Tag Archives: Mike Tomlin

Cincinnati Bengals, NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers

NFL: Where’s The “Integrity Of The Game” Speech From Roger Goodell

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After watching the first round of the 2015 Season Play-Offs, one thing resonates loud and clear…bitter rivals  will do anything they can get away with to win!

So, why are we hearing absolutely nothing from the Commissioner of the NFL, Roger Goodell? After the blatant issues that occurred in Cincinnati Saturday you would expect some sort of investigation announcement first thing Monday morning…but the silence is deafening.

Let me just get a piece of your hair
Pittsburgh Coach Mike Munchack: “Let me just get a piece of your hair”

The only thing the NFL has announced is Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict has been suspended without pay for the first three games of the 2016 regular season. Meanwhile, there has been no mention of a coach pulling a players hair and another going on the field for no reason other than to incite players.

Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and The Officials Guilty

This was a case where everyone at the game left with a smell that wasn’t very pleasant…including the fans.

  • Both Head Coaches Should Be Fined/Suspended

In the world of professional sports the buck stops at the top. In an NFL game that is the Head Coach, who is responsible for the actions of his underlings  AND the NFL Commissioner, who is responsible for being certain the officials enforce the rules equitably in all games. In Saturday’s game they all fell down on the job.

  1. Cincinnati continues to ignore the fact that they put players on
    Vontaze Burfit is out of control and Head Coach Marvin Lewis can't control him (Photo: Cincinnati.com}
    Vontaze Burfict is out of control and Head Coach Marvin Lewis can’t handle him (Photo: Cincinnati.com}

    their roster who will not control their emotions and have no realization of how their actions affect the game. On top of that, the Bengals Head Coach, Marvin Lewis won’t take control of the situation.

According to NFL Media Columnist Michael Silver several players inside the Bengals‘ locker room — none of whom wanted his name used, for obvious reasons — felt that Lewis deserved the criticism, citing a season-long lack of discipline among some defensive players in games, practices and meetings.

“Eventually,” one player said, “this (expletive) catches up to you.”

Lewis’ reaction: “once they go across that line, there’s not much I can do from there, unless I go out on the field, which I’m not allowed to.”

2. Pittsburgh Head Coach Mike Tomlin set the example for his coaches in 2013 when he stepped on the field right in the way of Jacoby Jones of the Baltimore Ravens as he ran up the sidelines on a kick-off return. For the infraction Tomlin was fined $100,000 Mike Tomlin Tripping Jacoby Jones of the Ravens
So, why would a member of his coaching staff refrain from going on the field of a highly volatile game and inflame things to a higher degree? Joey Porter did just that…and got away with it. He may ultimately be fined, but his actions resulted in a 15 yard penalty against Adam Jones (deserved) and nothing against the Steelers. The result, a chip-shot field goal giving the Steelers an improbably win.
What was Joey Porter doing on the field in the middle of Cincinnati's players?(Photo: tagthebird.com)
What was Joey Porter doing on the field in the middle of Cincinnati’s players?(Photo: tagthebird.com)
If the officials had enforced the rule properly there would have been a 15 yard penalty against Porter and a 15 yarder against Jones, offsetting each other and resulting in a 50 yard Field Goal attempt.
In case  you are questioning whether Porter did anything wrong, here’s the rule:
  • Article I, section 8: Non-player personnel of a club (e.g., management personnel, coaches, trainers, equipment men) are prohibited from making unnecessary physical contact with or directing abusive, threatening, or insulting language or gestures at opponents, game officials, or representatives of the League. The penalty: 15 yards.

No One Was Surprised

The game came as advertised, with the bitter rivalry continuing to effect the emotions on both sides.  The officials tried to keep the game under control, but it was an impossible task. You have to wonder if Commissioner Goodell had talked to both owners prior to the game with a warning of strong consequences for misbehavior, whether things could have kept under control.

Catch Of The Day

 

I Got It Coach - Pittsburghs Martavis Bryant traps the ball against his rear end for a TD
“I Got It Coach” – Pittsburgh’s Martavis Bryant traps the ball against his rear end for a TD
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AFC, New England Patriots, NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers

Steelers Accuse Patriots With: Failure to Communi-gate

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at Gillette Stadium on September 10, 2015 in Foxboro, Massachusetts.

The National Football League season has finally returned. New England fans eagerly packed into Gillete Stadium to witness the celebration of a championship season and hopefully the start of another.  The reigning and defending Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 10th and despite a close score of 28-21, it was never really that much of a contest.

First and foremost, Running Back Dion Lewis looked incredible in his official Patriot’s debut. Lewis had such a strong showing that even a late goal line fumble could not deter this burgeoning superstar’s night. Malcolm Butler proved that even though he is not the caliber cornerback that Darrell Revis is, he is definitely no slouch either. Butler covered the NFL’s number one ranked wide receiver Antonio Brown last night quite admirably. The OffenIsive line held up well despite the absences of centers Bryan Stork and Ryan Wendell. Quarterback Tom Brady was terrific, and with the help of tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Scott Chandler scored four touchdowns and earned a passer rating of 143.8. The reigning champs were really cooking on all four burners; they even decided to cheat by placing the radio version of the football broadcast into the Steeler coaches’ headsets.

Wait, what? If you are confused and in total disbelief by the latest allegations that the New England Patriots have cheated then you haven’t been paying attention. In a world where The Patriots admittedly cheated in 2007 and are accused of cheating in the debacle known as Defaltegate in 2015, it should come as no surprise that a loophole has been created for any team willing to leave their dignity at the door. The Pittsburgh Steelers played like absolute garbage juice and it showed on the field but they had an ace up their sleeve (thanks to Roger Goodell, ESPN and Sports Illustrated.

On Tuesday, September 8th, both ESPN and Sports Illustrated coincidentally released horribly defaming articles filled with unsubstantiated circumstances and allegations about the New England Patriots ranging from 2001-2007. Goal Line Gazette columnist Bob Snowdon covered these two articles here https://goallinegazette.com/2015/09/08/new-england-patriots-espn-the-nfls-propoganda-machine-strikes-again/ in great detail so If you missed it please take a gander. With ESPN focusing on Spygate and the cover up and Sports Illustrated  delving into every urban legend about the Patriots and their supposed cheating ways, it isn’t surprising that the Steelers  took their opportunity to play the cheaters card.

Let the excitement commence, after nearly a whole week we have new “gate”, call it Radio-gate, Headset-gate, Communi-gate or more accurately Sour Grapes-gate.  Now legitimately there was interference on the coach’s headsets but there are two major factors that are being ignored in order to perpetuate the dishonest folklore thrown on New England’s football team. To start, both coaches received interference on their headphone sets as Gillette Stadium is known to do, putting both teams at a disadvantage. In full disclosure, The Pittsburgh Steelers have insisted VIA their website that their head sets cleared up once the officials went to check the Patriots head sets.  The Steelers want us to believe The Patriots stopped fiddling with their feed once the “authorities” were called to investigate.  The Steelers accusation would be plausible if The Patriots were responsible for the head set communications at Gillette Stadium. Sorry conspiracy theorists, the National Football League is responsible for all headset communications.  In the League’s defense they did come forth and validated that they and they alone, are responsible for headset transmissions. When questioned about the headsets after the game by reporters, Coach Mike Tomlin made it very clear that he was upset and this type of thing always happens in New England.

at Gillette Stadium on September 10, 2015 in Foxboro, Massachusetts.

To make matters worse, later in the evening the Patriots conducted a legal goal line shift which caused the Steelers offense to jump off sides. Pittsburgh Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was very upset and  was seen pleading with officials, later during an interview he implied that it was something he knew New England had used before but was unsure if it was legal.  So both Coach Tomlin and his Quarterback are blatantly calling the Patriots out for cheating in two circumstances in which they had done nothing wrong. In essence, this is the work of a cowardly team that didn’t have the guts to say that they played poorly but instead took a ride on “easy way out” train. The Indianapolis Colts may have started this whole mess but at least they owned up to the fact that the Patriots were the better team during the AFC championship.  The Pittsburgh Steelers will unfortunately have to play fifteen other teams this season who are not in the middle of cheating controversy, so it will be interesting to see what excuses they decide to use for their overall ineptitude.