# NFL Week 3 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [September 22, 2017, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954 "2017-09-22T07:50:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/81 "2017-09-25T17:50:37Z")
The Bears won despite only one completed pass to a WR. Is that a record in the modern era? ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/82 "2017-09-25T17:52:51Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Let’s say the play was ruled short of the goal. The Lions would have rushed to the line and probably would not have had a chance to get the snap. But they had a theoretical chance. With the runoff, no such chance. I just dislike runoffs on principle. The clock runs when it does normally, in my book. One question I haven’t seen an answer yet. Suppose the refs originally called it short but then decided to review it (since it’s in the 2 minute a warning) and decided they were correct. Would there still be a runoff? ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/83 "2017-09-25T18:32:55Z")
> [@Paintcharge](#): > > Is it just the games I’ve watched this year, but is O line play really bad this year? Or are there a bunch of really good pass rushers right now? Seems like every QB is running for his life. Lack of practice. Offensive lines are built on cohesion and knowing what the guy next to you is going to do, AND where your QB is going to go. You can do a lot in practice, but it doesn’t compare to a live game. Since most first string offenses are getting maybe a total of half a game of live practice in the preseason, many teams haven’t ironed out the details. Until that rapport is built, pass rushers are going to eat them alive. “Beat your man” is a lot simpler in execution. ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/84 "2017-09-25T18:35:04Z")
> [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > One question I haven’t seen an answer yet. Suppose the refs originally called it short but then decided to review it (since it’s in the 2 minute a warning) and decided they were correct. Would there still be a runoff? Yep. If there’s a review, there’s a runoff. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/85 "2017-09-25T18:51:21Z")
> [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](#): > > So far, the Bears have shown that they have two very good running backs and a decent front seven on defense. If only they had a young, dynamic quarterback who could really spark their throwing game. And, of course, receivers to throw the ball to. Still, I’ve always enjoyed watching a good running game and it was odd that the game was being played in very warm conditions (90 degrees Fahrenheit) and yet had the feel of a late fall game with the emphasis on the run game. I was prepared to switch over to the Cubs game by halftime if not before, and I was quite happy to actually really enjoy NFL football. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/86 "2017-09-25T19:45:49Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > 3 FGs by Haushka, shortest one of 49yds. I wonder if Seattle wish that maybe they had kept him. I didn’t think I’d ever say this but Blair “Wide Left” Walsh is working out fine for the Hawks. He missed one PAT where it ended up not making a difference but otherwise it has been spot on. And he’s cheaper than Hauschka (Seattle fans know how to spell that.;)) ---
**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:** [September 25, 2017, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/87 "2017-09-25T20:34:34Z")
> [@Chisquirrel](#): > > Yep. If there’s a review, there’s a runoff. So the Lions get penalized for the refs not making the right call to begin with. This might be overly complicated but how long does it take a team to get set? Maybe 3 seconds for the refs to place the ball, to see where you are in relation to the ball, are you covering a receiver, get into your stance, etc. I would say in the situation the Lions were in, specifically an official’s timeout that the runoff should be 3 second + 1 second for every 10 yard gain in the line of scrimmage. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/88 "2017-09-25T20:45:23Z")
> [@dalej42](#): > > And, of course, receivers to throw the ball to. This, for certain. The WR cupboard is bare for the Bears. Their ostensible starters, Kevin White and Cameron Meredith, are both on IR, and one of their starters from last year, Alshon Jeffrey, is, of course, now an Eagle. Yesterday, Bears WRs were only targeted on 4 passes (two to Deonte Thompson, two to Markus Wheaton); those resulted in one reception, by Thompson, for 9 yards. Thirteen of Glennon’s 22 pass attempts were to running backs. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/89 "2017-09-25T21:16:34Z")
The Chiefs are 3-0, and Phillip Rivers continues to be a wildly over-hyped QB (at least at this stage of his career). ---
**Author:** ![steatopygia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steatopygia/32/3132_2.png) [@steatopygia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steatopygia)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/90 "2017-09-25T23:40:39Z")
Speaking of the Chiefs, did anyone watch the Redskins last night? They play the Chiefs next week. I guess we will see if that was a fluke or the Raiders are not that good. ---
**Author:** ![magnusblitz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@magnusblitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magnusblitz)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/91 "2017-09-25T23:57:07Z")
I sat through every miserable minute of that game. Raiders looked completely unprepared and outcoached (Ryan Kerrigan in particular seemed to be moving around and disrupting plays like they had seen something on film). I usually don’t give too much credence to the announcers’ storylines but Collinsworth’s comments about the Redskins feeling like the Raiders thought they were just gonna show up and roll over them seemed accurate. Hoping it was just a one-week aberration and they’ll get back on track against Denver next week. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/92 "2017-09-26T00:50:41Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > This might be overly complicated but how long does it take a team to get set? Maybe 3 seconds for the refs to place the ball, to see where you are in relation to the ball, are you covering a receiver, get into your stance, etc. It takes **way** longer than that. As a data point, here is a situation in [Super Bowl LI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JE-NU98C3AE) (1:49:30 on the video) where the Atlanta Falcons spiked the ball in the final minute of a tied Super Bowl. Every second counted, and a spike is the quickest, simplest play you can run. Even so a full **nine seconds** elapsed between when the previous ball carrier hit the ground and the ball was snapped for the spike. Once you let the replay genie out of the bottle, there is no way to design a perfectly fair rule for this situation. To have no runoff at all would grant the Lions a free fourth time out, with plenty of time to line up and call signals, and would have been grossly unfair to the Falcons. Is ten seconds the absolute perfect amount of runoff in every situation? Of course not. Could the Lions have gotten off a play in eight seconds, in this specific situation? Just possibly. But the Rules Committee has to put a number on a page (or fall back on “officials’ judgment”, which we all know would cause even more bitter arguments), and occasionally a team will get burned. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/93 "2017-09-26T01:17:10Z")
> [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > The Bears won despite only one completed pass to a WR. Is that a record in the modern era? We call that the “Kyle Orton Special” in these parts. ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/94 "2017-09-26T02:19:45Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > So the Lions get penalized for the refs not making the right call to begin with. Yep. They lost in the most Lions fashion possible. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/95 "2017-09-26T04:59:15Z")
> [@Chisquirrel](#): > > Yep. They lost in the most Lions fashion possible. Please stop taking credit away from the Bengals. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/96 "2017-09-26T05:20:21Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Please stop taking credit away from the Bengals. Thanks. Who Dey? ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/97 "2017-09-26T05:20:40Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Please stop taking credit away from the Bengals. Thanks. I think **Chisquirrel** was making a rules reference to Megatron in 2010…? ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/98 "2017-09-26T05:30:11Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > I think **Chisquirrel** was making a rules reference to Megatron in 2010…? Not just that one - it seems at least once a year, a team loses a game due to a strange, esoteric rule. It’s almost always the Lions. It really feels like Goodell, et al. pencil in a week and say, “This is the week we fuck the Lions and make everyone question the rulebook.” I won’t take anything away from the Bengals - they did as much to lose as Green Bay did to win. I’ll admit that it’s nice to watch the opponent drop a deuce on the field in the second half, instead of the Pack. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/99 "2017-09-26T05:37:40Z")
I keep thinking back on Wayne Fontes and Barry Sanders, and what might’ve been had Sanders not retired. ---
**Author:** ![kidchameleon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/898d66/32.png) [@kidchameleon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kidchameleon)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954/100 "2017-09-26T11:52:24Z")
> [@Chisquirrel](#): > > Who Dey? The Lions of the AFC [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-3/796954.md?page=6)