2016 Draft a Franchise: Conference 2 Divisional Playoffs

[Mt. Crushmore]

It has been 2 days of voting on the best teams in each division, so let's move onto the playoffs! This thread is for "conference 2" which is divisions 5-8. 

The matchups were created by taking the highest % 1st place vote division winner vs the 4th highest and the 2nd vs the 3rd. With that, the matchups are:

*Please note that there was a tie for the division 5 lead. As a tiebreaker, I went with the team that more votes for 3 years time, which was @rmw10 over @BOLDnPurPnBlacK

1. @-Truth- Roster (Division 7) vs 4. @rmw10 Roster (Division 5)

2. @Deflated Football Roster (Division 6) vs 3. @BmoreBird22 Roster (Division 8)

You can also find the rosters here, on the Google Spreadsheet.

Please only take into effect selections made in the 26 rounds, do not factor in the continuation. Since this is the playoffs, any player suspended for the beginning of the season will be playing (Tom Brady, Le'Veon Bell, etc.), so don't factor them out of the conversation. 

Use this thread to discuss your thoughts on the teams and the vote.

[Mt. Crushmore]

@-Truth- vs @rmw10:

2 strong passing attacks face off, but I think Truth is pretty much stronger throughout, with his missed picks showing up for rmw. QBs and coaching matter a lot and Truth has the edge with Big Ben and I'm not so sure about that rmw guy at HC . Winner: @-Truth-

@Deflated Football vs @BmoreBird22

Deflated doesn't have much pass rush to begin with and with Bmore's OL, Luck is going to have lots of time to pass and beat 2 very young CBs. Best way to attack Bmore's defense is at LB, but TE Celek and RB Peterson won't do much in the passing game. Winner: @BmoreBird22

[rmw10]

Hell even I voted for Truth to beat me here.  I figured this would be the part where I would get knocked down with those missed picks.  I'm just happy to have built a playoff caliber team, and I'll take that as a success.

[Deflated Football]

So I've been quiet long enough, but I don't see any way my offense can't score 50 (yes, 50) a game unless you have Watt and Von Miller or some elite rusher(s) on the edges or in the interior. The front 7 will have to account for AD which leaves the secondary trying to figure out between OBJ (no way Jimmy Smith locks him down) Lockett and Austin. 

[BOLDnPurPnBlacK]

4 hours ago, Mt. Crushmore said:

It has been 2 days of voting on the best teams in each division, so let's move onto the playoffs! This thread is for "conference 2" which is divisions 5-8. 

The matchups were created by taking the highest % 1st place vote division winner vs the 4th highest and the 2nd vs the 3rd. With that, the matchups are:

*Please note that there was a tie for the division 5 lead. As a tiebreaker, I went with the team that more votes for 3 years time, which was @rmw10 over @BOLDnPurPnBlacK

1. @-Truth- Roster (Division 7) vs 4. @rmw10 Roster (Division 5)

2. @Deflated Football Roster (Division 6) vs 3. @BmoreBird22 Roster (Division 8)

You can also find the rosters here, on the Google Spreadsheet.

Please only take into effect selections made in the 26 rounds, do not factor in the continuation. Since this is the playoffs, any player suspended for the beginning of the season will be playing (Tom Brady, Le'Veon Bell, etc.), so don't factor them out of the conversation. 

Use this thread to discuss your thoughts on the teams and the vote.

Booooo... filing a petition to remove you as Commissioner for that farce of a tie breaker.

[rmw10]

5 minutes ago, BOLDnPurPnBlacK said:

Booooo... filing a petition to remove you as Commissioner for that farce of a tie breaker.

I was willing to settle it via sword battle, but Crush decided otherwise

[-Truth-]

4 hours ago, rmw10 said:

Hell even I voted for Truth to beat me here.  I figured this would be the part where I would get knocked down with those missed picks.  I'm just happy to have built a playoff caliber team, and I'll take that as a success.

I definitely appreciate the level of objectivity. I thought you did a great job for coming in so late. Took a lot of the players I coveted like Derrick Shelby.

[BmoreBird22]

9 hours ago, Deflated Football said:

So I've been quiet long enough, but I don't see any way my offense can't score 50 (yes, 50) a game unless you have Watt and Von Miller or some elite rusher(s) on the edges or in the interior. The front 7 will have to account for AD which leaves the secondary trying to figure out between OBJ (no way Jimmy Smith locks him down) Lockett and Austin. 

A healthy Jimmy Smith has locked down the best receivers in the NFL. Now, that all depends on health of course, but he has flashed that potential, finishing with the sixth highest coverage grade at PFF to finish the year.

I'm taking a huge risk on Flowers returning to form, but he was top 15 in 2014 and he was injured last year, so there's reason to believe he can return to form.

With Rollins, he played really well in limited snaps last year, so we'll see how that translates to a full time big nickel role. 

Add in Sean McDermott, a former secondary coach, and a DC who simply improves defenses and I believe the defense is capable of limiting the damage, especially with erratic play from Stafford. 

Also, I may not have Watt or Miller, but don't sleep on Mike Daniels, one of the best pass rushing DT's in the league, arguably top 3 depending on if you count Bennett as a DE or a DT. Then, on the outside, Avril has always been a consistent threat as a pass rusher and Clark looked really good last year.

Defensively, zero reason my offense would have issues responding.

You don't have strong run defenders and Lamar Miller might be the most underrated back in the league. He'll finally be given a real workhorse load and have a real offensive line to work with.

The pass rush hinges on Rey and Orchard stepping up (I liked both predraft), but having Yannick at DE, especially in the 3-4, is going to kill that defense. Hated him as a prospect and now he's being thrown into a misfit role. 

At corner, you've got two rookies and one second year player out for the first four games, meaning if we played before Collins gets back, you'd have two rookies going against a fairly offensively driven team. Good luck stopping that. 

[Deflated Football]

2 hours ago, BmoreBird22 said:

A healthy Jimmy Smith has locked down the best receivers in the NFL. Now, that all depends on health of course, but he has flashed that potential, finishing with the sixth highest coverage grade at PFF to finish the year.

I'm taking a huge risk on Flowers returning to form, but he was top 15 in 2014 and he was injured last year, so there's reason to believe he can return to form.

With Rollins, he played really well in limited snaps last year, so we'll see how that translates to a full time big nickel role. 

Add in Sean McDermott, a former secondary coach, and a DC who simply improves defenses and I believe the defense is capable of limiting the damage, especially with erratic play from Stafford. 

Also, I may not have Watt or Miller, but don't sleep on Mike Daniels, one of the best pass rushing DT's in the league, arguably top 3 depending on if you count Bennett as a DE or a DT. Then, on the outside, Avril has always been a consistent threat as a pass rusher and Clark looked really good last year.

Defensively, zero reason my offense would have issues responding.

You don't have strong run defenders and Lamar Miller might be the most underrated back in the league. He'll finally be given a real workhorse load and have a real offensive line to work with.

The pass rush hinges on Rey and Orchard stepping up (I liked both predraft), but having Yannick at DE, especially in the 3-4, is going to kill that defense. Hated him as a prospect and now he's being thrown into a misfit role. 

At corner, you've got two rookies and one second year player out for the first four games, meaning if we played before Collins gets back, you'd have two rookies going against a fairly offensively driven team. Good luck stopping that. 

1.) Odell had a field day against the LOB including Sherman and held his own against Revis and Norman. No way Jimmy Smith will lock him down. Take off the shades. 

2.) I have Alex Thomas. 

Your offense is literally nothing compared to mine. Tavon can come out of the backfield on a sweep, Lockett can beat anyone in your secondary deep, and, well, Odell will get his. This is isn't even accounting for All Day. 

[BmoreBird22]

17 minutes ago, Deflated Football said:

1.) Odell had a field day against the LOB including Sherman and held his own against Revis and Norman. No way Jimmy Smith will lock him down. Take off the shades. 

2.) I have Alex Thomas. 

Your offense is literally nothing compared to mine. Tavon can come out of the backfield on a sweep, Lockett can beat anyone in your secondary deep, and, well, Odell will get his. This is isn't even accounting for All Day. 

Richard Sherman plays in a Cover 3 scheme where he basically has to force his man to the sideline to be effective. 

Jimmy, on the other hand, in 2014 effectively shutdown Julio, Antonio, Green, and in 2013, he shutdown Brown, Jeffrey, Marhsall, Green, Gordon, amongst other top tier talent. 

I'm not saying OBJ won't have a good game, because he will, but dude, you're way too high on your own team.

My offense is definitely better for the sole fact that I have a better quarterback and an offensive line that can actually protect. Again, remember, your team will feature two rookies starting at corner. That's a death sentence. 

Stafford is way too erratic. He has two good seasons in his entire career while working with the best wide receiver of this era.

Lockett had scored in four games, all against bad secondaries. In fact, half his touchdowns were against the 49ers. By the way, he ran a 4.4. That's not unprecedented or insane speed. 

And if you're really using Tavon as a legitimate example of a weapon, then that's really saying something about the state of your offense.

[BmoreBird22]

29 minutes ago, Deflated Football said:

1.) Odell had a field day against the LOB including Sherman and held his own against Revis and Norman. No way Jimmy Smith will lock him down. Take off the shades. 

2.) I have Alex Thomas. 

Your offense is literally nothing compared to mine. Tavon can come out of the backfield on a sweep, Lockett can beat anyone in your secondary deep, and, well, Odell will get his. This is isn't even accounting for All Day. 

By the way, no idea where Alex Thomas came from.

[-Truth-]

17 minutes ago, BmoreBird22 said:

By the way, no idea where Alex Thomas came from.

Alex Boone I assume.

[BmoreBird22]

Just now, -Truth- said:

Alex Boone I assume.

How good was he last year?

[-Truth-]

Just now, BmoreBird22 said:

How good was he last year?

From what I recall, he did well in pass protection, struggled a bit in the running game.

[BmoreBird22]

Just now, -Truth- said:

From what I recall, he did well in pass protection, struggled a bit in the running game.

How does he match with Mike Daniels?

[-Truth-]

11 minutes ago, BmoreBird22 said:

How does he match with Mike Daniels?

I'm not looking to throw my hat into the ring in this debate, but I'd say somewhat well. However, I haven't watched him in a while. I will say that anyone going up against Daniels will have to bring their A game as he's a top tier defensive lineman and just leave it at that.

Edited July 27, 2016 by -Truth-

[BmoreBird22]

15 minutes ago, -Truth- said:

I'm not looking to throw my hat into the ring in this debate, but I'd say somewhat well. However, I haven't watched him in a while. I will say that anyone going up against Daniels will have to bring their A game as he's a top tier defensive lineman and just leave it at that.

That's fair. But there's also the fact that I'd likely isolate Daniels onto the RG, Louis Vasquez who remains unsigned for unbeknownst reasons.

[Deflated Football]

1 hour ago, BmoreBird22 said:

Richard Sherman plays in a Cover 3 scheme where he basically has to force his man to the sideline to be effective. 

Jimmy, on the other hand, in 2014 effectively shutdown Julio, Antonio, Green, and in 2013, he shutdown Brown, Jeffrey, Marhsall, Green, Gordon, amongst other top tier talent. 

I'm not saying OBJ won't have a good game, because he will, but dude, you're way too high on your own team.

My offense is definitely better for the sole fact that I have a better quarterback and an offensive line that can actually protect. Again, remember, your team will feature two rookies starting at corner. That's a death sentence. 

Stafford is way too erratic. He has two good seasons in his entire career while working with the best wide receiver of this era.

Lockett had scored in four games, all against bad secondaries. In fact, half his touchdowns were against the 49ers. By the way, he ran a 4.4. That's not unprecedented or insane speed. 

And if you're really using Tavon as a legitimate example of a weapon, then that's really saying something about the state of your offense.

This is extremely laughable. Let's look at your offense:

 

QB: Andrew Luck (you say Stafford is erratic?) 

RB: Lamar Miller

WR: Golden Tate

WR: Michael Thomas

WR: Rueben Randle

TE: Kevin Rudolph, Austin Hooper

LT: Kelvin Beachum, Ty Sambrailo

LG: Jeremy Zuttah

C: Travis Frederick

RG: Ben Jones

RT: Ryan Schraeder

 

A resounding WOW: Golden Tate vs. OBJ = LOL

Michael Thomas (a rookie) vs. Tyler Lockett who's poised for a huge season and has been ridiculously hyped this offseason = LOL

Rueben Randle is third on the Eagles' WR depth chart (maybe less) vs. Tavon Austin who's dangerous with the ball in his hands and can line up at two positions = LOL

Lamar Miller vs. All Day = doesn't even deserve its own debate. 

Beachum is coming off of a torn ACL. Jeremy Zuttah is solid (some Ravens fans would go as far as to say he's awful), not good, and Ben Jones is soft in the interior. 

My defense is nothing to fear, at least the first year, but my offense is extremely dangerous. Don't hate. Stafford has never had a RB like Peterson to help him either. You'll win this round due to the votes, but in reality, your defense would get beat like a drum. But then again, you did take Jimmy Smith in what, the second round in this draft? That's another LOL. I don't think he'll ever return to shutdown form. Injuries will bring him down. 

[BmoreBird22]

16 minutes ago, Deflated Football said:

This is extremely laughable. Let's look at your offense:

 

QB: Andrew Luck (you say Stafford is erratic?) 

RB: Lamar Miller

WR: Golden Tate

WR: Michael Thomas

WR: Rueben Randle

TE: Kevin Rudolph, Austin Hooper

LT: Kelvin Beachum, Ty Sambrailo

LG: Jeremy Zuttah

C: Travis Frederick

RG: Ben Jones

RT: Ryan Schraeder

 

A resounding WOW: Golden Tate vs. OBJ = LOL

Michael Thomas (a rookie) vs. Tyler Lockett who's poised for a huge season and has been ridiculously hyped this offseason = LOL

Rueben Randle is third on the Eagles' WR depth chart (maybe less) vs. Tavon Austin who's dangerous with the ball in his hands and can line up at two positions = LOL

Lamar Miller vs. All Day = doesn't even deserve its own debate. 

Beachum is coming off of a torn ACL. Jeremy Zuttah is solid (some Ravens fans would go as far as to say he's awful), not good, and Ben Jones is soft in the interior. 

My defense is nothing to fear, at least the first year, but my offense is extremely dangerous. Don't hate. Stafford has never had a RB like Peterson to help him either. You'll win this round due to the votes, but in reality, your defense would get beat like a drum. But then again, you did take Jimmy Smith in what, the second round in this draft? That's another LOL. I don't think he'll ever return to shutdown form. Injuries will bring him down. 

Andrew Luck, prior to 2015, had 28 different starting offensive lineman from LG to RT. In four years, he averaged seven starters at four positions on the line. He also came into the league with only one veteran receiver or running back who played the entire season. Yet, Luck improved every single year until last year when he was injured from poor offensive line play. If Luck had anything close to a Calvin Johnson-Golden Tate duo, he'd be lighting the league on fire. Fact of the matter is he hasn't. But Luck is definitely better than Stafford. And to make it even better, I'm giving Luck something he hasn't had in Indy- an offensive line and a running game. You don't think that makes a difference whatsoever?

Lockett is going to be fighting off targets from Jimmy Graham, Jermaine Kearse, and Doug Baldwin in a run first offense. The upside is there, but let's be real- he's not going to be a real huge threat there in Seattle to put up numbers. I'll admit he's dynamic, but let's see him continue it in a full season against more than poor secondaries. Plus, you're talking about reports from Seahawks writers who are, you know, paid to write great things about the players.

I mean, you're really arguing for Tavon Austin? He's a gadget player and nothing more. He's yet to go over 500 yards receiving, and while he can line up like a running back, that's not what he's being paid to do. Seriously, just because he CAN line up at two positions doesn't make him GOOD at two positions. Randle has at least proven he can put up stats and effectively work as a receiver. If you're really that hyped on Austin, then I can see the issue.

By the way, it really doesn't matter if my receivers aren't as good (you're welcome to your opinion) as yours because my receivers are more likely to torch your corners than yours are to get by mine. 

I'm willing to take the risk on Beachum, and if nothing else, Ty Sambrailo can back him up for a bit. He's got the vote of confidence from the Ravens and Kubiak, an offensive line guru, so I'm willing to take that. However, in the case of Beachum, it was the first ACL tear for him ever, and given the advances of modern medicine, ACL tears once aren't some debilitating force anymore. I mean, hell, AP came back from one and fell 9 yards short of breaking the single season rushing record. Tyrann Mathieu comes back and plays like the best DB in the league. I'm sure I could find more, but the fact of the matter is Beachum was arguably a top 5 LT prior to injury and should return to a high level of play due to the advances in medicine.

I don't care if fans hate Zuttah because Ravens fans always find something to complain about. Zuttah was rated 8th overall last year by PFF and was one of the highest rated pass blockers in the NFL. I'd hardly be worried there. And Ben Jones was my last offensive line pick, but slap him in-between the best C and RT in the league and I think it'll be fine.

History actually tells us Jimmy Smith will be fine. Lisfranc injuries take on average 11 months to heal, give or take two months as the range. Jimmy was back into practicing and going full contact in seven months. He was the 6th best cover corner in the NFL from the bye week on, or for 8 solid weeks a year removed from the Lisfranc injury. Studies also found that in the second season after injury, players showed no signs of drop off from play prior to injury. Basically, Jimmy is poised to return to a level of play that we saw in 2014 where he was PFF's fifth best corner in the NFL.

I'm not hating, but you're way too hyped up on your team. I understand you drafted the team, so you're really hyped up on your own team, but two-thirds of the vote disagree with you. My pass rush would crush your offensive line (especially that right side) and it really doesn't matter who your receivers are if your quarterback is on his butt all day.

Edited July 27, 2016 by BmoreBird22

[ludy51]

AP's fumbling issues always show up around this time of year

[regz1997]

1 hour ago, ludy51 said:

AP's fumbling issues always show up around this time of year

Partially because defenses step up their play as a unit a lot in January. 

[BmoreBird22]

12 minutes ago, regz1997 said:

Partially because defenses step up their play as a unit a lot in January. 

I don't know if this is entirely true, honestly. 

Ray Rice played in a division that always featured three top 10 defenses (yes, even the Browns) and routinely played very strong defenses, but he'd fumble once every like 200 touches. Come playoff time, it was once every 20, 25. 

I mean, I guess we can chalk it up to defenses stepping up, but I think honestly some players just try to do too much in the playoffs or can't handle the stage 

[BmoreBird22]

1 hour ago, ludy51 said:

AP's fumbling issues always show up around this time of year

After a fairly good stretch of fixing his fumbling issues, he had seven last year.

[BOLDnPurPnBlacK]

23 hours ago, rmw10 said:

I was willing to settle it via sword battle, but Crush decided otherwise

Fight to the death next time. Two men enter, one man leave - Thunderdome style.

[BOLDnPurPnBlacK]

9 hours ago, Deflated Football said:

This is extremely laughable. Let's look at your offense:

 

QB: Andrew Luck (you say Stafford is erratic?) 

RB: Lamar Miller

WR: Golden Tate

WR: Michael Thomas

WR: Rueben Randle

TE: Kevin Rudolph, Austin Hooper

LT: Kelvin Beachum, Ty Sambrailo

LG: Jeremy Zuttah

C: Travis Frederick

RG: Ben Jones

RT: Ryan Schraeder

 

A resounding WOW: Golden Tate vs. OBJ = LOL

Michael Thomas (a rookie) vs. Tyler Lockett who's poised for a huge season and has been ridiculously hyped this offseason = LOL

Rueben Randle is third on the Eagles' WR depth chart (maybe less) vs. Tavon Austin who's dangerous with the ball in his hands and can line up at two positions = LOL

Lamar Miller vs. All Day = doesn't even deserve its own debate. 

Beachum is coming off of a torn ACL. Jeremy Zuttah is solid (some Ravens fans would go as far as to say he's awful), not good, and Ben Jones is soft in the interior. 

My defense is nothing to fear, at least the first year, but my offense is extremely dangerous. Don't hate. Stafford has never had a RB like Peterson to help him either. You'll win this round due to the votes, but in reality, your defense would get beat like a drum. But then again, you did take Jimmy Smith in what, the second round in this draft? That's another LOL. I don't think he'll ever return to shutdown form. Injuries will bring him down. 

Not necessarily throwing my hat in the ring here.... but Andrew Luck behind this offensive line would likely be up there with Rodgers. He's only erratic bc he has NO O-line or run game. He's clearly one of the 3-4 most talented QBs in the league if not THE most talented.

And you cant really just go down the line and say my WR1 > your WR1, my WR2 > your WR2, and my RB > your RB so I win. Offenses dont play against each other. How they much up against the defense is more important. Odell covered by Revis for example is probably a worse advantage than Tate being covered by my sister.

The other thing to think about is chemistry. With a somewhat weak o-line, and a high volume passing QB like Stafford with a guy who needs targets like Odell is Peterson going to be happy when he's used to getting 20+ touches per game?

 

Plus, I hate to boil it down to this.... but this is the NFL and more times than not games come down to the QB. And hes got a big advantage there.

 

I havent decided which way id go in this match up yet.... but acting like its a blowout or something is a little bit of a rush to judgement. Theres a lot more to think about than, omg Odell is sick. The Vikings and Giants dont win every game and Eli is a better QB than Stafford.

[Deflated Football]

You guys are all mean 

[Deflated Football]

11 hours ago, BmoreBird22 said:

Andrew Luck, prior to 2015, had 28 different starting offensive lineman from LG to RT. In four years, he averaged seven starters at four positions on the line. He also came into the league with only one veteran receiver or running back who played the entire season. Yet, Luck improved every single year until last year when he was injured from poor offensive line play. If Luck had anything close to a Calvin Johnson-Golden Tate duo, he'd be lighting the league on fire. Fact of the matter is he hasn't. But Luck is definitely better than Stafford. And to make it even better, I'm giving Luck something he hasn't had in Indy- an offensive line and a running game. You don't think that makes a difference whatsoever?

Lockett is going to be fighting off targets from Jimmy Graham, Jermaine Kearse, and Doug Baldwin in a run first offense. The upside is there, but let's be real- he's not going to be a real huge threat there in Seattle to put up numbers. I'll admit he's dynamic, but let's see him continue it in a full season against more than poor secondaries. Plus, you're talking about reports from Seahawks writers who are, you know, paid to write great things about the players.

I mean, you're really arguing for Tavon Austin? He's a gadget player and nothing more. He's yet to go over 500 yards receiving, and while he can line up like a running back, that's not what he's being paid to do. Seriously, just because he CAN line up at two positions doesn't make him GOOD at two positions. Randle has at least proven he can put up stats and effectively work as a receiver. If you're really that hyped on Austin, then I can see the issue.

By the way, it really doesn't matter if my receivers aren't as good (you're welcome to your opinion) as yours because my receivers are more likely to torch your corners than yours are to get by mine. 

I'm willing to take the risk on Beachum, and if nothing else, Ty Sambrailo can back him up for a bit. He's got the vote of confidence from the Ravens and Kubiak, an offensive line guru, so I'm willing to take that. However, in the case of Beachum, it was the first ACL tear for him ever, and given the advances of modern medicine, ACL tears once aren't some debilitating force anymore. I mean, hell, AP came back from one and fell 9 yards short of breaking the single season rushing record. Tyrann Mathieu comes back and plays like the best DB in the league. I'm sure I could find more, but the fact of the matter is Beachum was arguably a top 5 LT prior to injury and should return to a high level of play due to the advances in medicine.

I don't care if fans hate Zuttah because Ravens fans always find something to complain about. Zuttah was rated 8th overall last year by PFF and was one of the highest rated pass blockers in the NFL. I'd hardly be worried there. And Ben Jones was my last offensive line pick, but slap him in-between the best C and RT in the league and I think it'll be fine.

History actually tells us Jimmy Smith will be fine. Lisfranc injuries take on average 11 months to heal, give or take two months as the range. Jimmy was back into practicing and going full contact in seven months. He was the 6th best cover corner in the NFL from the bye week on, or for 8 solid weeks a year removed from the Lisfranc injury. Studies also found that in the second season after injury, players showed no signs of drop off from play prior to injury. Basically, Jimmy is poised to return to a level of play that we saw in 2014 where he was PFF's fifth best corner in the NFL.

I'm not hating, but you're way too hyped up on your team. I understand you drafted the team, so you're really hyped up on your own team, but two-thirds of the vote disagree with you. My pass rush would crush your offensive line (especially that right side) and it really doesn't matter who your receivers are if your quarterback is on his butt all day.

How about we handle this like gentlemen and throw down fisticuffs? 

[BmoreBird22]

15 minutes ago, Deflated Football said:

How about we handle this like gentlemen and throw down fisticuffs? 

Only if we duel with sabers

[Deflated Football]

Who has PayPal so I can get five more votes...

[rmw10]

1 minute ago, Deflated Football said:

Who has PayPal so I can get five more votes...

I accept any and all monetary donations.