Hi Folks,
We do a lot of really insightful, thoughtful and serious features here at Footballguys with some very smart people thinking deeply for you. This is not one of those features.
This is Random Shots and it’s a few pages of me downloading my goofy and dysfunctional mental hard drive that gets stuffed with way too many random items from too many hours watching, reading about and listening to football every weekend and throughout the week. It's the only way I keep relatively sane. Here's hoping it has a tiny bit of value for you.
We’ll see how it goes. Let’s get to it.
J
Big news this week as Random Shots may be on a short leash. The NFL reportedly is cracking down on sites that publish GIFs and Vines.
This makes me feel like Knowshon...
I may have to do all the highlights in TECMO Bowl style next week.
Good job, NFL.
Thanks to Footballguy Russell Clement for that one.
NFL players make a lot of money. NFL players earn a lot of money.
If you had to fill in the blank for "________'s Facility Located Near Flaming Radioactive Waste Dump" is anyone surprised when the answer is "Ram's"?
I asked last week why nobody includes the "Jr" when talking about Duke Johnson Jr Jr. and Morgan Campbell had this observation.
Baseball note of the week. But let's be clear - that's not BigFoot. That's TEEN WOLF!
Not. A. Touchdown.
I'm with Ice Cube.
Browns TE Gary Barnidge shows how to use every part of your body to make the catch.
Which leads to this.
Terry Bradshaw did not mince words when it came to Greg Hardy.
Katie Nolan had this for Hardy.
Hardy had a word for his detractors.
Christine Brennan wrote a nice article on the subject this week. She contrasted Hardy with Ray Rice.
Brennan wrote:
"I’d like to close by giving Hardy an example of what an apology actually looks and sounds like.
“Domestic violence is real,” Rice told ESPN’s Jemele Hill in an interview over the summer. “It happens every 12 seconds as we speak. I made a life-long commitment to my wife and to my daughter, to the survivors of domestic violence, to go out there and not only help but share my story so that men can make better decisions. That was the worst decision I’ve ever made in my life.
“To the survivors of domestic violence, I understand how real it is, and I don’t want to ever take that for granted because this is a real issue in our society. My video put the light out there. If you have never seen what domestic violence looks like and you look at my video, I could understand why some people would never forgive me.”
She closed the aricle with this line:
"Remind me again why Rice is considered persona non grata in the NFL, while Hardy will be welcomed back with open arms on Sunday."
I know it's a rhetorical question but the answer is because Ray Rice is past his prime and can no longer produce on the field.
Greg Hardy can still do this:
And this.
I think we know the answer. Because we are the answer. Life is all about weighing pros and cons. Greg Hardy is a great football player. He clearly is a guy that hasn't learned much from his suspension. And this isn't on the league. The league gave him 10 games. He fought for and won with the NFLPA a reduction to 4 games. And the Cowboys willingly put his comments on their site. This is on us.
Tale of the Tape was pretty lopsided.
I suppose I should say something about "that's why the play the games". But in this case, the tale of the tape turned out pretty much like the game...
Somebody check on Morris Claiborne to see if his ankles are still attached...
Sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson disappears. Yikes.
Tyrod Taylor following along...
A more gentle and kind Oakland crowd...
NFL teams were 427-0 when leading by 17+ points in the fourth quarter.
Until Seattle lost to Cincinnati Sunday.
Wow.
Marvin Lewis has those grandfatherly kind eyes.
Lewis was asked about looking calm during the game. He said, "If I'm a screaming idiot out there, I'll have eleven more screaming idiots."
This team is doing the things good teams do. Trailing by three points in regulation, Andy Dalton was tackled in field goal range with 16 seconds left on the clock and no timeouts. Instead of panicking, they quickly shuttled the field goal team onto the field and nailed the kick to tie the game. Then won by this much in overtime.
I'm sure Lions fans are smiling...
Washington Defensive Coordinator Joe Barry shows what it feels like to watch your defense force a fumble at the goal line only to have Julio Jones recover the ball for a touchdown in the endzone.
Barry had bigger problems though. Like leaving Julio Jones this open late in the fourth quarter. I'm no Defensive Coordinator, but I'm going to guess putting a man on number 11 is probably a pretty good idea.
Josh Huff, you're kind of ridiculous.
Photo Credit Matt Rourke/AP
It's a beautiful game.
Photo Credit Ric Tapia/NFL
It's not always beautiful though.
Sometimes a QB run looks like this...
And ends like this...
But you know what? It's still a first down. Pretty or not.
It's said you could call holding on every play.
For New England, you could call offensive pass interference with a pick play on just about every pass.
And save the emails Patriot lovers. The official might call pick play but most of these are cleverly legal. For a good run down on the ins and outs of the rulebook on this issue, Mile High Report has a nice article here.
Ouch.
Cameron Heyward's eye black lets offensive guys know what just hit them.
Thanks to Footballguy Brian Sumner for that one.
College Football note of the week.
"Spurrier was just like every Southern family's crazy uncle. He pissed the hell out of you and somehow while he was pissing the hell out of you, he found a way to make you like him even more. It was uncanny. Sure, Spurrier won the Heisman trophy and revolutionized offensive football in the South on his way to snagging a national championship and becoming the greatest coach in the history of two different SEC schools, but he still managed to climb up on top of a NASCAR double wide and drink Coors Light shirtless. He was your crazy ass uncle on his third wife who also happened to have a degree in nuclear engineering, a Southern man in full who didn't need to apologize for anything."
Regions and culture fascinate me. I was born in the South, grew up in Texas and have returned home to the South where I'm now rooted. I'm like Davy Crockett and Sam Houston from East Tennessee to Texas except I made it back...
So for better or for worse, I'm a Southerner. We certainly have our problems. But guys like Spurrier show some of the fun side. It's a crazy mashup of all kinds of traits and things that may not be ideal, but it's not boring.
Rock on Steve Spurrier.
From the "Becasue I Know You Guys Need To Know" department...
This is the Chicago Bears logo and yes, it's assymetrical.
Here's everything you ever wanted to know about the Wishbone C.
Thanks to Footballguy Mike Ryan for that one.
In its quest to have as many different uniforms as possible, Oregon broke out the "Mach Speed Pioneer" uniform Saturday for the Oregon Trail as they welcomed Washington State to Eugene.
After beating Oregon 45-38, Washington State dropped this tweet...
Seriously, "Mach Speed Pioneer"? I'm with Stanley.
There are more than a few sighs of relief this morning from the NFL offices. Multiple outlets are reporting the timekeeper in Monday Night's game made an error allowing almost twenty seconds to run off the clock near the end of the game.
That's called dodging a bullet for the league.
Raise your hand if you predicted the Bengals to be 5-0. I think it's mostly due to the three offensive line sets they're running.
Rock on, Eagle Guy.
And you too, Scary Bears Fan.
Just be you, Jeff Fisher. Just be you.
Todd Gurley is a full grown man. It feels like the perfect storm of him playing for a small market team like the Rams and getting a late start, but this guy should be getting way more attention.
Note to Matt Stafford trying to tackle 318 pound Cory Redding. I like the effort but I'm not sure this is the best use of your ability.
So much for that "Antonio Gates will be rusty" talk...
Tom Jackson breaking out the moves on Monday Night...
Roethlisberger on the sideline just doesn't seem right.
But this look after the Michael Vick touchdown was fun.
Then
That's what teammates look like.
But what I found most fascinating was in the final moments before the game winning Pittsburgh touchdown, you didn't see Mike Tomlin or Todd Haley talking to Vick and Bell. It was Roethlisberger giving them instruction.
Closing this week with a fun Robert Griffin III III story. He may not be contributing on the field but he made the day of 31 women battling breast cancer at a Survivor's Celebration event.
Check out the smooth dance moves here. That's awesome.
And a great lesson for the rest of us. Do what you do and make the most of what you have. Even when things "at your real job" aren't going the way you had in mind. Sometimes, that means making a bunch of women smile.
That'll do it for this week, Folks. Thanks to Footballguys Doug Drinen, Clayton Gray, Keith Overton, Brian Sumner, Russell Clement and Mike Ryan for the help on this one. If you've got a Random Shot of your own, shoot me an e-mail at bryant@footballguys.com.
Thanks for playing along. I hope you make the most of whatever you're doing in your life. Love your neighbor and stick together.
Peace and Grace to you.
J