NewCliche21

Bro, language, seriously. When someone is "struck down", that means that person was killed.

I mean this sincerely, what's your source? I definitely want to hear some good news regarding one of our all-timers!

Nothing much to add (as usual), but I really appreciate the conversations you guys have in this thread and others, especially from SIP, stevemcqueen1, and TSO. Just like the Skins, we have some real gems, not a whole lot of depth, and a pretty overrated guy who's writing this post.

Unfortunately but unsurprisingly, @ConnSKINS26 nailed it. It's not the same because nothing is the same. We may have some longtime players at some point, and if they see success, then we can have that rivalry again (a la Ravens/Steelers genuinely hating each other). Until then, and that's four or so years ago at the earliest IF we're equally competitive with the division, FedEx is going to be a 9th home game or neutral, and the animosity that we die hards have will still be simmering. It can happen, it just won't be until pretty major stars align, both in the sky and on the field.

Jee. Zus. He *NAILED* all of this. If he's as good on the field as he is in an interview, smart and humble, wanting to improve, then ladies and gents we REALLY have something here.

I think Samuels's sudden retirement due to spinal stenosis was the reason we took Williams that year. I don't think there was an overlap there unless I'm forgetting about Samuels being on the sidelines at some point.

In a recent interview, Rivera said (paraphrasing poorly) that he's listening to offers, but no matter what he has to get an impact guy or else we just have a bunch of picks. I'm a big fan of this approach. I'll take a HOFer (not crowning Young as such, just a hyperbolic hypothetical) over a couple of dice rolls for starters.

Nah. After what we've experienced for 20 years, good intentions or otherwise, the ultimate goal of being a fan of a team is to have that team win it all. After EVERYTHING we've been through, no, nothing short of the ultimate prize will do. That'll make it worth it. Otherwise it's just a continuation of the "almost" promise, just in perpetuity.

I get you, I do, you're not crazy in what you're saying. It's just that we are so, SO far removed from sustained success/realistic expectation of success that we're basically unfamiliar with what it's like to actually BE good. Just using the Cowboys as an example, they got to see a meteoric rise of a nobody into a franchise QB while we got to watch a shooting star; a meteor whose brief excellence was outshined by its flaming out before it could make a real impact. We suck, hard. We have for a while. When we're good, man, we are GOOD. The 1999, 2005, 2012, and even 2015 could really have been something special if they didn't get tripped up where they did. It's just that when we are good, we're setting ourselves up for disappointment in 2000, 2006, 2013, and 2016. Maybe not always terrible record-wise, but if I'm a fan or FA, I'm heartbroken or wanting to avoid my heart being broken. Hopefully it turns around, hopefully this is no longer true, but until we get three or so years of being competitive in a row, we're just not an ideal landing spot for our fans' cash or a FA regardless of the cash.

Yeah but, bro, it makes me sick to say this, but the Cowboys fans have had reason to be excited for a bunch more seasons than we have. Our head coach was fired because we sucked and weren't on our way up; their coach was fired because they weren't all the way at the top. In the past decade we've had some of the worst seasons in my third of a century of being a fan. Like, brings you down two weeks at a time, makes you give up your season tickets, makes the pain disappear (to answer the "Hurt" quote a page or two back), and makes FedEx a ninth home game for every team that comes. It doesn't have to be reflected in the record, but it usually is. I can understand if, dollars being basically equal, a player choosing elsewhere.

Rivera: Hi, I'm Coach Rivera. 71: Hi, $50 mil plz.

Disappointing, but I'm not sure how much I'm leaning towards "eff him." I think he saw what happened with Norman, knows we're looking at other CB's, and could see with Reed how quickly your career can go away. I don't much mind him doing this in February as opposed to June. I'd like to see him stay, though.

I see where you're coming from, and you're not being unreasonable. I just think that giving him a look is a false sense of possibility, like looking at an awesome car that doesn't run anymore and thinking about keeping it in the garage.

Reed is my favorite player on the team, but he's not worth the cap hit or the time it takes to gameplan for a guy who's hardly guaranteed to be on the field. I love the guy, but it's time for him to go. If he's smart, then it's time to hang it up altogether.

I just hope he takes this as a strong challenge rather than staying on the field to avoid the label when he genuinely gets an injury. Griffin pulled that and it ****ed us up royally (he should've been out of the game vs Seattle as soon as he threw that second touchdown). I hope Guice proves everyone wrong but doesn't make stupid decisions that derail that process. Not that he has as far as I know, but you put an NFL player in a position to prove his toughness and that's going to require a crap ton of discipline to make the smart decision if an injury does occur.