Sports What Ifs.

Also, the 49ers wanted Mirer bad in the 1993 draft. They offered NE Steve Young for the #1 pick, and they balked. Then, they offered their whole draft to the Pats for the pick, and they balked again.
The full ditka before ditka...let's say they took Young and a 1st next year and other pick. They took Mirer, seahwaks took bledsoe....damn everything changes
 
The full ditka before ditka...let's say they took Young and a 1st next year and other pick. They took Mirer, seahwaks took bledsoe....damn everything changes

Let's say the 49ers and Pats agreed on a happy medium: Steve Young, 1993 first-round pick, 1993 third-rounder, & a 1993 fifth-rounder go to NE, and the 93 #1 overall pick goes to the 49ers (who take Mirer). First off, that means that Montana probably stays with SF for a few more years while they groom Mirer. So, no run to the 93 AFC Title Game for KC.

I'm also not sure if the 49ers win the 94 SB with Montana, or if they have much of a future with Mirer. That could have been looked at as one of the worst trades in NFL history.

Also, with Bledsoe in Seattle, and Young in NE, you probably don't see the Belichick-Brady era :).
 
Also, with Bledsoe in Seattle, and Young in NE, you probably don't see the Belichick-Brady era :).
That is why i say that change everything. The rest yeah, 49ers dodge a bullet but give us the pats empire. Well still wonder what other thing would have unfolded that
 
That is why i say that change everything. The rest yeah, 49ers dodge a bullet but give us the pats empire. Well still wonder what other thing would have unfolded that

Well, let's see from that....

SF has a mediocre QB whom could give them high-drafting come 1997 (worse they could do is Jake Plummer) or 1998. I wonder if this could convince Manning to forego his senior season if it meant San Francisco could draft him (or them getting Ryan Leaf).

New England has a Hall of Fame QB that could help a Hall of Fame HC in establishing the Pats dynasty early on. Otherwise, it could fall to Pete Carroll (meaning no USC run).

Seattle have a decently good QB that could help them over the hump in 2005.

The possibilities...
 
I was wondering, the current rules of association football and rugby were shaped by well to do people with a lot of free time on their hands, and not anyone from the working class of Great Britain; so, what would've been the impact of industrial workers in the Home Nations obtaining the 8-hour work day in the mid to late 19th century? Since the average worker would have to go back to work the day after a match, the football/rugby divide could've been less about hand usage and forward passing, and more about the amount of contact allowed.

So, workers' football (the variant that could've accepted professionalism more readily) could've had handball-like rules about physical contact, but the ball could've been handled as well as kicked, for both passing and scoring, and there would've been goals and tries, with a goal being worth 5 points and a try being worth 1 point.
 
SF has a mediocre QB whom could give them high-drafting come 1997 (worse they could do is Jake Plummer) or 1998. I wonder if this could convince Manning to forego his senior season if it meant San Francisco could draft him (or them getting Ryan Leaf).
That is if they get the #1 pick at all or trade enough for it. Jake Plummer...
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Well they could get into their pre-alex smith desolation early..maybe they draft brees?

New England has a Hall of Fame QB that could help a Hall of Fame HC in establishing the Pats dynasty early on. Otherwise, it could fall to Pete Carroll (meaning no USC run).
Or we goes from Parcell to Caroll..meaning Bellichick would land anywhere else(stay with the jets? goes back to new browns?)

Seattle have a decently good QB that could help them over the hump in 2005.
Could made them competitive early and butterfly away hasselback career.

Yeah that is a complete sandbox
 
Well they could get into their pre-alex smith desolation early..maybe they draft brees?

The only acceptable universe for a non-Saints Brees is if, somehow, we drafted Brady over Bulger x'D

Or we goes from Parcell to Caroll..meaning Bellichick would land anywhere else(stay with the jets? goes back to new browns?)

Again, I would make it contingent on if Manning goes early. Manning in '97 I could see Belichick staying around and trying to prolong Peyton to the best he can. Otherwise, I wouldn't be surprised if Lerner gave a similar deal to Bill and draft a team; maybe Kurt Warner in the expansion draft and, a la Dawg Pound, trading the #1 pick for a slew (I wonder if Ditka would be stupid enough to pull the offer for the Bengals to the Browns instead for Ricky). I doubt that, without a solid QB, Belichick was going to serve under even a GM Parcells for the Jets.

Depending on what Carroll does for Young, what would be the likely year that a new QB is drafted? Perhaps picking up Eli in 2004?
 
Seattle have a decently good QB that could help them over the hump in 2005.

If George would be there that long, which he may or may not be (he would be 37 by then).

Let's say that Jeff decides to accept that trade instead of hold out for FA (like the video said). After looking at the 96 Seahawk schedule, he would have had an extra bye week to learn the Seahawk offense. However, they probably stick with John Friesz for five weeks after the bye (he lost to KC, won three in a row, and then lost to Detroit in Week 12). In Week 13, with Seattle at 5-7, George makes his debut against the Raiders. They lost that game in OTL with Mirer, but with George, they win to up their record to 6-7 (still in the playoff race).

In Week 14, though, they end up running into an Orange and Blue buzzsaw. George makes it closer, but the Broncos still win and wrap up home field. After that, they win two of their last three games and end up 8-8.

In the off-season, George probably decides to stay since they seemed to be making a committment to winning (they wouldn't have that extra first-rounder from the Mirer trade, but they still trade up with Tampa to get LT Walter Jones). Besides Jones, they bring in DT Dan Saleamua, LB Chad Brown, and DB Willie Williams (they don't need to sign Moon in this world, though). They also draft RB Corey Dillon in Round 2 (Chris Warren is going into his FA year), LSU CB Denard Walker in Round 3 (they don't get Shawn Springs in this world, and they need more DB help), and So. Carolina WR Marcus Robinson in Round 4 (Brian Blades is 32 and on the decline).

In OTL, they were 8-8, but they lost several close games, including both games against the division-winning Chiefs and one against the eventual World Champion Broncos. They also lost to a bad Saint team in OT. With George at QB and Dillon at RB (who gradually replaces Chris Warren as the year goes on), they win 10-11 games, make the playoffs, and really shake up the AFC playoff picture depending on which games they win. They probably also make the playoffs in 98, and Dennis Erickson doesn't go to Oregon State in 1999 (and discover Ocho Cinco).
 
Now that I think about it, if Brees is drafted as an effect of the Mirer trade, then I could see a question as to 2005.

The Niners, with a prospectively improving team, wouldn't take the #1 seed and, with a solid QB, it isn't guaranteed that the Bay Area SoCal kid would go to his home team. So, with the Fins having the #1 overall, they could go for Alex Smith as the safe pick (or trade with KC) or take the mobile Marino. Unless Rodgers somehow fell far enough as OTL.

Then again, with no incentive on the Niners, could Rogers wait a year instead?
 
So, in discussion about avoiding the Gail Goodrich trade on another timeline, there was this suggestion instead of the Jazz trading for him

NOLA keeps its first round picks. Assume a 24-team draft from '77 on through '79 (a draft I probably will end up building). We're still in '75 in the timeline, so we're nowhere close to figuring out who the heck they pick. Let's say in '77 Bernard King, '78 Reggie Theus (or, Kenny Carr and James Hardy).

Long term consequences?
 
So, in discussion about avoiding the Gail Goodrich trade on another timeline, there was this suggestion instead of the Jazz trading for him



Long term consequences?

In 78, the Jazz went 39-43. Maravich got more help with all-star PF Truck Robinson, but Pete only played in 50 games because of knee problems. Put Bernard King (who scored 24 PPG that year) into that equation, and Pete may not have to go quite as hard. Also, you may see the Jazz win 46-48 games, which would be good enough for the three-seed (and the franchise's first-ever playoff berth).

I can see them beating Cleveland in Round 1 before losing in 7 to SA (who loses to WAS in the ECF). Then, in the 78 draft, they are picking around 16th or 17th instead of 8th, and they probably end up taking DePaul C Dave Corzine (Rich Kelley wasn't that great).

In OTL, they end up going 26-56 in 79. However, with King and Robinson averaging over 20 PPG, and some improved C play with Corzine, they probably win at least 12-15 more games (which gets them in the playoffs, even with Maravich's knee problems). This brings us to the all-important 1979 super Flip. The Bulls were in there for the West. As for the East, you don't have NO/Utah in there in this timeline. Instead, you have the Knicks (Boston traded their first-rounder away for Bob McAdoo, even though they were in the running for the worst record). That means that the Bulls lose the flip to the Knicks instead of the Lakers, and Magic is bound for the Big Apple.

Back to the Jazz, though: They probably still lose Maravich after the 1979 season (to Boston, where he played one year before retiring due to injury). That was also the year that they move to Utah. However, with two straight playoff trips to close out the 70's (and a chance to maybe sneak into a final. The East wasn't that great), maybe that prevents the move somehow, and either the owner (Sam Battistone, who was from Utah) eventually sells the team to NO-based interests (who get a suitable arena built), or he keeps them in NO.
 
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In the trade that brought Bucky Dent to the Yankees, George Steinbrenner wanted to include Ron Guidry. General manager Gabe Paul threatened to resign if this was done been convinced the White Sox Lamarr Hoyt was just as good albeit younger.

Suppose Steinbrenner and Paul have an argument just before and, given his impulsive nature in our timeline, Steinbrenner thumbs his nose at his general manager and includes Guidry.

A look at baseball reference.com shows that Guidry had a very good 1983 also oh, the year Hoyt won the Cy Young award, so it was a draw that year and 1982, but otherwise the Yankees are several wins worse every year, maybe only a couple wins worse in 1985.

This means no pennant in 1978 for sure, with Guidry probably winning 21 or 22 for an otherwise bad White Sox team and the Cy Young like Randy Jones had done in 1976 for the Padres. Even if they keep Dock Ellis I can't see them doing quite as well, and they wouldn't have Mike Torrez who they acquired for Ellis, so when Gullett goes down if not before the Yankees are done. Even if they do trade Ellis for Mike Torrez.

Then what? Probably Steinbrenner fires Billy Martin and makes a few trades that wind up badly in 1978, and then? Would he just blow the whole thing up? Rush Hoyt to the Major Leagues and expect him to start because he wants to prove that he was right about trading Guidry because he had just as good a pitcher in the minors?

If things go roughly the same - hopefully they trade Thurm Munson to the Indians so he doesn't have to be flying and died in a crash - they might win the first half in 1981 with voice instead of Guidry, so they might lose the World Series to the Dodgers, but they may end up with no World Series titles in the 70's or 80's. Of course, Steinbrenner might go over the edge firing people long before the end of the '80s.

It's also possible that, lacking a lefty, Dave Righetti is kept as a starter.
 
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In the trade that brought Bucky Dent to the Yankees, George Steinbrenner wanted to include Ron Guidry. General manager Gabe Paul threatened to resign if this was done been convinced the White Sox Lamarr Hoyt was just as good albeit younger.

Suppose Steinbrenner and Paul have an argument just before and, given his impulsive nature in our timeline, Steinbrenner thumbs his nose at his general manager and includes Guidry.

A look at baseball reference.com shows that Guidry had a very good 1983 also oh, the year Hoyt won the Cy Young award, so it was a draw that year and 1982, but otherwise the Yankees are several wins worse every year, maybe only a couple wins worse in 1985.

This means no pennant in 1978 for sure, with Guidry probably winning 21 or 22 for an otherwise bad White Sox team and the Cy Young like Randy Jones had done in 1976 for the Padres. Even if they keep Dock Ellis I can't see them doing quite as well, and they wouldn't have Mike Torrez who they acquired for Ellis, so when Gullett goes down if not before the Yankees are done. Even if they do trade Ellis for Mike Torrez.

Then what? Probably Steinbrenner fires Billy Martin and makes a few trades that wind up badly in 1978, and then? Would he just blow the whole thing up? Rush Hoyt to the Major Leagues and expect him to start because he wants to prove that he was right about trading Guidry because he had just as good a pitcher in the minors?

If things go roughly the same - hopefully they trade Thurm Munson to the Indians so he doesn't have to be flying and died in a crash - they might win the first half in 1981 with voice instead of Guidry, so they might lose the World Series to the Dodgers, but they may end up with no World Series titles in the 70's or 80's. Of course, Steinbrenner might go over the edge firing people long before the end of the '80s.

It's also possible that, lacking a lefty, Dave Righetti is kept as a starter.

If the Sox win the East in 78 instead of the Yanks, they would have had a pretty even series with the Royals in the ALCS. If they win, I think they lose to LA since the Dodgers were there the year before.

Also, does Guidry make a difference for the Pale Hose in 83, or do they still go down to the Birds?
 
Now that I think about it, if Brees is drafted as an effect of the Mirer trade, then I could see a question as to 2005.

On the subject of Brees, I found out something interesting when I was in the Denver Bronco section of Football's Future.

Jack Elway, John's dad, was pushing the team to take Drew Brees with their first-round pick leading up to the 2001 draft. However, he died a week before the draft, and Shanahan drafted CB (and future bust) Willie Middlebrooks instead.

If the Broncos draft Brees, and start him by 2002, they may end up winning another game or two and making the playoffs. Then, in 03, Jake Plummer ends up in Chicago (it came down to them and Denver in OTL) and Rex Grossman ends up with the Packers (I heard that they liked him going into that draft, but the Bears took him in reality).
 
Honestly I don't it would make a damn. That shift was rough as hell and ate people up.
Sure. I remember playing full contact on one of those fields without pads, and shit hurt.
What if not Astroturf?
Well, my point was more how the game would evolve running on a thin carpet instead of grass or artifical grass. I mean, you could add a few layers of wrestling mat padding underneath it to mitigate injuries.
 
Sure. I remember playing full contact on one of those fields without pads, and shit hurt.

Well, my point was more how the game would evolve running on a thin carpet instead of grass or artifical grass. I mean, you could add a few layers of wrestling mat padding underneath it to mitigate injuries.
Adding padding would help to some degree, but not enough to keep it. They would keep looking for something better. As I played on that shit and it wasn't even full contact, that shit still hurt to high hell.
 
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