# NFL 2020: Wild Card Playoffs **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [January 7, 2021, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916 "2021-01-07T14:35:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/101 "2021-01-12T00:37:21Z")
The funny thing is though, they were also showing the playoff schedule on TV for next weekend, including the Browns in Kansas City, when the game wasn’t technically over yet (I believe there was more than a minute left). There was basically no chance for a comeback at that point but to me that was a very clear acknowledgement by the network that the game was over. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/102 "2021-01-12T00:38:55Z")
Eh, the Saints-Bears game was actually in reach. If Mitch drives them down the field a little faster and hit Graham with say 30 seconds left, the Bears are an onside kick away from a hail mary. Longshot sure, but you have to keep the door open. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/103 "2021-01-12T00:43:45Z")
Weird tidbit I just saw on the ticker. [Source: Jared Veldheer to sign with Green Bay Packers after Indianapolis Colts wild-card start (espn.com)](https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/30694453/source-jared-veldheer-sign-green-bay-packers-indianapolis-colts-wild-card-start) This makes him the first player in NFL history to play for 2 different teams in the same postseason. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/104 "2021-01-12T01:25:44Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > Eh, the Saints-Bears game was actually in reach. If Mitch drives them down the field a little faster and hit Graham with say 30 seconds left, the Bears are an onside kick away from a hail mary. Not when down 21-3. A touchdown and two-point makes it 21-11. Then onside and another touchdown makes it 21-18. Then you need ANOTHER onside and a field goal. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/105 "2021-01-12T01:36:05Z")
> [@ShadowFacts](#): > > PS. To be honest, there is also a small part of me hoping that Tom Brady and the Bucs take it, just to watch everyone’s heads explode in impotent rage I’m an outsider who’s lived in New England for almost the entirety of the Brady-Belchick glory years. I never liked either one, but think Brady is one of the greatest athletes of my lifetime. The ill-will expressed toward him be Patriots fans when he left was shocking even for the people who proudly call themselves Massholes. Guy gives you six Super Bowls and you grudge him cashing in for a year or two at the end of his career. I would love to see TB12 win another one, but not at the cost of my team. If Tampa Bay are in the Super Bowl and my team is not, I’ll be cheering harder than I ever have for a team I’ve never cared about 6 months earlier. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/106 "2021-01-12T02:26:19Z")
Damn, you’re right. I was thinking that the PAT would have made it a 1 score game, but I was actually thinking about the point spread. ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/107 "2021-01-12T03:49:02Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > I’m an outsider who’s lived in New England for almost the entirety of the Brady-Belchick glory years. I never liked either one, but think Brady is one of the greatest athletes of my lifetime. The ill-will expressed toward him be Patriots fans when he left was shocking even for the people who proudly call themselves Massholes. Huh. I’m in NE and I didn’t see any of that. Then again, I don’t generally read much sports news or listen to sports radio, so I definitely may have missed it. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/108 "2021-01-12T04:08:08Z")
Belichick shows he’s he’s not completely tone deaf and won’t accept the presidential medal of freedom from Trump. > **[New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick declines to accept Presidential...](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/new-england-patriots-coach-bill-belichick-says-he-won-t-n1253840)** > > Belichick said that he was flattered by the offer but that "the decision was made" to decline after the "tragic events of last week." ---
**Author:** ![borschevsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/97f17d/32.png) [@borschevsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/borschevsky)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/109 "2021-01-12T05:08:18Z")
The right choice to not accept the award, but that’s about the most passive statement I’ve ever heard. “Subsequently, the tragic events of last week occurred and the decision has been made not to move forward with the award.” ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/110 "2021-01-12T06:07:34Z")
He gets no points for doing literally the least a person can do to not suck the dick of a monster. Kraft is still donating to these traitors. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/111 "2021-01-12T13:12:06Z")
Oh there’s no doubt Belichick still worships at the alter of Trump, but he doesn’t want to lose the locker room completely, especially coming off a bad year. Don’t know if he can do it in total secrecy or not, Gary Player and Annika Sorenstam did theirs privately the day after the Republican coup, but it was announced at least. ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/112 "2021-01-12T16:14:48Z")
> [@borschevsky](#): > > The right choice to not accept the award, but that’s about the most passive statement I’ve ever heard. Agreed, very weaselly, Bill. Hardly a profile in courage, there. The right decision “was made,” but who can say who made it from that statement? ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2021, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/113 "2021-01-13T15:09:38Z")
> [@ShadowFacts](#): > > Huh. I’m in NE and I didn’t see any of that. Then again, I don’t generally read much sports news or listen to sports radio, so I definitely may have missed it. It was all over sports radio when he left. Not as much during this season since they were concentrating on Cam Newton’s dismal performance, but now that Brady’s in the playoffs while the Pats are watching it on TV the “traitor to the dynasty” callers are showing up again all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2021, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/114 "2021-01-13T15:30:17Z")
Yeah, it reeks of their entitled-ism. The guy gives them six Super Bowl titles while playing on a discounted salary, then goes to join an NFC team that isn’t a rival of the Patriots in the least after having given 20 years to New England, and he’s a “traitor” to the very dynasty he made. Welcome to Boston sports logic. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2021, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/115 "2021-01-13T15:53:36Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > but now that Brady’s in the playoffs while the Pats are watching it on TV the “traitor to the dynasty” callers are showing up again all the time. Really? I haven’t heard any of that lately. On WEEI or the Sports Hub? ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2021, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/116 "2021-01-13T16:13:48Z")
I don’t listen to sports radio, but I’ve seen literally hundreds of comments on Facebook and the comments on Boston Globe articles. Not to mention my coworkers going into paroxysms of delight every time he had a bad game. ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2021, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/117 "2021-01-13T16:53:38Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > I don’t listen to sports radio, but I’ve seen literally hundreds of comments on Facebook and the comments on Boston Globe articles. Ah, now I see the problem. NEVER READ THE COMMENTS!! 😃 I don’t doubt that there is a contingent of knuckleheads who believe this “Brady = traitor” nonsense and are probably quite vocal about it, but it is certainly not widespread in my circle of acquaintances, which includes many, many Pats fans. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2021, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/118 "2021-01-13T19:00:45Z")
Sports Hub. It comes & goes, I didn’t listen this week so I don’t know if there were a lot. But when the Pats got eliminated Felger & Mazz had a bunch of anti-Brady callers. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2021, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/119 "2021-01-13T19:09:26Z")
I would guess also that after Brady left, the Patriots fanbase shrank by two-thirds. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2021, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916/120 "2021-01-13T20:57:03Z")
Not even close. What’s happening now is that the under-30s who grew up knowing the Pats would make the playoffs as sure as the sun rises in the East are in a state of shock. They’re still putting their faith in Belichick to turn things around though. But 2 or 3 years from now, when the Pats are at best clawing for a Wild card spot instead of cruising to winning the division by week 14, then yeah, I suspect the fanbase will start to evaporate. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-wild-card-playoffs/929916.md?page=7)