NFL (since 2016)

[crystal falace]

"Free agency started last night and was pretty crazy some huge money being spent. Osweiler getting £18m a year for the Texans, leaving the Broncos without a QB, Giants have spent a fortune on good but not great players, Oliver Vernon has more guaranteed money than JJ Watt. lots more deals but cant be bothered to list them all."

[Hermit Road]

Eagles were all over the Bills the other day. Took every end they had.

[crystal falace]

Hold up. Eagles are definitely the West Ham of the NFL. no doubt about it. Eagles won the superbowl 2 years ago!

[crystal falace]

"Don't the Philadelphia Eagles have the rowdiest fans? Do a quick youtube search of ""bills mafia"" and see what you think. They've had to ban folding tables at the tailgates because people keep jumping off trailers through them. Every time they play the Pats over the last few years at least one dildo finds its way onto the pitch, its very funny listening to the announcers squirm as they're not sure what to say"

[JustAFatKevinDavies]

its the browns fyi

[Hermit Road]

"Yeah I know but deep down, you know its the Eagles."

[southbankbornnbred]

Hahaha! I suspect every NFL fan on here is going to say that their team is the West Ham of the NFL. It's fine. I know it's the Jets.

[Hermit Road]

Hold up. Eagles are definitely the West Ham of the NFL. no doubt about it.

[southbankbornnbred]

"TM - yep, you couldn't make it up. And, guess what? It's already backfired. Who saw that one coming?! We're talking epic nonsense on a par with Roeder or Avram Grant. Our co-owner is Woody Johnson, now Donald Trump's US ambassador to London. That tells you everything you need to know about our ownership and how the Jets are currently run. It would be a bit like West Ham having a Conservative peer running the sh...oh...she's already beaten us to it!"

[Takashi Miike]

they let a coach appoint the GM? hahaha

[southbankbornnbred]

"I like the Dawg Pound. I've got a bit of a soft spot for the Browns which dates back to the 80s and Bernie Kosar. I didn't really support a particular team until I went to NYC, but I always liked Cleveland. They struck me as real fans supporting a real team in a real city. Often in three feet of snow."

[Far Cough]

"I do like the Dawg Pound though, I wish we had something like that"

[southbankbornnbred]

"Nah, those Eagles just make a lot of noise in a small market. They're as quiet as mice when they come to New Jersey. ;-)"

[southbankbornnbred]

"Cough - yep, either Broadway or Klecko. They are the Jets' version of Moore. Hermit. Exactly! That's exactly what I always think when I'm with Jets fans. They have a reputation in the US, yet they are relatively tame when compared with our lot in the 70s and 80s. They are still much more passionate than most sets of NFL fans, though. A bit like West Ham, I think the adversity contributes to that. I have no idea what I'd do if West Ham or the Jets ever became proper strong sides. I'd probably spontaneously combust. Possibly with rage. Until then, it's all about the fans and the craic."

[Far Cough]

Don't the Philadelphia Eagles have the rowdiest fans? Like you say nothing compares to the West Ham fans in the late 60s and 70s

[Hermit Road]

"I take the train into Penn station quite a lot and have been on it when the Jets fans got on. I liked it. Definitely had a bit of a proper football feel to it. Makes me smile a bit how the yanks find it intimidating because as much as they're a bit boisterous let's face it, it is hardly in the same universe as West Ham in the 80s."

[Far Cough]

So Joe Namath for the Jets was the equivalent of Bobby Moore to West Ham then?

[southbankbornnbred]

"Parcells was a good coach for us, too. He knew the city, he could manage all the nonsense and he didn't give a shit. We were just unlucky that we got him after the blue noses. I kind of fell into the Jets on an early trip to NYC. I'd always followed the NFL since I was kid (typical Channel Four convert) and my old man used to bring back NFL-related sweatshirts etc from his trips. But I never really had a team until I made my own way over to Gotham in my early 20s and fell into the intensity of the Jets' fanbase. They are proper nuts - ridiculously loyal considering how poor the team often is. I saw a lot of West Ham in that."

[Far Cough]

"Parcells was a great coach for the other mob in NY, you should have chosen them instead of the Jets"

[southbankbornnbred]

"Gotham, man. It's a tough old culture - like east London. That's why I love West Ham and the Jets."

[southbankbornnbred]

"New York's media is a BIG factor in the HC positions for the Jets and Giants. No other city has such a 24/7 intensity and intrusiveness with its NFL coverage. It's a goldfish bowl and the papers are ludicrously aggressive by US standards (all things are relative, obviously). Gase is already (rightly) being hounded out by the New York Post and others. You need to be a tough old bastard to ignore it all. That's why Belichick was the perfect appointment when he got the job - except that he didn't like the look of the New York market one bit! The rest is Boston history..."

[Far Cough]

Buddy did well at the Bears as a DC even though him and Ditka hated each other

[southbankbornnbred]

"Cough - only as a defensive co-ordinator in the 1970s. Buddy was never our head coach. We'd have won a lot more if he had been. His son, Rex, was head coach and was a brilliant defensive mind, like his dad. Rex's problem was that he didn't have the first clue about running an offense - and was too egotistical to hand over the offensive play-calling to a well-paid OC."

[southbankbornnbred]

Crystal - he'll have 31 better offers than us next season! ;-)

[Far Cough]

Didn't you have Buddy Ryan at one point?

[southbankbornnbred]

"The Jets have generally thrived when they've had a gnarly old bastard in charge or, at least, an experienced DC/OC who has moved up into the HC position. Weeb Ewbank (legendary Super Bowl winner: had already done it twice with the Colts) Joe Walton Big Tuna Herm Edwards Rex Ryan New York is no market for freshman. The media will tear inexperience to shreds. You need to be a gnarly and aggressive old fucker who has seen it all, working with younger co-ordinators. When we've tended to opt for younger coaches, we've generally chosen badly (Gase) or given them the job too soon (Pete Carroll). And don't get me started on what happened with Belichick - still gives me nightmares!"