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Lazuli  1yr ago (text post)   1094 thread views

NFL Weekly Thread: Week 18

Let's chat about the National Football League. This week's schedule, all times Eastern, is the final week of the regular season.

The next post will be a single, post-season thread that'll include discussions about the playoffs and the Super Bowl.

Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Buffalo Bills @ New England Patriots
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Carolina Panthers @ Atlanta Falcons
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Chicago Bears @ Green Bay Packers
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Cincinnati Bengals @ Pittsburgh Steelers
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Cleveland Browns @ Baltimore Ravens
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Houston Texans @ Tennessee Titans
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Jacksonville Jaguars @ Indianapolis Colts
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Kansas City Chiefs @ Denver Broncos
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Miami Dolphins @ New York Jets
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Minnesota Vikings @ Detroit Lions
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM New Orleans Saints @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM New York Giants @ Philadelphia Eagles
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Los Angeles Chargers @ Las Vegas Raiders
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Seattle Seahawks @ Los Angeles Rams
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM San Francisco 49ers @ Arizona Cardinals
Sun 2025-01-05 1:00PM Washington Commanders @ Dallas Cowboys
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Ah no it's not like that, it's more like I end up in situations where I'm a third person in a conversation and the other two know everything and can have the in depth conversation, and I'm left sitting there like wtf happened.

I need a good minor interjection like "I heard the commanders have a good new quarter back?" And then once they answer that I can bow out of the conversation having briefly politely participated.

"Did you see that ludicrous display last night?"

Don't do this. It's better to just admit that you know nothing than to show some tidbit of knowledge that gives people the wrong impression. When I was younger I followed NASCAR reasonably closely (and my dad follows it closely to this day), but my interest waned over the years. Then my dad scored free tickets to the fall Charlotte race and we stayed with friends who lived near the track, and we ended up as part of their contingent that went every year. So on the ride in I find myself sharing the back seat of a car with a friend of a friend of a friend who drove down from Hickory and I try to make small talk about the race. I knew enough to make this kind of small talk, but the fact that I initiated the conversation gave this poor guy the wrong impression and he immediately started asking me in-depth questions about my opinions on things I was in no position to have an opinion about. At this point, I couldn't even claim that I didn't follow it that closely, so I was forced to fake it to keep up, and this guy was entirely too nice for me to disappoint by admitting that I had no clue what I was talking about.

It's better to just act like a babe in the woods and admit you don't know anything from the get-go. Then you can ask questions that people into the team will be more than happy to answer. People generally like discussing their interests with curious outsiders.

Y'all are acting like this is the Wednesday wellness thread and I'm asking how to socialize with people.

I know me, and I know how to socialize with people.

I'd be interested if there is something sufficiently interesting happening.

I don't mean that facetiously. Like I'm not against football. I just don't want to follow the day to day. But if something like deflategate, or some amazing string of wins, or some new way of playing that shakes things up happens I want to know.

If someone had to sum up each season and describe the interesting things that happened within one paragraph, I'd totally read that.

I do like the amazing feats of athleticism and the close strategic calls. I know about 99% of the rules (and I'm interested in learning how those rules change season to season, and why they changed).

I feel like people are sometimes all in on football or totally anti football, and y'all are maybe grouping me in anti football. That's not where I'm at. I'm partially interested.

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