MichiganCardinal

Feels like the AFC race is being reduced to who will be the last team with 11 healthy players

I haven't seen a good replay on the first one they called in OT, but the placement of the ball after the foul indicates it came earlier in the route than all of the replays showed. And the asinine roughing the passer that happened on the same play made it effectively a two-yard penalty on top of that 15. But the second one, he did gain separation. He was like two yards from the defender on the route. He slowed down a little to attempt the catch and that's when the DB gained ground and swiped, making early contact with the arms of the receiver. It would be a good call in the 1st quarter, and ideally they shouldn't have different standards for OT. If anything needs to be changed, it's the yardage. Make it a 15-yard penalty. Maybe add discretion to make it a spot foul for an intentional foul that clearly prevents a score. There's nothing inordinate about DPI that needs to make it a spot foul and effectively award points. Assuming the catch would be made is a stretch on a lot of these. They can be fouls without being 30-yard fouls. Especially when on the other hand an OPI is a mere 10-yard penalty. Bills have no one to blame but themselves.

Another year, another Bills collapse. I’m not sure it’ll happen in this regime. They can’t string them together in January, no matter what.

It's definitely what he's most remembered for. That's NFL infamy and was the most memorable moment of that season. But I don't think one moment as a backup QB would keep you from being a coach 15-20 years later.

This is the one that fills the room with pollen no matter how many times I see it.

I think if he wanted a job coaching he would have one. I think he’s just happier on television and spending every night at home with his kids. I don’t think anyone seriously holds that moment from nearly 20 years ago against him. He has an autistic son, Madden, who’s an amazing dude. He’s been on TV with his dad before. Really heartwarming stuff.

Orlovsky has a sharp football mind. The whole Orlovsky for OC thing is a joke that started on the McAfee Show but I’d give him an analyst or assistant to the assistant role. He probably makes more on television.

He had probably the worst center in football this season and still put up one of the best seasons in his career. I’m not sure this tracks.

When your own team says they’re not considering you to be the head coach after the old head coach steps down, you’re not “in the mix for multiple HC jobs” Nice agent fodder though. I think he’d probably be an okay OC here, but the Steelers haven’t been lighting it up on offense.

If you Google John Morton right now this is what you get:

Interviewing Zac Robinson on Thursday. Does anyone with a better memory than me remember if we cast this wide of a net before hiring Morton? It feels like no, but I probably wasn’t paying as close attention.

If he gets the offer he would be stupid not to take it.

Thanks for the fix. And I agree. Freeman would be dumb not to take it. Though the Steelers need a full blow up and rebuild. I think their fans know it and their front office knows it, but being theoretically 3-14 is a lot easier than actually going 3-14.

When the Steelers hire Tomlin and the Irish offer Cignetti $100MM.... does he accept?

He's only 54. I think he'll take a year to talk at a camera for $10MM. He'll be back when the Bengals, Packers, Eagles, or Chiefs offer him the job.

Coaching Carousel Predictions 2.0: The AFC North Doesn't Need Coaches Pittsburgh Steelers: Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame HC Baltimore Ravens: Jesse Minter, Chargers DC Las Vegas Raiders: Chris Shula, Rams DC Tennessee Titans: Mike LaFleur, Rams OC Miami Dolphins: John Harbaugh, former Ravens HC New York Giants: Davis Webb, Broncos QB Coach Atlanta Falcons: Kevin Stefanski, former Browns HC Cleveland Browns: Kliff Kingsbury, former Commanders OC Arizona Cardinals: Klint Kubiak, Seahawks OC Brian Dabboll: Baltimore Ravens OC Pete Carroll: USC Trojans Special Advisor Brian Callahan: Cincinnati Bengals Offensive Analyst Mike McDaniel: Detroit Lions OC Raheem Morris: Washington Commanders DC Jonathan Gannon: New York Giants DC Mike Tomlin: Amazon Prime Thursday Night Football Talking Head

Some more competition for the top OC candidates. Though I hear Sherrone Moore is unemployed.

Too early to tell really. In 2024, the first defensive player off the board wasn't until 1.15. There are both high quality defensive and offensive linemen in the draft. I would expect one of them to be there at 1.17.

Faulk would be an excellent cultural and schematic fit. He's everything Josh Paschal was supposed to be and then some. Faulk is an absolute monster in stuffing the run and is one of the hardest workers you will find in the college game. On paper a starting defensive front of Hutch-McNeill-Williams-Faulk should realistically develop into the best run defense in the league. I would venture to say that he has more pass rushing chops than his stats would suggest. Auburn lined him up as a 2-gap in a 3-4 base, between the guard and tackle, and allowed him to just feast on the run. Which is great, unless you're an edge rusher looking for millions of dollars in first round money and need sacks to do so. In an NFL nickel base defense, I wouldn't expect him to jump off the page in 2026 with sack numbers, but I think he could develop into a guy that by 2027 or 2028 can also line up on the edge on 3rd and long and win a one-on-one against a tackle, getting after the QB. As it is though, he's more of a IDLman that will collapse the pocket on the interior.

Lions were the first team to be fined for violating the rule when they hired Mariucci. The Lions defense was that they contacted black coaches but they declined an interview because it was obvious the Lions wanted Mariucci. Because Matt Millen was a ****ing joke.

Divisional Round Saturday 4:30pm: Bills -1 @ Broncos Saturday 8:00pm: 49ers +7.5 @ Seahawks Sunday 3:00pm: Texans +2.5 @ Patriots Sunday 6:30pm: Rams -4 @ Bears Bills getting a point on the road in Mile High against the 1-seed tells you everything is up for grabs this year. I like the 49ers to cover too, they aren't going to roll over and die, and Darnold needs to not turn into a January pumpkin. Speaking of pumpkins, I think the clock has struck midnight in Chicago. Bills over Broncos, 27-24 Seahawks over 49ers, 20-14 Texans over Patriots, 17-9 Rams over Bears, 38-20

This was pretty good. 5/6 and the one I missed was an all-time choke job.

Blough was a career backup QB. Three teams had already paid him a total of over $6.5MM to not play football on Sundays. He basically built a career as an NFL scout team QB and then leveraged that knowledge into coaching. He was no stranger to coaching when he ditched the helmet for a baseball cap. Coaches are always free to decline interviews if they don't feel they are going to get a fair shot. Glenn declined an interview with the Patriots. The Patriots last year were a decent example of how it should not be used, they interviewed Byron Leftwich and Pep Hamilton, before hiring Mike Vrabel. Back in the day Mel Tucker (lol) declined an interview with the Jaguars.

If anyone is curious, the yearly letter to season ticket holders from Sheila Hamp: Dear LLM’s, I want to start by thanking you for your commitment to our team and the support you show throughout the season. I am always blown away by the energy you create inside Ford Field and the advantage you give our team every time we run out of the tunnel. I also want to acknowledge that our results on the field this season were not what any of us envisioned and frankly, were not good enough. While we do not believe it is a time for drastic change, this is an opportunity for us to refocus, evolve, and move forward. I am proud of the roster we have built and the 36 wins we have accumulated over the last three seasons. That success doesn’t happen by accident, but it also does not guarantee future success. It is incumbent upon us to continue growing toward our ultimate goal of bringing a championship to all of you and the city of Detroit. I can assure you that we are committed to looking at everything we do to ensure we are performing at the highest level. Through conversations with Rod, Brad and Dan, we are all aligned with this thinking and have already started meetings to address how we move forward. We are excited for what 2026 will bring and some of the new elements we will introduce for all of you, our most loyal fans. Thank you again for your commitment. Go Lions! Sheila Hamp

Aaron Glenn was getting interviews with the Broncos after the terrible 2021 season. He probably wasn't a serious candidate then, but by 2024 he had developed into one, both on the field and in the interview, and the Jets hired him. Now look at Kelvin Sheppard getting an interview this cycle. By 2027 or 2028, maybe he's the next Jets head coach (lol). Your objective standard can't be Peter Griffin's border crossing skin color chart. You're going to have some rare weird results, like McDaniel. But if their goal is getting minorities more opportunities it's hard not to see the rule as a success.