Jenna Watson, Indy Star
Colts do a keg stand celebration
Week 11 in the NFL is in the books. We saw great performances, even better celebrations, and perhaps some of the worst calls from officials. Here's how I saw it play out:
The Good
-The Colts' offensive lineman Quenton Nelson thought he scored on a fullback dive and what ensued was a celebration that should be top 5 this season: they simulated a keg stand and used a fellow lineman as the human keg! Was it choreographed? Of course. But these guys get style point nonetheless because it's something we haven't seen before. He didn't get in after review, but the celebration was still awesome.
-Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott had himself a game against the Lions. The Cowboys needed all 444 of his passing yards and three touchdowns to beat the hapless Lions who were playing with backup quarterback Jeff Driskel. This was one of those games in which his contract demands went up like a good day at the Stock Market. But just like the market, it can fall quickly.
-The Patriots defense is for real. Despite their one hiccup against potential league MVP Lamar Jackson and the Ravens, they've been lights out. They beat the Eagles 17-10 and held the Eagles to only 255 total yards, sacked Carson Wentz five times, and held them to 3.9 yards per pass and the same per run. The aforementioned Prescott and Cowboys come to Foxboro next week and should present another test.
The Bad
-The Falcons have won their last two games by a combined score of 55-12. Not only did they dominate, but they beat the top two teams in their division. Why would I say this is bad? Because they're only 3-7 after those two wins! This team is way too talented to have that bad of a record after 10 games. Their Super Bowl hangover has lasted two seasons now!
-The 3-6 Broncos were up 23-7 over the Vikings heading into the 4th quarter in Minnesota. They ended the day 3-7 after giving up 20 unanswered points. They only committed one turnover which was a first half interception that the Vikings failed to do anything with. They simply stopped being able to move the ball or stop the Vikings from scoring. Remember when they decided to stand pat at the trade deadline? Wondering if Broncos general manager John Elway is regretting that decision now?
-Here's a reminder that the Bears moved up from #3 to #2 unnecessarily to draft Mitchell Trubisky and passed on Pat Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. Trubisky went 24/43 for 190 yards with a touchdown and an interception, as well as getting sacked once. Not only do they have kicker issues, but the guy pulling the trigger for them sucks. Guess having the TVs off at Halas Hall to drown out the noise didn't help.
The Ugly
-Broncos fullback Andy Janovich suffered a gruesome injury Sunday. The injury occurred when he caught a short pass and tried to brace himself for the tackle, but ended up dislocating his elbow. It was so bad, CBS refused to show any replays of the play. Think of the Alex Smith leg injury, but at the elbow.
-Browns defensive end Myles Garrett and Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph were at the center of a melee Thursday night. It started with Rudolph being a jackass and trying to rip Garrett's helmet off after he got hit. Garrett, in turn, ripped Rudolph's helmet off and managed to hit him with it which sparked an all out brawl between the two teams. A number of guys were suspended and/or fined, but Garrett received an indefinite suspension. Sure it's not wise to hit a guy with a helmet after ripping it off, but an indefinite suspension is a bit much NFL.
-Pass interference is the new catch rule. Remember a few years ago when the league tried to define waht was and wasn't a catch, only they never really did and we're still all not sure? Pass interference is now the same thing. In the 49ers vs Cardinals game, Cardinals linebacker Joe Walker was flagged for PI after 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk tackled him! Texans' wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins was interferred with at least twice on one play, no flag was thrown and the ruling on the field was upheld upon challenge. Seriously, something needs to be done because the refs simply aren't doing their jobs when it comes to the calls and challenges.
By opening Pandora's Box on being able to review pass interference, I don't think the league and competition committee really took into consideration human nature. How likely is a ref to admit he or one of his crew messed something up? On the other hand, it's been great seeing the celebrations the last couple years. For as much as we bitch and complain about things in the league, it's pretty healthy. Games are good, young players are stepping up as new stars, but there's still much left to be desired. We'll all keep coming back for more because the product is so enjoyable and popular. It's like that one restaurant you go to time and again despite the service not being up to par, but the food is so good, you don't mind paying the prices they charge.
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
ASTROS PODCAST
How Astros unexpected bright spots, close calls, pressing questions impact critical stretch
Jul 10, 2024, 6:18 pm
Alex Bregman had three RBIs and his tiebreaking two-run home run in the seventh inning lifted the Houston Astros to a 4-3 victory over the Miami Marlins on Tuesday night.
Nothing better than a Breggy 💣.#Relentless pic.twitter.com/lxv8UY9bda
— Houston Astros (@astros) July 10, 2024
The game was tied at 2 with one out in the seventh when Chas McCormick reached on a throwing error by rookie shortstop Xavier Edwards. There were two outs in the inning when Bregman sent an off-speed pitch from Huascar Brazobán (1-2) into the seats in left field to make it 4-2.
“Our offense has been swinging the bat really well and swinging to good pitches over this last stretch,” Bregman said. “And today was one of those days that we didn’t really have too much traffic on the bases, but we found a way to get it done.”
The victory was Houston’s seventh straight at home and comes after the Astros dropped the final two games of a series at Minnesota last weekend.
Ronel Blanco (9-3) allowed four hits and two runs with seven strikeouts in seven innings for the win.
“He’s got guts,” manager Joe Espada said. “He goes out there, he competes, he understands what’s at stake and that we needed a good outing after losing a series in Minnesota... he gave us a chance to win and that’s what he’s been doing all year."
Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit a leadoff homer for the Marlins and Jesús Sánchez’s solo homer tied it in the seventh before Bregman’s go-ahead shot.
Chisholm singled with two outs in the eighth and stole second base. The Marlins cut the lead to one when he scored on a single by Bryan De La Cruz. Josh Hader walked one in a scoreless ninth for his 16th save.
Miami starter Trevor Rogers permitted six hits and two runs in 5 1/3 innings before Brazobán took over.
Chisholm sent Blanco’s fourth pitch into the seats in right field to give Miami an early lead. De La Cruz singled after that before Blanco settled in.
He retired the next 17 batters, with six strikeouts, before De La Cruz walked with two outs in the sixth. Blanco then struck out Josh Bell to end the inning.
Jake Meyers singled with two outs in the second before a walk by Mauricio Dubón. The Astros tied it at 1-1 when Meyers scored on a single by McCormick.
Dubón doubled to start Houston’s fifth but was out on a fielder’s choice that allowed McCormick to reach. McCormick stole second base and the Astros took a 2-1 lead when he scored on a single by Bregman.
Sánchez tied it when he connected off Blanco on a shot to left field to start the seventh.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Astros: RHP Justin Verlander, who has been out since June 16 with neck stiffness, is playing catch every other day but isn’t sure when he’ll return.
“It really just depends on each step, so if it continues to progress the way I would like, hopefully it’s not too long,” he said Tuesday. “I don’t even know what too long means as I say that though. So, it could be very soon. It could be a few weeks.”
UP NEXT
Houston LHP Framber Valdez (7-5, 3.84 ERA) opposes RHP Bryan Hoeing (0-1, 1.99) when the series continues Wednesday night.