NFL 2013 Off-Season Discussion

[Sheep]

There is a god after all. Hope this means we won't have to see Hester overworking his two brain cells trying to run a route.

PHOENIX — Chicago Bears coach Marc Trestman made it clear Wednesday that Devin Hester is a return specialist only and not a wide receiver.

“Devin is strictly a specialist right now,” Trestman said at a breakfast with the media at the NFL annual meetings.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports...,7513597.story

[tighr]

Potential Pro Bowl Changes

It's been reported that the NFL is considering changes to the Pro Bowl (about damn time). One of the ideas is abandoning the traditional AFC/NFC matchup, and instead allowing "team captains" to select their teams (presumably from the pre-determined roster of Pro Bowlers, and not from the entire NFL). I like the idea, and the NFL should too. It allows them to monetize the game, because they can broadcast the draft and get good press all week as the teams pick their team names/mascots/etc, plus it has the possibility for fan involvement.

I've always wanted to see the skills competition return. That to me is what the Pro Bowl is all about, more than the game. It sucks that it's gone. Gives people a reason to pay attention to the Pro Bowl all week rather than just on the day of the game.

I'd like to see flag football, too. Basketball. Softball/baseball. Let's see these guys be the athletes they are. Plus, if you take off the pads you can actually see the player's faces. Many of the non-QB players are unrecognizable to most fans.

Another good idea would be to scrap the Pro Bowl in favor of a 3rd place game between the losers of the Conference Championship Games. This would be a REAL game with hitting and blitzing.

[SmoothieX]

So long Tuck Rule, you went before your time.

Unless you're a Raiders fan of course.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

chrisspringob wrote:

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The Ravens might not get the traditional Super Bowl Champion Thursday night opener to kick off the season, because of a scheduling conflict with the Orioles

Why should the O's be the ones who have to move? Both they and the White Sox play night games, away, the night before. You can't make them move the very next game to the afternoon. (I believe that actually is a regulation, but please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.) Besides both teams will take a financial hit from lost broadcast revenues if they move.

[Sheep]

Brian Urlacher and the Bears part ways.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...l-not-be-back/

I have to admit I didn't see that one coming. I figured he'd sign for $2.5 or $3m to end his career as a Bear. The guy's lost more than a step or two so I can't see him getting premium money at this point in his career.

I sure hope the Bears have a plan to pick up some LBs...

[Timby]

Mr. Laser Beam wrote:

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Why should the O's be the ones who have to move? Both they and the White Sox play night games, away, the night before. You can't make them move the very next game to the afternoon. (I believe that actually is a regulation, but please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.) Besides both teams will take a financial hit from lost broadcast revenues if they move.

There is absolutely no regulation whatsoever barring the moving of a night game to an afternoon game, even if they played the night before, especially since this would be in September, when the Orioles are likely to be sucking tailpipe.

This is Peter Angelos being a dick, plain and simple (par for the course with him, really), because he knows it's literally impossible for the games to be played at the same time. Steve Bisciotti, the Ravens' owner, has even promised to cover any revenues lost by moving the baseball game to the afternoon, but he isn't getting any traction because, well, Angelos is being Angelos.

Sheep wrote:

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Brian Urlacher and the Bears part ways.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...l-not-be-back/

I have to admit I didn't see that one coming. I figured he'd sign for $2.5 or $3m to end his career as a Bear. The guy's lost more than a step or two so I can't see him getting premium money at this point in his career.

Apparently the Bears' final offer was one year, $2 million, take it or leave it. Urlacher was hoping for at least an option for a second year.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Timby wrote:

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There is absolutely no regulation whatsoever barring the moving of a night game to an afternoon game, even if they played the night before

But both teams are coming off of road trips on that night before. IIRC, there is a regulation which states that a team can't be made to play an afternoon game right after an away evening game, if the distance travelled is above a certain amount (which in this case it would be). Would you expect the O's to be at the top of their game after making that trip? Especially if the previous night's game is delayed?

Timby wrote:

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Steve Bisciotti, the Ravens' owner, has even promised to cover any revenues lost

For both the O's and the White Sox? How right neighborly of him.

[Timby]

Mr. Laser Beam wrote:

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But both teams are coming off of road trips on that night before. IIRC, there is a regulation which states that a team can't be made to play an afternoon game right after an away evening game, if the distance travelled is above a certain amount (which in this case it would be). Would you expect the O's to be at the top of their game after making that trip? Especially if the previous night's game is delayed?

That's baseball for you. And, as I said, highly unlikely to matter, given that the O's are likely to fall back to Earth hard next year.

For both the O's and the White Sox? How right neighborly of him.

I love how you only wander into the NFL thread if a baseball team is involved.

Let's look at the facts here:

1) It is quite literally impossible for games at M&T Bank Stadium and Camden Yards to be played at the same time.
2) For the past eight seasons, with one exception, it's become tradition for the reigning Super Bowl champions to open the season, at home, on Thursday Night Football. Moving the game to Wednesday or Friday is not an option.
3) The Ravens have offered to step up and cover potential lost revenues. And you really don't quite "get" how broadcast revenues are paid out, in that they're handled on a contractual basis. The teams don't make different amounts of money per individual game.

Given these facts, why are the Ravens the bad guys for wanting to open their championship defense in accordance with tradition, in turn mildly inconveniencing one baseball game out of 162?

[Sheep]

Timby wrote:

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Apparently the Bears' final offer was one year, $2 million, take it or leave it. Urlacher was hoping for at least an option for a second year.

According to the Tribune, his agent's initial offer was $11.5m over two years with the goal of negotiating it down to a number everyone could agree on. Split the difference between $2m and $5.75m and it's plainly obvious that they weren't going to agree to terms. Urlacher's saying he would have stayed for as low as $3m which I find very difficult to swallow given the initial offer.

[Scout101]

Timby wrote:

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Let's look at the facts here:

2) For the past eight seasons, with one exception, it's become tradition for the reigning Super Bowl champions to open the season, at home, on Thursday Night Football. Moving the game to Wednesday or Friday is not an option.

Uh, sure it is? As you yourself said, it's only been 'tradition' for 8 years, and they only even followed through with it on 7 of those 8 years. What's 7 out of 9 going to hurt? Not like people won't watch because it's not Thursday night, their bottom line won't be hurt an iota by doing it Wednesday instead.

It's just NFL trying to flex muscles and bump MLB at this point.

Ravens should just be dicks and tell their fans to get there super early to celebrate, and jam the parking lot so the O's can't park there anyway. Then there will be 5k people in there instead of 10k as they play a suck game in September. If the O's aren't 30 games out by then...

[Timby]

Scout101 wrote:

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Uh, sure it is? As you yourself said, it's only been 'tradition' for 8 years, and they only even followed through with it on 7 of those 8 years. What's 7 out of 9 going to hurt? Not like people won't watch because it's not Thursday night, their bottom line won't be hurt an iota by doing it Wednesday instead.

It's just NFL trying to flex muscles and bump MLB at this point.

Ravens should just be dicks and tell their fans to get there super early to celebrate, and jam the parking lot so the O's can't park there anyway. Then there will be 5k people in there instead of 10k as they play a suck game in September. If the O's aren't 30 games out by then...

Wednesday isn't an option because it's the first day of Rosh Hashanah, and the Ravens and NFL refuse to open the season on one of the High Holy Days. Friday isn't an option because the NFL's anti-trust exemption forbids professional football from being played on Fridays, to keep the league from dropping a massive "fuck you" on high school football.

[chrisspringob]

I don't see why it's wrong for the NFL to simply *ask* MLB if they're willing to move the game. It's not like they're strong arming them or anything.

But if they can't have the game on Thursday night, then the best alternative would probably be to schedule NE@Balt on Sunday night, and have a different game open the season on Thursday night. I don't know that there's really any particular advantage to having the Thursday night game. (Though I guess you get more time off before the Week 2 game.)

[Yoda]

The NFL refuses to play on Rosh Hashana? That's silly. They play on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's. Extra stupid because they're not willing to play on the first day of it but have no issues with the second day?

Holidays and baseball are equally useless excuses to try to not play some football

[SmoothieX]

For some obvious reasons, I love this.

[Timby]

Yoda wrote:

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The NFL refuses to play on Rosh Hashana? That's silly. They play on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's. Extra stupid because they're not willing to play on the first day of it but have no issues with the second day?

Holidays and baseball are equally useless excuses to try to not play some football

It's not unheard of. Back in 2009, the Jets successfully petitioned the league to move a game from 4:15 to 1 p.m., because it was the eve of Yom Kippur; as a large portion of the Jets' season ticket holders are Jewish (and even non-observant Jews tend to stay home during Yom Kippur), attendance would have been abysmal.