The most leveraged contract in the NFL 2014-15 WEEK 2 thread. Uncuttable and untradeable.

I saw the Cris Carter thing on deadspin and that was great

not only did the Jets blow that TD they also nullified a Rodgers interception by calling timeout right before that play as well. as a Packer fan I'm glad to just take the victory and move on. was weird to hear my wife say, "wow, this team is really good, aren't they?" in reference to the New York Jets

I saw the Jets/Packers score early on and said to Mr Veg, "I hope that the Packers come back and the Jets blow the game in hilarious lol-jets fashion"

thank u football gods

The Jets blew that game in a Lions-esque fashion. The 49ers were the ones who blew their game in lol-Jets fashion. Though that may be quibbling.

i mostly only saw them build their lead but they do look....functional! good at both o/d lines

the carter near breakdown was devastatng; this from hannah storm equally so
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ucthzgpEgM

i was raised a southern boy among rural working class people and saw a great deal of spouse and child abuse growing up. My parents had to actively lobby for my teachers not to be given the right to hit me and I distinctly remember being told by a teacher (who liked me!) as a second/third grader that I would have to go pick out a switch if I kept it up. There's absolutely a violent tradition at play but carter is fucking right on: tradition doesn't mean that's it's positive. That anyone would even begin to suggest that beating a four year old bloody is justifiable under any circumstances is insane. AP almost certainly comes from a tradition where "beatings built character"; he needs counseling to understand that his actions are completely wrong and probably needs to have his children in safe space until he can come to terms with that. I don't want to see the man in jail but I also don't want to see him on the football field. I hope him and his family get the help they need.

i dunno man. it's hard to justify watching these days and my girl has reached the point where she's kinda told me she'd appreciate it if I not watch the game when she's around. it's increasingly difficult to separate the balletic brutality of the sport and the social brutality of the players. It would be less problematic if the fucking league weren't being scumbags about this and acting more focused on damage control than the humanity of their fans and athletes.

here's the carter video for those disinclined to go hunting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjDG2j__ENI

when professionals devoted to the field of football are breaking down crying on air out of frustration and hurt over the league's treatment of these immensely fucked up situations, something has gone terribly wrong.

i've been as harsh on ray rice and peterson as anyone, and i truly don't even LIKE non-eagles football that much, but i think it's kind of silly to not be able to watch the game because of a few high-profile cases like this. the evidence actually shows NFL players being less criminal than the average adult male (though the extent to which they benefit from their status could probably be debated), so to blame domestic violence on football seems dishonest. players becoming injured/losing their memories/the league basically saying fuck you to them post-retirement seems like a much more worthy reason to boycott viewing. i mean, with peterson, the reaction from the vikings was pretty swift. not a lot to be upset with other than the man himself

it's less about the few high-profile cases i guess (though they certainly have brought this sort of weariness to the fore) and more about the nfl as representative of some amazingly ugly attitudes about women and children. The litany of justification from talking heads and the utter blind eye that the league turns on this in their broadcasts and marketing is depressing. And the shitty labor conditions too! And the homophobia and racism! And the fact that the game causes mental damage in those who play it! It's cumulative and it's starting to wear me down.

i'm not even calling for boycotting watching and will likely drag myself in front of MNF tonight.
it's just morally exhausting to keep finding reasons to justify doing so in the name of entertainment.

yeah. there are 1500 active players in any year, plus practice squad guys, IRs, and dudes in limbo bagging groceries who might have been on a roster last year and are one injury away from getting called in for a roster spot so I dunno call it 2200 guys who could be described in the media as "NFL players" any given year. 95% stay out of the papers afaict.

it occurs to me today, which seems awfully late in the game, that there's a lot more anguish (my own included) wrt ray rice and AP than there was with Aaron Hernandez.

is it just because Hernandez is so far out there on the far edge of crazyville where the others seem more symptomatic?

basically

forks, fwiw I read a lot of this as symptoms of the world getting better. it's not long ago (like, maybe even a matter of months) that this kind of stuff was getting swept under the rug as a matter of course.

that's no longer possible, and that means a lot.

and yeah, Chris Carter OTM. he only catches touchdowns.

again, it's not so much about the atrocities of the players as it is the general ethos of the league and the way the NFL office carries themselves like swaggering bullies above the need to address the atrocities of their highest profile players. AP/Rice/Hernandez's cases (along with a half dozen other less famous guys in the past few months) are coalmine canaries; imagine the stories we don't get.

but yeah, you're right that discussion and open revulsion is a much more sane social response than a "welp, just let em play" attitude from the vox populi. but what did john oliver say last night about the raven's owner's response of 'we're making a change and that's worth it'? "There had to be a busdriver to be a Rosa Parks and I'm that busdriver. You're welcome" is a hella shitty argument.

I dunno call it 2200 guys who could be described in the media as "NFL players" any given year.

People are disgusted with the nfl atm, which is far better described as being the commissioner, owners and upper management, plus the networks that profit so heavily from the games, not so much the players you're referencing here. Although when a player does benefit from his celebrity status to get away with crap that ordinary people never get away with, that is disgusting, too.

I think that fans know that in any pool of adults there will be some bad actors. What matters is how those people are treated when their misdeeds are uncovered, more than the misdeeds themselves. In this case, the nfl and networks are showing themselves up as greedy, money-grubbing bastards who don't gaf who gets hurt, so long as the cash rolls in.

i'm not like 'officially' boycotting

it's just

maybe i'm not gonna plan my sunday around an organization that's basically brought be nothing but frustration to watch someone who beat a child get a standing ovation (and that WILL happen) in a league that does morally reprehensible shit all the time

i do fundamentally enjoy watching football, but i dunno, maybe i can check myself and ask why i need to be so invested in this stuff?

the evidence actually shows NFL players being less criminal than the average adult male (though the extent to which they benefit from their status could probably be debated)

I don't think it 'can be debated'. They have a poverty rate of zero %. Comparing them to the average adult male is beside the point. 538 compared numbers and wrote: Moreover, relative to the income level (top 1 percent) and poverty rate (0 percent) of NFL players, the domestic violence arrest rate is downright extraordinary.

i don't judge anyone's official or unofficial reason to boycott the NFL, but i'll still watch it and enjoy it why? bc the hegemony colonizes all institutions and bc i'm not prepared to punish myself (by withholding the enjoyment of watching the game of football) bc i really want to punish those who are compromised and bereft of ethics.

we vote most impactfully with our wallet and our time

The big guns at the NFL and networks definitely fear the loss of 'eyeballs', as they are the major driver of the league's wealth.

i'm skeptical re the efficacy of voting

peter king on walking away from nfl:
http://mmqb.si.com/2014/09/15/monday-morning-qb-nfl-week-2/

As I watched the games Sunday in my viewing-room perch at NBC, I noted the brutality of the game.

heh

I noted the brutality of the game.

otoh, there is evidence that mesoamericans played a ball game that could result in the ritual beheading of members of the losing team.

Were these players even hit?

1:21 p.m. ET: Cincinnati wideout A.J. Green leave Falcons-Bengals with a foot injury. He didn’t return.

1:22 p.m.: Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III leave the game against Jacksonville with a dislocated ankle. Didn’t return.

i saw RG3 fall and iirc he wasn't injured by a hit - he dove out of boards in a really awkward way

a.j. green has turf toe, rg3's was total non-contact

it occurs to me today, which seems awfully late in the game, that there's a lot more anguish (my own included) wrt ray rice and AP than there was with Aaron Hernandez.

is it just because Hernandez is so far out there on the far edge of crazyville where the others seem more symptomatic?

― resulting post (rogermexico.), Monday, September 15, 2014 5:57 PM (3 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

What about Rae Carruth?

Carruth would file with Hernandez or Sam Hurd right? A sole data point so out there that it couldn't possibly mean anything...

Warren Moon otoh

John Abraham somehow not retiring

Another Adrian Peterson abuse investigation breaking in Houston

not remotely shocking

but yeesh

The Vikings press conference today was beyond pathetic

I really don't have anything good to say about the NFL off the field. I would figure for the right comic using a line like Goodell would have only gave Rae Carruth 4 weeks suspension might have worked if people remembered who Carruth was. All this domestic violence is just covering over dudes like Aldon Smith who just seem to be kinda f-ing nuts.

On games...
I still can't believe the Bears came back and beat the Niners. I'm still not sure what happened to the championship juggernaut from Seattle who got beat in San Diego and can't blame that loss on playing out of their time zone.

Cowboys have one good game and now ESPN is already talking DeMarco Murray to potentially rush for 2000 yards which had me shaking my head while I lifted weights today.

I'll give the Chargers this much... if you're going to call out Richard Sherman, it doesn't hurt to do it after the game, three years before the next time you'll face him.

http://www.slate.com/articles/sports/sports_nut/2014/09/pftcommenter_what_stephen_colbert_is_to_dumb_infuriating_politicians_this.html

This is a really good NFL story in a week full of crappy ones

http://m.nydailynews.com/sports/football/bengals-promote-devon-daughter-battling-cancer-active-roster-article-1.1935200

pftcommenter needs to cut back on the misspellings

mccoy in beast mode tnite

wow that was an absurd pick

wow fletcher wtf

god, terrible pass roles

AHHH SPROLES

sproles + mccoy celebration dance greatest thing ever

sproles & shady are so gdamn xplosive

sproooollllleesssss

oh my god sproles!