The Weird, Wacky and Awesome World of the NFL - General Banter thread V2

krustydoyle wrote: »

Broncos just named Osweiler as their new starting QB

Well, well well. How the turntables...

Knex. wrote: »

https://twitter.com/PatMcAfeeShow/status/925686629188038657

This is brilliant. Laughed the whole way through it. McAfee seems like a great dude, love to have a pint with him.

The Reservoir Dubs Anchorman wrote: »

This is brilliant. Laughed the whole way through it. McAfee seems like a great dude, love to have a pint with him.

if you get the chance his show uncaged is on youtube, he is a natural comedian

The Reservoir Dubs Anchorman wrote: »

Not sure I understand your statement. Siemian has been absolutely terrible in the last few games. Bringing in Brock makes some sense. He knows the offence and can definitely game manage better than Siemian.

I'm talking about how they have dealt with the QB since the latter days of Manning's career. Elway doesn't get close to as much crap as he should for wasting such a good D because they haven't been able to field a close to average level QB.

Foxtrol wrote: »

krustydoyle wrote: »

Broncos just named Osweiler as their new starting QB

Trying to challenge the Browns for the title of shambolic QB handling. Will obviously take them a few more years to get there

I dunno, the Texans have been doing a pretty amazing job on that front the last few years, I don't think the current form of Watson should let us forget that.

The Reservoir Dubs Anchorman wrote: »

So one season and Elway should be getting ****?

He clearly wanted Osweiler but wasnt going to pay what houston paid. He ended up in a situation that he got Osweiler on terms he could live with and has Siemian and Paxton Lynch.

I really dont get what your at comparing it to the conveyor belt of nothingness in Cleveland.

Saying he wasn't going to pay what Houston paid attempts to make it out that he valued him at a low rate when Elway actually offered Osweiler $16.5m a year with $30m guaranteed. Elway was is lucky that Houston was more inept and yet you appear to be giving him plaudits for it.

I'm sure you'll also try to twist into a positive the trading up to draft Lynch in the first round when he hasn't shown anything yet that he deserved to be drafted that high (couldn't beat out the dire Siemian in camp this year).

If the Browns did either of those things they'd be ridiculed for it (though the Browns being the Browns they wouldn't have had the luck of a team taking the bullet for them).

The Reservoir Dubs Anchorman wrote: »

Was Lynch not brought in as a project? I'm not a Bronco's fan so I cant say I know enough about Lynch. Siemian looked decent early this season but his ceiling is low and he has tanked the last few games. Osweiler did well enough to get them to the playoffs when Manning was injured and managed the games just fine.

I just don't see how you could compare the Bronco's to the Browns, seems a real stretch at best. I do agree on one thing though the Bronco's should be making use of that defence when they have it.

How wise is trading up into the first (giving a 3rd) for a long term project when you don't have even an average QB? Presumably they must have thought Siemian would at least be a passable QB but after a year a project that you take in the first should be beating out that level QB.

I clarified that it would take them a few more years to challenge the Browns but looking at evidence I don't see how you can say they aren't trending that way. They have:
- Misjudged on Osweiler - offering him $16.5m, $30m guaranteed
- Misjudged on Siemian - thinking he would be an adequate starter to compete (missed the playoffs)
- Misjudged on Lynch - couldn't beat out a dire Siemian
- Misjudged during the 2017 offseason - did nothing to improve the QB situation until late bringing in of Osweiler who couldn't make the Browns team
- Misjudged Manning's quick decline (this one is probably harsh as they managed to still win a SB but it was more at times in spite of rather than because of)

Foxtrol wrote: »

How wise is trading up into the first (giving a 3rd) for a long term project when you don't have even an average QB? Presumably they must have thought Siemian would at least be a passable QB but after a year a project that you take in the first should be beating out that level QB.

I clarified that it would take them a few more years to challenge the Browns but looking at evidence I don't see how you can say they aren't trending that way. They have:
- Misjudged on Osweiler - offering him $16.5m, $30m guaranteed
- Misjudged on Siemian - thinking he would be an adequate starter to compete (missed the playoffs)
- Misjudged on Lynch - couldn't beat out a dire Siemian
- Misjudged during the 2017 offseason - did nothing to improve the QB situation until late bringing in of Osweiler who couldn't make the Browns team
- Misjudged Manning's quick decline (this one is probably harsh as they managed to still win a SB but it was more at times in spite of rather than because of)

Foxtrol - you are putting the emphasis for the issues the Broncos have in the wrong place - the problem is not the QB (although that is an issue) - the problem is that Elway has not sorted out the OL. Elway is one of the better GMs in the NFL - and he has shown that over the past six years. Like all GMs he makes mistakes and some of those have been magnified this year.

Did Elway misjudge by offering Osweiler so much money - possibly - but there is no way to know how Osweiler would have performed last year if he had stayed with the Broncos. Osweiler did a reasonable job when subbing for Manning in 2015 and might have been okay if he stayed. Going to Houston was probably the worst place for him. With hindsight Elway dodged a bullet and he knows it.

Did Elway misjudge Siemian - not the problem - he misjudged Osweiler because he didn't for one moment think Osweiler would jump ship - he had no option as a result.

Elway did reach for Lynch - and that was a result of his mess up the previous year. Few Broncos fans ever had any faith in Lynch - and he most definitely was a project. Elway appeared to have a blind spot about this.

Part of the problem is that there are very few good QBs in the NFL - this is not crucial for the Broncos because it has an elite defence - all the Broncos need is a QB that will not dig too deep a hole for the defence.

But the big problem is Elway's repeated failure to address the inadequacies on the OL. If the OL gave the QB a bit of protection (as it did a couple of times this season) then Siemian would not have been in panic mode. Furthermore Elway has wasted $15million between Stephenson and Watson and still has a turnstile at RT. This has resulted in another dunce at OG in Garcia because he is cheap. Defences are now stacking the box to stop the run and just pinning their ears back and hammering the QB.

Elway has built an elite defence - and kept it elite for several years now. And the most important players on the defence are all signed to long-term contracts. If he sorts out the OL then the Broncos will be competitive.

What has come out of all of this is that the standing of Kubiak has grown enormously. In 2015 he coached the team to a SB win that the Broncos should not have won given how Manning's performance fell off a cliff. But what was more remarkable in my opinion - was how Kubiak managed to keep the Broncos competitive in every game last season despite being bereft of talent on the offence. Kubiak had a worse OL, worse TEs, worse RBsand worse WRs than the offence this season - yet was able to getting them performing much better - and protected Siemian for the most part.

Osweiler will play the next two games - Eagles and Pats - then Lynch will come in for the rest of the season to see if the lightbulb goes on and he proves everyone wrong. Everything I have seen so far suggests that Lynch does not have the smarts to be an NFL QB - but I would be thrilled to be proven wrong.

The way things are going now the Broncos will have a high first round pick next year - but will not have enough to get one of the top QBs in next year's draft. I hope that Elway finds a RT and an OG in the draft that can step in an be even average as OLmen. I am not optimistic as Elway has been poor at drafting players - interestingly his best draft was last year when Kubiak, Phillips and Dennison had the time to prepare properly - and hopefully having Kubiak responsible for evaluating players will lead to a much better draft next year because Joseph's first draft looks like it completely sucks.

As for QB - I am holding out hope that Chad Kelly is half as good as his uncle - if he is then he will be good enough to help the Broncos be competitive with the defence we have - Kelly certainly has the talent, the question mark over him is whether he actually wants to play football or just act the eejit. Many Broncos fans think that Elway will make a move for Tyrod Taylor but I think he blew that one last year when he had a chance to get him.

Last point - and this is the biggest criticism I have of Elway - when he took over as GM he cleared out all the rubbish from the McDisaster era - with the exception of one - Matt Russell - and why nobody knows. Russell came in as a yes man for McDisaster and since then has turned personnel evaluation meetings into boozing sessions, has done a sh*te job of advising Elway during the draft and persuaded Elway to hire his frat buddy as HC - and Joseph is looking like a bigger headless chicken than Siemian at the moment. If Elway wants to start addressing the issues the Broncos have then sacking Matt Russell would be top of my list - and I would be happy to see Joseph follow him out the door.

Now - despite all of this - the Broncos still have an elite defence - still have talent on offence (Thomas, Sanders, Leary, Paradis, Bolles, Brooker, Janovich). Fix the OL and have a QB that doesn't panic and the Broncos will be competitive. However, Elway will have to fix it through the draft because he doesn't have the cap space to do anything in FA (thanks to wasting $20million on two duds at RT and making a mess on CJ Anderson's tender two years ago) - time will tell if he is capable of doing it.

I hadn't heard a thing about it so I found it interesting

Id like gordon to make it back to be honest, he seems to of copped himself on, which i guess he can thank the league for. If he does get his way back ill be rooting for him

kmart6 wrote: »

Colts have bit the bullet and put Luck on IR.

Thank jaysus. It was obvious he wasn't getting nearer to coming back so it's the right call.