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Originally Posted by jeter4982
I don't know how you can simply say "In regard to talent level, that is one downside, but not a significant one." I highly doubt the NFL is going to spend millions of dollars on creating eight new teams, just to put an inferior product on the field. If you think about what you just said, with eight new teams, that would be roughly 400 new NFL players that previously hadn't been good enough to play NFL football. The talent pool would become so drained that you would end up with a college level game. Teams like the Patriots have lots of talent, they just don't have the superstars other teams have, but they still have the talent. You can't throw out a team of practice squad players, and expect to win a championship.
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I realize it's nearly a month later, but I finally have an argument for you. First, I found this on the NFL website about just how talented and competitive this year's teams are.
No matter how it all turns out, the 2005 NFL playoff field will be an impressive one indeed:
All 12 teams could have at least 10 wins apiece -- the third time this has happened (2000, 2003) since the NFL went to the 12-team playoff system in 1990. Looked at in another way, there could be three teams with 10 wins who do not make the playoffs -- equaling the entire total of such teams since 1990 (Philadelphia and San Francisco in 1991; Miami in 2003).
For the second time in the past three seasons (2003), the NFL could boast six 12-win teams -- the most in a season in history.
Of the 14 clubs either in the playoffs or seeking playoff berths, nine did not make the postseason last year.
For the fourth time since 2000, two teams -- Chicago and Tampa Bay -- can go from "worst to first" in their divisions, finishing last a year ago and first in 2005.
That alone is impressive, but you also make the comment about practice squad players. For that, I will make an example of my new hero, Samkon Gado. Gado was a 3rd-string player at Liberty University until he was signed as an undrafted agent to the Chiefs practice squad. When KC no longer needed him, they released him. Green Bay picked him up cheap, and made him their practice squad RB. After Green, Davenport, and Fisher all suffered season-ending injuries, Gado became the starter. As such, he ran down the Atlanta defense three times, and beat the rushing records for any Green Bay rookie ever in 5 games versus 16. He's out with an injury himself now, and it remains to be seen whether he will return next year, but his presense begs an interesting question. How many are there out there like him? How many good football players slip past the draft "experts" each year and pursue other careers? Every time the world's population increases, the number of talented football players do too. You say that 8 new teams would bring 400 players that were not good enough into the NFL, but I say it would give 400 good players a chance to play they otherwise would not have had. There are millions of people in this country. Do you think there are at least 4-500 more Samkon Gados? Statistically, it's very likely.