NFL Postseason Megathread: Playoffs in the Post-Orton Era

[crazy canuck]

 

[CountDeMoney]

Now they just need to sign Michael Vick.

Or at least put some lighting bolts on it.

[jimmy olsen]

Victory!

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/report--nfl-official-fired-in-deflate-gate-case-for-selling-football-205328811.html

Report: NFL official fired in deflate-gate case for selling football

By Eric Edholm 12 minutes ago
Shutdown Corner

You can't make this stuff up.

The deflate-gate madness — a story seemingly with no conclusion — has taken yet another bizarre turn. It was reported by ESPN's Adam Schefter that an NFL official might have sold one of the New England Patriots footballs from the AFC championship game and lost his job because of it.

It appears that the footballs are not allowed to end up in officials' hands. They're meant to be donated to charitable organizations. It appears a second official saw this and reported it, according to Schefter.

ESPN Outside The Lines had reported on Tuesday that Patriots locker-room attendant Jim McNally was being investigated for "trying to introduce an unapproved football" — a K-ball, for what it's worth — to an official.

But Schefter flipped his own organization's reporting on its head by offering this wild nugget: the ball (or balls?) in question was/were provided by two NFL employees, one of whom was fired.

Are you following us here? Basically, what's being suggested is that an official swiped out a real ball for a fake one and that the fake was handed to the Patriots attendant.

How in the world can the NFL save face and issue any kind of guilt to the Patriots following this news? The answer: They can't. We might as well say "case closed" if the reports are valid.

The officials for the AFC title game against the Indianapolis Colts, for what it's worth, were head referee Walt Anderson, umpire Carl Paganelli, head linesman Tony Veteri, line judge Jeff Bergman, side judge Greg Meyer, field judge Gary Cavaletto and back judge Keith Ferguson.

[jimmy olsen]

Good Lord the Pats would have been stacked with JJ Watt and DeAndre Hopkins

[Sophie Scholl]

What am I looking at?  That chart is more useless than your random, description free maps, sir.

[Grey Fox]

It's the past 5(iirc) years of mock draft from Mel Kiper compiled.

[Sophie Scholl]

Solely first round picks too it seems.  I hate Kiper.  A lot.

[Ed Anger]

I should post a random chart of 5 years worth of chicks I wanted to bang.

Jessica Alba shows up. A LOT

[Valmy]

The Redskins drafted both Sam Bradford and Cam Newton?  Seems about right.

[alfred russel]

The Redskins drafted both Sam Bradford and Cam Newton?  Seems about right.

Actually, Mel Kiper dumbass ramblings probably did better than the actual Redskins franchise. Which also seems about right. 

[Valmy]

The Redskins drafted both Sam Bradford and Cam Newton?  Seems about right.

Actually, Mel Kiper dumbass ramblings probably did better than the actual Redskins franchise. Which also seems about right. 

A monkey flinging poo at the commissioner on draft day could do better than the actual Redskins franchise.

[jimmy olsen]

Okay, maybe the Redskins are just as bad as the Browns after all

Wow
http://www.startribune.com/sports/vikings/292503621.html

Griffin was the 2012 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, but he tore up his knee in a playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks. According to Shanahan, two days after that season's Super Bowl, Griffin met with him and described "what plays were acceptable and unacceptable."

"That term 'unacceptable' is used by Dan, the owner, quite often, so I (had) a little bit of a smile when I heard some of these complaints. The bottom line is he wanted to throw more, run less. ... He wanted to be more of a dropback, Aaron Rodgers-type guy," said Shanahan, who coached the Denver Broncos to two Super Bowl titles in the 1990s with John Elway at QB.

"I went and talked to Dan. I said, 'Hey, Dan ... for a quarterback to come to me, a veteran coach, and share these things, No. 1, he can't be the sharpest guy, to do something like that, or he's got to ... feel very good about the owner backing him up. And since you have been telling me from Day 1 he's a dropback quarterback ... this is an extension of you,'" Shanahan continued. "He said it wasn't."

[jimmy olsen]

Sounds like an urban legend if so many people have been looking for it for so long without getting it. On the other hand, those cryptic comments by Dez might mean there's something to it.

I wonder who Florio thinks has the tape to file a a request under the Texas Public Information Act? Surely if it's a police or other government organization Dez would have been charged for something if it's as bad as reported. 

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/02/25/schefter-confirms-rumor-of-dez-bryant-video/#comments

Schefter confirms rumor of Dez Bryant video
Posted by Mike Florio on February 25, 2015, 3:37 PM EST
Dez Getty Images

In November, I caught wind of a potential situation involving Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant.  There were whispers of a video showing Bryant doing something he shouldn't have been doing.  I was told multiple members of the NFL media had been chasing the video, but that no one had been able to find it.

I've done some minimal legwork since November, checking with the Cowboys to see if they were aware of the video (they said they weren't) and talking to some folks in the media who acknowledged that:  (1) they'd heard about the video; and (2) they had no plans to address it absent hard proof that it exists.  I decided to let it simmer pending further information.

With the window for applying the franchise tag open and free agency approaching and the Cowboys and Bryant unable to work out a long-term deal and many wondering whether the team's unwillingness to commit significant guaranteed money flows from off-field concerns, the simmer was starting to build toward a boil.  During an appearance last Friday with 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, hosts Shan Shariff and RJ Choppy told me they'd heard from two different people that the Cowboys have a specific concern about Bryant.  And I blurted out something about the rumors regarding the video that may or may not exist.

I was careful to point out that it's not known whether the video exists, explaining that reporters covering the NFL had been trying for months to find the video.  Appearing Monday on ESPN 1000 in Chicago, ESPN's Adam Schefter confirmed that.

Asked about the rumors of a Dez Bryant video, Schefter said (measuring his words very carefully) that he has heard about the video and that he knows what's on it.

"I've been working on this since September," Schefter said.  "There's a lot involved."

Schefter also said he doesn't know whether the video will come out.

"It's taken up a lot of my time this season," Schefter added, explaining that what he's been working on isn't ready and may never be.

Since Friday, it's definitely taken up plenty of my time.  I've spent lots of time on the phone trying to determine whether the video exists, and I've submitted a request under the Texas Public Information Act to the appropriate agency, with the goal of getting the video (if it exists) and any related documents (if they exist).

Primarily, the goal is to get a clear answer on this, one way or the other.  If there's a video, the Cowboys and the NFL need to know about it, and to act accordingly based on its contents.  If there's no video, then it's better for Bryant if the situation comes to a head now.  Otherwise, the rumor will linger — and it eventually will impact the offers that one or more teams are willing to extend to him.

I talked about the situation at the outset of Wednesday's PFT Live on NBC Sports Radio, and several other times throughout the program.  My understanding is that the incident (if there was one) happened in 2011, and that the video (if there is one) may contain footage of someone other than Dez Bryant.

For Bryant's part, he tweeted on Wednesday afternoon, "I need to get me a real raw uncut tv show or something ... I can't continue to get betrayed like this."  Bryant has since deleted the tweet.

On Friday, Bryant posted an even more cryptic message that contained no specific denial of the existence of a video, but that instead referred to people taking advantage of him and not being ashamed of any past incidents.

[Eddie Teach]

There were whispers of a video showing Bryant doing something he shouldn't have been doing. 

Mighty fine journalism, here.

[jimmy olsen]

There were whispers of a video showing Bryant doing something he shouldn't have been doing. 

Mighty fine journalism, here.

Allegedly beat the shit out of a woman in a Wallmart parking lot, five times worse than the Ray Rice video is what's rumored.