New Nike NFL uniforms look pretty much the same (PHOTOS)
After much hype and build-up, the NFL unveiled new uniforms from Nike for all 32 teams today … and aside from the Seattle Seahawks, your favorite team will pretty much look the same next year.
There had been some concern among fans that Nike was going to redesign every team’s uniform to look like the Oregon Ducks, but in general the changes are barely perceptible.
The biggest change across the board is to the collar, where Nike added their “Flywire” design which supposedly helps keep the collar flat against the pads, and some teams have included a two-tone color scheme to go along with it. There are some other updates to the construction, fit, fabric and color shadings that I’m sure are huge differences to the uni-geeks over at Nike, but nothing the average fan would really notice.
The fine folks at uni-watch.com have a detailed team-by-team breakdown of changes to the uniform, and you can VIEW UP-CLOSE PHOTOS OF ALL 32 NEW UNIFORMS HERE.
It turns out the Packers, Raiders, Eagles, Falcons and Panthers passed entirely on the opportunity to update their unis, essentially rejecting Nike’s proposed modifications. But the Seahawks decided to go for it, re-vamping their color scheme to include neon green and updating the helmet logo for a completely new look. You can check out more detailed photos of the Seahawks uniform at this gallery, but it’s not nearly as bad as some people are making it out to be (photo below).
This fan’s choice of nail polish is why the Packers lost (VIDEO)
You know those crazy-superstitious sports fans who insist that their gameday routine and attire somehow impacts the success or failure of their favorite team? Well, sometimes they’re right.
Poor Casey here – a die-hard Packers fan – apparently let her “friend” Megan convince her to apply sparkles to her nails and don a Clay Matthews jersey on Sunday instead of her normally-preferred Aaron Rodgers gear to the sports bar. And inevitably, Green Bay lost.
Here is Casey’s reaction to this chain of events::
UPDATE: Even Clay Matthews agrees: it’s all Megan’s fault
Giants stun Packers to advance to NFC Championship (as told through PICS & GIFS)
In Sunday’s big matchup, the New York Giants soundly defeated the defending champion Packers 37-20 in Green Bay yesterday, and will head to San Francisco on Sunday for a re-match of their week 10 loss … not to mention the fabled 2002 wild card comeback and 1990 NFC Championship game.
With the win, Eli Manning may have finally cemented himself as an “elite” quarterback (whatever that means), improving to 6-3 all-time in the post-season after throwing for 330 yards and 3 TDs and outperforming his more-heralded counterpart, Aaron Rodgers (264 yards, 2 TDs). Giants WR Hakeem Nicks was once again the best receiver on the field, pulling in 7 catches for 165 yards and two TDs. The Giants defense once again came to play, harassing Rodgers for four sacks and causing three turnovers and ending the Packers 15-1 season unceremoniously.
And now, here’s your game recap in photos and GIFs (CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE):

Nicks struck the first big blow for NY with a 66-yard score in the 1st quarter (photo: Andrew Mills/The Star-Ledger)
In the second quarter, it looked as though the Giants got hosed by the refs, who somehow ruled Greg Jennings down on a fumble when video evidence clearly showed otherwise :
ReadAndReact’s 2012 NFL Divisional Playoff Picks
While the entire world seems to be gripped by Tebowmania (as evidenced by ESPN’s Tebow Hour and the latest, now-ubiquitous “Tebowie” skit by Jimmy Fallon), there are a few other quarterbacks with super bowl rings who will also be competing in the NFL’s divisional playoffs. Brady, Brees, Rodgers and Manning - you may have heard of them – will each take the field this weekend to try and lead their teams to the conference championships, despite being overshadowed in the media by their Jesus-loving Denver counterpart. And all of them are much better QBs than Tebow, by the way.
After jumping out to an early 3-1 lead with his Wild Card picks, The DarkHorse will try to keep it going for the Divisional round. Here are this weekend’s picks from R&R HQ (CLICK TO EMBIGGEN):
So, it seems our “experts” are split down the middle on the 49ers-Saints and Packers-Giants, while Artie is the only brave soul to ride the Tebow Centaurs to the promised land over New England, and steverodgers is the only one who likes the Texans over Baltimore.
Surprisingly, all of our super bowl picks are still alive, but that’s going to change on Sunday, when either the Packers or Giants will be sent packing. As always, these picks are purely for entertainment purposes … we are mediocre at this on our good days, so feel free to share your picks and mock us in the comments.
Brad Jones body slams idiot fan running on field (VIDEO)
It seems we had another James Harrison moment at Lambeau Field during the Packers-Lions game on Sunday.
A 15-year-old fan ran onto the field and managed to run free for 90+ yards before turning toward the Green Bay defense, where linebacker Brad Jones finally stepped in and did security’s job for them.
Watch the fan video below, via Shutdown Corner:
VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP
It’s Bizarro Sunday in the NFL (PIC)
And so it was that bizarro NFL Week 15 ended the quest for both the perfect and winless seasons in 2011.
Packers lose, Colts win. Up is down, in is out, bad is good … except for the Saints crushing the Vikings, not much from the early round of games made sense today.
Let’s see if Tebow can restore some sense of normalcy by pulling out a miraculous win against the Patriots.
UPDATE: Nope. Not only couldn’t Denver summon the late-game magic today in their 41-23 loss, but “Tebow Time” actually came during the first quarter instead of the fourth, with the Broncos scoring on their first three possessions and New England forced to mount the comeback.
Bizarro Sunday remains fully intact.
The Red Devil Eyes of Kyle Vanden Bosch (PHOTO)
During the national anthem prior to yesterday’s Lions-Packers game, the camera landed on Lions DL Kyle Vanden Bosch, and an entire nation shivered in terror at the sight of his blood red eyes.
Apparently, Vanden Bosch has been sporting these red contact lenses for a little while now in an effort to psych out his opponents … but the colored Nike MAXSIGHT contact lenses are also said to help reduce glare and contrast. Vanden Boasch’s use of the lenses dates back as far as 2006, when he first donned the amber-tinted versions, and he has recently said that they “help to block the sunlight” better than the more traditional visors. They usually come in either amber or green-tinted colors, so it seems that Nike created these blood red versions specially for Vanden Bosch.
We can’t really speak to whether the lenses work or not, but there’s no doubt that with his demon-like gaze and six sacks so far this season, the veteran lineman is helping to increase Detroit’s bad boy image on the defensive side of the ball … and giving nightmares to opposing offensive linemen on a weekly basis.
Ndamukong Suh kicks Packers lineman when he’s down, not helping his rep as a dirty player (VIDEO)
The NFL’s newest bad boy, DT Ndamukong Suh, was clearly missing out on the Thanksgiving spirit today, getting ejected during the 3rd quarter of the Lions’ ugly 27-15 loss to the Packers for kicking OL Evan Dietrich-Smith while he was down after a play. Not exactly a good look for the Lions, who were hoping to reverse their bad fortunes in turkey day games, but ended up losing their 8th straight nationally televised holiday affair in brutal fashion.
Green Bay was leading 7-0 at the half, and had failed on a 3rd and goal attempt when frustration overcame Suh and he took it out on Dietrich-Smith in plain view of the refs. The Packers lineman had driven Suh to the ground on the play, and Suh responded by driving his helmet into the turf before standing up, and stomping on his right arm as he walked away:
VIDEO AND MORE AFTER THE JUMP
Happy Thanksgiving From ReadAndReact!
Thanksgiving annually means 3 things: 1) awkward family gatherings 2) overeating/drinking and 3) football. Guess what we’ll be doing today?
We’ve got three games on tap for the holiday ahead – and 2 of them are actually exciting!! The surprise Lions will be looking to take down their rival Packers, who have been perfect so far, as the early highlight (even though Nickelback will still be playing at halftime), followed by Dallas-Miami coming just in time for your post-meal nap, and the 49ers-Ravens capping things off in a nighttime showdown of Harbaugh brothers.
All of us here at ReadAndReact are extremely grateful for all of our readers, and hope you have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving with friends and loved ones … enjoy the games!
LeGarrette Blount runs like Super Mario (VIDEO)
The Tampa Bay Bucs became the most recent to fail in attempting to slay the undefeated Green Bay Packers on Sunday, losing 35-26 … but it wasn’t because of lack of effort on the part of RB LeGarrette Blount.
Watch as Blount breaks no less than SIX tackles en route to this incredible 54-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, leaving Packers defenders in his wake. And fortunately for us, someone on the interwebs had the good sense to sync up this highlight with the music from Super Mario Brothers, which makes the play even more fantastical, with Blount treating Packers like Goombas on his way to the endzone.
VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP



















