What in the Hell are the Texans Thinking?

This past Labor Day weekend featured one of the more wild trades I have seen go down in the NFL in my lifetime. While it doesn't have the name recognition that the Khalil Mack trade had last year, it was still pretty nuts.

And no, I am not completely talking about the Jadeveon Clowney trade to Seattle. But, I do want to touch on that real quick. This was a very lopsided trade, in favor of the Seahawks. I cannot believe all they had to trade was a few guys that they were going to cut and a third round pick for Clowney. Clowney is a top notch defensive end, and that is such a light return. Clowney is going to make Seattle a solid defense again, and may even make them a possible contender. He doesn't do as much as Mack to the Bears did, but still, the Seahawks got a top tier defensive lineman for next to nothing.

I want to talk about what the Texans did the very next day. This will stick with me for a good while because of how insane a deal they pulled off, in not such a great way. The Texans, one day after trading Clowney for peanuts, gave Miami what seems like a million first round picks for Laremy Tunsil and Kenny Stills. The amount of picks the Dolphins got for these 2 guys is akin to what the Thunder got this offseason for all the trades they pulled off. I have zero doubt in my mind who won this trade, and it is the Dolphins by a good long mile. Look, Tunsil and Stills are solid players, but they are not worth that amount of picks.

The Texans essentially mortgaged their future because they think they have a window for a title now. They don't. I think the Texans are good, and I like that they got a solid tackle to help protect Deshaun Watson, and another receiving weapon in Stills. These 2 guys will help the Texans do exactly what they did last year. They will win 10 or 11 games, the AFC South, and most likely, have an early-ish exit from the playoffs. The Texans, even with these moves, are still not on the same level as the AFC's top teams. The Patriots are still better. The Chiefs are much, much, much better. I still think the Colts can contend with the Texans in their own division because they have a good, young defense. I think the Ravens are just as good, if not better, than the Texans. And, if they somehow beat the Patriots or Chiefs, and make the Super Bowl, the NFC has so many teams better than them right now. The Rams, Saints, Bears, Vikings, Seahawks and maybe even the Packers, in my opinion, are all better than the current roster the Texans have. I get that they most likely heard the talk last year about how they could not protect Watson, and that Clowney wanted out and wouldn't sign the franchise tender. But these were some poor decisions made by the front office, and Bill O'Brien. This should prove to anyone who may still think that he is a solid coach and evaluator of talent that maybe, they were wrong. Bill O'Brien has not done anything of note really in the NFL, and yet he is given carte blanche by this franchise to make these horrible decisions. Why? What has he shown to them that they trust him so much with the future of this team? I want them to be good because I really like Watson and Deandre Hopkins. But, a guy like O'Brien is just there to seemingly blow it up.

Like I said, I think the Texans will be fine, but not of note now, or in the near future of the NFL. These trades were odd and kind of dumb, but that is Bill O'Brien for you. Oh well.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Ty usually thinks that NFL trades are some of the most boring and pointless sports things ever. Except for that one time.

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Let Me Calmly Explain Why Bob McNair is a Terrible Person

Keep on taking a knee

Screw you Bob McNair. Screw you you racist asshole. Screw you you fascist pig. Screw you you pile of human garbage. Screw you.

For those of you that do not know who Bob McNair is, he is the owner of the Houston Texans. Yesterday he said, talking about the flag protests in the NFL, "the inmates are running the prison". Think about that for a minute. A rich, white business man, who I am pretty sure supports the current people in our "government", called the players he has had a part in drafting and signing "inmates". I mean, what the hell! This is flat out insane and incredibly racist and horribly rude and just wrong on so many levels. Anyone, and I mean ANYONE that thinks this is okay, you are the problem in this country.

This is abhorrent.

This is wrong.

This is terrifying.

I mean, it is 2017, and a rich white guy thinks that it is okay to call professional football players "inmates". The majority of NFL players have degrees. They went to 4, sometimes 5 years of college. A ton of them provide community service and visit hospitals, government buildings, police stations, anywhere and everywhere they are asked to go. Young children look up to these guys. A lot of kids emulate these professional football players because they want to be like them when they grow up. But, to someone like Bob McNair, they are "inmates". This is troubling. He said this because he believes this. This is not one of those situations where he misspoke. He said exactly the quote I mentioned. There is no way of saying the media spun this, he said it, and he knows it. Today he made some half assed apology, but I do not buy it, and I'm positive he doesn't either. Bob McNair is a racist, plain and simple.

Bob McNair is like the vast majority of NFL owners. He is right up there with Jerry Jones and the owner of the Carolina Panthers and Robert Kraft. They do not look at the players as people, they look at them as property. This is not the 19th century. These players are people with functioning brains that think for themselves. These owners do not own the players, they own the team. This is just ludicrous. The fact that he thinks guys like Deshaun Watson, Lamar Miller, Whitney Mercilus, DeAndre Hopkins, JJ Watt, Jadaveon Clowney, all of whom have participated in a protest, and basically every player on the team, is an "inmate" is appalling. Look at all the great things that these guys have done for Houston, especially after the hurricane. JJ Watt raised over 37 million dollars for hurricane relief, but to Bob McNair, he is an "inmate". Deshaun Watson gave his first game check to employees at the stadium that had their homes effected by the hurricanes, but to Bob McNair, he is an "inmate". DeAndre Hopkins has played his heart out and stuck with this team through thick and thin, never complaining once to the front office, but to Bob McNair, he is an "inmate". Lamar Miller came to this team for a second chance, has used the most of it, been a consummate professional, but to Bob McNair, he is an "inmate". Whitney Mercilus was an All Big Ten player and for academics, has been an excellent D lineman and plays hard all the time, but to Bob McNair, he is an "inmate". Jadeveon Clowney has fought through harsh criticism from the outside media, fought through injuries, but the last season and a half has been an absolute terror on the field, that has only gotten better every year, but to Bob McNair, he is an "inmate". I mean, I could go on and on and on with this Texans roster that is filled with mostly decent human beings, but Bob McNair thinks they are all "inmates". Absolutely ridiculous.

Also, these players that protest are more American than their cowardly asshole of an owner. I'm sure he was a draft dodger. I'm sure he only cares about himself and his bank account. I'm sure he hates himself. I'm sure he is a total dickhead to be around. I'm sure he is the worst, and his only "friends" are these other racist and fascist owners in the NFL. I just read that DeAndre Hopkins skipped practice today after hearing the quote, and I hope many, many more players follow his lead. These players are people too. I cannot stress that enough.

So for some dickhead owner that knows nothing about football to call the players "inmates", I say one final time, as loudly as I can, SCREW YOU YOU RACIST ASSHOLE! I hope, although I do not think it will happen, that Bob McNair gets reprimanded and black balled from the league for these horrific comments. He should be fined and banned from any and all NFL activities for, at least, the rest of this season. I hope he is forced to sell the team, because if I were a Texans player right now, I would not want anything to do with this stupid and mean and racist owner. Bob McNair is a pig and I hope he gets all the bad things coming his way that he deserves. He is the problem, not his players. The fact that he thought it was okay to say what he said is so troubling and so upsetting. This is a very, very bad look for the Texans and the NFL. Now lets see how Roger Goodell handles it. Hopefully he does the right thing.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. 

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The SeedSing 2017 NFL Predictions and Picks

For the past 8 days I have given my 2017 NFL countdown. I have ranked the teams from worst to best, in my opinion. Today I'm going to give my playoff predictions and award winners. I'm also going to throw something new into my predictions. This year, not only will you get my MVP, Coach of the Year, etc., I am also going to throw in a player or coach in the "worst" category. For example, I will give out an LVP, or Least Valuable Player award this year. Same with coach and the other awards I will hand out. And for those of you waiting and asking for my 2017 NCAA football preview, I have a big, enormous piece coming next Monday where I will break down the upcoming college season. I know there are some games this Saturday, but I checked the schedule, and only USF will be mentioned on Monday. So for all my college football fans, come back for that on Monday. Anyway, lets get to who I see in the NFL postseason this upcoming season.

I'll start with the AFC first. The AFC East will be easily won by the Patriots. This is the easiest decision by far of my predictions. They have the best QB, coach, players that fit their system, hell, they will even avoid one of those late season losses to Miami because Jay Cutler will find a way to screw that up. Patriots are the East champs by a million miles. Watch out for the Jets to go 0-16 from this division too. It might happen. Buffalo is going to be really bad too.

Some think the AFC West is a bit harder to choose. Not me. I think the Raiders will win this division going away. They have the best offense by far. The Chiefs will put up a fight because their defense is so stout. Same thing for the Broncos. But, the Chiefs offense will not be able to score with the Raiders and the Broncos are starting Trevor Siemian at QB, enough said. Some people think the Chargers are a "dark horse". Not me. I'd be shocked if they finish at .500. The Raiders will win the West with one of the best offenses in football.

If the Steelers do not win the AFC North something really bad has happened. Either they would lose more than half their offense, or some other ridiculous outcome occurs. They are the best team in this division by far. The Bengals might put up a fight, but I lost faith in that team a long long time ago. Like I said, they are the Clippers of the NFL. They are bound to choke. The Browns may be trotting out either Deshone Kizer, or god help them, Brock Osweiler week 1. They are still in the "rebuilding process". And the Ravens are too old and too reliant on a mediocre QB. The Steelers should be heavy favorites to win the North.

The AFC South is about 2 teams, the Titans and the Texans. I'm ready to jump on the Titans bandwagon. I really like what they are doing in Nashville right now and I think Marcus Mariota is ready to take that next step. But, the Texans have a great defense. That will keep them around all year. But, they will wait too long to put Deshaun Watson in at QB, and that will cost them the division. The Jags and the Colts stink, but for different reasons. The Colts have no one besides Andrew Luck, who is still hurt, and T.Y. Hilton. The Jags have no QB. Both these teams will be lucky to win 5 games.

So that leaves my 4 division champs as follows, the Patriots, Raiders, Steelers and Titans. As far as seeding, Patriots 1, Steelers 2, Raiders 3 and Titans 4. My two Wild Card teams are the Texans as the 5 seed and the Chiefs as the 6th. The AFC title game will come down to the Patriots and the Raiders, I think the Raiders will beat the Steelers in a shootout, and the Patriots will return to the Super Bowl for the 4th time in 5 years. They are just too damn good to be stopped.

As far as the NFC goes, it looks to be a bit more open to some. Not to me. The NFC East will be a battle to 10 wins for the title. All these teams have a shot to win the division. I'd love to pick the Eagles, but I think they are still one, maybe 2 years away from taking over the division. Washington will hang around for awhile, but this is the season where I see all of the chances Kirk Cousins and his agent have taken on himself will backfire and they will finish under .500. So it comes down to the Cowboys and the Giants. The Cowboys may seem like the obvious pick. But, when I went through and did my rankings, I found a lot of holes in this team. They will not be as good as they were on defense last year, and I want to see how Prescott handles being the focal point of the offense. The Giants have a great receiving core, a very good defense and that will be enough to push them to be the division winner. It will come down to the end of the season, but the Giants will find a way.

The NFC West is going to be won by the Seahawks. They may be getting a bit older, and relying way too much on Russell Wilson, but the division is pretty porous and their defense is still top 5. The Rams are a dumpster fire. The 49ers are even worse. The Cardinals could make it interesting, but I have zero faith in Carson Palmer. Seattle will win this weak division once again.

The NFC North will once again go to the Packers. They have the best offense in the division, and their defense will be better. Aaron Rodgers is the most reliable QB in the NFL. The Lions limped their way to the playoffs last year, and that "run" will end this season. Minnesota's horrific offense will waste a year of one of the NFL's best defenses. And the Bears are horrible. Remember, they traded away future picks to move up one spot to draft Mitch Trubisky. Never forget that Bears fans. Packers in the North fairly easily.

The NFC South may be the best division in football now. It used to be one of the worst, but things have changed. The Saints may end up in last place in the division with 8 or 9 wins. The Panthers will bounce back, but Cam Newton's shoulder injury scares me a bit. The Buccaneers are going to be dynamite on offense, and they have a pretty decent, young defense. The Falcons were in the Super Bowl last year, return all of their key players and they signed Dontari Poe to help out their defense. But, will they have the Super Bowl hangover? Will they regret hiring Steve Sarkisian? Time will tell. For now though, I'm going to stick with the Falcons. They are too loaded to screw it up, at least in the division. It may take 12 or 13 wins, but they will win the division. Also, don't be surprised if the Falcons, Bucs and Panthers all have double digit wins. This division is really good.

So, the 4 NFC division winners are as follows, the Giants, Seahawks, Packers and Falcons. As far as seeding, I have the Packers 1, Falcons 2, Seahawks 3 and Giants 4. For my 2 wild cards, I legitimately thought about putting both Bucs and Panthers in there, but ultimately I decided on the Bucs as the 5th seed and the Cardinals as the 6th seed. Maybe I just like the Cardinals, and David Johnson, and I want them to prove me wrong. As far as the NFC winner, I'll take the Packers, with ease I might add, over the Falcons. A little revenge from last year's NFC title game. This time it will be at Lambeau though.  

That would pit the Patriots versus the Packers in Super Bowl 52. I'm going with my guys, the Packers. I love what they can be, if they stay healthy, on offense this year. They have so many options. The game will be close, but Rodgers will lead a game winning drive to get his second ring. Go Pack Go. I hope my faith in them will outweigh whatever terrible decisions Mike McCarthy is bound to make this year.

As far as award winners go, lets jump right to the MVP. Some may think I'd pick Rodgers or Brady with the way I talked about the 2 of them in my countdown. Nope. I'm going to go way out on a limb here and pick David Johnson. Not many running backs win this award, but Johnson is so critical and the Cardinals rely on him so much, I feel like he is going to explode this year. He is so awesome. He is the best modern running back playing right now. He will double his awards this season, also winning Offensive player of the Year. The Defensive Player of the Year will go to Jadaveon Clowney. He is going to have a massive year as well, and soon he will be the face of the Texans defense. No more bull shit from JJ Watt, Clowney is going to be the anchor for that very good defense in Houston. Offensive Rookie of the Year will be Dalvin Cook. He is the only good thing the Vikings have going for them on offense. He will get a ton of carries and touches out of the back field, and he is so explosive, he will make some highlight plays. I wanted to pick Leonard Fournette so bad for this, but he is stuck in a horrible situation in Jacksonville. He may get hurt by week 9 because of such a high usage rate. Defensive Rookie of the Year will be Soloman Thomas. He is on a really bad team in San Francisco, but he is the first step in the right direction. I think he will wreak havoc on opposing back fields. Coach of the Year is going to be Dirk Koetter. The Bucs are going to make that Raiders esque leap from last year, and the voters can't get enough of that stuff. The Super Bowl MVP will be Aaron Rodgers, due to that game winning drive I predicted.

Now, for the awards no one wants to win. The 2017 Jets will go down as one of the worst NFL teams ever, and Christian Hackenberg will be a big, big reason why. He is atrocious. He can't even break huddles properly and his press conference skills are terrible. He may be a worse QB than Blake Bortles. He is your 2017 least valuable player. The biggest reach, which will make this guy the worst offensive rookie is the Bengals taking Joe Mixon. What the hell were they thinking? How long until he gets suspended for hitting a woman? He does not deserve to be playing professional sports. No one should ever put their hands on a woman, ever. This also applies to the worst defensive rookie, Jourdan Lewis. He broke my heart when that story came out that hehit his ex girlfriend. I know the charges were dropped, but the damage had already been done. I'm done rooting for Jourdan Lewis. The worst coach of the year was tough. I feel bad for Todd Bowles because he didn't ask for this from the Jets. Doug Marrone is going to have a rough go in Jacksonville, but he won me over when he said he didn't want the game to be in his QB's hands, and he was going to give Fournette the ball 300 plus times. That was some serious shade thrown at Bortles. No, those guys are in poor situations. The worst coach of the year will be Jason Garrett. Technically, he is usually one of the worst coaches, but that will be magnified this year due to the Elliot suspension. He cannot call a game properly and he is emotionless on the sidelines. Garrett has had more than his shot and he has done absolutely nothing but blow it for that team.

Well, there you have it, my entire 9 day 2017 NFL preview. Tell me in the comments why I'm wrong or tell me on Twitter or anywhere else you can find me. Thanks.

Ty

Editor's Thoughts - I have no real disagreement with Ty on the playoff teams. Because I am a pathetic homer, I do think the Bengals will get in the playoffs, and get blown out in the first round again. I am also putting the Vikings in, but they will miss an extra point to lose their Wild Card playoff game. Oakland and Tennessee are on the verge of being great, but the Patriots will find a way (maybe not legal) to win the AFC. The NFC will find some random team to be the underdog to the Patriots in the Super Bowl. I am going with a 9-7 or 10-6 New York Giants team led by Eli Manning and his 30 interceptions.

The Giants will win the game 8-7 after two fourth quarter field goals and a safety in the final seconds. We will live in a world where Eli Manning has three rings.

RD

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. His lack of faith in the Bengals maybe be logical, but where is the fun in that.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

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Ty Ranks the 2016 NFL Teams: Cool Summer Breeze Edition

Welcome to day 5 of my NFL countdown. We are finally past the mediocre half of teams in the NFL, and we are now going to be getting to teams with real shots at making the playoffs, and advancing fairly far. For the most part, if not all of them, the rest of these teams will be .500, or much, much better. We are finally at some good teams. On with the countdown.

Coming in at number 16, I have the New York Jets. The Jets were almost going to be on the earlier part of my countdown, but they signed Ryan Fitzpatrick to a one year deal at the very last moment before I started my notes for this list. Now, Fitzpatrick is not an other worldly QB, but he is decent. He set Jets passing records last year, and he is a whole hell of a lot more liked and reliable than Geno Smith. You never hear of anyone punching Fitzpatrick so hard that they break his jaw. He goes in and does his job, and he has gotten better the longer he has been in the NFL. I think Fitzpatrick is a pretty decent QB to lead what could be a playoff bound Jets team. At receiver they have two very good targets in Eric Decker and the wonderful Brandon Marshall. Decker goes over the middle and makes the circus catches, but Brandon Marshall is the far superior pass catcher on this team. He catches everything that comes his way, he is tall and he is fast. Brandon Marshall is a great, great football player. They absolutely upgraded their running game by signing Matt Forte. He is going to make opponents respect the run game, and the pass game will benefit. He is also a very good pass catcher coming from the backfield. I like this addition a lot. The offensive is good too. The Jets also have a pretty good defense as well. Muhammed Wilkerson is a very good d lineman. Leonard Williams is a fast defensive end, who can wreak havoc in the backfield. David Harris is still one of the most steady linebackers in all of the NFL. And Darelle Revis is one of, if not the, best cover corners in all of football. The Jets are a team on the rise, and they could be a big factor this year. I think they will be pretty decent, but they will also blow games because that's what they do. The Jets will be 10-6 and may push their way into the playoffs.

At number 15, I have the Buffalo Bills. Is this the year that the Bills finally take that next step? Is this the year they win, or are near the top of their division? Is this the year they put it all together? They just might. I'm actually a pretty big fan of Tyrod Taylor at QB. He seems to almost always make the right decision. He uses his legs when necessary, throws the ball to the right receiver, and throws it away when the play breaks down. LeSean McCoy, when healthy, is a great running back. He is the focal point of the offense, and that is the way it should be. He is great at running the ball, and a very good receiver out of the backfield. Sammy Watkins is a star in the making at receiver, they just have to get him the ball more. He is so dynamic with the ball in his hands, and he is an awesome football player. The o line, while not great, is serviceable. Sure, they lost Mario William, but they have Shaq Lawson to replace him. They also have guys like Reggie Ragland, Stephon Gilmore and Marcell Dareus on their defense. The Bills may be the team that takes the most advantage of the Brady's four game suspension. They have the players that have the know how and the goods to come out of the gates hot and challenge the Patriots. This may be one of the better teams that Rex Ryan has had the ability to coach. But, Rex Ryan is what is holding this team back. He is just not that good of a head coach. Because of Ryan, I think the Bills will go 10-6, but they have the players to be 12-4, or even 13-3.

At number 14, I have the team from Washington. They are the only team in their god awful division that can win double digit games. They have Kirk Cousins back, who proved that he may be a decent NFL QB. He is another guy that doesn't try to make miracle plays, he usually makes the right play. He can check down to other receivers, he will throw the ball away, and he will run when called on to. I think he is making a big mistake by betting on himself and not signing a long term deal, but we will see. At running back, they have some good guys. I really like Matt Jones. He is a good, big and durable back. He is very competent. Then, they have a plethora of good receivers. Guys like Desean Jackson, stretches the field with his speed, Pierre Garcon, great possession receiver, Santana Moss, old, but reliable and rookie Josh Doctson, who won't be counted on as the top threat, but will make some plays. They also signed Vernon Davis this off season, and I like that a lot. He is a great safety blanket for all the QB's he's played for. Then, on defense, they have decent d lineman and linebackers, but they have D'Angelo Hall, and they signed Josh Norman, who may be the best defensive back in all of the NFL. That is huge for Washington, because they will play the Giants twice, and they now have a corner that can shutdown Odell Beckham JR. The Washington defense is good. This team has all the tools to repeat, and repeat as division winners with ease. I think they do that to the tune of 11-5. They will feast on the teams in their division. They may get 8 of their 11 wins from their division alone.

At number 13, I have the Houston Texans. Now, this team is all about their defense. I think their defense could win a lot of games for them this year. They will have a lot of games that will finish 10-7 or 14-10, and they will win those because their defense is so good. But, I will talk about the offense first. Sure, they signed Brock Osweiler away from Denver, but I don't think he is as good as others think he is. But, the caveat, he is playing with a defense that is almost, but not really, as good as Denver's. They have similar defenses, so Osweiler won't have to do to terribly much on offense. They also signed Lamar Miller after letting Arian Foster walk. Miller is a decent running back, and he will put up similar numbers to what Foster has done the past few years. At receiver they have the awesome DeAndre Hopkins. I know he is in a contract situation right now, but they will figure that out, he is too important to this team. But, outside of the excellence that is Hopkins, they are thin at wide out. Will Fuller is fine, but not a real big threat. They have an okay o line as well. But, this team is not about offense. Their defense is stout, led by JJ Watt. There is no denying  his greatness, he is going to go down as one of the best of all time. They also have Jadeveon Clowney, who is due to have a big year, and Vince Wilfork, who is one of the best nose guards that has ever played. They have some great linebackers, even though some have been suspended for using steroids. Brian Cushing is said steroid user, but he is a good linebacker. I also like Whitney Mercilus. He has gotten better every year in the pros. Charles James and Quintin Demps are pretty decent defensive backfield players, they just don't get shine because their d line is so great. Houston should take over that division away from the Colts, but I don't know if Bill O'Brien is the coach to do that. He has held this team back since he was picked to coach them. I still think they are above .500, but I don't think they will supplant the Colts just yet. I like this team a lot, but I think they will finish 9-7, but it will be the most competitive 9-7 in all of football.

Come back next week for the rest of my countdown.

Ty 

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Want to know what Ty has to say about the Olympics? Check out the new X Millennial Man Podcast premiering tomorrow. Ty has a twitter, go follow him @tykulik.