MichiganCardinal

If M can do it again against Ohio State, we all might be in for a very interesting 2023 B1G Championship game.

I've made the comp before but I still see a lot of Kansas City Alex Smith in Jared Goff. The Chiefs blew it up in 2012 after going 2-14. They fired everyone and brought in Dorsey and Andy Reid. They had the #1 pick in 2013, but rather than doing the stereotypical thing of picking the top QB available (though there wasn't a consensus #1, this was the weird year where EJ Manual was the only QB taken in the 1st Round), they signed Alex Smith in free agency and took Eric Fisher at #1, the best tackle available. They had Smith for five years, and went 53-27 in that stretch, making the playoffs four times and finishing above 0.500 each season. I think if the stars aligned, they could have made a Super Bowl run with Smith, and it sure didn't seem like they were in any hurry to ditch him. After the 4th year though, the stars aligned in a different way, where a QB they had scouted as being pretty dang good fell to a spot where they could trade up and get him. That decision worked out pretty well, as Smith started for one more season, then Mahomes took his place and took them to the next level. I think a lot of the controversy with Goff amongst fans is the optics surrounding how he came to Detroit. He was shipped out of LA along with significant draft capital, and the season after they replaced him LA won a Super Bowl while Goff struggled on a 3-13-1 team. That screams "he's no good", regardless of whether it's true or not. It's not. Far more went into Goff's lack of success in LA in the later years and Stafford's immediate success in LA than meets the eye of that trade. And I think if Goff had been signed in free agency rather than kicked out of the last place he was at, a certain contingent of people (I'm not directing this at anyone here) would have a little bit different view of him.

A third matchup would be next year FWIW. I agree that I wouldn't like our prospects against them this year.

It took Ohio State three tries before they finally beat Clemson during their run. Could well be the same case for Michigan taking on Georgia. Jim has built this team to beat Ohio State and succeeded. Now he needs to adapt it to beat the SEC, which is a whole new beast.

In making this thread, I learned that the TCU logo has gotten objectively more lame over time. I chose a cool one since I make the rules dammit. That 1977-1994 logo looks like it should be for Texas Credit Union.

I think it's a very stereotypical Michigan game for this year. They get off to a slow start, TCU goes up by two scores at some point in the first half, Michigan is down at the half, and completely dominates the second half. I think their margin of victory depends on how poorly they play in the first half. If they're down 3, or find themselves up at the half, I think they win by double digits. If they are down double digits at the half, I still think they probably pull out a win, but there might be a little sweat involved. Max Duggan is no joke. That kid showed some Dan Campbell esque GRIT in the Big 12 Championship. I've never seen a kid just completely lay it all on the line and put a team on his back like he did on the drive where TCU tied it. I will say that I think Ohio State vs. Georgia could shape up to be a phenomenal game. I think Michigan made Ohio State look a lot worse than they actually are in the second half, and I think that Ohio State's offensive firepower could test the Georgia defense in ways they haven't been tested this year. The Georgia offense is a better matchup for them than the Michigan offense was too.... Or I could be wrong and Georgia will roll them. Either way, I'l be entertained.

vs. Setting: 12/31/2022 4:00pm EST on ESPN Site: State Farm Stadium in Glendale, AZ Weather: Retractable Roof Opening Spread: Michigan -7.5 All-Time Series Record: First Ever Matchup #3 TCU Horned Frogs Head Coach: Sonny Dykes (13th Season: 83-64, 1-3 in Bowl Games) Projected Starting QB: Max Duggan (Senior: 24-17) Big 12 Championship: 31-28 L (OT) v. #9 Kansas State Wildcats (10-3) #2 Michigan Wolverines (13-0) Head Coach: Jim Harbaugh (15th Season: 74-24, 2-6 in Bowl Games) Projected Starting QB: JJ McCarthy (Sophomore: 12-0) B1G Championship: 43-22 W v. Purdue Boilermakers (8-5) College Football Playoff History

Fair enough. If White was healthy and Wilson's teammates liked him, they probably would release Flacco.

I'm surprised they don't just release Flacco at this point. Former ROTY, Super Bowl MVP, to 3rd string QB behind Mike White and Zach Wilson.

I think criticizing a QB for their age in the draft is silly. If they’re good they’re good, who cares how old they are? If I have a QB for ten years, they probably turned out to be pretty good. Whether they’re 31 or 35 after those ten years. If anything, it should meant you get them in their prime on a team friendly rookie contract. That said I wouldn’t consider Hooker until at least the 3rd or 4th round because of his injury. He could be a steal in the right situation though.

Pretty much everyone did. No one saw Russ falling off a cliff like this. Their defense is good enough to lead even an average QB to the Super Bowl, but he's been bottom five in the league.

That was beautiful. I believe half of what he says, but it's comedic gold and I love this man (when we are winning).

I really doubt he runs it back again. If he was going to do it though, that's the place to go. He'll be 46, and while I'm never one to doubt him, there have been signs of him actually being a human this year. Through 13 games he's on pace to throw for the fewest number of TDs since 2001.

Funny to look back. Looking like I'm going to land in the ballpark on 15 (Bills, Patriots, Bengals, Ravens, Steelers, Browns, Titans, Jaguars, Texans, Chiefs, Eagles, Lions, Bears, Saints, and 49ers)... off by a fair bit on 8 (Jets, Dolphins, Chargers, Cowboys, Commanders, Bucs, Falcons, and Cardinals)... and nowhere close on 9 (Colts, Broncos, Raiders, Giants, Packers, Vikings, Panthers, Rams, and Seahawks) 9-8 and a playoff win is still on the table though, that's what really matters.

If I had to guess, Arizona ownership probably decided to fire both Keim and Kingsbury after they lost by 28 to the 49ers a few weeks ago, but didn't want to go through the trouble of naming an interim coach with a patchwork front office with just six weeks left. They went 4-8 with Kyler and Kliff this year and he's gone 5-13 since week 14 last year... I think that's enough sample size.

They had a really good GM in Rick Smith and a decent HC in Bill O'Brien, but no institutional control. The inmates started running the asylum and the McNairs were clueless as to how to handle it. They ended up handing the keys to the egomaniac O'Brien, fired Smith while his wife was dying of cancer, and then watched as BOB completely dismantled everything Smith had built. Smith probably deserves some of the blame for what transpired, but I'm surprised he hasn't gotten another shot somewhere.

Yeah but you forgot that they're Houston. They'll mess it up and take Quinn Ewers at #1 overall because #TexasRoots

Hot Seat / Replacement Predictions 1. Panthers: Matt Rhule (already out) / Steve Wilks (Panthers Interim HC) 2. Colts: Frank Reich (already out) / Dan Quinn (Cowboys DC) 3. Cardinals: Kliff Kingsbury (fired on Black Monday) / DeMeco Ryan (49ers DC) 4. Broncos: Nate Hackett (fired on Black Monday) / Eric Bienemy (Chiefs OC) 5. Chargers: Brandon Staley (fired after wildcard exit) / Sean Payton (FOX) 6. Texans: Lovie Smith ("retires") / Kellen Moore (Cowboys OC) 7. Rams: Sean McVay (retires) / Raheem Morris (Rams DC) 8. Patriots: Bill Belichick (retires) / Jerod Mayo (Patriots LB Coach) I think Bowles gets a second year as Brady retires and the team enters a rebuild. Josh McDaniels gets a second year too even though he doesn't deserve it.

It makes two teams in the B1G West worse, which is starting to kind of get impressive in a sad sort of way. Just wait until next year when Minnesota goes 0-3 against their noncon schedule of Eastern Michigan, UNC, and Louisiana-Lafayette, goes 5-4 in conference play, wins a tiebreaker, and makes the B1G Championship at 5-7.

I can remember listening to quirky Mike Leach interviews when he was at Texas Tech. I thought he was the coolest dude ever then, and it might be because he was. I remember his exodus from Texas Tech and thinking it was a load of BS, and sure enough it was (even though his lawsuits never went anywhere that whole thing was a total sham orchestrated by Texas Tech admin and ESPN - even the kid said as much). Texas Tech went 84-43 in a stacked Big 12 with Mike Leach. They've gone 78-82 since. They deserve to lose from here to eternity for how they treated him. It worked out for the PAC-12 though, because he brought wonders of personality to Washington State in a time when the PAC-12 desperately needed it. I think he helped that entire conference maintain relevancy in a time when they were doing everything they could to lose it. He passed with winning records at all three of the schools he coached at, in three difference conferences. That's no easy task. If you could embody the best kind of dad - full of all the dad jokes, smarts, love, and charisma, and make them a damn good football coach, you'd have Mike Leach. In a world full of Urban Meyers, be a Mike Leach. Rest easy, Pirate.

I think both get interviews but neither gets a job. It’s hard to get hired in this league.

I saw some of those sacks Mike White took and was surprised they weren’t carting him to the locker room in two pieces. He’s got to have some broken ribs at the very least.

Agreed... I think he sees Goff as a QB that - while not Mahomes - can take the Lions to heights we haven't been since at least 1991. I don't think that necessarily forecloses the possibility that they still take a QB who falls and they see as the next Mahomes. Just that they won't feel forced into that at any point.

Hoping it’s not as bad as it appears right now. Mike Leach is one of my favorite personalities in sports.

There are only five teams in the NFC, and 12 in the NFL, with a positive point differential. Lions joined that club today.