NFL getting back to the 90s? - The Orange Mane

lex · 12-20-2008, 10:25 AM

OK, currently theyre replaying the 95 NFC Ch. game between Dallas and Green Bay. It reminds me of how the 90s were a golden age of QB play and how because several teams had capable passing QBs, team success came down to overall team balance. The running game and defense made the difference to a large degree. When you think back to the 90s many of the successful teams had outstanding QBs -or at least QBs who were outstanding that year- but also a good running game and/or a good/great defense.

Then as the 90s wound down, many of these QBs retired and for a while there has been a dearth of QBing--relatively speaking. The only QBs who one might have been on that level for most of the time since they retired have been Manning and Brady. But with Eli, Ben, Jay, Philip, and even Drew Brees emerging, it seems that the need for balance might, once again, become more important. I think for the first half of the 00s, teams were winnning SBs by cheating (in some cases)and operating lean. I dont think its a coincidence that NE would keep letting players walk until some of the better franchises like Pittsburgh, NY and Denver landed promising QBs...and it was at this point when NE saw the need to get Randy Moss, which was a change in their MO.

Ive seen a lot of comments that the running game is less important now and I see a lot of people solely attributing it to the rules changes that favor passing. I dont dismiss that some rules changes have had an effect but I also think a bigger part of it has been a dearth of QB play which has allowed with elite QBs to operate in a less competitive way. Adalius Thomas and Randy Moss are two examples of NE changing their MO.

Thoughts?

tsiguy96 · 12-20-2008, 10:29 AM

nfl always changes. when offenses start passing more, defenders got smaller and faster and better in coverage. then offenses get power running games that the smaller defenses cant stop, then the defenses start bigger and not as good in coverage, then offenses start passing more....

watermock · 12-20-2008, 06:53 PM

Golden age of the NFL is gone.

rastaman · 12-20-2008, 08:42 PM

Agreed!!! Salary cap and having too many teams, which dilute the talent base, and 53 man rosters which prevents accumulating depth all attributes to a water down version of the NFL. The 60's, 70's, and 80's and middle 90's was teh last hey day of the NFL.

snowspot66 · 12-20-2008, 08:55 PM

Last heyday of the dynasties sure but I think we are entering a new era of good QB play. The start of the decade saw pretty much nothing in terms of QBs. Hasslebeck was one of the top five QB's for part of this decade. That's just sad. He's solid but top 5 in any year?

Natedog24 · 12-20-2008, 09:03 PM

F the dynasties!

I love that so many teams have a chance to win a SB in the upcoming years. For me the NFL has never been more entertaining then it is right now.

tsiguy96 · 12-20-2008, 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rastaman

Agreed!!! Salary cap and having too many teams, which dilute the talent base, and 53 man rosters which prevents accumulating depth all attributes to a water down version of the NFL. The 60's, 70's, and 80's and middle 90's was teh last hey day of the NFL.

theres not THAT many teams, and the talent base isnt so low that every team is gonna suck. the talent level of many coaches however...

80smith · 12-20-2008, 09:32 PM

I don't know? I think it all starts with the run........ Think Davis. As GREAT as Elway IS and WAS (Best QB ever). Davis helped Denver win 2!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The running game does so much no matter what rules are in place or how great your qb is.

BroncoMan4ever · 12-20-2008, 10:19 PM

The league is now all about fads and copying what is working for another franchise at the moment. But when it comes down to it, at the end of the season it is going to be the team that is balanced and plays GOOD football and not gimmick football that wins the Super Bowl.

look at the Super Bowl winners of the past decade, you could go back even farther if you want, but the point is, none of them were teams that played gimmick football.

the league may be wanting the flash and awe of the passing game, but at the end of the season it is defense and running the ball that wins.

Hogan11 · 12-21-2008, 12:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Natedog24

F the dynasties!

I love that so many teams have a chance to win a SB in the upcoming years. For me the NFL has never been more entertaining then it is right now.

Agreed. I always hated dynasties in any sport, takes all the suspense out of it. That's why it still makes me feel good to see the 49ers wallow in medicority these days. After 20+ years of dominating the sport, they deserve to bottom feed for a few years running as they've had their time (kinda like the Raiders, another team whom I love to see have hapless season after hapless season).

watermock · 12-21-2008, 02:31 AM

Quote:

the league may be wanting the flash and awe of the passing game, but at the end of the season it is defense and running the ball that wins.
__________________

Exactly why we aren't going anywhere.

lex · 12-21-2008, 06:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hogan11

Agreed. I always hated dynasties in any sport, takes all the suspense out of it. That's why it still makes me feel good to see the 49ers wallow in medicority these days. After 20+ years of dominating the sport, they deserve to bottom feed for a few years running as they've had their time (kinda like the Raiders, another team whom I love to see have hapless season after hapless season).

I hear what youre saying but its too topsy-turvy now. It minimizes accomplishment. It used to mean more when you had to go through other established teams to win something. Having Dallas and San Francisco relevant was for good melodrama and its good for the sport to have a Darth Vader. Lately, the Pats have been the closest thing to that but a lot of their success has been from cheating and they also won lean, which is meh.

rastaman · 12-21-2008, 11:23 AM

I'd rather see the NFL that had the dynastyies of the 70's and 80's! Now that was football. What we see now a days is that teams are penalized by the salary cap for building winning teams that should have had a 6 to 9 run of dominance.

Oakland, Pittsburgh, Miami, Vikings, Dallas, 49er's and Washington, just to name few were dominant dynasties in their own rights and provided for some memorable games, playoff games, and SB memories and performances.

What we see today, where any team any year can show up in the SB, is laughable at best.....and we haven't even mentioned the SB Half-time shows. The NFL is rewarding Mediocrity.

lex · 12-21-2008, 11:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rastaman

I'd rather see the NFL that had the dynastyies of the 70's and 80's! Now that was football. What we see now a days is that teams are penalized by the salary cap for building winning teams that should have had a 6 to 9 run of dominance.

Oakland, Pittsburgh, Miami, Vikings, Dallas, 49er's and Washington, just to name few were dominant dynasties in their own rights and provided for some memorable games, playoff games, and SB memories and performances.

What we see today, where any team any year can show up in the SB, is laughable at best.....and we haven't even mentioned the SB Half-time shows. The NFL is rewarding Mediocrity.

I think they should have a different salary cap hit for guys you draft (or sign before playing an NFL game) vs guys you sign as FAs.

BroncoMan4ever · 12-21-2008, 12:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by watermock

Exactly why we aren't going anywhere.

exactly, until we get a RB that can carry the load, and a defense that is ranked at least in the middle of the league, we are always going to be outside looking in on he elite teams.

lex · 12-21-2008, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rastaman

I'd rather see the NFL that had the dynastyies of the 70's and 80's! Now that was football. What we see now a days is that teams are penalized by the salary cap for building winning teams that should have had a 6 to 9 run of dominance.

Oakland, Pittsburgh, Miami, Vikings, Dallas, 49er's and Washington, just to name few were dominant dynasties in their own rights and provided for some memorable games, playoff games, and SB memories and performances.

What we see today, where any team any year can show up in the SB, is laughable at best.....and we haven't even mentioned the SB Half-time shows. The NFL is rewarding Mediocrity.

Well, I agree with your sentiment. Today's NFL has sort of de-evolved into the euphemistic act of calling something "medicrity" when its really "parity". I think the best football the NFL has produced was seen in the 90s. I say that because of the QB play and because of the balance that you saw in styles of play. Even though they implemented the salary cap at that time, teams seemed to use it more aggressively to get better. It wasnt until the salary cap gave teams the excuse to operate lean. The first team to do this was Baltimore. After they won the SB, they dumped a lot of talent. And then NE followed suit and went beyond. But this was able to happen because of a dearth of QBs. If there would have been more elite QBs in the early 00s, NE wouldnt have been able to get away with how they did things. But in the 90s it was more of an arms race.

12-20-2008, 10:25 AM	#1
lex Bowlen Sold Us Out! The Broncos have been DisemBowlened Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Chi-Town Posts: 10,253 Adopt-a-Bronco: None	NFL getting back to the 90s? OK, currently theyre replaying the 95 NFC Ch. game between Dallas and Green Bay. It reminds me of how the 90s were a golden age of QB play and how because several teams had capable passing QBs, team success came down to overall team balance. The running game and defense made the difference to a large degree. When you think back to the 90s many of the successful teams had outstanding QBs -or at least QBs who were outstanding that year- but also a good running game and/or a good/great defense. Then as the 90s wound down, many of these QBs retired and for a while there has been a dearth of QBing--relatively speaking. The only QBs who one might have been on that level for most of the time since they retired have been Manning and Brady. But with Eli, Ben, Jay, Philip, and even Drew Brees emerging, it seems that the need for balance might, once again, become more important. I think for the first half of the 00s, teams were winnning SBs by cheating (in some cases)and operating lean. I dont think its a coincidence that NE would keep letting players walk until some of the better franchises like Pittsburgh, NY and Denver landed promising QBs...and it was at this point when NE saw the need to get Randy Moss, which was a change in their MO. Ive seen a lot of comments that the running game is less important now and I see a lot of people solely attributing it to the rules changes that favor passing. I dont dismiss that some rules changes have had an effect but I also think a bigger part of it has been a dearth of QB play which has allowed with elite QBs to operate in a less competitive way. Adalius Thomas and Randy Moss are two examples of NE changing their MO. Thoughts?

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

12-20-2008, 10:29 AM	#2
tsiguy96 Ring of Famer New to the Forum Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 12,559 Adopt-a-Bronco: None	nfl always changes. when offenses start passing more, defenders got smaller and faster and better in coverage. then offenses get power running games that the smaller defenses cant stop, then the defenses start bigger and not as good in coverage, then offenses start passing more....

12-20-2008, 06:53 PM	#3
watermock "Hoodie Jr" "Hug me!" Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Hot Springs, Ouachitah Posts: 77,090	Golden age of the NFL is gone.

12-20-2008, 08:42 PM	#4
rastaman Ring of Famer New to the Forum Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 7,180 Adopt-a-Bronco: None	Agreed!!! Salary cap and having too many teams, which dilute the talent base, and 53 man rosters which prevents accumulating depth all attributes to a water down version of the NFL. The 60's, 70's, and 80's and middle 90's was teh last hey day of the NFL.

12-20-2008, 08:55 PM	#5
snowspot66 Ring of Famer Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 4,642	Last heyday of the dynasties sure but I think we are entering a new era of good QB play. The start of the decade saw pretty much nothing in terms of QBs. Hasslebeck was one of the top five QB's for part of this decade. That's just sad. He's solid but top 5 in any year?

12-20-2008, 09:03 PM	#6
Natedog24 Ring of Famer Win The Day Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Somewhere Posts: 2,186 Adopt-a-Bronco: JeremiahJohnson	F the dynasties! I love that so many teams have a chance to win a SB in the upcoming years. For me the NFL has never been more entertaining then it is right now.

12-20-2008, 09:32 PM	#8
80smith Perennial Pro-bowler Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 815	I don't know? I think it all starts with the run........ Think Davis. As GREAT as Elway IS and WAS (Best QB ever). Davis helped Denver win 2!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The running game does so much no matter what rules are in place or how great your qb is.

12-20-2008, 10:19 PM	#9
BroncoMan4ever Ring of Famer Here to chew bubblegum and kick ass Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Denver Posts: 11,563 Adopt-a-Bronco: VIRGIL GREEN!!!	The league is now all about fads and copying what is working for another franchise at the moment. But when it comes down to it, at the end of the season it is going to be the team that is balanced and plays GOOD football and not gimmick football that wins the Super Bowl. look at the Super Bowl winners of the past decade, you could go back even farther if you want, but the point is, none of them were teams that played gimmick football. the league may be wanting the flash and awe of the passing game, but at the end of the season it is defense and running the ball that wins.

12-21-2008, 11:23 AM	#13
rastaman Ring of Famer New to the Forum Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 7,180 Adopt-a-Bronco: None	I'd rather see the NFL that had the dynastyies of the 70's and 80's! Now that was football. What we see now a days is that teams are penalized by the salary cap for building winning teams that should have had a 6 to 9 run of dominance. Oakland, Pittsburgh, Miami, Vikings, Dallas, 49er's and Washington, just to name few were dominant dynasties in their own rights and provided for some memorable games, playoff games, and SB memories and performances. What we see today, where any team any year can show up in the SB, is laughable at best.....and we haven't even mentioned the SB Half-time shows. The NFL is rewarding Mediocrity.