TEH OFFICIAL 2014 NFL SEASON Thread

[RVR II]

He's scheduled for surgery Thursday..

Jim Kelly needs surgery for aggressive, spreading cancer
March 25, 2014, 8:24 AM EDT


Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly is preparing for another surgery related to his oral cancer.

Kelly previously had a surgical procedure to remove part of his jaw and some of his teeth, but a recent follow-up revealed that he will need another surgery.

On her personal website, Kelly's wife wrote that "the cancer's back, aggressive, and starting to spread."

News 10 NBC reports that Kelly flew to New York City on Monday to consult with doctors there and is tentatively scheduled for surgery on Thursday.

[RVR II]

Refs will penalize players who dunk over the goal post
March 25, 2014, 12:46 PM EDT


The goal post dunk, a favored post-touchdown celebration of many NFL players, is going the way of the Ickey Shuffle, the cell phone call, the Sharpie in the sock and all of the other celebrations banned by the No Fun League.

NFL head of officiating Dean Blandino told the Dan Patrick Show that starting this season, dunks will be a penalty. Dan Patrick Show producer Paul Pabst ‏tweets that the NFL has a rule against using the ball as a prop, and apparently that's the rule that will be used to ban dunks. So it's not a new rule, it's a new interpretation of an existing rule.

As we noted a few days ago, the goal post dunk became a concern when Saints tight end (or wide receiver) Jimmy Graham knocked the goal post askew while dunking in Atlanta. The NFL is also considering making the uprights longer, which would make them more top-heavy and therefore potentially more likely to fall over entirely. That would be the NFL equivalent of a dunk that shatters the glass.

It seems unlikely that such a thing would happen, but then again we never thought a dunk would delay the game until Graham's dunk did it. The NFL apparently doesn't want to take any chances, and so we have the Jimmy Graham Rule.

Well let's just start calling it the No Fun League!!

[MartyS (Gromit)]

OK, have to say it, "the" title of this thread isn't driving anyone else crazy?

[RVR II]

OK, have to say it, "the" title of this thread isn't driving anyone else crazy?

You want me to change it?

[MartyS (Gromit)]

OK, have to say it, "the" title of this thread isn't driving anyone else crazy?

You want me to change it?

Not if it's the way you want it spelled...

[RVR II]

OK, have to say it, "the" title of this thread isn't driving anyone else crazy?

You want me to change it?

Not if it's the way you want it spelled...

Yeah I did that on purpose 

[RVR II]

Jesus! And More bad news out of Buffalo..

Buffalo Bills founder and owner Ralph Wilson Jr. dies at 95

This is turning into a shitty week for my home team

[KidFlash]

Woo hoo!

Seriously, I don't know whether to celebrate (because he clearly wasn't helping the Bills in his later years) or to mourn (because once the Bills' lease runs out in five years, they're leaving for Toronto or points west).

He leaves a complicated legacy that I'm sure will be whitewashed by the Western New York media.

[RVR II]

Yeah the Bills future seems uncertain ...

I really hope someone takes the team over and keeps it in Buffalo but in this day and age where 'Money talks', anything is possible

[RVR II]

Five rules changes get NFL owners' approval at league meeting
March 26, 2014

The NFL's owners voted to change five NFL rules, while also voting down three proposals and tabling five proposals until next year. Here are the results of the votes on rules changes, bylaw changes and resolution changes brought forward by the NFL Competition Committee:

Rule change proposals:

1. Move the kickoff to the 40-yard line. FAILED

2. Expand instant replay to include personal foul penalties. FAILED

3. Eliminate overtime in the preseason. TABLED

4. Extend the uprights to make them five feet taller. PASSED

5. Move the line of scrimmage for one-point extra point kicks to the defensive team's 25-yard line. Two-point conversion attempts would still be snapped from the 2-yard line. TABLED. (League will experiment with longer extra points in the preseason.)

6. Put six cameras on all boundary lines — sideline, goal line, end line, to guarantee coverage for replay reviews. TABLED

7. Permit a coach to challenge any official's decision, except scoring plays which are automatically reviewed. FAILED

8. Protect players from getting the sides of their legs rolled up on — the rule already says a blocker can't hit an opponent in the back of the legs, this proposal will add "or side" to the rule. PASSED

9. Allow the referee to consult with members of the NFL officiating department during replay reviews. The referee would be able to speak with the command center in New York to help in reviewing a play. PASSED

10. Re-organize the rules about what can be reviewed and what cannot be reviewed, including making the recovery of a loose ball in the field of play reviewable. (This is referred to as the NaVorro Bowman rule, after a controversial call in the NFC Championship Game.) PASSED

11. Don't stop the clock on a sack. PASSED

12. Modify pass interference so that it can be called within one yard of the line of scrimmage. TABLED

13. Enforce defensive fouls behind the line of scrimmage from the previous spot, rather than from the end of the run or from the spot of the foul. PASSED

Bylaw proposals:

1. Raise the number of active players on game day from 46 to 49 for regular-season games played on a day other than Sunday or Monday, excluding Week One. TABLED

2. Raise the practice squad limit from eight players to 10 players. TABLED

3. Permit clubs to trade players prior to the start of the league year. TABLED

4. Eliminate the cut-down to 75 players during training camp and instead just have one cut-down from 90 players to 53 players. FAILED

5. Permit more than one player to return to the active list from injured reserve so that any player on injured reserve could return after six weeks. FAILED

6. Permit each club to time and test up to 10 draft-eligible players at its facility, and allow any club that wishes to attend timing and testing at another team's facility. TABLED

7. Adjust the time of the roster reduction from 53 after the fourth preseason game from 6 p.m. Eastern to 4 p.m. Eastern. All teams would have to have their list of final cuts in by 4 p.m. PASSED

Resolution proposal:

1. Permit a home team with a retractable roof to open or close its roof at halftime, instead of having to determine at the start of the game whether it is open or closed. TABLED

[MartyS (Gromit)]

I never noticed that a sack stopped the clock before....

What is the logic in making the uprights longer?  Seems that could have been done with camera or other technology built into the top of each upright.  Is it just for the "fun" of watching a ball bounce off?

[RVR II]

I never noticed that a sack stopped the clock before....

What is the logic in making the uprights longer?  Seems that could have been done with camera or other technology built into the top of each upright.  Is it just for the "fun" of watching a ball bounce off?

Yeah I thought the same thing.. Not sure

[KidFlash]

Looks like there's no buyout clause at all in the lease, except for 2019...

http://blogs.canoe.ca/krykslants/nfl/bills-cannot-be-relocated-before-2020-the-long-reported-400m-buyout-option-does-not-exist/

[RVR II]

Looks like there's no buyout clause at all in the lease, except for 2019...

http://blogs.canoe.ca/krykslants/nfl/bills-cannot-be-relocated-before-2020-the-long-reported-400m-buyout-option-does-not-exist/

AWESOME!!  

[RVR II]

Mike Vick
I'M CHANGIN MY NUMBER
Out Of Respect for Geno Smith
3/26/2014 12:45 AM PDT 

TMZ

Mike Vick tells TMZ Sports ... he will not fight to wear #7 on his jersey during his stint with the NY Jets -- and says it's all out of respect for Geno Smith.

We broke the story ... Vick is very passionate about wearing #7 -- the same number he's worn from high school to Virginia Tech and on both NFL teams he's played for.

But Mike says, "I want to pick a new number for the Jets, Number 7 is Geno's number."

Sources close to Vick tell us ... he has a lot of respect for the younger QB and doesn't want any drama that could possibly divide the team and believes giving up #7 shows that he's a mature and capable leader.

Vick says he hasn't decided which number he'll rock for Gang Green -- but tells us, "I am open to suggestions."

Oh sure.. Respect for Geno, but What About Dogs?!