NFL 2020 Season: We're gonna bite a kneecap off

With pre-season activities already in play and the 2020 Draft coming up (provided it doesn't get postponed), I figured I'd start up a new thread on the topic. We've already seen the new [chuckle] LA Rams logo (I was so close to putting that in air quotes). How are your teams looking? Will COVID-19 mute the NFL the way it's taken over the NBA and NHL?

My Redskins have 2nd pick in Round 1, but I somehow doubt they're going to make a dent in fixing things substantively. Too many missing pieces to plug all the holes. Too much Snyder. 'Nuff said there. Preparing for another mediocre year, and that would be optimistic.

And what of the Pats? There has been some recent drama regarding a conversation Brady had with Belichick about free agency that reportedly "didn't go well". Has New England's heyday finally taken its course? Not looking good for the once-unstoppable juggernaut. Now, the article does say, "Again, this all doesn't mean that Brady is as good as gone from Foxborough. This is how Bill Belichick seemingly operates with every single free agent that has ever even considered putting on a Patriots uniform." While this may be true, Tom Brady is not just any "free agent". He hasn't reached the depths of an Eli Manning flame-out by any stretch and some respect is due him, even begrudgingly so, particularly with his many-ringed Infinity Gauntlet of Thanos permanently welded onto his hand. This seems a curious turn of events.

Any other off-season drama out there or amusing stories about players doing silly things that got caught on camera?

 

Watching HC/GM O'Brine dismantle the Texans is like watching a train wreck, you just have to watch and see what happens next.

 

Well, I'll be dipped in shit! One day after I started this thread with a speculation over Brady's career, I see this first thing in the morning: Tom Brady leaves the Patriots. Talk about the end of an era...

So, is he retiring or going elsewhere? If the latter, who will take him?

 

I guess he isn’t taking his childhood hero Joe Montana’s advice...unless he’s retiring.

I read a couple months back that Montana wished he never went to the Chiefs before retiring

 

Yikes, knew it was possible but didn't believe he'd do it. Needed to think about the replacement anyway, so it's ok from that angle, but disappointing to see him in another jersey. My guess is likely the Chargers, which at least could contend, but it'll be sad if we have to see him getting pummeled in a Bucs uniform because he decided he needed the money or something. No idea which direction the Pats go from here, a couple options left (other than the draft) but not much cap money left to make a ton of moves anyway, which was making the Brady deal harder to pull off anyway.

Plus side, ridiculously amazing 20 year run, and arguably the best to play the game. Was amazing to watch and hard not to take for granted. Hopefully it's more of a Green Bay reboot and not a Miami or Bills 30+ year search for a replacement to get back on top with...

 

I'd like to point out that this is now officially Tom Brady's final pass as a Patriot.





ETA: Man, fuck you NFL being blocking jerks. https://twitter.com/i/status/1213676501293522945

 

Conversely, moving to the Broncos was probably one of the best things that Peyton Manning ever did for his career - earn a second Ring of Power and retire gracefully. Impeccable timing on his part, and he's as beloved in Denver as John Elway now. Always a gamble to move to a new place. Sometime it works (Peyton), sometimes not (Joe). It will be interesting to see how this plays out with Brady now that he's fully available.

 

Definitely got Peyton another ring, but 'gracefully' may be a stretch. the Broncos (and defense in particular) carried his corpse over the finish line, he didn't guide them in under his own power

 

I guess we saw two different Superbowls.

 

If Tom goes anywhere else, we'll get to see how good he really is outside the Belichick world, and vice versa, if the "system" works as well with another QB. I'd guess apart, they'll be good, but not great.

 

I would hope Brady retires. He is clearly in the running for the GOAT and I'm not interested in seeing him in another uniform.

 

Two entirely different seasons, apparently. He was benched for a part of the season for a guy that was later fired from the texans and the browns for sucking, and who was bad enough that he lost his job again to Manning in the playoffs, so there's that gem. Oh, and for the SuperBowl that you saw him light it up in?

13/23, 141 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT, 56.6 rating. Sacked 5 times. Also fumbled the ball twice, coughing it up on one of them.

He was there, and did what was needed to win, sorta, but to argue that that game was anything other than the Broncos' defense having their way with an entitled Cam Newton is sorta silly. Defense had 7 sacks, scored 2 TDs, and hit Cam to the point where he wouldn't even try to get his own fumble towards the end of the game. Von Miller and company wrecked that game, Peyton was also there. He was fine, but without the Broncos' defense going nuts, it would be just another Manning Face game; he didn't carry the team like back in his glory days.

 

It will be interesting to see the Patriots going forward. It is clearly Bill Belichick's team now. It would be interesting to see him roll the dice on someone like Cam Newton.

 

Ew. Not sure what I want to see at this point. Bridgewater would have been good...

maybe if the Jags move on from Foles? Placeholder for whoever they draft, I’d guess

 

Philip Rivers is a Colt, rumored for 1 year, $25 million.

 

Maybe they’ll send Jacoby back if they are done with him, as good a placeholder as any I guess

 

Tom Brady to Tampa Bay...

https://www.profootballrumors.com/2020/03/tom-brady-expected-to-sign-with-buccaneers

 

geez

 

Why? I can understand he wants to still play, but this stinks of money grab. It isn't for glory because Tampa is a perpetual .500 team and no amount of Brady is going to drag them any closer to be a contender. In fact, it's an unfortunate asterisk at the end of a career where he had done all there was to do.