I was talking to somebody whose takeaway was that it’s legal to show up armed, and offer defensive help to property owners, even without security guard training as long as they are an “independent militia member.” Which means…anybody with a gun, of course.

So…yeah. Looks to a lot of people like a civil war just got a green light from the judicial system.

It doesn’t look like Arbery’s killers will get off the hook, though, so all the white supremacists are going to be able to declare that the system works, and that racial discrimination doesn’t exist, etc.

wv wrote:

nittany ram wrote:

Stafford’s has come back to the pack the last couple weeks, but by any statistical measure he’s still one of the top three QB’s in the league.

Neither INT against the 9’ers was his fault. The first one was picked because OBJ quit on the route, and the second one bounced out of Higbee’s hands.

======

Did OBJ ‘quit on the route’ or was he running a
different/shallower route than stafford expected?

I dunno.

w
v

One of the blabber guys on TV said he quit, but I just don’t think that’s nearly as likely as the explanation that those two guys aren’t on the same page yet.

And like you said, it was a punt. They were back inside their 10-yard line after that, and for them to turn that TO into 7 points is on the defense, ffs. The 9ers have 5 90-yard drives this season, and 2 of those were against the Rams. I mean… it was just disgusting.

I don’t know how much it’s fair to blame Morris, but as of now, he reminds me more of Larry Marmie than Brandon Staley.

I am just disgusted.

This is the most disgusted I’ve been since – I don’t know when.

That beat down should have been the other way around, and I just don’t think there is an excuse for that. That game was over when the Rams botched the fake field goal. The Rams were done by HALFTIME in a game they HAD to have, against an opponent they should not have taken lightly, and which entered the game on its heels. And the Rams just got their asses kicked for the second week in a row.

Just no excuse.

WTF does “Modern Throwback” even mean? Is that last week’s jersey or something?

I’ve thought about this a lot, and the only thing acceptable to me now is that each Rams’ opponent, and every playoff-bound team, must suffer two major injuries between now and the time the Rams play them. It’s only right.

I don’t think these guys are right. I don’t think OBJ needs 8 catches for 112 yds and a TD or two in order to land a big package after the season. I think if he comes in and makes some key plays at the right time, that’s enough.

.

This Just In: #Packers front office is the main reason why they failed to land Odell Beckham, Jr., per sources. I’m told HC Matt LaFleur wanted OBJ, believing his acquisition would be both seamless/positive for GB offense. FO lowballed Beckham, while the #Rams believed in him.

So… the Rams offered a $500K signing bonus, and the Packers didn’t?

zn wrote:

I still like the dark Ferragamos.

I prefer the blue and white, but the 80s blue and yellows are very good.

I dislike the current pale blues more than the blue and gold in St. Louis. The current uniforms are the worst.

Though the color rush banana uniforms were pretty terrible.

Well, as long as there is no negative impact on the locker room, I’m fine with it. I don’t care if he doesn’t contribute anything. I just don’t want him doing damage. Of course, they could cut him, I guess.

If he’s any good…he does create more pressure on the secondary. And is an insurance policy against injury to any of the top trio.

And I will say that the Rams having him means the Packers and Saints don’t have him. And that’s good because I think he would be a bigger difference-maker to those teams than he will be to the Rams. With those teams – again, if he’s any good – he would add more value because they have a bigger need for a very good WR. So if paying him the vet minimum achieves nothing but removing a target for a potential playoff opponent, well…that’s fine by me.

Maybe somebody knows…I thought I read somewhere that there is a maximum number of compensatory picks a team can receive, and the Rams are already at that ceiling. If true, they don’t get another pick for OBJ.

From Jason LaConfora at CBS:

The San Francisco 49ers are not who people thought they would be. And probing questions are being asked of the head coach. For good reason.

The Kyle Shanahan regime is not halfway through its fifth season, and, alas, things are not going well. It’s, frankly, looking far too much like Year 1, or Year 2, only he’s not the youngest head coach in the NFL anymore and the feeling-out process is long in the past. The adjustment phase ended years ago. And, to this point, that wistful season of 2019 — with the 13-3 record and the Super Bowl loss — feels like an awful long time ago.

The defense has been horrible, and trending decidedly in the wrong direction since Shanahan (make no mistake — he has been and always will be running the show there until/unless he’s fired) decided not to make stud interior defensive lineman DeForest Buckner a $20M/year man. The run game is a shell of what it used to be. The pop-gun offense isn’t scaring anyone. All of their elaborate smokescreens and spy-novel levels of offseason intrigue about which quarterback they were mortgaging their future to move up and draft seems a little too cute, especially since Trey Lance has barely played for the sputtering outfit. And what seems to be resonating most loudly in the Bay Area right now is Shanahan’s 32-44 career record (.444) and the fact he is 9-15 since the 49ers blew their lead to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl.

Ultimately, you are what your record says you are. And that ain’t good. And no amount of play-calling wizardry can change that overnight. This ain’t a post-Super Bowl hangover. This isn’t a blip. That’s a nearly 25-game sample size since the big collapse against KC, and, well, the 24 games preceding that glorious 2019 season weren’t special, either (10-14).

The reality here is that roughly a third of Shanahan’s wins (10) came in September-November of 2019, and we can point to quarterback play and injuries and whatever other mitigating factors you want to include, but keep in mind all of those players (and bad quarterbacks) were there in the first place because Shanahan wanted them there. Again, this is his show. GM John Lynch was a curious choice at the time — coming straight out of the broadcast booth — and he was there at Shanahan’s behest. No revisionist history here.

Sunday’s loss to the Cardinals (backup quarterback included) was not professional grade, and they have allowed 83 points in three games since their bye and don’t have much to rely on on offensive, either. Sunday’s effort looked like a team in distress, turning what could have been a reboot to their season into the greatest SOS to date. It was inexcusable. They continually put on dire displays at home. And the second-half schedule doesn’t appear to be especially kind on paper, either.

Owner Jed York already doubled down on this management team by extending their already lengthy deals by another six years in 2020. His offense has never finished above 18th in points during his time there save for the magical 2019 ride (second), they’ve been a middling team running the ball the last two years, and one would think Shanahan would turn his focus decidedly to developing Lance ASAP.

It’s pretty clear if they have any chance of salvaging this season, Shanahan is going to have conjure his offense to much higher heights. If he is, indeed, a wizard with the play sheet and quarterbacks, well, now would be the ideal time to show it. Because time is running out on another 49ers season, they are clearly the most disappointing team in the NFL (Miami was always fools gold), and this wreaks of the kind of six-win campaigns that have come all too frequently in San Francisco.

If the Rams lose this game, there will be trouble.

I don’t see it. While the Rams are a flawed team, they have been consistently better all year than the 9ers, who seem to have more serious flaws than anyone expected. I don’t think the Shanahan spell lasts another game. I’m pretty sure the Rams are paying attention to this game, and I expect to see their most complete game of the season.

That’s all a hunch, obviously. But I think the Rams are better, and I think they are motivated. If they lose, I’m going to ask questions about the coaching. Is my guess.

Holy smokes, it’s a weekend of upsets.

Denver over Dallas
Jaguars over the Bills
Browns over Bengals
Giants over the Raiders
Falcons over the Saints