26
Aug
2011
VIDEO: Ray Lewis calls play-by-play from the sideline
This is the first pre-season highlight we’ve bothered to post here at R&R, and not surprisingly, the clip has very little to do with the action on the field. During the final moments of last night’s 34-31 win over the Redskins, Ravens’ LB Ray Lewis was being interviewed on the sideline when his attention was diverted by his team’s last-minute comeback attempt.
Watch as Lewis drops straight into play-by-play mode as he encourages rookie QB Tyrod Taylor (aka “the human highlight reel”) in leading the Ravens on a game-winning drive:
Love or hate the Ravens, you can’t help but appreciate Lewis’ pure, unadulterated love of the game.
8
Feb
2011
Q & A with Michael Oher, Author: “I Beat The Odds”
(Image: Gotham Books)
Michael Oher is not your ordinary NFL player. The Ravens‘ second-year Tackle burst into America’s consciousness in 2009 with the release of the hugely successful biopic The Blind Side, based on the much-better 2006 book of the same name by Michael Lewis. Both releases chronicled Oher’s remarkable journey from the streets of Memphis as a child, where he was in and out of foster care, through his first year of college at Ole Miss where he was a rising NFL prospect… but as is often the case, the facts of the story were altered for Hollywood. The movie netted Sandra Bullock an Oscar for her portrayal of Oher’s adopted mother, Leigh Anne Tuohy, and ultimately seemed to make the Tuohy family the heroes of the film, rather than Oher himself. That always left a bad taste in my mouth.
But now Oher is telling his story in his own words, with the release of his first book - I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness to The Blind Side and Beyond, which not-coincidentally hit stores today. In the book, Oher looks to separate fact from fiction … most specifically the notion that he was clueless about the game of football when he arrived at high school. He’s also seeking to reach out to the nearly half a million kids in America living in the foster care system, and the adults who want to help them.
And as luck would have it, the good folks over at Gotham Books were kind enough to hook us up with this Q&A with Oher, AND … wait for it … 1 copy of the book to give away to our readers!!! So check out Oher’s Q&A below, and if you want to win the book, email us at info@readandreact.net with “I BEAT THE ODDS GIVEAWAY” in the subject line no later than Wednesday February 16th, and tell us in 50 words or less why you should win (if you can’t follow those simple instructions, you’re entries will be voided). We’ll pick one winner at random, and have the book sent your way!
___________________________
Questions for Michael Oher, author of
I BEAT THE ODDS:
From Homelessness to The Blind Side and Beyond
On- Sale February 8, 2011
Q: When did you first know you were good at football?
A: I was pretty good at most sports I tried as a kid. I just realized early on that I was gifted athletically the way some people are gifted in music or art or anything else. We used to play football in the empty lots in Hurt Village, where I lived when I was about middle-school-aged but I really started to enjoy it once I hit high school.
Q: How did high school change for you after you met the Touhys?
A: There were actually a lot of families at Briarcrest who were a big help to me before I moved in with the Tuohys permanently, and teachers who were really concerned about my progress in class – not just that I could pass tests but that I actually learned and retained the material. But once I started to live with the Tuohys full-time, there was more structure to my life. Having some predictability and routine made it easier to focus on everything else, like homework, because I didn’t have to worry about where I was going to sleep next week or if I would have lunch money for the next day. Everyone at Briarcrest was really eager to help me, but I didn’t want to have to ask them. So not having to worry about asking for help any more allowed me to relax and start enjoying my life and school and having a loving family, instead of trying to figure out the basic things of how to get from one day to the next.
Q: How do you think your experience in foster care was the same and/or different from the experience of other kids?
A: I think my foster care experience was very typical. I had good placements and bad placements. That’s the kind of gamble most foster kids are given: Maybe you’ll end up in a place that helps you grow and provides you with better support, or maybe you’ll end up with people who just view you as another monthly check. And no matter what situation you land in, you’re somewhere that isn’t your home, with people you don’t know. It’s hard to not want to get back to your own family because even if life is bad there, at least it’s familiar. It’s a scary, confusing place to be.
1
Feb
2011
Cleveland’s road to redemption begins at home
Pat Shurmur has his work cut out for him. (Source: Statesmen.com)
Cleveland Browns head coach Pat Shurmur faces the same tall task that left Chris Palmer, Butch Davis, Romeo Crennel and Eric Mangini in shreds: Winning an AFC North division inhabited by the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, two of football’s most consistently successful franchises.
Each new Browns regime shuffled out before a bewildered fanbase claims some deep understanding of the Pittsburgh and Baltimore rivalries, but nothing has changed. The Browns have been manhandled within the division since their return.
Baltimore is despised by Browns fans, but with Ozzie Newsome running the show, they’ve forged an identity built on bone-crushing defense and just enough offense to win. Pittsburgh — heading to its eighth Super Bowl and third since 2005 — is perhaps the most sound organization in the league, with just three coaches since 1969.
Cleveland’s had five since ’99 — and it shows.
16
Jan
2011
Ravens flail as Steelers come back to win; Antonio Brown does his best David Tyree impression (VIDEO)
Antonio Brown makes the catch of his life on Saturday
As expected, yesterday’s AFC Divisional Playoff between the Steelers and Ravens was a knockdown, drag-out fight that went down to the very end, with Pittsburgh storming back for the 31-24 win. Baltimore stunned the home crowd in jumping out to a 21-7 halftime lead, but the Ravens stumbled in the second half … badly. Baltimore had THREE turnovers in the 3rd quarter that allowed the Steelers back into it, followed by two huge dropped passes down the stretch that could have helped win the game for John Harbaugh’s team.
The biggest drop came with 4 minutes remaining, after the Ravens had a punt return TD taken off the board by a holding call on an obvious flop by Steelers’ Will Allen. But Baltimore still had the chance for a go-ahead score after Joe Flacco led his team downfield and inside the ten. Faced with a 3rd and goal from the 6 yard line, Flacco looked to his Pro Bowl receiver Boldin in the end zone:
That’s simply a catch that Boldin needs to make. Instead, the Ravens tied the game at 24-24 with 3:54 remaining … way too much time for Ben Roethlisberger to work with. And Roethlisberger – along with his receiving corps – came up huge when it mattered most.
With just over 2 minutes remaining, the Steelers faced a seemingly insurmountable 3rd-and-19 at their own 38. Roethlisberger decided to chuck it up to rookie WR Antonio Brown, who came up with the catch of his young career:
VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP
14
Jan
2011
For Browns fans, a voyage through the wilderness continues
Another new beginning. (Source: Cleveland.com)
And so the Browns begin again.
Eric Mangini out. Pat Shurmur in — through a revolving door that Friday welcomed its third head coach since 2008 and fifth since the team rebooted in 1999.
In that time, the Tennessee Titans have only known Jeff Fisher as coach.
Since 1999, the New England Patriots, led by former Browns coach Bill Belichick, have enjoyed winning records in 10 consecutive seasons. Tom Brady — who the Browns ignored in the 2000 NFL Draft to select Spergon Wynn — has won 111 football games and three Super Bowls during a stretch in which Cleveland’s fans have endured nine season with six or fewer wins and a growing sense of purposelessness.
As each losing, demoralized leader of men is shipped out of town, a new coach strides in and, in his introductory press conference, trumpets his respect for the great tradition of the Cleveland Browns.
Images in grainy black-and-white depicting heroes long gone — many dead.
For fans under 30, the deep history of a team that hasn’t won a playoff game since January 1995 is irrelevant. Young football fans throughout Ohio have grown up watching their half-baked hometown roster of hobby horses dismantled and embarrassed repeatedly by the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, two teams that look a lot more like the Browns of old than the Browns themselves.
10
Jan
2011
Hit Of The Week: Ed Reed levels Dexter McCluster, receives game ball (VIDEO)
(Photo: Baltimore Sun)
Ravens S Ed Reed has long been one of the game’s most ferocious hitters, and most respected defensive players. But on Sunday, as Baltimore traveled to Kansas City for their Wild Card playoff match-up, Reed found himself with a heavy heart, and he wasn’t quite sure how he was going to handle it. You see, Reed’s brother Brian disappeared on Friday and is presumed dead from drowning after jumping into the Mississippi River while being chased by police in Louisiana.
After much introspection, Reed decided that his brother would have wanted him to play, and with his family’s support, took the field against the Chiefs with Brian’s spirit in mind. And during the second quarter, Reed took his emotions out on Chiefs RB Dexter McCluster, who was hung out to dry by Matt Cassell on this swing pass:
The hit came at a fairly critical point (on 3rd and 8 with KC moving the ball), and afterward, head coach John Harbaugh credited the play as the turning point in the game. In recognition of his effort, the Ravens also honored Reed with the game ball in the locker room, which made for an emotional scene post-game:
“This ball is for your family, in memory of your brother,” Derrick Mason said, as he passed the ball to Ed Reed, who choked up as he accepted it on behalf of his family and brother.
“My family will really appreciate this,” Reed said. “So would my brother. My brother would want us to beat Pittsburgh.”
Afterward, Reed said that he took comfort in the game and being around his teammates. He also said that his family helped him keep focused on the job at hand.
Sadly, the search for Reed’s brother was called off this morning.
WATCH VIDEO OF THE RAVENS LOCKER-ROOM CEREMONY AFTER THE JUMP
8
Jan
2011
Reminder: New Playoff Overtime Rules start this weekend
Under the new rules, will less games come down to the foot of a kicker? (Photo: NYDailyNews)
If one of this weekend’s Wild Card games happens to be tied at the end of regulation, the NFL will unveil their brand new rules for how overtime will be handled during the playoffs. In case you’ve forgotten about it from when the change was made back in March, here’s a quick explanation from the New York Times:
Under the new rule … the team that receives the first overtime kickoff would win the game on that possession only via a touchdown. A field goal then would not end the game in sudden death but would give the opponent’s offense a chance to score. If the score is still tied, either team could then win with a score of any kind.
The rule change was made in response to the general impression that the team that won the coin toss was too often winning the game without the opposition even getting a chance to touch the ball. And while statistics might not necessarily support that claim – since 1994, the team that won the overtime coin toss won the game only 34 percent of the time on the first possession - I think all fans can agree that it’s no fun to watch a team return a kickoff to midfield, make a 15 yard pass and kick a FG to win the game.
So this way, each team will at least have an opportunity to score, and these new rules will definitely have an effect on how coaches approach the extra period. Could we see some teams defer should they win the OT coin toss? Ravens coach John Harbaugh thinks so:
“There is more value in the second possession than there has been in the past,” Harbaugh said Wednesday. “On the second drive, they basically have four downs to move the ball down the field. That second drive has a real good chance to move down the field percentagewise more than it normally would. So you have to keep that in mind. You might see some teams defer.”
And while change of any kind is generally met with resistance, it seems that most people are on board with these new overtime rules. The only strange thing is that the league decided not to apply these new rules to the regular season. That would have given teams a chance to get used to the new system, and we can only hope the rule will be extended to cover all games next year.
13
Dec
2010
VIDEO: Josh Wilson picks off Matt Schaub to salvage win for Ravens
Great, great photo (Lloyd Fox/Baltimore Sun)
Crazy game tonight in Houston, as the Texans battled back from a 21-point deficit in the 3rd quarter to tie the Ravens and send it to overtime.
Matt Schaub had a huge night for Houston, finishing with 393 yards and 3 TDs in mounting the comeback, but his luck ran out on the second possession of OT. That’s when Schaub attempted an ill-advised pass (while backing up in his own end zone), which Josh Wilson gleefully picked off and returned 12 yards for the game-winning score:
VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP
5
Dec
2010
Ben Roethlisberger gets his nose rearranged by Haloti Ngata (PIC & VIDEO)
(NBC Sports image via the LandryHat)
If you haven’t figured it out by the headline and fantastic banner pic above, Ben Roethlisberger was the victim of a vicious blow to the face by DT Haloti Ngata during tonight’s Steelers-Ravens game. On the very first series in the first quarter, Ngata’s hand got inside Big Ben’s facemask as the Baltimore defense closed in for a sack. And when Roethlisberger got up, his nose was bloodied and newly crooked. After receiving attention on the sideline to stop the bleeding, Roethlisberger returned to action on the very next series. Now I’m no doctor, but I’m pretty sure noses aren’t supposed to bend like that. UPDATE: After the game, Roethlisberger confirmed that his nose was broken.
The hit was technically an illegal blow to the head that surprisingly went uncalled – especially in a league that is crazy about protecting the quarterback. But in watching the replay, it all happens so quickly you can barely see the hand hit Roethlisberger’s the face in slow motion, let alone at full speed. It will be interesting to see Ngata draws a fine from the league later this week:
WATCH THE VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP
30
Nov
2010
NFL Week 13 Power Rankings (featuring the “Berserker Number”)
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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)
