Macca

You've got Dak back so that will make the team more competitive (at least) But a tough division with the Eagles & Washington involved And apparently after the trading of Parsons, Dallas (Jerry Jones) could be making a move for Arch Manning in next year's draft (according to various news outlets)

Safety in numbers? haha

Recently uploaded onto YouTube Bill Peach's 'The Explorers' ... A 10 part series and well worth a look. First broadcast in 1984

And just a refresher on who follows who on this thread Bears - DeeSpencer, Dee Zephyr Packers - Macca Jags - Clintosaurus J.E.T.S - Dr. Gonzo Dallas - BDA, ElDiablo14 Eagles - Dappa Dan 49ers - DemonDave, Go the BIff, titan_uranus, layzie Atlanta - JV7 Rams - Gorgoroth

And to get into the swing of things, the College game of the week is on at 9.30am tomorrow (Kayo or Foxtel) LSU (9) @ Clemson (4) Texas (1) @ Ohio State (3) is on at 2.00am but not covered via streaming or Cable I occasionally tune in to a College game or 2 just to catch the atmosphere, as the matches are often full-on!

@JV7 @DeeSpencer @Dee Zephyr @titan_uranus @DemonDave @Go the Biff @Clintosaurus @Gorgoroth @layzie @BDA @ElDiablo14 @Dr. Gonzo Yes, it's that time of year again! The NFL kicks off next Friday 10am with Dallas @ Eagles. Tipping comp should be a goer again ... 3 road winners with 3 picks gets you 3 points (2 from 3 gains 1 point) Bonus point weeks - Week 2, 5, 9, 13, 17 & 18 And if you are the sole winner in any given week you gain a bonus point And a shout-out to anyone that wants to participate in the comp Just post up your 3 road winners and away you go. Easy as pie

A week out before the Cowboys are at Philadelphia to open the season and still no word on Parsons! And I'll prompt the punters here sometime on the weekend re the tipping comp Just a refresher ... pick 3 road teams and if all 3 salute, 3 points! A bonus point if you are the only winner in any given week Get 2 from 3 and a consolation point comes your way Bonus weeks (Double Points) are weeks 2*, 5, 9, 13, 17 & 18 *Added in week 2 to add a bit of interest Reigning Champ 'Go the Biff'

It's a reasonably long list of suitors including the Packers, Rams, Pats, Lions & Seattle Apparently Jerry Jones hasn't discussed matter with Parsons or his management since March!

Yeah, you nailed it, rjay Interesting that we get the 2 QF's on the Thursday & Friday with the losers of each QF hosting SF's on the following Friday and Saturday evening At a guess, I reckon the winner of the Thursday QF will host the PF on the Friday evening with the winner of the Friday QF hosting the PF on Saturday twilight (?)

Just on Oliver against the Pies ... The eyes test told us that he hit a number of targets, rarely bombed it long and was creative with his handpassing Then referring to the stats ... Clarrie had 30 possessions at 87% DE So 26 of his 30 possessions hit a target So the DE stat can be of some value if broken down properly. For instance, Clarrie has had a number of games this year where he rarely had any effective kicks Again, the eyes test on Friday saw Petracca turn the ball over too much for a player of his class Petracca had 28 possessions (14 & 14) but his DE percentage was 64% ... most of his handpasses found a target but his kicks went everywhere So in my view, the DE percentage can be measured but the eyes test must be factored in at the same time In a nutshell, Oliver didn't waste his possessions but Petracca was wasteful (although he did impose himself on the game in the 2nd half and won a lot of contested possessions/hard ball gets)

Reckon trading Petracca and/or Clarrie is just too difficult with too many variables that may not suit (much discussed) Leaning more towards the new coach hopefully getting both players close to their best or back to their best Both showed some signs towards the end of the season and a new broom sweeps clean Weighing it all up, they are both possibly more valuable staying as opposed to what we could get back in trade value (which may not be appealing) But the red herring is if either or both request a trade. If that were to happen, we might have to then try and then get a fair trade done If both are committed, it could be all systems go (with a new coach and a new game plan)

So any clues on when the finals games for week 1 will be played? The top 6 can't move and if it is assumed that the Suns win, they'll finish 7th or 8th. Hawks will also finish 7th or 8th (depending on percentage) Do they kick things off with a Thursday night match as what has happened previously? I'll have a go ... Thursday - Cats vs Lions QF Friday - Freo vs Hawks/GC Suns EF Saturday Arvo - GWS vs Hawks/GC Suns EF Saturday Evening - Crows vs Pies QF

It's also the hang time of the long bombs ... all of our players should should have realised by now that the opposition know where we are going to kick it and therefore defend the hot spot, en masse And the hang time of the long bomb makes it even easier for the defenders It's just dumb football and we often bomb it when not under any pressure at all. Just give it off, it's not rocket science The new coach is going to gave to drill it out of our players. No easy task as old habits die hard However, it was pleasing to see Oliver finally get back to the team-first mantra with his disposals (DE @ 87% is first rate for an inside mid) Viney was better as well but a bit short on possessions. Petracca lifted late but was still too wasteful for a player of his class The better teams have left us behind thus our W/L record and Ladder position

Yeah, there's that but I reckon the main issue are our skills by foot ... if we were constantly hitting up targets and making position for those disposing of the ball, then everything else can fall into place One thing we don't do is seeing players sprinting downfield into space in the forward line to receive those would-be passes But in order for that to work requires fast ball movement and corridor use as well as trusting our skills Instead of that we bomb it long and then turn it over ad nauseum. It's actually quite amueterish to watch It's like our players are trying their best to excel in the metres gained area We're inefficient with our ball movement and until we become efficient, we're going to struggle Using that extra handpass (forward) instead of booting it long is another area where we are deficient. But again, playing that style requires extra running to position We give it off and then jog (instead of sprinting to position)

Putting aside the annoyance of losing on Friday evening, the loss highlights our deficiencies And hopefully, the club learns from the loss The new coach would have seen those deficiencies as well Our lack of a killer instinct in being able to finish off teams stands out and has done for a few seasons now We keep going into cruise mode. The last quarter should have mirrored our 3rd quarter. Good teams go on with it and bury the opposition And the whole list needs a crash-course in how to deliver a 15-35 metre pass by foot. It can't be that hard Making position ties in with those foot passes so we're going to have to get fitter as well The game has always been a form of keepings-off and the best sides do it very well We, on the other hand, often look like novices in that area (long bombs ingrained) From 60-70 metres out from goal we need to dramatically change how we enter the forward line. Starts from further afield in terms of moving the ball quickly to that 60-70 metre area from goal Slow movement effectively allows the opposition to flood back So a big turnaround is required so we'll need to look at the whole FD, not just the head coach So fitness, foot skills, game style and a killer instinct is lacking. We've got a lot of work ahead

The Philadelphia Eagles put an end to the Kansas City Chiefs' bid for a third straight championship and enter the 2025 NFL season as co-favorites to win Super Bowl 60 (+650). The Baltimore Ravens also sit at +650. Philadelphia and Kansas City had been tied at the top of the odds at 6-1 earlier in the offseason, but the Chiefs are now the fourth choice at +750, just behind the Buffalo Bills, who are 7-1 to lift the Lombardi Trophy. The Detroit Lions hold down the fifth spot at 10-1. The San Francisco 49ers were 13-1 at one point but are now in a group at 20-1 to win Super Bowl LX at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California (Feb. 8, 2006). The Bills, Ravens, Chiefs and Eagles each have win total marks set at 11.5 Here are each team's odds for each to win their division, their conference and the Super Bowl, as well as their 2025 win total and odds to make the playoffs. Odds as of publication time. For the latest odds, visit ESPN BET NFL 2025 championship oddsTeam Super Bowl Conference Division Wins (O/U) Playoffs (Y/N) Philadelphia Eagles +650 +300 -160 11.5 (+110 O, -130 U) (-380 | +290) Baltimore Ravens +650 +325 -160 11.5 (-120 O, +100 U) (-500 | +360) Buffalo Bills +700 +325 -300 11.5 (-155 O, +135 U) (-750 | +475) Kansas City Chiefs +750 +350 -120 11.5 (+105 O, -125 U) (-450 | +340) Detroit Lions 10-1 +400 +145 10.5 (+110 O, -130 U) (-190 | +160) Washington Commanders 18-1 +850 +225 9.5 (-120 O, +100 U) (-150 | +130) Cincinnati Bengals 18-1 +850 +260 9.5 (-125 O, +105 U) (-140 | +120) San Francisco 49ers 20-1 +800 +160 10.5 (+105 O, -125 U) (-185 | +155) Los Angeles Rams 20-1 10-1 +175 9.5 (-140 O, +120 U) (-140 | +120) Green Bay Packers 20-1 10-1 +250 9.5 (-110 O, -110 U) (-125 | +105) Minnesota Vikings 25-1 11-1 +350 8.5 (-150 O, +130 U) (-105 | -115) Los Angeles Chargers 25-1 12-1 +325 9.5 (-110 O, -110 U) (-130 | +110) Houston Texans 25-1 12-1 +100 9.5 (+105 O, -125 U) (-145 | +125) Denver Broncos 30-1 14-1 +300 9.5 (+100 O, -120 U) (-130 | +110) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30-1 15-1 +100 9.5 (+100 O, -120 U) (-165 | +140) Chicago Bears 30-1 16-1 +450 8.5 (+135 O, -155 U) (+170 | -200) Pittsburgh Steelers 40-1 20-1 +550 8.5 (-120 O, +100 U) (+140 | -165) Arizona Cardinals 50-1 25-1 +425 8.5 (-125 O, +105 U) (+130 | -150) Dallas Cowboys 50-1 25-1 +700 7.5 (-145 O, +125 U) (+210 | -250) Atlanta Falcons 60-1 30-1 +225 7.5 (-135 O, +115 U) (+155 | -185) Seattle Seahawks 75-1 35-1 +550 8.5 (+130 O, -150 U) (+165 | -195) New England Patriots 75-1 35-1 +550 8.5 (+100 O, -120 U) (+145 | -170) Miami Dolphins 75-1 35-1 +800 8.5 (+155 O, -185 U) (+190 | -225) Jacksonville Jaguars 75-1 40-1 +300 7.5 (-120 O, +100 U) (+170 | -200) Indianapolis Colts 100-1 50-1 +350 7.5 (-110 O, -110 U) (+175 | -210) Las Vegas Raiders 100-1 50-1 15-1 6.5 (-145 O, +125 U) (+340 | -450) Carolina Panthers 150-1 60-1 +400 6.5 (-135 O, +115 U) (+250 | -300) New York Jets 200-1 75-1 16-1 5.5 (-140 O, +120 U) (+500 | -800) New York Giants 200-1 75-1 30-1 5.5 (+110 O, -130 U) (+800 | -1600) Cleveland Browns 200-1 100-1 30-1 4.5 (-165 O, +140 U) (+800 | -1600) Tennessee Titans 250-1 150-1 +750 5.5 (-145 O, +125 U) (+425 | -650) New Orleans Saints 300-1 100-1 11-1 5.5 (+130 O, -150 U) (+600 | -1000)

A sneak peek at the Week 1 games (the last week of the pre-season games will be completed on Monday (AEST) All 4 standalone evening games look interesting And there are a number of other good match-ups

Yep, awful scheduling. In such a competitive industry, why give your rivals a leg up? Even GWS vs Saints would have been much better (tonight) Meanwhile, Spurs are now leading 2-nil at Man City!

GWS vs Saints tomorrow might be competitive but it looks 50/50 whether Jesse Hogan will return this season. Fingers crossed he does return But the Eels/Roosters NRL match followed by the Man City/Spurs clash (both live on Ch9) that will get my attention tonight However, the 2 big AFL matches tomorrow are a must-watch! So much to play for!! Brisbane & Doggies to prevail is my tip (so go the opposite as I'm a shocking tipster!) And a shout out to any NFL fans ... we've got a NFL thread on the site that is nearing 500 pages! There's plenty of banter and we run 2 tipping comps that have been operating for 13 years ... and counting! (Regular & Post Season) We could do with a bit more representation from the AFC as most of the participants on the thread follow the NFC teams

Teamwork!! (Finally)

Same old story Mid to forward connection abysmal. Long bombs ingrained

Chain with 'Black and Blue'

You've activated the way-back machine @hardtack !! And it's coming up to 14 years ... time really does fly! Another reason I started up this thread is I dislike it when people argue about music. Back when we were young we just soaked it all in when music was introduced to us So making the thread about the rock genre and more specifically, rock music videos has worked to that degree. Listen, watch and like, or scroll on Was thinking we could do a month (September?) of Aussie rock both contemporary and way back as far as the 50's* (??) Bands such as Chain, Spectrum, Zoot, Madder Lake, Easybeats etc etc could feature Something to occupy our minds in September with the Demons not contending *I don't know of any rock bands in Oz in the 50's but I'm sure there must be a few at least

Ch7 dumped the game from FTA Although, they are broadcasting the 2 marquee games on Sunday (Dogs vs Freo & Lions vs Hawks)

Yes, I agree And with the interviewing process there's every likelihood that a smokey or 2 could win people over