N F L - National Football League

[Ryann.sword]

Great season by the broncos!!

 

Watch the sound fx of super bowl 50!!

http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-films-sound-efx/0ap3000000635823/Sound-FX-Broncos-get-the-best-of-the-Panthers

[Guns of the Patriots]

This will make the upcoming NFL combines (40 yard dash) a lot interesting....LOL

 

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000636111/article/break-cj2ks-40yard-dash-record-make-a-million

[Guns of the Patriots]

Looks like the legendary QB won't be seeing the end of the tunnel soon....New England Patriots

 

http://www.patriots.com/news/2016/02/29/report-tom-brady-agrees-two-year-extension

 

Report: Tom Brady agrees to two-year extension

Monday, February 29, 2016 10:22 AM EST

It looks like the end of the Tom Brady era in New England is nowhere in sight. Read

According to ESPN, the Patriots have reached an agreement on a two-year contract extension with Brady that would keep him under contract until 2019. The report cites leagues sources.

 

Brady had two years remaining on his deal and was set to earn $9 million in 2016 and $10 million in 2017. The 38-year-old quarterback will now get two additional years, although details of the extension were not revealed. The report also indicated the deal is not yet signed and “may not be for a little while.”

 

If Brady plays out the entirety of the new contract, he would be 42, and given the way he’s played over the past two years few would doubt his ability to do just that.

 

http://www.patriots.com/sites/patriots.com/files/styles/borealis_gallery__full_respondmedium/public/_gallery_photos/bb092015_ds1805-watermarked.jpg?itok=i1fjyLur&timestamp=1456776999

[Mad Damian]

Eating Papa Johns probably helped Peyton Manning in winning the Superbowl. JJ Watt & HoF'er Joe Montana in the commercial

 

Better Ingredients, better Pizza, Papa Johns

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHfi8gBmKJM

Probably not. This will probably slow them down.

Papa Johns used to be so good when they first came out.

Now, their cutting down sa ingredients.

[Mad Damian]

 

Looks like the legendary QB won't be seeing the end of the tunnel soon....New England Patriots

 

http://www.patriots.com/news/2016/02/29/report-tom-brady-agrees-two-year-extension

 

Report: Tom Brady agrees to two-year extension

Monday, February 29, 2016 10:22 AM EST

It looks like the end of the Tom Brady era in New England is nowhere in sight. Read

According to ESPN, the Patriots have reached an agreement on a two-year contract extension with Brady that would keep him under contract until 2019. The report cites leagues sources.

 

Brady had two years remaining on his deal and was set to earn $9 million in 2016 and $10 million in 2017. The 38-year-old quarterback will now get two additional years, although details of the extension were not revealed. The report also indicated the deal is not yet signed and “may not be for a little while.”

 

If Brady plays out the entirety of the new contract, he would be 42, and given the way he’s played over the past two years few would doubt his ability to do just that.

 

http://www.patriots.com/sites/patriots.com/files/styles/borealis_gallery__full_respondmedium/public/_gallery_photos/bb092015_ds1805-watermarked.jpg?itok=i1fjyLur&timestamp=1456776999

 

Just in time for his suspension

[Guns of the Patriots]

Just in time for his suspension

 

And which article is that based?

[Mad Damian]

 

And which article is that based?

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/deflate-gate--a-tom-brady-suspension-is-back-on-the-table-222215947.html

[Guns of the Patriots]

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/deflate-gate--a-tom-brady-suspension-is-back-on-the-table-222215947.html

 

Please post next time if the decision has been made.

 

I am surprised that you stated that Tom Brady is suspended....but as per the article / link you gave, the decision has not been made yet. Arguments are being presented as of the moment.

Edited March 4, 2016 by Guns of the Patriots

[Guiness]

If judges' questions are any indication, NFL may win appeal

NEW YORK -- High-powered and successful attorney Jeff Kessler -- an all-pro in the legal community if there ever was one -- never saw the blindside hit coming.

But less than two seconds after he had just completed the traditional "May it please the court" opening line that is made by attorneys as they begin to make their arguments, a judge tossed Kessler aside.

How is it, Judge Denny Chin of the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals asked, Kessler could assert in one court that the NFL's uniform and equipment policy did not apply to the deflation of footballs by the New England Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady, but argue in briefs filed with Chin's appellate court just the opposite?

Chin's query came before Kessler completed even a single sentence of the argument he had prepared in support of a triumph he engineered in a lower court last summer. It began a series of questions that kept Kessler on the defensive throughout his entire 34-minute presentation to the court Thursday.

That basic question and those that quickly followed from two other judges provided a strong indication that the appellate court is likely to reverse a lower court ruling that said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was wrong when he suspended Brady for four games in the Deflategate saga.

 

The uniform-equipment policy question is critical to the outcome of the appeal. If the policy applies to deflated footballs, Kessler and the NFLPA insist that a violation of the policy is limited to a fine of just $5,512 from Goodell and no suspension. If the policy does not apply, then the commissioner is able to use his authority specified in the labor agreement between the owners and players to suspend Brady.

In their briefs to the appeals court, NFL attorneys highlighted the Kessler-uniform policy flip-flop and explained that the policy's designated fines are "minimums" and "other forms of discipline including higher fines and suspensions may also be imposed."

The clear language of the policy indicates that it applies to things like the color of shoes, the proper wearing of uniform socks and the tucking in of jerseys. The word "football" does not appear anywhere in the detailed policy, and a sketch used to describe the policy's requirements does not include a football. The NFL's position is so strong that at one point in the arguments on Thursday afternoon, Judge Barrington Parker told Kessler his explanations were "hypertechnical."

Responding to Chin's opening question, Kessler suggested that there were three reasons why the suggestion of a flip-flop was incorrect. First, Kessler said, the league distorted what he said at the arbitration hearing. Before he could offer any specifics on the distortion, Chin quoted Kessler's statement at the arbitration: "We don't believe the uniform policy applies."

Looking up from his notes and directly at Kessler, Chin concluded, "That seems pretty clear." Kessler never made it to his remaining two reasons.

The best that Kessler could do after that was to suggest to the judges, "Using a football term, this was 'misdirection' by the league."

Kessler's travails continued when both Parker and Chin attacked Brady's obstruction of the Wells investigation and his destruction of a cell phone that may have had important evidence. Neither judge was happy with Kessler's assertion that Brady did not have "notice" that a failure to cooperate in the league's investigation could result in punishment.

 

Referring to Brady's "obstruction" of the investigation and Brady's destruction of his cell phone, Parker asked, "Couldn't the commissioner suspend Brady for that conduct alone?"

 

In response, Kessler said that when the alleged obstruction and destruction developed, the league should have opened a new investigation with another discipline decision and another arbitration.

 

Parker was incredulous, saying to Kessler, "I have difficulty following that. You want a 'start over.' You want the first case to come to a full stop and then start anew on a new investigation."

 

In frustration and exasperation, Parker then asked Kessler, "Do you think the commissioner was out to get Tom Brady, one of the most celebrated players in the game?"

 

In their final series of questions to Kessler, the judges questioned his reliance on Brady's sworn testimony in the arbitration hearing. Parker thought Brady's explanation of what happened was "totally incredible." And Chin said there was "compelling evidence that Brady tampered with the footballs."

 

For Kessler and Brady to prevail in this appeal, the appellate judges must believe at least one of the arguments that Kessler offered: the uniform policy applies; Brady was truthful in his explanation of what happened; the arbitration procedure was flawed and did not provide proper notice to Brady of the charges against him; or, Brady is entitled to a new hearing on the obstruction and destruction of evidence charges.

 

In the hearing Thursday, Chin, Parker and fellow judge Robert Katzmann did not show any acceptance of those arguments.

Sensing that things were moving in the NFL's direction, the league's lead attorney, Paul Clement, pounced in a rebuttal argument that he offered after the judges finished with Kessler.

 

"Labor arbitrations are supposed to be expeditious," he reminded the court. To bring this labor arbitration to an end, he suggested, the judges should reverse the previous ruling "without a remand." That means the league wants the high court to reverse lower court Judge Richard Berman's decision without giving him a chance to correct his errors.

 

"This should not hang over the league for another season," Clement said. "You can end it right now."

 

It is entirely possible that Clement and the league will see this case end in the expected fashion (that Brady's suspension is justified) in the next three or four months.

 

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/14896976/if-judges-questions-indication-nfl-prevail-deflategate-appeal-tom-brady-suspension

[Guns of the Patriots]

If judges' questions are any indication, NFL may win appeal

tom.jpeg

NEW YORK -- High-powered and successful attorney Jeff Kessler -- an all-pro in the legal community if there ever was one -- never saw the blindside hit coming.

But less than two seconds after he had just completed the traditional "May it please the court" opening line that is made by attorneys as they begin to make their arguments, a judge tossed Kessler aside.

How is it, Judge Denny Chin of the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals asked, Kessler could assert in one court that the NFL's uniform and equipment policy did not apply to the deflation of footballs by the New England Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady, but argue in briefs filed with Chin's appellate court just the opposite?

Chin's query came before Kessler completed even a single sentence of the argument he had prepared in support of a triumph he engineered in a lower court last summer. It began a series of questions that kept Kessler on the defensive throughout his entire 34-minute presentation to the court Thursday.

That basic question and those that quickly followed from two other judges provided a strong indication that the appellate court is likely to reverse a lower court ruling that said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was wrong when he suspended Brady for four games in the Deflategate saga.

 

The uniform-equipment policy question is critical to the outcome of the appeal. If the policy applies to deflated footballs, Kessler and the NFLPA insist that a violation of the policy is limited to a fine of just $5,512 from Goodell and no suspension. If the policy does not apply, then the commissioner is able to use his authority specified in the labor agreement between the owners and players to suspend Brady.

In their briefs to the appeals court, NFL attorneys highlighted the Kessler-uniform policy flip-flop and explained that the policy's designated fines are "minimums" and "other forms of discipline including higher fines and suspensions may also be imposed."

The clear language of the policy indicates that it applies to things like the color of shoes, the proper wearing of uniform socks and the tucking in of jerseys. The word "football" does not appear anywhere in the detailed policy, and a sketch used to describe the policy's requirements does not include a football. The NFL's position is so strong that at one point in the arguments on Thursday afternoon, Judge Barrington Parker told Kessler his explanations were "hypertechnical."

Responding to Chin's opening question, Kessler suggested that there were three reasons why the suggestion of a flip-flop was incorrect. First, Kessler said, the league distorted what he said at the arbitration hearing. Before he could offer any specifics on the distortion, Chin quoted Kessler's statement at the arbitration: "We don't believe the uniform policy applies."

Looking up from his notes and directly at Kessler, Chin concluded, "That seems pretty clear." Kessler never made it to his remaining two reasons.

The best that Kessler could do after that was to suggest to the judges, "Using a football term, this was 'misdirection' by the league."

Kessler's travails continued when both Parker and Chin attacked Brady's obstruction of the Wells investigation and his destruction of a cell phone that may have had important evidence. Neither judge was happy with Kessler's assertion that Brady did not have "notice" that a failure to cooperate in the league's investigation could result in punishment.

 

Referring to Brady's "obstruction" of the investigation and Brady's destruction of his cell phone, Parker asked, "Couldn't the commissioner suspend Brady for that conduct alone?"

 

In response, Kessler said that when the alleged obstruction and destruction developed, the league should have opened a new investigation with another discipline decision and another arbitration.

 

Parker was incredulous, saying to Kessler, "I have difficulty following that. You want a 'start over.' You want the first case to come to a full stop and then start anew on a new investigation."

 

In frustration and exasperation, Parker then asked Kessler, "Do you think the commissioner was out to get Tom Brady, one of the most celebrated players in the game?"

 

In their final series of questions to Kessler, the judges questioned his reliance on Brady's sworn testimony in the arbitration hearing. Parker thought Brady's explanation of what happened was "totally incredible." And Chin said there was "compelling evidence that Brady tampered with the footballs."

 

For Kessler and Brady to prevail in this appeal, the appellate judges must believe at least one of the arguments that Kessler offered: the uniform policy applies; Brady was truthful in his explanation of what happened; the arbitration procedure was flawed and did not provide proper notice to Brady of the charges against him; or, Brady is entitled to a new hearing on the obstruction and destruction of evidence charges.

 

In the hearing Thursday, Chin, Parker and fellow judge Robert Katzmann did not show any acceptance of those arguments.

Sensing that things were moving in the NFL's direction, the league's lead attorney, Paul Clement, pounced in a rebuttal argument that he offered after the judges finished with Kessler.

 

"Labor arbitrations are supposed to be expeditious," he reminded the court. To bring this labor arbitration to an end, he suggested, the judges should reverse the previous ruling "without a remand." That means the league wants the high court to reverse lower court Judge Richard Berman's decision without giving him a chance to correct his errors.

 

"This should not hang over the league for another season," Clement said. "You can end it right now."

 

It is entirely possible that Clement and the league will see this case end in the expected fashion (that Brady's suspension is justified) in the next three or four months.

 

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/14896976/if-judges-questions-indication-nfl-prevail-deflategate-appeal-tom-brady-suspension

 

 

Appreciate the update, Hahnz posted regarding the "Deflategate" hearing.

[Guiness]

it's an appeals process but it seems like the NFL is being given some credibility here if they could upheld the 4 game suspensions for this coming season. as one NFL analyst said, its Tom Brady fighting city hall, city hall being the NFL. The judge just might favor the NFL here in this regard with their appeal

[Guns of the Patriots]

it's an appeals process but it seems like the NFL is being given some credibility here if they could upheld the 4 game suspensions for this coming season. as one NFL analyst said, its Tom Brady fighting city hall, city hall being the NFL. The judge just might favor the NFL here in this regard with their appeal

 

It is entirely possible....but anything can change.

 

Unless the decision is made....everything is still up in the air.

[Mad Damian]

 

It is entirely possible....but anything can change.

 

Unless the decision is made....everything is still up in the air.

The question is how long will the NFL keep letting the Pats do these things.

Granted they keep coming up w/ new schemes and it keeps looking like the NFL officials are just catching up w/ their antics.

But having consecutive successful seasons will not sit well w/ the other owners who spent more money in free agency than the Pats only to see a season go down the drain.

Whether the playing and coaching style of the Pats help them win or not, its still looks unethical and unsportsmanlike.

 

Eventually, a decision will be made and whether its lenient or a suspension, it has to appease all the owners of the teams.

[Guiness]

From Spygate to Deflategate. Someone's bound to notice and put the magnifying glass on them. I'm biased anyway coz I'm a big blue guy so i won't feel the least bit of sympathy for them if they suspend Brady. Go Big Blue! Beat these patriots twice in the superbowl.

[Guiness]

Peyton Manning makes call to retire after 18-year career

 

Peyton Manning's Super Bowl 50 victory over the Carolina Panthers was indeed his last rodeo.

The five-time NFL MVP is retiring, the Denver Broncos announced Sunday. The team will hold a news conference at 1 p.m. ET Monday for Manning to discuss his stepping away from the game after 18 seasons and two Super Bowl victories.

"When you look at everything Peyton has accomplished as a player and person, it's easy to see how fortunate we've been to have him on our team," Broncos executive vice president of football operations and general manager John Elway said in a statement. "Peyton was everything that we thought he was and even more -- not only for the football team but in the community. I'm very thankful Peyton chose to play for the Denver Broncos, and I congratulate him on his Hall of Fame career."

Manning called the Broncos on Saturday night to inform them he would be retiring. The Monday news conference had been previously scheduled, but the Broncos didn't know what Manning's decision would be until he made the call.

 

ESPN's Chris Mortensen first reported Manning's decision, which clears $19 million in cap room for the Broncos.

"Peyton Manning's extraordinary career was driven by his talent, an incredible work ethic, and an unwavering desire to be the best and ended so perfectly for him with a Super Bowl victory," NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. "Peyton's competitive fire and love of the game made him a legendary player who thrilled fans for a generation. He has served as a great representative of the NFL both on the field and in his community. We are forever grateful for Peyton's unmatched contributions to the game and know that his success will continue in the next phase of his life."

History will show the quarterback made four Super Bowl trips with two titles, set a mountain of records and earned a place on football's Mount Rushmore. He will retire as the NFL's all-time leader in passing touchdowns (539), passing yards (71,940) and quarterback wins (186, tied with Brett Favre).

Manning, who played 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, was a first-ballot Hall­ of­ Famer­-in­-waiting before spinal fusion surgery caused him to miss the 2011 season. He went to the Broncos as a free agent in 2012 and authored the most prolific season of any quarterback in history in 2013. The Broncos made two Super Bowl trips in Manning's final three seasons. Manning also follows in Elway's footsteps, retiring as a Super Bowl winner.

When he embraced New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick after the Broncos' AFC Championship Game victory in January, NFL Films cameras captured audio of Manning hinting to the coach that the 2015 season would be his last.

"This might be my last rodeo. So it sure has been a pleasure," Manning said.

Belichick said Sunday night he had the utmost respect for Manning.

"I can honestly say that I never 'enjoyed' our meetings, but the respect I have for Peyton Manning as a competitor was, and will likely remain, second to none," Belichick said.

Tom Brady, a longtime AFC rival and comparison point across the years, congratulated Manning for changing the game in a Facebook post.

 

Tennessee football coach Butch Jones said in a statement, in part, "On behalf of our football program, we want to congratulate Peyton Manning on a truly remarkable career. We are so fortunate to have Peyton as an ambassador to the University of Tennessee. His name is and will always be synonymous with Tennessee. ... Peyton defines excellence in every sense of the word."

The 39-year-old Manning was a Super Bowl MVP, a 14-time Pro Bowl selection and a seven-time first-team All-Pro. His teams made the playoffs in 15 of his 18 seasons, and he reached the 4,000-yard passing mark in 14 seasons.

In the Broncos' record-setting 2013 season, when they scored a single-season record 606 points -- the first time in league history a team topped 600 -- Manning set single-season records for passing yards (5,477) and touchdown passes (55). It was the second time Manning threw for at least 49 touchdowns (2004 was the first) -- a mark reached only one other time in NFL history (Brady in 2007).

Manning said his final season was the "most unique" of his career. He missed seven starts with a tear in the plantar fascia near his left heel. In November, Manning had a cast on his left foot. In December, he was running the scout team, and by January, he was back in the lineup for one more playoff run.

 

 

All the while there were reports, which he strongly denied, debating Manning's skills as a teammate and linking him to human growth hormone. The first report alleged he would refuse to be the backup quarterback. He called that "bulls---." Then Al Jazeera America reported that HGH was allegedly shipped to his wife, Ashley. Manning repeatedly said the report was "garbage."

Manning also is among the athletes cited in a lawsuit filed by a group of women alleging that the University of Tennessee violated Title IX regulations and created a "hostile sexual environment" with an attitude of indifference toward assaults by student-athletes.

The Tennessee lawsuit alleges that in 1996, when Manning was the Volunteers' quarterback, he placed his genitals on the face of a female athletic trainer while she was examining him for an injury. Manning has denied that he assaulted the trainer, saying instead that he was "mooning" a teammate. Manning was never the subject of a police investigation in the incident.

The trainer, Dr. Jamie Naughright, later sued Manning. In documents filed on her behalf in the case, the player whom Manning said he was "mooning," Malcolm Saxon, contradicted Manning's account.

Naughright's lawsuit against Manning was settled in 1997 with the agreement that she leave the university.

 

Manning's return following his 2011 surgery surprised many in the league. He could barely throw a football 10 yards when he began his recovery, and even after he signed with the Broncos in March 2012, there was enough uncertainty that the team used a second-round pick to select Brock Osweiler in the draft.

"What he's done, man, he's the greatest," Broncos cornerback Chris Harris Jr. has said. "Some people ... you have to say, 'You remember that guy?' and then you keep saying things. He's Peyton Manning. That's it. You just say Peyton Manning."

Elway promised Manning he would do everything in his power to send him out with a championship. Elway also said he liked "to sign Hall of Famers with chips on their shoulders."

"It was a blessing to coach Peyton Manning. Nobody worked harder at the game and nobody prepared harder than Peyton," Broncos coach Gary Kubiak said in a statement. "His preparation was the best I've ever seen with how he went about his business. There was nothing like his work habits. Each and every week, he did everything he could to get ready to play not only against the defense but even against the coordinator.

"Being with him this season, going through what we went through and accomplishing what we accomplished -- that was special. He and I battled together and along the way we talked about dreaming that it could end the way it ended. And I'll be damned, it did."

 

Beyond the numbers, the production and the fact that he helped four head coaches reach the Super Bowl, Manning's legacy will be his ability to put the game back into the hands of the quarterback. From the time the Colts made him the first pick of the 1998 draft and then-coach Jim Mora played Manning for every snap of his rookie season, Manning has been the man in charge. He put both the Colts and the Broncos in the annual Super Bowl discussion.

"Peyton Manning is the kind of player, the rare kind of player, where no matter how long you played with him, whether it was a month, a year, 10 years, a week, you're always going to say, 'I played with Peyton Manning,'" Broncos tackle Ryan Harris has said. "You don't say Peyton Manning and I played together or that Peyton Manning was on my team. You say, 'I played with Peyton Manning.' And people could not know anything about you as a player, or what you did, or if you were any good, and they would immediately know you played with one of the best ever and you were always one of the teams that [had] a real shot at the Super Bowl. He's forever."

Los Angeles Rams coach Jeff Fisher has likened facing Manning to "playing a computer who knows what you did before, what you're doing now and what you're planning to do later." Manning's recall of defenses, situations and plays -- he once gave detailed descriptions of the scoring plays of every player who caught just one touchdown pass from him -- was the stuff of legend.

"Peyton, he made me better. He made a lot of guys better," former Broncos and Colts wide receiver Brandon Stokley said. "We would have made the NFL probably, but Peyton made us all better. We were more because we played with Peyton Manning. And just think about how many guys can say that."

Manning operated with complete freedom at the line of scrimmage. His 14-year career with the Colts helped football flourish in Indiana, resulting in a new stadium and the Midwestern city's selection to host a Super Bowl.

"Few have left their marks on a sport as Peyton Manning has. Simply put, he revolutionized NFL football," Colts owner Jim Irsay said in a statement. "Peyton energized it as had no one before him, he made it more fun for our fans, and made the game better. ... I am proud and thankful for all he's done for the Colts, our community, and the NFL."

Detroit Lions coach Jim Caldwell, who was one of Manning's head coaches with the Colts, said in a statement that "there will never be another Peyton Manning."

"There wasn't a day that went by that he wasn't working to get better. In many ways, he prepared each and every day as if he were a free agent trying to earn a spot on an NFL roster. He was driven to be the best," he said.

A sought-after pitchman off the field, Manning's No. 18 has been worn by countless quarterback hopefuls from coast to coast, and he will be enshrined in Canton, Ohio, when the Pro Football Hall of Fame's five-year waiting period is over.

As the late Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams said after Manning's Colts repeatedly threw at him: "Man, everybody knows that's the great Peyton Manning ... and Peyton Manning is going to do what Peyton Manning does."