Is the regular season now just mostly or completely meaningless? (1 Viewer)

[Dentist]

1) i like baltimore 2) i was rooting for baltimore2 years running now we've had some pretty deeply flawed champions of the post-season 1-off tournament.Last year a 9-7 team that really just got hot at the right time and rode the momentum to the championship... somewhat similar to their 2007 performance, but this particular version was even less impressive.This year we had a 10-6 team that:1) actually didn't have momentum (lost 4 of their last 5)2) only beat the hapless chiefs by 3 points, needed overtime to beat a poor san diego team, and lost to a bad philadelphia team... and had gotten pwned by Denver and Houston previously.. in fact one of their only good wins was early against new england.Then they needed a fluke play to beat what was probably the best team in the AFC and barely survived against a 49ers team that went 0-1-1 vs. the St. Louis Rams?These last 2 champions were unimpressive in almost every way.There was absolutely no indication in ANY game in the regular season that Baltimore was a legit contender.Are we done seeing dominant teams win titles like in the 80's and 90's?Has the erosion of home field advantage made it so that truly you just need to qualify for the playoffs.. is home field advantage worth much?It's just gotten to the point where I don't know what to believe anymore... you'd think the games would be a way to gauge teams... an audition of sorts to sort out the good from the bad.But either my eyes now deceive me, or the game has just changed.What say you?

 

[Runningman]

Regular Season play is a grind and the playoffs seem to be a sprint. The Giants for instance are fearsome in the playoffs becasue they can generate an awesome pass rush. Sustaining that for 16 games is hard. Focusing on a three or four game run is easier mentally and physically I think. Mixed in with talent dilution from free againcy and salary cap and I think we get what we saw, which I guess is a change in the game.

 

[Insein]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

 

[bicycle_seat_sniffer]

I say regardless of sport, Dentist whines about the champion if they are not the best regular season team

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Are we done seeing dominant teams win titles like in the 80's and 90's?

I understand the sentiment and there was something special about having dominant teams and "knowing" year in and year out who would be there at the end, but I don't think the current situation is bad at all.During the 80s and 90s we saw mostly terrible Super Bowls. Since 2000 we've seen mostlt GREAT Super Bowls. Will the Baltimore Ravens be mentioned in the same breath as the 70s Steelers, 80s Niners or 90s Cowboys? No, but it's fun to not know who is going to win each year as well. It makes the whole tourney that much more exciting and the final matchups much better.

 

[roadkill1292]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

The Eagles beat the Ravens in Week 2.

 

[shader]

I think that the NFL post-season shows exactly why we don't need to extend the playoffs. In football, anything can truly happen because it's one game. It's just like if instead of a 7 game series, basketball was just one game per week. Can you imagine the pressure, and the upsets?I realize football is completely different, but in reality the story is the same. In one game, too many things can happen.Then you factor in the injuries, and you realize that record is pretty irrelevant. Who the best team was in the first 8 games of the year doesn't have much of an impact on the team that is the best once the playoffs roll around.The struggle to make the playoffs is the real battle. Once you get there, anything can happen.

 

[roadkill1292]

The answer to Dentist's question is that the salary cap makes it all a crapshoot. And that effing un-American draft helps eliminate what few advantages the better franchises have in managing things. The 12 teams which make it to the playoffs are separated in quality by a painfully thin margin and any of them can win three or four games, even against the best of the league. When it's this close, luck will play a larger role than ever.

 

[Dentist]

I think that the NFL post-season shows exactly why we don't need to extend the playoffs.

definitely agree with this... or the regular season for that matter

 

[Dentist]

The answer to Dentist's question is that the salary cap makes it all a crapshoot. And that effing un-American draft helps eliminate what few advantages the better franchises have in managing things. The 12 teams which make it to the playoffs are separated in quality by a painfully thin margin and any of them can win three or four games, even against the best of the league. When it's this close, luck will play a larger role than ever.

can't argue with this.

 

[Runningman]

If I were building a modern NFL team I would concentrate on pass rush and big play offensive ability. Just get me to the playoffs and I will roll with it. Take the Broncos, decent big play ability but the pass rush depends on two under sized pass rushers. Once those two got stonewalled there wasn't any body to pick up the pace. Result shooting match they lost by a hair.

 

[Dentist]

I say regardless of sport, Dentist whines about the champion if they are not the best regular season team

look i realize i've made this argument a lot... but even as i watched atlanta and houston play, i never felt like they were as good as their record.Teams in the past that were 13-3 were damn good teams... very solid. No question Atlanta and Houston are talented, but at no point did they instill any sense of great play or dominance in me when i watched.the 2007 Pats and 2011 Packers were truly dominant regular season teams... when i watched those teams play they passed the eyeball test of truly great teams... and both of them got edged by the fluky Giants.I don't know what to believe anymore... it feels like the regular season is without value

 

[roadkill1292]

the 2007 Pats and 2011 Packers were truly dominant regular season teams... when i watched those teams play they passed the eyeball test of truly great teams... and both of them got edged by the fluky Giants.

I don't know what to believe anymore... it feels like the regular season is without value

They weren't all that. Nobody is anymore.

 

[Dentist]

the 2007 Pats and 2011 Packers were truly dominant regular season teams... when i watched those teams play they passed the eyeball test of truly great teams... and both of them got edged by the fluky Giants.

I don't know what to believe anymore... it feels like the regular season is without value

They weren't all that. Nobody is anymore.

no they really were.. if your record in covering the spread is like 13-3 or better then you're killer.I don't think i've seen football played at a much higher level than i saw played by the pats in several of their games in 2007... completely dismantling teams at every facet of the game.

they were one helmet catch away from being considered without question the best team of all-time, and Brady the GOAT.

 

[bicycle_seat_sniffer]

I say regardless of sport, Dentist whines about the champion if they are not the best regular season team

look i realize i've made this argument a lot... but even as i watched atlanta and houston play, i never felt like they were as good as their record.Teams in the past that were 13-3 were damn good teams... very solid. No question Atlanta and Houston are talented, but at no point did they instill any sense of great play or dominance in me when i watched.the 2007 Pats and 2011 Packers were truly dominant regular season teams... when i watched those teams play they passed the eyeball test of truly great teams... and both of them got edged by the fluky Giants.I don't know what to believe anymore... it feels like the regular season is without value

NFL wise I think its way better for the fan, and the superbowls are better too. SF domianting the 80's and Dallas smashing the early 90's is even as great as the pats run was, they barely won their SB's. free-agency and salary cap is the way it is now. Heck I think the NFC has had 12 different teams make the superbowl the past 14 seasons. Awesome if you ask me

 

[GregR]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

The Eagles beat the Ravens in Week 2.

He stated it wrong. The last 4 SB winners each played the Eagles in the Eagles home opener the year they won their title. Played, not necessarily beat.

 

[Black]

The way it seems to go, the following seems more important than ever:1. team depth2. health of players (late season)3. conditioning (age of players?)4. players held in reserve until late in the season/playoffs (think what NE has done with RBs in years past, and what SF did with LaMichael James, BAL with Ber Pierce this year)

 

[roadkill1292]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

The Eagles beat the Ravens in Week 2.

He stated it wrong. The last 4 SB winners each played the Eagles in the Eagles home opener the year they won their title. Played, not necessarily beat.

Sorry, didn't mean to pick nits.

 

[BobbyLayne]

I say regardless of sport, Dentist whines about the champion if they are not the best regular season team

look i realize i've made this argument a lot... but even as i watched atlanta and houston play, i never felt like they were as good as their record.Teams in the past that were 13-3 were damn good teams... very solid. No question Atlanta and Houston are talented, but at no point did they instill any sense of great play or dominance in me when i watched.the 2007 Pats and 2011 Packers were truly dominant regular season teams... when i watched those teams play they passed the eyeball test of truly great teams... and both of them got edged by the fluky Giants.I don't know what to believe anymore... it feels like the regular season is without value

NFL wise I think its way better for the fan, and the superbowls are better too. SF domianting the 80's and Dallas smashing the early 90's is even as great as the pats run was, they barely won their SB's. free-agency and salary cap is the way it is now. Heck I think the NFC has had 12 different teams make the superbowl the past 14 seasons. Awesome if you ask me

All I know is it's become common to have a good Super Bowl now. Out of the first X, there was maybe 1 great game, not more than 5 good to great games out of the first XXX. Since the Cowboy 3 out of 4 run ended, the majority of the SBs since have been decent games.They're doing something right.

 

[Insein]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

The Eagles beat the Ravens in Week 2.

Reverse that. Eagles played the last 4 Super Bowl Champions in their home opener. My mistake.

 

[Ghost Rider]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

 

[roadkill1292]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

The Eagles beat the Ravens in Week 2.

Reverse that. Eagles played the last 4 Super Bowl Champions in their home opener. My mistake.

We all make 'em. In any event, it is indeed a remarkable coincidence.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

The Eagles beat the Ravens in Week 2.

Reverse that. Eagles played the last 4 Super Bowl Champions in their home opener. My mistake.

We all make 'em. In any event, it is indeed a remarkable coincidence.

When does the final schedule come out? Here are the possibleshiladelphia Eagles Schedule 2013 Home: Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Detroit Lions, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals

 

[Dentist]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

The playoffs and superbowl are a very small part of the season.... important parts of the season no doubt.BUT if I the viewer begin to feel like watching the regular season is a waste of time because the games aren't really doing that much to shape the outcome of the season (magnify this if they increase the number of teams in the playoffs) then the product is severely diluted.Now the MLB and NBA already have diluted regular seasons that need to be shortened so maybe the NFL sees those other leagues and doesn't figure it to be a problem... they have fantasy football to boost regular season viewership.But if you took out fantasy football I'm not why i'd watch the first few months of the season... it's not going to give me any type of indication of who's actually good or great.... i suppose it does separate the terrible from good... but if the teams in the "good" pack are all essentially equal give or take a few bad bounces or referee calls, then it kind of makes the entire thing moot.

 

[cstu]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

Ahh, the good old days when you could stop watching the SB at halftime and be home by 7.

 

[Dentist]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

Ahh, the good old days when you could stop watching the SB at halftime and be home by 7.

Also, what's it going to take to make it superbowl Saturday so i can actually throw a legit party and people can get drunk without worrying about it!i'm sure never, right..that game lasting until nearly 10 pm central last night sucked.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

Ahh, the good old days when you could stop watching the SB at halftime and be home by 7.

Also, what's it going to take to make it superbowl Saturday so i can actually throw a legit party and people can get drunk without worrying about it!

Now that is a good idea.

 

[Marauder]

I say regardless of sport, Dentist whines about the champion if they are not the best regular season team

Just like when he was playing poker and used to whine every time the best hand pre-flop lost. There's just a lot more variance in life than some people would like.

 

[roadkill1292]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

The Eagles beat the Ravens in Week 2.

Reverse that. Eagles played the last 4 Super Bowl Champions in their home opener. My mistake.

We all make 'em. In any event, it is indeed a remarkable coincidence.

When does the final schedule come out? Here are the possibleshiladelphia Eagles Schedule 2013 Home: Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Detroit Lions, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals

Leroy, it can't be Baltimore and Cincinnati. You might not be looking at an updated list.

 

[Insein]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

Ahh, the good old days when you could stop watching the SB at halftime and be home by 7.

Also, what's it going to take to make it superbowl Saturday so i can actually throw a legit party and people can get drunk without worrying about it!i'm sure never, right..that game lasting until nearly 10 pm central last night sucked.

Its going to take them pushing the season back in February so that the SB lands on the Sunday before Presidents day. Not all that unrealistic. Just start the season a week or 2 later into September.

 

[roadkill1292]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

Ahh, the good old days when you could stop watching the SB at halftime and be home by 7.

Also, what's it going to take to make it superbowl Saturday so i can actually throw a legit party and people can get drunk without worrying about it!

Now that is a good idea.

Indeed. If the NFL is worried that Saturday night is the night that people go out, well, they're right -- they'll go out to a freaking Super Bowl party.

 

[Insein]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

The Eagles beat the Ravens in Week 2.

Reverse that. Eagles played the last 4 Super Bowl Champions in their home opener. My mistake.

We all make 'em. In any event, it is indeed a remarkable coincidence.

When does the final schedule come out? Here are the possibleshiladelphia Eagles Schedule 2013 Home: Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Detroit Lions, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals

Leroy, it can't be Baltimore and Cincinnati. You might not be looking at an updated list.

They were all this year's home games. I honestly can't even remember a single minute of the Cincy game. When did we play them? This season was so bad.

 

[Dentist]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

Ahh, the good old days when you could stop watching the SB at halftime and be home by 7.

Also, what's it going to take to make it superbowl Saturday so i can actually throw a legit party and people can get drunk without worrying about it!

Now that is a good idea.

Indeed. If the NFL is worried that Saturday night is the night that people go out, well, they're right -- they'll go out to a freaking Super Bowl party.

i know the metrics show that sunday night captures the highest % of the almighty television viewer and they compete with the least number of other entertainment options... and that's true.They also know that the true football fan would watch it on thursday.... so they know that they need to do their best to capture the non-fan who has nothing else better to choose from to do or watch.that's why true fans will never get their superbowl saturday... just like the college national championship will never be on a saturday..... they have no respect for our alcoholism.

 

[Steeler]

Dentist, what would you do to fix the problem?

 

[Dentist]

Dentist, what would you do to fix the problem?

this is a great question, and i don't know enough about league revenue streams and/or competition clauses to give a great answer.The league wanted more parity, they didn't like the Cowboys, 49ers, etc steamrolling people because they were just better.I think they got what they want.Maybe fans are happy.. the superbowls have been more compelling games if you value a close game decided by a few bounces of the ball or some ref calls.I doubt I represent the common fan.It's just a different product now than i grew up with. Years ago i could identify the top teams by watching the regular season and barring major injury i knew that those teams would be most likely competing for the title.. the teams that won had historically great players and were generally excellent.... not always, but often.It made the regular season viewer seemingly know what was going on... rather than the casual view who just watches the superbowl, or maybe the afc/nfc championship and super bowl.Now I can't identify legit title contenders based on what i see in the regular season... a 9-7 team won in '11 and ALMOST won in 2008.There have only been 40 something superbowls... so that's a fairly small sample size... maybe we're just seeing some variance right now... i don't know. I didn't watch many ravens games... but when i did and they played the chiefs, Chargers, Broncos, Texans... it looked like a very mediocre team (and mind you, i LIKE the Ravens.. love ray lewis, ray rice, ed reed).They were fading hard down the stretch.. looked like a 1 and done playoff team... had NO momentum... then woke up and won the title? That defies everything! At least those crappy Giants teams that won had some serious momentum in the 2nd half of the season... at least you could explain it based on "hot team, right time".This is unexplainable.... eerily similar to the 2006 Colts Team that won... started 9-0, dumped 4 of the next 7, defense looked pitiful... did not have the look of a champion in any way... but won?I don't have a solution other that returning to older rules, and i doubt the NFL or even its fans want that... so i guess i'll just continue to watch random teams that qualify for the playoffs win titles.. and maybe a few great teams will actually make it through the playoff landmine as well.

 

[GregR]

Dentist, what would you do to fix the problem?

Maybe we should get rid of this whole AFC-NFC dependence thing. Just have divisions but everyone is one big league.And we can have writers and coaches vote in a poll to see who should play in the championship game so that we always get the best matchup. And since we don't want unworthy teams making it, we'll just include the two highest ranked teams in a single game, not take 12 out of 32 teams like we do now. Actually, can't trust the coaches to vote appropriately by themselves, so lets also have some computers rank the teams and we'll combine the two sets of rankings.I really think this idea could work. It'll be a bigger championship than the Super Bowl, so maybe we should rename it to point that out. Let's call it the Big Championship Super Bowl. Or the BCS Bowl for short.I'm sure everyone would love this system.

 

[SSOG]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

It was. At least those teams were memorable. At least I could watch them and know that I was witnessing greatness. The kind of greatness that I would remember decades later. That Pitt/Zona Super Bowl was maybe the most exciting ever played, but you know what I remember about that Steelers team? Nothing. I remember the 15-1 squad in Roeth's rookie year, but was that second SB champion really all that special? I remember the GSoT Rams like they were yesterday. I can picture the last SB Champion Ravens taking the field on defense, relying on Sharpe to stake them to a lead. I recall the 2002 Bucs, and that awesome Eagles squad they played in the NFCCG. I remember the 14-2 Chargers team and can picture them clearly, but I can't come up with any impression at all of the second Giants' squad except that they lucked into the playoffs on tiebreakers. I'm not saying I want every SB to be a suspenseless blowout, I'm just saying it's been so long since we've seen a truly great team take home the title, and I'm tired of being subjected to one unmemorable champion after another. I'd feel the same way if college had a tournament this year and Louisville walked away with the title. I'd probably enjoy all the wacky upsets as they were happening, but afterwards I'd be left with a dull hollow feeling contemplating the fact that we were really crowning LOUISVILLE the national champion. That's the nice thing about March Madness. There's a place for Cinderella stories, but there's also a place for the big-boy teams to square off after Cinderella's been sent home early. It's called the Final Four.

 

[Wise Old Owl]

Before this year we had the same three AFC teams in the past nine Super Bowls. Before the Ravens, a team that went to AFC championship game, went this year, you had to go back to 2003 to find a team that isn't the Pats, Colts or Steelers.If you look at the AFC representative going back to 2002, you only have one team that doesn't show up twice (2003 Raiders).The NFC is the opposite. Other than the Giants three times in the past 15 years, we basically have a different team every year.

 

[roadkill1292]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

It was. At least those teams were memorable. At least I could watch them and know that I was witnessing greatness. The kind of greatness that I would remember decades later. That Pitt/Zona Super Bowl was maybe the most exciting ever played, but you know what I remember about that Steelers team? Nothing. I remember the 15-1 squad in Roeth's rookie year, but was that second SB champion really all that special? I remember the GSoT Rams like they were yesterday. I can picture the last SB Champion Ravens taking the field on defense, relying on Sharpe to stake them to a lead. I recall the 2002 Bucs, and that awesome Eagles squad they played in the NFCCG. I remember the 14-2 Chargers team and can picture them clearly, but I can't come up with any impression at all of the second Giants' squad except that they lucked into the playoffs on tiebreakers. I'm not saying I want every SB to be a suspenseless blowout, I'm just saying it's been so long since we've seen a truly great team take home the title, and I'm tired of being subjected to one unmemorable champion after another. I'd feel the same way if college had a tournament this year and Louisville walked away with the title. I'd probably enjoy all the wacky upsets as they were happening, but afterwards I'd be left with a dull hollow feeling contemplating the fact that we were really crowning LOUISVILLE the national champion. That's the nice thing about March Madness. There's a place for Cinderella stories, but there's also a place for the big-boy teams to square off after Cinderella's been sent home early. It's called the Final Four.

All too often what made a team "memorable" in that era was the way their owner had a larger payroll than almost anyone else. There were some memorable games indeed but there were also many where the result was pretty much a foregone conclusion. College football is currently afflicted with this very same problem; some programs have much higher revenues than others and too often we're subjected to a team that managed to purchase the most really good players killing one with lesser accumulative skills. That doesn't make for very interesting competition. I didn't watch a lick of the BCS title game.

 

[Herb]

Dynasty's blow, parity rules. We didn't know it at the time, but the 80s and 90s sucked. There is nothing more boring than watching the same few teams win title after title. This is the reason the NBA has become unwatchable. The only people that like that are the fans of those teams, and it turns them into entitled ##### fans that can no longer appreciate how difficult the sport is. Greatness, shmateness. Give me a hot team playing well at the right time over one that is a concensus "best team on paper."

 

[mad sweeney]

Dentist, what would you do to fix the problem?

this is a great question, and i don't know enough about league revenue streams and/or competition clauses to give a great answer.The league wanted more parity, they didn't like the Cowboys, 49ers, etc steamrolling people because they were just better.

I think they got what they want.

Maybe fans are happy.. the superbowls have been more compelling games if you value a close game decided by a few bounces of the ball or some ref calls.

I doubt I represent the common fan.

It's just a different product now than i grew up with. Years ago i could identify the top teams by watching the regular season and barring major injury i knew that those teams would be most likely competing for the title.. the teams that won had historically great players and were generally excellent.... not always, but often.

It made the regular season viewer seemingly know what was going on... rather than the casual view who just watches the superbowl, or maybe the afc/nfc championship and super bowl.

Now I can't identify legit title contenders based on what i see in the regular season... a 9-7 team won in '11 and ALMOST won in 2008.

There have only been 40 something superbowls... so that's a fairly small sample size... maybe we're just seeing some variance right now... i don't know.

I didn't watch many ravens games... but when i did and they played the chiefs, Chargers, Broncos, Texans... it looked like a very mediocre team (and mind you, i LIKE the Ravens.. love ray lewis, ray rice, ed reed).

They were fading hard down the stretch.. looked like a 1 and done playoff team... had NO momentum... then woke up and won the title? That defies everything! At least those crappy Giants teams that won had some serious momentum in the 2nd half of the season... at least you could explain it based on "hot team, right time".

This is unexplainable.... eerily similar to the 2006 Colts Team that won... started 9-0, dumped 4 of the next 7, defense looked pitiful... did not have the look of a champion in any way... but won?

I don't have a solution other that returning to older rules, and i doubt the NFL or even its fans want that... so i guess i'll just continue to watch random teams that qualify for the playoffs win titles.. and maybe a few great teams will actually make it through the playoff landmine as well.

IIRC, the Ravens have been in the playoffs 5 straight years and this was their 3rd AFC title game (2nd straight). How is that a random team qualifying for the playoffs?

 

[Vision6]

The regular season doesn't reveal the best teams just as stats don't reveal who are the best players. The great thing about football is that there are just too many variables to explain it with a simple stat, record or formula.IMO the regular season is fine. It is what it is. People just have false assumptions of what it means.

 

[Dentist]

Dentist, what would you do to fix the problem?

Maybe we should get rid of this whole AFC-NFC dependence thing. Just have divisions but everyone is one big league.And we can have writers and coaches vote in a poll to see who should play in the championship game so that we always get the best matchup. And since we don't want unworthy teams making it, we'll just include the two highest ranked teams in a single game, not take 12 out of 32 teams like we do now. Actually, can't trust the coaches to vote appropriately by themselves, so lets also have some computers rank the teams and we'll combine the two sets of rankings.I really think this idea could work. It'll be a bigger championship than the Super Bowl, so maybe we should rename it to point that out. Let's call it the Big Championship Super Bowl. Or the BCS Bowl for short.I'm sure everyone would love this system.

i'm a known proponent of the BCS. It ensures that there will be a highly worthy champion that's most likely one of the top 2-3 teams in the nation.... and with as huge of a league that CFB is, and how inconsistent all the scheduling and other stuff is, the computers are probably the best solution.

 

[Dentist]

The regular season doesn't reveal the best teams just as stats don't reveal who are the best players. The great thing about football is that there are just too many variables to explain it with a simple stat, record or formula.IMO the regular season is fine. It is what it is. People just have false assumptions of what it means.

it used to.In the past a 14-2 or 13-3 team meant you were very dominant and highly likely to get close to or appear in a super bowl.Now it almost means you just were fortunate on the side of a lot of 1 score coinflip type of games.Baltimore could've been 12-4 or 8-8 pretty easily based on all their extremely close contests.

 

[Dentist]

Dynasty's blow, parity rules. We didn't know it at the time, but the 80s and 90s sucked. There is nothing more boring than watching the same few teams win title after title. This is the reason the NBA has become unwatchable. The only people that like that are the fans of those teams, and it turns them into entitled ##### fans that can no longer appreciate how difficult the sport is. Greatness, shmateness. Give me a hot team playing well at the right time over one that is a concensus "best team on paper."

The NBA would disagree heavily... people LOVED the Jordan Bulls and Magic LakersJust like the NFL looks very fondly on the 80's niners, 70's steelers, and 90's cowboysWhat do we have now?

 

[Dentist]

IIRC, the Ravens have been in the playoffs 5 straight years and this was their 3rd AFC title game (2nd straight). How is that a random team qualifying for the playoffs?

true, no disputing that.However, this Ravens team felt like the worst of the lot... i'd take the Ravens team from last year to beat this year's.By random i was more talking about the Giants squads or the Arizona Cardinals team that are qualifying with horrible 9-7 records and then finding religion.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

As someone pointed out, the only common thread in the last 4 super bowl champions is that they all beat the Eagles in the Eagles' home opener. So check the schedule when it comes out for the 2014 champion.

The Eagles beat the Ravens in Week 2.

Reverse that. Eagles played the last 4 Super Bowl Champions in their home opener. My mistake.

We all make 'em. In any event, it is indeed a remarkable coincidence.

When does the final schedule come out? Here are the possibleshiladelphia Eagles Schedule 2013

Home: Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Detroit Lions, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals

Leroy, it can't be Baltimore and Cincinnati. You might not be looking at an updated list.

sorry, I got a bad source on my first click.Dallas, N.Y. Giants, Washington, Chicago, Detroit, Kansas City,

San Diego, Arizona

 

[jonessed]

Yeah, it was much better when dominant teams would blow their way through the playoffs and then win a boring Super Bowl by 20+ points. By all means, let's return to those days.

 

[SSOG]

Dynasty's blow, parity rules. We didn't know it at the time, but the 80s and 90s sucked. There is nothing more boring than watching the same few teams win title after title. This is the reason the NBA has become unwatchable. The only people that like that are the fans of those teams, and it turns them into entitled ##### fans that can no longer appreciate how difficult the sport is. Greatness, shmateness. Give me a hot team playing well at the right time over one that is a concensus "best team on paper."

I'm not even asking for dynasties. I'd be thrilled with another '85 Bears. Hell, I'd be thrilled with a '99 Rams, '00 Ravens, or '02 Bucs. I just want some sense that this season's results had greater meaning to the history of the NFL than "wow, that team sure had 3-4 great games in a row". Give me an epic defense or offense. Give me a historically dominant squad. I'll even take a lovable loser making good like the Cardinals' SB run or the Saints' championship. But Baltimore? The game was entertaining for 4 hours, and now I'll just forget it and never remember back to it. The only mental impressions I have of this team all involve Ray Lewis crying on the sidelines or Rahim Moore committing the most unforgivable defensive lapse in postseason history.

 

[BassNBrew]

1) i like baltimore 2) i was rooting for baltimore2 years running now we've had some pretty deeply flawed champions of the post-season 1-off tournament.Last year a 9-7 team that really just got hot at the right time and rode the momentum to the championship... somewhat similar to their 2007 performance, but this particular version was even less impressive.This year we had a 10-6 team that:1) actually didn't have momentum (lost 4 of their last 5)2) only beat the hapless chiefs by 3 points, needed overtime to beat a poor san diego team, and lost to a bad philadelphia team... and had gotten pwned by Denver and Houston previously.. in fact one of their only good wins was early against new england.Then they needed a fluke play to beat what was probably the best team in the AFC and barely survived against a 49ers team that went 0-1-1 vs. the St. Louis Rams?These last 2 champions were unimpressive in almost every way.There was absolutely no indication in ANY game in the regular season that Baltimore was a legit contender.Are we done seeing dominant teams win titles like in the 80's and 90's?Has the erosion of home field advantage made it so that truly you just need to qualify for the playoffs.. is home field advantage worth much?It's just gotten to the point where I don't know what to believe anymore... you'd think the games would be a way to gauge teams... an audition of sorts to sort out the good from the bad.But either my eyes now deceive me, or the game has just changed.What say you?

I think the level of QBing has vastly improved over the last couple of decades and the rules have shifted to favor the passers. You have guys like Wilson, Kap, RG3, and Luck who have top notch throwing talent year one in the league.