Howdy.
On November 2, 2003, with 4:02 left to go in overtime, the New York Jets beat the New York Giants, 31-28, on a Doug Brien 51-yard field goal. What no one knew was that the loss by the Giants would cause the Giants' season to end 3-13, and would give them the rights to the #1 pick in the 2004 NFL Draft, which would turn out to be...Eli Manning. This, in turn, led to Larry Fitzgerald going to the San Diego Chargers, Ben Roethlisberger going to the Arizona Cardinals, and, ultimately, to Philip Rivers going to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
So, WI the Giants win against the New York Jets? This would cause San Diego to have the #1 draft pick and the rights to Eli Manning. Eli Manning has stated that, if the Chargers had drafted him, he would have refused to play for them (like Elway did to the Baltimore Colts in 1983), so he might have been traded by another team. This certainly butterflies away Aaron Rodgers being drafted by San Diego to back up Drew Brees, which, in turn, causes its own butterflies...
This certainly butterflies away Philip Rivers' tenure as a Steeler, which includes his six Super Bowl wins (1), and to the Steeler dynasty of the early-to-mid-2010s, which included Cam Chancellor, Richard Sherman, and Troy Polamalu (not to mention Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski; he's likely to break the record held by Peyton Manning for most passing yards this upcoming season, and has been compared to Terry Bradshaw as one of the greatest Steelers of all time). The New England Patriots, meanwhile, after their unbeaten season in 2007 (and winning Super Bowl XLII), haven't even sniffed a Super Bowl appearance. (On a pop culture note, this butterflies away Philip Rivers and his family making a cameo in This is Us.)
The Chargers didn't do too badly, winning Super Bowl XLI in 2007 and Super Bowl XLIII in 2009 (which likely led to the Chargers staying in San Diego IOTL; the Rodgers-Fitzgerald combination is still one of the best QB-WRs in football), while being a solid playoff contender in the early 2010s. As for Ben Roethlisberger, the less said about him, the better (talk about wasted talent), while Eli Manning hasn't done too badly for the Giants, winning Super Bowl XLV in 2011.
What are your thoughts?
(1) The old joke on the sports shows is that Rivers might have more kids than Super Bowl wins...
On November 2, 2003, with 4:02 left to go in overtime, the New York Jets beat the New York Giants, 31-28, on a Doug Brien 51-yard field goal. What no one knew was that the loss by the Giants would cause the Giants' season to end 3-13, and would give them the rights to the #1 pick in the 2004 NFL Draft, which would turn out to be...Eli Manning. This, in turn, led to Larry Fitzgerald going to the San Diego Chargers, Ben Roethlisberger going to the Arizona Cardinals, and, ultimately, to Philip Rivers going to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
So, WI the Giants win against the New York Jets? This would cause San Diego to have the #1 draft pick and the rights to Eli Manning. Eli Manning has stated that, if the Chargers had drafted him, he would have refused to play for them (like Elway did to the Baltimore Colts in 1983), so he might have been traded by another team. This certainly butterflies away Aaron Rodgers being drafted by San Diego to back up Drew Brees, which, in turn, causes its own butterflies...
This certainly butterflies away Philip Rivers' tenure as a Steeler, which includes his six Super Bowl wins (1), and to the Steeler dynasty of the early-to-mid-2010s, which included Cam Chancellor, Richard Sherman, and Troy Polamalu (not to mention Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski; he's likely to break the record held by Peyton Manning for most passing yards this upcoming season, and has been compared to Terry Bradshaw as one of the greatest Steelers of all time). The New England Patriots, meanwhile, after their unbeaten season in 2007 (and winning Super Bowl XLII), haven't even sniffed a Super Bowl appearance. (On a pop culture note, this butterflies away Philip Rivers and his family making a cameo in This is Us.)
The Chargers didn't do too badly, winning Super Bowl XLI in 2007 and Super Bowl XLIII in 2009 (which likely led to the Chargers staying in San Diego IOTL; the Rodgers-Fitzgerald combination is still one of the best QB-WRs in football), while being a solid playoff contender in the early 2010s. As for Ben Roethlisberger, the less said about him, the better (talk about wasted talent), while Eli Manning hasn't done too badly for the Giants, winning Super Bowl XLV in 2011.
What are your thoughts?
(1) The old joke on the sports shows is that Rivers might have more kids than Super Bowl wins...
Last edited: