2017 NFL Preseason Thread: Ki-Jana Carter edition

Martavis Bryant cleared to practice, play in preseason

NFL finally allows Martavis Bryant to practice and play in preseason games, but he still isn't cleared for the regular season. I assume returning today is too late for him to play in the preseason opener Friday night.

Of course, the league STILL hasn't ruled on Ezekiel Elliott. WTF?

 

Glennon throws a pick-6 on second throw as a Bear. Well, there's always next century.

 

This is a bit of a rant, but bear with me. I think the danger to the NFL isn't the brain damage issue, but the fact the whole parity/any given sunday riff is now an obvious lie. On the very first play of preseason, the two Jaguars kick returners ran into each other. Oh yeah, they're a threat. Unless Brady gets killed, and his magic diet will surely protect him, the Patriots will be in the Super Bowl. In the NFC, there's the Packers, Falcons, Cowboys if Elliot isn't indicted, and maybe, maybe the Seahawks. I'm an Eagles fan, and I know they're going nowhere. I had more optimism about the damn Phillies in March. Drew Magary's why your team sucks is a wonderful read, but what strikes me this year is the utter despair of the fan emails (he's only at about number 12). These are folks without hope. Why don't they just do something else? Eventually, many of 'em will.

 

Brady could break his neck and the Pats would still be odds-on to win the AFC.

 

Can't argue with that.

 

For a league that usually does well in terms of parity there are VERY clearly Haves and Have Nots.
It does seem like a short field this year.
AFC: New England
and everyone else
contenders: Steelers, Chiefs, Raiders .. but really, unless Brady's skill diminish significantly, or Baltime somehow squeaks into the Playoff and gets to play NE ... It's the Patriots show.

NFC: Giants, Dallas, Falcons
Just below: GB?,

 

I think the Patriots are the Super Bowl favorites, but how much of a percentage is that really? I'd say like 20, 25 percent at the most. Even last year, when they won, it required coming back from a historic deficit, and they looked pretty pedestrian against the Brock Osweiler-led Texans in the playoffs. They weren't steamrolling teams last year, and everyone is kind of just penning them into the Super Bowl. I think they win the East again, but that still means 3 or 4 games against teams that can beat them. (And their last two SBs, frankly, they probably should have lost.)

 

Any given Sunday back on as Jags complete 97-yard TD pass against Patriots.

 

In any given season, you know going in that there are three or four teams that are clearly head and shoulders above everyone else, maybe a couple more that have some hope, and then one that will take advantage of a favorable schedule and some breaks to make a surprise run.
Parity isn't a myth, because a lot of those teams change from year to year and the system is set up to reward teams that show the slightest bit of competence. Just look at the Raiders' resurgence after a couple of good drafts, the Lions making a playoff appearance three years after going 0-16, or even the Bengals becoming a regular playoff team after 15 years of sucking. Even the mighty Patriots were stuck in perpetual mediocrity before Belichick and Brady came on board.
Just like any system, there are going to be people who manage things better (Patriots) and worse (Jags, Browns, Jets) than everyone else on a regular basis. For 25 or 26 of the 32 NFL teams, it's still a league where a dozen plays over the course of the season might be the difference between 11-5 and 5-11.

 

#TrubiskyLove

 

I've always figure the schedule determines the wild card teams more than anything. The division champs are the division champs, but say one year you get the AFC East and NFC West as your opponents? That should be five wins right there. Throw in which of the two "other" conference opponents you get - maybe a team finished third in a stacked division and they play third-place teams in cruddy divisions.

Here are the divisional match-ups btw.

AFC EAST - AFC West and NFC South
AFC NORTH - AFC South and NFC North
AFC SOUTH - AFC North and NFC West
AFC WEST - AFC East and NFC East

NFC EAST - Double whammy AFC West and NFC West
NFC NORTH - NFC South and AFC North
NFC SOUTH - NFC North and AFC East
NFC WEST - NFC East and AFC South

I doubt more than one team each comes out of the AFC West or NFC East - the cross country hops take their toll. The Chargers even get an added road game to Jacksonville, while KC gets a break with a roadie to Houston.
Washington and the Eagles each make two trips to LA and a trip to Seattle.
Giants and Cowboys each get two trips to the Bay Area and one to Phoenix

 

If history is any guide, don't bet on the Packers making the Super Bowl this year. Since the NFL went to the current eight-division alignment in 2002, only two NFC teams have made the Super Bowl when matched up against the AFC North in the regular season -- the 2002 Buccaneers and the 2004 Eagles.