Shutdown Corner - NFL

Mon Dec 08, 2008 11:30 am EST

We've got to get rid of this Super Bowl system

I'm so sick and tired of this greedy, money-hungry, illogical system in the NFL where teams "qualify" for the playoffs, and then actually "play" each other on a "field" in order to "determine" who is the "best."

The whole "Playoffs" and "Super Bowl" system is just some some stupid, completely fair way for teams to prove their worth by playing their opponents, and advancing if they were good enough to beat them.

Oh, and you can bet that the powers-that-be don't mind that it's also hugely lucrative and provides an opportunity to make awesome Don Cheadle commercials.

I hate it. It's just so stupid and fair. I want a system that relies on individual opinions and computer rankings that are extensions of varying human opinions on what numbers are the most valid for measuring the quality of a team. I want Bowls. I want them named after various foodstuffs. And if there's not a Poulan Weedeater involved, then to hell with everything.

I want the Giants to be given one of the spots in the StarCaps® Super Bowl, even though the Eagles will complain, since they just beat them. But the upside to that? Andy Reid will be on TV complaining for three weeks, and Rush Limbaugh will tell Donovan McNabb that he doesn't automatically get a spot in the Super Bowl because he's black. And then Lou Holtz can offer them psychiatric advice.

Who would play the Giants in the StarCaps® Super Bowl for the Kotex® Lombardi Trophy? The Titans, maybe? No, because head-to-read results matter, and the Titans had a late season loss to the Jets. But the Jets lost yesterday to the 49ers, so they're out, too. Controversy! We better ask a bunch of people who may or may not watch these football games to decide.

Pittsburgh, maybe? No, not enough style points in the win over Dallas. I say Baltimore. They're #2 in the computer rankings, anyway.

And yeah, there'll be some complaining from the Titans, Jets, and Steelers, but remember, that's what makes this awesome. It gets people to argue. And if people are arguing, that means they care, and that's good for business.

And besides, there are consolation prizes. No one's going home empty-handed here. The Wrangler® Prunes Bowl has selected Brett Favre and the Jets to play in their bowl game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Cowboys and the Titans will have a showdown in the prestigious Vaseline® Petroleum Jelly Bowl, and that'll be a nice bit of nostalgia, because the Titans used to own that game back when they were called the Oilers.

The Nutrisystem® Low-Carb Meatloaf Bowl hosted by the Golic Brothers (hello, radio synergy) will be extending bids to both the Pittsburgh Steelers and Carolina Panthers. Rounding out the major bowls, the Broncos and Buccaneers will be playing in the Extenze Cucumber Bowl.

That's it for the major bowls and the big money I'm sorry, Arizona, you don't get a chance to play in a big game, because you're not in the right division, and you're not expected to travel well. You'll be playing on New Year's Eve in the Saved by Zero Kumquat Bowl. But I hear that everyone in that game gets a basket with an iPod and a subscription to ESPN Magazine.

This just seems like a way better system to me. This way, we don't have to worry about a month full of great, high-stakes football games on the weekends. We can watch the majority of these on Tuesday or Thursday nights on TBS or Versus. And if a team wins, they don't have to make themselves tired by playing more football games, they can just sit back and enjoy the Garrity Motors Bloody Raw Steak Bowl Trophy.

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195 Comments

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  1. Party Pooper
    1. Posted by Party Pooper Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:52 pm EDT

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    A good parody on the mess that is college football. That is why they need a playoff. Head to head! Lets decide it on the field not with votes and computers!
  2. Buck Joose
    2. Posted by Buck Joose Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:47 pm EDT

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    Go Steelers Go!!!
  3. heydj_41
    3. Posted by heydj_41 Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:18 pm EDT

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    finally, something you say that actually makes sense.
  4. chris g
    4. Posted by chris g Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:15 pm EDT

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    i love it.... couldn't have said any of it better
  5. domenick2x
    5. Posted by domenick2x Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:46 pm EDT

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    Nobody gets to play on blue turf? That's a travesty!
    You forgot to mention that in the Saved by Zero Kumquat Bowl, the Cardinals will play the Cowboys, who got the invite due to their 'national appeal' rather than their actual W-L record....
  6. STEELERS  ARE ALL TIME BEST
    6. Posted by STEELERS ARE ALL TIME BEST Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:38 pm EDT

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    Its so bad , i dont even watch the b.s games any more.
  7. Rob M
    7. Posted by Rob M Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:57 pm EDT

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    Good post. And the morons who claim that having a playoff makes the regular season less important need to watch some of these games this week. Maybe find some videos of that Steelers-Dallas game or sit down and watch tonight's game. I mean, what could be more exciting than watching teams compete for a playoff spot? Instead we have to watch them compete for some ridiculous bowl game in Detroit. Imagine 110,000 people in Happy Valley or Ann Arbor with a playoff spot on the line. Or imagine the world's largest cocktail party being for a spot in the playoffs. The regular season actually means more when there is a playoff.
  8. neon
    8. Posted by neon Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:35 pm EDT

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    Finally, somebody understands what I've been saying all along!
  9. twoeightnine
    9. Posted by twoeightnine Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:25 pm EDT

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    Word.
  10. Devine
    10. Posted by Devine Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:39 pm EDT

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    Not to mention that with a win over the Chiefs next week, the Chargers will become bowl-eligible. I, for one, can't wait to see SD take on the Eagles in the Hasbro™ Cranium® Puzzled Coaches' Stare Bowl.
  11. D.Kolman
    11. Posted by D.Kolman Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:33 pm EDT

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    Who do you guys think will win the Extenze Cucumber bowl?
  12. J B
    12. Posted by J B Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:26 pm EDT

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    In this system of course any NFL team that posts a 8-8 record or better becomes bowl eligible. Everyone likes watching a .500 team in the post season.
  13. domenick2x
    13. Posted by domenick2x Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:46 pm EDT

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    Devine, I like your thinking - but I though that the Chargers were going to be in the Don Julio Silver® Tequila Bowl, thanks to another Yahoo!® sportswriter....
  14. gldearman
    14. Posted by gldearman Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:10 pm EDT

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    This is the best blog post ever, on any subject.
  15. Scott E
    15. Posted by Scott E Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:34 pm EDT

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    The NFL needs Dr. Lou like it needs staph in every shower room. Just like college football, come to think of it.
  16. DewPower
    16. Posted by DewPower Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:50 pm EDT

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    I think the real point is that EVERY team with a .500 record DESERVES a chance for one more game - that's what being "bowl eligible" is all about. Then, when that team lines up against an opponent and plays the game, they either come out WINNERS or losers. In then end, the system in the NFL with only ONE playoff team getting to end its season with a WIN is damaging to the psyche of our fragile players, ownership, coaches, and fans. We NEED this new system where HALF the teams in the league (at least) get a chance to play in a bowl, and where HALF of the bowl teams get a chance to finish the season as WEINERS (oops, winners).
    Of course, the opportunity to generate massive sports talk radio air time with the ridiculously complicated and unfair selection system is overshadowed only the the massive amounts of cash that go into the conference coffers in places like the Big-10 (where they have ELEVEN teams, but consider academics important) where they have bowl affiliations for far more teams than they would ever expect to place in the playoffs.
  17. Scott E
    17. Posted by Scott E Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:34 pm EDT

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    Does this mean that Arena League and Canadian football teams with perfect records are NFL Bowl eligible?
  18. Scott E
    18. Posted by Scott E Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:34 pm EDT

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    Does this mean that Arena League and Canadian football teams with perfect records are NFL Bowl eligible?
  19. Scott E
    19. Posted by Scott E Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:34 pm EDT

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    Sorry about the double post. Must have sneezed or something.
  20. Mike H
    20. Posted by Mike H Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:19 pm EDT

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    Well, We know who would win the cheat-os bowl. lol I like football how it is though, thank you! =)
  21. Scott E
    21. Posted by Scott E Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:34 pm EDT

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    While we're fixing every football problem in sight, let's also fix that really crappy way that college teams handle overtime. I say we make them flip a coin and the team that wins the toss 70% of the time scores and therefore wins on the first possession. And, to perfect the system, allow ties, but don't tell quarterbacks that ties are possible.
  22. Scott E
    22. Posted by Scott E Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:34 pm EDT

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    Why me, thank you!!
  23. stylianosm
    23. Posted by stylianosm Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:46 pm EDT

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    But MJD, tell us how you REALLY feel???
  24. dadof3bz
    24. Posted by dadof3bz Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:34 pm EDT

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    2 min of my life just wasted reading that stupid article gooooooooooooooo EAGLES!!!!!!!!!!!
  25. smiley momma
    25. Posted by smiley momma Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:47 pm EDT

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    kudo's!! I love football, if they follow the college route, it would so suck!!

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Shutdown Corner is an NFL blog edited by Matthew J. Darnell. Email him, and follow him on Twitter.

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