As a long time NFL fan, I'm sure you know how many years I suffered with horrible, or "just short" Patriots teams, prior to the Belichick era. It really hurts when you're a true fan. My condolences. Glad you have the Pack to fall back on a bit. Like you, I greatly admire Favre, and I'll be with you in cheering for the Pack to make it to the Super Bowl.

Patsfangr, please don't get me confused with a Steeler's fan. I am a die hard Dallas Cowboys fan and have been for over 30 years. Given the history of these two teams, I respect the Steelers, but don't really like them. My comments related to how quick American football's season ends vis a vis soccer, which never ends. I used the Steelers as an example since their season is now over.

Sorry about that, OMR! How could I forget? It's PKG that's that's the Steelers' fan, right? In any case, the same opening line applies, with "Cowboys" substituted for "Steelers". I once had a very high respect for the Cowboys. That was back in the days BJJ - Before Jerry Jones. You see, I LOVE the NFL. The growth and immense success of the NFL is largely due to the system created by Pete Rozelle which has as its' foundation the revenue sharing principle. That policy ensures that all teams have enough money to pay for top quality players, and bring some level of parity to the league (my New England Patriots being an exception, of course!) :-) Jerry Jones is the ultimate money-grubbing capitalist. He has fought the NFL tooth and nail for independence on every profit making venture possible - from advertising Pepsi vs. Coke, to TV revenue. If he had his way, he'd operate the Cowboys as a totally independent business. That line of thinking would lead to the demise of the league, with only the "big money" teams and venues succeeding on a consistent basis, as is the case with MLB. Jones is a selfish, arrogant, egotistical S.O.B.; and I wish him nothing but failure. I still respec the Cowboys players, but my dislike for Jones overrides it. Sorry.

[Old Man River]

First of all, my dislike for the Steelers certainly doesn't extend to good NFL fans like you, OMR. I empathize with your pain over their loss. As a long time NFL fan, I'm sure you know how many years I suffered with horrible, or "just short" Patriots teams, prior to the Belichick era. It really hurts when you're a true fan. My condolences. Glad you have the Pack to fall back on a bit. Like you, I greatly admire Favre, and I'll be with you in cheering for the Pack to make it to the Super Bowl.

Patsfangr, please don't get me confused with a Steeler's fan. I am a die hard Dallas Cowboys fan and have been for over 30 years. Given the history of these two teams, I respect the Steelers, but don't really like them. My comments related to how quick American football's season ends vis a vis soccer, which never ends. I used the Steelers as an example since their season is now over.

Sorry about that, OMR! How could I forget? It's PKG that's that's the Steelers' fan, right? In any case, the same opening line applies, with "Cowboys" substituted for "Steelers". I once had a very high respect for the Cowboys. That was back in the days BJJ - Before Jerry Jones. You see, I LOVE the NFL. The growth and immense success of the NFL is largely due to the system created by Pete Rozelle which has as its' foundation the revenue sharing principle. That policy ensures that all teams have enough money to pay for top quality players, and bring some level of parity to the league (my New England Patriots being an exception, of course!) :-) Jerry Jones is the ultimate money-grubbing capitalist. He has fought the NFL tooth and nail for independence on every profit making venture possible - from advertising Pepsi vs. Coke, to TV revenue. If he had his way, he'd operate the Cowboys as a totally independent business. That line of thinking would lead to the demise of the league, with only the "big money" teams and venues succeeding on a consistent basis, as is the case with MLB. Jones is a selfish, arrogant, egotistical S.O.B.; and I wish him nothing but failure. I still respec the Cowboys players, but my dislike for Jones overrides it. Sorry.

I have no problem with your not liking JJ. Few in Dallas really like him, but he is the owner of our beloved Cowboys and he will spend money on players. Some owners are passive, but JJ is involved. Two seasons ago, the Cowboys had one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL. Now it is one of the best. He paid the players he wanted to stay and he went into free agency to buy the others. TO wasn't cheap, but he plays for Dallas. Recently, after the season it was known that Parcels was going after Crayton, so JJ urgently got involved and now Crayton will remain a Cowboy. Hence, from a Dallas Cowboy fans point of view, JJ is good. In reality, he is everything you say and more.

[patsfangr]

I have no problem with your not liking JJ. Few in Dallas really like him, but he is the owner of our beloved Cowboys and he will spend money on players. Some owners are passive, but JJ is involved. Two seasons ago, the Cowboys had one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL. Now it is one of the best. He paid the players he wanted to stay and he went into free agency to buy the others. TO wasn't cheap, but he plays for Dallas. Recently, after the season it was known that Parcels was going after Crayton, so JJ urgently got involved and now Crayton will remain a Cowboy. Hence, from a Dallas Cowboy fans point of view, JJ is good. In reality, he is everything you say and more.

Poor arguement there by the JJ lovers, OMR. This is the NFL we're talking about. MOST teams spend the same amount of money. It's called the Salary Cap. The successful teams are those that do the best job of negotiating deals that allow them to spread the money as "evenly" as possible, thus ensuring a solid team at every position, with dependable depth. That, combined, of course, with outstanding coaching ability, is precisely what has led to the consistent success enjoyed by the Patriots under BB's leadership. You can't win consistently in this league with a couple of superstars, surrounded by slugs. The Colts finally succeeded in beating the Patriots last year, following years of failure with their 2 or 3 "big money" guys, and bunch of "po' boys" around them. (And the only reason they did that was because the Patriots royally screwed up their WR corps. - Well, that and the failure at RB due to Dillon's decline, and Maroney's injury/flop.)

Clearly, JJ has made some good decisions regarding how to spread the Salary Cap money recently. But the 'Boys are greatly aided by a couple of young players who have produced beyond expectations (Romo and Barber). Their defense is showing some cracks (as is Romo), and it remains to be seen whether they have the depth to be consistently successful. Again, no offense, but I hope not. :-)

[calibanjr.]

It has been a wasteland as far as college football goes. ESPN usually shows some bowl games at the end of the year, but they are typically second or third tier. Forget about the big games...

But I'm wondering... Now that UBC has pay per view (I think they've shown or are showing Cricket) maybe, just maybe, they'll show some college football. I for one would be willing to pay for some games, depending of course on the price.

(No reason to believe that they actually will do this. Just a wild fantasy on my part.)

College Football, especailly the Bowl games, are pure pleasure. Maybe there are enough Americans who appreciate the greatest sport on earth to band together and watch the games. I talked to the manager in a new club in Bkk, the Sports Authority, you can see it on the second floor on Sukhumvit walking down the Asok skytrain station. He has a number of rooms that have Tv and could be rented for a reasonable fee. These are classy rooms, very sofisticated decor, as is the whole club. There's a pool table in each room and some comfy chairs. And of course the friendly and beautiful waitresses.

I'll be there looking for a Super bowl live showing.

If you haven't heard, LSU beat up on Ohio for the BCS Championship.

LSU Q's names is Flynn. MVP of the NFL's name is Brady. Tis a fine time ter be Irish.

Unless you're Brady Quinn!

Edited January 8, 2008 by calibanjr.

[patsfangr]

LOCATION! LOCATION! LOCATION!

No, I'm not talking real estate, or restaurants. I'm talking about American football fans in Thailand. We've formed a nice little group of regulars in this thread. Unfortunately, we seem to spread all over the country (and a couple outside of Thailand, I believe). I find myself regretting that we don't all live in the same area. We could have some great times watching games together.

Think about this little fantasy. A group of 6 or more guys lease a little apartment, or even a storefront shop. Pitch in for aircon, a couple of refrigerators for beer and soda, a big screen TV, a high speed internet connection, and satellite TV. POOF! We've got a football club! We gather for games that are either televised, or available via internet stream (works well for me). Of course, the time zone situation sucks. But, as I've noted before, I'm enough of a football addict to forego sleep for games I really want to see. Really screws up the days from Sunday through about Wednesday, during the season, but <deleted>, it's FOOTBALL, MAN!

I love watching the NFL, and good college games, all by my lonesome self here. But it's SOOOO much better to watch games with a few fellow fans. Frankly, it's one of the things I miss most about being home in the good 'ol USA!

[huggybear]

LOCATION! LOCATION! LOCATION!

No, I'm not talking real estate, or restaurants. I'm talking about American football fans in Thailand. We've formed a nice little group of regulars in this thread. Unfortunately, we seem to spread all over the country (and a couple outside of Thailand, I believe). I find myself regretting that we don't all live in the same area. We could have some great times watching games together.

Think about this little fantasy. A group of 6 or more guys lease a little apartment, or even a storefront shop. Pitch in for aircon, a couple of refrigerators for beer and soda, a big screen TV, a high speed internet connection, and satellite TV. POOF! We've got a football club! We gather for games that are either televised, or available via internet stream (works well for me). Of course, the time zone situation sucks. But, as I've noted before, I'm enough of a football addict to forego sleep for games I really want to see. Really screws up the days from Sunday through about Wednesday, during the season, but <deleted>, it's FOOTBALL, MAN!

I love watching the NFL, and good college games, all by my lonesome self here. But it's SOOOO much better to watch games with a few fellow fans. Frankly, it's one of the things I miss most about being home in the good 'ol USA!

I've looked through this thread and have not found out how I am going to see this weekends games which are on CBS and Fox in the U.S.

Does anyone know if this South African satellite can retrieve the broadcasts?

Are we down to the mythical "slingbox" or the streaming feed which at times because of crappy connections gets the stop and starts?

HELP !

[mauiguy90]

I've looked through this thread and have not found out how I am going to see this weekends games which are on CBS and Fox in the U.S.

Does anyone know if this South African satellite can retrieve the broadcasts?

Are we down to the mythical "slingbox" or the streaming feed which at times because of crappy connections gets the stop and starts?

HELP !

Truevisions(UBC) will telecast at least 3 of the 4 games this weekend. This is what I've found so far:

Sunday 4:30 am True Sports 3(Ch.63)

NFC Seattle-Green Bay

Sunday 8:00 am True Sports 3 (Ch. 63)

AFC Jacksonville-NE Patriots

Monday 4:30 am True Sports 3 (Ch. 63)

NFC NY Giants-Dallas Cowboys

That's what I've found so far on the TrueVisions website. If anyone knows about the Indianapolis-San Diego game, please jump in. Channel 64 (True Sports 4) lists an NFL broadcast at 1 am but doesn't specify the teams. The game is being played Sunday 1 pm EST, so there's a good chance they will telecast the Colts-Chargers game on Channel 64.

Edited January 8, 2008 by mauiguy90

[huggybear]

I've looked through this thread and have not found out how I am going to see this weekends games which are on CBS and Fox in the U.S.

Does anyone know if this South African satellite can retrieve the broadcasts?

Are we down to the mythical "slingbox" or the streaming feed which at times because of crappy connections gets the stop and starts?

HELP !

Truevisions(UBC) will telecast at least 3 of the 4 games this weekend. This is what I've found so far:

Sunday 4:30 am True Sports 3(Ch.63)

NFC Seattle-Green Bay

Sunday 8:00 am True Sports 3 (Ch. 63)

AFC Jacksonville-NE Patriots

Monday 4:30 am True Sports 3 (Ch. 63)

NFC NY Giants-Dallas Cowboys

That's what I've found so far on the TrueVisions website. If anyone knows about the Indianapolis-San Diego game, please jump in. Channel 64 (True Sports 4) lists an NFL broadcast at 1 am but doesn't specify the teams. The game is being played Sunday 1 pm EST, so there's a good chance they will telecast the Colts-Chargers game on Channel 64.

Thanks bra !

I don't care what dey say, you're da best bra.

[lomatopo]

Truevisions(UBC) will telecast at least 3 of the 4 games this weekend. This is what I've found so far:

Thank you very much for this detailed information. A couple of questions come to mind:

1.) Why the change to TrueSport 3? Is there some soccer on TS4?

2.) Will follow on games, and even the Superbowl, possibly be on TS3?

Edited to add: I quickly looked at the True schedule on line and NFL games are shown on TS4, in addition to TS3, but without detail, shown for TS3 and with some schedule anomolies.

Edited January 8, 2008 by lomatopo

[mauiguy90]

HB, Glad to be of service! If you didn't ask the question, I'd be wondering about the schedule myself. Kind of forced me to get off my butt and look it up...By your use of the lingo, guess you've been to Hawaii! Howzit!!!

As for why the games are being on TS3, you have to consult with the TrueVision people(gods). Probably due to some technical/scheduling difficulties they encountered adding on games at the last minute...good question but I think the main thing is that they are showing the games, LT. When the game time rolls around, probably best to check TS3, TS4, and ESPN! One day they may even schedule it on HBO!

Edited January 8, 2008 by mauiguy90

[patsfangr]

HB, Glad to be of service! If you didn't ask the question, I'd be wondering about the schedule myself. Kind of forced me to get off my butt and look it up...By your use of the lingo, guess you've been to Hawaii! Howzit!!!

As for why the games are being on TS3, you have to consult with the TrueVision people(gods). Probably due to some technical/scheduling difficulties they encountered adding on games at the last minute...good question but I think the main thing is that they are showing the games, LT. When the game time rolls around, probably best to check TS3, TS4, and ESPN! One day they may even schedule it on HBO!

Actually, MG, the best way to check the schedule for NFL games is to use the "Search" window at http://www.truevisionstv.com/index.aspx

In the first drop down window, select "Sports World". Leave the second window at "All Channels". Then select the "From - To" dates in the next two windows. Leave the times at the "All Times" default. In the "Key Word" space, enter "NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE", in all caps, as I typed it here. That will bring up the entire schedule, "live" and replays, for all of the sports channels.

[mauiguy90]

HB, Glad to be of service! If you didn't ask the question, I'd be wondering about the schedule myself. Kind of forced me to get off my butt and look it up...By your use of the lingo, guess you've been to Hawaii! Howzit!!!

As for why the games are being on TS3, you have to consult with the TrueVision people(gods). Probably due to some technical/scheduling difficulties they encountered adding on games at the last minute...good question but I think the main thing is that they are showing the games, LT. When the game time rolls around, probably best to check TS3, TS4, and ESPN! One day they may even schedule it on HBO!

Actually, MG, the best way to check the schedule for NFL games is to use the "Search" window at http://www.truevisionstv.com/index.aspx

In the first drop down window, select "Sports World". Leave the second window at "All Channels". Then select the "From - To" dates in the next two windows. Leave the times at the "All Times" default. In the "Key Word" space, enter "NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE", in all caps, as I typed it here. That will bring up the entire schedule, "live" and replays, for all of the sports channels.

Great PF! You are the man! Now everyone will be able to access the online schedule. Of course, only a few weeks left so hope I can recall this info next year...

Edited January 8, 2008 by mauiguy90

[huggybear]

HB, Glad to be of service! If you didn't ask the question, I'd be wondering about the schedule myself. Kind of forced me to get off my butt and look it up...By your use of the lingo, guess you've been to Hawaii! Howzit!!!

As for why the games are being on TS3, you have to consult with the TrueVision people(gods). Probably due to some technical/scheduling difficulties they encountered adding on games at the last minute...good question but I think the main thing is that they are showing the games, LT. When the game time rolls around, probably best to check TS3, TS4, and ESPN! One day they may even schedule it on HBO!

Yeah bra,

used to spend time in Maui in the seventies as a youngster. My folks owned one of the very first condos at Kapalua. Sold it with the divorce fire-sale . Also, I have a good bradda that comes to Phuket for a couple months every year who lives on the big island.

63 and 64 are ESPN channels no? I understand the games will be on CBS and Fox.......

Need my playoff fix bra, withdrawls since my weekends in Vegas the first couple weekends of the schedule.

[patsfangr]

63 and 64 are ESPN channels no? I understand the games will be on CBS and Fox.......

Need my playoff fix bra, withdrawls since my weekends in Vegas the first couple weekends of the schedule.

Channels 63 and 64 are the "True Sport 3" and "True Sport 4" channels, Huggy Bear. ESPN-Asia DROPPED the NFL this year. There were NO games broadcast by ESPN here. TrueVisions had a couple of contracts with other networks that allowed them to broadcast 2 games for the first few weeks of the season, with no broadcast of the Sunday or Monday night games. Then TrueVisions contracted with "GOALTV" to pick up those night games, and give us 4 games per weekend again , as we'd had last year before ESPN-Asia screwed NFL fans. It is TrueVisions, and NOT ESPN, that is bringing us the Playoff games.

If you get the impression that I remain totally pissed off at ESPN-Asia, you are absolutely correct!