I'm not the only one who feels that way about Geno. The Ringer has him seventh. He's often making the most of a less-than-ideal situation. He's a genuine threat to throw for 400 yards in any game. You can only say that about, like, five other QBs. Seattle is fourth in offensive DVOA. I think your anti-Seattle blinders get in the way sometimes.

Cousins isn't the same guy anymore. The Falcons are only averaging 18.5ppg.

Love is a ceiling pick. Ironically, I think he's in a similar situation to Purdy. He has great weapons and Matt LaFleur is criminally underrated. LaFleur has a 67% win percentage.

I think Cincinnati was robbed of that Super Bowl. The refs won that game with a phantom defensive holding call on the biggest play of the game. I don't look at championships as make or break for athletes. Eli Manning, Joe Flacco, and Russell Wilson have no business in the Hall of Fame despite their postseason success.

Super Bowl or not, I've always been a Stafford believer. Talk about making the best of a bad situation. He's 10th all-time in passing yards.

I think QBs 3-7 are pretty interchangeable depending on who you like.

I'm sorry -  but there's just no way.   The guys at the Ringer do what they do but they aren't right about this -  having him as the 15th QB in the league is bonkers.     Here's the thing - I guess if you dropped them all into the same generic team maybe he's 15th - but that's not where he is.   

He plays for Kyle Shanahan and that isn't going to change any time soon so he'll get to continue doing what he's doing - which is be -  by the metrics - the most efficient Quarterback through 25 games that there has ever been. 

Joe Montana got to play the vast majority of his career under Bill Walsh,  but people still call him one of the best to ever play.   He left the Niners to play for another Hall of Fame coach before he retired.   He played for three coaches,   Walsh, Seifert and Schottenheimer.    Nobody says Montana was a system QB, Montana was a product of the scheme.   But he honestly might have been.   Who cares.

Geno Smith was a goddamned garbage fire his first 25 games in the League.  He couldn't dream of doing what Brock Purdy is doing back then.    If you swapped Purdy and Geno Smith right now -  Purdy would fare better than Geno, I would bet money on it.     

That's the exercise. All circumstances even, who's the best bet to win games? That's why I rank Lamar a little lower than others might. Without an offense tailored to his specific skill set, he wouldn't be nearly as valuable.

Smith was bad when he entered the league, but how much of that was the Jets? He wasn't able to overcome his circumstances then. I think he might be now. I agree that through 25 games, Purdy is the better QB. Hell, Purdy has probably had a better career. But if I were trying to win games, for this year only, I'd rather have Geno.

It's a pointless exercise is what I'm saying.    What is the point of arguing "in a vacuum this QB would be better" when they don't play in a vacuum?   

Without McCaffrey, Samuel and Kittle on the field Purdy was able to find Jauan Jennings for 175 yards and 3 touchdowns. 

Anyway - we can move off this.    I'm interested to see where Davante Adams ends up.   Crazy for a coach to hit the "Like" button on a social media post suggesting one of his players get traded.   Quite the way have your team's back.   I see alot of people saying the Cowboys should throw a second rounder at it and I think that would be hilarious

Some interesting football coming up this weekend.

Jets-Vikings in the early, early slot in London.     Jets got embarrassed at home by the Broncos.  And now they meet up with this Minnesota juggernaut.   The overseas trip gets weird though and it's a longer flight for the Vikings by like two and a half hours than it is for the Jets...   will cracks start to show on this Vikings squad.   Will the Jets prove they should have post season aspirations or really are the 'same ol' Jets'

After the Falcons just got done winning a nail biter over the saints they get another division match up with the Bucs Thursday night.   Tampa has been playing pretty well with wins over the Commanders, Lions and Eagles and an inexplicable loss to the Broncos.   They should be good enough to beat this inconsistent Falcons team, but who knows.

Ravens/Bengals is always a hoot.   Baltimore looks like they are back on track and Cinci's only win is over the hapless Panthers, but in this division rivalry you can't take anything for granted.

On the other end of the spectrum  Dolphins/Patriots might be one of the worst games all year.  I think the Pats defense is good enough that the Dolphins won't get anywhere,  though the Patriots offense isn't great either.

Bills/Texans is another potential barn burner.  Bills got spanked last week on national TV.  Houston needs to prove they are real contenders.   This should be a good one.

Packers should be able to buzz the beleaguered Rams mash unit.   Stafford is a dude but I just don't see how he hangs with this Green Bay team.

Seahawks get the on-field by this week at home against the Giants.   Pretty much as good as it gets sandwiched between a Monday night game in Detroit and a Thursday night game against the Niners.

Niners meanwhile get the Cardinals.   Arizona got run out of the building by Washington last Sunday and SF should be able to have similar success moving the ball.   But the Niners defense has looked a bit leaky and Kyler Murray is the kind of QB that can give them problems.    With a short week before they go to Seattle they can't look past the Cardinals who are friskier than they might appear.

Monday night is Saints at Chiefs.   The Eagles broke the Saints it seems.   Derek Carr from the first two games and Derek Carr from the second two games don't even resemble the same person.   The Chiefs offense is likewise broken -  but the keep finding ways to win.   Their defense is good enough that their offense doesn't have to do much and I think they get to 5-0 on the strength of that.

I reject the notion that the Panthers are hapless. They look like a real football team now that they aren't starting a high school QB.

To paraphrase the late, great Dennis Green, the Saints are who I thought they were. Carr hasn't looked like a quality NFL starter in years. Mayfield is the most trustworthy QB in the division. (Unless you think it's Dalton, who has low-key been excellent for years according to PFF.)

That's fair.   The Panthers certainly put up more fight with Dalton against the Bengals than they could have with Bryce.    I'll be interested to see what they can do against the Bears this week.    It would be kind of hilarious if the  Panthers who benched last years first overall pick go out and beat this years first overall pick.    And it's not like the Bears have been great.   They are definitely beatable.    That is a sneaky watchable game for me.

I'm with you on Derek Carr.   I knew those first two weeks were fool's gold.    I do really like the Saints OC but I feel like he should have stayed in SF until an OC job with a real QB opened up... like maybe the Bears job next year?     

So...  I will say I did not have Robert Saleh as the first coach fired this NFL season.

There was a clear power struggle between Rodgers and Saleh - and easier to fire the head coach who hasn't had a winning season in 3.5 years (despite being saddled with tragic QB play) than it is to fire the past his prime super-star who is clearly flailing, but keeps fans attention.

Saleh is a defensive coach who's defense has been a top 5 unit ever since he got there.   His GM hit on some offensive talent at receiver and running back but missed badly on the O-line and the QB play has been a dumpster fire.     But you can't blame the defense on a team that lost a game 10-9 and held the QB to negative passing yards in the first half.   

I guess that's why they promoted the current DC to interim head coach.

I don't love this for my nephew -  Saleh was a fan of his and had his back - so this could change his usage or standing on the team.    I doubt he'll be interested in returning again next season now.

But I also doubt the Jets will get better.    Aaron Rodgers is washed.   Saleh wasn't holding him back,  this team isn't holding him back,  his old body can't do the magic things he used to be able to do.    Those 3 interceptions in the Vikings game were on him, man.    This season is going to get ugly.

Niners are snake-bit this season.   Three losses by a combined 10 points.   The two conference losses were games they had won and gave away with silly mistakes.   The dropped Ronnie Bell pass that would have won the Rams game and the fumble at the 5 yard line that would have won the Cardinals game are just brutal.    But the Niners have a defense problem.   Their D can't hold the line when it matters -  and against mediocre teams,  so it seems unlikely they will suddenly get better at stopping the good teams when it counts.

But, if they beat the Seahawks on Thursday night they will still be in first place in the division at 3-3 with 11 games to play and McCaffrey coming back to help smooth out things on offense at least.

I don't think Saleh is a very good coach. There's a ton of talent on that Jets roster, even if the QB is washed. It's hard to argue that they should be better than 3-2, but I would've fired Saleh, too. I would've fired him last year.

I can't say I'm shocked by SF's struggles. The Super Bowl hangover is a real thing. They could still win the division, but this has real "year from hell" potential.

I feel good about my Saints pick. They continue to crater.

Alright... a little order restored at least.    Even with a 5th string running back toting the rock and high school kids playing safety and corner the Niners were able to beat the Seahawks in Seattle and reclaim first place.  

Now they have to figure out a way to get their shit together with a little extra prep time and actually beat the Chiefs.   The Chiefs haven't looked like world beaters so far this season, at least on offense - but their defense is savage and Mahomes can do exactly enough to beat you.    If SF can somehow find a way to gut out a win against KC,  they really might be able to right the ship and set a course for where they need to go.

Some key games this weekend:

Cardinals at Packers -   I kind of need the Packers to win (and it hurts to say that) so the Niners aren't in a 3-way tie at the top of the NFC West.   Will be interesting to see how that one plays out.

Commanders at Ravens has turned into a surprisingly interesting match up.   The Commanders are 4-1 and have been playing pretty well... the Ravens are now 3-2 after an 0-2 start but have wins against the Cowboys, Bills and Bengals in there -  so this should be fascinating.    If Washington is for real we will learn about that in this one.  The Ravens have a crazy good record against NFC teams, so...

Lions at Cowboys -  Dallas needs this to prove that they are for real and the Lions want this to be taken seriously in the talk as a contender in the NFC -  lately all the commentators seem to have forgotten them saying the NFC is wide open, that the Niners are vulnerable, that the Commanders could win the east and that the Vikings and Packers are in a fight for the North...  Detroit needs to remind people that it was about one good quarter of football from the Super Bowl last year and this is a game that would send that message.   

Bills at Jets -  This one is weird.  The Bills are now reeling after losing two in a row.  They got mud stomped by the Ravens - and got taken down by the Texans.   The Jets are a dumpster fire - but Rodgers has a lot to prove and this would be the time to do it.   Monday night stage against the bullies of the division.   If you beat them you take over first place...   there's a world where that happens, but I think it's more likely the Jets fall on their face and Buffalo chokes them out.

So -  Ravens/Commanders maybe lived up to the hype.   Ravens by a touchdown felt like the right outcome but it was good game with some gutty performances.  The Ravens offense looks like it's humming now.

Cowboys - who boy.  That was a whoopin'.    That was maybe worse than the beatdown the Niners gave them last season because it was in front of their home crowd on Jerrah's birthday.    Lions did anything and everything they wanted.    That was crazy.

If the Jets kicker could kick,  they maybe win that game.   But I guess losing got the owner to panic enough to make sure he got Rodgers' favorite receiver shipped over from the Raiders.     I do think Adams will make the Jets offense better,  but they have a big 2 and 4 hole to climb out of.  

Big one this Sunday for my team.   Niners still haven't put together a complete game yet that has looked impressive start to finish.   Would be nice to finally do it Sunday against the Chiefs.   That KC defense is for real though and the Niners line has been having trouble with average pass rush so Chirs Jones could wreck things.  

And I don't understand how it seems to happen to us every year but we play the Chiefs coming off of their bye week and then we play the Cowboys after their bye week.    Last season I think  they played 4 teams coming off of their bye week - it was ridiculous.   I would rather teams didn't have the extra time to game plan against us thanks.

Google "rest advantage." It's a real thing the NFL is going to have to fix, especially with so many people betting on these games.

Wow... I knew it felt like we were getting hosed on net schedule rest, but to see it laid out like that is crazy.   The data shows that the Niners had the worst net rest disadavantage of any team last season and then got an ever worse net rest disadvantage this season.    That's ridiculous.      The 49ers have 8 games this year where they have a rest disadvantage against their opponents... fully half of their games.     

I guess some of it is inevitable being a west cost team - because you lose time traveling east and the majority of teams are in time zones east of them - so even just an away game that isn't in division ends up being disadvantageous compared to a team that travels east to play in the west.   

But hey...  at least they get to come off of their bye and play against Tampa who will be coming off a Monday night game,  so I guess that's one week they get a net rest advantage.

Well,  it's another of these "seasons from hell" for the Niners.    It was shaping up that way when our rookie wide receiver got shot during training camp,  then McCaffrey went down suddenly before game 1.    When Hargrave was lost for the season it was definitely a bad sign.  Hufanga coming back for one game and instantly getting hurt again.    But now -  Aiyuk - after holding out, playing just OK, and then out for the year tearing both the ACL and MCL.   Deebo out with pneumonia?   Kittle playing on one foot.     Brock Purdy is definitely seeing ghosts.   He doesn't trust anything that's happening on the field right now and Spags is in his head hard.   The defense is shot with no consistent up front and  missing Dre Greenlaw in a major way.        

We are down bad and I don't even think we can take advantage of the garbage Dallas Cowboys for a get right game in this condition.     And it sucks because the division is terrible.    If the Seahawks lose to the Bills and the Niners somehow pull off a win against Dallas SF is still back in first at 4-4, which is silliness.

At least the Lions-Vikings game was good.   That was fun to watch.   Imagine if the Vikings had squeaked out the win though - with their first touchdown coming because Dan Campbell tried a fake punt from his own 30 in the first quarter.   That division is going to get spicy with the Packers showing some spunk.   I think the Vikings are going to tumble a bit.  Darnold's play is going to slip a bit and Flores' defense is going to be a little less effective as teams sort out what can beat it.

College football also got intriguing this weekend with Georgia stomping Texas to leapfrog Penn State and Ohio State and get back to #2.      Oregon's toughest game left on the schedule is Illinois on Saturday.   the Illini are 6-1 and ranked #20.   After that they play Michigan who has lost by double digits to Illinois and Washington in back to back weeks.   Then they finish with Maryland, Wisconsin and Washington to finish the year.     That schedule is as easy as anybody in the top 10.   So they should have the inside track to be ranked #1 going into the 12 team playoff.   Ohio State still has Penn State (#2) and Indiana (currently #13).    Penn State's only tough game is Ohio State and it's at home - but that's a big one.    Georgia still has #7 Tennessee and #18 Ole Miss.   Honestly,  I hated all the non-regional realignment,  but this has been one of the most fun college football seasons in a long time.

Also -  I know it's the wrong thread, but  a Yankees-Dodgers world series for the first time since 1981.    This is the 12th time the two teams have met in the Series - but the first time in 43 years!     That's seems crazy.    I was a little kid in 1977, 1978 and 1981 -   but the two teams playing each other 3 times in 5 years had a huge impact on my psyche.    Each team has been back a few times since then - but this seems like THE match up, so its crazy that it hasn't happened since I was a little kid.

@panthercult I'm so disgusted by the Yankees/Dodgers world series that I'm just checking out of baseball for the year.  I even muted r/baseball for the rest of the post season because it's going to be one article after another about Ohtani's first world series, with all these sports news sites competing for the clicks.  The Guardians were my last hope for someone palatable to win but they couldn't hold on.

I get it - considering it's the two teams that outspend everyone it's shocking that they don't face each other more often.   

I sure wish Aaron Judge had gone with his heart and signed with the Giants (and brought some pitching with him)