Official Game Thread - Playoffs Week 2 - Commanders @ Lions

I am nervous and hype as shit about this game. It is literally the biggest game in my entire adult life. I am not sure how to feel about this lol.

Obviously I am enjoying the run and having a blast, but still it's like an anxiety about it all.
I got a call from my bank this morning--called back & said "I thought y'all were closed today" and my girl said "That's next month!"
Hype abounds...I'm THAT lost in time. 😁
 
As always, my key to victory first and foremost always starts with a bounty on the oppositions lead punk. This week we'll call him Gerald Golf. I'll remain steadfastly politically insensitive and call for a helmet on the chin in the first series, to set the tone. See if we can get him off his game and throw balls away to avoid hits.

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Ribs can work too.
 
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Generally agree, but… if you figure most opponents will score (and thus kickoff) roughly 4-6 times, plus the beginning of half kickoff, that’s 5-7 drives that start at the 30ish. Then add in missed longish FGs and any turnover on downs in the 30-50 range.
A 1st down that’s at our 45+ would put 4th and short to medium past the 50. So we could be on track to go for it on 4th with a 2 yard run anywhere between our 45 and (essentially) the opponents 3 yard line.

I guess I’m mostly just distinguishing between a “majority of the field” and a “ majority of the time”, though I think the argument is there to say just over half of the field is available for still going for it on 4th, if you look at where that ‘2 yard run on 1st down’ starts from.

What’s really going through my mind typing the above out though is… we really need to improve our run game, lol.
Yeah, see above. Going for it at the 50 is really risky. It does depend somewhat on game situation, whether you are down a little, up a little, down a lot, or up a lot. Because if you don't make it, you give the ball to the other team needing 15-20 yards to get into scoring range.

I honestly don't know what the stats say when teams mostly go for it on 4th down, but my gut tells me it's mostly between the opponents 45 and 25. Once you get inside the 25, the "take the points" because it's a pretty short FG becomes more of a thing. Now, Quinn did NOT do that against Tampa. So, maybe they're apt to go for it on 4th and short all the way from the 45 to the goal line.

But if the ball is midfield or in your territory, egads, it would be REALLY bold to go for it.

Agree, run game just needs to get better. I think Robinson is either injured or completely lost confidence. The burst to the hole is gone. Also, at least twice, it looks like if he had taken half a step in a direction (once left, once right), he's in the open, and he just runs into the back of an OL and then falls down.

Probably for a different thread, but I'm hoping Peters figures out how to how to balance upgrading the roster without breaking team chemistry, which I think is going to be hard to do.
 
Going for it at midfield might normally seem stupid but the way this offense seems to be able to usually sustain long time eating drives it could help to wear out their defense. If they fail on 4th down It just cuts out the part of the field where our defense is always giving it up anyway.

As long as our defense can keep them out of the end zone it's a win because their defense would be right back on the field shortly probably giving up another long drive.

Just gotta get TDs and that's why they are going for it on 4th down.

Going for it on 4th down could be looked at like the opposite of trying to punt from the 37 to make them start a long drive from the 10 that our defense is going to give up anyway and just get worn out.

Wear their depleted defense out instead.

I expect them to go for it on 4th down even more in this game and they should.
 
I also think the playoffs are where some of the vet signings pay dividends. Wagner, Super Bowl and playoff experience -- really set the tone in the Tampa game to get things started. And if you see the mic'd up video the team put out, he supported Lattimore and lifted him up after he got the fumble. And on offense, younger cats can lean on Super Bowl and playoff experience of Allegretti and Ertz (who had some clutch catches).
 
Probably for a different thread, but I'm hoping Peters figures out how to how to balance upgrading the roster without breaking team chemistry, which I think is going to be hard to do.
This has been on my mind pretty often, and I do think “fit” will be (basically) as big a factor in FA as talent level. And I agree, it’ll be a tough line to walk.
 
Ball on the 50 4th and 5. Why punt and guarantee we "defer" possession. Facing a feeble offense, or having a stellar defense, yeah sure punt all day. That used to be the norm no matter how good an O or D was, as we all know. Any coach going for it was crazy. Well guess what, if they don't covert the defense is on a short field and won't get gassed playing soft bend dont break all the way down the field. Our offense, will get out there that much sooner. Vs sitting getting ice cold watching a 99 yard drive on our D. We have all seen teams facing bend dont break move down field easily in 9 yard chucks before the DC actually tries to shutdown the OC. Why punt knowing youre going BDB conceding to where you punted from? Punt if you are going to be aggressive on D.

Instead, its us gunning for 99 yard drives using ALL 4 DOWNS wisely. Finally. We have a good QB. Why bench him for the... punter and a passive D? Teams defer as a rule now to try to eek out 2 consecutive possessions yet happily punt 4 times in the first half without a 2nd thought.

Seriously analytics are STILL catching up on this stuff.
 
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So this little story just popped into my face at work:
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Lions playoff game puts Tom Brady’s conflict under brighter spotlight


Brady will be at Ford Field in Detroit to call the Lions’ divisional-round playoff game against the Washington Commanders. That means he will be providing commentary to a large viewing audience in a high-profile, high-stakes postseason game that involves two Lions assistant coaches — offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn — who are candidates for the Raiders’ vacant head coaching job.
...
The issue, then, becomes the impartiality of the Fox broadcast. What will Brady say about Johnson, Glenn and the Lions’ offensive and defensive approaches and play-calling? Would he say that he disagrees with something that the Lions do? If he offers praise, is it genuine? Fans regularly complain that broadcasters have a bias for or against certain teams. Often, there’s no justification for such complaints. But in most of those cases, one of the broadcasters is not talking about someone that he’s attempting to hire for his own team.
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So the consequence of Tom Brady's potential "conflict" is, in reality, that the viewers might be annoyed. I know its a thing because its Tom Brady, its just click bait, blah blah whatever. But while we're on the subject of conflicts, why does it seems like every other game over past 5 years has included a former Cowboy as the network's color announcer, Tony Romo, Troy Aikman, Daryl Johnston, Jason Whiten, Jason Garrett, etc. Really, I don't care how "objective" they are, don't the networks realize that Washington fans don't want to hear these guys?
 
Lions RG is out this game..Washington needs to run some stunts up the middle to get pressure in Goffs face so he throws some int's.
 
What foods are you all tailgating to today?

We'll be smoking a prime rib for ours. We only do prime rib once a year around the holidays after the prices drop.

Walmart is selling them now for $12/lb. Normally, they are $20/lb. Time to stock up and freeze a couple.
 

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