NFL 2008 Regular Season Discussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[Scott Merryfield]

Yes, that DeSean Jackson move last night was a boneheaded play. The Cowboys also blew it, since the ball was rolling around live on the field near some Dallas player(s) -- I think Pacman Jones was one of them. It reminded me of several years ago when a Vikings receiver started to spike the ball before he got to the end zone, was hit by a Detroit defender and fumbled the ball.


I agree. I hate seeing plays blown dead prematurely, too, but anything that may cause a player to keep going after the whistle blows because of instant replay could cause far worse problems.

 

[Lew Crippen]

Actually Dallas could do nothing. The ref had blown the whistle thinking it was a TD. Play was stopped--therefore nothing could be done other than to give the Eagles the ball on the one.

 

[Johnny Angell]

Here's a quote for the SD paper:
We missed the playoffs by one game that year.

 

[SDRANGER619]

I (a Charger fan) haven't lost hope for the season...yet. This coming game against the Jets is now a must win. The defense needs to come to the game ready to play!

 

[Scott Merryfield]

The difference is in one instance -- complete vs. incomplete pass -- the play is blown dead, but there is no change of possession at issue. In the other instance -- an incomplete pass that may be a fumble -- the play is blown dead, so the ball may be laying loose. In that instance, the instant replay may be able to rule the play a completed pass, but how can you award possession to the defense if the play was blown dead? Most, if not all, players should have stopped going for the loose ball once the whistle blows. There is no way to determine which team would have gained possession had the play not been blown dead.

 

[Steve_Tk]

Scott sums it up correctly. Even though we can technically say that the charger player recovered the fumble and no other player would have, you can't just give them the ball based on that assumption, even though the initial call was wrong. You can't set that precedent.

 

[JohnRice]

I'm a little baffled by the uproar over Hochule'e mistake. I don't know how many times a fumble has mistakenly been blown dead and the team retained the ball. I've seen it dozens of times myself. Yeah, it's annoying, but it happens. It's part of the game, unfortunately.

Scott's summary really does get it. Plus, regarding the interception. Even if the equipment hadn't failed and they could have reviewed the play, I doubt it would have been overturned. There was no clear evidence either way. Which ever way it had been called would have been upheld, it looked like to me. That also happens.

Besides, Shanahan gave the Chargers a shot. If they stopped the 2 pt conversion, they would have won. The odds were with them on that one. Doesn't make the fumble call right, but it did give them a real chance.

 

[Malcolm R]

Agreed. If your whole strategy is simply to depend on a few lucky moments to win, rather than actually playing the game from start to finish, then sympathy should be fairly low if some of those moments backfire.

It seemed to me that the Chargers D had several chances to seal the win and instead decided to lay down.

 

[Johnny Angell]

You're baffled? This wasn't a missed call in the 1st quarter, this was with a minute to go and would have meant the Chargers would win. I think they could take a knee 3 times to run out the clock. This also wasn't an iffy call, it was a blown call and both Hochuli and the NFL have admitted that.

I'm baffled that that you can't understand there is an uproar over this. BTW, what would have happened if this call had gone against the home team in city with a rep for rabid fans? This is just a little meow compared to the roar you'd hear then. The ref would have to go into protective custody.

As the the interception which couldn't be reviewed because of a malfunction and couldn't have been overturned anyway because the rules wouldn't allow it. I saw clear evidence that the receiver was down and had possession. The announcers were unanimous that it would be overturned. That play defines why you have instant reply.

As for depending on luck to win? Denver was given two opportunities at TDs via bad calls, I'd call that pretty good luck.

However, as I've written above, two games in a row, the defense could have won the game. Frankly in both game-ending situations, I liked the our chances. They came up short both times. Maybe they deserve to be 0-2, but if the ref makes the call that even the Denver QB (blanking on name) says should have been made, they're 1-1 with a division win, tied for 1st place, and have the tiebreaker advantage in head to head play. Now, they're two games out of 1st and down in the tiebreaker advantage.

I think if your team got screwed like that, you might feel a little uproar too.

 

[Steve_Tk]

There are always going to be bad calls. At least the NFL is willing to admit that and says they are going to change this rule before next year. Baseball doesn't like to admit to anything because it would mess up their "tradition". MLB still has a thing or two to learn from the most successful sports franchise.

 

[ThomasC]

 

[ThomasC]

The 0-2 Bengals force the defending Super Bowl champions into overtime!!!

Maybe the Bengals can salvage the season after all.

 

[ZacharyTait]

Peter King pointed out in his MMQB column that the state of Ohio (Cincinatti and Cleveland) and Missouri (Kansas City and St. Louis) are a combined 0-12. Ouch!

The scary thing about the Lions is that they aren't the worst team in the NFL. St. Louis might not even win a game the way they're playing.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Kansas City is very bad, too. I think the Chiefs, Rams and Lions will battle it out for the top pick in next year's draft. The Bengals are bad, but these three teams give a new meaning to the word "terrible". If Millen and Marinelli are still around at that time, though, it won't matter where Detroit picks. A monkey throwing crap at a draft board could do a better job of selecting talent.

 

[ZacharyTait]

ESPN - Ford Jr. says if he was in charge of father's Lions, he'd fire Millen - NFL

I'm not surprised this has happened. What will the total fallout be?

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Nothing. The old man is stubborn, as well as incompetent. This just may make him more determined to hang onto Millen. Junior has wanted to get rid of Millen for a couple of years, but the old man is in charge and will not do it.

However, should this somehow result in Millen's departure, do not get too excited until we find out would hire his replacement. If it's the old man, then getting rid of Millen will not solve anything. The old fool hasn't made a quality hire in a half century, so there is no reason to expect him to get it right this time. The only hope would be the old man would also step aside and let Junior make the next hire. His track record in business isn't great, but at least he does have some real world business experience, unlike his dad.

The real problem with the Lions is ownership. Millen is just a symptom.

 

[Steve_Tk]

Maybe he should draft another receiver

 

[JohnRice]

What rule are they going to change? Certainly not about a whistle killing the play. That you just can't do.

The NFL actually addressed the issue of quick whistles a few years ago, instructing officials to only blow the whistle when they are positive the play is dead. Clearly, they still make mistakes, but it has improved quite a bit.

 

[Brandon_T]

The Lions, LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLLOLOLOLOLOLOL. Thats all I have to say about that. Short of bringing in Bill Cower to run it and coach it, there is nothing that can save this team until Senior kicks it.

 

[tyler payne]

Ahhh, just like old times. My Bengals are 0-3 and you fine people at the HTF just can't help but kick me when I'm down.

Of course the fact that Carrot Top has scored more than the Bengal offense does merit some ribbing.

This week will be interesting in the fact that the Bengals play the Browns and neither team seems to be able to score. It's interesting in that last year in week 2 the Browns v. Bengals game was a score fest.

Perhaps after this week Chad can change his name to "Ocho Seis", as in the Bengals might have to just 86 this entire season.

tyler