Holy Hail Mary!

hail mary

 

Week 13 in the NFL kicked off Thursday Night with an NFC North battle between the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions.  The Lions were looking to sweep the season series against the Packers for the first time since 1991 and looked to build on their 3-game winning streak.  If you turned the game on anytime around halftime, you probably turned it right off.  If you did, I feel sorry for you because you missed one of the greatest finishes to a football game we’ve seen in years.  Yes, the Lions were winning  20-0 in the 3rd quarter, but the Aaron Rodgers led Packers stormed back into the game in the 2nd half.  And with 6 seconds left in the game, the Packers were down by 2 (23-21), on their own 21-yard line, and had time for seemingly one more play.  Rodgers threw a 19-yard pass that got laterelled back and forth a few times until the ball ended up back in his hands.  A Lions defender caught up to Rodgers and brought him down with no time left on the clock.  But wait, what is this?!  That’s right a penalty flag for a facemask against the defense.  Devin Taylor was called for an EXTREMELY QUESTIONABLE facemask penalty while bringing Rodgers down to the ground.  This allowed the Packers to run one last, untimed play from their own 39-yard line.

If you haven’t seen this unbelieveable play yet, follow the link below to YouTube to watch it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0vVqStvh_8

As you can see, Aaron Rodgers ran around to avoid tacklers and launched a pass from his 35-yard line.  This Hail Mary landed in the hands of his brother from another mother Richard Rodgers for a game winning, 61-yard touchdown.  Obviously, allowing a Hail Mary is inexcusable, but there is always more than one play that contributes to blowing a 20-point lead in the 2nd half.

The Lions defense fell apart in the 2nd half.  The Packers four scoring drives only took a combined 9 minutes and 6 seconds.  That may not sound impressive, but if you think about it, that’s 4 pretty quick touchdowns.  And, in my opinion, the turning point in the game was the Matthew Stafford fumble in the 3rd quarter.  The Packers had just scored a touchdown and then you hand all the momentum over to the Packers with a costly turnover.  You can’t do that Mr. Stafford!

In the end, the Rodgers-to-Rodgers connection was the difference, and the Packers’ NFC North title chances remain alive and well (standing at 8-4).  As for the Lions, well they look a lot like the Lions.

Was this the craziest ending to a football game you’ve ever seen??  Let me know in the comment section below.

Since you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

NFL Free Agency Continued (Day 2)

Day 1 of free agency in the NFL was just a warm-up for the real action.  Day 2 is where all the big moves came pouring in.  There were many big moves all across the NFL, but one clearly stood out amongst all the rest.  Wes Welker, the longtime Patriot signed with their AFC rival Denver Broncos.  This is a huge deal for the Denver Broncos.  Let’s take a quick peak at that receiving core and see the weapons Peyton Manning will have to work with this coming season.  He has Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker on the outside, and now Wes Welker will fill in the slot for Manning’s high powered offense.  Combine that with the Broncos good young defense and solid rushing attack, and you might see Peyton playing in Eli’s house come Super Bowl Sunday.  While I’m sure that Tom Brady is upset to lose such a dependable receiver in Wes Welker, the move they made Wednesday is not a bad replacement for Welker.  The New England Patriots signed Danny Amendola to their roster.  Danny Amendola is a younger version of Wes Welker and should fit nicely into the Patriots offense.  I think Amedola will actually improve with Brady’s help, assuming he can stay healthy.  The only concern with Amendola is that he is injury prone.  However, in New England being one of many options should keep him healthier longer, unlike in St. Louis where he was the only receiving option.  His workload with the Rams could have a lot to do with his prior injuries.  Another huge signing Wednesday was the former Miami Dolphin Reggie Bush signing with the Detroit Lions.  WOW, can’t you just see it now?  Megatron and Reggie Bush on the same field should be something special to watch in the Motor City.  Another running back on the move Wednesday was Rashard Mendenhall.  The former Pittsburgh Steeler was signed by the Arizona Cardinals.  When healthy Mendenhall is a very solid back that could help any team.  The Tampa Bay Buccaneers picked up a solid safety in former San Francisco 49er, Dashon Goldson.  And as if the Seattle Seahawks defense needed to get any better, they signed former defensive end and former Detroit Lion Cliff Avril.  This should strengthen their pass rush and bring more toughness to their defense.  One last defensive signing that took place on Wednesday was former Philadelphia Eagle Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie signed with the Denver Broncos.  Maybe this will keep the Broncos secondary from having any deep balls launched over their heads.  Ouch.  Too Soon?  Na, definitely not soon enough.  Ah yes, I almost forgot, the New York Football Jets.  What a train wreck they are.  The news regarding the Jets is not who they’ve signed.  It is the lack of signings by the Jets and the amount of players they’ve not re-signed and let walk out the door that is the concern.  Strong Safety Laron Landry has signed with the Indianapolis Colts and should give Andrew Luck some help on the other side of the ball.  He is a hard hitting safety that should bring the pain in the middle of the Colts secondary.  The Jets also let Shonne Green slip away, as he signed with the Tennessee Titans.  This move I’m not all that upset about because I never thought Green was good enough to be a featured back anyway, but they need to sign someone.

There are still some big names in limbo in free agency, that should get signed in before the weekend.  Some of those names are: Greg Jennings, James Harrison, Ed Reed, Bernard Pollard, Steven Jackson, and last but certainly not least Brian Urlacher.  All of these names have yet to find their final destinations for the upcoming season.  Hold on to your hats because this ride isn’t over yet.  You can check back tomorrow for the rest of the signings here @ DaveTalksSports.com.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook athttp://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!