Jake

2003 and 2006 lines were better. This line isn't as good as it is well-coached. Nobody ever runs free at the QB and the plays are called well enough that we have options for dealing with rather frequent pressure.

Jeffery might be the best WR on this team. Also, I see no need for Jay Cutler on this team. At some point, the way this team is playing w/ McCown stops being a fluke.

I don't think Mel Tucker has much of anything to do with this

I usually shop at Target. When I lived in Colorado there was a Target and Sunflower next to each other -- I'd go to Sunflower first and fill in the gaps at Target

There's no way Uribe can play an MLB caliber SS at this point. You sign him to play 3B and that's about it. You assume you're getting Keppinger-like defense at this stage in his career.

In my first place league, somehow my weakest position has been QB. I drafted RG3 with the general expectation that he'd be great again. I recognized that he is still a risk, so I spent a relatively high pick on Mike Vick, who ended up becoming my starter early on because he was so hot. I assumed between RG3 and Vick, I'd always have a good option. Now I'm in first place, but it looks like my starting QB will be Andy Dalton. Not a lot of options out there. Have to think this will cost me before it is all said and done. The rest of the team: WR Brandon Marshall WR Eric Decker WR Mike Wallace RB Chris Johnson RB Jamaal Charles TE Vernon Davis W/R/T Shane Vereen BN RG3 BN Martellus Bennett BN Denarius Moore BN Eddie Royal BN Greg Jennings BN Jonathan Stewart (hurt, so will be replacing with somebody) Not sure if I'll have enough guns to make up for the Dalton/RG3 mixture at QB, especially with Mike Wallace as a weak link at WR. He's been all over the place. Denarius Moore was doing well for me earlier in the season, but hes been hurt and I don't know what to think he'll do when he comes back to play with Matt McGloin. Thinking about grabbing up Cordarrelle Patterson, but it seems like I'm looking at a Wallace-esque reward with a lower floor than Wallace. Also wonder if I should pick up Ryan Tannehill instead of Dalton.

You need people to live there. Urban renewal is a tricky thing and there's little consensus in how to do it, but I think the key thing that hasn't been stressed in Detroit is trying to get people to live there. Hell, several of their big business developments have crowded out neighborhoods. People will care about the town, want things to be there, etc. if they actually live in it. Right now, nobody feels invested in the city's future because they all live outside of the city. They only care about the parts of the city that serve them. When you live there, the entire thing matters. Your neighborhood matters. The drug store down the street matters. The beauty of your home matters.

Keep in mind with Dom Brown: this dude is literally a worse defensive LF than Dayan Viciedo. Just think about that. I'm not saying you definitely don't get him, but you're looking at a team with a bunch of corner OF.

I never have strong feelings about Mizzou, but these games are always intense and generally very exciting.

Also, by no means does trading Sale automatically make us unable to compete in the near term. It's a big hit to the pitching staff, certainly, but it's one guy. He plays every five days. We'd be able to make it, especially given that we'd probably receive a player with similar potential in return.

I guess to me being an ace is not a state of being. You either are one or you aren't. You might be able to impersonate one for 35 starts, but it becomes quite clear over your career whether or not you are one. We have always known that Chris is an ace. Before he had ever pitched like one, we knew that was what we had. Jose Quintana could go 22-2 next season with a 2.8 ERA and we will still know that he is not an ace.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Dec 9, 2013 -> 12:41 PM) Contreras finished out that season as an ace. And continued that through the beginning of 2006. He was just filthy after the break But of course, he wasn't an ace. That's the cool thing about having a lot of really good pitchers. Chances are, at any given moment one of them will pitch like an ace. Contreras was super inconsistent and just got hot. That's why he only cost us Esteban Loaiza, who was also an ace for five minutes. Nobody comparable to Chris Sale on that team and that's okay.

I'm of the opinion that an ace is one of the most overrated possessions. I think having a great rotation is the best thing to have, but having an "ace" is not all that different from having a really, really good pitcher. What ace was on the 2005 team? It was filled with guys we'd say were 2s and 3s.

I'm happy to deal Sale if the price is right. And no, it doesn't have to be some dick measuring contest with the other GM. It just has to make us better

Gronk dying was my final stroke of bad luck. Also, deciding between Cam Newton and Phillip Rivers on a week-by-week basis has been a puzzle I've been unable to solve. Already lost Arian Foster and re-lost that butthole from Jacksonville in my receiving core My other team is the 1 seed and got a bye week, though, and I don't think anyone on that team got hurt.

QUOTE (Tex @ Dec 8, 2013 -> 07:03 PM) I cut my pay in half from VP Sales to college student / teacher. Cutting in half again for a PhD program is really tough. Texas Tech has a Rhet/Comp program that is basically on-line except for two weeks at the end of May where you are on campus. Nice, but I'm not really interested in Rhet/Comp. My main reason for seeking a program is the intellectual challenge, the name recognition of the program is secondary. So I'm considering smaller programs where I could possibly teach AP courses at a high school or Community College and attend classes. Congrats on doing it when you are young. I would say a bigger congrats to you for pursuing it almost solely for the love of doing it -- I wish more people understood the benefits of humanistic study, just for the sake of doing it

As I said elsewhere early in the offseason, he makes a lot of sense for us, but only if Keppinger is gone. He makes a little sense if, maybe, Beckham is gone. Somebody has to be gone for him to fit on the roster as it is, though.

I would definitely part with Quintana to get Headley if he was under contract

Was an 85% favorite in the fourth quarter of the NE game and suddenly Tom Brady has 400 yards and I am 88% likely to lose

QUOTE (Tex @ Dec 8, 2013 -> 03:21 PM) I am at that point where I am looking at some literature programs. I wish I had done this before kids and career. Even the funded positions are really funded enough. Do you mean "aren't" funded enough? Then yes, I agree, especially when you have a family like you said. Texas schools (I'm thinking mostly of UT-A) have been notorious for yanking funding out from underneath people when their budget gets cut, which is part of the reason I didn't bother applying there, despite their strength in my interests. Competitive funding on a yearly basis is the last thing you want. One of the big draws for Ohio State is that if I get the fellowship, I'm looking at $2,000/month for 9 months and I think that should stretch quite a bit in Columbus. For instance, I think that might be better than the ~$22,000-$25,000 I could get from Northwestern if accepted there due to COL. Big factor for me is my girlfriend/fiance is seeking a lit PhD as well and our financial situation (again, with no "strings" attached like children) would be much less dire if we are somewhere that we can live together. I'm guessing we could make Evanston/Milwaukee or Madison/Milwaukee work, for instance. She's also applying to OSU so we'll be anxiously awaiting word on that.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 8, 2013 -> 06:46 AM) What program/major and congrats and buck the f***eyes. QUOTE (Tex @ Dec 8, 2013 -> 07:26 AM) Awesome. Toss out some details. It ain't braggin' if you done it. There, I would be getting a PhD in communication. I specialize in political entertainment and news (specifically, the fact that the perceived difference between those things is just that: perceived) and their effects on public opinion, knowledge, deliberation. I like to combine critical/literary/theoretical approaches with social scientific research, which is something they do there.

What a collapse by the Lions. QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Dec 8, 2013 -> 02:55 PM) With all the emphasis on helmet to helmet, I think you may see more helmet to knee injuries like that one. Yeah, this is the big question of human nature -- we tend to opt for short-term gains and that's what we see with all the guys saying they'd rather have a concussion. Science is telling us that head injuries are going to reduce your intelligence, ability to regulate your emotions, the length of your life, and could have various other huge ramifications. Experience is telling them that if their knee gets destroyed, the paychecks stop showing up while they usually can recover from getting their head knocked.

Just a speculative article -- of course we're not going to spend just to reach our budget ceiling, and we're not going to spend on aging guys that aren't a good bet to be good throughout all of the next 3-5 years. This means that there aren't any great looking free agent fits, but I think we're willing to spend if we can get the right guy in here. Headley on a pricey extension, for instance, would make sense.

Early reports that the on-field diagnosis was ACL/MCL for Gronk, though a reporter also heard he may have also gotten concussed on impact to the ground

Eagles have looked completely hopeless on offense