Whats next for the teams that were eliminated from the playoffs

[detfan782004]

23 minutes ago, CP3MVP said:

What are the chances the lions get to host a 9 win team to get the nfc title game again? 
 

To put that in perspective, lions great stafford won 12 games in 2021 and he had to go on the road to face a 13 win team to get to the nfc title game in 2021 

 

They got a REALLY soft draw and couldn’t get it done 

The issue I have is DC was spot on saying this may have been their only shot.

Back in 91 folks expected Detroit to come right back and never happened.

Teams gotta take these games as their only shot because things happen.

Do I expect the wheels to fall off next year? No. Would I be shocked if they did? lol. No.

Too many teams have gotten here and then the wheels fall off.

Unless you have a QB like Mahomes or Brady you are relying on a lot to get back to this stage yearly.

Dan Campbell and team choked away what will be the only shot some of these players ever get 

[Jameson_Neat]

7 minutes ago, CP3MVP said:

They were a good offense with a terrible defense(that was exposed again yesterday) that got a soft playoff schedule.

 

it happens a lot 

That's a good team in today's NFL.

See the 9ers for reference. 

[CP3MVP]

8 minutes ago, Jameson_Neat said:

That's a good team in today's NFL.

See the 9ers for reference. 

The 49ers with a top 5 offense and defense?

[Daniel]

Eagles: Reset and reload.  They've still got a very talented team, and they now have coordinators with a long history of not ******* up a good thing.  Neither Washington or NY will likely compete for much next year, so figure out Dallas.

Rams: No worries.  They do the most with the least in the draft.  So long as their GM and HC are there, they're gonna be in the mix.  They'll need a new QB sooner rather than later, but they're always gonna have a strong team around whoever it is.

Cowboys: Not much to do but run it back one more time.  Maybe they sign Derrick Henry or something, but they are really starting to earn that choker name.

Dolphins: I'm not sure what changed for them from the beginning of the season offensively, but find that balance.  Tua may not be one to lean on, but one to win with.

Steelers: It's ridiculous that they were even here.  Without drastic improvement, they won't be next year.

Browns: They've got to look towards life after Watson, and try to keep as many pieces of this defense under contract for that time as they possibly can.

Bucs: Man, that division is still trash.  Stick with Baker, why not?  Draft successors to your WRs.

Packers: Sky is the limit.  Love looks like the real deal, so now they just have to build around him.

Bills: The conversation about whether Josh Allen is their guy is silly, but they do need to figure out how to support him better.  They may need staff changes, or it may just be that Mahomes has their number.

Texans: They have a ridiculously bright future.  It's sickening.

Lions: I think they'll keep being good, and it's them and the Packers in that division, but they may have missed their window for a Super Bowl there.  Campbell could maybe benefit from being less aggressive sometimes, but hey, maybe it's just how the cookie crumbled this time.

Ravens: I don't even know, just focus on beating Cincy, I guess.  That was a terrible effort in the AFCCG.

 

[EvilenFroggen]

18 minutes ago, detfan782004 said:

The issue I have is DC was spot on saying this may have been their only shot.

Back in 91 folks expected Detroit to come right back and never happened.

Teams gotta take these games as their only shot because things happen.

Do I expect the wheels to fall off next year? No. Would I be shocked if they did? lol. No.

Too many teams have gotten here and then the wheels fall off.

Unless you have a QB like Mahomes or Brady you are relying on a lot to get back to this stage yearly.

Dan Campbell and team choked away what will be the only shot some of these players ever get 

To your point, the Panthers went 15-1, Cam won MVP, and we went to the Super Bowl. We’ve been in the gutter ever since. 

[detfan782004]

1 minute ago, EvilenFroggen said:

To your point, the Panthers went 15-1, Cam won MVP, and we went to the Super Bowl. We’ve been in the gutter ever since. 

Exactly. It's such a small window and I hope they can build a culture to sustain it but most teams don't. 

[Jameson_Neat]

18 minutes ago, CP3MVP said:

The 49ers with a top 5 offense and defense?

That top 5 defense is getting gashed in the run game and giving up 25 pts/per right now. 

And why no mention of their soft, lucky playoff schedule? 

 

 

[ronjon1990]

The Ravens need to find a sustainable identity on offense. 

A 7 point game shouldn't be an affair where the pass to run ratio is that skewed. 6 runs by RBs? In the playoffs? 37 pass attempts? Brutal. But Baltimore should be just fine- though the AFCN is pretty stacked. Not much to say as they're pretty much perennial contenders right now and have been. 

 

Detroit....they just need to stay the course. They largely overachieved this year- they didn't just make the playoffs, they won multiple playoff games and for most of the game yesterday looked like the better team. The loss stings, but that is a good team. Another weapon or two on either side of the ball, there's no reason they're not consistently in the mix for a while to come. Gonna need to figure out their OC. 

I know it's easy to pile on Campbell for yesterday's faux-pas, and I agree- two questionable decisions almost certainly led to a close loss as opposed to a gritty, toughed out win against the conference's juggernaut. I wouldn't let that take away from the fact that just last season they started 1-6 after winning only 3 the year prior. They're ahead of schedule, if anything. 

The key takeaway for me was that Detroit had their ups and downs this year but largely showed up in the playoffs. This was supposed to be a work in progress. They beat McVay and the resurgent Rams when a lot of people said they wouldn't. They beat Tanpa, when people said they wouldn't. They didn't beat the 49ers. But they got damn close, probably should have, and it wasn't anywhere close to the slaughter a lot of people thought it would be. Detroit proved yesterday that they can absolutely compete with the best of them, and seem poised to do so for the foreseeable future. 

[Jameson_Neat]

59 minutes ago, detfan782004 said:

Back in 91 folks expected Detroit to come right back and never happened.

I don't remember that at all. I do remember the Lions being a really talented team with giant holes at QB and HC.

They trotted out Erik Kramer, Scott Mitchell and Dave Krieg's carcass to start playoff games. Even the Magic man Majkowski got some run when the Eagles blew their doors off in 95. Same thing in 97 with Frank Reich.

Completely different team setup and league overall, IMO. 

[detfan782004]

2 minutes ago, Jameson_Neat said:

I don't remember that at all. I do remember the Lions being a really talented team with giant holes at QB and HC.

They trotted out Erik Kramer, Scott Mitchell and Dave Krieg's carcass to start playoff games. Even the Magic man Majkowski got some run when the Eagles blew their doors off in 95. Same thing in 97 with Frank Reich.

Completely different team setup and league overall, IMO. 

There was ton of expectations for them too. Then management had to start making decisions. Fontes was coach til 97 so not sure how you listed HC.

Then by 97 they let so many good players walk like K Glover and brought on Ross as HC. 

[Jameson_Neat]

4 minutes ago, detfan782004 said:

There was ton of expectations for them too. Then management had to start making decisions. Fontes was coach til 97 so not sure how you listed HC.

Then by 97 they let so many good players walk like K Glover and brought on Ross as HC. 

Fontes was not a very good  coach and looked at as a net negative.

Usually happens when you captain talented, underachieving teams. 

 

 

[Mdpackfan22]

I'm interested to see how the Lions recover from that choke job. When the Packers choked in the 2014 NFC championship game, Rodgers and MM never recovered. The vibe of the whole team was different and it wasn't until we hired Lafleur 5 years later. 

[El Ramster]

I think it’s pretty insane to criticize a team no one had in the playoffs let alone win the north. Like they played with House money and made a super deep run. How can you hate on that? They’ve won 2 playoff

games and they were 1-2 away from fully competing. The only bad thing is if they regress? Can it happen? Sure it can but I doubt it. I’m not a big DC guy I think these Ra Ra coaches start hot and tail off.. But man he just proved to be a Damm good coach. They had the Niners on the ropes. Experience def played a factor! You live and you learn. They can add some really good pieces in the draft and in FA and could be right back. Only question is do you sign Goff or do you look to upgrade? I think at this point you’re forced to sign him long term. Idk, Lions were 15 mins away from a SB. That’s Damm good in my book. 

Edited January 29 by El Ramster

[Mdpackfan22]

11 minutes ago, El Ramster said:

I think it’s pretty insane to criticize a team no one had in the playoffs let alone win the north. Like they played with House money and made a super deep run. How can you hate on that? They’ve won 2 playoff

games and they were 1-2 away from fully competing. The only bad thing is if they regress? Can it happen? Sure it can but I doubt it. I’m not a big DC guy I think these Ra Ra coaches start hot and tail off.. But man he just proved to be a Damm good coach. They had the Niners on the ropes. Experience def played a factor! You live and you learn. They can add some really good pieces in the draft and in FA and could be right back. Only question is do you sign Goff or do you look to upgrade? I think at this point you’re forced to sign him long term. Idk, Lions were 15 mins away from a SB. That’s Damm good in my book. 

My memory might be a bit hazy, but the Lions were pretty hyped coming into the season. They were an ascending team who ended the Packers playoff hopes last offseason and were flushed with draft capital. Most pundits picked them or the Vikings to win the North 

[El Ramster]

Just now, Mdpackfan22 said:

My memory might be a bit hazy, but the Lions were pretty hyped coming into the season. They were an ascending team who ended the Packers playoff hopes last offseason and were flushed with draft capital. Most pundits picked them or the Vikings to win the North 

How many times has a team been hyped or deemed spooky to fail? Doesn’t matter. No one picked them to beat the chiefs. You know? Who knows many MN might have won the north had Kirk not gotten hurt. still they won. Off season hype is just filler. To make it and win is a different animal. I’m still standing on the Justin Fields is the best QB in the North with the biggest potential. I love how he runs, I love some of the tough throws he makes. If that guy ever got the right coaching the sky is the limit. But here I am looking bat ish crazy talking about Justin Fields and his potential.