NFL offseason thread

Roethlisberger comes into camp as fat as a fuck. No doubt about that, but I think that girth helps keep him upright. His wife kept about 15 pounds off of him, it seemed, going into the last training camp.

I am perfectly happy having him as the Steeler QB. The big, and 265 is what he weighs with only his right foot on the scale, dumb SOB is tough as shit and will do anything to stay on that field. They have a chance to win the Super Bowl every year he is on their roster.

 

And you would have a better chance of some of that fat was muscle.

 

Fewer trips to Georgia, no doubt.

 

I would rather have his toughness and not dropping like a diving like a cheap Dart every time a defender came near him than being some workout king.

I don't know if he would be as good 30 to 40 pounds lighter. Not the way he plays.

 

It's all part of the package. Roethlisberger is a jackass with a little bit of a self-destructive streak, and that's being kind. Aside from the morality of what he did in Georgia (which was reprehensible no matter what actually happened when he and that girl were alone), it was incredibly stupid. So were the circumstances leading up to the motorcycle accident, which ruined his 2006 season and set his development back significantly.

I don't know that he ever will get everything he should out of his talent, but if you knew both would stay healthy, would you really want Flacco over Roethlisberger?

I have to strongly disagree with 93Devil. Sorry, but carrying around extra fat does not help him to be more durable. I think sports medicine has progressed past the days of "you can't pull fat."

 

Devil, people who think fat helps him in some way are kidding themselves. Take off the Terrible Towel for a sec here. If Flacco were 270 pounds, you be laughing and mocking him. Getting in shape does not mean he'll be a stick figure. It would very likely mean his ribs were less likely to bust like balsa wood if they were protected by muscle instead of fat. Fat doesn't help anyone. He would not "stay upright" more at 270 and reeking of Primanti Bros than he would at 250 with a little muscle tone.

 

Muscle weighs more than fat. If he lost 50 pounds of fat and replaced it with 30 pounds of muscle he'd be a fucking tank.

 

Why? They've never won one, haven't even played in one in 36 years.

Frazier did a good job. The team was a total trainwreck in 2011 and now is respectable. I even realize that the team might be better in 2013 and the record not be as good. That seems to happen quite often in the process of rebuilding a franchise.

I'm encouraged by the improvement I saw in Ponder over the last half of the season. Peterson may not have a 2,000-yard season every year, but he's still a premier back and a threat to go all the way anytime he touches the ball. That should open up things for the passing game.

 

I know that. I was being snide towards anyone thinking he did a poor job as a coach and did not deserve an extension.

 

Sure, it would help him, just like it would help Manning, Brady, Brees, Flacco, and almost all the others to add 20 pounds of muscle to shed off defenders.

But I am not holding my breath for either to happen.

 

The last two lines are really true. Roethlisberger definitely does not have the desire to be great the way Peyton Manning and Tom Brady do. I would also put Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees in that category, both are super competitive and never satisfied.

It was interesting with Brett Favre during the bulk of the second half of his career, he lacked that desire. He'd make comments like, "I've got my ring..." He seemed to get that back a bit when he got to Minnesota.

What's interesting is I've heard NFL writers say that the biggest difference between Eli and Peyton Manning is that Eli doesn't want it as badly as Peyton. I was never around Eli enough to know if this is true or if this has changed in recent years, but it's something people have been saying since Eli was at Ole Miss.

To be fair, few quarterbacks ever have been as competitive and spent as much time on game prep as Peyton. I think it's more of a compliment to Peyton than it is a shot at Eli.

 

People often mistake calm and relaxation as an indication of a lack of commitment. Once upon a time, it was called poise, and thought to be an asset in sports.