#his backup plan is to blow them up over pittsburgh

[thedawningofthehour]

No context spoilers for this chapter

[nationalhoranleague]

Sixteen | Doubt

Chapter Song: Us (Acoustic) - James Bay

≫ Everly - Monday, February 1, 2016 ≪

It was blistering cold out, but it was welcomed this morning. There was something about the cold air that brought along a certain kind of clarity to my thinking. It was early still, the sun wasn't to come up for another hour and a half. I have never been, am not, and will never be a morning person. I love sleep more than anything or anyone on this earth, Sidney included. But since my injury, a full night's rest has been harder and harder to come by.

The glisten of the holiday season has long been faded, my family has returned to work from their holiday breaks, and Sidney was knee-deep in the playoff run, leaving little time for himself, let alone me. I was left to my own devices and there were next to none to be left to. I had read every book that both Sidney and I had in our possession, watched what felt like all of the makeup tutorials on Youtube, and even attempted to remake some of Julia Child's classic recipes. Not being able to skate was driving me to the brink of insanity and boredom.

Behind me, I could hear the back door creak open and then quickly shut. I listened as Sidney's sleepy body shuffled across his back yard over to where I was sitting with my back to him. He leaned over the back of the pool lounge I had wandered over to this morning and pressed a warm kiss to the side of my face.

He shoved a warm mug into my chilled hands before sitting down into the chair next to me. He sighed, took a sip from his mug, and then closed his eyes as he settled himself into the metal chair.

For a long time, we were quiet, the only sounds being of the cold wind blowing around us and the pool cover in front of us rustling in the wind.

"Why are you awake?" I asked quietly, causing him to open his eyes and look at me.

He sighed. "I rolled over and you weren't there," I turned back to watching the trees swaying in front of me.

We sat quietly for another bout, in fact, we were quiet for so long that I was nearly halfway done with my coffee by the time Sidney broke the silence. "So, are you ready to fess up?"

"To what?" I asked, playing dumb with him.

He scoffed. "Don't play coy with me, Everly Grace," Clearly, Sidney is not a morning person either. "I know when something is bothering you. You're tossing and turning all night, you've been up before 6 pretty much every morning since your injury, you're not eating normally, and you've been in a mood since I've been back from my road trip." I exhaled heavily. "I'm worried about you. Did I-" He sighed. "Did I do something wrong?" He asked, his voice soft.

"No! Sid, no! I-I'm fine."

He laughed sadly, shaking his head at me. "You didn't even believe that yourself. Now, what is bothering you?"

I sighed. "Sid, not being able to skate has driven me to the brink of insanity."

"Oh, honey,"

"I have been skating since I was three, Sidney. I know nothing but figure skating. I have never, until this past year, not been able to skate whenever I wanted. Two injuries within a year is a lot to deal with, mentally and physically." I sighed. "Maybe it's too much?"

Sidney was quiet for a minute, letting the realization of what I had just said set in. It was a lot to take in and if he had said the same to me, I would have been just as stunned. Even I was shocked. Sure, I had been tossing the idea of quitting skating around in my head for weeks now, but saying it out loud made it feel like a plausible idea. "How long have you been thinking about this?" He asked incredulously.  

"Since Christmas," I confessed. "Is my body going to let me do this anymore, Sid? I mean for God's sake, I've had two knee injuries in a year! A year! I'm falling apart at the seams!" I paused, briefly. "But how could I quit? I have nothing better to do. I have absolutely no backup plan. I bet my whole life on a career that could be over in the blink of an eye." I looked over at him. "Did I mess up, Sidney?"

Sidney shook his head. "You didn't mess up, you followed your dream and have made an amazing career out of it. An amazing career. You still have so much to do, I know it in my gut."

I half smiled at him. "I don't know, bubba."

Sidney stood up, practically unfolding himself from the pool chair, he reached a hand out to me, pulling me up from the chair. "C'mon, let's go in. It's freezing out here." I followed him across the backyard.

"I thought you were Canadian?" I asked, teasing him.

He faked a soft laugh, clearly not amused with my chirp. "Why did you sound like that one vine?" I tossed my head back in true laughter. I was sure that if it wasn't for my obsession with vine references, Sidney would have no idea what a vine even is. "I thought you were American?" He mocked.

Once inside, Sidney made a beeline for the coffee pot, desperately needing a warm-up for his mug. I found a comfy spot in the window seat of the breakfast nook. He refilled his mug before making his way over to me, sliding in behind me, pressing his back to the wall. I settled comfortably in between his thick legs and dropped my head back against his chest.

"Oh, my love," I sighed. "I don't know what to do. Tell me what to do, Sid."

"No," He said, confidently. I tilted my head up to look at him, confused.

"No?"

"No, I'm never going to tell you what to do with your life, Ev." I smiled softly at him, before returning my eyes to the window which now painted a portrait of the sun rising over the trees in Sidney's backyard. "I can, however, offer some advice, if you'd like."

"Okay, shoot, Crosby,"

"I've been doing some reading since I don't know anything about figure skating," I grinned. Sidney is, by a mile, the sweetest, most caring man I had ever met. It only made sense to me that he would research and learn more about the sport that made me the person I am today. "The first qualification event for PyeongChang is the 2017 World Championships, so you're technically in the position right now to be able to take an entire year off from skating. And, for what it's worth, I think you should. Give yourself the time to heal up both psychically and mentally. "

"Yeah, I mean, I agree with you," I began slowly. "But, I don't know what I would do with myself for a year, Sid."

"Well," He began hesitantly. "I don't know if you would be interested, and I don't want you to think this is a handout, because it's not. You just-" He sighed, clearly struggling to find the right words. I turned around to face him now. "You just know me so well, and we have the same passions and work ethic and I can't think of anyone else I would want to do it."

"Okay, what is it?" I asked, now a little on edge because I was completely unsure of where he was about to take this conversation.

"I have a spot open on the foundation board."

I gasped. The foundation was Sidney's pride and joy. Even while in the middle of trying to clinch a playoff berth, he was still heavily involved in the planning of his upcoming hockey school and charity events in both Nova Scotia and Pittsburgh.

"Sid, are you sure?"

"I'm 100 percent sure, I just want to make sure that this is something you want to be involved in too."

I nodded eagerly. "Oh! I would love to,"

"Yeah? Thank God! When can you start?"

I laughed, before launching myself into his arms. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled his lips to mine.

Liked by jeffskinner, taylorcrosby29, smellymelly, and 36,998 others.

everlygcassius: In December I sprained my ACL and as many of you have probably noticed, I have been off of the ice since. Tomorrow, I will be cleared to make my return to the ice. However, I have decided that two injuries in a year have been too much for my knee, my heart, and my mental health. I will be taking a step back from skating until 2017. I am looking forward to healing myself and returning to the international stage as a powerhouse in Helsinki for the World Championships!

≫ Everly - Sunday, February 7, 2016 ≪

For once, since my injury, Sidney was awake long before I was. In the past week, I had been able to calm down tremendously, thus allowing me to sleep in longer than the sun. I had officially accepted the position with Sidney's foundation and had informed my agent, Eva, family, and the rest of the world that I would be taking a break from skating. Most everyone was supportive, except for a few rude trolls here and there. However, I was happy and that was all that mattered to me.

I was missing skating already. But, I'm so looking forward to getting to know myself outside of the world of figure skating. I'm looking forward to finding something I was passionate about, something I enjoyed doing. I'm looking forward to having a short, busy summer with Sidney, who had recently collected his 900th point and a playoff berth in one fell swoop. I'm looking forward to working closely with Trina and the other foundation board members. I'm looking forward to so many things and amazingly, none of them pertained to skating, making me feel oddly at ease.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty," I perked up, seeing Sidney sliding himself between his bedroom door and the door frame. "Want to come down? I'm making breakfast, I thought we could have an 'us' day since we haven't had a lot of time together recently."

He was right. He had been traveling just about every other game recently and was typically only home late at night or early in the morning, all but forcing me to stay at his house if I wanted to spend more than 15 minutes with him. "Yeah, are pants required?"

Sidney titled his head in thought. Suddenly, he stepped into his bedroom, where I was still buried away underneath his heavy blankets, and dropped his sweatpants on the floor, leaving him clad only in his boxer briefs. "No,"

"Good," I proclaimed, standing up on his bed now, showing him that I only had on one of his t-shirts and a pair of black lacy boyshorts.

He cackled, before coming over to my side and lending a hand up to help me down from the bed. I placed my feet on the cream carpet and began to reach for my cell phone on the charger. Sidney swatted at my hand, making me eye him curiously.

"No cell phones," He pointed over to his nightstand where his phone was still plugged in and resting on the wood.

"Okay, yeah, I like that."

It was late. Neither Sidney nor I had bothered to replace our pants, check our phones, or brush our teeth for the entire day. We had eaten our weight in junk food, had a dance party, taken two naps each, switching between little spoon to big spoon, and watched countless Disney movies. The day was both greatly needed and appreciated by us.

Sidney held onto me tightly, keeping me from rolling off the side of the couch. Our legs were tangled together, probably as equally as hairy. His face was pressed into my hair, allowing his vanilla ice cream scented breath to fan over my neck. My face was tucked into the crook of his strong arm, serving as a surprisingly comfortable pillow.

"Ev," He whispered. "Are you awake?"

"Yes," I responded giggling.

"You know I'm proud of you, right?" I froze, not knowing how to respond. "I would give anything for you not to be having to go through this right now, but I'm so proud of how you're handling yourself with grace and looking at the situation optimistically. You make me want to be a better athlete and person." He paused to let out a long yawn. "I can't wait to spend the rest of my life admiring the hell out of you, Everly Grace."

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The best ATS season ever for every NFL team

9:04 AM ET

NFL NationESPN

The 2020 NFL schedule has been released, but there is still a ways to go until the season begins. So what better time to look back fondly on the best betting season for all 32 teams?

Our NFL Nation reporters give their perspective on the best individual seasons against the spread for each team, using research from ESPN Stats & Information.

Jump to: ARI | ATL | BAL | BUF | CAR | CHI | CIN CLE | DAL | DEN | DET | GB | HOU | IND JAC | KC | LV | LAC | LAR | MIA | MIN NE | NO | NYG | NYJ | PHI | PIT | SF SEA | TB | TEN | WSH

AFC East

New England Patriots

2003: 13-2-1 (.867)

This was when Tom Brady the sixth-round pick was starting to become Tom Brady the star. The 2003 season was his fourth in the NFL (third as a starter), and came after a 9-7 year in which the Patriots had missed the playoffs. Bill Belichick had shockingly cut safety Lawyer Milloy before the season opener and the Patriots lost their first game 31-0 to the Bills, who had signed Milloy. But after a 2-2 start to the season, the Patriots never lost again as Brady’s star began to shine brighter en route to a second Super Bowl championship. — Mike Reiss

Miami Dolphins

1972: 11-2-1 (.846)

1 Related

Dolphins fans shouldn’t have a hard time remembering why the 1972 season is their best against the number — it is the only team to go undefeated in NFL history. Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris became the first pair of teammates to rush for more than 1,000 yards each in a given season, and the Dolphins won 11 of their 14 regular-season games by double digits. The No-Name defense never got the love that offense did but it was the best defense in football that season, securing three shutout victories (including a 52-0 win over the Patriots) and allowing opponents to score more than 17 points three times all year. This was the first Dolphins title in what ended up being a minidynasty from 1970-1974 with five division titles, three AFC championships (1971, 1972, 1973) and two Super Bowl wins. — Cameron Wolfe

Buffalo Bills

1978: 12-3-1 (.800)

In the team’s first season without star running back O.J. Simpson, the Bills turned to rookie Terry Miller — who turned in the lone 1,000-yard season of his career, as well as seven of his eight career rushing touchdowns. However, their ATS didn’t exactly translate to success on the field, as Buffalo went 5-11 in 1978. Only four of those losses, however, were by multiple scores; the Bills were able to hang around longer than their talent should have allowed. — Marcel Louis-Jacques

New York Jets

1998: 12-4 (.750)

The 1998 Jets were the best in franchise history ATS (12-4) — and arguably the best team, period, since the 1968 Super Bowl championship squad. The team was balanced, but was known mainly for its offense. Vinny Testaverde, an interception-prone quarterback for most of his career, flourished in New York and delivered a career year — 29 touchdown passes, only seven interceptions. He was surrounded by two future Hall of Famers in running back Curtis Martin and center Kevin Mawae, plus a dynamic receiving tandem in Keyshawn Johnson and Wayne Chrebet. Coach Bill Parcells, with Bill Belichick as his right-hand man, did a masterful job, leading the Jets to 10 wins in their last 11 games and the AFC East title. They fell to the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game, blowing a 10-point lead on the road. To this day, Parcells calls it the most heartbreaking loss of his Hall of Fame coaching career. — Rich Cimini

Andy Dalton was having an MVP-caliber season in 2015 before going down with an injury. Joe Camporeale/USA TODAY SportsAFC North

Cincinnati Bengals

2015: 12-3-1 (.800)

This was the season the Bengals were primed to win their first playoff game since 1991. Cincinnati started the season with eight straight wins behind a strong start from quarterback Andy Dalton. Dalton was in the midst of his best NFL season when he suffered a season-ending thumb injury against the Steelers in Week 14. Backup A.J. McCarron picked up where Dalton left off and the Bengals won the AFC North and reached the playoffs for the fifth straight season. The Bengals were 12-3-1 ATS in the regular season and finished with a 12-4 overall record. The ending — a playoff loss to the Steelers that featured that hit by Vontaze Burfict — ended the year and the franchise’s best run in nearly 30 years. — Ben Baby

Baltimore Ravens

2008: 12-4 (.750)

The 2008 season marked the start of the most successful era in Ravens history, even though many wouldn’t have anticipated it. Baltimore hired a little-known assistant (John Harbaugh) to become its coach and drafted a player with a big arm from a small school (Joe Flacco) to be its franchise quarterback. The Ravens were such an unknown that they were underdogs in half of their games (covering five of them) and were favored by more than a touchdown just twice. Baltimore relied heavily on an old-school game plan. With two Hall of Famers still in their prime (Ray Lewis and Ed Reed), the Ravens had the NFL’s second-best defense. And, with a rookie quarterback, Baltimore kept the ball in the hands of running backs Willie McGahee, Le’Ron McClain and rookie Ray Rice. The Ravens finished as one of the hotter teams in the league and ended up in the first of three AFC Championship Games under Flacco. — Jamison Hensley

Pittsburgh Steelers

1972: 11-3 (.786)

The Steelers’ 1972 season laid the foundation for the run of four Super Bowl championships in six years during the Steel Curtain era. In Chuck Noll’s fourth season, the Steelers went 11-3 and made the playoffs for the first time since 1947 to kick off a streak of eight consecutive playoff appearances. After losing two of their first four regular-season games, the Steelers went on to win nine of their final 10 games and capture their first division title. And, of course, rookie first-round pick Franco Harris delivered the playoff win against the Oakland Raiders with the Immaculate Reception on the deflected throw from Terry Bradshaw. Though the Steelers’ season ended in the AFC Championship Game to the undefeated Miami Dolphins, the play — and the 1972 season — gave the Steelers momentum through the next decade. — Brooke Pryor

Cleveland Browns

2007: 12-4 (.750)

The 2007 Browns didn’t make the playoffs, but after going 4-12 in 2006, Cleveland went 10-6 on the way to becoming one of the NFL’s biggest surprises. Among the primary reasons was quarterback Derek Anderson. A 2005 sixth-round pick who was then waived by the Baltimore Ravens, Anderson capitalized on Brady Quinn’s training-camp holdout as a first-round rookie and Charlie Frye’s flop as the Week 1 starter to propel Cleveland to — still! — its only double-digit winning record since returning to the league in 1999. Despite making the Pro Bowl in 2007, Anderson lost his starting job to Quinn the following year and never started a full season again the rest of his career. — Jake Trotter

AFC South

Indianapolis Colts

1968: 12-2 (.857)

Success for the Colts in 1968 seemed like a longshot after quarterback Johnny Unitas — league MVP in 1967 — was injured in the final preseason game. However, backup quarterback Earl Morrall stepped in and threw for 2,909 yards and 26 touchdowns while going 13-1 as a starter during the 1968 season. Don Shula, the coach at the time, had a defense that was ranked first in the league and an offense ranked No. 2 that helped the Colts get to the Super Bowl where they were double-digit favorites over the Joe Namath and the New York Jets. Namath and his “guarantee” were this team’s downfall, as the Jets upset the Colts 16-7. — Mike Wells

Houston Texans

2011: 11-5 (.688)

The 2011 Texans got hot in the middle of the season, winning seven games in a row, but during that winning streak lost quarterback Matt Schaub for the rest of the year with a foot injury. Rookie quarterback T.J. Yates took over and won two straight, but Houston lost its final three to end the regular season. The Texans won their first AFC South title and postseason game in team history, but they went on to lose to the Baltimore Ravens in the divisional round. — Sarah Barshop

Jacksonville Jaguars

2007: 11-5 (.688)

The Jaguars rode the one-two punch of running backs Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew and got efficient quarterback play from David Garrard and Quinn Gray. Taylor ran for more than 1,000 yards for the fifth time in six seasons and Jones-Drew ran for nine touchdowns to help the Jaguars finish second in the league in rushing and make the playoffs. The Jaguars opened the playoffs with an upset in Pittsburgh, winning 31-29 on Josh Scobee’s 25-yard field goal with 37 seconds remaining. The winning kick was set up by one of the greatest plays in franchise history: Garrard’s 32-yard scramble on fourth-and-2. The win made the Jaguars the first franchise to win two games in Pittsburgh in the same season. — Mike DiRocco

Tennessee Titans

1975: 12-2 (.857)

The 1975 Houston Oilers went 10-4 but finished one game behind the Bengals for a wild-card spot. All four of the Oilers’ losses came against the Bengals and Steelers. The Oilers’ season was highlighted by a four-game winning streak starting in Week 4 and capped by a three-game winning streak that included a victory over the Oakland Raiders. It was the franchise’s first winning season in seven years and its first season under coach Bum Phillips. Billy “White shoes” Johnson was their most dynamic player, returning three punts for touchdowns. — Turron Davenport

AFC West

Denver Broncos

1973: 10-3-1 (.769)

The 1973 Broncos didn’t make the playoffs — they finished 7-5-2 — but it still was a landmark season, the first winning season for the franchise, which began play in the AFL in 1960. And for a franchise that has since been to eight Super Bowls and had more Super Bowl appearances than losing seasons in Pat Bowlen’s tenure as owner, the ’73 season often is looked at as the year where, in some ways, the foundation was put into place. The lineup shows a Hall of Famer at running back in Floyd Little in his seventh season to go with future Ring of Fame members Tom Jackson, Charley Johnson, Billy Thompson and Haven Moses. The Broncos’ defense also had Lyle Alzado. The Broncos were second in the AFC in scoring at 25.2 PPG. — Jeff Legwold

Kansas City Chiefs

1997: 11-3-2 (.786)

The Chiefs in 1997 had one of their best teams in the 50 years between appearances in Super Bowl IV and LIV. They allowed 33 fewer points than any other NFL team that season and gave up just 43 total points over their final five games. Their one playoff game that season felt like the de facto Super Bowl involving the NFL’s two best teams. The Chiefs lost 14-10 in the divisional round to the Denver Broncos, who indeed went on to win the Super Bowl. The Chiefs lost an apparent touchdown when Tony Gonzalez was ruled out of the end zone on a catch, and in those pre-replay review days the call couldn’t be challenged. Gonzalez to this day will tell you he and the Chiefs were robbed. — Adam Teicher

Los Angeles Chargers

2004: 13-1-2 (.929)

In a stark turnaround from a 4-12 record in 2003, the 2004 San Diego Chargers finished 12-4 and won the AFC West. Rookie quarterback Philip Rivers watched from the sideline as Drew Brees set out to prove the Chargers didn’t need to take a QB in the first round. Brees passed for 27 touchdowns with seven interceptions as he — along with running back LaDainian Tomlinson and tight end Antonio Gates — earned Pro Bowl honors. Tomlinson scored a league-best 17 rushing touchdowns and Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer was named the NFL Coach of the Year as the Chargers capped the season with their first playoff appearance in nine seasons … a wild-card loss to the Jets. — Lindsey Thiry

Las Vegas Raiders

1990: 12-4 (.750)

The 1990 Los Angeles Raiders were a team on the rise, one with the power and speed of Bo Jackson, Marcus Allen, Willie Gault, Mervyn Fernandez and a rehabbing Tim Brown on offense, and a stout defense that accounted for 48 sacks (second-most in the NFL) thanks to the likes of Greg Townsend (12.5 sacks), Scott Davis (10), rookie Aaron Wallace (9) and Howie Long (6). They just ran into misfortune (Jackson’s career-ending hip injury in the playoff victory over the Bengals) and, well, a buzzsaw in the high-powered Bills, who blew them out 51-3 in the AFC title game. Aside from the 1983 Super Bowl-winning season, the 1990 campaign was the Raiders’ best in Los Angeles. — Paul Gutierrez

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys

1991: 13-3 (.813)

Perhaps this was a sign of things to come for the Cowboys, who went on to win three Super Bowls in four seasons from 1992-95. They went 11-5 in 1991, just two years removed from a 1-15 campaign. This was a young team, growing together and learning how to win. And they won their last four games without an injured Troy Aikman. The Cowboys found their formula with Emmitt Smith running the ball at least 25 times per game and a stifling defense allowing more than 14 points just once in Games 13-16. Jimmy Johnson won his first playoff game, a wild-card victory against Chicago as his young team started to come of age. — Todd Archer

Philadelphia Eagles

1980 and 2003: 11-5 (.688)

The 2003 season was the Eagles’ first at Lincoln Financial Field, home of the famous “4th-and-26” pass from Donovan McNabb to Freddie Mitchell that helped lift Philadelphia over the Packers in the divisional round of the playoffs and into the NFC Championship Game for a third straight year, where they were upset by Carolina.

The Eagles shook off a bad start to create a memorable season and finish 12-4. They went 0-2 out of the gate and were on the cusp of dropping to 2-4 before Brian Westbrook ripped off an 84-yard punt return in the closing moments against the Giants, sparking a nine-game winning streak. — Tim McManus

Washington Redskins

1983: 11-4-1 (.733)

The Redskins parlayed their first Super Bowl win into a dominant regular season. They scored a then-NFL record 541 points, outscoring the opposition by a league-best 209 points. Running back John Riggins rushed for 1,347 yards and 24 touchdowns at age 34 and the Redskins went 14-2. Their losses came by a combined two points, including the season-opening Monday night game in which rookie corner Darrell Green chased down Dallas running back Tony Dorsett. They lost to Green Bay 48-47 in another Monday night game where the teams combined for 1,025 yards.

Their most memorable regular-season win came in a 37-35 shootout over the Raiders at RFK Stadium. The Redskins won 11 straight games entering a Super Bowl rematch vs. the Raiders. But the Raiders blew them out 38-9 and the 1983 Redskins were left with the title of being one of the best teams to lose a Super Bowl. — John Keim

New York Giants

2008: 12-4 (.750)

This was the one that got away, with the team that Tom Coughlin said was better than the franchise’s two Super Bowl winners. It’s also the year their season was derailed by the Plaxico Burress self-inflicted gunshot wound. Before the Burress incident, the Giants were 10-1, which included wins on the road against three of the league’s best teams. Their offense was never the same after the shooting. The Giants dropped four of their last five and lost at home in their playoff opener to the Eagles. — Jordan Raanan

NFC North

Green Bay Packers

2007: 12-3-1 (.800)

In many ways, this season came out of nowhere. Two years earlier, Brett Favre had his worst season, throwing 29 interceptions on the way to a 4-12 season that ended Mike Sherman’s coaching tenure. The next season began badly, too, as the Pack started 4-8 under new coach Mike McCarthy before winning the final four games.

Still, no one could have seen coming what happened next. McCarthy transformed Favre into an effective game manager and put together one of the QB’s most efficient non-MVP seasons and led them to the NFC title game. However, it ended poorly when Favre — on his final pass as a Packer — threw an overtime interception that led to the Giants’ game-winning field goal. — Rob Demovsky

Minnesota Vikings

2015: 13-3 (.813)

Mike Zimmer’s second season in Minnesota featured a four-game improvement from his first. The Vikings finished 11-5, winning their first NFC North title since 2009 and clinching a spot in the postseason for the first time since 2012. Teddy Bridgewater showed promise in his first full season as a starter (3,231 passing yards, 14 TDs, 9 INTs, his first Pro Bowl) the same year the Vikings got Adrian Peterson back from suspension. Peterson led the NFL in rushing with 1,485 yards in his All-Pro/Pro Bowl season.

But all the excitement and hope built during the regular season came crashing down in a 10-9 wild-card loss to the Seahawks when kicker Blair Walsh missed a 27-yard game-winning field-goal attempt in the final seconds of the game. — Courtney Cronin

Teddy Bridgewater led the 2015 Vikings to the playoffs. AP Photo/Ben Margot

Detroit Lions

2010: 13-3 (.813)

The Lions were still rebuilding from their disastrous 0-16 season in 2008 and were starting to build for the future with Calvin Johnson in his prime and a first-round pick ready to take over the league in defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and a dynamic young running back in rookie Jahvid Best. Detroit also had a young starting quarterback in Matthew Stafford — and his shoulder injuries are a likely reason why the Lions were able to do so well against the spread. Stafford was limited to three games in 2010, but the combination of Shaun Hill and Drew Stanton — though not imposing as quarterbacks — could get Detroit out of a game.

The way the season unfolded — starting 2-10 before winning four straight to end the season — did two things: it set expectations low on the Lions toward the end of the year to pick up games against the spread and in a bigger picture helped set up the team’s run to the playoffs in 2011 with a healthy Stafford. The Lions played all but four games — losses to New England, Minnesota and Dallas, along with a win over St. Louis — incredibly close, again helping the spread numbers. — Michael Rothstein

Chicago Bears

1985: 12-3-1 (.800)

Led by the greatest NFL defense of all-time, the 1985 Bears struck fear in the hearts of their opponents and finished the regular season 15-1. Chicago cruised through the playoffs en route to winning the franchise’s first — and only — Super Bowl championship. The fact the Bears failed to cover the spread three times that year is a surprise, given the dominant nature of that team. — Jeff Dickerson

NFC South

Carolina Panthers

1996: 12-4 (.750)

Nobody expected the second-year expansion team to be a playoff contender in 1996, even though the Panthers won an expansion-record seven games in their first season. So a 12-4 record overall and against the spread and an NFC West title in a division with then-powerhouse San Francisco was nothing short of spectacular.

The key was the defense. First-time head coach Dom Capers was a disciple of the 3-4 zone blitz. He brought in a veteran-laden group, led by outside linebackers Kevin Greene (14.5 sacks) and Lamar Lathon (13.5 sacks), that caused opposing quarterbacks nightmares with a league-best 60 sacks. That group allowed only 13.6 points per game, the second-fewest in the NFL. It was old-school football at its best with a solid running game and shut-down defense that got this team of vagabonds to the NFC Championship Game in Green Bay. It was a true Cinderella story. — David Newton

New Orleans Saints

2011: 12-4 (.750)

This was Sean Payton, Drew Brees, Jimmy Graham and Darren Sproles at their career peaks. The 2011 Saints still hold the NFL record with 7,474 yards gained in a season. And Brees threw for 5,476 yards and 46 TDs while surrounded by a ridiculous cast of talent that also included Marques Colston, Pierre Thomas, Mark Ingram, Lance Moore, Devery Henderson and Robert Meachem. Many Saints fans will swear this was their best team ever, even though this 13-3 squad didn’t reach the Super Bowl. — Mike Triplett

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

1999: 11-4-1 (.733)

The Bucs had a very specific formula for winning games under Tony Dungy. They relied on a stout defense led by Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks, John Lynch and Ronde Barber. During the regular season, that defense held opponents to 17 points or fewer in 12 games and eight times held foes to 10 points or fewer. They controlled the clock on offense, running the ball behind Mike Alstott and Warrick Dunn and, at times, capitalized on the ultraconsistent kicking of Martin Gramatica, which protected rookie quarterback Shaun King, who stepped in for Trent Dilfer after he suffered a broken clavicle. — Jenna Laine

Atlanta Falcons

1980: 13-3 (.813)

Behind quarterback Steve Bartkowski and running back Williams Andrews the Falcons won the team’s first division title (NFC Western Division) with a 12-4 record. That season included a nine-game winning streak, which was a franchise best. Individual franchise records were established, too, with Bartkowski (3,544 passing yards, 31 touchdowns), Andrews (1,308 rushing yards) and receiver Alfred Jenkins (1,025 receiving yards) all hitting high-water marks at the time. Linebacker Al Richardson created a turnover in nine consecutive games out of the 3-4 scheme. And the Falcons had six Pro Bowl selections. — Vaughn McClure

The Russell Wilson-led Legion of Boom Seahawks teams were good to bettors. Jonathan Ferrey/Getty ImagesNFC West

Seattle Seahawks

2011, 2012 and 2013: 11-5 (.688)

The 2013 Seahawks were a trendy Super Bowl pick after making some marquee offseason additions (Percy Harvin, Cliff Avril, Michael Bennett) to an up-and-coming team that reached the divisional round the year before, taking advantage of the financial flexibility afforded by Russell Wilson’s cheap rookie contract.

They lived up to the hype with the best season in franchise history. Seattle won the NFC West and earned the conference’s No. 1 seed behind the NFL’s top defense, a strong running game led by Marshawn Lynch and a second-year quarterback who was more than a game manager while leading five comebacks in the fourth quarter or overtime. That included Seattle’s win in the NFC Championship Game, which was sealed by Richard Sherman’s famous end zone deflection. Harvin missed most of the regular season with a bizarre hip injury and was traded early the next season, but he contributed one of the memorable plays of the Seahawks’ Super Bowl XLVIII victory over Denver when he returned the second-half kickoff for a touchdown to put the game out of reach. — Brady Henderson

San Francisco 49ers

1989: 13-3 (.813)

It should be no surprise that the 1989 team, which went 14-2, was so good against the spread given that it was one of the best and most complete teams in NFL history. That juggernaut of a squad was first in the league in points scored, third in points allowed and had a plus-189 scoring margin on its way to a 45-point victory in Super Bowl XXIV.

Quarterback Joe Montana put together one of the best seasons in history, posting a passer rating of 112.4 in the regular season before a red-hot postseason run in which he improved that passer rating to a whopping 146.4 as he collected the NFL’s Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player of the Year awards and was named Super Bowl MVP. The star-studded Niners had six Pro Bowlers and five first- or second-team All Pros. — Nick Wagoner

Los Angeles Rams

1999: 13-3 (.813)

The 1999 Rams coached by Dick Vermeil were dubbed the “Greatest Show on Turf” as they outscored opponents 526-242, produced an 8-0 record at home and finished the season 13-3 with a Super Bowl XXXIV title.

The offense was led by four future Hall of Fame players, including quarterback Kurt Warner, running back Marshall Faulk, receiver Isaac Bruce and left tackle Orlando Pace. The defense also was among the best in the NFL. It ranked first against the run, allowing only 74.3 rushing yards per game, was tied for the lead in sacks with 57 and produced seven interceptions that were returned for touchdowns. — Lindsey Thiry

Arizona Cardinals

1993, 2013 and 2014: 11-5 (.688)

When Bruce Arians came to town in 2013, he changed the Cardinals’ culture and their fortunes. A year after going 5-11, the Cardinals went 10-6, which led to one of the franchise’s three best seasons since the merger against the spread at 11-5. No one thought this team would be any good considering what had transpired the previous season, which started with four wins before a nine-game losing streak. The perception of quarterback Carson Palmer was that he was washed up and riding out the final years of his career. But Arians and Palmer proved everyone wrong and did it again the next year, going 11-5 — their same record against the spread — after starting 9-1. Their march to a Super Bowl was cut short by Palmer’s ACL injury. — Josh Weinfuss

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[junker-town]

4 NFL teams with something to panic about right now

The Browns are without their best player, Myles Garrett, as they try to crawl back into playoff contention.

The Browns lack any discipline whatsoever, while the Steelers and Panthers have major questions to answer about their future.

There was really only one team we could start off the panic index with this week. Some teams lose even when they win — none more so than the Browns.

At some point over the last two months, the Browns and Raiders swapped identities. Oakland became the ascendant AFC team surprising foes en route to a winning record behind an efficient quarterback, a dynamic running attack, and a defense that jelled into a better-than-expected unit. Meanwhile, Cleveland was out there making poor decisions, losing winnable games, getting constant flags, brawling with rivals, and seeing a defensive player suspended for the season.

The Browns beat the Steelers Thursday night to improve to 4-6 and remain in the AFC playoff hunt, but threw a wrench in their comeback plans by losing Myles Garrett indefinitely after he ripped off Mason Rudolph’s helmet and summarily struck him with it. Garrett was the catalyst of the Cleveland pass rush, recording 10 sacks in his first seven games. The club will also be without tackle Larry Ogunjobi, who ranks second on the team with five sacks, for Week 12’s game against the Dolphins due to his role in that Pittsburgh melee.

The Browns likely have to win out — or at worst go 5-1 — to find a spot in the 2019 postseason. They’ll have to do so without arguably their best player. And if the previous 11 weeks are any indication, they won’t just have to beat their opponents; they’ll have to overcome their own stupid mistakes.

No team in the league has had more ejections or given up more yardage to penalties than the Browns, who’ve gifted opponents 822 yards over the course of 10 games. Cleveland’s been flagged an average of 11.2 times per game, effectively keeping the team from finding the rhythm that pushed the 2018 Browns to a 5-3 finish in the back half of the season.

Baker Mayfield, often tasked with having to throw his team back into contention late in games, has thrown more interceptions (12) than touchdown passes (11) in what was supposed to be his breakout season. If those paces continue, it’ll be a 12th straight losing season in Ohio.

Panic index: The Browns have the easiest remaining schedule in the league, so if there ever was a good time to lose a defensive player of the year candidate (there is not), this was it. Cleveland will have to win out against a schedule that includes games against the Dolphins, Cardinals, Steelers, and two matchups against the 0-10 Bengals. The Browns can still rally here — as long as the team doesn’t inflict too much damage on itself to prevent takeoff.

The Steelers still need a post-Ben Roethlisberger plan

The Steelers have drafted several quarterbacks in the last 11 years as insurance for mainstay Ben Roethlisberger. Dennis Dixon, Landry Jones, and Joshua Dobbs worked as backups and emergency options in Pittsburgh, but that was their ceiling. The Steelers didn’t really need them to be anything else, either, because Roethlisberger had never missed more than four games in any given season.

Until this year, that is, when he suffered a season-ending elbow injury in Week 2. Since then, 2018 third-round pick Mason Rudolph has taken over. Judging by his play recently, he’s not the answer to the team’s search for the next franchise quarterback.

In his first four games, Rudolph put up solid stats (67 completion percentage, 7:2 TD:INT ratio, 102.5 passer rating), even if the Steelers didn’t ask him to do too much. His last four games have been a different story, though.

Now that teams have more game tape on him, Rudolph has seen a major dip in his numbers (59.5 completion percentage, 5:6 TD: INT ratio, 70.8 passer rating). This season, only embattled Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky is throwing for fewer yards per pass than Rudolph’s 6.3.

Rudolph is coming off the worst game of his NFL career, too. He threw just one touchdown pass and four interceptions in the loss to the Browns (though what he’ll be remembered for most is his involvement in the Myles Garrett brawl).

That loss moved Pittsburgh to 5-5 and even further down the wild card playoff picture. While Rudolph hasn’t been entirely to blame, he falls short when he needs to make plays rather than be a game manager:

Another takeaway for the @Browns defense! Joe Schobert slides for the interception. #Browns @TheSchoGoesOn53 : #PITvsCLE on @NFLNetwork | @NFLonFOX | @PrimeVideo How to watch: https://t.co/I6INVckndX pic.twitter.com/CBRHvmsalg

— NFL (@NFL) November 15, 2019

Roethlisberger still has two seasons left on his current contract, but he’s 37 years old, and is coming off his biggest injury yet. Without a first-round pick next year (due to the Minkah Fitzpatrick trade), the Steelers could find themselves in the same boat next season if Roethlisberger gets hurt again: slipping out of the playoff race because of not having an adequate backup plan.

Panic index: It might be a little soon to give up on Rudolph after just seven starts, especially because his best playmakers (including JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, and James Conner) have been banged up.

If Roethlisberger is fully healthy next year, that’ll give the Steelers more time to develop Rudolph and determine if he’s worth an investment, or if they should try once more to draft Big Ben’s replacement.

Or, they could just listen to some of the fans and see what third-stringer Devlin Hodges can do again.

The Panthers’ future suddenly looks like “long-term mediocrity”

Just a month ago, moving on from Cam Newton in the offseason looked like it could be the right move for the Panthers. His play declined since his 2015 MVP season and, for the second year in a row, his season ended early due to injury.

The good news for Carolina was the play of Kyle Allen softened the blow. In his first four starts of the 2019 season, he threw seven touchdowns, no interceptions, and had a 106.6 passer rating. Allen appeared to have a real chance at being the Panthers’ quarterback of the future.

Now, not so much.

In his last four starts, Allen has three touchdowns, nine interceptions, and a putrid 60.3 rating. It was understandable when he threw three picks against the 49ers, arguably the best defense in the NFL. But four interceptions against the lowly Falcons? That’s awful. It was so bad that it sent Panthers owner David Tepper into an existential crisis. Via ESPN:

Tepper’s frustration over losing was evident, as he continually said that long-term mediocrity would not be accepted. He also said fans, many of whom left the stadium early Sunday, were smart enough to recognize long-term mediocrity.

Newton may end up sticking around in Carolina after all, given Allen’s recent play. But that might not be enough to get the Panthers back on track.

Panic index: It’s better to have an owner who’s determined to fix a team rather than one who’s fine with being stuck in neutral. The Panthers have several good things in place, including Christian McCaffrey, one of the most dynamic players in the league. The sky isn’t falling even if Allen’s not the answer.

The Bengals are reaching new levels of terrible

It’s not surprising that the Bengals are among the league’s bottom teams, but they weren’t expected to be this bad. They’re 0-10 on the season, and the switch from Andy Dalton to Ryan Finley at quarterback has not resulted in anything but much shakier play from under center.

Their latest loss was against the Raiders, a rather pitiful 17-10 game in which the Bengals never really threatened to win despite actually leading at one point. More than anything, the Bengals look lost and lethargic on the field. There’s no consistency outside of their winless record, and it’s hard to see any real identity on either side of the football, except maybe apathy:

Never seen an NFL team operate with less energy than this year’s #Bengals from play-calling down to players on the field. The #Dolphins are well coached & play hard. Bengals are nothing like that. Look like they just want to go home.

— Evan Silva (@evansilva) November 19, 2019

Following the loss to the Raiders, the Bengals were officially eliminated from the playoff race. It’s the earliest a team has been knocked out of postseason contention since at least 2002, per ESPN.

That was also the last year the Bengals had won fewer than four games. They finished 2-14. But at this point, even getting one win seems like a pipe dream.

Panic index: After that dreadful 2002 season, the Bengals ended up with No. 1 pick in the draft — and landed longtime quarterback Carson Palmer. Currently, they are in line for No. 1 pick again and can take whichever quarterback they like the most. The best thing that can happen at this point is the Bengals look to the future and figure out what kind of team they want to be.

Another option for Bengals fans? Just accept this dire present and decide nihilism is the only way forward.

[artificialqueens]

Heavy Rain Ch.6 (Shalaska/Katlaska) - Insomnidelic

AN: Wow. Life has me so shook right now. I’m sorry this took so long, but you wouldn’t believe the month I’ve had. Caution: things get a little angsty- but don’t worry. Its not over just yet.

“So then I threw his fuckin’ phone at him and peaced out.” Justin slurs before taking another lingering swig of Maker’s Mark. The bottle had somehow made its way into his hot little hands during his retelling of the day’s earlier events.

“Wait, you just left? C’mon, I know Sharon must have had something to say about it.” Adore attempts to pry more information out of the inebriated queen, knowing he was leaving holes in his story. He’d spent nearly an hour going over his lunch date with Katya and the run in with fans, but when it came to the confrontation with his ex, he glossed over a few details.

“Just a bunch of bullshit about me and Brian…” He trails off. His mind lingers to the older queen’s last words to him before leaving him and his ex in the hotel suite.

“Please, don’t…”

Don’t what? Don’t believe everything Aaron says? Easy enough. But Brian had admitted to it.

"You and Brian what?” Violet pipes up, glancing at Adore excitedly while awaiting Justin to spill the T. Neither of the younger queens ever expected that Alaska and Katya had anything going on behind closed doors, but the way Justin eluded to it now had them thinking otherwise.

"That we fucked. I mean, it’s probably true. I had a pretty intense dream about it…” He trails off once again, his mind wandering to the sexy memory of the two of them in bed together. If he wasn’t so angry at his “friend”, he’d probably be fucking Brian right now just to get over Aaron.

“Holy shit, are you serious? Tell us more!” Adore urges.

“No, no I hardly remember any of it.” He protests, throwing back the glass bottle and draining it of its contents. “And now I’m all out of juice.” He whines and slams the bottle back onto the counter.

The crowd cheers as lights begin to flicker on throughout the venue. As the backup generator kicks in, Violet’s familiar burlesque music fills the air, the track picking up where it would have left off had the set gone as planned.

“Fuck, I didn’t think the lights would come back on so soon. I drank too much! I don’t know if I can get up there and give them what they want.” Violet moans in response to the roaring crowd of bar patrons that clearly expected the show to go on now that power was restored.

“I got it!” Justin exclaims, pushing through the crowd before clambering onto the stage and immediately ripping his shirt off. The audience goes insane at the sight, every phone out and pointed toward the topless queen. He kicks off his shoes next without hesitation.

“Alaska, no! You just chugged half a bottle of whiskey. Fuck, take it easy man.” Adore reaches up to pull him down. Violet extends her arms to bat the other queen’s hands away.

“Aww, come on. He’s had a rough day, let him have a little fun.” She insists. More than part of her really just wanted to watch Justin strip.

He continues his dancing around the stage, camping it up a bit of course- his goofy facial expressions not matching his sexual movements. His pants were next to go; he unbuttons them and lets them sink to the floor, a cellphone he’d long forgotten was in his back pocket slides out to the back of the stage as he kicks his jeans off to the crowd of squealing fans. He drops to his knees and allows a few lucky audience members to rub his naked chest and underwear-clad lower half.

“Ok, that’s enough.” Adore pushes through to the edge of the stage. She had to stop this before it got out of hand. He didn’t know what he was getting himself into and the audience didn’t know what they were taking advantage of.

“C’mon, buddy. Let’s get you into some dry clothes and you can sleep this off in the back, huh?” She nods with a strained smile, reaching up to the half-naked man.

“Oh honey, I’m just getting started!” He croons before wiggling away and getting back to his feet. Without warning, he pulls his underwear down and begins to helicopter his dick with wild abandon. The mob goes nuts, not a camera in the entire venue was failing to record this glorious moment. Violet wraps her arms around Adore’s shoulders and gives her an ecstatic shake.

“Oh. My. God. I can’t tell if this is amazing or horrifying!” She yells over the thunderous cheers and applause from the audience, her mouth hanging wide open as she gaped at the sight before her. The stories about Alaska’s package certainly didn’t do it justice. Adore shakes her head and silently prays that this wouldn’t get back to Michelle.

Fat fucking chance.

~~

“God damn it!” Michelle huffs in aggravation.

“What? What’s going on?” Brian probes, looking back at her through the rearview mirror. She was making him drive while she navigated the car full of queens toward Justin’s location. The rain was hitting the windshield so hard that the wipers struggled to keep up. His vision of the road in front of him was extremely limited.

“My fucking phone died. We’re never going to find him.” She groans, burying her face in her palms. It had taken them nearly an hour to get to this point thanks to the continuously flooding streets and traffic jams. Just exiting the hotel parking garage had proven to be a real challenge.

“Alright, well let’s not panic. We have to be getting close. Let’s just think about which one of these places he could have gone into.” Brian tries his best to calm Michelle as he pulls over to park along the side of the road, straining to make out the names of the buildings lining the strip.

“Useless.” Aaron mutters from the passenger seat. He sat with his arms cross against his chest and had hardly said anything since they left the hotel.

“Instead of being pessimistic, you could try helping us.” Brian fumes, frustrated with Aaron’s demeanor.

“He doesn’t want to be found. He left for a reason and he doesn’t want to see either of us again so I don’t know why we’re wasting our time out here. I should have just booked it back to Pittsburgh instead of joining you on this goose chase… ” Aaron trails off. He’d gone back and forth between wanting to find Justin and wanting to escape. He knew that it wouldn’t matter either way, Justin would still hate him for what he did.

“Don’t pull that bullshit with me, Aaron. I know you still care about him and you owe it to him to show it.” Brian says sternly, locking eyes with the queen next to him.

“Don’t ever accuse me of not caring. Justin was the love of my life. But what’s done is done.” He defends himself. “He only acts like a baby because you two treat him like one. He’s a grown man. He can take care of himself. I say we just stay here and wait for this fucking storm to blow over.” He finishes before tightening his arms across his chest and leaning back in his seat.

“Fuck that.” Brian spits, ripping the keys out of the ignition and throwing them at a silent Michelle in the back seat before exiting the car.

“Katya, no! We need to stick together!” She shouts, reaching out to him. He’s drenched from head to toe in a matter of seconds, turning to respond to the oldest queen.

“I can’t just sit here! I know he’s okay… but I need to find him, for me!” He shouts over the sound of the pouring rain before slamming the door and making his way on foot in the direction they had been driving. As he rounds the corner, he bumps into another wet figure heading the opposite way.

“Oh, sorry man. Wait, Katya?! I can’t believe I’ve met this many Ru girls in one day!” The young man squeals excitedly. Brian sighs in disbelief that he could be recognized even while soaking wet.

Wait. Ru girls?

“What did you say? Something about other Ru girls?” He presses, urging the fan to elaborate.

“Yeah! Adore and Violet had a gig going on at Sparky’s. I was just there but the power went out and I didn’t want to be stranded so I went ahead and left ‘cuz I live so close, you know? Kind of annoyed with myself for leaving. I just got a text from my Judy back at the bar that Alaska showed up and I’ve wanted to meet her since-“ He’s cut off from his rambling as Brian reaches across to grasp his shoulders, his eyes wide with an almost feral quality.

“Where is this bar?” He asks coldly, his eyes boring into the startled twink’s.

“R-right down there, a few blocks.” The boy stutters nervously, pointing over his shoulder.

Brian pushes past him without another word and continues his brisk walk in the direction his new little friend had sent him in. He starts to run as the bar comes into view, its once dark windows now lit up as he neared. The power must have been restored. He pulls open the door without hesitation and is met with a crowd of people stuffed like sardines in the small venue. More enter behind him, excited whispers of “Alaska” on their lips. Even during a tropical storm, the Queen of Snakes drew an impressive audience. The familiar burlesque music of a certain queen fills the air, but Brian is stunned as Justin makes his way onto the stage, quickly ridding himself of his wet t-shirt. He panics slightly and keeps his head down while making his way toward the back of the venue to get better access to the aforementioned queen.

He glances back up as the crowd cheers with joy, only to see Justin’s swinging cock out for the audience to gawk at. He’s filled with anger and dread. Thunderfuck had obviously been hitting the bottle. He scans the room and quickly finds Adore and Violet at the edge of the stage, neither queen making a move to stop what was happening before them. He makes strides to confront them, bumping into one of the bar goers, causing her to spill her drink on herself and the person in front of her.

“Hey, watch where the fuck- Katya?!” She shouts excitedly, successfully garnering the attention of the surrounding audience members.

“Shit! It’s Katya. She’s probably here for Michelle! We need to get him off the stage now- grab his shit!” Adore whisper’s harshly to Violet.

She picks up his discarded pants off the floor as Violet snatches his damp t-shirt from the hands of a fan. The two make their way on stage, Violet pulling Justin aside and wrapping his lower half with his shirt. Adore grabs a microphone off a stand to address the crowd.

“Cut the music! Alright guys, that’s all for tonight. Help yourself to the open bar!” She exclaims, rolling her eyes as the crowd boos in disappointment with the abrupt ending to Alaska’s strip tease. Justin wiggles himself out of Violet’s arms and makes his way over to Adore, shoving her slightly and pulling the microphone from her grip.

“How’s everyone doing tonight?” He slurs with a goofy grin across his face. “The show’s not over till the sun comes up, who’s with me?!” He screams, the crowd roaring in agreement.

“Gimme your drink, would ya? Lasky need’s her juice.” He asks a fan in the front row, who in turn happily hands over her full beer to the naked queen on stage.

Adore reaches over his shoulder as he’s bent over in an attempt to take the microphone back, but the drunk man easily nudges her away with his elbow, nearly knocking her on her ass. It was almost as if whiskey gave Justin superhuman strength. He snaps his head back up and scans the crowd, his eyes locking on Brian who continued to edge his way along the bar toward the stage, brushing off every fan that attempted to come up to him.

“Well, looky-here. It’s our old pal, Katya!” He belches into the microphone, pointing toward the Russian queen. The audience cheers, happily surprised with the appearance of yet another Ru girl. Brian freezes and looks to Justin, pleading with his eyes.

Please don’t say anything stupid.

“Me and Katya fucked, you know? I don’t remember much of it ‘cuz I hit my head.” Justin points with his beer bottle to the soggy bandages hanging haphazardly across his forehead. “But from what I recall, his dick was huuuuuge!” He finishes with a giggle as the crowd reacts with whistles and laughter, many unsure if Alaska was joking or not.

Brian remained frozen in place and gawks toward the stage in disbelief at what the naked queen had just revealed to a crowd of over a hundred people. He’s startled as a heavy hand is laid on his shoulder and whips his head around to come face to face with an infuriated Aaron.

“What the fuck is going on here?” He seethes.

“What- how did you-?” Brian stammers, astonished to see the blonde queen.

“I followed you, duh.” Aaron says, rolling his eyes.

“I thought you were giving up?” Brian asks, shaking Aaron’s hand off his shoulder.

“It’s a woman’s prerogative to change her mind.” Aaron replies in his Caitlyn Jenner impression.

“Really? Jokes at a time like this? Help me get to the edge of the stage; we need to get him down since Adore and Violet obviously aren’t having any luck.” Brian grasps the queen’s arm and drags him along the wall.

“Ohohoooo, this just keeps getting better and better! Look everybody! It’s my ghoul-friend, Sharon Needles!” Justin screams into the microphone, calling the audience’s attention to the blonde, who’d until then gone successfully unnoticed. They roar excitedly for the Queen of Halloween.

“Well, ex ghoul-friend. We’ve been apart for four years now, can you believe it?” He sighs sorrowfully, eliciting an “aww” from the crowd at the subtle tone of heartbreak in his voice. “I know, I can’t either. Especially since he had his tongue shoved down my throat last night.” He chuckles before throwing back his beer, draining it impressively in just a few gulps.

Aaron goes rigid, gaping at Justin in total shock. The naked queen’s laughter quickly subsides. He turns his empty beer bottle over in his palm a few times before reeling his arm back and chucking it in Aaron’s direction. Luckily, his aim was off due to his drunkenness and the bottle went crashing into the wall behind his former lover.

"Ok, we’re not doing this shit again!” Aaron yells, finally losing his temper. He wasn’t going to allow himself to be the target of any more projectiles thrown by his infuriated ex.

Without hesitation, he runs full force toward the stage, shoving past the crowd and jumping onto the platform before tackling Justin and pinning him to the floor with his arms and legs. Justin’s microphone rolls out from his palm toward the edge of the stage. The audience gasps in horror as the scene unfolds.

“Get off me!” Justin shouts, struggling to free himself from the weight of his ex.

“No! Not until you promise to shut your mouth and get off the stage- peacefully!” Aaron replies, tightening his grip on the wiggling queen beneath him.

“Why would I do that? I have a lot more to say. I don’t like keeping secrets like you!” Justin spits back angrily, reaching desperately for the microphone just over a foot away. Aaron swings his arm to bat it over the edge.

“Are you fucking crazy!? You’re really starting to piss me off!” Aaron whispers coldly, bringing his face closer to Justin’s, eyes ablaze with fury. He couldn’t believe how far gone he was.

“Oh, am I? Well what are you going to do about it, baby? Hit me? Go ahead, hit me! I know you want to! Just like you did that night- that night when you…” Justin trails off, his eyes brimming with tears as a memory comes flooding back to him.

He laid bleeding across from Aaron on the living room floor. Broken glass littered the carpet, his eyes drifting to the shallow holes in the wall where missed punches had landed. It rarely ever got physical between the two of them, but alcohol had the power to escalate any argument. He grazes his fingertips along his bruised ribs. Aaron had won this round. Though he’d gotten a few good swipes in, the older man had more experience with his fists. He struggles to keep his eyes open, craning his neck to face his lover.

“I can’t do this anymore.” He finally croaks after a prolonged moment of silence. Aaron slowly turns to face him, blood dribbling from his nose onto the dirty carpet.

“Neither can I.” Aaron sighs, silent tears rolling down his cheek has he caressed his bruising knuckles.

“What are you even saying?” Aaron demands, snapping Justin out of the haze of his memory.

“That night you beat the shit out of me!” Justin roars, pulling his knees up to Aaron’s chest and shoving him off with all the strength he could muster.

The two queens pull themselves up on their feet without breaking eye contact. Justin wipes away the tears that rolled uncontrollably down his face. He couldn’t stand it. He was engulfed with rage toward the man standing just inches before him. Without thinking, he swings his fist around to collide with Aaron’s cheekbone, an audible crack reverberating throughout the venue as the crowd looked on in stunned silence before collectively gasping in horror.

The rational part of Aaron told himself to brush it off and walk away.

But the little, weird gay boy inside of him that relied on his fists to survive in rural Iowa wouldn’t take this laying down.

One swing sends Justin flying back to the floor. Suddenly he was on top of him once again, his knuckles colliding with the side of his head. He saw red, unable to control his own movements. Another swing. Another. Justin brings his arms up to protect his face but a good amount of damage was already done.

Suddenly Brian was between the two of them. With strength that seemed impossible for a man his size, he grips Aaron by the shoulders and hurls him to the back of the stage.

“Enough!!” He exclaims. The crowd had broken out in full blown hysterics at this point. Some continued to record the scene on their phones while others looked for any way out that they could find. Adore runs over to Justin and struggles to pull him up off the floor.

“Fuck! Violet, help me!” She screams over her shoulder, snapping the young queen out of her own stunned stupor. She runs over to assist Adore in dragging Justin behind a velvet curtain on the right side of the stage.

Aaron remains on his back at the opposite end of the stage, his palms digging into his eye sockets.  Dread washes over him at the realization of what just happened. He wanted nothing more than to be sucked into a black hole at this very moment. There was no going back from this. He mentally cursed himself for his foolishness. He’s broken out of his self-loathing from the sound of vibrations near his head. He frees his eyes from his palms to look over, a cell phone coming into view. He was sure that he’d seen its red case somewhere before, his suspicions confirmed as his eyes narrow in on the hammer and sickle symbol emblazoned on the back. He reaches over to grasp it, turning it over in his palm to view the caller ID before swiping to answer.

“Hey mama.” He croaks into the cell.

“Sharon? You found Alaska!” Michelle’s voice exclaims on the other end of the line.

“What makes you say that?” Aaron inquires, propping himself up against the back wall before pulling out his cigarettes from his pocket. He lights one up, not giving a care about the “No Smoking” sign right above him. The entire bar had gone to shit anyway. He laughs bitterly at the total chaos displayed before him. The crowd had broken into a complete frenzy.

“Well Alaska had Katya’s phone and here you are answering Katya’s phone, so cut the bullshit and tell me where you are.” Michelle replies sternly, nowhere near in the mood to play games.

“I thought your phone was dead.” Aaron says in a pathetic attempt to change the subject. He takes another drag from his cigarette and his eyes drift over across the stage to the gaggle of queens behind the curtain. Adore hovers over Justin and examines the damage done to his face. Violet sits next to him, rubbing his back while Brian stands at his side. Justin’s eyes were pleading with Adore as he said something that Aaron couldn’t quite make out by reading lips.

“It was- until I remembered that I had a car charger. Now tell me where you are before I lose my shit.” Michelle responds, her voice laced with ice.

Aaron continues to gaze at the group of queens. Justin stands and Adore looks to Violet, the two nodding at one another before each giving a glance back to Aaron. The last thing he sees is Brian stepping forward to take Justin’s hand into his own before Violet shifts to stand in his line of vision. He turns his attention back to his unpleasant phone conversation.

“Sparky’s.” He says before dropping the call.

The rain had shockingly slowed to a drizzle and many of the bar patrons took advantage of the suddenly clearer weather to make their escape from the hellish venue. His smoke dangles from his lips as he looks down at the phone in his lap. He swipes the screen once more, relieved that it didn’t have a password. He’s caught off guard when he comes into view of the home screen’s wallpaper.

Katya is sitting on Alaska’s lap. The photo was obviously a few years old considering that the two queens’ styles had evolved since it was taken. Something about it caused a smile to tug at the corner of Aaron’s lips. Maybe it was Alaska’s goofy grin or even how comfortable Katya looked on her lap. He shifts his eyes back across the stage to find Brian standing alone now, his cheeks stained with tears.

No one wins.

A wave of exhaustion washes over his entire body. The past two days had sucked what ever soul he had left clear out of him. He opens Safari and searches the number for LAX. His phone call is brief. It was just his luck that a delayed flight to Pittsburgh had a seat available and would leave in a little over an hour if the weather permitted.

He books the ticket.

He snuffs out his cigarette and pulls himself up to make his way over to Brian, who remained standing alone behind the velvet curtain.

“I’m sorry.” He murmurs hesitantly to the Russian queen.

“For?” Brian asks quietly, not quite meeting the other man’s eyes.

“For ever doubting that you cared about him.” Aaron replies, handing the cellphone back to Brian. He looks down at it in his palm, a single tear falling and splattering on the glass.

“You were right. He doesn’t want anything to do with me.” Brian sighs and bites his lip, his voice shrouded with pain. Aaron leans in to grip his shoulder.

“If I’ve learned anything after this whole situation, it’s that I’m wrong. A lot.” Aaron whispers, looking into his eyes. “Don’t give up… but give it some time. I’m going home now. I suggest you do the same.” He finishes, patting Brian on the back before brushing past him to make his exit.

“Home?” Brian calls after him.

“Yeah. To my fiancé. My heart… Home is where the heart is, you know?” Aaron says over his shoulder. He didn’t care if he was making any sense or not. He was tired and wanted nothing more than to crawl into his own bed and sleep this off the best he could.

Brian stands at the center of the stage, watching as Aaron leaves. He shifts his gaze back to his phone, his eyes fixated on his home screen wallpaper.

How can I go home if my heart doesn’t want me?

~~

"Just tell me what happened, baby. I want to hear it from you.” Michelle coos quietly to Justin. They sat next to each other on the couch in the back lounge of the bar. He was wrapped in an old blanket Violet found in one of the dressing rooms.

Adore had explained for the most part that he’d gotten into a fight with someone at the bar. It wasn’t a total lie. Justin asked her not to mention that it was with Aaron.

The four queens hid behind the heavy curtain as Adore wipes away at the blood pooling around Justin’s nostrils and bottom lip.

“Just say it was some random. Please? I feel so stupid. It’s all my fault. I was pushing his buttons.” Justin pleads to Adore softly. A few punches to the face had really sobered him up. He was beginning to feel more than a little embarrassed of how far he took things.

Adore and Violet look to one another before nodding an agreement. They knew it would get back to Michelle eventually that Aaron was involved, but snitching wasn’t their style. However, Brian felt differently.

“I think you should tell her the truth.” He says, stepping forward to take Justin’s hand into his own. The younger queen lets his hand go limp in his grip before pulling away from him.

“What do you know about telling the truth?” He sneers, pushing past Brian.

“Justin, wait…” Brian follows after him.

“No. You didn’t go after me the first time. Don’t start now.” Justin says over his shoulder. He turns away quickly but doesn’t fail to catch a glimpse of heartbreak behind Brian’s eyes. He instantly regrets his words.

But it was too late.

“It’s just like Adore said. I swear.” Justin murmurs, putting his head to Michelle’s shoulder to keep her from looking into his eyes. She could always tell when he was lying.

“I just want to go home. I know that’s not with Aaron now… but I’m ok with that.” He continues with a whisper.

Michelle was still unsure if it was wise to take Justin back to his house so soon after the accident, but reluctantly agrees. Out of all of her “kids”, she had the hardest time saying no to him.

If home was where he wanted to go, then that’s where she would take him.

~~~

Michelle unlocks the door to Justin’s house before pushing it open, allowing him to enter first. It was a stark change to the crappy one bedroom he remembered owning the first time he’d lived in LA after college. The spacious two story was decorated unlike anything he imagined, but he felt that it suited him perfectly.

“Why don’t you grab a shower while I make you something to eat?” Michelle asks softly, nudging Justin gingerly toward the hall leading to his bedroom. He nods without a word and meanders slowly down the corridor.

His bedroom door was open, but the one across the hall from it was ajar, peeking his attention. He tightens his blanket around his shoulders before pushing it open to take a look inside.

He flips on a light switch, a wall of drawings coming into view first. In front of it was a desk littered but more drawings, papers, and notebooks.

This must be my office.

He steps further into the small space, taking in his surroundings. A glimmer catches the corner of his eye. He turns to find a glass case lining the adjacent wall. Inside was a jewel encrusted crown with an equally flashy scepter along-side it. For the first time since that morning, he smiles widely. His grand win was all so real to him now.

He turns his attention back to his drawings on the wall, many of which he recognized from years ago in his college days. He chuckled, surprised at himself that he was able to keep up with them with how disorganized he tended to be. Most of them were of Alaska of course, in all her Glamazonion glory. But a few were of another queen…

His eyes narrow in on a portrait of non-other than Sharon Needles. Her signature dimpled chin was a dead giveaway. He scanned the wall, surprised that more than a few of his art pieces were of Sharon and Alaska together, the dates at the bottom corners of the page spanning anywhere between 2010 to just a few weeks prior to now.

He shifts his gaze to opposite wall. It was lined with large portraits of queens from seasons passed. The largest photo, aside from his own, was also of Sharon. He leaned in to read the inscription stenciled below it.

“For inspiration.” It read.

He turns to graze over the contents of his desk. He recognizes his journals and various sketch books. A black photo album catches his eye under a stack of documents. He brushes the papers off and opens the book to a random page.

The picture was obviously from Halloween. Alaska was dressed as a cat and Sharon as Lady Dracula. Justin chuckles to himself at how basic his costume was compared to Sharon’s. She’d always be one to go over the top for Halloween while he opted for the minimal. He flips the photo over, a date scribbled in black ink at the bottom corner.

10-31-15 (Brighton, UK Halloween tour)

A tour with Sharon two years after breaking up?

He flips a few more pages. This time the photo was of the two of them in what looked like a meet and greet set up. Sharon had obviously said something to make Alaska cackle, her mouth in a wide open smile and her eyes crinkling at the corners. Sharon always made her laugh harder than anyone else on the planet. He flips it over for a date.

2-17-17 (SOBE Houston)

Just a few months ago…

He closes the book carefully, shaking his head as a smile crept onto his lips.

He and Aaron were friends.

“You doing ok in there?” Michelle hollers from the kitchen, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“Yeah. I’m alright.” He responds, quickly exiting his office and running across the hall to his bedroom. He shuffles into his bathroom and throws his blanket off before peeling his damp bandages off his head and hopping into the shower. The hot water cascades along his body and he allows all of his sorrow and pain from the day to wash down the drain along with the grit and grime.

He steps out and wraps a towel around his waist and goes into the bedroom for a change of clothes. A large black duffle and small purple bag next to it at the foot of his bed grabs his attention. He unzips the larger one first to find his drag pads and other undergarments before tossing it aside and reaching for the second. He shakes out its contents onto the bed, various makeup products and jewelry tumbling out. With a final shake, a black rectangle comes plopping onto the mattress. He picks up the device and taps the screen, cursing mentally as his apparent phone was password protected, but takes a crack at it. He unlocks it on the first try.

Who could forget Cerrone’s birthday?

As expected, a few missed calls and messages from mom and Cory. Another few from his management team and friends. He was happy to see that he still worked and kept in touch with the same people all these years. He scrolls through his conversations before hitting a few that had already been read.

Katya being the most recent.

K: Tonight?

A: When everyone goes out to dinner after rehearsal.

K: What if I’m hungry after rehearsal?

A: Eat me.

K: My favorite meal.

Justin flushes with embarrassment over the corny sexts. He can’t stop the smile that spreads across his face. He scrolls further to read through older messages.

K: What are you doing tonight after the show?

A: Probably just heading back to the hotel and ordering room service. Care to join? :)

K: Absolutely.

“Stop it!” Justin squeals, desperately trying to escape Brian’s fingers. The older queen had been attempting to tickle him throughout the night just to hear his panicked laughter.

“Ok, ok.” Brian chuckles, giving Justin room to breathe.

They’d smoked a blunt and gorged on desserts from the hotel kitchen before settling comfortably beside each other on the bed to watch Golden Girls re-runs. This wasn’t a new occurrence; they’ve hung out in hotel rooms to wind down after a show numerous times before. But something about tonight felt different. It was the first one on one interaction between the two of them since All Stars. Perhaps there was a hint of sexual tension in the air, or at least Brian was imagining so.

He decides to put his theory to the test.

He reaches over to Justin- who flinches and scoots away in response, afraid that he was about to be tickled again.

“No, no. I swear I won’t. Come back.” Brian assures with a laugh, wrapping his arms around Justin’s waste to pull him close, their hips now flush against one another. Justin’s giggles falter and his eyes drift to Brian’s lips, now just inches away.

“This is nice.” Brian whispers hotly, a smirk gracing his features. He brushes his fingers along Justin’s spine, the younger man stifling a shiver from his touch.

“Yeah, it is.” Justin murmurs, leaning in to close the gap between their lips.

The kiss was warm and inviting. There was no sense of urgency behind it. It was passionate, yet gentle and sweet. They could have laid there for eternity just kissing. It was almost as if time stopped for this very moment.

Twenty minutes later they were screwing each other’s brains out.

Justin floats back to the surface from his lustful memory. It was amazing what could be recovered just by reading a few simple texts. He was starting to believe that maybe his relationship with Brian wasn’t purely sexual. There was more to it than he ever imagined. A deeper connection. He taps on Katya’s name in his messages to pull up her contact information.

He remembered having Brian’s cell in his pocket at the bar, but had lost track of it by the time he was on stage.

What are the odds that it made its way back into Brian’s hands?

He carefully shuts and locks his bedroom door and returns to sit on his bed before pressing the call button. It rings endlessly. He pretty much gives up on anyone answering and moves to end the call.

Until suddenly.

“Hello?”

[seahawkswriting]

New Orleans Saints Scouting Report

New Orleans Offense:

The Saints are traveling to Seattle for the first time since the 2013 divisional round, and for the first time since 2003 (!!!), the Saints will play on Centurylink without Drew Brees. Brees is arguably a top five quarterback in history coming off of one of his most masterful seasons yet, so losing him is obviously a tremendous blow, but Teddy Bridgewater is as reliable a backup quarterback as anyone in the league. I thought he was destined for greatness after a 2015 sophomore season where he led the Vikings to a 11-5 record before losing to Seattle in a frigid wild card matchup, but he suffered a devastating injury before the 2016 season and missed two full seasons before becoming the backup to Brees. It’s really a tragic story, and I hope he’s able to work his way back into a full time starting job soon (fun fact: he was taken with the 32nd pick of the 2014 NFL draft by Minnesota, who has acquired that pick in the trade with Seattle for Percy Harvin). He played poorly last week, but this week the gameplan will be centered around maximizing his strengths, and I also to expect to see an abundance of the wacky plays with Taysom Hill behind the center.

Alvin Kamara has quickly staked his claim as one of the league’s best backs, but it helps that he’s running behind a tremendous line manned by 2018 Pro Bowlers Larry Worford, Andrus Peat, and Terron Armstead. Center is the line’s weakness after (Super Bowl 48 Champion) Max Unger retired, and currently the second round rookie out of Texas A&M, Erik McCoy, is starting. Thanks in large part to the addition of Jadeveon Clowney, the Seahawks have allowed their opponents to rush for the fourth fewest yards, and with Poona Ford likely coming back to make this front even stronger, the Saints running the ball with Kamara on Sunday will be a case of strength vs strength.

Of course, Alvin Kamara is also an excellent receiving back, and he has to be, because outside of Michael Thomas (for my money the league’s best receiver, he’s just astoundingly good), the receiving options are limited. Jared Cook is a solid but unspectacular tight end, Ted Ginn is a nice deep threat but little else, and Tre’Quan Smith has potential but is up to this point inconsistent. I’m thinking Sean Payton will come into Seattle with a plan to run the ball with Taysom Hill, Kamara, and Latavius Murray (who I haven’t touched on but we all know what he is at this point in his career), throw screens to Kamara and Thomas, and try to set up deep shots off of play action to Ginn and Tre’Quan Smith. Payton will try and make the game easy for Bridgewater, so it’s up to Seattle’s defense to make his life hard.

New Orleans Defense:

This defensive line is awesome, even if Sheldon Rankins isn’t ready to go. Cam Jordan has been a nightmare to block for a long time, averaging 10 sacks and 20 QB hits per year over the last 7 seasons, and has shown no signs of slowing down. Marcus Davenport is building off of a nice rookie season, while Trey Hendrickson has been off to an explosive start to 2019, with three sacks over the first two games. Their run defense is just as stout, with big Malcolm Brown eating up space on the middle of the line, with a well kept secret in David Onyemata just waiting to explode into an elite interior rusher.

New Orleans traded for the (quite overrated imo) Kilo Alonso before the season, but he’s barely seen the field up to this point. Demario Davis is their best linebacker, totaling five sacks last year while still ranking fifth among all middle linebackers in PFF’s run defense metric. He’s somewhat of a forgotten man in a 2012 draft that featured future Hall of Famers Luke Keuchly and Bobby Wagner as well as other fantastic ‘backers like Dont’a Hightower (also SUPER underrated and such a massive part of New England’s dynasty), Mychal Kendricks, Lavonte David, and Zach Brown all being picked before him. He’s been stellar throughout his career, averaging 109 tackles per year since his second season. He’s also been remarkably healthy, never missing a game. Now that I’m finished gushing about Davis, the rest of this linebacking corps, AJ Klein and Alex Anzalone, isn’t anything to worry to much about. I can see Rashaad Penny breaking a big run to the outside if the blocking on the first level holds.

The 2017 draft looked like an all timer for New Orleans after both corner Marshon Lattimore and safety Marcus Williams were unreal in their rookie seasons, and while they weren’t bad last year, they both regressed just enough to give saints fans pause. This year is huge for the development of both of them. Across the field from Lattimore is Eli Apple, an inconsistent corner who’s positives just slightly outweigh his negatives. Vonn Bell is a fantastic tackler at strong safety who often plays in the box and will be a nuisance for Seattle’s rushing attack, but his coverage abilities, while greatly improved from when he came into the league, are subpar. The nickel corner is the 6’0 PJ Williams, who grabbed the job after a nice ending to the 2018 campaign.

Outside of the line, this is an average defense with nice upside. Their greatest strength is stopping the run, so it could be a long day for Chris Carson and Co, and I’m thinking we could see more of that quick passing attach that Seattle turned to in the second half against Pittsburgh.

[flauntpage]

Blown Leads, Bad Calls, and Great Defense: Ten Takeaways from the NFL’s Wild Card Weekend

Wild card weekend was.. decent, I guess? The games were entertaining, but the quality of play (and officiating) left something to be desired.

It began with a Saturday evening comeback that could instead be viewed as a horrendously blown lead. Atlanta got the road upset, the Saints hung on, and the Jags and Bills played one of the worst playoff games in recent memory, unless you really, really appreciate defense.

The Eagles get the Falcons this weekend, which I think most people agreed was the best possible matchup for Nick Foles and company. We’ll break that down in a separate post.

But if we’re looking for one overarching theme, I’d say that the Birds should feel good about their playoff chances, since I wasn’t overly impressed by what either NFC winner did this week.

Were you?

  1) Situational football

The difference in the Atlanta/LA matchup was the Falcons’ smart game management and mix of plays. They controlled the ball for 37:35 while the NFL’s best offense only had it for 22:25.

The Falcons used 33 called running plays and 36 passing plays, three of which became sacks and three that turned into scrambles. When they did toss it, they kept it short, throwing for about four air yards per pass. It was a balanced output that took advantage of two Los Angeles special teams turnovers, allowing the Falcons to jump out to a 13-0 lead.

That was experience on display, with a #6 seed going on the road but showing the same smarts and savvy that took them to last year’s Super Bowl.

  2) Dirty bird defense

Todd Gurley finished with 14 carries for 101 yards. Robert Woods had 9 receptions for 142 yards. Cooper Kupp grabbed 8 for 69 and a score. LA finished with 40 more yards than Atlanta.

But the Falcons won in other areas, limiting Gurley to four catches for just 10 yards, which was his third-lowest total on the season. Sammy Watkins had one snag for 28 yards. Combined, the pair mustered only 38 receiving yards on 14 total targets. That’s inefficiency right there, with just 14.6% Jared Goff’s yardage coming on 31% of his attempts.

The Rams went 5-14 on third down for a 35.7% success rate, well below the 41.1 number that placed them top-10 in the regular season. And they were just 1-3 on 4th down.

The Falcons have a smaller and faster defense that moves well in space and makes big plays. Defensive coordinator Marquand Manuel was a journeyman safety who played eight NFL seasons and worked as a Seattle assistant during the Legion of Boom era. He should start getting some national recognition for the job he’s doing in Atlanta.

  3) Jared Goff

He’s a player. He’ll be around for a long time, leading a young team with a young coach that has talent on both sides of the ball. I think the turnovers put the Rams behind the eight ball, a squad with zero playoff experience, let alone playing from behind.

But even during the comeback attempt, he was throwing into some tight areas that would make Hall of Famers blush.

This was one of the best passes of the entire NFL weekend, with Goff stepping through the pocket on a third and 10 in his own territory:

DIME.

WOW, @JaredGoff16. #ATLvsLAR #LARams http://pic.twitter.com/vOXr6WKzdk

— NFL (@NFL) January 7, 2018

And a freeze frame, just for good measure:

Jared Goff fit this into the smallest possible window http://pic.twitter.com/wOz7xI9BC5

— SB Nation NFL (@SBNationNFL) January 7, 2018

Nick Foles would run backwards and sideways there and probably take a sack or throw it out of bounds.

  4) Who dat?

Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram contributed 68 scrimmage yards and the Saints still won.

There was a first half surge where I thought New Orleans might blow Carolina out of the water, but that wasn’t the case at all. This game was closer than predicted.

Drew Brees picked up the slack through the air, going for 376 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception on a highly questionable 4th and 2 call at the end of the game. That was Sean Payton trying to ice it with about two minutes left, which almost backfired badly.

But the Saints’ defense forced an intentional grounding and finished with a sack on the Panthers’ final drive, doing enough to get the job done against a Carolina team that came in with a good game plan.

More than anything, I wasn’t floored by the New Orleans performance. I still think they’re a difficult matchup for the Eagles, but here’s a team that lost five games in 2017 and didn’t appear to be the well-oiled machine we’re used to seeing out there. Their trip to Minnesota is probably the best matchup of the divisional round.

  5) Panthers and protocol

They started strong, then dropped a touchdown, missed a field goal, and quickly found themselves down 14-3.

Credit to Carolina though, I thought they might get clobbered, but they fought back to within a score and had a chance to win it at the end.

I think the division rival narrative was a little underplayed here. Sure, the Saints beat the Panthers twice in the regular season, but three wins against a team you see more frequently than others is somewhat difficult to pull off.

Cam Newton finished 24-40 for 349 yards and two touchdowns. There was an outcry from Twitter doctors after he appeared to play through a fourth-quarter concussion, but Newton said that wasn’t the case after this play:

Cam Newton just hit a brick wall. http://pic.twitter.com/wHc3VicfhF

— 360°FantasyFootball (@360FFB) January 8, 2018

Newton explained that he was poked in the eye, as the contact made his helmet come down over his forehead, and disputed the idea that he was concussed.

That seems to be contradicted by this video:

This "Cam Newton's visor poked him in the eye" is the greatest storyline in the history of sports. And I'm saying that as a former WWE wrestler. Watch the video, you don't collapse after that him because you need ice on your face. It's a #concussion. http://pic.twitter.com/fgsMiai3et

— Chris Nowinski, Ph.D. (@ChrisNowinski1) January 8, 2018

But that could also be embellishment to buy time for the backup quarterback to warm up on the sidelines, right?

I don’t know. I really don’t know. Newton looked pretty good on the field after that, and I’m just a guy sitting at home, watching on TV, so that’s how qualified I am to pass judgment here.

  6) Terrible quarterback play

Buffalo vs. Jacksonville had the feeling of a 1 p.m. Week 3 game, with two of the NFL’s worst signal callers squaring off.

Tyrod Taylor finished 17-37 for 134 yards and an interception.

Blake Bortles was 12-23 for 87 yards and a touchdown.

Both were starting their first playoff game and both were pretty pitiful, but Bortles did some improvisational damage with 88 rushing yards on 10 attempts. That was probably the difference, as Jacksonville eventually found the red zone and scored on a one-yard, play action pass.

You could hear Tony Romo going through various stages of anguish having to call this game. Romo, who played in just six playoff games during his career, was assigned a Taylor/Bortles game in his first color commentary postseason gig.

Talk about rough:

  7) Jacksonville Jag-wires

Of the remaining teams, they most resemble the Eagles, a squad with an excellent defense and suspect QB play.

They beat the Steelers 30-9 back in Week 5 on the strength of five interceptions. Jacksonville’s defense has held opponents to 10 or fewer points nine times this season. They are legit in every way.

Here’s a stat worth mentioning, courtesy of ESPN:

“Since drafting Ben Roethlisberger in 2004, the Steelers have a losing home record against two teams (including playoffs). Those teams are the Patriots (2-5)…..and the Jaguars (1-4).”

And those are the two squads the Steelers have to go through to get to the Super Bowl. Both won at Heinz Field this season.

I’d be stunned if Jacksonville does it again this weekend, but the box score and theme from that game wasn’t entirely dissimilar from what happened yesterday. Bortles was 8-14 for 95 yards and an interception. But the Jags’ ground game was working, and Leonard Fournette ripped off 181 yards and 2 touchdowns on 28 carries back in Week 5, while Pittsburgh did this:

Jax has proven they can win while Bortles plays like shit, so we’ll see if their defense can get it done for a second time this season in Pittsburgh.

  8) The Bills Mafia

I respect the enthusiasm of a fan base that hadn’t been to the playoffs in forever.

And when you jump through flaming tables in the parking lot, that’s wild, too.

But when Bill Cowher does it during the pregame show, it’s probably dead:

Bill Cowher just joined #BillsMafia! http://pic.twitter.com/HHlAHKUML2

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) January 7, 2018

Buffalo needs a franchise quarterback. I’m not sure who it is.

  9) Marcus Mariota

Speaking of franchise quarterbacks, does that label apply to Marcus Mariota? He went 7-7 on third down in the second half against Kansas City, shaking off a poor first half and completing a 19-0 run to steal a win on the road.

Mariota’s first career playoff touchdown pass was thrown to himself:

Marcus Mariota just caught his own pass for a @Titans TD!!

Not a typo.#TitanUp #NFLPlayoffs http://pic.twitter.com/bDBVukfZuY

— NFL (@NFL) January 6, 2018

Gisele Bundchen once said, “My husband cannot fucking throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time,” which no longer holds true, apparently.

But in all seriousness, Mariota was impressive in the second half. He made some plays, Derrick Henry ran the ball like a beast, and the QB actually threw a great block on the clock-killing final drive:

  10) Gotta do a better job

Andy Reid has now lost 13 playoff games.

He’s 1-7 in his last eight postseason games.

Saturday, his team blew an 18-point first half lead.

I’m not a guy who cheers against Andy. I appreciate what he did in Philadelphia, even if he never won the Super Bowl.

Yeah, Alex Smith could have made a few second half plays. Yeah, the drops hurt the offense. Yeah, Travis Kelce was sorely missed. And the defense was not the same in the 3rd and 4th quarters.

But when you’re winning by multiple scores and Kareem Hunt finishes with 11 carries, it’s indefensible.

  Feel bad for Andy Reid. I mean, it's hard to get the ball to your running back when you're only leading by two scores for most of the game http://pic.twitter.com/QLnByqiydS

— Ryan McCrystal (@Ryan_McCrystal) January 7, 2018

Also, the worst call of the weekend (and there were many) took place during this game, when a Mariota fumble was somehow overturned because his “forward progress” was stopped during a sack.

If this isn’t a fumble, then 50% of NFL turnovers have been incorrectly ruled over the past 35 years:

Derrick Johnson crunches Mariota. Drive ends in a Tennessee field goal after a shoulda been fumble recovery by KC. http://pic.twitter.com/IRVAXar7sW

— Chiefs Kingdom (@__chiefskingdom) January 6, 2018

I don’t know how NFL officiating becomes progressively worse, year after year.

Blown Leads, Bad Calls, and Great Defense: Ten Takeaways from the NFL’s Wild Card Weekend published first on http://ift.tt/2pLTmlv

[buddyrabrahams]

15 biggest disappointments of NFL Week 7

NFL Week 7 offered another nasty spate of injuries, a few blowouts, and some remarkable performances by numerous players. As usual, though, there were a good number of players who didn’t really show up when their teams needed them to. Be it an unexpected change in plans or simply being outclassed by their opponents, a list of stars and units with high expectations simply left a lot to be desired in Week 7.

Here’s a list of 15 big disappointments from this week’s slate of NFL games.

Atlanta Falcons

Few teams had more motivation entering their Week 7 game than the Atlanta Falcons. After blowing a 28-3 lead in the Super Bowl last season, the Falcons surely wanted revenge on the Patriots. Instead, they served up a stinker in Foxboro.

Facing what’s been one of the worst defenses in the league this season, the Falcons were shutout nearly the entire game and managed just seven points, which were scored with only around four minutes left in the contest. Atlanta didn’t commit any turnovers, but they found other ways to shoot themselves in the foot. They had one field goal blocked, missed another, and they failed to punch things in from the 1-yard line in the fourth quarter. The Falcons were only 2-for-9 on third-down conversions and 1-for-3 on fourth-down conversions. This was not their finest moment.

Vontaze Burfict, LB, Bengals

Burfict’s statline was unremarkable, as he contributed four tackles but little else. The real issue is his conduct. The Bengals linebacker was spotted kicking Pittsburgh Steelers fullback Roosevelt Nix in the head as a play came to a halt. This would be bad enough by itself, but it’s even worse when you consider who did it. This is Burfict — one of the league’s dirtiest players — who should really know better by now. He doesn’t, and he’ll probably never learn, and the NFL will probably want to speak with him about this — with good reason.

New York Giants

There was some thought — or perhaps “hope” would be the better choice of word — that last week’s surprising win over the Denver Broncos might kickstart the Giants. And while it was probably too late to salvage their season either way, they could at least show some signs of life going forward. Not so much.

The Giants generated just 177 yards of total offense, gave up 425 yards to the Seattle Seahawks, and came away looking every bit as bad as they have at any point all season. If Ben McAdoo isn’t fearing for his job yet, he should probably start to worry.

DeShone Kizer, QB, Browns

Things were looking up for Kizer, who had reclaimed his starting job for Week 7 after a week on the bench. That was pretty much the last good thing that happened to him.

The rookie was benched early in the second half against the Tennessee Titans after throwing interceptions on consecutive passes, capping off a day in which he threw for only 114 yards. To make matters worse, his coach is not happy with him over his nightlife activities. Kizer might not be getting that starting job back anytime soon after this fiasco.

Jimmy Graham, TE, Seahawks

Graham had three catches for 51 yards and a touchdown in his team’s win over the New York Giants, but he could have done so much more. The veteran tight end’s drops are becoming a legitimate problem — he dropped at least two straightforward passes during the game, one of which would have been a touchdown and another for a potentially huge gain. Graham simply doesn’t look like the same player he was in New Orleans. Sure, he got in the end zone, but he could have had a huge day, only to simply fumble it away — pretty much literally.

Carolina Panthers’ offense

There was really nothing doing for Carolina on Sunday against the Chicago Bears. It starts with Cam Newton, who turned the ball over twice in the 17-3 defeat. He received little support from the running game, as Jonathan Stewart only picked up 48 yards on 14 carries and Christian McCaffrey was a non-factor on the ground, with ten yards on seven carries. None of Newton’s wide receivers offered much, either; only Kelvin Benjamin picked up more than 50 yards. Carolina’s offense is maddeningly inconsistent, and it’s holding them back in a big way.

T.Y. Hilton, WR, Colts

Hilton stunk up the joint on Sunday, catching just two passes for 27 yards despite being targeted eight times by quarterback Jacoby Brissett. That was bad enough for the man who is supposed to be the star attraction of an Indianapolis offense that was shut out at home by the Jacksonville Jaguars. But to make matters worse, he decided to deflect attention away from himself by throwing the offensive line under the bus after the game. Hilton may well have a point, but nothing constructive will come from saying it publicly — especially when didn’t have the best of games.

Cincinnati Bengals’ defense

The Bengals have endured plenty of problems this season, but defense hadn’t been one of them. The Bengals entered Week 7 second in the league in scoring defense, with a particularly sturdy unit against the pass. That all fell apart on Sunday when the Pittsburgh Steelers got at them. Pittsburgh put up 420 yards, with Ben Roethlisberger turning in a composed performance and Le’Veon Bell repeatedly gashing holes in the Bengal defense. It was Cincy’s defense that was supposed to make this a competitive game — and it was because of their failures that Pittsburgh ended up running away with the second half.

Trevor Siemian, QB, Broncos

It’s difficult to overstate just how bad Siemian was against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. He went 25-of-35 for 207 yards, but that doesn’t even remotely tell the whole story. He threw one interception and was lucky to avoid several more. He fumbled twice. He failed to do anything to jumpstart the offense.

Sure, he may be battling a shoulder injury, but it is becoming increasingly obvious with each passing week that Siemian is not the long-term answer for this franchise at the quarterback position. Unfortunately, the Broncos don’t really have a lot of other options right now.

Keenan Allen, WR, Chargers

Allen had a difficult matchup against one of the league’s tougher defenses. In his defense, his team did win the game. Still, he was not a big part of the victory. The Chargers’ leading wide receiver was targeted seven times by quarterback Philip Rivers, but managed to catch just three passes for a modest 41 yards. Overall, this was his worst game of the season to date. He’ll probably improve — he’s been better before and will be better again — but he’ll be disappointed with how he looked on Sunday.

The end of Browns OT Joe Thomas’s snap streak

Joe Thomas’ iron man status tended to be underrated in sports. Thomas was drafted No. 3 overall in 2007 and had played every single regular season snap since — a total of 10,363 consecutive snaps. The man picked ahead of him, wide receiver Calvin Johnson, has already retired in part because of the physical toll the NFL took on his body, so it says a whole lot that Thomas has been able to withstand everything and play constantly — especially for a team that has had virtually no success in his time there. That streak ended on Sunday because of an arm injury. It’s truly a shame, but Thomas is deserving of a lot of recognition and applause now that his streak is over.

Green Bay Packers wide receivers

The Packers badly missed Aaron Rodgers on Sunday, and if you need further proof of that, you need only look at the numbers Green Bay’s wide receivers put up. The team’s leading receiver, Martellus Bennett, caught just two passes for 17 yards. Former Pro Bowler Randall Cobb could only manage 15 yards on two receptions. Jordy Nelson, one of the NFL’s best, could only manage one 13-yard reception. The Packers went from having an excellent passing game to a nearly nonexistent one in the span of a week — and the entire receiver corps will suffer for it.

Adrian Peterson, RB, Cardinals

Peterson really raised the bar for himself in his Arizona debut a week ago, with a breakout 134-yard, two touchdown performance. For his next act, well, he offered very little against the Los Angeles Rams. Peterson could only tally up 21 yards on 11 carries. Part of that was due to the fact that Arizona was getting blown out and looked to the air. The other big problem was the fact that Arizona’s passing game didn’t offer enough to keep defenses honest. Peterson’s monster Week 6 may prove to be the exception, not the expectation for what will be in store.

Mitchell Trubisky, QB, Bears

Chicago posted a surprise win on Sunday, but Trubisky continues to demonstrate why John Fox and the Bears’ coaching staff were so hesitant to turn the keys to the offense over to him. The rookie completed just four passes — which happens to be the same number of times he was sacked by the Carolina Panthers — and leaned entirely on the running game to win the game. Trubisky may be the future of the Bears, but even in victories, he’s inspiring little confidence in the present.

Drew Stanton, QB, Cardinals

Is it fair to single out a backup quarterback who only saw playing time because starter Carson Palmer broke his arm? Well, yes, it is, because this isn’t some untested rookie coming in to hold down the fort.

Stanton is an 11-year NFL veteran who has seen plenty of game action during his career. He completed just five of his 14 pass attempts and threw one of the worst interceptions you will ever see at the NFL level. Stanton simply isn’t a starter. Even by the standards of NFL backups, he’s just unbearably bad.

from Larry Brown Sports http://ift.tt/2l9aEZ8

[junker-town]

The Steelers are making a big, but risky, bet on their future

Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

And if it doesn’t work out, they’re screwed.

By trading next year’s first-round pick to Miami for ascendant safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, the Steelers are saying one of two things. Either:

1. They’re entirely confident Ben Roethlisberger can return to full strength or something comparable in 2020 and 2021, when he’ll be 38 and 39 years old, or 2. They’re entirely confident in Mason Rudolph, 2019’s backup-turned-starter thanks to Roethlisberger’s torn UCL.

Pittsburgh sold off its opportunity to draft a franchise quarterback in a passer-rich 2020 NFL Draft in exchange for the chance to cultivate Fitzpatrick into its next great center fielder. Bringing in a high-ceiling second-year safety isn’t entirely a win-now move, but it does address the team’s primary weakness through an 0-2 start. It also tips the Steelers’ hand as to its expectations for the future. So long, theoretical top-five rookie quarterback pick; hello, rebuilt Steel Curtain defense.

The question now is whether Rudolph and an injured/aging Roethlisberger can do enough with a depleted offense to make this move work. If not, passing up a potential franchise cornerstone for the second straight year could be the mistake that keeps Pittsburgh in football purgatory.

With Roethlisberger out and the offense foundering, Pittsburgh invested in its defense

In a vacuum, the move makes sense. The Pittsburgh offense has been dealt blow after blow the past two seasons. Contributors like Le’Veon Bell, Antonio Brown, and Jesse James departed. Roethlisberger is done for the season and starting tailback James Conner left Week 2’s loss to the Seahawks due to injury, though he’s slated to return to the lineup in Week 3. Contingency plans like Donte Moncrief (three catches on 11 targets) and James Washington (four on nine) have failed to pay off so far.

That’s going to make it incredibly difficult for an inexperienced backup quarterback like Rudolph to win a shootout, so general manager Kevin Colbert is trying to create an environment where he doesn’t have to. The Steelers’ passing defense has been its shortcoming in 2019, giving up 8.3 net yards per attempt — the 28th best mark in the league. Part of that is due to the fact they’ve faced a pair of MVP candidates early on in Tom Brady and Russell Wilson, but plenty of good passers still loom on their schedule.

Freeing Fitzpatrick from the Dolphins, who currently have all the structural soundness of a gingerbread house, will bring some much-needed stability to his budding career, and it should make Pittsburgh better. The problem is this team has failed to be more than the sum of its parts in recent years. The Steelers have talent at all three levels and mostly look like they should field an upper-tier defense. Instead, they’ve cracked the top 10 in yards given up per play only once since 2013.

This trade was made in the hopes Fitzpatrick can be the unifying force that brings them all together. He might be — and we’ll get to that later — but the most important part of the Pittsburgh lineup right now remains Rudolph. If he can’t jump-start the offense, then the Steelers could go from sending a mid-round pick for their starting safety — one who’ll need a costly extension in 2021 should he live up to expectations — to giving up a top-five pick.

Can Rudolph keep this from being a lopsided trade?

The second-year quarterback has shown signs of growth in 2019. After serving as the team’s third-string passer last fall, he showed enough through the preseason to convince Colbert to trade Joshua Dobbs to the Jaguars in September.

Rudolph paid off that faith with an encouraging, if not spectacular, performance in his first ever regular season action last Sunday. He completed 12 of his 19 passes for 112 yards, a pair of touchdowns, and one interception in a 28-26 loss. He led Pittsburgh on three scoring drives and would have had the chance for a fourth had the defense been able to get the ball back after kicking off to the Seahawks with 5:34 remaining in the game.

But that came against a Seahawks secondary that allowed Andy Dalton to lead the league in passing yards just a week before. Rudolph brings more questions than answers to the Pittsburgh offense, but the recent success of Big 12 air raid-style passers suggests he could live up to expectations in the Steel City.

Of course, the team’s most recent Big 12 QB draftee before Rudolph turned out to be XFL star Landry Jones. The Steelers are hopeful their new project from an Oklahoma institution of higher education will turn out better than the last.

If he can’t, there’s always next year. And Fitzpatrick’s presence could make it easier for a 38-year-old Ben Roethlisberger to bring Pittsburgh back to relevance in 2020.

Roethlisberger’s run through the late-2010s has been dotted with subtle and not-so-subtle hints about a potential retirement. His statement after hearing he’d miss the rest of the season strongly indicates he’ll be back next fall.

From Ben this afternoon: pic.twitter.com/bwfhavUSld

— BigBen7.com (@_BigBen7) September 16, 2019

The Steelers appear to have taken that statement to heart. They passed up the opportunity to draft Lamar Jackson in 2018, opting for defensive support in T.J. Watt and later landing on Rudolph late in the third round as a developmental “maybe” behind their star quarterback.

The Fitzpatrick trade is a similar decision. This time, however, instead of giving up a late first-rounder, the pick being burned to boost the defense could wind up landing in the top 10.

What can Fitzpatrick bring to the Steelers?

Fitzpatrick could be great. He just isn’t there yet. The former Alabama All-American and 11th pick of the 2018 NFL Draft got moved all over the Miami defense, playing at least 90 snaps at box safety, slot corner, outside corner and free safety as a rookie, per Pro Football Focus. He was most effective isolated from the sideline, where he earned high marks in slot coverage while struggling in more traditional cornerback roles.

The Dolphins wanted him to be their Swiss Army knife in a hole-filled secondary; the kind of player who could team with Xavien Howard to take on any job his coaches asked of him. Fitzpatrick wasn’t happy with the frequent switchups, which precluded his trade request in Miami. He’ll take on a more defined role in Pittsburgh, where Joe Haden and Steven Nelson will handle outside duties at corner. Fitzpatrick is slated to pair with fellow 2018 first-rounder Terrell Edmunds in the team’s top-line safety rotation.

Edmunds improved throughout his rookie season at strong safety, and this trade sets him in place as the anchor that lets Fitzpatrick drift around the defensive backfield without coming unmoored. Limiting his focus and playing to his strengths should allow Fitzpatrick to flourish, especially with a talented, if disorganized, roster around him.

It’s not hard to see what the Steelers are going for here. Fitzpatrick’s arrival gives them a long list of young, athletic talent (Edmunds, Bud Dupree, T.J. Watt, Devin Bush, et al) behind the defensive line. But they’re older at cornerback, so luring a versatile safety who can add double-team help in a pinch is especially useful. If Haden and Nelson can keep from giving up the sideline, Fitzpatrick will be there to help — and he’ll have to with the suddenly explosive Browns, Ravens, and huh, even the Bengals (12 yards per catch) residing in the AFC North.

That’s not all he’ll bring to the table. If Pittsburgh needs someone to line up against top slot receivers like Jarvis Landry, Tyler Boyd, Keenan Allen, or Cooper Kupp — all of whom remain on the schedule — the newest Steeler will be the man to do it. Miami may have moved Fitzpatrick around too much without the support system needed to help him grow, but Mike Tomlin has the flexibility to shift him from deep coverage to a man-to-man position in the slot without sacrificing quality elsewhere.

Pittsburgh’s biggest problem on defense the past season and a half was the massive vacuum left behind by Ryan Shazier’s absence. While Fitzpatrick can’t replace that, he can provide the additional layer of coverage that allows Edmunds to sneak closer to the line of scrimmage and some of the receiver/tight end shadowing and tailback-thumping power Shazier once brought to the lineup.

If Fitzpatrick turns into the Troy Polamalu successor the club’s dreamed of and Rudolph is a worthy successor to Big Ben, this is a great deal for Pittsburgh. If Fitzpatrick gives the team an above-average starting presence in the slot and Roethlisberger plays well until he’s 40, it’s a solid trade. But if Fitzpatrick remains uncomfortable playing out of position, Rudolph is Landry Jones 2.0, and a nearly 40-year-old Roethlisberger can’t recover from a season-ending injury, the Steelers are screwed.

Pittsburgh made a big bet with a high ceiling but a catastrophic floor. If 2019 was going to be a lost season, the team could at least take solace in the high-value draft pick that would follow. Now that safety net is gone — and it’s up to a former Dolphin and a third-round quarterback to keep the Steelers from crashing to the NFL’s underworld.