Patriots and Running Up the Score

[The Reservoir Dog]

I've been reading these comments with much interest and even more surprise. I never new of any unwritten rule of "Running up points" but I really do not see anything wrong with it.

I'll put it this way. If I'm going to spend £50 to go and see my team play i want to see them obliterate the opposition. If it's my team that's being obliterated then so be it. Patriot fans must be revelling in their teams performances every week and good for them. If the other team aren't good enough then it's tough luck. It's up to the other team to improve.

I'm a Raiders fan so I've got nothing to crow about but if we beat another team by 50 points, majestically spraying the ball to wide receivers in the end zone I certainly won't be worrying about the other team.

I don't believe in "unwritten rules" It goes along with armchair quarterbacks who predict the outcome of the game the day after it's played.
There are rules and that's it.

[caryrae]

I think it's the fans that worry about this more then the players. Sure they would love to win every game and the Super Bowl but win or lose even lose big time but they still get to go home to there Mansions and big expensive cars and put there huge diamond earrings on. Maybe if ya look at like if NE plays their best the whole game it gives the other teams more of a chance to learn how to play them and it gives the starters more of chance to get hurt.

[RAIDER]

These players earn alot of money probably more than us will probably ever earn in our lifetime. So there paid to do a job . I have absolutley no problem with the Patriots or infact any other team showing how good they are .Infact it means all the other teams have to step up another level to which that can only be good for the game .

People pay to see their team win and neutrals like to see a team inform .... To say or hint that a team should go down a gear or feel basically sorry for that team and stop scoring or stop their game plan is the most ludicrious thing i have heard ..especially in a team sport

The only time i would possibly agree to something like that is in a one sided boxing fight or something along those lines .

[caryrae]

Look how many College and High School football games are totally lopsided. Seems like every week there's scores like 50-60 to 7 or something like that.

Look at some of these scores from college games, 42-9, 56-3, 58-10, 64-12, 48-3, 58-0 but I never here anything about those teams running up the score and I only looked at 2 weeks worth of games.

Here are some of the most lopsided scores this year 59-0, 59-3, 63-6, another 59-0, 79-10, 73-10. Why is what the NE Pats did worse then these games? I don't see much difference between College football and the NFL.

[battlefield2freak]

i can remember one high school games i went to just recently. the score at the start of the 3rd: 63 - 7 the final ended up being 85 - 10. i agree with raider completely. i mean the players are getting paid to play there very best so they arent going to stop to let up on them.

[Ian]

Look how many College and High School football games are totally lopsided. Seems like every week there's scores like 50-60 to 7 or something like that .... I don't see much difference between College football and the NFL.

Actually, there's a huge difference. It's called the BCS.

In college football, margin of victory is a key stat that's taken into account in the BCS rankings, therefore, running up the score is not only acceptable it's necessary to ensure good Bowl positioning.

Don Banks wrote a great column today at SI.com discussing why it's not accepted in the NFL:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200....html?bcnn=yes

[caryrae]

Actually, there's a huge difference. It's called the BCS.

In college football, margin of victory is a key stat that's taken into account in the BCS rankings, therefore, running up the score is not only acceptable it's necessary to ensure good Bowl positioning.

Don Banks wrote a great column today at SI.com discussing why it's not accepted in the NFL:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200....html?bcnn=yes

A little I am not a big watcher of college football so I don't know many of the rules. Why can't the rules be closer to the same as NFL rules since most or all of NFL players played college football. Is it different (like having so many bowl games compared to 1 in the NFL) because college players only play a short number of years?

[Epc0tphr34k]

i don't think anyone is asking the players to play half speed. I certainly wouldn't ask them to do that because being an ex athlete and being injured in that particular way i know that when you go half way its that is when the injuries come. as much as there are several players i would like to see take a a big pop in the mouth or driven into the ground i don't want anyone hurt seriously. the running up the score comes from questionable calls like going on 4th when you are up big to "give the other team a chance to stop you" instead of kicking the feild goal or dialing up a 50 yd pass play when up big, you don't need to do that. Play hard but play smart and respectful.


The above quote was based from a sports reporter not the patriots


huh, i think this is one of the first times Ian and I have been on the same side of a debate. Even debates on our shared favorite team

[Epc0tphr34k]

Why can't the rules be closer to the same as NFL rules since most or all of NFL players played college football. Is it different (like having so many bowl games compared to 1 in the NFL) because college players only play a short number of years?

some of the rules are to make it easier to account for the broader spreading of talent. as far as the way the bcs is its based off the fact that you have so many teams and so many divisions how can you know who truly is the best you can't play everyone. A tourrnament style play off brings up the same question and in a contact sport its hard to do something like march madness without dragging the season out too far. the bcs is based on a formula rather than opinion and as Ian said margin of victory is part of that formula this kind of tells you mathematically who is the best team cause it also takes in to account strength of schedule and other factors. hope that explains it better, the bcs is kinda complicated and but it basically breaks down to more teams makes it more complicated to find a true number 1 team without bringing opinion into it

[Ian]

A little I am not a big watcher of college football so I don't know many of the rules. Why can't the rules be closer to the same as NFL rules since most or all of NFL players played college football. Is it different (like having so many bowl games compared to 1 in the NFL) because college players only play a short number of years?

Honestly? The real answer is money. Bowl games = huge money for colleges and they want opportunities for the maximum numbers of teams to play in Bowls.

[RAIDER]

For me The New England coach is paid big bucks to win the superbowl ..He has not cheated in the last game ( to which i think we all agree ) apprantley the only crime he has commited to some is "break a rule that ACTUALLY doesnt exist in the nfl rule book " ...By scoring loads of points in whatever fashion ....

If i was a Patriots fan and they do go out and get revenge on the Colts away from home and make a statement and the tactic of winning in the fashion that they did last week motivates their players ... Then i take my hat off to the NE coach .For he has motivated his team and his fans and also surely put the Colts on the backfoot on their own turf ....

I applaud him and i applaud New England players for having the skill to win in such fashion ...Cos i wish my team ( RAIDERS) could ....

Again i state these people are paid alot of money to entertain and play at their best ...Its up to the rest of the teams to step up to their level and not whinge

[The Reservoir Dog]

This brings the question that if a team goes 40 points up why should they then lower their standards.

Raider makes a good point. These players are paid alot of money to entertain and we the supporter pay alot of money for the pleasure.
The New England team should be applauded for giving their fans and football lovers as a whole the sparkling entertainment. After all this is what we pay our money for.

[battlefield2freak]

this brings up the colts. the patriots have alot of respect for their opponets wether they show it or not. take the cowboys game in week 6 they was all out there having a good time romo talked with a couple of patriots, same goes for the colts. raider jsut emphasizes more on what i said previously, its up to the other team to stop the patriots because thats what they are paid to do and the patriots are just out there to play football.

i know this is off topic but when that one redskin player was yelling at bill after the game for having no respect what respect did he show for his team and his own self? same for that chargers playoff game last season

[JPL]

This brings the question that if a team goes 40 points up why should they then lower their standards.

I'm not saying a team should lower their standards and stop playing but this is a great time to get you backups more game experience and rest your starters to protect them from injury.
Let's take a scenario that could happen.
So you the Pats and up by 40 points with 5 minutes left in the 4th and you have your starters in. They driving down the field to score a meaningless touchdown your Starting QB gets drilled and takes out your starting RB's knee in the process both are gone for the season. I can garauntee you every fan who was defending the Pats running up the score would be saying how stupid it was and why were they in the game up 40 points. Now you lost you 2 key starters and are relying on backups who got very little palying time when they had plenty of oppurtunity to get into games that were by all accounts over.

So this isn't only about professionalism and sportsmanship it's about looking past your egos and doing what's good for the team and organization as a whole.

As far as entertainment value that was also mentioned I find nothing entertaining about a blowout in any sport and will even change the channel when my teams are blowing someone out.

[SBETigg]

Don Banks wrote a great column today at SI.com discussing why it's not accepted in the NFL:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200....html?bcnn=yes

Ian, thanks! That was a great article. It wasn't actually discussing "why it's not accepted in the NFL" as much as it was a nice pro-con examination of the Patriots season and their flaunting. Nicely done. I found his word choice interesing, in the first paragraph:

We can argue the pros and cons of their no-holds-barred approach. We can moralize or philosophize about the message it sends or the long-term wisdom of employing such a strategy. But there can be no debate about whether the New England Patriots are running up the score on their out-classed opponents this season.

Out-classed opponents. Hmmm. That would be the opposite of your opinion, of course. But I now have a better understanding of the running up the score debate and I ended feeling very "Go, Patriots!" And I hope it's a good game against the Colts.

[RAIDER]

I'm not saying a team should lower their standards and stop playing but this is a great time to get you backups more game experience and rest your starters to protect them from injury.
Let's take a scenario that could happen.
So you the Pats and up by 40 points with 5 minutes left in the 4th and you have your starters in. They driving down the field to score a meaningless touchdown your Starting QB gets drilled and takes out your starting RB's knee in the process both are gone for the season. I can garauntee you every fan who was defending the Pats running up the score would be saying how stupid it was and why were they in the game up 40 points. Now you lost you 2 key starters and are relying on backups who got very little palying time when they had plenty of oppurtunity to get into games that were by all accounts over.

So this isn't only about professionalism and sportsmanship it's about looking past your egos and doing what's good for the team and organization as a whole.

As far as entertainment value that was also mentioned I find nothing entertaining about a blowout in any sport and will even change the channel when my teams are blowing someone out.

So basically put on your second team /backups on when your winning by lots ...... Dont you think that could be viewed as more of an insult to the other team? ..

I hear were your coming from on the injuries and its a fair point and if it backfires the manager can only be held responsible for his over indulgence .However i really believe in this case NE were sending out a message to the Colts

But again i have no problem with teams going for an out an out win as long as its under the rules

At the end of the day NE are playing for their fans and their entertaining their fans who basically pay a certain percentage to their teams wages so i am sure that when they were winning by a huge amount and in this manor i doubt very much they turned off .

Yes a blow out can be boring to watch i agree on that point. But if it was my team then no i wouldnt find it boring and lets be honest NE werent playing to the neutrals at that point they were playing for their fans.

What they did last week ups the anti in this weeks game with the colts in my view. The Colts will have to up their game and if they do win then the playoffs between these 2 teams will be explosive if they end up facing each other again

[JPL]

So basically put on your second team /backups on when your winning by lots ...... Dont you think thats more of an insult to the other team? ..

That is not an insult to the other team at all because your best players are still that ones that beat the team.

[battlefield2freak]

actually for the past 2 weeks including week 8 they have put in matt cassel and this week their new rookie QB they are both 2nd and 3rd string QB's.

in relation to sending a message to the colts i dont think so really. they are just playing like they have been for the past 4-5 weeks

[Ian]

Out-classed opponents. Hmmm. That would be the opposite of your opinion, of course.

I'm sorry ... I'm very confused. How is that the opposite of my opinion??

[SBETigg]

I'm sorry ... I'm very confused. How is that the opposite of my opinion??

That the Patriots are out-classing their opponents? You said you feel they are lacking class. Outclassing their opponents would mean the Patriots have more class, the opposite of your reaction. No worries. I believe he meant outplaying them, not necessarily a statement on class. I was enjoying the word choice, just having fun.