Aside from the first game of the playoffs, Kansas City at Houston, the impartial fan had to enjoy the Wildcard Playoffs, especially if they like Gladiator movies. You had to feel sorry for the hometown fans. They either had to watch their team get destroyed or had to suffer through adverse weather conditions to see their team snatch defeat out of the jaws of victory. Seattle and Minny was a war of attrition that came down to a handful of plays since the Vikings had to settle for field goals when moving the ball. Unfortunately for Vikings fans, they have grown to know football disappointment their whole lives so they have been conditioned, much like being used to drinking beer slushies.
Fans in Cincinnati were treated to a whole ‘nuther level of disappointment. They watched their Bengals and the Steelers slug it out all game, literally, and then come back late after going scoreless for most of the game and take a lead that was almost unrelinquishable. Almost. Maybe if they hadn’t lost in the previous six opening rounds they would know how to handle success, but they topped a game-changing fumble by brawling their way into retreating to their own Red Zone to gift an easy game-winning field goal to the Steelers. Say what you will about Joey Porter being on the field for Pittsburgh, the Bengals’ coaching staff should have had their players off the field until the penalty on Vontaze Burfict was assessed. Leaving those idiots on the field with free time was asking for trouble. It is a joke that Adam Jones would even insinuate that Antonio Brown was faking an injury. Even if he was not concussed, the whiplash effect alone from Burfict’s cowardly hit would keep most players on the field for five minutes while they confirmed that they could still move all of their appendages. Good to see that the fans weren’t affected at all by the poor sportsmanship, by both sides, on the field. Only six fans were arrested for fighting or providing golden showers to other attendees. No clue how many additional incidents there were that did not result in an arrest.
Of all the fights in the stands, I am guessing that none of the combatants looked worse that Seattle’s punter, Jon Ryan, the next day. His injuries were self-inflicted and, quite possibly, a result of playing too many video games, thus having the vision in his head of the ability to leap seven feet in the air. Based on the way he came down, I am wondering if his neck was as sore as Brown’s the next day.
Speaking of fans, I would bid good riddance to that jackass, Stan Kroenke, and the Rams. You can’t fault the players, even though they have been mediocre, or worse, since 2003, but the primary disrespect came from Kroenke who has no concept at how much it actually costs to attend an NFL as far as a percentage of a person’s disposable income. NFL owners, as a whole, are clueless about how the real fan lives and survives. I generally grouse about how much the NFL player gets paid, but, the ticket prices aren’t ever going to be reduced to pay them less. The owners only care about how much they are going to make and how much they can get the host city and fans to contribute to their costs instead of digging a bit deeper into their pot of gold. It has never been more evident than the exchange with Miami Dolphins owner, Stephen Ross, with a reporter. After he stated that everyone won in the decision to move the Rams to LA, he was asked about the fans in St. Louis. After realizing that “everyone” includes the general public outside of the Owner’s circle, he corrected himself and said that the St. Louis fans lost, but that there always has to be a loser to make someone a winner. In his world, the rest of us are losers.
Johnny Manziel is rumored to be dropped by Nike. Good thing that these shoe companies make 95% margins off overseas child labor since they can afford to waste it on ridiculous contracts to any professional player that makes a name for himself. Here's hoping he gets a chance to waste some of Jerry Jones' money!
No comments:
Post a Comment