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American Football Talk II

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Original post by whw
does anyone here play in or know anything about the BUAFL?


The uni league? Sure. Played two years at the Plymouth Blitz...well...essentially one and half due to friggin' injuries. :/

It's one of the biggest rising, co-ed, sports at universities (yes...if I remember right, Bath Spa, Bristol and Gloucester all had girls on their teams). They split it into three different tiers -- premier, D1 and D2 to ensure a relatively even level of competition, and there's promotion and playoffs. Double Coverage is a good, but not great, referencing point. Due the the balance, each division plays eight games.

What do you like to know?
Original post by Malevolent
Broncos with Bradford would be a contender, as mediocre as Bradford is, the quarterback play was horrific last season so I'm sure as Smash said they won't be struggling too much


Nah, I'll pass. His injury concerns are overblown, since any ACL is essentially random. However, he's not been a good QB in the league. He's just...been...there. The Eagles are paying him $37m over two seasons. Sam "Mediocre" Bradford was the reason the rookie wage scale was introduced, and it distorted his second contract. If he came into the league one season later, he'd only be getting $12m per season at best.

Moot point because the Broncos would have to break up their defense to pay him. The Broncos have $6.5m in cap space -- enough to sign the rookies in the draft class. Cutting Colquitt would probably bring that to around $8.5m in usuable cap. And then that's assuming Von Miller isn't going to be paid any more than the $14.5m of the exclusive franchise tag in any long term contract. I'd much rather lock down Brandon Marshall, sign the rookies, and give Von his mega deal, then to pay Bradford. A rookie QB at #31 in the draft would be $2m per season tops. The recipe for success -- as proved by the Seahawks is good defense, mostly on rookie contracts for depth + rookie QB + strong running game + good special teams. Whether it's Connor Cook or Christian Hackenberg at #31, Jacoby Brissett at #94, the Broncos will be fine. I want Cook, but I wouldn't be opposed to Hackenberg.

I'm also kind of hoping that the Saints make a move for Paxton Lynch, if what I've read on Bleacher Report is true. I'd happily give up a fourth and potential 2017 late-round pick, to get Garrett Grayson in Denver. Loved him last year, and I think he's a viable NFL starter. Address other needs going DE-OT-S in the first three rounds, and then ILB-G-BPA-BPA-SS-WR rounds 4 through 7.

That said...the Eagles have screwed up big time. Under a new coach, they hand-picked Chase Daniel and proceeded to make him the highest paid backup QB. Then proceed to overpay for Bradford, and now have moved all the way up, selling the farm to Cleveland for the #2 pick, where they will have the leftovers of whichever QB the Rams take. I mean, if they didn't make those moves, and have a clean slate, sure...trading from #8 to #2 makes sense, but urgh...b
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by SmashConcept
It doesn't bother me that much. The next CBA the players will have to negotiate their asses off. Until then they're under the thumb but y'know.... **** happens. Of course it's a joke that Brady is suspended and if they miss the playoffs because of it the Super Bowl champion will have an asterisk to be honest.

What I don't understand, is if it's this easy to just suspend someone for "conduct detrimental" then how come they never tried it on Greg Hardy? If destroying a phone is conduct detrimental then what is it when you pay a witness not to show up to a trial (and it is baffling that apparently this isn't illegal or frowned upon in America)?

This has implications, obviously, but I would be fine with it if the exact same thing had happened but with someone who really deserved it. If the league had been in court defending an 8 game suspension for Hardy (for example: 4 games under the DV policy and 4 for conduct detrimental) then I would be happily cheering them on even if it has negative implications for other players under the terrible CBA they negotiated.

Instead I have a moral dilemma: the owners clearly give less of a **** about serious crimes than they do about randomly persecuting a player for probably not doing anything wrong. Should I give them my money by renewing GamePass? On one hand it's a good product which I enjoy, and my protest wouldn't actually affect anything on its own. On the other hand, **** giving these guys any money for any reason.


This is it. The NFL seem to be very random and arbitrary about enforcement. Aaron Rodgers openly admits to over-inflating balls beyond the permitted limit, NFL gives not one care. Numerous teams openly tamper with balls, rubbing them down or heating them up, again not one care.
The NFL swapped out the balls at half time during the wild card game at Minnesota in January because they were worried about the drop in pressure due to the cold, yet still claim that for the Patriots it must be nefarious tampering, a heinous crime on par with serious doping, not an equipment violation worth a $8k fine. But of course when rumours break that Peyton Manning used HGH, NFL didn't care.
Oh and Belichick and the coaching staff were completely absolved of any knowledge or involvement in the accused crime, yet get a $1m fine and docked two draft picks for it being a repeat offence. Like what?!
Then there's things like the Jets getting away easy for tampering while the Chiefs get the book thrown at them.
Slightly away from the Brady conversation, just seen a quote the Famous J said after his disastrous int the first play off last season.

Allegedly humphries (undrafted rookie) ran the wrong route, and he went up to him and said 'dont worry boy, we're gonna be doing this for another 10 years. I aint mad'.... Or something along those lines.

If it's true it makes me feel very good about our future. I thought the maturity started to develop after he got the taste for winning but it seems it was there all along.
Original post by ..DT..
Slightly away from the Brady conversation, just seen a quote the Famous J said after his disastrous int the first play off last season.

Allegedly humphries (undrafted rookie) ran the wrong route, and he went up to him and said 'dont worry boy, we're gonna be doing this for another 10 years. I aint mad'.... Or something along those lines.

If it's true it makes me feel very good about our future. I thought the maturity started to develop after he got the taste for winning but it seems it was there all along.


What are your predictions for the Bucs this year?
Original post by pol pot noodles
This is it. The NFL seem to be very random and arbitrary about enforcement. Aaron Rodgers openly admits to over-inflating balls beyond the permitted limit, NFL gives not one care. Numerous teams openly tamper with balls, rubbing them down or heating them up, again not one care.
The NFL swapped out the balls at half time during the wild card game at Minnesota in January because they were worried about the drop in pressure due to the cold, yet still claim that for the Patriots it must be nefarious tampering, a heinous crime on par with serious doping, not an equipment violation worth a $8k fine. But of course when rumours break that Peyton Manning used HGH, NFL didn't care.
Oh and Belichick and the coaching staff were completely absolved of any knowledge or involvement in the accused crime, yet get a $1m fine and docked two draft picks for it being a repeat offence. Like what?!
Then there's things like the Jets getting away easy for tampering while the Chiefs get the book thrown at them.


To be fair, I think there is a big difference between what Rodgers admitted and what Brady is ALLEGED to have done.

Rodgers asked for balls to be inflated to his liking, then allowed the referees to inspect them, then played if they passed inspection. He said he would try to get balls through that pushed the limits, but presumably if a referee rejected them then that was the end of it.

Brady is alleged to have had the balls inflated legally, allowed the referees to inspect them, and then to have an assistant deflate them to his liking in an underhand manner. Of course, the fact that supposedly "doesn't matter" any more is that Brady probably didn't do any of this stuff.

But yeah, in terms of other consistency issues, there seems to be a big problem.
Reply 2187
Original post by jammy4041
The uni league? Sure. Played two years at the Plymouth Blitz...well...essentially one and half due to friggin' injuries. :/

It's one of the biggest rising, co-ed, sports at universities (yes...if I remember right, Bath Spa, Bristol and Gloucester all had girls on their teams). They split it into three different tiers -- premier, D1 and D2 to ensure a relatively even level of competition, and there's promotion and playoffs. Double Coverage is a good, but not great, referencing point. Due the the balance, each division plays eight games.

What do you like to know?


Thank you, thats great! what is the quality like? do you think that you need to have pre-uni experience of playing the game to enjoy it
I have played a decent amount and coached a little.
Original post by whw
what is the quality like?

To be blunt, low.

do you think that you need to have pre-uni experience of playing the game to enjoy it

No but don't necessarily expect to start in your first season playing. Probably a large minority of people do this but it's hard to estimate.
Original post by pol pot noodles
What are your predictions for the Bucs this year?


Best case scenario we find a few defensive studs in the draft, the offense doesn't get hurt and we don't miss like 8 field goals under 40 yards in our first 6 games and we go 9-7 and get a wildcard place.

Worse case scenario is Winston gets a few early Ls and loses his head, Mike Smith makes a mess of the defense and kwon gets 16 game suspension for peds and we go 2-14.

We have such a tough schedule I can't begin to predict our wins. The range is literally like 7 I could imagine.
Isn't Winston still in civil court? A negative outcome there would presumably factor into the worst case scenario.
Original post by SmashConcept
Isn't Winston still in civil court? A negative outcome there would presumably factor into the worst case scenario.


I thought it was the college that the case was against. I may be wrong though
Original post by whw
Thank you, thats great! what is the quality like? do you think that you need to have pre-uni experience of playing the game to enjoy it


eh..it depends really. Which university were you hoping to go to? I would say the competition is about as fair as it can be for the pool of players in the UK. Some, are really good, but it's nothing like what it is in France, or Spain...yet alone Germany, Austria, Norway, Finland etc. That said, the quality can surprise. I know Bristol had a former walk-on QB for Wisconsin, and they also had a D-II WR in 2014-15. They also had a defensive end from Canada, on exchange. We also had a corner and a linebacker from a school in North Carolina on exchange, so yeah....I would say the quality is getting better though. In the premier division, there's Stirling and Birmingham....and then everyone else. A team like Durham tends to field a lot of American talent.

I know Bristol UWE cut their squad because they have so many players, and on any given gameday they can typically have 50-70 players on the sideline. They're a D-1 team.

We're lucky to have had four or five all-DC-calibre players on our team, a great HC with a great play book, and a DC who's really good. We used to have one of Britain's finest WRs as our WR coach in our first year, too.

As for experience, I guarantee you 95% of players haven't even played before. Maybe even only 30% have watched an NFL game. If you like rugby, you'll love American Football...but I got into it having never played rugby either. To enjoy it, just put 110% in, and you'll get out much more than you put in. Obviously, if you have experience, it'll help things and you'll be better rooted in offensive and defensive concepts and fundamentals like tackling, blocking, catching the ball or whatever.

As a word of warning though, if you are a rookie, you'd have basically have about 5 weeks tops from freshers week to your first game, and it is intense. A lot of people get down if "they don't start" and while it's competitive, everyone has a role. Whether you're big or small, if you can play, the coaches will find a way to fit you in. Also even if you don't start, you can still come on, make a special teams tackle, or do something and earn that extra game time. Every season, no job is safe, and rookies can start sometimes. Coaches themselves take a lot of pride in developing people, and getting them enthused with this great sport.

Mind you, since I was banged up, this was it really as a season. My coaches think I'll be a good referee or maybe a coach or something, and I do want to keep my interest and involvement going. American football has been my best decision at uni, and I've made a lot of friends.
Original post by ..DT..
I thought it was the college that the case was against. I may be wrong though


I think they were both named as defendants. It seems as though it won't go anywhere though.
Reply 2195
Original post by jammy4041
eh..it depends really. Which university were you hoping to go to? I would say the competition is about as fair as it can be for the pool of players in the UK. Some, are really good, but it's nothing like what it is in France, or Spain...yet alone Germany, Austria, Norway, Finland etc. That said, the quality can surprise. I know Bristol had a former walk-on QB for Wisconsin, and they also had a D-II WR in 2014-15. They also had a defensive end from Canada, on exchange. We also had a corner and a linebacker from a school in North Carolina on exchange, so yeah....I would say the quality is getting better though. In the premier division, there's Stirling and Birmingham....and then everyone else. A team like Durham tends to field a lot of American talent.

I know Bristol UWE cut their squad because they have so many players, and on any given gameday they can typically have 50-70 players on the sideline. They're a D-1 team.

We're lucky to have had four or five all-DC-calibre players on our team, a great HC with a great play book, and a DC who's really good. We used to have one of Britain's finest WRs as our WR coach in our first year, too.

As for experience, I guarantee you 95% of players haven't even played before. Maybe even only 30% have watched an NFL game. If you like rugby, you'll love American Football...but I got into it having never played rugby either. To enjoy it, just put 110% in, and you'll get out much more than you put in. Obviously, if you have experience, it'll help things and you'll be better rooted in offensive and defensive concepts and fundamentals like tackling, blocking, catching the ball or whatever.

As a word of warning though, if you are a rookie, you'd have basically have about 5 weeks tops from freshers week to your first game, and it is intense. A lot of people get down if "they don't start" and while it's competitive, everyone has a role. Whether you're big or small, if you can play, the coaches will find a way to fit you in. Also even if you don't start, you can still come on, make a special teams tackle, or do something and earn that extra game time. Every season, no job is safe, and rookies can start sometimes. Coaches themselves take a lot of pride in developing people, and getting them enthused with this great sport.

Mind you, since I was banged up, this was it really as a season. My coaches think I'll be a good referee or maybe a coach or something, and I do want to keep my interest and involvement going. American football has been my best decision at uni, and I've made a lot of friends.


Thats great thanks, I've only played 'proper' football so far lol but definitely think that this uni will be a great place to try this version out!
Original post by SmashConcept
I think they were both named as defendants. It seems as though it won't go anywhere though.


It seemed to be a huge issue pre draft but I haven't heard a peep since. Will have to wait and see I guess. Wish I could stay up for the draft tonight :-(
In non draft news, for our fantasy league next year is it cool if I invite my bro?

He's a former TSR fitness crew member that smash at least knows of.

He'll definitely stay active

Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by ..DT..
It seemed to be a huge issue pre draft but I haven't heard a peep since. Will have to wait and see I guess. Wish I could stay up for the draft tonight :-(


Well, the accuser certainly tried to make it a big deal by filing the week before the draft. I've always had the impression that she honestly feels she was wronged and probably was, but I couldn't say how or to what extent and I doubt she has much of a case. There were some things that were talked about in terms of getting team mates to testify and issuing subpoenas for facebook messages or whatever, but it seems as though releasing that information before the draft was her last ditch attempt to "punish" him, rather than a sincere effort to use the civil courts to get compensation.
Original post by Motorbiker
In non draft news, for our fantasy league next year is it cool if I invite my bro?

He's a former TSR fitness crew member that smash at least knows of.

He'll definitely stay active

Posted from TSR Mobile


Yeah, we should have a limited number of places and first priority should go to people who were active last year, second to those who the people in the first group can vouch for, and last priority goes to randoms making up the numbers. JMO.

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