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Reality NFL 2008

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    Reality NFL 2008

    The MK Dons comparison only works for teams with established, loving fan bases. Brooklyn Dodgers, Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and now the Seattle Supersonics (for instance, I don't know anyone who'll ever have a kind word for the Oklahoma City Thunder.)

    However, no one gave a shit for the Cards in Chicago, and not many gave a shit for them in St. Louis, and probably even less gave a shit for them in Phoenix. Until now.

    Some teams just have to move.

    My only reason to cheer against the Steelers is that Big Ben will have two rings, and it will make the Giants decision to pick Eli over him a little less solid. (Well, I never said it was the best reason.)

    However, Kurt Warner has proven himself to be a man of the highest pedigree, so I will not begrudge him or that bowtie-wearing liverlipped Bill Bidwell. I like Palomalu and Big Ben and Mike "I Don't Say A Word Because I'm Too Cool In My Leather Jacket/I'm the Shaft of the NFL" Tomlin and the Rooneys and I won't begrudge them, either.

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      Reality NFL 2008

      Kurt Warner is a good story. I agree, but I can't root for any team from a hot place that is all about subduing nature to build golf courses, swimming pools and condos for retired people. So no Florida teams. No Arizona teams.

      I love Mike Tomlin not only because he's my college classmate but because of his football philosophy and he looks EXACTLY like Omar Epps. Not just a lot like. Exactly.

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        Reality NFL 2008

        evilC wrote:
        We all knew that this was going to be a 'bruising encounter', but that hit was up there with the biggest I've ever seen. Okay, you'll get one bloke in a collision knocked off his feet quite often, but both of them? That was remarkable. I'm glad he's okay. He'd been such a major part of the Ravens' attack up until that point, too.
        This was posted on Deadspin earlier today, and I agree with it:

        But the play itself brings to mind two questions:

        1.) Has anyone this decade had a harder hard-knock life than McGahee? He's lucky to even be playing in the NFL after his leg was temporarily removed in college, but he keeps coming back after numerous and sundry injuries. I guess he's pretty tough.

        2.) Was it a dirty play? Well, I wouldn't say dirty, but it's definitely bad football and that's the real problem. Clark did what way too many defensive players do these days—he tried to hit the runner, instead of tackle him. He dropped his shoulder, lowered his head, didn't see what he was hitting, and did not have his hands out to grab the other player. When you do that, one of two things tend to happen—you bounce off the ball carrier and he keeps going, or someone gets hurt. (Brian Dawkins did the same thing to Larry Fitzgerald in the NFC game. He hit Larry hard at the two, but instead of wrapping him up and keeping him out of the endzone, Fitzgerald kept chugging and scored his first touchdown.)

        And Clark nearly did as much damage to himself as he did to McGahee. So, yes, it was a "clean" hit, but it was horrible form and not very smart. Stop throwing yourself around like guided missiles out there, because it's scary and rarely does any good. Unfortunately, it's kind of hard to devise a solution to the injury problem when the very equipment that has been designed to protect football players—hard, unforgiving helmets and shoulders pads—is what makes the game so dangerous.

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          Reality NFL 2008

          Incandenza wrote:
          But the play itself brings to mind two questions:

          1.) Has anyone this decade had a harder hard-knock life than McGahee? He's lucky to even be playing in the NFL after his leg was temporarily removed in college, but he keeps coming back after numerous and sundry injuries. I guess he's pretty tough.
          How does that work, then?

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            Reality NFL 2008

            I have thought the Steelers were a good bet for this since Palamalu's ridonkulous interception a month or so ago. I think I will stick with them, especially as I have had more interaction with Pittsburgh than Arizona. Though I do know some people from Tucson, so maybe watching in a bar could be fun...

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              Reality NFL 2008

              I'm rooting for Pittsburgh. They've been one of my 'alternate teams' for a long time. (The others being New Orleans and Baltimore - anyone who wears black or purple, basically!)

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                Reality NFL 2008

                Femme Folle wrote:
                Incandenza wrote:
                But the play itself brings to mind two questions:

                1.) Has anyone this decade had a harder hard-knock life than McGahee? He's lucky to even be playing in the NFL after his leg was temporarily removed in college, but he keeps coming back after numerous and sundry injuries. I guess he's pretty tough.
                How does that work, then?
                Go to the link and watch the video at that link if you want to find out. He was injured in the BCS championship game in 2003--he had an ACL, PCL, and MCL tear in his knee. Up until then, he was a cinch for a top-5 draft pick (he was expected to leave Miami as a junior). He could have gone back to school, but still wanted to enter the draft even after the injury. The Bills drafted him #23, and even that low, he was considered a huge risk. He required extensive surgery, and didn't actually play in a game until the middle of the next season.

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                  Reality NFL 2008

                  I'm afraid to watch that video. I'm squeamish (I remember when this happened - I saw it live on TV and it still makes me feel queasy).

                  So he didn't literally have his leg removed?

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                    Reality NFL 2008

                    Not literally, no.

                    Re: Theismann. That's the one everyone talks about, but no one seems to mention Napoleon McCallum's injury, which to me was more horrific (Ken Norton, Jr., who tackled him and knew what happened, reportedly stayed on top of him and held him down and screamed at him "don't move, don't move!"). It was also on Monday Night Football, also. But no one seems to remember it. I guess in just 10 years, MNF wasn't as important as it used to be, and I think they're might be a NFC East bias, since the Theismann injury was a Redskins-Giants game, and McCallum's was in a Raiders-49ers game.

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                      Reality NFL 2008

                      There's two ...no, three injuries that stand out in my mind (though my recollection of the details of each is sketchy). All are from the late 80s (of course!).

                      The first (and worst one) was where a Giants(?) receiver (can't remember which one) ran a crossing pattern from left to right, the ball came to him, he jumped to catch it, and... Well, it was on astroturf. It might have been Detroit. Most of him went up to catch the ball, but as he twisted slightly his cleats acted like velcro on the turf and didn't budge. I remember someone saying that all his tendons in both knees were instantaneously snapped. He immediately lost consciousness with the pain and just fell to the ground like a rag doll. It was a strange one to watch, as it looked quite ridiculous: Jump, collapse. Miraculously, I also seem to remember he came back from this horrific injury and had a long and fruitful career as a receiver.

                      The second one I can't remember much about at all, except that a member of a secondary ended up literally jumping up and down, wildly gesturing for medics to come on to attend to the bloke he'd just levelled, who was near-unconscious at his feet. I think he'd hit this receiver in the air, causing him to spin and land on his head. I'm not sure if it was a broken neck, but I've never seen the hitter so upset by the results of his actions.

                      The third one is quite famous: Tim Krumrie's horrible spiral fracture of his shin in the Superbowl where the Bengals met the 49ers. I think it was the first play from scrimmage and it effectively shaped the outcome of the game. Both lines moved to one side after the snap (it was a run to the right), Krumrie grabbed someone, planted his foot, got twisted and *snap*! one very floppy lower leg. The bastards showed the slow motion of it about 20 times. The thing is, Krumrie didn't want to leave the sideline - he wanted to stay to watch the rest of the game! In the end the medics had to force him to go to hospital.

                      Grim times!

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                        Reality NFL 2008

                        Ken Norton caused two appalling injuries during his career - the McCallum incident, and also in a game against the Giants (another MNF featuring an NFC East team, as it happens) when Norton was running full-tilt and tripped and fell into his stationary team-mate Bryant Young - Norton's helmet caught Young just below the knee and went straight through the tib and fib.

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                          Reality NFL 2008

                          The Bills drafted him #23, and even that low, he was considered a huge risk.
                          That was Drew Rosenhaus' evil genius at work. Larry Johnson was/is better and should have gone ahead of him.

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                            Reality NFL 2008

                            OMG, why did I watch that Norton clip? Stupid stupid stupid.

                            I need to lie down.

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                              Reality NFL 2008

                              I have a very clear memory of watching a wide receiver running down the touchline, being hit (not terribly hard even) on the leg, which was not enough to knock him down. Indeed, he kept running for a pace, during which you could see his unplanted foot and lower leg flapping around, then he collapsed in a heap as he 'attempted' to put that foot down for his next step. Properly nauseating stuff. I think it was in a Falcons game a while back.
                              I opened that Norton clip, fortunately it was slow to load, and nothing happened early on so I thought better of it and closed it again. It was during lunch time, also.

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                                Reality NFL 2008

                                I have a vague reason to root for Arizona now, as my wife went to high school with a guy who is on the Cardinals now.

                                Of course, this means I have to come to terms with my strong repulsion to Kurt Warner, who I've generally thought a complete douche. Perhaps, I am wrong on this, am I?

                                Obviously, he's a hell of a pro QB, but I seem to vaguely remember him joing the ranks of douchebaggery... maybe for politics or religion or something?

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                                  Reality NFL 2008

                                  He's ultra-religious ( the drawings of God...no, wait...Jesus...on Deadspin are particularly hilarious,) but he never really was a in-your-face holy roller.

                                  He's a dopey grocery store clerk with a former Marine wife and 7 kids who may be the first to win 2 Super Bowls with 2 teams. Again, he's the anti-ego player (brought in as a scrub to the Giants to teach Eli Manning and then Matt Leinert,) and just does what he can. I wish him good luck.

                                  ( ....edit - he did a commerical opposing embryonic stem cell research...Go STEELERS....)

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                                    Reality NFL 2008

                                    Apparently the Arizona Cardinals have a little-known pre-history in organized crime.

                                    Still: Steelers for me.

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                                      Reality NFL 2008

                                      NFL Films breaks down Troy Polamalu's interception return against the Ravens:

                                      http://www.nfl.com/videos?videoId=09000d5d80e44d45

                                      I find stuff like this utterly fascinating, especially the analysis of the Steelers blitzing Joe Flacco.

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                                        Reality NFL 2008

                                        Two crazy posts. I had no idea about the ties to that Capone-era Chi-town gang, and that was a good analysis from the always excellent nfl.com.

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                                          Reality NFL 2008

                                          Unfortunately, it made me late to work.

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                                            Reality NFL 2008

                                            Incandenza wrote:
                                            Also, I'm looking forward to seeing AJ Daulerio get hit in the face with a cookie sheet (not as much as I would enjoy seeing Will Leitch get hit with a cookie sheet, though).
                                            And here it is.

                                            That must have been some crummy aluminum cookie sheet. My wife and I have some heavy Calphalon ones that could probably break your nose if you got hit in the face by one.

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                                              Reality NFL 2008

                                              Well, I certainly hoped they would use a pro-wrestling-style aluminum one that would make a loud noise and big dent, even for a Philadelphian like Dalueiro.

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                                                Reality NFL 2008

                                                Why isn't he singing Mule Train?

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                                                  Reality NFL 2008

                                                  blameless wrote:
                                                  NFL Films breaks down Troy Polamalu's interception return against the Ravens:

                                                  http://www.nfl.com/videos?videoId=09000d5d80e44d45

                                                  I find stuff like this utterly fascinating, especially the analysis of the Steelers blitzing Joe Flacco.
                                                  That was indeed great. Set aside the analysis, the quality of the film and the different angles always makes NFL Films great. Why on earth has no soccer league or federation try to do something like this? The old World Cup films are the only thing that I can think of, and they're nowhere close to NFL Films. I can understand that it would be more challenging because of the constant play, but I still think that something good could be done.

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                                                    Reality NFL 2008

                                                    So... this Superb Owl, then.

                                                    When's it on and where? Is there any choice in coverage?

                                                    Is anyone here going anywhere special (i.e. not their living rooms) to watch it?

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