# NFL 2023: Wildcard Weekend **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** football-nfl\ **Created:** [January 10, 2024, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866 "2024-01-10T02:46:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/221 "2024-01-15T15:57:22Z")
Was this a legal hit? > ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/222 "2024-01-15T16:01:02Z")
> [@Clawdio](#): > > Does Dak Prescott’s snap cadence make anyone else’s skin crawl? I watch most games with the sound off. Sports commentary is just so inane. People complain about the repetitiveness of the commentary in Madden games, but I actually find it to be quite realistic. The repetitiveness is a feature, not a bug. ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/223 "2024-01-15T16:06:33Z")
An uncommon solution (at least for Packers fans) is to delay the radio broadcast from Larrivee and McCarren, the in-house broadcasters, to sync with the game on TV. They’re fantastic - if homer-ish - and you don’t get as much of the inane commentary repeated for less-fanatical, erm, fans. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/224 "2024-01-15T16:07:35Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > Was this a legal hit? I think so, yes. Can’t do that to a quarterback in the pocket, but I think you can go low on backs and receivers. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/225 "2024-01-15T16:08:54Z")
It doesn’t always get called, but I think it’s illegal. Here is the rule on illegal use of the helmet: > [@](#): > > **USE OF THE HELMET** > > It is a foul if a player: > > 1. lowers his head and makes forcible contact with his helmet against an opponent; or > 2. uses any part of his helmet or facemask to butt or make forcible contact to an opponent’s head or neck > > These provisions do not prohibit incidental contact by the mask or the helmet in the course of a conventional tackle or block on an opponent. > > Penalty: Loss of 15 yards. If the foul is by the defense, it is also an automatic first down. The player may be disqualified. It sure looks to me that he lowered his head and made forcible contact with his helmet. He may have also hit with his shoulder, so they may have thought this was “incidental contact by the… helmet in the course of a conventional tackle”. I would amend the rule that you can never lead with your helmet down like that at all. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/226 "2024-01-15T16:12:16Z")
That hit on Higbee was about 3 plays before the no-call on Nacua, when the defender grabbed his jersey as the ball was arriving. A clear DPI missed by the officials. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/227 "2024-01-15T16:15:07Z")
It looks like he leads with his shoulder in the video. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/228 "2024-01-15T16:21:58Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > It sure looks to me that he lowered his head and made forcible contact with his helmet. He may have also hit with his shoulder > [@EllisDee](#): > > It looks like he leads with his shoulder in the video. It looks that way to me too- shoulders, incidental helmet, if any. > [@Railer13](#): > > That hit on Higbee was about 3 plays before the no-call on Nacua, when the defender grabbed his jersey as the ball was arriving. A clear DPI missed by the officials. Yeah, the Lions got away with one on the jersey grab. Clearly the fix was in-- the NFL decided that the League needed a Lions Cinderella story, and after a sizable payoff from the Ford family, put the word out to the refs. I kid, I kid! But that’s probably what some Rams fans are saying today. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/229 "2024-01-15T16:25:00Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > I would amend the rule that you can never lead with your helmet down like that at all. That was the old spearing rule. I think it still technically exists as per the rules you quoted. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/230 "2024-01-15T16:31:46Z")
> [@solost](#): > > It looks that way to me too- shoulders, incidental helmet, if any. Actually you can actually see him turn his head to the side to avoid direct helmet contact. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/231 "2024-01-15T19:29:10Z")
Didn’t read this thread, so sorry if repeating someone. It was cold during the Chiefs game. Perhaps the Dolphins are not used to the cold, as most Canadians are (despite mild recent temperatures). But at one point they claimed the wind was 4MPH, the temperature was -9C, but it “felt like -28C”. Uh, no it didn’t. Perhaps the funny metric units were to blame. Maybe El Niño is exceedingly localized this year. But to us old timers the “feels like” dodge is evidence of increasing pussification. And this was wrong, even egregious. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/232 "2024-01-15T19:35:47Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > But at one point they claimed the wind was 4MPH, the temperature was -9C, but it “felt like -28C”. I’m not sure who ‘they’ were who made this claim. I watched the telecast on Peacock, and I don’t recall either the announcers or the graphics ever talking about temperatures on the Celsius scale. It was always Fahrenheit. And this [article](https://www.espn.com/nfl/recap/_/gameId/401547750) on ESPN states: > It was minus-4 degrees Fahrenheit (minus-20 Celsius) at kickoff, easily setting a record for the coldest game at Arrowhead Stadium. But it was wind gusts, whipping through at more than 25 mph (40 kph) and driving the wind chill to a bone-rattling minus-27 degrees, that made the weather truly miserable for just about everyone. Which is what I remember from the telecast. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/233 "2024-01-15T19:42:00Z")
They had a box in the corner of the screen and mentioned it too, in the fourth quarter. It may have been that cold at kickoff, but not at the time they were talking about if that other info was accurate. They didn’t describe the measurements or where they were taken. This was on Canadian TSN1, so maybe lost in translation from US Peacock somehow? ---
**Author:** ![Jaycat.again](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat.again/32/11525_2.png) [@Jaycat.again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaycat.again)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/234 "2024-01-15T20:00:58Z")
> [@Clawdio](#): > > Does Dak Prescott’s snap cadence make anyone else’s skin crawl? I found it extremely irritating. Then again, I find everything about the Cowboys extremely irritating. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/235 "2024-01-15T21:35:47Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > This was on Canadian TSN1, so maybe lost in translation from US Peacock somehow? II don’t think so. TSN was pretty faithful to the originating broadcaster, only overlaying ads intended for Canadians, and showing those two irritating “hosts” who do nothing but plug Fanduel betting odds. Otherwise, we got what the American audience did, including screen graphics and commentary. The Pittsburgh - Buffalo game just kicked off. The field is clear, but there is still snow in the stands. One of the commentators mention that they expect to see a few snowball fights today. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/236 "2024-01-15T21:58:39Z")
Yep, sure enough, they just showed a snowball fight in the stands, before cutting to a commercial. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/237 "2024-01-15T22:08:59Z")
[![](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/853831517344497664/1196576290975797268/facebook_1705356408613_7152783206072174606.jpg?ex=65b82183&is=65a5ac83&hm=6c680993b9b53deb8edc404ec0db442374fc8eb993e8db09ccd7dc704f20d5e3&) ](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/853831517344497664/1196576290975797268/facebook_1705356408613_7152783206072174606.jpg?ex=65b82183&is=65a5ac83&hm=6c680993b9b53deb8edc404ec0db442374fc8eb993e8db09ccd7dc704f20d5e3&) ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/238 "2024-01-15T22:11:18Z")
Great wild weekend for sure! Now it may be less exciting because I feel the Bills winning by 20. Go, BIRDS! ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/239 "2024-01-15T22:15:04Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > But to us old timers the “feels like” dodge is evidence of increasing pussification. 🧐 The “feels like” dodge has been used for decades, and has been standard during broadcasts as well. And “pussification”? Really? ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2024, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866/240 "2024-01-15T22:20:03Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > And “pussification”? Really? Right? Meanwhile, I’m genuinely surprised that was not a turnover. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2023-wildcard-weekend/995866.md?page=13)