(Photo: Nick Laham/Getty Images via Yahoo.com)

With second-year sensation Victor Cruz (and his salsa dance) getting all the press for the New York WRs dring the build up to this week’s Giants-Falcons Wild Card match-up, it was Hakeem Nicks who turned in the play of the day in leading the Giants to an impressive 24-2 playoff win.

After a defensive struggle in the first half, New York led 10-2 late in the third quarter when Nicks broke the game wide open with this 72-yard catch and run. Watch as Nicks splits no less than FIVE Falcons defenders at midfield and leaves them in the dust for his second touchdown of the game:

Nicks, who would finish with 115 yards receiving to go with his 2 TDs, added insult to injury for the Falcons by doing “The Dirty Bird” as his endzone celebration:

DIRTY BIRD GIF AFTER THE JUMP

(Via SBNation.com)

New York added another passing score to Mario Manningham, giving Eli Manning three TDs (277 yards, 0 INTs) on the day, and Perry Fewell’s defense played stout all afternoon, with Atlanta’s only points coming on an early safety. Now the Giants will head to Green Bay to face the mighty Packers, where they’ll attempt to avenge their 38-35 Week 13 loss and advance to the NFC championship game.

Nicks’ Dirty Bird celebration prompted this Twitter response from the dance’s originator, Jamal Anderson, who remained good-natured about the whole thing:

NO HE DIDN’T!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Btw, I’m not mad at Nicks. I Broke out the Dirty Bird in 98, its trending on Twitter in 2012.

I don't think Falcons DC Brian Van Gorder said "C'mon Man" (Image: 30fps.com)

The weekly “C’mon Man” segments on ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown have become a favorite here at R&R, mainly because they allow us to catch any funny moments from each weekend’s games that we might have missed. And although it’s clear that Berman, TJ and the boys are continuing their downward slide into cartoon territory, we don’t mind pulling these lowlights from the worldwide leader for your viewing enjoyment.

This week’s edition includes a few moments from Sunday that we would be remiss not showing you, in particular the Chicago Bears pulling off the best trick punt return in NFL history (negated by a phantom holding call), Matt Cassel struggling to put his hat on, and a ref taking a tumble during the Raiders-Jets game:

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

Leading with the helmet is Robinson's forte (Photo: Getty Images via WashingtonPost.com)

UPDATE: Robinson has been fined $40,000 by the NFL for this hit. 

___________________________

Last season, Falcons CB Dunta Robinson made headlines with his brutal helmet-to-helmet collision with Eagles WR DeSean Jackson, becoming the poster child for the NFL’s crackdown on violent tackling. And despite being fined for that play and the league issuing a new manifesto on discipline and illegal hits, apparently, Robinson still doesn’t understand, because he went and did it again during last night’s Eagles-Falcons game, this time to WR Jeremy Maclin.  

Regardless of his intent, Robinson clearly led with the crown of his helmet, and the league will certainly be reviewing the play to see if any fines and/or suspensions are warranted, especially considering that he’s a repeat offender.  The hit also drew the ire of the Eagles players:

“He’s two for two now,” Maclin said. “Fortunately, it wasn’t as bad as Jack’s was last year. I guess we’ll see what Roger Goodell has in store for him.”

 Jackson didn’t think too much of Robinson’s hit on Maclin.

“I guess that’s what type of player he is,” Jackson said. “He tries to go for the kill shot and things like that. He got a flag for it, so just glad Jeremy is OK.” 

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

To further demonstrate the extent of his thickness, Robinson doesn’t believe he did anything wrong:

“I felt that it was a legal hit even though I was penalized in that instance,” Robinson said. “Again, I feel strongly that there will not be any further repercussion.”

Yeah, good luck with that Dunta. In this post-game locker room interview, Robinson further defends the play, and you do have to appreciate the fact that these plays are split-second instinctive reactions, and defenders have a job to do. But that’s unfortunately not going to help his case with Roger Goodell.

(Image via thecoletrain.com)

We just can’t resist a good Anchorman reference, and this one came courtesy of all-pro TE Tony Gonzalez during the player introductions for last night’s Falcons-Eaglesgame. Thanks to Tony for at least keeping things interesting.

Dammit! Who typed a question mark on the teleprompter? For the last time, anything you put on that prompter, Gonzalez will read!

The 9/11 tribute ceremonies from Chicago (Photo: NFL.com)

On the 10th anniversary of September 11, 2001, the National Football League pauses to pay tribute to the memory of those lost, as well as the heroes from that fateful day.  In addition to allowing players to wear 9/11 tribute gear, a recorded introduction by Robert De Niro, followed by a trumpet performance of “Taps” ran across all networks before the national anthem was sung along with a similar flag ceremony in each stadium.

The video below includes the complete intro, along with the ceremonies from Baltimore prior to the Ravens-Steelers game, not far from where the attack on the Pentagon took place ten years ago, with the anthem being sung by Mishael Miller:

But perhaps the most emotional anthem came from Chicago before the Bears-Falcons contest, where local favorite Jim Cornelison gave another sitrring rendition (previously), with Bears fans cheering along:

VIDEO OF CORNELISON’S ANTHEM AFTER THE JUMP

The ceremonies will continue at NFL stadiums all day long, and we expect the proceedings in Washington later today – and even more so those at the Meadowlands in New Jersey tonight – to be especially moving.

Look for the hoody in the top-left corner (Image via HappyHourPolitics.com)

In the wake of the recent “Tripgate” scandal involving the New York Jets, the league is obviously taking a close look at the behavior of teams on the sideline during punts. And as it turns out, perhaps the Jets weren’t alone – or even particularly novel – in their approach to impeding the progress of gunners who drift too far into their sideline.

In fact, last week after the incident with NY strength and conditioning coach Sal Alosi, former Bills pro-bowl gunner Steve Tasker actually stood up in defense of Alosi and the Jets:

“You think this is the first time [a trip] ever happened? Come on,” Tasker said. “Guys were always giving me extra shoves. You don’t want to see someone get hurt, but it’s not a big deal. Why wouldn’t you give a guy a forearm shiver? Everyone on the sideline is part of a team and they all want to win. Shoot, even the doctors are competitive.

“If [the Jets] are coached to do that, so what? Call a penalty on them. If a gunner is going to use the sideline as a weapon, like I did, why wouldn’t you want to form a road block? There’s nothing wrong with that as long as it’s within the rules.”

FOX Sport’s Jay Glazer also reported that in speaking with teams and special teams coaches around the league, he found that it’s actually a fairly widespread technique that quite a few teams do, in fact, coach.  He even said one team has a fairly clever codename for it: “Pink Floyd”. And although some folks might consider this cheating, the fact is that if they’re operating within the rules of the game, and if the gunners drift too far into enemy territory, they can rightly be considered fair game.

But watch this incident from week 14 (the same week Tripgate occurred), where DE Tyler Brayton of the Carolina Panthers gets up off the bench to drop Falcons’ gunner Chris Owen with an elbow to the head:

VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP

I’d say that one had a bit more malicious intent behind it than Alosi’s trip, wouldn’t you? So it’s a little odd that Brayton only received a $15k fine from the NFL (as opposed to the $25k fine and indefinite suspension Alosi got from his own team). The only reason this wasn’t scrutinized as publicly as Tripgate is because it wasn’t caught on network cameras … oh, and the league decided to hand out the fine privately for some reason.  Which by itself doesn’t make much sense, considering Goodell seems so fond on using fines to set examples for the rest of the league to see.

But since this type of sideline obstruction really is nothing new,  it’s almost certain that a lot more incidents will come to light now that people are actually looking for them. I mean, just look at crafty Bill Belichick go after Marvin Harrison on the sideline back in 2004:

And if the hoody can do it …

Does anyone want to play the Bills right now? (Source: BuffaloNews.com)

Note: For the teams from 32-17, I’ve tagged them with my BERSERKER NUMBER (B#). Ranging from 1 to 100, it rates a team’s ability to cause havoc for teams attempting a playoff run. Young, developing squads just beginning to show power (but stuck with losing records) are helped, in my rankings, by a high B#.

For the teams from 16-1, I’ve added my DESTINY SCORE (DS). Again, 1 to 100. Here, I’m attempting to weed out teams resembling, for instance, the 1988 Chicago Bears. Teams with towering regular season records that (we all know) will not get to — back to — the Super Bowl. Teams, well, missing something special.

My (totally subjective, imperfect) Week 13 Power Rankings:

32 Carolina Panthers (1-10) (B#4)
31 Arizona Cardinals (3-8) (B#8)
30 Cincinnati Bengals (2-9) (B#14)
29 San Francisco 49ers (4-7) (B#22)
28 Denver Broncos (3-8) (B#33)
27 Detroit Lions (2-9) (B#28)
26 Buffalo Bills (2-9) (B#68)
25 Dallas Cowboys (3-8) (B#41)
24 Minnesota Vikings (4-7) (B#42)
23 Oakland Raiders (5-6) (B#52)
22 Washington Redskins (5-6) (B#43)
21 Seattle Seahawks (5-6) (B#54)
20 Cleveland Browns (4-7) (B#73)

19 St. Louis Rams (5-6) (B#62)
18 Tennessee Titans (5-6) (B#57)
17 Houston Texans (5-6) (B#53)
16 Miami Dolphins (6-5) (DS18)
15 Kansas City Chiefs (7-4) (DS27)
14 Jacksonville Jaguars (6-5) (DS59)
13 Indianapolis Colts (6-5) (DS65)
12 San Diego Chargers (6-5) (DS61)
11 Chicago Bears (8-3) (DS51)
10 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-4) (DS63)
9 Green Bay Packers (7-4) (DS78)
8 New York Giants (7-4) (DS81)
7 New Orleans Saints (8-3) (DS85)
6 Philadelphia Eagles (7-4) (DS72)
5 Baltimore Ravens (8-3) (DS78)
4 Atlanta Falcons (9-2) (DS79)
3 Pittsburgh Steelers (8-3) (DS84)
2 New England Patriots (9-2) (DS94)
1 New York Jets (9-2) (DS97)

Will this still be the AFC's best rivalry come February? Don't think so. (Source: Boston Herald)

Power Rankings are a problem.

Every time I scan someone else’s rankings, I fume.

“They’ve TOTALLY missed the boat on a third of the league — again — and they don’t understand my team……………”

I can promise to generate a similar reaction.

SOURCE: UNPAID BLOGGER POTENTIALLY MIFFS ON POWER RANKINGS

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Somebody writing articles about the National Football League from his couch has made a mistake in his weekly Power Rankings, according to a reader.

“He placed the Raiders way too low in the rankings,” said an agitated Raiders fan, nursing an Olde English40oz from his step-sister’s basement in Piedmont, Calif. “I’ve watched five Raiders games — they were on in the house. This guy doesn’t know what he’s doing.”

The Raiders fan said he was thinking about writing a mean comment, but needed his step-sister’s husband to get home from work to help him create a WordPress ID, in order to post his thoughts.

A source close to the situation reported that the earth’s sun rose the morning after the blogger filed his Power Rankings, even in the wake of the material’s inability to perfectly please 32 separate, self-serving fan clusters.

Bottom line: Whatever the system for ranking teams, we’ll keep seeing upsets.

I’ve added two elements here: For the teams from 32-17, I’ve tagged them with my BERSERKER NUMBER (B#). Ranging from 1 to 100, it rates a team’s ability to cause havoc for teams attempting a playoff run. Young, developing squads just beginning to show power (but stuck with losing records) are helped, in my rankings, by a high B#.

For the teams from 16-1, I’ve added my DESTINY SCORE (DS). Again, 1 to 100. Here, I’m attempting to weed out teams resembling, for instance, the 1988 Chicago Bears. Teams with towering regular season records that (we all know) will not get to — back to — the Super Bowl. Teams … missing something.

So — anyway — enjoy this dart-on-a-board rundown of the NFL’s 32 teams (unless, of course, you’re a Raiders fan).

32 Carolina Panthers (1-9) (B#12)
31 San Francisco 49ers (3-7) (B#25)
30 Cincinnati Bengals (2-8) (B#26)
29 Buffalo Bills (2-8) (B#44)
28 Arizona Cardinals (3-7) (B#39)
27 Detroit Lions (2-8) (B#54)
26 Dallas Cowboys (3-7) (B#52)
25 St. Louis Rams (4-6) (B#48)
24 Minnesota Vikings (3-7) (B#57)
23 Denver Broncos (3-7) (B#63)
22 Miami Dolphins (5-5) (B#58)
21 Washington Redskins (5-5) (B#71)

They have a big problem closing games, but the Browns -- with a rowdy cast of characters -- are blooming before our eyes. (Source: AP)

20 Seattle Seahawks (5-5) (B#72)
19 Cleveland Browns (3-7) (B#86)
18 Oakland Raiders (5-5) (B#61)
17 Houston Texans (4-6) (B#64)
16 Kansas City Chiefs (6-4) (DS22)
15 Chicago Bears (7-3) (DS43)
14 San Diego Chargers (5-5) (DS63)
13 Tennessee Titans (5-5) (DS53)
12 Jacksonville Jaguars (6-4) (DS61)
11 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-3) (DS64)
10 New Orleans Saints (7-3) (DS84)
9 Green Bay Packers (7-3) (DS77)
8 New York Giants (6-4) (DS80)
7 Indianapolis Colts (6-4) (DS85)
6 Atlanta Falcons (8-2) (DS79)
5 Baltimore Ravens (7-3) (DS65)
4 Philadelphia Eagles (7-3) (DS74)
3 Pittsburgh Steelers (7-3) (DS88)
2 New England Patriots (8-2) (DS92)
1 New York Jets (8-2) (DS96)

These aren't the SOJs that drove your ancestors crazy. (Source: sportsnewscaster.com)

(Image via NFL.com)

It’s a great time of year to be a football fan.  No longer do we have to endure the endless din of the baseball season, and the NBA is just getting started, so the gridiron gets center stage for the next few months. And the midway point of the season also brings the return of Thursday Night Football on the NFL Network. Which means we get one more night of the week where we have an excuse to drink, and we don’t have to endure crap like Grey’s Anatomy on television.

Tonight we get a good one, with two 6-2 division-leading teams facing off  in and inter-conference battle. With the Falcons vs Ravens, we get to see Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco, Roddy White, Anquan Boldin, Ray Rice, Michael Turner, Ray Lewis & Tony Gonzalez (to name a few), so there will be no shortage of star power on the field. Should be a great match-up, and White – who leads the NFC in receiving – is expected to play.  But both teams come into tonight with very little rest since their last game, so we’ll see if that has any effect on their play.

For those of you without NFL Network – which seems to be a healthy percentage of homes out there, you can watch the game live online here.

(Photo: Getty Images via CSNPhilly.com)

We’ve started a new tradition here at ReadAndReact by bringing you the Hit of the Week! We’ll find the most brutal tackle (or block) from each weekend of NFL games, and present it for your viewing pleasure.

This week’s HOTW was scary when it happened, and it’s probably the most violent collision we’ve seen so far this season.  Eagles WR DeSean Jackson got absolutely lit up by Falcons DB Dunta Robinson during the 2nd quarter of today’s 31-17 Philadelphia win.  On the play, Jackson was hung out to dry by QB Kevin Kolb and Robinson delivered a devastating – and somewhat controversial – shot, which did draw a penalty.

Both players were injured on the hit, and each laid motionless on the turf for a few minutes before being helped off the field.  Neither would return to the game, but Jackson – who had scored 2 TDs already in the game – clearly got the worse of it, suffering a “severe concussion” and memory loss from the blow.  His status moving forward is unknown, having also missed time with a concussion last year.

WATCH THE HIT OF THE WEEK AFTER THE JUMP

Watch for yourselves and tell us if you think this was a clean hit:

Robinson was flagged on the play for hitting a defenseless receiver, but Jackson was clearly in the process of making a catch, so I’m not sure where that call came from. Robinson didn’t “launch himself” or deliver a blow to the helmet either.  It was a brutal, but clean hit … just a defender separating the receiver from the ball the only way he knows how.  I’m not sure how you could coach it any differently.