NFL VI

[Winterfella]

I think what I like most about Steelers games is watching people try to sack Big Ben. It's like the single most monumental task in football and very few seem capable of actually bringing him down. Usually they just send him through the washing machine, he spins around, comes out ok and throws a TD pass. Would Jared Lorenzen be this tough to bring down (outside of throwing a hotdog to the ground)? Or is there some elusive, greased up quality to Big Ben that I'm not aware of?

<Deep voice of that announcer guy, you know the one>

He's greased up with the sweat of a hundred years worth of hard working, blue collar, meat and potatoes eating steel workers who live and die with their team at the confluence of the three rivers.

</voice of announcer guy>

[Robert's Last Bastard]

I thought he was an RFA next year, not unrestricted. That's why the Browns can put the tender on him and force someone to give them a 1st and 3rd for him.

Which, honestly? Someone's going to do. And someone's going to find out very quickly that if you don't have a good OLine and an astounding receiver, you're not going to do very well with a 54% completion rate passer.

That's the one. He a RFA- so if someone wants to put up, the Browns will trade him away and go with Quinn. If not, DA get's resigned, and Quinn sits the bench another year- just like the situation in San Diego. Hopefully it works out a little better for us in the end though.

[Swordfish]

<Deep voice of that announcer guy, you know the one>

He's greased up with the sweat of a hundred years worth of hard working, blue collar, meat and potatoes eating steel workers who live and die with their team at the confluence of the three rivers.

</voice of announcer guy>

Ha! john Facenda. Except you have to throw in an 'Frozen Tundra' to make it complete......

[Jaime L]

<Deep voice of that announcer guy, you know the one>

He's greased up with the sweat of a hundred years worth of hard working, blue collar, meat and potatoes eating steel workers who live and die with their team at the confluence of the three rivers.

</voice of announcer guy>

He must smell horrible.

[Robert's Last Bastard]

Ok, what the hell RLB, if you're up for it I'll do it. Let me know the terms, I've never done one of these before.

*Hurrying an overnight shipment of bubblegum to one D. Anderson

Definitely. i am one of those steeler fans.

I believe that is a double challenge! You boys give up Title and Avatar Mon-Fri of the following week if the Browns win, and I give up Avatar to Swordfish and Sig to Winterfella (or vice versa) for the week if the Steelers win.

[Swordfish]

He must smell horrible.

makes sense. Would YOU tackle a guy that smelled like that?

I believe that is a double challenge! You boys give up Title and Avatar Mon-Fri of the following week if the Browns win, and I give up Avatar to Swordfish and Sig to Winterfella (or vice versa) for the week if the Steelers win.

you are getting 2 to 1 odds! (resists temptation to make monty hall reference)

I'm in. Do we need to agree to the sigs and avs before the game? I'm willing to keep it relegated to pretty tame stuff like '<winning team> is the best team ever and <losing team> is our collective daddy.' but I'm open to suggestions. board vote?

And does anyone know where to get good nfl avs?

[Winterfella]

I believe that is a double challenge! You boys give up Title and Avatar Mon-Fri of the following week if the Browns win, and I give up Avatar to Swordfish and Sig to Winterfella (or vice versa) for the week if the Steelers win.

Works for me.

[Jaime L]

And does anyone know where to get good nfl avs?

You're Welcome.

[Swordfish]

You're Welcome.

Ha! Awesome.

[Winterfella]

I'm willing to keep it relegated to pretty tame stuff like '<winning team> is the best team ever and <losing team> is our collective daddy.' but I'm open to suggestions. board vote?

Yeah, I'm not one to go overboard. After all, I didn't really grow up hating the Browns, just pitying mostly.

[Robert's Last Bastard]

makes sense. Would YOU tackle a guy that smelled like that?

you are getting 2 to 1 odds! (resists temptation to make monty hall reference)

I'm in. Do we need to agree to the sigs and avs before the game? I'm willing to keep it relegated to pretty tame stuff like '<winning team> is the best team ever and <losing team> is our collective daddy.' but I'm open to suggestions. board vote?

And does anyone know where to get good nfl avs?

No worries. I'm nothing but tame...

[Robert's Last Bastard]

Yeah, I'm not one to go overboard. After all, I didn't really grow up hating the Browns, just pitying mostly.

and so it begins...

[Swordfish]

No worries. I'm nothing but tame...

Well...... naturally. you're a browns fan!

[Winterfella]

and so it begins...

Seriously, I'd better stfu before I annoy the karmic football gods.

[Bronn Stone]

By the way, that PI call on Hobbs? It was the correct call. And yes, they have come out and apologized to the Pats for the wrong call before, so it's not like they wouldn't do it if they thought otherwise. I understand the call too; you can't just run right in front of a receiver and slow down and force them to come to a stop unless you're playing the ball, and he cut off Wayne before turning around to play the ball. They call this all the time.

I really hate that rule, btw. There should be no obligation whatsoever for the defender to get out of the way of the receiver. If you've established position on a receiver, it should be that receiver's job to find his way around you. You should be free to speed up or slow down at your own pleasure.

[Rockroi]

By the way, that PI call on Hobbs? It was the correct call. And yes, they have come out and apologized to the Pats for the wrong call before, so it's not like they wouldn't do it if they thought otherwise. I understand the call too; you can't just run right in front of a receiver and slow down and force them to come to a stop unless you're playing the ball, and he cut off Wayne before turning around to play the ball. They call this all the time.

First of all define "all the time." Like once a season? Maybe?

From the article you linked:

"When the contact first occurred, and that’s where you look at the cut-off, when the contact first occurred between the receiver and the defender, has the defender turned around, and is he making a legitimate play on the ball? No, he’s not until after this contact occurs,†explained Pereira, who was illustrating his point for viewers with a replay in front of him.

“He does eventually get his head around, but it’s pass interference, because this initial contact, with Ellis not playing the ball, with Reggie playing the ball, makes it pass interference on Ellis Hobbs and the correct call.â€

However, apparently, what the article is not telling you is WHAT Pereira was doing: he was illustrating the play on the NFL network (read: defending his officials):

From sportsGuy today:

Note: Watch NFL Network's replay of the game for the split-screen explanation by Mike Pereira, NFL vice president of officiating, who claims Hobbs impeded Wayne's path to the ball and initiated contact before turning around to find the football. Only one problem ... as Pereira is telling us this, the split-screen replay shows Hobbs turning around before there was any contact. It's an incredible 10 seconds of TV. I wish we could hire Pereira to describe other things that allegedly didn't happen while we show videotape to prove the opposite was true. "As this tape by Rick Salomon proves, Paris Hilton has never had sex with someone on camera ..." (emphasis added)

So, in other words, As you an plainly see here, the defender touches the receiver before he turns around" (replay clearly shows the opposite). So, yeah, really good job there guys.

And the SporstGuy has a list of like 10 calls that went bat-shit wrong against the Pats.

The Moss one? Oh, as Simmons points out, they don't show that play on the NFL network rebroadcast of the game... interesting....

[Swordfish]

First of all define "all the time." Like once a season? Maybe?

From the article you linked:

However, apparently, what the article is not telling you is WHAT Pereira was doing: he was illustrating the play on the NFL network (read: defending his officials):

From sportsGuy today:

So, in other words, As you an plainly see here, the defender touches the receiver before he turns around" (replay clearly shows the opposite). So, yeah, really good job there guys.

And the SporstGuy has a list of like 10 calls that went bat-shit wrong against the Pats.

The Moss one? Oh, as Simmons points out, they don't show that play on the NFL network rebroadcast of the game... interesting....

pffffftttt.... using simmons as your objective source for calls that went against the pats?!?

What's next, having the ghost of hitler testify that the holocaust never happened?

[Mr. Ibis]

Go Colts! Back to Back Champs!

[Kalbear]

I really hate that rule, btw. There should be no obligation whatsoever for the defender to get out of the way of the receiver. If you've established position on a receiver, it should be that receiver's job to find his way around you. You should be free to speed up or slow down at your own pleasure.

As long as you're playing the ball, fine. You don't get to throw yourself in front of a receiver and slow them down or tackle them either, and that's all that Hobbs was doing.

You cannot impede the receiver's path to the ball in any way. Any more than they can impede your path. I don't see how this is at all arguable; if you remove this, you basically are allowing tackling of receivers. "Oops, sorry, didn't mean to get right in your route and hip check you...you should've gone around me". Whatever.

So, in other words, As you an plainly see here, the defender touches the receiver before he turns around" (replay clearly shows the opposite). So, yeah, really good job there guys.

Uh, yeah. Sorry, but I'll buy FO's explanation over Bill Simmons. Really, Rock - stop using Bill Simmons as a source. Half the time he's flat out wrong. The other half of the time he's too biased to see straight.

I watched this clip, and Hobbs turns around before the ball was thrown. Then he slows down. THEN The ball is thrown. Then he turns around again.

It's PI by the rules.

As I said before, Pereira has come on the NFL network and said "We fucked up" to Hobbs before. He's had no problems saying when they made the wrong decision before, and he's even done so to the specific person in question. I don't see why it would be different here.

[Chuck Klingbeil]

Of course they keep him on the bench. If they can sign Anderson. If Anderson continues to be the real thing this season and into next, well then, the Browns just might have a little problem of just who will trade them the most for Quinn...hello, Miami? Wanna pass again?

Absolutely.