NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Actually they could rest them and roll with whever they land seeding wise. The #1 seed is the only must have and once eliminated from that who cares if you play at home or on the road this year. Not sure even rest cures the Steelers woes.

 

seed #2 and #3 avoid the Chiefs week 2. They wouldn’t meet until the AFC Championship game. That is mire important to me than playing home or away. I actually would rather avoid seed #4 and #5. I’m more worried about playing every other team in the AFCC after spending every ounce of effort to beat the Chiefs the week before.

Honestly, right now the only team other than the Chiefs I don’t want to face in the playoffs is the Ravens. I think they can have a regular game and still win any given week , leaving enough in the tank to give the 120% effort week 3 against the Chiefs.

I would say the same thing about all of the other 6 teams in the playoffs, not just the Browns. What ever 4 teams are in the opposite bracket have a better chance to make it to the Super Bowl imho.
Either way they have to play the Chiefs, I get that, but mentally everything you have will have to go into beating that team. The other 6 teams are so close that one or two calls could be the difference in winning.

 

WILL THESE GUYS EVER LEARN
Dwayne Haskins has dug quite a hole for himself this week, as the second-year quarterback was allegedly spotted at a strip club without a mask on over the weekend. It would be the second time he violated the league’s COVID-19 protocols.

 

I think the Browns have a round one advantage from a mental standpoint that maybe no other team will have this postseason.

They get in the playoffs and it’s already the type of regular season ending that gives everyone a comfort combined with an ego boost. The Stefanski/Mayfield combo is considered a success for year one so that first game has zero expectations giving Cleveland a chance to play fast and loose.

Now, if they win that first game the pressure dynamic may change, but no team should be riding on as high of a high as Cleveland in that first playoff week.

 

I realize opinions are like assholes - everybody has one. The national media (and NFL fans in general) still yammer on and on about the Browns' futility so far this century and fail to see that, despite the wacky Covid season, perhaps some missed off season opportunities and an injury riddled roster (which all teams are experiencing), the Browns have put themselves in a position to reach the playoffs and maybe even capture the AFCN title. All this despite a new Head Coach / General Manager combo who didn't have the luxury of a normal training camp and pre-season leading up to the regular season. What this team has in spades is mental toughness, grit and determination.

As a fan of the Browns - they have already exceeded my expectations. But, from what I've seen, they have yet to exceed their own expectations.

 

The difference here would be that I am an asshole with an opinion.

I don't view the Browns past failures as having anything to do with what they came into this season with, other than the playoff drought. Popping that bubble can create a momentum all on its own, considering the validation it imparts on a year one regime change and a quarterback that has had some high moments mixed with some low ones in his short stint as the face of the franchise.

I expect Cleveland to look faster than most teams in that first round of games because of their youth combined with that momentum.

 

The Bills are nothing to sneeze at and should worry you more than the ravens.

 

They aren’t anything to sneeze at, I worry about ALL teams In the playoffs, however.. in 2020..

Ravens are 2-0 against the Browns, so they are going to worry me more than any of the others automatically. It isn’t a knock on the Bills or anyone else. It’s short term memory.

We have wins against the Titans and Colts, it doesn’t mean that they are less of a threat than anyone else in their fray, but at least I know we are capable of beating them.

The Bills, Dolphins, and Chiefs for that matter, are unknowns at this point. In two weeks I might feel the same about the Steelers, but what I saw last night makes me feel like we are going to want to play them in the playoffs.

The Ravens scare me because I feel like we put in one of the best performances of the season and we still came up short. It’s a mental thing, not an evaluation of overall talent.

 

Any team without the bye is going to want the steelers at this point

 

Ya I didn't want to be the one that said that though since it'd sound a bit homerish coming from me. Feels like Chiefs, Bills and then everyone else followed by the Dolphins. Most likely first round scenario IMO for the Browns is vs the Titans as the #3,# 4 or #5 seed. Most permutations give that matchup. They could still face the Bills, Steelers or Dolphins though. Dolphins is really improbable.

 

Totally understandable. Sometimes it's just the matchups. Kinda like Jacksonville vs Steelers a few years back. Well maybe you'll have that playoff game, albeit one-sided on week 17.

 

yeah well, before week 14 they looked unbeatable. Even when they had some down games, they were finding ways to win. They rivaled the Chiefs in nearly every aspect.

That changed on a dime with the football team and it could just as easily change back on a dime at any moment. I’ve learned long ago to not take anything for granted in this league. The Steelers are already in the playoffs so as far as I’m concerned they are right now Super Bowl contenders. There’s only 6 teams in that boat right now.

 

Would that hold if they were to face the Bills in round 1? Their ending of their own playoff drought generates a lot of the same feelings the Browns have going for them.

 

Well the Bills have ended their drought a few years ago. The drought they ended was the division title drought. But ya if there is gonna be a team as confident as the Browns to finally be more than just pretty good it's the Bills.

 

The Bills were there in 2019 so the idea of validating the coach/QB doesn’t apply. There was no coaching change that added question marks for the direction of the team so the expectations were decidedly different for both franchises.

The Bills should definitely be feeling more pressure entering the playoffs than the Browns will regardless the opponent.

 

Confidence compared to pressure is where the conversation probably ends up lost in nuance, but I agree on the Bills being confident going into the postseason.

I would say the Browns still have the advantage of being able to light their own ass on fire.

 

It's such a weird situation where they may be all nerves Week 17 if it's win and in but then if they win the next week they will be fired up. I say that because it's not "nothing to lose and less pressure" if it means making the playoffs in the first place. There will be so much weight on their shoulders should it be do or die for them to even get in. However if they clinch before kickoff then there is no "real" pressure to win the division; although it will be wanted, they won't play with the burden.

 

Washington vs Carolina moved to 4pm window so the Eagles and Cowboys game doesn't lose playoff relevance. Weird they are doing this Week 16.

 

I will just say this, the first game against the Steelers, the Ravens beat themselves with the 4 turnovers, they amassed nearly 500 yards of offense in that game and they pissed it away. The 2nd game, they caught the Ravens with half their damn team on covid restrictions and still nearly blew it, the Steelers are beatable and I fully expect them to get bounced in the first game.

 

DeAndre Hopkins, Travis Kelce, Stefon Diggs within 10 yards of NFL receiving lead



The race to lead the NFL in receiving yards is going down to the wire, with three players within 10 yards of the lead with two games to go.

Cardinals wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins currently leads the NFL with 1,324 receiving yards. He’s followed closely by Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, who has 1,318 receiving yards, and Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs, who has 1,314 receiving yards.

Hopkins leading the NFL in receiving yards in his first year as a Cardinal would be one more cruel blow to Texans fans in a season full of cruel blows. Former Texans coach and General Manager Bill O’Brien sent Hopkins to Arizona in a trade that was derided at the time and even more derided now, as Hopkins has had a great year and the Texans were so bad they fired O’Brien four weeks into the season.

Kelce can become the first tight end in NFL history to lead the NFL in receiving yards. He’s also just 60 yards away from breaking the NFL single-season record for receiving yards by a tight end, set by George Kittle with 1,377 yards in 2018.

Like Hopkins, Diggs was part of a high-profile trade this offseason and has performed every bit as well as his new team hoped. His arrival has coincided with the emergence of Josh Allen as one of the NFL’s best young quarterbacks.

No one else is within 100 yards of the receiving lead, so this is looking like a three-man race, with Hopkins holding the slightest of leads down the stretch.

NBC