# NFL Week 17 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [December 28, 2012, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393 "2012-12-28T16:47:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/101 "2012-12-31T11:00:33Z")
Well, it wasn’t pretty, but it was good enough. RGIII only completed 9 passes all night, but had several nice runs, and Alfred Morris had the sort of night that John Riggins might envy (which set up RGIII’s little scrambles quite nicely). And to Tony Romo: so long, and thanks for all the picks. 😃 > [@For You](#): > > So far, all we know for sure about next week is that…the Colts will be going to Baltimore. Nearly three decades after Irsay loaded up the moving vans, that **still** sounds wrong. Guess that means I’m officially old. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/102 "2012-12-31T11:11:55Z")
> [@Jules\_Andre](#): > > See: [Here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=15267513&postcount=88) > > Hey! I won! It’s a shame we never worked out what I would be getting right now. I remember you offered eleventy billion dollars, but I can’t find a cite for some reason. Totally real, though. > > In Eagles news… finally this season is officially dead. The single most interesting offseason in my Eagles fandom is about to begin. Yeah, you got me there. Pretty big dissapointment. It was dumb how many games they barely lost that they had no business losing, but your record is your record. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/103 "2012-12-31T13:09:40Z")
> [@For You](#): > > Some of next week’s games already scheduled: > > Sat: > Bengals @ Texans 1:30 > Viks @ Pack 5:00 > > Sun: > Colts @ Ravens 10:00 > > Sad for Houston, in the end they coughed up the top seed along with the bye. I don’t know about the rest of the games here but Bengals v Texans is a 4:30 game on Saturday. ---
**Author:** ![Kiros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/439d5e/32.png) [@Kiros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiros)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/104 "2012-12-31T13:51:09Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > I don’t know about the rest of the games here but Bengals v Texans is a 4:30 game on Saturday. I double clutched when I first saw that too, but he’s talking in left coast time. With the three hour shift those are all correct, and of course Seahawks @ Redskins fills in the last slot at 4:30 or so on Sunday. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/105 "2012-12-31T17:22:35Z")
My son is a Redskins fan and I’m a Seahawks fan. We’ll have to come up with a friendly wager next week. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/106 "2012-12-31T17:53:54Z")
Man, what an awesome night. Alfred Morris deserves major acclaim. He’s been understandably overshadowed in the public eye by RG3, but they couldn’t have done this without him. The defense still concerns me. The Skins need to shore it up in the offseason. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/107 "2012-12-31T19:43:32Z")
A record was broken on Sunday…the New Orleans Saints gave up the most yards on defense of any team in the history of the NFL. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f8ce5/32.png) [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Peyote_Coyote)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/108 "2012-12-31T21:45:05Z")
I’ve been a Colts fan since 1970 and this is one of the most incredible seasons they’ve ever had. I would have been happy with a 6-10 mark considering all the newbies, including Luck. I never thought they would be 11-5 and in the playoffs. I think they can beat Baltimore, although their season will end at New England or Denver. Still, it’s been a great season. Can’t wait for next Sunday. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/109 "2012-12-31T21:59:45Z")
> [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](#): > > I’ve been a Colts fan since 1970 and this is one of the most incredible seasons they’ve ever had. I would have been happy with a 6-10 mark considering all the newbies, including Luck. I never thought they would be 11-5 and in the playoffs. I think they can beat Baltimore, although their season will end at New England or Denver. Still, it’s been a great season. Can’t wait for next Sunday. you continued to be a fan after they left Baltimore? I didn’t know anyone who made the switch. They’ve been dead to me since 1984. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f8ce5/32.png) [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Peyote_Coyote)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2013, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/110 "2013-01-02T16:34:53Z")
Procrustus: I live in Indiana so I was overjoyed they moved here and I could watch them more frequently. I recognize Robert Irsay’s action was cowardly and mean-spirited, but I’m kind of stubborn in in my affections. I have kinfolk in Maryland so I understand the detestation people there feel toward Irsay and the franchise, but I don’t share it. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2013, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/111 "2013-01-02T23:34:56Z")
> [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](#): > > Procrustus: I live in Indiana so I was overjoyed they moved here and I could watch them more frequently. I recognize Robert Irsay’s action was cowardly and mean-spirited, but I’m kind of stubborn in in my affections. I have kinfolk in Maryland so I understand the detestation people there feel toward Irsay and the franchise, but I don’t share it. That happened long enough ago that people just need to get over it. Professional sports teams move…it happens. Equally egregious is the way Baltimore re-acquired a team via the poor Cleveland Browns. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2013, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/112 "2013-01-03T02:42:23Z")
Not equally egregious by a long shot, but I don’t really need to go on a full rant. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2013, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/113 "2013-01-03T04:19:43Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > That happened long enough ago that people just need to get over it. Professional sports teams move…it happens. Equally egregious is the way Baltimore re-acquired a team via the poor Cleveland Browns. At least in that move, the team was kind enough to leave the _name_ in the city where it belonged. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2013, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/114 "2013-01-03T23:15:47Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > Interesting. I really wanted the Bears to get him to bolster a aging LB corps. I’m pretty sure they didn’t even try due to their insistence on high character/try hard guys. Still, Burfict fit the mold of a Cover 2 LB perfectly so long as those speed issues were purely conditioning issues. Honestly, it’s probably not that shocking that a guy who needs help to stay motivated and in shape benefits from the 24/7 nature of the NFL. We’ll see what happens when he get paid, but at least for now he’ll probably keep on improving so long as this offseason doesn’t lead to him ballooning up and getting into trouble. Did a little digging. Here’s a really nice, concise and short article from ESPN that sums up Burfict’s situation perfectly: [NFL playoffs 2013 - Vontaze Burfict's bum rap - ESPN](http://m.espn.go.com/nfl/story?storyId=8809085&i=FB&w=1chff&wjb) ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/115 "2013-01-04T00:36:57Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > At least in that move, the team was kind enough to leave the _name_ in the city where it belonged. Kindness has little to do with leaving the name behind. The NFL more or less forced them to. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/116 "2013-01-04T02:40:19Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Not equally egregious by a long shot, but I don’t really need to go on a full rant. How is it not equally egregious? Both cities lost a team. ---
**Author:** ![Bootis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e8c25b/32.png) [@Bootis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootis)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/117 "2013-01-04T03:02:35Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > How is it not equally egregious? Both cities lost a team. The circumstances of how a city loses a team should have a lot to do with how soon they should “get over it” I don’t know really the history of either in this case, so it might well be equally egregious, but not just because both cities lost a team. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/118 "2013-01-04T03:10:57Z")
There was a really vitriolic post I wrote about the subject once, but I can’t find it, so I’ll go with the one I did find > [@NFL Week 2](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-2/510653/144): > > For one, the Colts left town due to dwindling fan support. They were only getting the stadium half-full in the years previous to the move. This is a failure of fan support and if anything is the only good justification for moving a team. > > The Browns had amongst the best team support in the league. Despite being in a smaller market and poorer city, they had a decades long waiting list on season tickets, among the top merchandise sales in the league, and probably the most rabidly fanatical fanbase. Not only that, but the financial deal that Modell got was ridiculous - not only did he get to lease the municipal stadium for a dollar a year, including the city taking up maintenance and operating costs, but because it was a dual use stadium he actually got the Indians to pay him to use the stadium. It was a ridiculous handout deal. > > The move does not in any way stem from a lack of fan support. He was in the best situation you could be in, short of being in a giant market. It stems entirely from his personal incompetance. When the discussion of building new stadiums came up, the city was willing to fund a new baseball and football stadium, and give Modell another giveaway deal where they paid for the stadium and ran the thing and yet he got the profit. But he objected. Why? Because the Indians were going to get their own stadium too - and him only getting a free stadium with free operating costs while profiting just wasn’t good enough, because he wouldn’t have a baseball team paying him too on top of that. So he purposely sabotaged/nixed the new stadiums idea because, while it was a giant public giveaway to him, it just wasn’t quite giant enough. And because he was an utterly incompetant businessman on top of being an utterly incompetant football owner, he’d lost so much money in other investments that he needed even more corporate welfare to stay afloat. So he was offered a new stadium, refused, and then moved on the claimed basis that he didn’t get a new stadium. Modell forced the best player in the history of football to retire. He fired the best coach in the league’s history. He managed to take in hundreds of millions of dollars of corporate welfare and still manage to always be broke. He put forth herculean efforts of personal incompetance. > > Cleveland kept the history and records of the Browns because we fought harder than any other city has ever fought something like this. Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in protest. We brought legal action against the NFL. Your apathetic fanbase saw their team go quietly in the middle of the night - we resisted so loudly that we scared the NFL. It wasn’t some token gift, it was something won through hard fighting. At the time, nothing like it had ever happened - a city keeping the colors, name, and records of a franchise despite having that franchise move - and it was all due to the unique dedication that this city had to its team. So yes, it was different than all the other moves. > > Your claimed hurt over the Colts moving makes you morally worse. Your city is like a rape victim that even knowing how bad the crime was went out and started commiting its own rapes. If you understand how much it can hurt for this to happen to you, then you are even more guilty for being responsible for it happening to another city. You should’ve forced the NFL to give you an expansion team and refused to support the abomination it did give you. I’m not going to let it go until that STD-ridden cesspool of a city gets hit by a decent sized meteor or nuked from orbit, since it’s the only way to be sure. Basically, I don’t like teams leaving cities, but the Colts in the 80s were at least justified by lack of fan support. The Browns leaving Cleveland while having top-5 financial and fan support is ridiculous, and due solely to the greed and stupidity of one man, and the willingness of another city to buy him out. A city who had experienced the heartache of losing their team, and yet chose to inflict that on another. The situations are not the same at all, and in fact, I’ll go further. Thinking the Colts leaving is tragic and then supporting the Ravens makes you a dick. Being a Ravens fan is a character flaw. Fuck that STD infested crack den. I’m going to go jerk off to the scene in “Sum of all Fears” where it gets nuked. ---
**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 4, 2013, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/119 "2013-01-04T06:03:04Z")
_golf clap_ ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2013, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393/120 "2013-01-04T14:51:22Z")
I don’t know how your “other rant” can top that one, at least in vitriol! 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-17/645393.md?page=7)