Thanks. I must have had my face in a bowl French onion dip
This is one good reason. For instance, let’s take soccer and how popular that sport is in the US. You’d have to get rid of ties to see an increase in viewing. A 0-0 tie isn’t exciting to most people.
The trailer did say the movie would air “TONIGHT”, even if it didn’t say immediately after the show. Either way, Netflix already has a streaming relationship with NBC, so I’m not surprised NBC would carry the ad.
You have to remember that in recent years the rules have been tweaked to favor offensive production. You will often hear famous bygone era QB’s say something like “I wish I played today” because their historical stats would definitely trend way upward under these newer rules.
Heck, remember when DB’s were allowed to openly mug wide receivers or wear “stickum”? When defenders could “clothesline” or “horsecollar” offensive players? When QB’s could get drilled mercilessly way after the ball had been thrown with no penalty?
Defense before the 5 yard “chuck” rule? And on and on. There have been many, MANY rules changes to generate more yards and scoring (and to protect star players, ie, the QB from injury) because the NFL thought that’s what the majority of fans wanted. They were right.
No argument there. The strip sack was by far the biggest play of the game.
It’s amazing to me that was the only sack of the game, and couldn’t have happened at a better time for the Eagles.
Wait, is that another SB record? Fewest sacks allowed in a game combined?
Missed the edit: nope, it’s happened four times before, but it’s now a five-way tie for the fewest combined sacks in a SB game.
The players do wear “stickum”. It is just not pine tar, or whatever, anymore. Now they have these gloves that have such a sticky surface that you can hold a ball hanging by its nose between your thumb and forefinger. Those amazing catches would never happen barehanded. Which is probably one reason “what is a catch” is so closely defined. Without the gloves, QB completion percentages would be far lower and many of those plays would never get to the point of being controversial.
The record I find most amazing, and most disturbing when it is cheered so widely, is the total number of yards gained. It’s the most yards combined in any Super Bowl. But wait, it’s actually the most yards combined in any playoff game. Hang on: it’s the most yards in any NFL game, ever. Not even some sad late-season matchup of two teams with losing records and woeful defenses, combined with flukey long plays, has resulted in this many yards. That’s messed up. And it wasn’t even from long TDs: it was from defenses just unable to stop the opposition from relentlessly getting chunks of yards going down the field. If this is what fans like, does that mean what every other NFL game has featured was “lesser”? Jesus. :smack: And in many cases it wasn’t from offensive awesomeness, but from poor tackling and slow and ineffectual defensive pursuit. That this would look like some kind of masterpiece to most fans is honestly really sickening to me. That part at least can’t be changed by tinkering with the rules: you can’t legislate that defenses be slow, use poor tackling technique, or take bad angles.
Right?
I think you’re conflating a couple of different things here. I absolutely support the rules that protect players from injury, while OTOH I’m not so sure fans do overall (I think to the extent that the average fan likes defense, it’s the hard hitting aspect of it). Rules that encourage more scoring are another matter.
What’s amazing is that Tom Brady had arguably one of the best games statistically in the history of the post season, let alone the Super Bowl: 505 yards passing, 3 TDs, no INTs, a passer rating of 115.4 – all of that…and he lost. If you had told me that he’d have those numbers, I would have expected you to continue with “in one of the most lopsided blowouts in Super Bowl history.” He had basically one bad play, and it cost them. A couple of missed throws here and there, but on the whole, a monster performance. Yet not enough.
Give credit to the Eagles coaching staff, which made Jeff Lurie look good in moving past the Andy Reid era and, eventually, into the Doug Pederson era. Credit Nick Foles, too. He knew he’d have to have the game of his life – and he did. For a back up to continue to play with such poise in the biggest game he’ll ever play, and against the legendary Patriots, who are notorious for making other teams beat themselves, was simply impressive stuff.
You saw wrong. Re-watch it: his helmet is directed directly into the receiver’s helmet.
Ask College football; that hit is against the rules in College ball; indeed, it would potentially result in the ejection of the player who made it.
@bobot: The rule in the NFL is that the player cannot use the crown of the helmet, and will be flagged for unnecessary roughness if “a player uses any part of his helmet (including the top/crown and forehead/”hairline” parts) or facemask to butt, spear, or ram an opponent violently or unnecessarily.” There are different rules for “defenseless” players, but as was noted, the player was not any longer a “defenseless” player because he had started to run.
they should just play without helmets
Not to hijack the thread, but:
A) In terms of participation, soccer is the most popular sport in the US. Apparently playing in a tie game isn’t that dispiriting.
B) Soccer games very rarely end 0-0. Indeed, that sort of score is kind of like an American football game ending 13 - 10. Rare.
C) The absolutely worst behavior I’ve ever experienced from spectators was from moms of U-16 girls teams playing in the last minutes of a 0-0 or 1-1 soccer game. EVERY decision you make as a referee, even the decision of which way a throw-in goes, is greeted with such passionate abuse that you begin to hope the police are arriving soon to escort you off the field. 
Ryan Shazier would like a word. I would support an NFL version of the targeting penalty, complete with instant replay verification or enforcement.
Is that a thing? Can we make it a thing? It might just be the wannabe coach in me, but I’d watch that shit every day.
I don’t think it was so well-received because of ALL THAT OFFENSE OMG, but because it was a relatively close game throughout mixed with a combination of “here we go again” halfway through the fourth quarter when the Patriots took a one point lead, and again when they got the ball back, down 8, with a minute to go. Was it a ridiculously high octane game led by two quarterbacks at different ends of the spectrum having all-time games? That delivers excitement, especially when more than one touchdown comes from more than 30 yards out with the quarterback heaving it downfield with a “fukit” and a prayer.
NFC East = best division in the league. 21 combined SB appearances and 13 SB titles. Only division in which every single team has won a Super Bowl.
And we should get rid of seat belts and air bags in cars.
Only if we get rid of windshields as well, and take licenses away from assholes.
Yes that’s true, but only because the Cardinals were moved out of that division in the 2002 realignment. Before that they were in the division from since before Super Bowl I.
The Seahawks got in trouble for running especially aggressive training sessions in the offseason. People were going at each other full speed. And it was at least partly the organization’s fault for courting that aggressiveness and instilling a culture of competition.
They tried holding practices without helmets to force players to slow down and not attack each other but got fined and lost a 7th-round pick for being unsafe.
Don’t expect the NFL to embrace that idea any time soon.
About commercials, the Jeep Manifesto ad was a good one!
