Sports discussion

[Carlie]

Only an emergency of such magnitude would get you out of your cave while you're in hibernation.

 

[Cthulhu]

First time you post in this thread and it's to mention you watched Starcraft games. You're a massive nerd man.

Lies and slander, and I resent that accusation.

 

[Flintlock]

Very sad news in the world of rugby today. Jonah Lomu, a World Cup winner for New Zealand and one of the greatest players of all-time in rugby union, has passed away at the age of 40.

 

[Flintlock]

Anyone catch the NFL divisional championships yesterday? One great game, one blowout. The Superbowl's gonna be a clash between a great offence (Panthers) and a great defence (Broncos).

Speaking of offence-defence clashes, the Warriors play the Spurs tonight in the NBA. Both teams are having phenomenal seasons - they're first and third in all-time win percentage when compared with teams who have played a full season - so it's probably fair to say that this match will partially determine which of them has home court advantage in the Western Conference finals in a few months' time.

 

[Nanaki Skywalker]

Anyone catch the NFL divisional championships yesterday? One great game, one blowout. The Superbowl's gonna be a clash between a great offence (Panthers) and a great defence (Broncos).

Speaking of offence-defence clashes, the Warriors play the Spurs tonight in the NBA. Both teams are having phenomenal seasons - they're first and third in all-time win percentage when compared with teams who have played a full season - so it's probably fair to say that this match will partially determine which of them has home court advantage in the Western Conference finals in a few months' time.

I'll be watching Spurs/Warriors tonight as well. I happen to be a Spurs fan, and I've been waiting all season long to play Golden State.

As for the Super Bowl, I'm rooting for Denver primarily because of DeMarcus Ware; I'm a Cowboys fan (yes, I'm well aware of the sad season we had), and Ware was my favorite player when he was with the Cowboys, so I was kinda bummed when he was released (even though I was well aware that the Salary Cap situation meant that either Ware had to take a pay cut or get released).

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

I'm pulling for the Panthers in the Super Bowl since they're the local team. It's a big deal for this area that they're going to the Super Bowl.

As I said elsewhere earlier today, even if they don't take the win, they had one hell of a game getting there yesterday. They absolutely massacred the Cardinals, setting several records in the process.

 

[Ghost X]

Almost a month late, but perhaps folks may find this interesting. Exciting cricket match on NYE. My state's team probably having the greatest comeback ever . Wish I was there.

 

[Flintlock]

I'll be watching Spurs/Warriors tonight as well. I happen to be a Spurs fan, and I've been waiting all season long to play Golden State.

So, how did it feel?

I couldn't stay up late enough to watch the game so I caught the highlights. I thought it would be close, not a 30-point blowout. The Warriors are just un-be-lievably good.

 

[Nanaki Skywalker]

I'll be watching Spurs/Warriors tonight as well. I happen to be a Spurs fan, and I've been waiting all season long to play Golden State.

So, how did it feel?

I couldn't stay up late enough to watch the game so I caught the highlights. I thought it would be close, not a 30-point blowout. The Warriors are just un-be-lievably good.

That was a game of totally sloppy basketball on our part. I'm glad that was not a playoff game. That would've been a whole lot worse. Plus, Duncan was out with a sore knee (such will also be the case tonight against Houston).

Then again, Golden State recently beat Cleveland so badly that they eventually fired their coach, which the media, and even social media, suggest that LeBron James had something to do with. Such allegations are nothing new, because Chris Paul, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, and even Michael Jordan have been accused of getting their coaches fired. And that's not just in basketball. TO was accused of running Bill Parcells out of Dallas, and if I'm not mistaken, Steve Mariucci out of SF (it's also worth pointing out that during his only season in Buffalo, the Bills fired both his Offensive Coordinator and his Head Coach).

 

[Flintlock]

It's an oval ball extravaganza this weekend, with three Six Nations matches (rugby union) and the Super Bowl (American football).

Six Nations first: I'm sure Mayo Master will go into more detail, but the matches are France vs. Italy, Scotland vs. England (both Saturday) and Ireland vs. Wales (Sunday).

I'll give an English perspective since they're the team I follow. This is the first year in about five that I haven't felt confident of England winning more than half their matches, which is usually enough to finish in the top two. The team has a new head coach, Eddie Jones, an Australian who most recently managed Japan in the world cup, famously guiding them to a shock win over South Africa. His appointment has been met with a lot of excitement in the English media, but I remain sceptical. He appointed Dylan Hartley, a man who has been suspended from rugby for over a year (cumulatively) for various disciplinary offences, as captain. Hartley was dropped from the world cup squad and is probably not even England's best hooker at the moment, so it seems like an altogether strange decision. Today he named his first match line-up, and it seems like nothing has changed since the worst days of the world cup: England are still going to play Owen Farrell, a fly-half, at centre, while George Ford, who has been picked at fly-half, has been out of form at his club, Bath, and England still won't be playing a specialist number 7 to win turnover ball, despite being completely dominated by Australia's David Pocock at the world cup, and despite Jones saying just a few weeks ago that England need a specialist number 7. Instead they've got James Haskell, who has looked pretty average every time I've seen him play for England.

TL;DR: unless Jones is a man-management genius and somehow manages to inspire an awful lot more out of the same group of players that failed at the world cup, I don't see how England are going to be any better. Scotland looked much better at last year's Six Nations and we've got to play them in Scotland, so I'm not confident at all. Ireland have won two championships on the bounce and they'll probably be strong again, while Wales have won grand slams in the Six Nations following the last two world cups and still have, in my opinion, the best coach in Warren Gatland. They'll also be playing England at Twickenham, with memories still fresh from their world cup victory. I have no idea about France (Mayo can fill us in), but after not living up to their potential for a few years, they've at least got a new coach. Italy... well, it's Italy. England should still beat them.

Superb Owl: I dunno, lol. I like watching the NFL but I have nothing that comes close to an informed opinion on it. I expect the Panthers to win but I'm just hoping for a good, close game more than anything else. I'd probably be up for a Super Bowl "party" if anyone wants to hang out online and chat while the game's on.

 

[Mayo Master]

Hey Flint,

Glad you bring up the topic about the 6 nations. Do you wish to expand on the subject in this thread or shall I create a new one specifically for that? Thing is, no 6 nations game is going to be broadcasted where I live (I'll try to make do with good ol' rojadirecta streams), so I think you're in a better position than me to host this topic.

Good to know about the English side of things. Personally, the appointment of Eddie Jones seemed at first like a very good catch from the English federation. But his intentions to make a more "traditionally-English-forward-driven" play-style, under the leadership of Hartley, has left me a bit more skeptical. To be honest, I believed that England's play-style was on the right track before the world cup (and that England's issues in the world cup was mostly about too hesitant management on too many levels), so I'm not sure how good that will be for England.

On the French side, we wish to pretty much restart from scratch after the fairly disastrous direction of coach St Andre (who was awesome as a player, but really fell short as a coach): in 4 years we've done no better than 4th place in the 6 nations, and the defeats vs Ireland and the All Blacks was really calling us to change a lot of things. St Andre ended up with the worst win/defeat ratio I've ever seen for the national team, but much worse was the manner in which they play, with absolutely 0 offensive flair.
A new coach was appointed: Guy Noves, who had previously been at the direction of Toulouse (which is my favorite club team) for about 20 years with numerous wins on the domestic and European scene (10 French titles and 4 European titles), and his traditional play-style is about high pace and offensive flair, and the ability to take the right decision at the right moment to ensure continuity in the moves. He called a fairly young and promising squad with some elements of surprise, such as Fidjian-born winger Watakawa whose "club contract" is actually about playing for the French National team in Rugby Sevens. Noves' goals are first about playing an attractive style of rugby, something the supporters would enjoy watching, and have the players give their all to fulfill that goal. It's not about "winning at all cost".
So... I'm personally very much looking forward to it, and many people in France are, but many are aware about the possible differences between the coach's wishes and the reality of the pitch (the coach himself is very much aware of that too). In any case, my feeling is among the lines of "as long as it's more enjoyable to watch than in the 4 past years, we're good", "it can't get any worse anyway, can it? Right ? ". I don't think anybody is expecting miracles, such as winning the 6 nations or make the Grand Slam. It's more about the players "coming home proud" at the end of their games.
EDIT: Turns out I've been wrong. A survey in the most-read sports newspaper in France showed that French people believe that France has the greatest odds of winning the tournament. I wonder how many of them actually watch the games


I'm not too sure where other nations are at, to be honest. It sounds like Italy won't be doing to well, that being said they'll be starting with new young players. For Scotland, it's going to be difficult to capitalize on what they did during the world cup. Ireland will have some tough games in England and in France (not to mention their opening vs Wales). I wonder if Wales has the greatest odds of winning the tournament this year. It's all very uncertain. While Wales/England/Ireland should be contending for the tournament, France and Scotland are very unknown quantities (perhaps France more so than Scotland). I'm not sure if Italy has the capacity to win a single game this year (maybe at home vs Scotland? Or maybe if we shoot ourselves in the foot on the opening game ).

 

[Flintlock]

I'm not sure I could say something meaningful about every one of the matches, so I'm not sure I'm cut out for hosting a Six Nations thread. As much as I enjoy rugby, I'm only a part-time fan - I watch whenever England are playing, basically, with a few other Six Nations / World Cup matches here and there. I think this thread should be good enough for our purposes.

 

[Mayo Master]

By the way, I'll be watching the game of France by streaming on Saturday (or trying to at least - it's kind of hit or miss), however I don't think I'll be able to watch the other games. I'll let you fill me in about England's game. Now we just need someone from Wales or Ireland

 

[vaderSW1]

The Super Bowl is tomorrow and I'm really looking forward to what could be a damn good game. Both the Broncos and the Panthers have very good defenses. I think what separates the two teams is the capabilities of their offenses.

I love Peyton Manning and in my heart of hearts I would really like to see him win and retire on top. However, he just isn't the Peyton Manning of old with the "laser-rocket-arm". When he throws a pass it is really ugly. He can't put a lot of velocity on the ball anymore. What Manning really needs is for C.J. Anderson and Ronnie Hillman to step up in the running game and have a big day.

On the other side, Cam Newton has really earned my respect this year. The guys is, in my mind, a shoe-in to be MVP of the league. He's got a powerful arm and can throw from the pocket or on the run. Not to mention he's a danger to take off and run with the ball himself. The Panthers is offense is extremely well balanced. Denver's defense is going to have to be a bit less aggressive on the pass rush if they want to be able to contain Cam.

There's so many interesting match ups in this game. I can't wait to watch how the chess match plays out.

 

[Mayo Master]

Well, I was eventually able to watch both 6 nations games today, via good ol' rojadirecta streams. My impression on both games:

Spoiler: France vs Italy 23-21 (10-8)

Well, that was a close call! France managed to snatch the win thanks to a penalty from 50 metres 5 minutes before the end, and thanks to a botched drop-kick attempt from Parisse (?!) during injury time.
Anyway, as a whole, it was an entertaining game to watch. Both sides were very eager to play rugby with a lot of movement in the back lines. Italy was certainly on a higher level than I anticipated, if they manage to remain consistent they may cause problems to other nations. They had a much more ambitious game plan than just defending and send the forwards.
As for France, I think it's fairly encouraging, the intentions were there. There were many moves with a lot of continuity and momentum, going from one side to the other, with very dynamic back plays. The 3 tries France scored are pretty representative of this idea to create overlaps with pace, they were really nice tries. However, still a fair amount of inaccuracy, and also a big lack of aggressiveness, especially from the forwards. For instance, in the first ten minutes of the second half, the French players were just watching the opposition play. As a result, France had fewer ball possession, and you cannot really set ambitious attacking play if you don't get much of the ball. France will have to show a lot more fighting spirit in the next game vs Ireland, or their forwards will be obliterated. For a new coach and many young players earning their first cap in the lineup, I think it was alright.

Spoiler: Small rant though

What pisses me off, however, is the attitude of a large part of the French media and "supporters", something I don't miss from France in general. At the end of the world cup, given the results that we had, the general sentiment was "we suck, all the players are shit, they should be shameful". We changed coach, we have a very different lineup with young players, and only a handful of days to practice. And what does the media and "supporters" expect? That we're going to make a grand slam and that we should obliterate Italy by a margin of 30 points. What the hell, people? Get real! And then, in the aftermath of this game vs Italy, many reactions were in the lines of "boo us, we suck, we're only lucky to defeat Italy, the coach is shit, the players are shit". I'm sick of that permanent state of dissatisfaction, that skewed view of reality, that lack of humility, and that inability to recognize the worth of an opponent. It seems being reasonable isn't fashionable. /rant

Spoiler: Scotland vs England 9-15 (6-7)

To me it really felt like a "back to the roots" trip for English rugby. England won mostly thanks to a big defense, which was able to contain any Scottish move, the physicality from their forward and a fairly simple game plan. It very much felt like watching how they play in the 90s/early 2000s. Even if the margin wasn't that big, the English side seemed like they were never in danger. Scotland made many attempts, but they were never able to break through, they had a deficit in physicality not to mention a lack of lucidity sometimes (for instance, when Russell intercepted and failed to see Hogg by his side and kicked the ball away). For England, I'd summarize it as "it's not genius rugby but it gets the job done".

I'd be curious about your impressions, Flint.

 

[Flintlock]

I only saw highlights of the France-Italy match but it was closer than I expected. I think Sergio Parisse was maybe a bit unfortunate to get penalised at the end, for playing the ball on the ground after what looked like a high tackle from the French player (I didn't catch who it was, sorry). No idea why he ended up taking the drop-goal attempt at the end though, that was terrible. The commentators in the Scotland-England match referred to "doing a Parisse" when Laidlaw scuffed one of his kicks.

Speaking of that match, there were some positives and some negatives. It's good to get the win, obviously, though England haven't lost to Scotland since 2008, so I'm not getting carried away. Neither of our fly-halves had particularly great games; George Ford in particular looked out of touch, knocking on a few times and missing what should have been a straightforward drop-goal. That was one of my concerns going into the match and it remains a concern. It's a shame that one of England's promising young centres, Henry Slade, is currently injured. I thought we gave too many silly penalties away as well. The positives were our strong defence, as you mentioned, and some great ball-carrying by Billy Vunipola. The first try was also nicely worked from a scrum.

I don't really mind England "going back to their strengths", prioritising forward play over back play, if that's what they need to do to win a tournament. People will criticise them for boring rugby but I still manage to get worked up over a dominant scrum or a driving maul. I'll never forget just how close England were to winning last year's Six Nations as Chris Robshaw desperately tried to pull a maul over the try line against France. As I wrote on Facebook at the time, the result was a disappointment (England won the match but not the tournament) but any time sport can make me feel that excited, I'm happy.

Great rant, by the way!

 

[Mayo Master]

About the France vs Italy game: it was close indeed. I knew it just by watching the first 10 minutes: the Italians were really well in the game, playing with a lot of spirit and with no pressure. As for Parisse (I like how "doing a Parisse" became a slang ), you know, when you have a move of 4 minutes with 15+ phases, you start having a lot of lactic acid in your body and your brain doesn't get really that much oxygen, that might explain Shame for him though. As you said, the penalty he conceded near the end might have been a bit severe - yet again you see the likes of these in every game. IMO far from the level of Joubert's special, if you catch my drift.
On the French side, very impressed by Vakatawa, the Fidjian-born winger from rugby sevens.

About the Scotland vs England game: yeah, it's true that having a "surgically accurate" fly-half is a traditional strength of England, and neither Ford or Farrell seem to be on that level. What remains to be seen is whether this simple game plan and this level of physicality would be enough against sides such as Ireland or Wales. IMO, watching England play today felt a bit like watching Ireland with less back play.
As you may have guessed, I'm rather back-play biased, however I'm still able to appreciate a good maul, a competitive contest or a good defense. That being said, I find it disappointing that this "back to roots" idea also corresponded to an overuse of "up-and-under", while you have players to do much better (and entertaining) than that. When you have the likes of Watson, Brown and Nowell on your side, just kicking the ball high seems quite a waste. Oh, and by the way, I agree that Billy Vunipola had a great game (he was even elected man of the match, wasn't he?).

As for the rant... well: most of the people outside of France believe that French people are chauvinistic. In my opinion that is not really true. You see, the idea that French people are chauvinistic mostly comes from how much they're bitching about anything that's foreign. What people outside of France do not see is that French people are bitching just as much about French stuff! "If we lose, we suck. If we win with a narrow margin, we suck. If we win with a big margin, we have no credit because our opponent was in a bad day." It's appalling, really.

 

[Nanaki Skywalker]

Whoever the 3 refs working last night's Spurs/Mavericks game are were full of shit. Zaza Pachulia should have been ejected MUCH earlier than he ultimately did. How many elbows to the face, cheap shots to the head/neck area, trying to twist Kawhi Leonard's arm, etc. did he get away with? I see THREE Flagrant Fouls, or at the very least Technical Fouls, right there that weren't called. And we all know the rules. Two Technical Fouls, Two Flagrant 1s, or a single Flagrant 2, is an automatic ejection. I hope he gets suspended.

Anyway, tonight is Kobe Bryant's final game in San Antonio, ending a chapter in a great rivalry between the Lakers and the Spurs.

 

[Nanaki Skywalker]

And now, for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2016.

Brett Favre (QB)
Orlando Pace (OL)
Marvin Harrison (WR)
Kevin Greene (LB)
Tony Dungy (Head Coach)
Dick Stanfel (OL) (Senior committee finalist)
Ken Stabler (QB) (Senior committee finalist)
Eddie DeBartolo (Owner) (Contributor committee finalist)

Finalists missing the cut include Morten Andersen (K), Steve Atwater (S), Don Coryell (Coach), Terrell Davis (RB), Alan Faneca (OL), Joe Jacoby (OL), Edgerrin James (RB), John Lynch (S), Terrell Owens (WR), and Kurt Warner (QB).

Notable facts about this class.

At the time of his retirement, Brett Favre was the all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, attempts, completions, and wins by a starting quarterback (his yards and touchdown records have since been broken by Peyton Manning, while Manning tied his wins record). He holds the record for most consecutive games started in NFL history, and led the Green Bay Packers to victory in Super Bowl XXXI. He was the first player in the Super Bowl Era to win 3 MVP awards. A 2nd round pick by the Atlanta Falcons in 1991, Favre spent his rookie season as a backup quarterback and prior to his second season, was traded to the Packers for a 1st round pick. A serious leg injury to then-Packers starter Don Majkowski in the 3rd game of the 1992 season vs the Cincinnati Bengals led to Favre entering the game and engineering a come-from-behind victory with a touchdown pass to Kitrick Taylor. Favre became the permanent starter from that point on and did not relinquish his starting job until a 2008 retirement/unretirement controversy led to him being traded to the New York Jets for a conditional 3rd round draft pick, and current Green Bay starter Aaron Rodgers took over. After one year with the Jets, he spent his final 2 years with the Minnesota Vikings, and became the first quarterback in NFL history to win a game against all 32 current NFL franchises (a feat since repeated by Peyton Manning).

Orlando Pace was drafted 1st overall in 1997 by the St. Louis Rams, and is notable for protecting the blindside of Kurt Warner and blocking for Marshall Faulk during the Rams' Greatest Show On Turf years, winning Super Bowl XXXIV.

Kevin Greene is 3rd all time in sacks (an official NFL statistic since 1982), and 1st all time among Linebackers in that same statistic. Having played for the Los Angeles Rams, Pittsburgh Steelers, Carolina Panthers, and San Francisco 49ers, the closest he ever got to a Super Bowl ring was an appearance in Super Bowl XXX; his lack of a Super Bowl ring is largely blamed on Neil O'Donnell's 2 costly interceptions thrown to Cowboys CB Larry Brown (who was named Super Bowl MVP as a result of those 2 interceptions).

Marvin Harrison is the all-time leading receiver in Colts franchise history, holds the single-season record in catches, and his touchdown catches from Peyton Manning are most all-time for a QB and WR tandem. Harrison is 3rd all time in receptions, 7th all time in receiving yards, and 5th all time in receiving touchdowns, and won Super Bowl XLI. And speaking of Super Bowl XLI, his head coach from that Super Bowl is none other than...

Tony Dungy. Dungy became the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1996. A perennial doormat at the time of his hiring, Dungy transformed the Bucs into winners with his Tampa 2 defense spearheaded by Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks, and John Lynch. The Buccaneers eventually did win a Super Bowl with the team Dungy built, however, Dungy wasn't around to get a ring for it. Lack of playoff success combined with offensive deficiency during his tenure in Tampa led to his controversial firing, and the Bucs traded 2 first round picks and 2 2nd round picks to the Raiders for his successor, Jon Gruden (who actually did win a Super Bowl as Bucs head coach). Dungy wasn't unemployed for long, as he was immediately hired by the Indianapolis Colts, this time having the benefit of coaching a potent offense he lacked in Tampa (led by Peyton Manning, the aforementioned Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, and Dallas Clark), and by winning Super Bowl XLI, Dungy made history by becoming the first African American head coach to win a Super Bowl. Dungy currently works as a studio analyst for NBC's Sunday Night Football.

Dick Stanfel played on the offensive line of a very successful Detroit Lions team during the 1950s, winning NFL Championships in 1952 and 1953. After his playing career ended, he had a career as an assistant coach. His most noteworthy accomplishment as an assistant coach was winning Super Bowl XX as the Offensive Line Coach of the legendary 85 Bears (a team that rivals the 72 Dolphins as one of the best teams in NFL history, even to this day). Sadly, Stanfel is a posthumous inductee, having died on June 22, 2015.

Nicknamed "the Snake", Ken Stabler emerged as the franchise quarterback of the Oakland Raiders during the 1970s, and had notable success in games with names (such as the Sea of Hands, Ghost to the Post, the Holy Roller, and even scored the go-ahead touchdown that set the stage for the Immaculate Reception, known to Raiders fans and Steelers detractors as the Immaculate Deception). He was named MVP in 1974, and led the Raiders to victory in Super Bowl XI. Stabler is the first starting quarterback in Raiders history to be inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. As is the case with Stanfel, Ken Stabler is a posthumous inductee as well, having lost his battle with colon cancer just over 2 weeks after Stanfel's passing. And for all you wrestling fans out there, the legendary WWE star Jake "The Snake" Roberts adopted his ring name, and the character that went with it, from Stabler's Snake nickname.

Eddie DeBartolo bought the San Francisco 49ers in the mid-70s, and under his watch, the 49ers enjoyed the greatest success of their franchise's history, winning 5 Super Bowls from 1981 to 1994 with stars such as Joe Montana, Dwight Clark, Freddie Solomon, Ronnie Lott, Roger Craig, Russ Francis, Fred Dean, Jerry Rice, Charles Haley, Steve Young, John Taylor, and Ricky Watters, with Head Coaches Bill Walsh and George Seifert at the helm. However, Salary Cap violations and his involvement in a Louisiana bribery scandal in the late 90s led to the end of his ownership of the 49ers, and the franchise lost their only Super Bowl appearance since then (they had not lost a Super Bowl prior to that). The controversies that ended his career as an owner are believed to have kept him out of the Hall of Fame for 15 years. DeBartolo's strongest claim to Hall of Fame candidacy, however, is the fact that to this day, he is the only owner with 5 Super Bowl rings.

This year's Hall of Fame class is also noteworthy for being the first class in 10 years to induct a quarterback. The last time a player at that position was inducted, it was former Cowboys QB Troy Aikman and former Houston Oilers QB Warren Moon in the same class.

 

[Mayo Master]

Anyone saw the Ireland vs Wales game and wants to share some impressions? I read that Ireland seemed to have the upper hand, especially in the first half hour, but then Wales managed to be rather opportunistic and come back level (16-16 final score).

 

[Flintlock]

That's pretty accurate. I'm not sure if it was 20 minutes or half an hour, but Ireland were definitely on top at the start, quickly getting to 13 points. But one thing I've always liked about the Wales teams of the last few years is that they don't know when to give up, and they pretty much dominated the rest of the game. They had a decent chance of winning it, too, with an attack of almost 30 phases inside the Irish 22 with about 10 minutes left on the clock. Ireland ended up turning the ball over and their defence deserves credit, as does Jonny Sexton for kicking a penalty from almost the half-way line to tie the game up after Wales had gone three points ahead.

Both teams looked pretty good. Obviously the draw is good for England and France but they won't be easy to beat - and you've got Ireland next weekend!

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

I am fucking disgusted by the Carolina Panthers' performance in Super Bowl 50. It would have been fine had it been a dignified defeat, but both teams played so horribly that I can scarcely imagine Broncos fans even taking much joy in it.

 

[Flintlock]

I think you underestimate how good it must feel to see your team win a Super Bowl.

It was a pretty dire game though. Not a patch on rugby.

 

[Nanaki Skywalker]

I will be surprised if Peyton Manning does come back next year (it is worth pointing out that he has one year left on his contract pending a physical, which was written in his contract in the wake of 4 neck surgeries that cost him the entire 2011 season). I don't think he has anything left to accomplish, plus this is a rare opportunity for a major star to retire a champion (notable cases include Mel Renfro, John Elway, Jerome Bettis, Michael Strahan, Ray Lewis, and in basketball, David Robinson).

 

[Mayo Master]

New round of 6 nations rugby games coming up this weekend, with France vs Ireland, Wales vs Scotland and Italy vs England. I would think the expected outcome would be the victories of Ireland, Wales and England, but we never know.
France made 6 changes in the starting lineup with respect to the previous game (2 players were not available, both props were replaced because they didn't have a good game vs Italy, and 2 more changes in the backs seemed more "tactical"). The key questions are about France's ability to defend and contain Ireland's forward game. If we show the same level of fighting spirit as displayed vs Italy, we won't be seeing much of the ball!
Any particular news/expectation, Flint?