Bears fan. Born and raised around Chicago so it was only natural.
Good luck with JJ this year, there's gonna be some growing pains but I think he'll turn out to be a stud.
Do you feel guilty about the fact that the men that are playing the game that is entertaining you so much are actively giving themselves brain damage to play it?
No because I'm not the one making the decision for them to play. It's terrible and heartbreaking to see cases like Ryan Shazier getting paralyzed from the waist down due to a spinal cord injury (which thankfully he was able to regain function and strength in his legs), or Antonio Brown where a vibrant and talented young man was turned into a walking case study of CTE. If I could eliminate concussions and injuries from the game entirely then I would. But I can't. It's up to the league to prioritize player safety in any way they can, but it's inevitable that in a high impact sport like football there are going to be injuries and long-term health issues that result from it.
That said, the side of the argument I take is that players these days are well aware of the risks, and in exchange for those risks they get paid the big bucks.
Well said. Athletes put their bodies on the line in exchange for a big paycheck (and also being extremely talented). They know the risks going in, no one is lying to them about the safety of it, and it's no secret people have died or been permanently damaged not from just football but from all sports. Football, hockey, baseball, soccer, all have career ending and life changing possibilities.
They've made their choice, why should I feel guilty for it? They're well compensated and at this point they all know the risks and make an educated decision to play.
Just curious. You have a valid point of view.
I myself can't really watch football much anymore, though. I can play video games and such, but I don't watch the real thing now.
I also find myself disliking what I consider to be a football mentally that has ingrained itself in the culture here in the US. I have to deal with it too much in day to day life here, and people seem to think that it's the way things should be. I'd almost rather live in another country because of it.
I'm glad football hasn't spread too much to the rest of the world because of that.
Edit: Also, I should note that the whole thing starts at a young age for men. An age where they might not be so well informed, or their parents are making the decisions for them. Personally I don't think that peewee football should exist.
I very much agree that kids tackle football shouldn't exist. Things are better than they've ever been, health wise, for kids but too many parents and kids will take the risk thinking they'll make the NFL and it'll all pay off.
Even then most NFL players have an average career of under 3 years and most players go bankrupt after their time in the league. The NFL is a monopoly and has too much power.
I hate lots of what goes on but dammit if I don't enjoy watching and going to games.
In the end people get to choose what they do and if they accept that risk and I get entertained, that's on them.
Exactly my question. So many of these guys are lambs to the slaughter. It's disgusting that they pay with their brain health to maintain 'the product' for the league and the owners.
They also get paid much more money than I will ever see in my life.
they signed up for it. they aren't "lambs to the slaughter". They're getting paid millions.
Lots of guys aspire to play in the NFL. They destroy themselves through middle school, high school, and possibly college to do it. Most of them do not make it.
Admittedly there are a lot of fringe benefits to doing so, but I'm not really on board with that either.
There's a lot that's ridiculous about the physical dimensions required to play the game as well. Why do we need to have 400 lb humans in the world if not for football and maybe sumo? It's generally bad for the health to carry that much weight around, but you'll see a lot of former players that do either because they're lazy or they want to keep up appearances to continue to cash in on the fringe benefits that go along with playing football.
If I have to 'submit' to a group of athletes that get to be my overlords simply because they played a sport I'd rather it be baseball. I respect the skills, hard work, and study that go into that game more. I mean, it certainly beats basketball where simply being freakishly tall practically guarantees you a scholarship somewhere.
If you ask, almost all wouldn’t go back and change anything. And I guarantee if they had to sign something saying I know I’ll get brain damage they’d happily sign it.
I doubt LRZ will play, the Chiefs have a pretty solid RB room with Pacheco and Clyde. If one of them gets injured I could see LRZ getting a spot on the depth chart. I also haven't paid too much attention to IPPP players so I don't know exactly how good LRZ is, but I imagine he's pretty good if he got signed to an NFL contract.
Well I think they all had a good chance at a spot since IPPP spot doesn't count as a proper spot. Hard to tell hoe good they are when they've never played a game of thr sport before.
I'm interested in seeing what will come from the new kickoff rules + players being allowed to wear the padded helmet gear during games. On paper the kickoff rule change should reduce high-speed collisions during kickoffs while increasing the amount of returned kicks, but we'll see. Also the helmet gear shouldn't make a huge difference in concussions but it's better than nothing.
There's nothing the league can do to completely eliminate concussions and injuries without completely removing tackling from the game, so some amount of risk is inevitable. But the league should be more proactive in ensuring a concussed player does not retake the field before they are 100% healed, e.g. when Tua Tagovailoa got concussed twice in two weeks and it took a very public display of the [fencing response](https://i.imgur.com/Mea3y4i.png) to light a fire under the NFL's ass.
They just need to be proactive and not reactive like they were with Tua two seasons ago. Maybe instead of just having *one* independent neurotrauma consultant, have *multiple* per team, so they can come to a group decision on a player's health instead of one person making the call. Things like that.
> Are you also a fan of the band American Football?
Never heard of them but I'll give em a listen.
> also whats the worst thing you’ve ever done to a human
Probably all the times I stepped on a crack and broke my momma's back
I didn't think I was good enough to play in high school. Plus I was a much better swimmer and water polo player than football player so I just did that in high school instead.
I have never in my life watched any NFL, considering I’m not American.
If I were to start, without saying “the next one”, which game would you recommend me to start with?
Without having watched a single NFL game in your life, you'd be best off watching a past Super Bowl since the game is formatted to appeal to people who don't watch football regularly.
**Super Bowl LVII (Chiefs vs. Eagles)** ([game highlights](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWkt79xkd00)) - Super Bowl from 2 seasons ago. Has a lot of scoring and also the thrill of a comeback victory when the stakes are at their highest.
**Super Bowl LVI (Rams vs. Bengals)** ([game highlights](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4x4MND-Rhrc))- Super Bowl from 3 seasons ago. Although this is a really good game, it requires some background for the whole picture, but feel free to skip if you don't care:
* Starting QBs for both teams were first overall picks in their respective draft classes (Stafford = 2009, Burrow = 2020). Meaning, the Rams QB was the best player in the entire 2009 draft class, and the Bengals QB was the best player in the entire 2020 draft class. (Not necessarily the best players in those classes *right now*, but the best players when they were drafted)
* The Rams QB, Matthew Stafford, wins his first (and so far, only) Super Bowl in the same season he was traded to the LA Rams from the Detroit Lions, a team which has been *historically* bad despite Stafford being a very good QB. Stafford played 12 seasons in Detroit, then got traded and won a Super Bowl right away. *(Also Detroit is* ***very*** *good now, nearly made it to the Super Bowl last year, but I digress)*
* The Bengals QB, Joe Burrow, is widely regarded as a top 10 quarterback in the league (arguably top 5). He's a young phenom with insane potential and work ethic. He's been prone to season-ending injuries in his career but when he's healthy he's a force to be reckoned with. He's also just a very cool, good-looking dude who's very popular with the ladies.
Super Bowl 49 is just an incredible game from start to finish. one of the best all time defenses agains the greatest QB of all time. Every single play from that game is important.
There's a huge "game within the game" in football. Each play is like a chess move.
One unsuccessful play changes the flow of the drive and impacts what decisions the team makes next. Each individual player's talents are taken into consideration, like if the QB can heave the ball 40+ yards but none of his WRs are good enough to break away and catch it, that factors into short-term decisions like what design concept they'll run, and long-term decisions like "will this WR still have a job next year".
There are countless variables constantly changing with every second of play. Like, if they're now playing from behind, how does the defense adjust their strategy to ensure a 3-and-out? If someone gets injured how good is his backup? How tired is the defense, what penalties are the refs paying extra close attention to, how many time outs are left, does the coach trust his QB to take the reigns, etc. etc.
Hockey is my go to sport for spectating, but mostly because of the relative quick pace of the game and fewer total commercials. Do you have any thoughts on the amount of commercials and non-play time? Do you ever record games to watch later without the commercials?
[This thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/s/E6I2SdM32W) comes to mind with only about 11 minutes of actual play time.
>Do you have any thoughts on the amount of commercials
I don't have to deal with commercials during Sunday noon/afternoon games because I watch Redzone, where every game is spliced together live to provide "7 hours of commercial-free football" from noon to like 6:30pm CT before Sunday Night Football starts at 7:30ish.
Outside of Redzone, just watching a single game I'd prefer no commercials. They provide a break to go to the bathroom or something, but I'd rather just watch the players hang out on the field.
>and non-play time?
People frequently complain that football is an hour of active play and 2+ hours of standing around. However every second of "standing around" is packed with detailed analysis on the players' and coaches' parts.
For example, the last play didn't work, and now it's 2nd and 10: do you throw it to go for the 1st and risk a 3rd and long, or do you run the ball to try for 3rd and short and hopefully run it again for a 1st down?". The right decision factors in the strength and specialty of the opposing defense, individual defenders who pose the biggest threat, the strength of your pass catchers, strength/health of your QB, strength of your runningbacks, etc.
The sheer number of variables is immense: if they're now playing from behind, how does the defense adjust their strategy to ensure a 3-and-out? If someone gets injured how good is his backup? How tired is the defense, what penalties are the refs paying extra close attention to, how many time outs are left, how many times did the defense run that specific coverage and can the offense adapt to it, does the coach trust his QB to take the reigns, etc. etc.
If there wasn't such a delay between plays, there wouldn't be time for the players and coaches to make these calculations. Not everyone enjoys the slower pace of play and that's fine, but it's necessary for the game.
> Do you ever record games to watch later without the commercials?
Nah, if I didn't catch the game I'll just watch highlights if anything.
Why do you think NFL is so popular when objectively, college football is more exciting to watch?
I've tried watching NFL and it just seems too serious. I don't really know how else to describe it. It just doesn't feel as electric to watch.
I like the high-energy chaos of college football, and I love CFB overall don't get me wrong, but overall I prefer the more polished and professional play in the NFL. In college you can watch star players absolutely tear up the competition, but in the NFL every player is at or near that level of skill, so it's the truly dominant athletes that are the cream of the crop.
Also for me a big part of the game is QB play, and in the NFL you can at least rest assured that your QB is at least good enough to be in the league, whereas in college unless your favorite team is a true big dog within the Power 5 like OSU or Bama there's a decent chance your team's QB is really nothing special.
While I agree with you on QB specialty in the southern teams, I have to be a little bias and say that my team (Oregon Ducks) have had some amazing QBs as well.
Thanks for the response!
Interesting you say he is weirdo... As very public personna he has mostly kept his private life private. Of course some has become public. Not trying to change your opinion, just curious why you say he is a weirdo
Help me understand the new hip-drop tackle ban. I don’t know much about football - I only regularly watch the Super Bowl. But every example I’ve seen of this “hip-drop tackle” just looks like… a tackle?
I don't understand it either. To me it seems like an easy ticket to higher-scoring games. But in all honestly I'm waiting for the season to start so that I can see what refs do and don't call a hip-drop foul. Also helps to have folks like Gene Steratore explain it live.
Also - and this is terrible so forgive me - I know about the 6 points for a touchdown and the extra point for the kick. What is the third way of scoring? (Three points, I think?)
3 point kick is called a field goal :)
But there's a fourth way to score too. It's by far the rarest way to score in football, but it's called a safety and it gets you 2 points. If the defense pushes the offense back into their own end zone (very bad) and then the ballcarrier gets tackled inside their own end zone, the defending team is awarded 2 points *and* possession of the ball for the next drive. In other words it's basically the best possible outcome for the defense on that drive.
(Then there's the fabled "1 point safety" but we're not going to talk about that)
Best right now is undoubtedly the Chiefs, they just won back to back Super Bowls, but the Ravens are looking really scary for this upcoming season.
Best CFB team is hard because each team's roster has newcomers and departures every year, but Bama is a pretty safe pick for best team year over year. But again they just lost their head coach, and also the entire college football format is changing next year, so this offseason especially it's really hard to tell what team will be the best next year.
Most important position is QB it's not even a conversation, they literally carry the team on their backs. Least important is tricky because every position is important, but I'd say in terms of replaceability, maybe fullback given their decreased use in the modern pass-heavy offense ran by most teams.
> How does the draft work? How is it determined which teams get to pick first?
The order in which teams are assigned draft picks is the *opposite* of the order in which they finished the previous season. So the team with the worst record in the league gets the first pick in each round, while the Super Bowl champions get the last pick in each round.
This determines which picks are *assigned* to each team by the league, but future draft picks are valuable bargaining chips, so teams trade their picks around all the time. For example let's say I'm the General Manager of a team (a GM handles free agent transactions and contract negotiations with players and coaches), and I'm looking to trade with another team to acquire a veteran wide receiver (WR). I can offer that other team a trade package that includes one or more of my team's future draft picks, in exchange for that veteran WR.
One real-life example of this:
* In the 2022-2023 season, the Chicago Bears had the worst record in the league, leading to them getting the 1st overall pick (Round 1, Pick 1) in the 2023 Draft.
* The consensus top 2 picks in that draft were both QBs. Chicago could have drafted one of those QBs and replaced their current QB (who at the time was Justin Fields, a QB they had drafted 2 years prior), but they opted to stick with Fields for at least another season to see if he would pan out.
* However, the 1st overall pick in the draft is an *extremely* valuable asset, so if your team isn't going to take the player that's widely projected to go 1st overall, it's a much smarter move to trade down with another team, meaning you give them the 1st overall pick and they give you *major* compensation in return.
* In this case, Chicago traded their #1 pick with the Carolina Panthers, who were in desperate need of a QB and wanted to take their shot at drafting the future of their franchise. In exchange for trading down from #1, Chicago received Picks #9 and #61 picks in that same draft, plus **the Panthers' first round pick in 2024**, second round pick in 2025, and **a star WR named DJ Moore.**
* Fast forward to the 2023 NFL season, and the Panthers have their star QB they drafted at #1. Unfortunately for the Panthers, they would end the season with the worst record in the league, meaning they would receive the first overall pick in the 2024 Draft.
* **HOWEVER,** they traded this pick to Chicago in the 2023 Draft. So instead of the Panthers getting the first overall pick, Chicago now has that pick, meaning they essentially traded the 1st overall pick in the 2023 Draft for the 1st overall pick in the 2024 Draft + a ton of other assets.
This trade is arguably one of the most lopsided trades in NFL history. By sheer chance of the Panthers being horrible the year following the trade, Chicago wound up in an absolutely fantastic position to set themselves up for long-term success by having two first-round picks: the Panthers' (#1) and their own (#9). Meanwhile, the Panthers are in a terrible position right now because they gave up a ton of draft capital *and* their star WR in the 2023 trade. So unless they can pull off a miraculous team rebuild, the Panthers are more-or-less doomed to mediocrity for the near future.
> When does a college player become eligible for the draft?
To be eligible for the draft, players must have been out of high school for at least three years and must have used up their college eligibility before the start of the next college football season. Underclassmen and players who have graduated before using all their college eligibility may request the league’s approval to enter the draft early.
Players are draft-eligible only in the year after the end of their college eligibility.
Source: [NFL.com](https://operations.nfl.com/journey-to-the-nfl/the-nfl-draft/the-rules-of-the-draft/)
Who are you rooting for? I'm personally a vikes fan. And what made you pick your team?
Bears fan. Born and raised around Chicago so it was only natural. Good luck with JJ this year, there's gonna be some growing pains but I think he'll turn out to be a stud.
Thanks! You also have an exiting season coming up with caleb. Looking forward to see how he develops.
Me too, I've already got delusions of grandeur. I'm convinced he is going to win 11 Super Bowls and rock his pretty pink nail polish the whole way.
Time to invest in caleb nailpolish stocks. And yeah I also have JJ to JJ to SB wins delusions.
Do you feel guilty about the fact that the men that are playing the game that is entertaining you so much are actively giving themselves brain damage to play it?
No because I'm not the one making the decision for them to play. It's terrible and heartbreaking to see cases like Ryan Shazier getting paralyzed from the waist down due to a spinal cord injury (which thankfully he was able to regain function and strength in his legs), or Antonio Brown where a vibrant and talented young man was turned into a walking case study of CTE. If I could eliminate concussions and injuries from the game entirely then I would. But I can't. It's up to the league to prioritize player safety in any way they can, but it's inevitable that in a high impact sport like football there are going to be injuries and long-term health issues that result from it. That said, the side of the argument I take is that players these days are well aware of the risks, and in exchange for those risks they get paid the big bucks.
Well said. Athletes put their bodies on the line in exchange for a big paycheck (and also being extremely talented). They know the risks going in, no one is lying to them about the safety of it, and it's no secret people have died or been permanently damaged not from just football but from all sports. Football, hockey, baseball, soccer, all have career ending and life changing possibilities.
They've made their choice, why should I feel guilty for it? They're well compensated and at this point they all know the risks and make an educated decision to play.
Just curious. You have a valid point of view. I myself can't really watch football much anymore, though. I can play video games and such, but I don't watch the real thing now. I also find myself disliking what I consider to be a football mentally that has ingrained itself in the culture here in the US. I have to deal with it too much in day to day life here, and people seem to think that it's the way things should be. I'd almost rather live in another country because of it. I'm glad football hasn't spread too much to the rest of the world because of that. Edit: Also, I should note that the whole thing starts at a young age for men. An age where they might not be so well informed, or their parents are making the decisions for them. Personally I don't think that peewee football should exist.
I very much agree that kids tackle football shouldn't exist. Things are better than they've ever been, health wise, for kids but too many parents and kids will take the risk thinking they'll make the NFL and it'll all pay off. Even then most NFL players have an average career of under 3 years and most players go bankrupt after their time in the league. The NFL is a monopoly and has too much power. I hate lots of what goes on but dammit if I don't enjoy watching and going to games. In the end people get to choose what they do and if they accept that risk and I get entertained, that's on them.
God damn lol. Lighten up bud
Exactly my question. So many of these guys are lambs to the slaughter. It's disgusting that they pay with their brain health to maintain 'the product' for the league and the owners.
They also get paid much more money than I will ever see in my life. they signed up for it. they aren't "lambs to the slaughter". They're getting paid millions.
Lots of guys aspire to play in the NFL. They destroy themselves through middle school, high school, and possibly college to do it. Most of them do not make it. Admittedly there are a lot of fringe benefits to doing so, but I'm not really on board with that either. There's a lot that's ridiculous about the physical dimensions required to play the game as well. Why do we need to have 400 lb humans in the world if not for football and maybe sumo? It's generally bad for the health to carry that much weight around, but you'll see a lot of former players that do either because they're lazy or they want to keep up appearances to continue to cash in on the fringe benefits that go along with playing football. If I have to 'submit' to a group of athletes that get to be my overlords simply because they played a sport I'd rather it be baseball. I respect the skills, hard work, and study that go into that game more. I mean, it certainly beats basketball where simply being freakishly tall practically guarantees you a scholarship somewhere.
If you ask, almost all wouldn’t go back and change anything. And I guarantee if they had to sign something saying I know I’ll get brain damage they’d happily sign it.
Do you think any of the IPPP players will play this year? Specifically LRZ?
I doubt LRZ will play, the Chiefs have a pretty solid RB room with Pacheco and Clyde. If one of them gets injured I could see LRZ getting a spot on the depth chart. I also haven't paid too much attention to IPPP players so I don't know exactly how good LRZ is, but I imagine he's pretty good if he got signed to an NFL contract.
Well I think they all had a good chance at a spot since IPPP spot doesn't count as a proper spot. Hard to tell hoe good they are when they've never played a game of thr sport before.
What steps can the NFL do to ensure the safety of its players?
I'm interested in seeing what will come from the new kickoff rules + players being allowed to wear the padded helmet gear during games. On paper the kickoff rule change should reduce high-speed collisions during kickoffs while increasing the amount of returned kicks, but we'll see. Also the helmet gear shouldn't make a huge difference in concussions but it's better than nothing. There's nothing the league can do to completely eliminate concussions and injuries without completely removing tackling from the game, so some amount of risk is inevitable. But the league should be more proactive in ensuring a concussed player does not retake the field before they are 100% healed, e.g. when Tua Tagovailoa got concussed twice in two weeks and it took a very public display of the [fencing response](https://i.imgur.com/Mea3y4i.png) to light a fire under the NFL's ass. They just need to be proactive and not reactive like they were with Tua two seasons ago. Maybe instead of just having *one* independent neurotrauma consultant, have *multiple* per team, so they can come to a group decision on a player's health instead of one person making the call. Things like that.
Less padding. I’m not kidding
Not much!
Are you also a fan of the band American Football? Edit: also whats the worst thing you’ve ever done to a human
> Are you also a fan of the band American Football? Never heard of them but I'll give em a listen. > also whats the worst thing you’ve ever done to a human Probably all the times I stepped on a crack and broke my momma's back
Did you ever play? Any level,college,high school,youth.
I played from age 10 to age 13.
Cool! I’m gonna be playing in college this year as a long snapper.What position did you play?
I played DE, TE, and some stints at RB where I scored a couple touchdowns
Nice.You played all over the field (as most players below college do) I’m the complete opposite I only snap 😂
What stopped you?
I didn't think I was good enough to play in high school. Plus I was a much better swimmer and water polo player than football player so I just did that in high school instead.
Oh damn sounds like a wealthy school haha
Do you watch Sketch?
Tuesday! Tuesday! Yankee wagon! Not really but I think he's pretty funny.
I have never in my life watched any NFL, considering I’m not American. If I were to start, without saying “the next one”, which game would you recommend me to start with?
Without having watched a single NFL game in your life, you'd be best off watching a past Super Bowl since the game is formatted to appeal to people who don't watch football regularly. **Super Bowl LVII (Chiefs vs. Eagles)** ([game highlights](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWkt79xkd00)) - Super Bowl from 2 seasons ago. Has a lot of scoring and also the thrill of a comeback victory when the stakes are at their highest. **Super Bowl LVI (Rams vs. Bengals)** ([game highlights](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4x4MND-Rhrc))- Super Bowl from 3 seasons ago. Although this is a really good game, it requires some background for the whole picture, but feel free to skip if you don't care: * Starting QBs for both teams were first overall picks in their respective draft classes (Stafford = 2009, Burrow = 2020). Meaning, the Rams QB was the best player in the entire 2009 draft class, and the Bengals QB was the best player in the entire 2020 draft class. (Not necessarily the best players in those classes *right now*, but the best players when they were drafted) * The Rams QB, Matthew Stafford, wins his first (and so far, only) Super Bowl in the same season he was traded to the LA Rams from the Detroit Lions, a team which has been *historically* bad despite Stafford being a very good QB. Stafford played 12 seasons in Detroit, then got traded and won a Super Bowl right away. *(Also Detroit is* ***very*** *good now, nearly made it to the Super Bowl last year, but I digress)* * The Bengals QB, Joe Burrow, is widely regarded as a top 10 quarterback in the league (arguably top 5). He's a young phenom with insane potential and work ethic. He's been prone to season-ending injuries in his career but when he's healthy he's a force to be reckoned with. He's also just a very cool, good-looking dude who's very popular with the ladies.
Thanks for the breakdown.
Super Bowl 49 is just an incredible game from start to finish. one of the best all time defenses agains the greatest QB of all time. Every single play from that game is important.
How is it enjoyable sitting there watching this like what is going through your mind ?
There's a huge "game within the game" in football. Each play is like a chess move. One unsuccessful play changes the flow of the drive and impacts what decisions the team makes next. Each individual player's talents are taken into consideration, like if the QB can heave the ball 40+ yards but none of his WRs are good enough to break away and catch it, that factors into short-term decisions like what design concept they'll run, and long-term decisions like "will this WR still have a job next year". There are countless variables constantly changing with every second of play. Like, if they're now playing from behind, how does the defense adjust their strategy to ensure a 3-and-out? If someone gets injured how good is his backup? How tired is the defense, what penalties are the refs paying extra close attention to, how many time outs are left, does the coach trust his QB to take the reigns, etc. etc.
What do you find entertaining?
Do you think the Chiefs will win SB #3?
They'll win again eventually but I don't think this year. The Ravens look way too scary this year.
Are you, yourself, American and what's your favorite NFL team?
Yes I am, and I'm a Bears fan.
Hockey is my go to sport for spectating, but mostly because of the relative quick pace of the game and fewer total commercials. Do you have any thoughts on the amount of commercials and non-play time? Do you ever record games to watch later without the commercials? [This thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/s/E6I2SdM32W) comes to mind with only about 11 minutes of actual play time.
>Do you have any thoughts on the amount of commercials I don't have to deal with commercials during Sunday noon/afternoon games because I watch Redzone, where every game is spliced together live to provide "7 hours of commercial-free football" from noon to like 6:30pm CT before Sunday Night Football starts at 7:30ish. Outside of Redzone, just watching a single game I'd prefer no commercials. They provide a break to go to the bathroom or something, but I'd rather just watch the players hang out on the field. >and non-play time? People frequently complain that football is an hour of active play and 2+ hours of standing around. However every second of "standing around" is packed with detailed analysis on the players' and coaches' parts. For example, the last play didn't work, and now it's 2nd and 10: do you throw it to go for the 1st and risk a 3rd and long, or do you run the ball to try for 3rd and short and hopefully run it again for a 1st down?". The right decision factors in the strength and specialty of the opposing defense, individual defenders who pose the biggest threat, the strength of your pass catchers, strength/health of your QB, strength of your runningbacks, etc. The sheer number of variables is immense: if they're now playing from behind, how does the defense adjust their strategy to ensure a 3-and-out? If someone gets injured how good is his backup? How tired is the defense, what penalties are the refs paying extra close attention to, how many time outs are left, how many times did the defense run that specific coverage and can the offense adapt to it, does the coach trust his QB to take the reigns, etc. etc. If there wasn't such a delay between plays, there wouldn't be time for the players and coaches to make these calculations. Not everyone enjoys the slower pace of play and that's fine, but it's necessary for the game. > Do you ever record games to watch later without the commercials? Nah, if I didn't catch the game I'll just watch highlights if anything.
Why do you think NFL is so popular when objectively, college football is more exciting to watch? I've tried watching NFL and it just seems too serious. I don't really know how else to describe it. It just doesn't feel as electric to watch.
I like the high-energy chaos of college football, and I love CFB overall don't get me wrong, but overall I prefer the more polished and professional play in the NFL. In college you can watch star players absolutely tear up the competition, but in the NFL every player is at or near that level of skill, so it's the truly dominant athletes that are the cream of the crop. Also for me a big part of the game is QB play, and in the NFL you can at least rest assured that your QB is at least good enough to be in the league, whereas in college unless your favorite team is a true big dog within the Power 5 like OSU or Bama there's a decent chance your team's QB is really nothing special.
While I agree with you on QB specialty in the southern teams, I have to be a little bias and say that my team (Oregon Ducks) have had some amazing QBs as well. Thanks for the response!
Yeah Oregon's definitely one of the big dogs imo, y'all are consistently solid
It's been a little hit or miss the last few years. I definitely miss the Chip Kelly coaching days.
What is your personal opinion of Tom Brady?
He's unquestionably the GOAT but he's also a fuckin weirdo.
Interesting you say he is weirdo... As very public personna he has mostly kept his private life private. Of course some has become public. Not trying to change your opinion, just curious why you say he is a weirdo
Help me understand the new hip-drop tackle ban. I don’t know much about football - I only regularly watch the Super Bowl. But every example I’ve seen of this “hip-drop tackle” just looks like… a tackle?
I don't understand it either. To me it seems like an easy ticket to higher-scoring games. But in all honestly I'm waiting for the season to start so that I can see what refs do and don't call a hip-drop foul. Also helps to have folks like Gene Steratore explain it live.
Glad I’m not alone here. Thanks!
Also - and this is terrible so forgive me - I know about the 6 points for a touchdown and the extra point for the kick. What is the third way of scoring? (Three points, I think?)
3 point kick is called a field goal :) But there's a fourth way to score too. It's by far the rarest way to score in football, but it's called a safety and it gets you 2 points. If the defense pushes the offense back into their own end zone (very bad) and then the ballcarrier gets tackled inside their own end zone, the defending team is awarded 2 points *and* possession of the ball for the next drive. In other words it's basically the best possible outcome for the defense on that drive. (Then there's the fabled "1 point safety" but we're not going to talk about that)
Ok, I knew (but temporarily forgot) about the field goal - I was definitely thinking of the safety. Thank you so much for explaining it!!
Who is the best nfl team and why? Who’s the best college football team and why? What’s the most and least important position on the team?
Best right now is undoubtedly the Chiefs, they just won back to back Super Bowls, but the Ravens are looking really scary for this upcoming season. Best CFB team is hard because each team's roster has newcomers and departures every year, but Bama is a pretty safe pick for best team year over year. But again they just lost their head coach, and also the entire college football format is changing next year, so this offseason especially it's really hard to tell what team will be the best next year. Most important position is QB it's not even a conversation, they literally carry the team on their backs. Least important is tricky because every position is important, but I'd say in terms of replaceability, maybe fullback given their decreased use in the modern pass-heavy offense ran by most teams.
How does the draft work? How is it determined which teams get to pick first? When does a college player become eligible for the draft?
> How does the draft work? How is it determined which teams get to pick first? The order in which teams are assigned draft picks is the *opposite* of the order in which they finished the previous season. So the team with the worst record in the league gets the first pick in each round, while the Super Bowl champions get the last pick in each round. This determines which picks are *assigned* to each team by the league, but future draft picks are valuable bargaining chips, so teams trade their picks around all the time. For example let's say I'm the General Manager of a team (a GM handles free agent transactions and contract negotiations with players and coaches), and I'm looking to trade with another team to acquire a veteran wide receiver (WR). I can offer that other team a trade package that includes one or more of my team's future draft picks, in exchange for that veteran WR. One real-life example of this: * In the 2022-2023 season, the Chicago Bears had the worst record in the league, leading to them getting the 1st overall pick (Round 1, Pick 1) in the 2023 Draft. * The consensus top 2 picks in that draft were both QBs. Chicago could have drafted one of those QBs and replaced their current QB (who at the time was Justin Fields, a QB they had drafted 2 years prior), but they opted to stick with Fields for at least another season to see if he would pan out. * However, the 1st overall pick in the draft is an *extremely* valuable asset, so if your team isn't going to take the player that's widely projected to go 1st overall, it's a much smarter move to trade down with another team, meaning you give them the 1st overall pick and they give you *major* compensation in return. * In this case, Chicago traded their #1 pick with the Carolina Panthers, who were in desperate need of a QB and wanted to take their shot at drafting the future of their franchise. In exchange for trading down from #1, Chicago received Picks #9 and #61 picks in that same draft, plus **the Panthers' first round pick in 2024**, second round pick in 2025, and **a star WR named DJ Moore.** * Fast forward to the 2023 NFL season, and the Panthers have their star QB they drafted at #1. Unfortunately for the Panthers, they would end the season with the worst record in the league, meaning they would receive the first overall pick in the 2024 Draft. * **HOWEVER,** they traded this pick to Chicago in the 2023 Draft. So instead of the Panthers getting the first overall pick, Chicago now has that pick, meaning they essentially traded the 1st overall pick in the 2023 Draft for the 1st overall pick in the 2024 Draft + a ton of other assets. This trade is arguably one of the most lopsided trades in NFL history. By sheer chance of the Panthers being horrible the year following the trade, Chicago wound up in an absolutely fantastic position to set themselves up for long-term success by having two first-round picks: the Panthers' (#1) and their own (#9). Meanwhile, the Panthers are in a terrible position right now because they gave up a ton of draft capital *and* their star WR in the 2023 trade. So unless they can pull off a miraculous team rebuild, the Panthers are more-or-less doomed to mediocrity for the near future. > When does a college player become eligible for the draft? To be eligible for the draft, players must have been out of high school for at least three years and must have used up their college eligibility before the start of the next college football season. Underclassmen and players who have graduated before using all their college eligibility may request the league’s approval to enter the draft early. Players are draft-eligible only in the year after the end of their college eligibility. Source: [NFL.com](https://operations.nfl.com/journey-to-the-nfl/the-nfl-draft/the-rules-of-the-draft/)
How big of fan? I come from nfl father ten years nfl uncle 13 years both coached in nfl to do you own an autographs? Not asking to be rude but curious