2012-2013 NFL season - Page 59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rando 

What about those 2 guys Ray Lewis and his friends stabbed and beat to death?  I guess God does indeed work in mysterious ways.

Hey dude, come on now. Ray ditched the suit he was wearing, sold out his friends to get his charges dropped and paid off the families of the victims.

What more do you want the man to do to atone for his sins? It's water under the bridge.

I'm just going to repost the buttfumble:

There can never be enough buttfumble.

I've never actually seen that. Laugh out loud.

Quote:

Originally Posted by D.T. 

 

Hey dude, come on now. Ray ditched the suit he was wearing, sold out his friends to get his charges dropped and paid off the families of the victims.

 

What more do you want the man to do to atone for his sins? It's water under the bridge.

Maybe that's why I fucking hate the Ravens - the whole "the redemption of Ray Lewis!" story arc during their previous SB run was just vomit-inducing. 

He was party to a coupla banger friends of his stabbing some men; he didn't serve any jail time, and I never get the sense that he's particularly contrite or torn up about it. Winning a championship doesn't clean that slate. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by D.T. 

 

Hey dude, come on now. Ray ditched the suit he was wearing, sold out his friends to get his charges dropped and paid off the families of the victims.

 

What more do you want the man to do to atone for his sins? It's water under the bridge.

http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/47958/remembering-the-ray-lewis-controversy

Obstruction of justice is what Lewis plead guilty to, it appears it's all he was guilty of, and it's almost certain it's all they ever could've convicted him of.

This league and others have plenty of guys who we -know- did worse. You pay for your mistakes and then you're given another chance. It's how things (are supposed to) work.

Quote:

Originally Posted by History Buff 

Considering the amount of innocent black men that have been absolutely fucked by our justice system, Ray Lewis walking around free or winning another ring doesn't trouble me in the least.

"Sure, Stalin lived to a ripe old age, but it's all cool because we got Hitler and Mussolini." 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chavez 

 

 

"Sure, Stalin lived to a ripe old age, but it's all cool because we got Hitler and Mussolini." 

That'd be a great comparison... except that Ray Lewis would be more like a random acquaintance of Mussolini's that helped remove him from power once the writing was on the wall. In which case, yeah, I think we'd all be pretty cool with it.

You should really check out the link I posted just above.

Anyway, back to football... I find it amusing how analysts are bending over backwards to defend Brady. He had another sub-par playoff performance and was outplayed again by a QB we all agree is inferior to him.

In another weird parallel between the two games, both featured the more proven QBs making startlingly novice mistakes while their less-respected counterparts were playing near-flawlessly. Ryan had his INT (which may have been due to his receiver falling, the TV coverage was terrible on that play), and then the complete rookie mistake of looking away as the ball was hiked for a critical fumble. Brady had his own turnovers, plus not running for an easy 1st on 4th-and-4, and a series of nervous-looking moves that cost his team a shot at a TD before halftime. A meaningless scramble cost his team a TO, and then not calling a TO cost them at least 2 shots at the end zone.

Belichek and White were also severely outcoached. White was no surprise - that list of SB-winning coaches predicted he'd be an achilles heel, but how do you not sub in a QB that can throw the ball into the end zone in a hail mary situation?!? Ryan's injury was obvious, and a hail mary requires very little skill, just the arm strength to make the throw. They may as well have kneeled down on the last play.

Belichek was worse, though. He repeatedly punted on 4th down in Ravens territory, trading a shot at a score for 20 yards of field position. He's usually aggressive, so the ultra-conservative thinking is doubly odd. Also, halftime is the time for adjustments, and post halftime the score was 0-21. Some of that has to fall on the coach. I also blame him for the team wearing hats with pom-poms on them. That's inexcusable!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farsight 

That'd be a great comparison... except that Ray Lewis would be more like a random acquaintance of Mussolini's that helped remove him from power once the writing was on the wall. In which case, yeah, I think we'd all be pretty cool with it.

 

You should really check out the link I posted just above.

Nah, I'm not going to dispute that Lewis was probably only an accessory, at worst. And I realize it was a shaky metaphor, but I just don't like the idea of "well, this person got screwed over so this other guy walking doesn't bother me so much." 

That said, Lewis has been pretty much on the straight and narrow since then ("scared straight" I suppose) but I still dislike the Ravens and Lewis in particular. 

So I didn't see any mention of Brady sliding with his foot up and kicking Ed Reed in the knee.  What the hell, Tom?  He of all people should know messing with someone's knee isn't cool.

The league is reviewing it and he totally deserves a fine.  With all the protecting the QB's get and the fines payed by defenders it's only right he gets called for doing something stupid like that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by wydren 

So I didn't see any mention of Brady sliding with his foot up and kicking Ed Reed in the knee.  What the hell, Tom?  He of all people should know messing with someone's knee isn't cool.

True. They also need to review the helmet-to-helmet rule and start penalizing offensive players that lead with their heads. Lewis took a 15-yard penalty (against Hernandez?) when the receiver lowered his head, leaving nowhere else to hit him. Ridley basically knocked himself out by trying to bull-charge Pollard.

Penalizing the defender is pointless if the offensive guy makes the only choices to hit him in the head or let him score.

And we're still allowed to enjoy hits like Pollard knocking out Ridley, right? I mean, once the guy starts moving, of course. I had just pointed out to my friend that Pollard was a Patriot-killer (Brady, Welker, Gronk - all season-enders for the player and the team) literally seconds before that hit. New England needs to get him on their roster asap!

It was only the fact that it was Pollard that caused me to rage. Yes, Ridley shouldn't have been charging ahead like he did, but to do it against BERNARD FUCKING POLLARD?!?! Raaaaaaaaarrrrgh.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrBananaGrabber 

I'm just going to repost the buttfumble:

 

 

 

 

 

There can never be enough buttfumble.

Somebody needs to make one of those "Thanks, Obama!" gifs outta this. Hilarious

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farsight 

And we're still allowed to enjoy hits like Pollard knocking out Ridley, right? I mean, once the guy starts moving, of course.

Unless this concussion leads to some tragedy, yeah, enjoy the heck out of it.  Again, once he starts moving and you're sure the last steps he takes weren't straight into Pollard.

Someone actually gave Adrian Peterson an orange peanut.

Tim K, Only...Last year.  That was when a rarity happened.  An actual Miami Dolphin...Pro Bowl Wide Receiver happened.  Brandon Marshall first said he got to play with a...Real QB, and he caught...4 Tds, and was named MVP of the game!  Of course he was traded to Chicago, a few months later.

Between the SAG Awards and the Pro Bowl this might be the saddest night of "event" TV in the history of the medium.  Or at least since the last " 'Very special' episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air."

You know it's bad when your best "moments" of the game were a center playing for both teams and Ed Hoculi making a joke that there are, indeed, penalties in the Pro Bowl.

Ray Lewis and deer antler spray?  Sounds like an Old Spice commercial to me.

Photo for the latest cover story on NFL.com made me laugh.

Yeah, I'm immature. Fuck it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bailey 

Ray Lewis and deer antler spray?  Sounds like an Old Spice commercial to me.

Ray Lewis has just crossed over into "Oh, fuck you!" territory.

The greatest trick the Ray Lewis ever pulled was convincing the world he wasn't involved in a murder or use steroids before the Super Bowl.

And like that, he retired.

I'm picturing Satan in Hell, stomping around and yelling at his underlings: "You promised me that the deer-antler spray trick was foolproof! ARGH! How will I ever stop this brave Christian warrior?"

Ray Lewis is a lunatic.

It's just all those blows to the head.  No sports figure can be held accountable.

The Hater's Guide to Ray Lewis - http://deadspin.com/5980173/the-haters-guide-to-ray-lewis 

Because it looks like he's punching that guy in the dick, guys. See?

Guys?

It works on so many levels.

I like how Ray said he was retiring this way for others to properly give him a retirement ceremony. Classy guy, looking out for people like that.

Hope that retirement party doesn't get out of hand. Wouldn't want anyone to have too much to drink. Or get stabbed.

Predictions for the Super Bowl? Or should I wait until the next podcast is out, thereby making with the synergy and the branding and what-not?

Donald Driver retiring - he's been a non-factor the past few yrs, but he's GB's all time leader in yds and tds. 

Still, it's enervating to have to fight the people sitting there going "DRIVER WILL BE IN THE HALL OF FAME!" - yeah, the Packer HoF; NFL HoF, not a chance. 

As far as the SB, no clue. I'd prefer to see SF win because I loathe the Ravens. 

I still can't decide who I want to win, seeing as how I loathe both teams.  Since I don't like either team, I had to choose based on superficial BS.  First it was based on Harbaughs.  I can't stand Jim.  Sure, replacing Smith in the middle of the season worked out for you, but still pretty lame.  John I have no feeling for one way or another, so I was leaning towards the Ravens.  Plus it's Ray Lewis's last season.  I really don't give a rats ass about the whole stabbing thing, so that was a non factor for me.  But then he started up with all the crying and all the God stuff.  Ugh!  So then I started leaning towards the Niners.  Then Ayanbadejo starts saying he is going to use the SB as a platform to express his believe in gay marriage.  Well, okay.  I can support that, I guess.  So leaning back towards the Ravens.  Then Ray Lewis again with his Deer Antler spray, and how it's all just a trick of the devil.  What???  Okay Niners, I'm with you.  Then Culliver has to spout off about how there are no gay players on his team, and there better not be.  They wouldn't be welcome in the (San Francisco!) 49ers locker room.  At this point, I just give up.  I think I may just go find a pizza deliver job and try to make some extra dough (no pun intended) that night. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martianman 

The guys on NFL radio this morning were talking about how Andre Reed shouldn't be in the HOF, so yeah, I doubt Driver will be there.

Just numbers-wise - 743-10137-66 aren't bad (they're almost an exact match for Michael Irvin's career #s, as far as that goes) - they generally place him about 40th-50th on the career list; cobbling together his career highs 92-1295-9 season, which again isn't bad. He was a really good WR in his prime (which was a lengthy 02-09) but never led the league in any category and never was All-Pro, and I'd say he was really only the #1 on his team for maybe 3-4 yrs in his entire career. 

So yeah, good player. Apparently a great person, and a great Green Bay Packer. Nice to see a good guy come out on top, as far as all that goes. 

And, IMO, here's his career-defining play - fighting through tackles for 30 yds to score a td: 

Niners. I don't think the Ravens can stop them defensively. They really didn't stop the Patriots - the Patriots stopped themselves.

I think the Niners are the better team when healthy, but I question how effective the Smith brothers will be in this game.  I also think Flacco is probably more likely to have a good game than Kaepernick. Plus the Akers question mark looms large.  It's probably going to be a close game that just comes down to who gets more breaks.  A real coin flip.

I had forgotten about Akers. Crap. Hopefully he won't be the Scott Norwood of the new millennium.

I think the big factor is Justin Smith's health. If he's close to 100 percent, look out. I keep leaning towards a Niners rout, but I'm always wrong so we'll see.

The only time I'd root for the Gayvens is if they were playing those Satan Worshipping Terrorists in Wisconsin.

Then again, I don't want the Niners to tie us.

Then again, I hate John Harbaugh almost as much as I hate the Packers.

After much thought, I'm rooting 49ers.  It just boils down to wanting to see Ray Lewis lose more than I want to see either team win.  Can you imagine Ray Lewis elbowing everyone out of the way to accept the Lombardi, crying and dancing like a motard?  Yeah, go Niners.

In other non-Ray Lewis related Super Bowl news, this happened. Man, what a moron not only would I suspend him I'd fire him. There is no place for hateful comments like this and "apology" was pathetic. Makes me now want to see the Ravens win especially if they do nothing. Though cheering for a phony glorified televangelist IE-Ray Lewis,  is hard but these comments are utterly repugnant. Also the funny thing is he play for a team that plays in San Francisco which is noted for being extremely gay friendly which is kind of ironic.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/30/chris-culliver-49ers-cornerback-gay-players-not-welcome-in-nfl_n_2584762.html?utm_hp_ref=sports&ir=Sports

Culliver's apology cracked me up, especially this:

Literally "My brain says No, but my heart says Yes!"

Ugh. I'm dreading the closeups of Ray during the national anthem. He cried and wailed during the AFC championship game rendition; I assume this one will feature self-flagellation.

Mangy, I say that the 49ERS will...Strike Gold, Win Super Bowl 47, and we will...Quote The...RAYving RAYven RAY lewis, No More!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martianman 

The guys on NFL radio this morning were talking about how Andre Reed shouldn't be in the HOF, so yeah, I doubt Driver will be there.

Cris Carter's still waiting. So is Tim Brown. The HoF only taking 5 guys per year has created a WR logjam. Driver's got no shot at all until those guys are in.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mangy 

I had forgotten about Akers. Crap. Hopefully he won't be the Scott Norwood of the new millennium.

 

Kickers are pretty unpredictable. I don't recall Norwood's accuracy being a problem until that one kick. Akers has missed a bunch, but they're strangely nearly all just -barely- pushed left. I don't know if that's a good or bad sign, but it at least means he's not mechanically screwed up.

Still, if it comes down to a kick at the end, I may have to punch myself in the gut just to feel better! 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arturo RJ 

In other non-Ray Lewis related Super Bowl news, this happened. Man, what a moron not only would I suspend him I'd fire him. There is no place for hateful comments like this and "apology" was pathetic. 

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/30/chris-culliver-49ers-cornerback-gay-players-not-welcome-in-nfl_n_2584762.html?utm_hp_ref=sports&ir=Sports

Well, the sound bite was from a comedy radio show, so I shrug it off as a mixture of bad humor, youthful stupidity, and "he's a backup corner so why get worked up over it"? He's getting the smackdown he deserves. Now can we just speed up time and get to the game already?!?

My pick: 49ers -3.5... I just don't think the Ravens match up well. Their D struggles against the run, and Lewis' biggest problem this week won't be antler-related (if I were press, I'd be the guy asking, "Feeling hoooorny, Ray?" right before running away). I also have a hard time seeing Flacco challenge Montana for the most perfect postseason. Flacco throws some INTs now and then, it's part of his high-risk-high-reward game. The way Kapernick is running the read option, it looks unstoppable. The way I see it, for Baltimore to win, Flacco AND Lewis have to be the two best players on the field. For the 49ers to win, they just need to avoid huge mistakes and not rely on 5 Akers FGs.