Jets, Eagles, and Cowboys are not in the Super Bowl. All is well with the world
As for this game, normally I wouldn't care who wins. I don't hate these teams. But, you Seahawks fans just make so much noise. It's like you're actively trying to make fans of other teams hate you. It would be really nice to see you all forced to shut up. That means it can't be some close game where you can feel good about your season. I don't want to see some tweets like "We'll get 'em next year, good game!" I want silence. That means you need to get stomped into silence, like what happened to the Colts.
Also, despite really hating the Patriot's owner (what NFL owner isn't an old white douchebag?), and the annoying horn they blow at their stadium every time they get a first down, I really respect Belichick and Brady. They play football the way I play board games, only they are much much better at it. Watching a Patriot's game is like watching the AGDQ of football.
The Superb Owl is definitely going to be a big one.
They go too far. Under investigation for cheating again.
The worst penalty they can get is loss of draft picks in future seasons. If you can gain a significant advantage today, and still go to the Super Bowl, you would be foolish not to give up those draft picks. Playing to win at its finest.
Same thing happened during Spygate. If the NFL wants to really punish the Patriots, they should send the Colts to the Super Bowl. If the penalty is not that severe, then the other teams are the fools for not also deflating the balls.
They also employed lots of tricky formations mixing up which players were and were not eligible. If the refs don't call a penalty for not reporting as eligible, or throwing to an ineligible receiver, then you get away with it. They actually did get called for not reporting at least once yesterday. Otherwise, it's obvious that you should report as eligible and then snap the ball as quickly as possible while the defense is still figuring it out. If other teams don't do this, that's their own fault for not playing to win.
There are rules in the NFL, and the Patriots are the only ones who seem to actually push them to the limit for the sake of victory. Here's an example of it that is not shady at all.
It's the quick kick. You have a huge lead. You're just playing defensively at this point to maintain the lead. You don't care about converting on third down. It's too many yards to convert running the ball, you would have to pass. You just want to protect against the QB getting hurt on the third down blitz. So have the QB punt. There won't be a returner out there. No chance of a big return for a TD. Safely let your defense take the field with good position. It's the exact right call in this situation. Have you ever seen another team do it? I haven't. It's because they aren't as smart as the New England Patriots.
I don't care about fans, I just like seeing some good football. That game had some really great football. And some really dodgy calls too, but that made it all the dramatic.
It seems to me that most new-guard Seahawks fans (those who've started to get serious in the past three years) don't understand the pain of having a shitty team and still root for them. It seems real convenient that all of the sudden they are so vocal. That's why everyone fucking hates them.
People hating on other people's joy. Will it really make you happy in seeing other people not happy that did absolutely nothing to you other than expressing their joy for their team that may annoy you? You could always just let it go and ignore them.
Seriously. Stop hating and go on being happy with your own life. Being shitty on other people's happiness and hoping to be joyous when things go wrong is just downright hateful.
I'm a pretty new fan, but I didn't really watch any pro football until a couple years ago and my girlfriend's brother has been a diehard Hawks fan for years and years so he pretty much indoctrinated me. Coincidentally they've also been doing great since I became a fan.
Before that I guess I sorta was on board with the Steelers just because that's my dad's team. But I didn't really have any specific ties to them. I think being in Seattle helps me get behind a team more. Like in college with college football the camaraderie goes a long way towards making me interested.
Let me put this into perspective. I'm a hockey fan, so I will use that as an analogy.
I've been a Caps fan for most of my life (~18 years). We've always been on the edge of greatness. We have great players. Our coaching isn't fantastic, but we get by somehow. We've been to the Stanley cup once (97-98), where we lost 0-4 games.
It's really exciting to root and cheer for the team. And even when they finish at the top of the regular season, somehow they always seem to falter and stumble. It's really frustrating, but every year I rock the red and try to go to one of the many sold out games. It's a blast. The atomsphere is electric. Maybe this is the year. We are doing so well, Ovi is on fire.
Yet every year, no matter how much fun it is, it's super disappointing to see them not reach the top prize they deserve. Maybe next year is the motto.
So, when you see fans start rooting for a team that is doing really well, winning a Super Bowl and going back to the Super Bowl in a consecutive season, it rings hallow. Not because you aren't passionate for your team. Not because you aren't good fans. But because a true fan is only made when they experience the win after years of pain.
To say that people should stop hating your team because they are doing well is naive. But then again, you couldn't possibly understand why people would hate a team that's doing well when you haven't experienced the pain of rooting for a shitty team.
Personally I'm not a fan of any NFL team, of course not, because I'm not from anywhere and don't have any older relatives who are fans of any teams.
But I enjoy following teams, as in keeping up with their results and catching their games whenever. And the teams I follow are typically the ones who do well the previous season, particularly if they reach the Super Bowl. And of course the big name quarterbacks and their teams. I like to see if the team is really quality, or if they had luck on their side, or if they've lost a player and if that has a big impact.
The Seahawks are a very interesting team to me. I was hoping they did well, just so I could see the matchups in the post season. And of course I've been keeping my eye on the Patriots. I'm more interested in seeing the matchup than either one winning. Personally I don't see Patriots winning this one, but it's not because I'm a fan of the Seahawks.
They go too far. Under investigation for cheating again.
Oh, that is a load of horsecrap for so many reasons. Heck, even the whole Spygate thing was overblown. Get this: there was no rule against taping the other team during the game. The only rule, and it was new to that particular season, was you couldn't tape the other team from the sidelines. However, you were more than welcome to do it from many other places in the stadium that were designated taping locations. Why Belichick decided to tape from the sidelines, who knows. He claims he misunderstood the rule. Personally, I don't buy that, given how much he rules lawyers the crap out of every other rule. He probaby thought that the league wouldn't seriously enforce that rule given how silly it was that he could tape with a giant ass zoom lens from the press box but couldn't with a silly hand-held camcorder from the sidelines.
"Assuming these allegations are true, the Patriots could have had a harder time landing a few of those Tom Brady passes and only beaten the Colts by 31 points instead of 38. "
It seems to me that most new-guard Seahawks fans (those who've started to get serious in the past three years) don't understand the pain of having a shitty team and still root for them. It seems real convenient that all of the sudden they are so vocal. That's why everyone fucking hates them.
I hope the Seahawks get fucking curbstomped.
I've been a Seahawks fan all of my life that I could comprehend what the game even was. There were years that I cheered louder of followed more closely, but I've never rooted for another team during the regular season. There are pictures out there that show the Seahawks filling the stands for years. Maybe not sold out crowds, but then again there are very few, if any, teams in any U.S. sport that will sell out every game, every year. People are excited because we haven't sucked as bad for the last few years. People are excited because Russell Wilson is a fucking magician and Marshawn Lynch makes plays that literally cause seismic activity. There are plenty of new fans, and band-wagon fans, and there are a lot of people who are into football now because of how well the Seahawks have done.
When your are breaking records year after year and doing great, fandom becomes contagious. When experts are talking about how awesome your team is, then you have the right to boast and cheer louder. There are a lot of people in this city that know the pain of sucking in every major sport that we have had in our city, and a few bright spots as well. The Seahawks may be the only hand-egg team that has a sold out stadium during the preseason as well as the rest of the year, and I know that is more true during the last few years that we have had Russell WIlson, but I have been to a couple games before we had him and there were plenty of fans in the seats.
People should stop hating on the Seahawks not because we are doing well enough to be noticed, but because a lot of the haters didn't even notice Seattle until we had these last few seasons. Hell, we may as well be Alaska to most of the country.
The NFL investigation says that the Patriots did use under-inflated balls. As I said before, good for them. The penalty is going to be in the form of lost draft picks and fines. Big deal.
Let's say I cheated in Netrunner and had 4-5 copies of Sure Gamble in my deck (3 is the max). If the penalty was that I had to pay a fine (and I was rich) and that next year I would have a disadvantage, I would continue cheating. I can still be the world champion this year, so I'll do anything I can to make that happen.
If you think about it, it's basically pay2win like the games on your phone. Pay $X and Y draft picks to get the advantage of under-inflated balls in this one game. And you only have to pay if you get caught! Any fabulously wealthy NFL team should be taking advantage of every single pay2win option available to them, just like every pro Hearthstone player has every card.
If the NFL wants to make a real statement about cheating, they should negate the game. Make the Colts the AFC champs. They don't have the balls to do it, and I don't think the rules allow for it. Which again, shows the genius of the Patriots. They're the only team that is really playing to win. Who gives a shit about honor or sportsmanship if you're the one holding the trophy in the parade?
Decent human beings don't have anything to do with a sport that involves people hitting each other so hard that it causes brain damage. They also have nothing to do with an organization that allows teams to have racist names.
Decent human beings don't have anything to do with a sport that involves people hitting each other so hard that it causes brain damage. They also have nothing to do with an organization that allows teams to have racist names.
Also the fact that the penalties for this forms of "cheating" are built into the rules. If you take the "cheating" action and accept the rules-based punishment, then you're not really cheating in many senses.
Fury of Dracula does this. Dracula can easily break the rules, either on purpose or by accident. The rules are very clear. When it is detected, Dracula receives a specific punishment, the game is put in a particular state, and play continues.
I would never fault a Dracula for allowing that to happen.
The punishment for cheating needs to be devastating or it's just another part of the game. In tabletop games, cheating breaks the game state. The rules don't account for it. So if someone cheats:
1. The game is over 2. The game was meaningless 3. That person is never allowed to play with those people again 4. That person may not be friends with those people again
But in this case, there was a specific fine and penalty associated with a specific game action that was chosen. See also: college hockey slipping too many men on the ice sometimes.
Comments
As for this game, normally I wouldn't care who wins. I don't hate these teams. But, you Seahawks fans just make so much noise. It's like you're actively trying to make fans of other teams hate you. It would be really nice to see you all forced to shut up. That means it can't be some close game where you can feel good about your season. I don't want to see some tweets like "We'll get 'em next year, good game!" I want silence. That means you need to get stomped into silence, like what happened to the Colts.
Also, despite really hating the Patriot's owner (what NFL owner isn't an old white douchebag?), and the annoying horn they blow at their stadium every time they get a first down, I really respect Belichick and Brady. They play football the way I play board games, only they are much much better at it. Watching a Patriot's game is like watching the AGDQ of football.
The Superb Owl is definitely going to be a big one.
Same thing happened during Spygate. If the NFL wants to really punish the Patriots, they should send the Colts to the Super Bowl. If the penalty is not that severe, then the other teams are the fools for not also deflating the balls.
They also employed lots of tricky formations mixing up which players were and were not eligible. If the refs don't call a penalty for not reporting as eligible, or throwing to an ineligible receiver, then you get away with it. They actually did get called for not reporting at least once yesterday. Otherwise, it's obvious that you should report as eligible and then snap the ball as quickly as possible while the defense is still figuring it out. If other teams don't do this, that's their own fault for not playing to win.
There are rules in the NFL, and the Patriots are the only ones who seem to actually push them to the limit for the sake of victory. Here's an example of it that is not shady at all.
It's the quick kick. You have a huge lead. You're just playing defensively at this point to maintain the lead. You don't care about converting on third down. It's too many yards to convert running the ball, you would have to pass. You just want to protect against the QB getting hurt on the third down blitz. So have the QB punt. There won't be a returner out there. No chance of a big return for a TD. Safely let your defense take the field with good position. It's the exact right call in this situation. Have you ever seen another team do it? I haven't. It's because they aren't as smart as the New England Patriots.
You want silence? Don't listen.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopus_(yacht)
I hope the Seahawks get fucking curbstomped.
Seriously. Stop hating and go on being happy with your own life. Being shitty on other people's happiness and hoping to be joyous when things go wrong is just downright hateful.
Before that I guess I sorta was on board with the Steelers just because that's my dad's team. But I didn't really have any specific ties to them. I think being in Seattle helps me get behind a team more. Like in college with college football the camaraderie goes a long way towards making me interested.
I've been a Caps fan for most of my life (~18 years). We've always been on the edge of greatness. We have great players. Our coaching isn't fantastic, but we get by somehow. We've been to the Stanley cup once (97-98), where we lost 0-4 games.
It's really exciting to root and cheer for the team. And even when they finish at the top of the regular season, somehow they always seem to falter and stumble. It's really frustrating, but every year I rock the red and try to go to one of the many sold out games. It's a blast. The atomsphere is electric. Maybe this is the year. We are doing so well, Ovi is on fire.
Yet every year, no matter how much fun it is, it's super disappointing to see them not reach the top prize they deserve. Maybe next year is the motto.
So, when you see fans start rooting for a team that is doing really well, winning a Super Bowl and going back to the Super Bowl in a consecutive season, it rings hallow. Not because you aren't passionate for your team. Not because you aren't good fans. But because a true fan is only made when they experience the win after years of pain.
To say that people should stop hating your team because they are doing well is naive. But then again, you couldn't possibly understand why people would hate a team that's doing well when you haven't experienced the pain of rooting for a shitty team.
But I enjoy following teams, as in keeping up with their results and catching their games whenever. And the teams I follow are typically the ones who do well the previous season, particularly if they reach the Super Bowl. And of course the big name quarterbacks and their teams. I like to see if the team is really quality, or if they had luck on their side, or if they've lost a player and if that has a big impact.
The Seahawks are a very interesting team to me. I was hoping they did well, just so I could see the matchups in the post season. And of course I've been keeping my eye on the Patriots. I'm more interested in seeing the matchup than either one winning. Personally I don't see Patriots winning this one, but it's not because I'm a fan of the Seahawks.
It's Ballgazi.
When your are breaking records year after year and doing great, fandom becomes contagious. When experts are talking about how awesome your team is, then you have the right to boast and cheer louder. There are a lot of people in this city that know the pain of sucking in every major sport that we have had in our city, and a few bright spots as well. The Seahawks may be the only hand-egg team that has a sold out stadium during the preseason as well as the rest of the year, and I know that is more true during the last few years that we have had Russell WIlson, but I have been to a couple games before we had him and there were plenty of fans in the seats.
People should stop hating on the Seahawks not because we are doing well enough to be noticed, but because a lot of the haters didn't even notice Seattle until we had these last few seasons. Hell, we may as well be Alaska to most of the country.
Let's say I cheated in Netrunner and had 4-5 copies of Sure Gamble in my deck (3 is the max). If the penalty was that I had to pay a fine (and I was rich) and that next year I would have a disadvantage, I would continue cheating. I can still be the world champion this year, so I'll do anything I can to make that happen.
If you think about it, it's basically pay2win like the games on your phone. Pay $X and Y draft picks to get the advantage of under-inflated balls in this one game. And you only have to pay if you get caught! Any fabulously wealthy NFL team should be taking advantage of every single pay2win option available to them, just like every pro Hearthstone player has every card.
If the NFL wants to make a real statement about cheating, they should negate the game. Make the Colts the AFC champs. They don't have the balls to do it, and I don't think the rules allow for it. Which again, shows the genius of the Patriots. They're the only team that is really playing to win. Who gives a shit about honor or sportsmanship if you're the one holding the trophy in the parade?
Fury of Dracula does this. Dracula can easily break the rules, either on purpose or by accident. The rules are very clear. When it is detected, Dracula receives a specific punishment, the game is put in a particular state, and play continues.
I would never fault a Dracula for allowing that to happen.
The punishment for cheating needs to be devastating or it's just another part of the game. In tabletop games, cheating breaks the game state. The rules don't account for it. So if someone cheats:
1. The game is over
2. The game was meaningless
3. That person is never allowed to play with those people again
4. That person may not be friends with those people again
But in this case, there was a specific fine and penalty associated with a specific game action that was chosen. See also: college hockey slipping too many men on the ice sometimes.
"Per NFL regulations, we inflated the balls to 12.5 PSI prior to the game. We just happened to use air that was 150 F during the process."