Barnwell: Worst Plays In NFL History

Bill Barnwell had a fun column about the worst plays in NFL history, spurred by a Twitter question he posted yesterday.

Those of you who know your football history should nod your heads about the play he ranked number one. But this one is probably most fun for Broncos fans to talk about.

Or there was that time Philip Rivers was kneeling to set up what would have been a game-winning field goal against the Chiefs on Monday Night Football in 2011 and fumbled the snap away. That was the year Tim Tebow’s Broncos won the division on a tiebreaker at 8-8, so it’s fair to say this was probably the power of Tebow striking when we all least expected:

OK, so it helped fuel Tebowmania, but of course we have to joke about Phillip Rivers, right?

Drew Magary Describes Daily Fantasy Football

A couple weeks ago, Nick talked about the NFL’s inconsistency when it comes to frowning upon sports gambling while allowing daily fantasy football ads to dominate NFL programming.

Now along comes Drew Magary, who talks about his experience playing one of the daily fantasy sites. Drew brings up criticisms similar to Nick’s.

The NFL’s massive popularity long been tied to gambling, in the form of straight-up wagers and season-long fantasy football. And the League has done a masterful job of keeping their ties to gambling at arm’s length by avoiding the mention of betting lines and positing regular fantasy football as a fun activity that requires no wagering of any kind—the thrill of trading and drafting and being a virtual GM for the length of a season. But there’s no disguising what daily fantasy really is, and if more fans make the transition from standard leagues to the fantasy casinos, it’s gonna make the coverage a lot more awkward. In fact, it already has. It’s really fucking awkward, because all of the NFL’s media people are now bought and paid for, and they now spend the bulk of their time on the air trying to sell you on a game that is fast, engaging, and set up to rob you blind.

As Nick said, there’s nothing wrong with FanDuel or DraftKings operating the way they wish. Drew even brings up other online gambling sites that have since been banned and indicates he has no problem with it. And I’ve engaged in gambling before, so it’s not something I think should be outlawed — in fact, I think some states are too restrictive with their laws regarding gambling.

But it’s the NFL’s inconsistency with its message about sports gambling that is troubling, especially with some NFL pundits having to tout the daily fantasy sites in certain segments — even if those segments are about fantasy sports.

ADDENDUM (Nick): Scott Van Pelt recently issued a monologue on this subject, and it’s so excellent and succinct that it deserves a mention in the main post.

Broncos Sign OT Tyler Polumbus

The signing comes at a time in which Ty Sambrailo’s status for Sunday is in doubt.

If Sambrailo can’t go, it’s likely Ryan Harris moves to the left side. While it’s true Harris struggled against Kansas City (largely because the Chiefs often lined up Justin Houston against him), he fared well against Detroit. And keep in mind, Harris is going to have to contend with a good pass rusher regardless of what side he lines up on.

The question is who would line up on the right side. It’s possible either Max Garcia or Michael Schofield goes into the lineup.

ETA: S Josh Bush was released to make room for Polumbus.

ETA2: Rather than start a new thread, I’ll add the link to Andrew Mason’s update on who practiced for the Broncos Thursday. To sum up:

* Ty Sambrailo and Evan Mathis did not practice. Mathis was limited Wednesday because of a hamstring injury.
* Louis Vasquez was a full participant in practice. Mason reports Vasquez was given the day off Wednesday, although he appeared on Wednesday’s report with a knee injury.
* Owen Daniels and James Casey were given a veteran’s day off.

DeMarcus Ware Earns AFC Defensive Player Of The Month Honor

An accolade well-deserved:

For the first time in his career, DeMarcus Ware is named his division’s [sic] Defensive Player of the Year [sic].

After turning in 3.5 sacks and a league-leading 11 quarterback hits through the first three games of 2015, outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware has been named the AFC Defensive Player of the Month.

I’ve been on the record, as several others have been, that this would likely be Ware’s last season in Denver due to salary cap constraints and the young acquisitions of Shane Ray and Shaquil Barrett.  I’ve also felt that Ware surely knows that this could be the plan, and that a player of his caliber would step up to the plate to try scramble that plan.  Only time will tell, but so far Ware is proving his worth on the field much like Marshawn Lynch did for Seattle last year.