Heh, TBJ, can I have your autograph before you get too famous and start to ignore us here?????? FANTASTIC primer on NFL punting, well done. I got a lot out of it and will read it a few more times to fully understand the ins and outs of it all. btw, if that many lines are needed to explain punting, how many would be needed to get a good description of the whole game??
This is not a punting question but I have a question/statement about rulings on touchdowns. It seems pretty wierd to me that a reciever can catch the ball in the end zone, like the guy in the Colts vs Redskins game, who jumped in the air at speed, takes the catch a few yards inside the zone but lands and only gets 1 foot down = no touchdown. Yet a RB can dive accross the corner, wave the ball with one hand over the endzone while NONE of his body touches the endzone = touchdown. That has really got me scratching my head. Seems pretty inconsistant.
You are referring to a set of rules that quite a few NFL fans do not like. Basically, the reciever in the end zone has not established "possession" of the ball. To do that, he must get both feet in bounds while having the ball firmly secured (no bobbling). Further, and this is the part I hate, he has to maintain firm possession of the ball even after he lands out of bounds! So, not even two feet in is enough.... he must not bobble the ball after he hits the ground, even if that is out of bounds. Stupid rule in my opinion. A RB (or any ball carrier) already has possession of the ball. All he has to do is get any part of the ball over the goal line before any part of his body touches the ground out of bounds. If his body is out of bounds in the air, but he has not touched the ground yet, if the ball goes over the goal line whether the ball itself is in or out of bounds, it is also a touch down. Incredibly stupid rule. The rule used to be that the ball itself had to be inbounds, but no more. There used to be a pylon there where the goal line intersects the out of bounds sideline. The ball had to pass inside the pylon, but they changed the rule, and it's pitifully stooooopid. This is easilly the worst rule change they have come up with in a decade.
LOL, now you know how I feel trying to understand AFL rules! I actually could have written more on it, but it seemed confusing enough already! :drunk:
You are all a very welcome addition to the site. Great to see the strong interest in the American version of the game.
Was I seeing things or did Benny actually go behind center and cause the Lions to burn a timeout? Thanks for the updates, you should be reporter, much more interesting than most the generic stuff that makes the papers...
one minor adjustment to your second paragraph... I'm pretty sure that some of the body has to be "in bounds," even if the ball isnt. For example, you could dive and have your foot be on teh inside of the pylon for a TD. However, if you dove and were completly out of bounds, there would be no TD... I remember a while back they were analyzing a Vick scramble for a TD, and mentioned how it was nly good because he mananged to get his hand inside the pylon. It was challenged and upheld because part of his body was still in bounds
Yes, you're right. Even if the ball is well out of bounds, some portion of the player's body must pass over the pylon. Good catch.
Great work Tbj! I'm going to print that off for a couple of my friends to read. They've asked me in the past to explain just what a punter does. All I could tell them was that he sort of helps out, when the team is in trouble. LOL! I'm going to really study this,thanks again.
Yes, I should have mentioned that in the report, looking back. Graham lined up under center, the way a QB would in a normal formation. I think the intent was to take the delay of game penalty to give Graham more room to punt, but the Lions got nervous and called a time out. After the Lions time out, the Jets took the five yard delay of game penalty... that was on Graham's second punt. It was a 4th and 8, so they weren't trying to get the Lions to jump offsides..... but then again, maybe they were. That extra five yards would have gotten Nugent closer for a 47 yard FG attempt. Mangini finds ways, any way to get an edge. You gotta love this guy.
There is more....lol. The Coffin Corner. The name coffin corner is derived from the niche build into the staircases of old Victorian homes and building so pall bearers could carry a coffin down the stairwell. This term was adpted for punters who try to punt the ball so it goes out of bounds very close to the opponents goal line... in the corner where the playing field meets the goal line. When a punt goes out of bounds before it crosses the goal line, it is placed at the point it is judged to have crossed the sidleine. If it goes out of bounds after it crosses the goal line in the air, it is a touchback. There have been American punters that were very good at this, but it's not easy to be directionally accurate when hitting a torp. Graham tried this a few times last year, but has gone to keeping on the filed this year instead, trying to use his distance accuracy over his directional accuracy. Glad I could make it seem a little easier to understand.
Thanks for confirming that I wasn't seeing things! I will cherish the day that he takes it for a 1st down...stuff of memories yet to come:up:
Thanks for the primer TBJ Now I know what a touchback is. I should have worked it out for myself,the ball goes into touch & is returned back to the 20....easy.
4Jetfans- I dont mind if BG stays in the US for five more years.That just means I've got five more years of TBJ's "Ben Graham Reports" to read and discuss with everyone. I'm already dissapointed that in two weeks there is a bye. Maybe TBJ can do a "Ben Graham's Week Off Report". how about it TBJ....
Frank- Yes you did woop us in London. Did you know the Power had to play some players who had already been de-listed.A lot of players had injury's,surgery and stuff(a couple didnt go coz their wives were having babies). Still, I suppose they got a free trip to London. Would feel a bit strange though. Maybe after a few frothy's.......all would be forgiven.:drunk: .
Hey TBJ can you do a brief story on the last few punters & why they were de-listed. After looking around this site I understand BG is the 5th punter in 6 years.Is that right ?. Also how long has Mangini been head coach & how old is he ? I saw on a link on another thread they were saying he is really young for a coach. hope I'm not asking to much.......thanks.
TBJ, Thanks for the welcome. The "coffin corner" sounds like the sort of kick our Rugby Union players would be good at. It's not something you would see that often in Aussie Rules. ( In fact it is now quasi-illegal ). In Rugby Union they call it "finding touch", as in going over the "touchline" out of bounds. Rugby Union would be the place to go for a coffin corner expert, as some of them are brilliant at dribbling the ball over the boundary line at the exact spot they want. Not sure how they would adapt to the smaller NFL ball though.
What a junket, free trip to England, knowing you were not going to be playing there next year..really weird. I am sure they downed a few largers
Where is that Twombles? He used to live 3 blocks from us but I don't know if they still have the house here in Geelong,
