The New England Patriots 2014 Playoffs Thread

Foggy_sl said:

To be fair, none of us would be posting if Azeth and Kirun weren't being giant faggots about a non-call with 8 minutes left in the game. But my first post in this thread predicted this thread perfectly:

(A solid 1-3 effort from me in the first round. Killin' it.)

@Azeth, punting on 4th and 1 was definitely the wrong move.

Spoiler

The furor over the flag masks an impressive Dallas comeback and a frustratingly conservative game plan from Jim Caldwell, who was outcoached by Jason Garrett. Caldwell followed the Pettigrew flash point by lining up to go for it on fourth-and-1 from the Dallas 46-yard line solely in an attempt to force a Cowboys penalty. Stafford instead took a delay of game when the Cowboys didn't jump, only for Sam Martin to deliver the worst shank in a weekend of truly awful punting. His 10-yard boot meant the Lions picked up only 5 yards of field position by taking the penalty and punting, a decision that would have been shortsighted and overly conservative even with a good punt.

Garrett, meanwhile, helped turn things around for the Cowboys with a pair of aggressive decisions. He likely would have been scolded by the take-the-points crowd had the Cowboys come up short on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line in the third quarter, but his decision to trust the league's best running game against its most impressive run defense paid off when DeMarco Murray ran off-tackle for a touchdown. Then, on the game-winning drive, Garrett resisted the urge to punt on fourth-and-6 in no-man's-land on the Detroit 42-yard line, with Romo promptly finding Jason Witten on an option route for 21 yards, which Witten later said was the biggest catch of his career. Both decisions were correct on paper,2 and Garrett got positive outcomes both times.

Wild-Card Wrap-up: A Flag on the Play

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Wombat_sl said:

I like how the real winner of the call was Seattle - they get a pre-season warmup with Carolina before dealing with the scraps of whomever survives the Cowboys-Packers bludgeoning.

Hell, I'm already tired of the "Does Seattle's second championship mean the Brady-Manning/Pocket QB/AFC as real contenders/etc. era is over" articles - and they won't even be written for another month!

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Commander Vimeseh_sl said:

Seattle's offense isn't elite but they do have an elite running back and a good quarterback. I don't think Wilson gets enough credit which is weird in this league where the QB gets all the blame (Dalton) or all the praise (Rodgers) for winning/losing a game. The only problem with their offense is they have no top shelf receiving threats.

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Gankak_sl said:

This.

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It would be impossible to argue that the non-call didn't help Dallas's chances, but acting like a Cowboys win was fait accompli after the flag was picked up is just inaccurate.

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NFL rules state that "[a]ny player who removes his helmet after a play while on the field" will earn a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for his team. Bryant, who sprinted helmet-less from the sideline and nearly reached the hash marks before barking at an official, was in clear violation.

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Gavinmad_sl said:

As someone who hates Cowboys fans, how does this make any logical sense?



He didn't remove his helmet after a play while on the field. He ran onto the field of play from the sideline after the play was over. Now if there is a separate rule that should have drawn a personal foul, that's a bad no-call, but he didn't violate the rule everyone keeps quoting in letter or I presume in spirit.

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BurnemWizfyre_sl said:

Lets also ignore the face mask as well because that doesn't help their argument that the Lions got cheated.

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Gankak_sl said:

Why don't you tell me who Seattle is supposed to be scared of as an offensive weapon. Cause I just don't see anything there. I mean I see an RB that didn't break a thousand yards. I see Olsen who is the TE I was referring to and a rookie WR who did. Is that who the Seahawks are supposed to be scared of?

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Xevy_sl said:

Article 5
No player shall twist, turn, or pull the facemask of an opponent in any direction

He didn't pull it in any direction. He just basically semi stiff armed him. He didn't even really grip his mask he just put his hand on it.

NFL VP of officiating: Cowboys got away with defensive holding - CBSSports.com

Blandino basically admits they don' goofed.

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