The NFL Thread

[Deutsch Wolf]

Deutsch, I would have thought with all your vast knowledge of stats and the fact that you appear to think quite deeply about your sport, the NFL would be a perfect sport for you to get into!!

It does intrigue me, so I am interested to learn more. To a layman it looks like a load of massive blokes piling into each other quite a lot but I am trying to see beyond that.

I did have the original John Madden game on the Game Gear so there is some history there.

 

[t3ch]

The madden games are a pretty quick and dirty way to get a grasp on the sport. It can be frustrating for someone who doesn't understand the game though because the AI does a decent job and if you make bad calls you'll pay for it. I hadn't played football since the Sega Genesis days and bought Madden '09 for my xbox... yeah, lots of interceptions. Wasn't used to the stupid AI being so smart and not being able to pass however I wanted. You also come to appreciate the unsung positions such as lineman, fullbacks, etc. when you're well protected and blocked.

I know a lot of foreigners into football-football get impatient trying to watch the NFL and I can't really blame them. Too many ads! Last year I bought the NFL cable package and would watch games after a Wolves match, fast forwarding between commercials, extended time-outs/reviews, etc. Gotta love DVR's!

 

[Toon Wolf]

This is part of a great video series that the Bills have been running on their website, highlighting performances of some players, with their coaches talking things through. It might help give you an bit of an insight into some of what goes into a play. When they talk about 'play-action' by the way, that means faking the ball to the running back to make the defense think it's a run, and then throwing a pass...

http://www.buffalobills.com/media-c...altimore/bee86eb5-e305-4ec1-856e-fa97cffc11d5

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

This is part of a great video series that the Bills have been running on their website, highlighting performances of some players, with their coaches talking things through. It might help give you an bit of an insight into some of what goes into a play. When they talk about 'play-action' by the way, that means faking the ball to the running back to make the defense think it's a run, and then throwing a pass...

http://www.buffalobills.com/media-c...altimore/bee86eb5-e305-4ec1-856e-fa97cffc11d5

The sound card is knackered on this PC so I will have to wait until I can switch to my Dad's, but many thanks.

I don't know whether either of you actually play the game yourselves, but you might be able to answer anyway; what's more difficult, scoring a goal in football or a touchdown in NFL? I can see that you get more scores in the latter but there's probably more thought that goes into it because quite often goals in football are the result of luck or a single piece of genius, obviously that can't happen so often in American Football, it's more of a team effort.

 

[t3ch]

Easier to score in the NFL. It's a given that scoring will happen in games. All field-goal or super low scoring affairs are in the minority, and even in those games some points are getting on the board. The opportunity is much higher for NFL players.

Of course, a number positions will never score in their careers (or only a handful of times). In the NFL it's much harder for a player like a lineman, fullback, safety, etc. to consistently get touchdowns than it is for a tall defender to score on set pieces. Those chances for a defender happen several times each game, whereas an interception or fumble only gets into a normal players hands once every couple of times a season, and then having the room to take it to the house...

edit -- read the question wrong, rephrased my answer.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

The few games I've watched, the players all broadly look the same - massive upper bodies, quick, strong - do you ever get an absolute flyer like Matt Jarvis playing? Like in rugby you have huge forwards but lithe wingers and fly-halves, but there doesn't seem much difference in the NFL.

 

[t3ch]

Yes. My favorite player is something like 5'9" and 190lbs. He can jump like 30 feet high though and plays like a rabid chihuahua. He'll burn 90% of the league on his routes with speed and quickness and is almost always going to win the ball battle 1-v-1 in the air. Dude could still rip me in half, but he's a "small" NFL player.

Certain positions like linemen are certainly needing to be huge, but it's not at all uncommon to find "smaller" guys playing WR, RB, or corner. Now I say "smaller" because they are smaller in comparison, but pretty much everyone is really built and fast. Some are built like Elokobi, others have that skinny but muscular look.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

5'9'' and 190lbs! Wow. I'm 5'8'' and 142lbs. I'd need to be sticking three stone on to match that!

 

[Toon Wolf]

The few games I've watched, the players all broadly look the same - massive upper bodies, quick, strong - do you ever get an absolute flyer like Matt Jarvis playing? Like in rugby you have huge forwards but lithe wingers and fly-halves, but there doesn't seem much difference in the NFL.

Wide receivers in particular can be lightning quick. A good deal of them could get into the GB 4 x 100m relay team. There are small players too- certain ones come to mind- Darren Sproles running back of the Chargers is 5'6", Roscoe Parrish wide receiver of Buffalo is 5'7" and about 11 stone. There are players out there who are small. You get the big brutes who are linemen, the mid-size players who tend to be linebackers, tight ends and running backs and the smaller players who tend to be wide receivers and defensive backs. But one thing for sure that even the big buggers are pretty damned athletic.

 

[t3ch]

Yeah but it's muscle. Look at how small he is compared to the defenders.

 

[Toon Wolf]

Yes. My favorite player is something like 5'9" and 190lbs. He can jump like 30 feet high though and plays like a rabid chihuahua. He'll burn 90% of the league on his routes with speed and quickness and is almost always going to win the ball battle 1-v-1 in the air. Dude could still rip me in half, but he's a "small" NFL player.

Certain positions like linemen are certainly needing to be huge, but it's not at all uncommon to find "smaller" guys playing WR, RB, or corner. Now I say "smaller" because they are smaller in comparison, but pretty much everyone is really built and fast. Some are built like Elokobi, others have that skinny but muscular look.

Steve Smith? Great player. He may not be your favourite much longer, he wants out of Carolina...

 

[t3ch]

Don't remind me!!

I'll still be rocking the Smith jersey next year.

 

[malta mick]

i used to love watching the NFL in the 80's on channel 4 with Simon Reed - fave players were Walter Peyton Lawrence Taylor The Fridge and the fast running receiver Jerry Rice. Loved the music on the intro Holding out for an Hero - suited the action brilliantly

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Yeah but it's muscle. Look at how small he is compared to the defenders.

Ha ha!

See, in football (like, proper football ) the big buggers, especially at amateur level like we play, are slow and rely purely on physical presence. I love running at them because I'm quick (yes still, even though I'm 30 now!) and there's less of me to hit. My nightmare is a quick centre-half, 6'0'' or so because I lose a lot of my natural advantage.

It doesn't seem that you can do that so much in NFL - ie get someone running at a massive bloke, like when Torres murdered Vidic a couple of years on the trot - because the physical edge is much more important.

 

[t3ch]

Right. And the big guys are also athletic. You'd be surprised how many 300lb+ fatties would be able to outrun you.

You and I would be a fun matchup on the pitch; I'm 6 foot 240lbs (and not slow). I recently played pickup with a bunch of high schoolers who I had 5+ inches and 50+ lbs on... knocked several of them to the ground on numerous times because they tried to cut around me. Not on purpose or anything of course, but knocking them off the ball was comically easy since they were all small/quick guys trying to compete with me physically. Honestly though that's about all I've got going for me, so I've got to make good use.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

I'm deceptively strong for my size and a bastard to play against (by all accounts). When you're a little bloke you have to gain whatever advantage you get....

But always shake the bloke's hand afterwards and have a pint, that's what it's all about.

 

[t3ch]

I'll just flop to the ground and fake injury anytime you get around. I'm a much better actor than a footballer. :surrender:

What I'd really like is to play some NFL-football with a bunch of Brits. I wonder if they'd be able to quickly get the hang of throwing the ball... I assume most over there are competent on a football (as most here are comfortable playing NFL football); it would be interesting to see the flip side and performance with a hand-egg.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

I have played rugby as a kid so I am familiar with the shape of the ball, catching wouldn't be an issue. The problem being that as I played as a fly-half back then I'd be tempted to boot it all the time!

We had a team over here in the mid 90s, the London Monarchs I think they were called - Clive Allen (ex-Spurs, Palace, QPR, West Ham, England etc) was their kicker. Neither he nor they were a great success.

 

[t3ch]

Ahh obviously, how could I forget about rugby... Throwing it is a bit different, but handling a ball of that shape wouldn't be too foreign. I'd be thoroughly amused playing with someone who kept kicking it!

 

[Toon Wolf]

I have played rugby as a kid so I am familiar with the shape of the ball, catching wouldn't be an issue. The problem being that as I played as a fly-half back then I'd be tempted to boot it all the time!

We had a team over here in the mid 90s, the London Monarchs I think they were called - Clive Allen (ex-Spurs, Palace, QPR, West Ham, England etc) was their kicker. Neither he nor they were a great success.

Actually, I think the London Monarchs won the World Bowl one year and in their first season averaged crowds of about 45,000. It did dwindle after that though, because people soon realised they weren't watching NFL quality. NFL Europe did have some success though in working as a development league for NFL teams. They could sign a player who went undrafted and allocate them to NFL Europe to help their development. The Bills' current starting running back, Fred Jackson, who has 2 1000+yard rushing seasons back to back, was the leading running back in NFL Europe in 2006. Kurt Warner, who won a Super Bowl with the Rams and played again in a Super Bowl for Arizona Cardinals, played a season in Europe with Amsterdam, where his back up was long time Carolina QB, Jake Delhomme...