Sports: NFL

[IAmBatman]

Originally Posted by jbbnbsmith

You guys make me chuckle. Here is the fact, in this post season Flacco threw 11 touchdowns, a stat shared by only three quarterbacks ever. Call that whatever you want if it helps you feel better about the season.

And as for the pundits handing out praise for Flacco like Halloween candy, you must not have watched too many Ravens games this year.

I don't think you read what I said clearly. I said that the pundits hand out terms like "elite" like they're candy. I didn't say they'd done it for Flacco previously. He just won a Superbowl, though, so he's the flavor of the moment. How long will that moment last, though?

[Dad_Scaper]

Originally Posted by jbbnbsmith

You guys make me chuckle. Here is the fact, in this post season Flacco threw 11 touchdowns, a stat shared by only three quarterbacks ever. Call that whatever you want if it helps you feel better about the season.

And as for the pundits handing out praise for Flacco like Halloween candy, you must not have watched too many Ravens games this year.

Well, he has been very good since Caldwell took over as OC. As I predicted in this very thread. Through the playoffs he's outperformed the entire AFC Pro Bowl squad, avoided turnovers at a historic level, and been money in the bank on third down.

Bring it, Balantai, it's less fun when the Steelers suck.

[Mossman]

I just want to know how this didn't get a flag, much less an ejection:

http://larrybrownsports.com/football...jection/173317

[Yodaking]

Flacco played well, put up good numbers, did not make any major screw ups while seeming to make good decisions through out. However, I never at any point during the game thought that Flacco was making it all happen by himself or otherwise elevating the play of those around him. I do see that when I watch Payton Manning play. That is what differentiates the 'elite' QBs in my book. Their presence on the field can be seen and felt in many ways other then just throwing the ball down field.

I was actually disappointed when the announcers called Flacco the MVP of the game. To me it was Jacoby Jones who was the MVP and it was an obvious pick, the 'talking heads' and NFL executives are just obsessed with QBs and making them the face of the NFL.

On the Jones TD catch, Flacco severely under-threw the ball, such that Jones had to stop his route completely to make the catch, then he sprung up and out maneuvered two defenders to get into the end zone. That was Flacco not making an MVP like throw and Jones then making two MVP like actions to bail out his QB and get his team a TD. I also believe that throw occurred on 3rd down to from outside of FG range, so then Jones becomes the difference maker between 7 points and a punt. Then he later gets a 108 yard kick return for a TD and put another 7 on the board. Considering it turned out to be a 5 point game (ignoring the safety), his impact on the game was pretty significant. Had he only done one or the other, he would not have done enough for the MVP award, but having done both makes it clearly his.

[IAmBatman]

Yep. I totally thought Jacoby Jones was the MVP as well.

[jbbnbsmith]

Yeah, I don't like the whole MVP thing. It goes against the reality of team sports. Hand out a couple game balls to key players, but as you said, in this game there were many players who played well and were very valuable.

[Balantai]

MVP voting starts long before the game is even over. It's a joke.

[IAmBatman]

Yep. There were like 12 minute left in the 4th quarter when they started the vote. I remember seeing that and rolling my eyes.

[Dunedain]

Jones should have been MVP, easily. QB's are generally the easy pick but it annoys me how they win it so much.

[Dad_Scaper]

When the award went to Ray Lewis in January 2001 I figured it was for his play throughout the playoffs; his performance in the SB was typically great but didn't seem like an MVP choice on its own.

If I look at these Ravens through that lens it is clearly Flacco, who tied Montana for most td 's in a postseason without a pick (11) and set records for both most postseason attempts without a pick and most consecutive postseason attempts without a pick, eclipsing marks set by E. Manning and Brees, respectively.

The award makes more sense if I think of it as a postseason MVP given to someone on the winning team, though sometimes that's not what it is.

[Kinseth]

Cant stand MVP votings, Hiesman etc...

I wish in NFL they got rid of calling it MVP and called it Offensive player of the year award.

[Ranior]

Originally Posted by Dad_Scaper

When the award went to Ray Lewis in January 2001 I figured it was for his play throughout the playoffs; his performance in the SB was typically great but didn't seem like an MVP choice on its own.

If I look at these Ravens through that lens it is clearly Flacco, who tied Montana for most td 's in a postseason without a pick (11) and set records for both most postseason attempts without a pick and most consecutive postseason attempts without a pick, eclipsing marks set by E. Manning and Brees, respectively.

The award makes more sense if I think of it as a postseason MVP given to someone on the winning team, though sometimes that's not what it is.

First off, Kurt Warner has the record along with Flacco and Montana. He just didn't win the super bowl, but in 2008 he did do the same thing.


Next off, I thought Jones actually should have had it, given he put up a super bowl record for most combined yards, and was the first to ever have a return TD and another TD. With that being said, Flacco did put up plenty good enough numbers to fit the mold of a Super Bowl MVP QB. (Nearly 300 yards, 3 TD's, no picks is a great QB game)

Originally Posted by Kinseth

Cant stand MVP votings, Hiesman etc...

I wish in NFL they got rid of calling it MVP and called it Offensive player of the year award.

To be fair, the Most Valuable Player almost always should be a QB, maybe just possibly be a RB. If you're truly thinking about it in terms of who has the most control of the game and can make the greatest difference, the greatest impact, it's almost always going to be a QB. They have the ball on every offensive play and can make the greatest difference.

Any defensive player can make so much of an impact, but is unlikely to ever be capable of being the most valuable player in the league, or even most teams.

This is evidenced by the fact if you play the what-if game of what player do you take to start a franchise with? If you could pick any player in the NFL to start your next franchise with, who do you take?

If you don't take a QB, you have plenty of explaining to do. Ultimately, the QB is what matters the most, it makes sense they dominate MVP awards earned.