Sunday, April 6, 2008

Wiener of the Week

This week's Wiener of the Week is a repeat winner (or is that Wiener?): the National Football League.

The asshats running the league apparently have the attitude that "if it ain't broke, break it". Deciding to eliminate the 5-yard facemask penalty and to eliminate the forceout rule (wherein a referee could decide to allow a catch in an instance where a receiver is unable to get both feet in bounds due to being forced out of bounds by a defender) was, in this humble Vulture's opinion, a huge mistake.

The five yard facemask penalty is there to eliminate a defensive advantage - the ball carrier whose facemask is grasped is in a situation where they can decide to force the play and risk injury, or can go into a more protective mode and cause the potential yardage gain to be reduced. Mark my words - there WILL be an adverse impact as a result of this rule change.

But the elimination of the forceout rule is the change that really sticks in my craw. I foresee the following scenario: spindly wide receiver leaps high to make a catch just outside the hash marks, and is caught in midair by a burly linebacker, who promptly CARRIES THE RECEIVER LIKE A BUNDLE OF TRASH AND DUMPS HIM OUT OF BOUNDS - NO CATCH! Now how is the league going to look when that actually happens (and it will)?

For making rule changes that didn't need making, the NFL is my Wiener of the Week.

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