Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Nothing worth doing is easy.

Consistently wrong since 2002

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

Everybody saw this coming.

Take your GOP plan out of the witness protection program.

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

You’re just a puppy masquerading as an old coot.

We’re not going back!

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

The willow is too close to the house.

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

Fight them, without becoming them!

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

Their freedom requires your slavery.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

We’ll be taking my thoughts and prayers to the ballot box.

The next time the wall street journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

You cannot shame the shameless.

Not all heroes wear capes.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

You are here: Home / Sports / Another NFL Open Thread

Reader Interactions

91Comments

  3. 3.

    RinaX

    Jaguars finally pulled it out against Denver! I know they’ll just disappoint me next week, as is their MO, but for now woo-hoo! And the Colts lost to, hahahahaha, suck it, Peyton! Thanks for all the desperation fantasy points, tho!

  4. 4.

    BGinCHI

    In other football news, Liverpool draws at Birmingham.

    Good debut for Konchesky, though he went out with an injury. L’pool’s luck in a nutshell.

    And I think Torres took an actual nap on the pitch in the first half.

  7. 7.

    General Stuck

    Sheat. First the Reds lose blowing a ninth inning lead, Cordero needs a break. And Browns lose in similar fashion. But I can access BJ without a proxy, and am fit to wedgie me some firebagger. Who wants to be first?

  8. 8.

    Turgid Jacobian

    Too bad Dennis Dixon can’t run in the NFL the way he did in NCAA… of course that may be because he can no longer run at all, after he fucked his knee up so badly.

  14. 14.

    PaulW

    The Bucs’ performance today proves truly that this team is destined for 16-0 greatness.

    …Okay, how about 12-4 awesomeness?

    …Okay, how about 10-6 recovering very nicely from last year, thank you?

    …Okay, how about…

  15. 15.

    MeDrewNotYou

    @asiangrrlMN: Totally screwed. Even the Bears fan I was watching it with thought so. I don’t care, though, since I’ve got Matt Forte on my fantasy team. ;)

  17. 17.

    fasteddie9318

    Boy, I don’t ever remember the real Batman and Robin getting their asses kicked as badly as the Bengals got theirs kicked today.

  18. 18.

    robertdsc-PowerBook & 27 titles

    I’m very happy. Both Michigan and the Pats won this weekend. The Cowboys losing would be nice for tomorrow’s smack wars at work.

  20. 20.

    Gordon, The Big Express Engine

    How was that not a TD? If he had fallen out of bounds after getting two feet down a la Santonio Holmes in the Super Bowl, it would have been a TD…

    In other news, my Chris Johnson, Tom Brady, Ochocinco led fantasy team is crushing today…. (note – not a BJ league… not sure how I am doing there yet…)

  22. 22.

    asiangrrlMN

    @You Don’t Say: Dude catches TD in the end zone. Dude comes down with it. He has control all the way. He sets the ball down as he’s on the ground, and the rule is that he didn’t complete the process, so no touchdown. He had the ball for at least two seconds. He had complete control all the way down. All the announcers were saying what a horrible call it was. As one pointed out, if a runner breaks the plane, it’s a touchdown regardless of what happens afterwards. Horrible, horrible, HORRIBLE call.

    P.S. Gooooo, Nadal! I’m DVR’ing, so I guess I will have to tread lightly in the open threads.

  26. 26.

    JenJen

    Little annoyed with my Bengals, but never had much confidence in this opener the moment I saw the schedule. Still, that first half was fucking painful. Hey Bengals, less tweeting, more practice.

  28. 28.

    Arclite

    In elementary school (in the late 70s), I sent Joe Greene a letter, and he returned a signed postcard of himself. I still have that somewhere. Class act.

    Go Steelers!

  29. 29.

    dand

    Cleo’s Club

    Had Palmer and NE D… Guess it worked out.

    Lions got screwed. Always nice to see the Dolts lose.

  30. 30.

    Yutsano

    14-6 at halftime for the Seachickens. I have an old co-worker who’s a 49ers fan. I should call just to rub it in.

  33. 33.

    Yutsano

    @asiangrrlMN: Which is why I entertained the thought then went off to do something else. No one melts down like Crazylegs Hasslesack.

    Hi hon. Watch for the big me leaving night crew announcement later on. I may go clean up the kitchen for a bit.

  34. 34.

    Tim in Wisconsin

    It’s not a horrible call. A horrible call is when the referees don’t apply the rules properly, or incorrectly perceive what happened. In this case, the refs called the play correctly. It’s merely a fucking stupid rule.

  36. 36.

    JWL

    Yutsano: If you’re going to strike, do it now (interception..21-6 Seahawks). While the getting is good…

    The Niners will win this game.

  39. 39.

    stuckinred

    Here is how the NFL rule pertaining to the play reads:

    “If a player goes to the ground in the act of catching a pass (with or without contact by an opponent), he must maintain control of the ball after he touches the ground, whether in the field of play or the end zone. If he loses control of the ball, and the ball touches the ground before he regains control, the pass is incomplete. If he regains control prior to the ball touching the ground, the pass is complete.”

    And Calvin is a Yellow Jacket and we all know how goddamn smart they are over on the flats!

  40. 40.

    JWL

    BGinCHI: The Niners O-line is nothing special. That said, I approve of Singletary throwing a gauntlet at their feet. They’ll get it together.

    Gary Plummer, ex-Charger, Super Bowl Niner linebacker, and long time Niner color guy, just called for Crabtree to be benched. He’s right. He’s cost ’em twice today, big time.

  42. 42.

    Yutsano

    @JWL: Now 28-6. But trust me the Seachickens have blown bigger leads. It all depends if Lofa is on point on defense, if he’s being a monster may the FSM have mercy upon your soul.

  47. 47.

    Andy K

    @S. cerevisiae:

    I don’t think so. Vick hasn’t looked bad at all. Pretty good, actually. Buckley’s fumble on the previous possession cost them points.

    While Kolb was in it looked just the same as the Iggles w/McNabb, IMO.

    And Philly just scored, closing the gap to 10.

  49. 49.

    S. cerevisiae

    I am curious to see how Donovan does tonight against the hated Cowboys. Because I want the Cowboys to be the definition of EPIC FAIL this year (and every year).

  51. 51.

    Bill Murray

    @stuckinred: and how is both feet, both butt cheeks and a hand through out which he maintained control not maintain[ing] control of the ball after he touches the ground? The former head of officials was going on about through the process of the catch, which is not in the rule and how is what he did no completing the process? Did he need to take it home? i realize you are a Bear fan so are happy about the call but given the rule you quote the call was wrong

  55. 55.

    Corner Stone

    I’m just not sure about this DirecTV fantasy football commercial with the police?
    I mean, I guess the pain and suffering of others is funny, and probably hilarious if it’s at the hands of the police.
    But somehow I’m just not sure about it.

  56. 56.

    JWL

    Yutsano: I’ve been jumping back and forth between the Giants and Niners game. The G-Men, of course, are in a pennant race. Damn if I didn’t lose track of the clock.

    Of course, my beer swilling undoubtedly played a factor in my temporal distortion..

    Still, the Niners will lose this one. But my point abides. They’ve got a good thing going.

  59. 59.

    JWL

    Yutsano: One last thing. Hasselback (sic) essentially ended his season last year at Candlestick.

    The SeaHawks were inside the fifteen. As I recall, it was a busted play- anyway, he took off running. So far, so good. But then he erred. Inside the five, instead of sliding, he put his shoulder down and tried to bull his way into the end zone. In other words, he fucked up.

    Still, late in the 3rd quarter oftoday’s game (or was it early in the 4th?…uuurp), he threw a flare, and was last seen ten yards down field trying to pick up a block.

    My kind of QB.

  62. 62.

    Yutsano

    @JWL: Hasselbeck needs to retire. Period. He’s 36 and he loses control of the game too easy. Whitehurst showed he was quite capable in the pre-season, so I’m kinda excited about that.

  63. 63.

    stuckinred

    @Bill Murray: yea and it’s not going to change. Last yeat in the Georgia LSU game AJ Green caught a touchdown pass with about 2 minutes to go and was flagged for “calling attention” to himself. LSU got the ball on the 45 and went right in and scored. The SEC officials reviewed it after the game and found he did NOTHING. Guess what happened? Nothing, just like this call.

  64. 64.

    MattR

    Was out watching games at the bar so I am very late to this thread, but the refs got the rule exactly perfect in the Bears- Lions game. When you go to the ground as part of making a catch, the catch is not complete until the player hits the ground and maintains control of the ball. It does not matter if you are in the end zone or out of bounds or even if you take 7 steps trying to maintain your balance before falling. Ultimately I blame Calvin Johnson for not knowing the rule and for putting the ball in that position instead of cradling it as he fell.

    @Bill Murray: Notice that the rule does not say that you only have to maintain control until the first part of your body hits the ground. It says that you still have to have control after you have touched the ground and It is pretty obvious that Calvin lost control of the ball since it popped out of his hand.

  65. 65.

    stuckinred

    “They were high-fiving and bouncing around,” the SEC coordinator said. “What I didn’t see was any action on the part of the player in question to demonstrate to the fans or draw any kind of special attention to himself.”

    Redding said the blown call would be treated like any other — a chance to educate the officials so they’ll get it right the next time. He wouldn’t comment on whether any disciplinary action was planned against Watson, saying the SEC never discusses those issues publicly.

    I realize this is college but the principle applies.

  67. 67.

    MattR

    Oh, and too late to edit my last comment, but after the game the Lions coach agreed that it was not a complete pass.

  74. 74.

    MattR

    Oh God, these announcers in the Cards-Rams games are terrible. First they are talking about leaving time to race the FG team on in a 4 point game. Then after complaining that the Rams did not take a timeout and they can’t bring them with them after the game, they comment that the Rams need to get out of bounds to stop the clock.

    EDIT: And the Rams coaches are just as bad. There is no point in running the ball when you are at the 40 yard line needing a TD with enough time for two plays. It did not matter that it was 4th and 1. Even a 10 yard run would not help much. You have to throw it down the field to give you one shot at the end zone from a decent range. Instead they are forced to throw a hail mary.

  75. 75.

    trollhattan

    @Yutsano:

    I dunno, the more that game went on the more he, and Carroll, seemed to take control and especially connect with the team (how many new starters?). A healthy Matt hasn’t been seen for, what, two and a half seasons? I’ll be interested to see whether they can eventually run against anybody this year. They haven’t had a running game since ’05.

    The D looks good. Gore usually lights them up. Alex Smith–oy!

  76. 76.

    Yutsano

    @asiangrrlMN: Haz to. First day of training tomorrow at 9 AM and I have to be up at 6 for the commute. It should only be two months until the regular schedule kicks in, then I should be back to a 12-8 groove again. I wonder if they think I’m funny for wanting to keep that. Oh well.

    @trollhattan: Again I didn’t watch the game (no TV and not really sure I want one now) so you saw more than I did what happened today. But based on past experience with Matty I’m not getting my hopes up. I still think he needs to retire though.

  78. 78.

    MattR

    @asiangrrlMN: I can understand that because we have the whole “two feet (or one knee)” thing drummed into us. But I actually like it. It is very much like the baseball rule. If you dive for a ball you should have to maintain control of the ball after you hit the ground, not just tap your toes in bounds on the way down.

    @trollhattan: Did not get to watch that game. How was the Seahawks O-line? I kinda expected the 49ers to get a bunch of pressure on Hasselbeck.

  79. 79.

    sal

    Johnson had control of the ball. He let it go as he got up after he’d caught it. He didn’t drop it. How long is he supposed to hang on to it?
    That said, it is a stupid rule.

  80. 80.

    JWL

    “Whitehurst, a restricted free agent with third-round compensation, has had only four NFL snaps and has not thrown a pass in a regular-season game. The Clemson product signed his one-year restricted tender [with Seattle] Wednesday, which facilitated the trade, after deciding he preferred to play in Seattle instead of Arizona”.

    When I was a kid I sat in the stands with my pals at Kezar Stadium, chanting in unison, “We want Mira”. As in, George Mira.

    As in, George Who?

    A few years later, starter John Brodie was the MVP of the NFL, and took the Niners to 3 consecutive playoff appearances.

    To be sure, they were knocked off all three years by the Cowboys.

    But flash forward 8 or so years later. The last time any defense ever underestimated Joe Montana was those few split seconds before he hit Dwight Clark in the end zone of that NFC championship game.

    That said, for all I know Whitehurst might be the real deal. I had to Google the above notation.

    And I don’t care one way or another about M.H..

    But just a few years ago, he did steer Seattle to their only Super Bowl berth. And he’s continued to play with that great intangible, i.e., heart.

    I look forward to the rematch later this year…

    >”

  81. 81.

    Vico

    @MattR: So right about the Cardinals-Rams casters. I don’t watch Fox much, so I don’t know whether this is some kind of amateur backup team or if these incompetents get work every week. And it was not only the field goal thing.

    And yeah, I feel sorry for Bradford, who worked his ass off and then was undermined on the sidelines.

  82. 82.

    MattR

    @Vico: Apparently it was Ron Pitts and John Lynch.

    This is a great site for info about which cities get which games each week (and which broadcasters are working each game)

    (EDIT: And looking at the list of FOX announcers, I think Lynch and Pitts are the #6 team on the network)

  83. 83.

    mcd410x

    Johnson’s entire body hit the ground — everything — before he rolls over (still on the ground!) and tries to stop by putting the ball on the ground. If Johnson spikes the ball, if he throws it in celebration, if he does anything other than what he did it’s a TD and a Lions win. It was an amazing catch, and it’s a shitty, shitty rule.

    Total horseshit.

  84. 84.

    Corner Stone

    Andy Reid has to be the worst winning head coach in the modern history of the National Football League.

  85. 85.

    JWL

    Mcd410x: A “shitty, shitty” rule, as you so rudely phrased it, is still a rule.

    Your vulgarity demeans all football fans. So, please, watch your language when posting in the aftermath of a spirited sporting contest…

  86. 86.

    Andy K

    @JWL:

    Your vulgarity demeans all football fans. So, please, watch your language when posting in the aftermath of a spirited sporting contest…

    Oh, Coach Dungy, I have so much fucking respect for your seemingly inborn sense of rhetorical decency. Don’t let the assholes bother you.

  87. 87.

    JWL

    “Don’t let the assholes bother you”.

    Andy K: Such language is precisely what offends decent, upright NFL fans everywhere.

    A monkey chained to a typewriter for 10,000 years would prove less profane.

    Still, all things considered, you should be complimented.

    After all, between scratching yourself and punching a key, you completed a semi-coherent thought in written fashion.

    Finally, Andy, I’m bullshitting you. I regrettably swear like a sailor as a matter of course.. especially where the Giants and Niners interests are on the line…

  90. 90.

    trollhattan

    @MattR:

    (A gazillion hours late, but anyhoo) They did a so-so job early but a good to very good job later, and Hasselbeck had the protection he needed, since the short pass was standing in for the running game for three quarters. They finally managed to bust a couple decent runs in the fourth quarter when everybody knew they would run. SF has a lot of defensive speed, but you wouldn’t have known it today.

    Once they get the new left side anchored with Okung, who knows, maybe I can crawl out from under my hidin’ rock? I’m surrounded by insufferable Niners fans and clueless Raiders fans, so it’s time.

  91. 91.

    NobodySpecial

    @MattR: Can’t agree. The referee making that play had to look through Johnson’s body to make that call,seeing that Johnson was turned away from him. The referee with the best view of the entire play signaled TD, after which there should have been no review, because you can’t review actions that occur after the call.

Comments are closed.