Fear The Chorizo

I'd rather the badgers play osu in the title game. If they can't beat them then they don't deserve a shot at the natl title. If they do, then it bolsters their SOS to the point where it should be impossible for other conferences to get more than 1 team in and shun the badgers. And if osu beats the badgers, I don't see how they'd leapfrog 1 loss okla, 1 loss miami, or 1 loss ala, 1 loss georgia, or even two loss auburn or Clemson depending on how things shake out. Big ten's only hope for a playoff team is the badgers. I think there are still scenarios where the acc and sec could get two teams in despite an undefeated WI.

As stated before, it's all about the money & the bowl system why D1 football doesn't have a full blown playoff...but, I think the next step in this should be expanding to a 6-team playoff. Top 2 teams get a bye, while teams 3-6 play a round of games the saturday of Christmas weekend (would be Dec 23 this year). That gives teams #3-6 three full weeks after conference championship week to rest up and prepare. Winners of playoff games that weekend then play teams #1 and #2 on New Year's weekend, with the national championship then being played the week after New Years just like it currently is. A 6 team playoff compared to 4 is better because it guarantees all 5 power conferences get at least 1 team in if they are deserving, plus it leaves at least 1 spot open for the best at-large bid (best power 5 conference team not to win its conference or a deserving non-power 5 conference team). I think 6 teams is better than 8 because it rewards the top two teams with a bye, putting more emphasis on overall regular season performance (SOS, quality of conference, eye test, etc). Those top two could even be decided following a formula similar to how the BCS did it, with teams 3-6 selected by a committee. The bowl season can keep chugging along with the top 6 teams in a playoff compared to the top 8...and it could focus even more on pairing conference head to head matchups to help settle each year's debate about which conferences are the toughest.

The Patriots were just about last in the waiver order so it's not like he was flat out released and everyone had an equal chance at him. Almost 30 teams passed. Which makes it all the more fishy - if Bennett doesn't know ahead of time that the Pats were going to pick him up, there's no way he's telling everyone else that he can't play.

If I'm the NFL, I'm checking his phone records to see how many New England area codes show up from the bye week until he was cut in Green Bay...seems all too convenient that the Patriots of all teams claimed him seemingly 5 seconds after he was released.

Wisconsin-Michigan is likely the only matchup between ranked teams this week...would be great to notch an impressive win, but will be tough. These teams are basically mirror images of each other - great defenses with mediocre offenses due to inconsistent qb play and turnovers. I also think Harbaugh will have a decent game plan against the Badger defensive scheme that to this point has been overwhelming opponents. Hornibrook somehow needs a clean game for WI to have the advantage.

If I remember correctly, part of the 4-team CFP sale at the time was that it enabled non-power 5 conference teams a better shot at getting into the national title picture - as it's shaken out I think it's made it even more difficult. All it really did was guarantee the "best" non-power 5 conference team a major bowl game, since the CFP games take the top 4 teams away from what were former BCS-type bowl games (Orange, Sugar, Rose, Fiesta). Any further expansion to 8 teams should be structured to guarantee spots to the 5 power conference champs, best non power 5 conference champ, and 2 at large teams. It stinks that right now, roughly 1/2 the teams playing NCAA Division 1 football don't even have a chance to play for the National Title based on the selection format alone!

What I worry about is Alabama losing to Auburn, Georgia beating Auburn, and Miami beating Clemson. Then you have two 1-loss SEC teams (Alabama, Georgia) with an undefeated Miami and one-loss Oklahoma. That's the one scenario I can see where Wisconsin could be on the outside looking in. In that Scenario, Georgia is the only SEC team in the playoff. Alabama playing Mercer of all programs this coming weekend should seal that. ND getting crushed against Miami solidified my opinion that they were severely overrated, and Georgia's "best non-conference quality win" was also severely overrated since they squeaked by the Irish in week 1. The SEC is ALA, Auburn, and nothing else at this point. Badgers' SOS argument shouldn't come into play at all if they finish undefeated. Run the table and they're in. If the committee somehow has Georgia ranked ahead of the Badgers next week, then the fix is in - and look for everyone outside of the SEC to cry foul.

Wisconsin won't make the CFP unless they are undefeated...However based on today's results I think it's borderline impossible for an undefeated Big Ten champ to miss the playoff. That's about the best WI could've hoped for. And no way Bama should be ranked #1 next week (even though they will) - that team is begging to get beat. I hope the committee sends a message to SEC schools after their slate of games next weekend and just automatically drops them all 1 spot in the rankings. No way should they be playing non-FCS schools instead of a 9th conference game.

UGA exposed today, hoping for ND to go down tonight as well and wisky really couldn't have asked for better outcomes to improve their position this weekend. Although I'm sure auburn will be ranked in front of them tuesday...

Iowa with as many points as total offensive yards midway through the 3rd quarter due to two hornibrook pick 6s...terrified every time he passes the ball at this point!

The main reason Ray is still well-regarded as a prospect is his tools/natural ability. On-field results absolutely need to improve, but there's no way he should be considered a bust. Also hoping he finishes strong, and gets a chance at a healthy offseason to continue developing compared to last year, which he had to spend rehabbing his leg injury. Looking for big things from Ray next year.

In general I think it's the playing surface evolution as well. Obviously the field turf / blended surfaces are way better than the carpet on concrete astroturf from back in the day, but all NFL field surfaces are geared towards increasing speed and traction without requiring players to have 3/4" cleats to gain footing. Basically transforming football fields into basketball courts. The problem with that is it allows for bigger and faster players to play extremely fast, increasing the recklessness they are throwing themselves around with and cutting on a dime. I feel like the ligament injuries have drastically increased with the advent of these artificial surfaces, and it's only enhanced by players being able to increase muscle/size/speed parameters while the ligaments holding them together aren't able to support them. If the NFL were to go back to predominantly grass surfaces, the game would slow down and maybe the ligament-type injuries wouldn't be as pronounced...however I don't know if having all the fields play like Soldier Field would be good for the game and it would probably lead to other injuries commonly caused by slips/uneven surfaces (groin pulls, ankle sprains, etc)

Cephus officially done for the year - that hurts, especially when nobody knows if/when Peavy will be back on the field

Agreed, but it's telling that both the committee and talking heads have spent the past few weeks setting up the current rankings to provide wiggle room for 1 and even 2 loss teams to be in front of the Badgers if they stay undefeated. Circular, hyprocritical arguments are made to both suppress WI's resume and bolster these 1-loss teams to the point where it feels like the Big Ten is no longer a power 5 conference...yet they currently have SIX teams in top 25 - should be 7 with Michigan.

Both of Michigan's losses came with their backup QB...yet somehow Michigan is viewed as awful even though those losses were against Michigan State and Penn State. Clemson loses to Syracuse because their starting QB got dinged (although they were down 17-14 when he got concussed, which includes Clemson scoring a touchdown defensively), and they are somehow automatically a top-4 team thus far.

Bucky bumps up a spot in the CFP to #8 due mostly to Penn St. and Ohio St. losing last week - they also got leapfrogged by Miami. This weekend's games will be extremely interesting, since ND plays Miami, Oklahoma plays TCU, and Georgia plays Auburn - guaranteed that at least 2 of the teams rated ahead of Wisconsin lose, so if the Badgers beat Iowa they should jump up at least 2 spots. What I'm really interested in seeing is how far Alabama or Georgia falls after they lose a game...it will be telling if Georgia loses to Auburn and an undefeated WI still finds the Bulldogs ahead of them in next week's rankings. Knowing how things would transpire, I wouldn't be surprised if Auburn would leapfrog them, too.

With Daniels, Clark, Perry, Martinez, Burnett, HHCD,J. Jones, & King, our defense has players. While I somewhat agree, I think it's a combination of everything - bad scheme, bad defensive personnel decisions, including drafting, and poor development. Of the players you mentioned, Perry and Burnett are constantly injured/dinged and it definitely affects their play. Martinez is a decent run defender but suffers and is picked on in pass coverage. Clark has promise, but he's not yet a difference maker in terms of pass rush...I think he's more Ryan Pickett than BJ Raji. Daniels can play, but he may still be hampered by that early season injury and he's getting long in the tooth for an interior lineman. HHCD is having a bad year and doesn't seem to have the ability to make plays on the ball or blow up a play based on instinct. King and Jones appear to have all the physical tools and ability you'd want at the positions they play, but I have concerns they won't fully develop if the coaching they receive is trash. The same could be said for Randall and Rollins midway through their rookie years, and look where they are now...

That just might do it for his time as a Packer...he's had a good career, but his legs/body is at the point where he can't be relied on to stay on the field and his contract is too rich to keep him around as a backup. I think it'd be a 3.2Million dollar cap hit, but they'd save $5M plus on his 2018 salary on a guy who won't be ready to play anywhere close to the start of next season. Tons of work to be done on this roster heading into 2018...Getting Rodgers back healthy drastically improves the outlook, but there are glaring warts and a lack of quality depth throughout.

I think as a whole, the Packers defensive coaching staff is atrocious - plus I think their base scheme is incredibly outdated. They may have a ton of defensive sub packages with cute names, but it seems like opponents know the 2-3 defensive calls for just about every sub package. Even an average QB can make adjustments at the line of scrimmage to end up creating a perfect matchup or audible for what the Packers defense is trying to do. The Packers always seem to have a defender playing out of position or matched up against someone they have no business covering, and teams consistently take advantage. The one thing that could make this defense average is three or four guys who can flat-out pass rush and win 1 on 1 blocking battles with an O-lineman. They simply don't have that, forcing the team to blitz more than it should. More than ever, today's NFL requires star-caliber players on defense to make a difference by consistently dominating their individual matchups/assignments. GB's defense is a combination of guys who "push" their matchups, nobody who dominates, and a few positions that consistently get dominated. I feel like now more than ever, the defensive coaching staff needs to be completely gone and fresh blood from outside the Packer organization needs to put their own stamp on things. McCarthy has basically ceded control of the defensive side of the ball to Capers, so it should be pretty easy to cut ties with all of it. If not, then McCarthy needs to be scrutinized even more.

Last night's game gave me a sense of relief that we decided to cut the cable cord earlier this year AND not purchase NFL sunday ticket to watch Packer games since I live out of market...with Rodgers basically done for the year this team is unwatchable - probably going to further cripple NFL TV ratings when one of their teams with a national following is a hot mess.

Cephus and Orr already ruled out for the Iowa game...injuries to key players on both sides of the ball not good heading into a tough game. Hopefully they don't miss significant time, but being ruled out on a Monday is worrisome.

Looking at this coming week's slate of games, I would like nothing more than hitting the following superfecta of results: WI beats Iowa Alabama finds a way to lose at Miss St. Auburn beats Georgia Miami beats ND Clemson loses against FSU OKLA loses to TCU Washington loses at Stanford Talking heads would explode...and I think in reality most of the above outcomes could easily happen.

I also noticed the AP poll garbage...WI ranked #3 in the coaches poll, though. Maybe coaches just don't have enough time to read everything the experts have sent them to dictate how they rank teams Michigan has been written off much too soon due to those two losses, largely brought on by their starting qb getting injured. Their losses came against msu and psu with their poor backup qb play, not syracuse...so I guess they get shafted. It's unfortunate...based on actual on field talent and the way the teams are playing up to this point, wisconsin is going to have two very difficult opponents the next two weeks - but if they find a way to win what should be two hard fought games, M and Iowa will be considered inferior tests because they couldn't beat the badgers.

I agree regarding preseason rankings carrying way too much weight...ap poll shouldn't come out until november, cfp shouldn't issue any rankings until thanksgiving week. Preseason rankings are pretty much an extension of recruiting class rankings and prior year results....things that are insignificant once games start being played

What I can't stand in this whole CFP discussion is how the Big Ten is always looked from the perspective of resumes for the East division teams, and WI gets dismissed due to strength of schedule concerns - I feel like in November, power 5 conference teams need don't need to start being compared based on "quality wins" (nobody really knows what a quality win is until the season's over anyway) until they lose a game. If a power 5 conference team goes undefeated AND wins its conference championship, they should be in the playoff no questions asked. The only scenario where WI should be left out of the playoff as an undefeated Big Ten champion is if you have 3 other undefeated power 5 conference champs and an undefeated independent like ND. Since that's nowhere close to a possibility, WI is in if they win out. If WI loses a game, then its strength of schedule should get questioned when compared to other 1 and potentially 2 loss teams the committee may need to fill out the 4-team playoff. Until they lose a game, why can't the analysts simply state that? I also think there are still so many matchups down the stretch against teams in front of WI in the initial CFP rankings, that it won't matter who an undefeated WI would play in the Big Ten title game - no matter how many losses they'd have. Wins against Iowa and Michigan will put the Badgers at or on the cusp of the #4 CFP ranking heading into championship week - and if they aren't in the top 4 before their conference title game, there will be at least 1 other conference title game with two teams ranked ahead of them playing each other in what should be a CFP elimination game.