NawFuL Notes

Sunday, December 30, 2001

Running out of time...


OK, Senior Bro fans. Things are getting grim. Only one split this week, and even though Tampa Bay helped me out Saturday I'm still down by 7 with just a week left. Much like the Lions, Panthers and Bills, we're playing for pride at this point. Our new mantra is: "Finish the season at less than 10 back!"

...Hey, you have to have attainable goals in life.

Glenn 8-D 12:22:00 PM

Wednesday, December 26, 2001

Season's Greetings


This would have been "Merry Christmas," but the hacker attack on Blogger locked me out of NawFuL Notes yesterday. Anyhow, hope your holiday was merrier than three botched Sebastian Janikowsi field goals. Get ready for those New Year's weekend games!

Glenn 8-D 10:20:00 PM

Saturday, December 22, 2001

"WHAT ARE NawFuL RULES 1 THROUGH 23???"

They could tell us, but then they'd have to kill us.

Seriously, much like the NawFuL on-field performances each week, I think they make up the rules as they go along. (Reference the Cleveland debacle last week.)

Glenn 8-D 10:42:00 PM

Three strikes and you're out


Bro, you're leading a charmed existence! And you are a shrewd prognosticator for sure. Could the Raiders have found a more convincing way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory? Sebastian Janikowski muffed not one... not two... but THREE friggin field goal attempts. There was a rumor going around that he missed practice this week. After today's performance we'll see if he is around for next week's game.

Perhaps the Raiders are just tuning up for the playoffs... another scary thought.

Glenn 8-D 10:38:00 PM

Thursday, December 20, 2001

PLAYOFF SEEDING

The 49ers have a real dilemma in deciding whether to rest players for the playoff run. They don't want to finish as a low seeded wildcard team, because if they survive the first round, they would have to play the number one seed (almost certainly St. Louis). If I were the 49ers, I would hope to avoid St. Louis in the divisional round and hope that they lose by some fluke. That's the only way the 49ers can get to the Superbowl this year.

Junior Bro 9:35:00 PM

WHAT ARE NawFuL RULES 1 THROUGH 23???

The only sure fire rules I can think up right off the bat are that the 49ers always win in the Superbowl (if they get that far), and on the flip side, Minnesota always loses. Of course, neither of those rules would seem likely to apply this year.

Oh, I have one more potential rule: the 49ers only win Superbowls when the Raiders are in Los Angeles. Think about it!!!

Junior Bro 9:26:00 PM

Wednesday, December 19, 2001

I'M BACK...

Sorry I haven't been able to correspond for a couple of days; still licking my wounds from the past couple of weeks!

One thing that you neglected to mention, Sean, about the Miami-Whiners game on Sunday is NawFuL Rule #24, which states (and I'll paraphrase here) that San Francisco ALWAYS beats the Dullfins. The Senior Bro likes predictability of this sort.

What Senior Bro doesn't like is teams like Detroit, who you knew were due for a win but just couldn't bring yourself to pick. Poor Ben was talking all week about how they would win one. Even wrote a short story about it for his school class. (I should share it with you here; it's a riot -- the good kind of riot, unlike the one in Cleveland.)

I can't believe Carmen Policy downplaying that debacle. The Cleveland fans ought to be ashamed of themselves, second behind the refs for blowing that call.

Glenn 8-D 10:30:00 PM

Monday, December 17, 2001

THANK YOU

Thank you Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, who helped me overcome the Cleveland fiasco and maintain my 10 game lead. PENNSYLVANIA ROCKS!!!

For those keeping score at home, that's 24-5 (83%) over a two week span. JUNIOR BRO RULES!!!

Junior Bro 12:26:00 PM

AT LEAST THEY WERE PLASTIC BEER BOTTLES --- A NawFuL DAY IN CLEVELAND

The split that got away: Jacksonville at Cleveland.
In case you missed it (I don't know how), Cleveland was driving for the potential winning score with less than a minute left. Tim Couch completed a pass on fourth down, then quickly set up the next play and spiked the ball. THEN the officials decided to review the reception, even though another play had already been allowed to transpire. The reception was overturned... Jacksonville's ball... then the beer bottles began to rain down from the stands onto the field. The officials cancelled the last forty plus seconds of the game and ran for their lives towards the tunnel as fans pelted them with any objects within arms reach. Thirty minutes after the fact, the NawFuL commisioner called and told the officials, cowering in the bowels of the stadium, that the last few seconds still had to be played. The teams and officials retook the field just long enough for two Jacksonville kneel downs and some more pot shots at the officials thrown by the remaining 5000 fans waiting by the tunnel.

This officiating blunder has got to go down in the Football Hall of Shame. The only thing I can compare it to is when a ref gave a team an extra down (5 downs) which allowed them to get the winning score. The officials' excuse in the Cleveland game was that they had been buzzed by the replay official just as the next play was starting. If that was case they should have blown a whistle stopping the play before it was allowed to conclude. You CANNOT review a play after another one has transpired! How hard is that to understand! I still think the argument could be made that there wasn't sufficient evidence to overturn the original call, but it should never even have come to that.

The officials are just lucky this didn't happen a few years ago when the beer bottles were still made of glass!

Junior Bro 12:14:00 PM

SPEAKING OF MIAMI

After looking great against the Colts, Miami did the el foldo against the Niners. Three things can be learned from this game:

1) The 49ers are a legitimate playoff team, reaching ten wins for the first time since three seasons ago.

2) The only team that the 49ers don't seem capable of beating (at least not on the road) is St. Louis. The Rams are the odds on favorite to win it all, barring major injury or the world spinning off its axis.

3) If the Dolphins make it to the playoffs, they are doomed to repeat their pattern of the past two years: getting absolutely blown out in the divisional round.

Junior Bro 11:47:00 AM

MORE RAIDER/CHARGER BASHING

I will reiterate what I said last week. The Raiders may be winning, they may be the AFC Worst (West) champ but if they continue to play this way, they won't make it past the first round of the playoffs (unless they play Miami again). The Chargers lost this game by throwing interceptions at the goal line and poor play calling. And I thought that Doug Flutie was brought in this year to eliminate poor quarterback play. Maybe they failed to completely disinfect that locker room after last year and he's caught a strain of Ryan Leaf disease.

Junior Bro 11:37:00 AM

Saturday, December 15, 2001

A 16-1 record over a one week span has allowed me to extend my lead from five games to ten. It's not a good time to pick against the Junior Bro. Look out Vegas!!!

Junior Bro 9:45:00 PM

Well, as you can see, it is never a good idea to violate the rules of the NawFuL. How about those Cardinals? They can't even do a danged Hail Mary right. Guys, you're supposed to have a receiver in the vicinity of the ball when it comes down. Sheesh! 10 back. This isn't looking good, Senior Bro fans.

Glenn 8-D 5:57:00 PM

Call the medics!


Poor guy probably collapsed from boredom. Hope he'll be back on the chain gang soon.

-----
{Sideline worker collapses in Raiders-Chargers game}<
SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Oakland-San Diego game was delayed for about 20 minutes Saturday while a sideline worker was treated for an apparent heart attack after collapsing in front of the San Diego bench.<
Carl Robbins, 70, of suburban El Cajon, was put on a stretcher, driven off the field on a cart and taken to a hospital. Robbins, a member of the chain crew, collapsed just as Chargers quarterback Doug Flutie went out of bounds in front of the bench.<

Glenn 8-D 5:53:00 PM

We've posted our Saturday picks. The Gehlke Bros. have decided that it's time to send our petition to the NawFuL demanding a ban on Saturday and Thursday games.

Glenn 8-D 10:12:00 AM

I know we've mentioned the "No 'A' Teams" rule before, but I have violated it again this week in an effort to gain some ground this week. I've boldly picked Arizona over New York today. Pray for me.

Glenn 8-D 10:05:00 AM

Thursday, December 13, 2001

Same old Ain'ts


By CARLTON THOMPSON<
Houston Chronicle<
Things are looking good for the New Orleans Saints, which is to say their offense no longer attracts boos the way a light bulb attracts mosquitoes on a hot summer night and their defense is posing the threat of a hurricane ready to destroy anything that stands in its path...
-----
(Well, it's fall, which would explain the lack of mosquitoes. Think someone oughta tell 'em that hurricane season is over? Oh, why spoil the illusion?)

Glenn 8-D 10:53:00 PM

Tuesday, December 11, 2001

Niners needed a preemptive strike


If only the NawFuL had threatened a few of the Rams players with fines before the game the Niners might have pulled it out.

-----
{BC-fbn-price-fined}<
NFL Fines Bills' Peerless Price $30,000 for Striking 49er {By Nick Fortuna}<
{c.2001 Bloomberg News}<
New York, Dec. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Bills receiver Peerless Price was fined $30,000 by the National Football League for striking a San Francisco 49ers player during Buffalo's 35-0 loss on Dec. 2.<
Price hit a 49ers player after the final play of the game, an interception thrown by Alex Van Pelt at the San Francisco 1-yard line. Price was called for a personal foul.<

Glenn 8-D 6:48:00 PM

Dan Reeves and the future...



Hey, Dan! Ask Blank about that job opening in the lumber department; lots of dead wood there to work with.

-----
{Blank tells Reeves he has future with team}<
{By Matt Winkeljohn}=
{c. 2001 Cox News Service}=
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. - It's hard to tell whether the future of Falcons coach Dan Reeves was cleared up in a recent meeting with the man who has agreed to buy the team.<
Reeves had lunch Saturday with Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank, whose offer of $545 million to buy the franchise has to be approved by 24 of 31 NFL owners. Blank paid; Reeves sold himself.<
“We had a good meeting,” said Reeves, whose five-year contract expires after this season. “I would like to come back — you bet. That is what I related to him.<

Glenn 8-D 6:39:00 PM

Monday, December 10, 2001

9 games insurmountable?


Well, Bro, you may be right about big comebacks being possible in NawFuLdom, but much like a certain nameless NFC Central team, overcoming huge deficits hasn't exactly been my style in recent years. Not that I won't be trying, of course. I need to find some lame teams that can win for me. Hmmmmm. Where to start? Even the good teams are pretty lame in their own right. Witness the Niners on Sunday. How 'bout dose Bears? And the Raiders... they'll be sure to find a way to lose when it really counts. Guess I'll have to hold out for Carolina and Buffalo to turn it around. Hey, the Bills are on a winning streak, so anything's possible.

Glenn 8-D 11:32:00 PM

Anyone watch the Dolts/Miami snoozefest? I turned it off at the end of the first quarter, and when I turned it on again near the end of the fourth as the Dolphins were scoring their 586th touchdown I was thankful I hadn't wasted the time watching.

Just updated the Gehlke Bros. site and added the remaining schedules. I'm still puzzled by this moving-week-2-to-week-18 thing, so if my dates are wrong I'll fix them next time around. By the way... no games on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve? Sheesh, don't those NawFuL boys have anything better to do than guzzle egg nog and pop champagne corks? Oh, that's right... they pop the corks if they win the Stupor Bowl in February.

Glenn 8-D 11:26:00 PM

THIS IS COMMITMENT TO EXCELLENCE???

The Raiders are doing their best to self-destruct, but haven't been able to due to the sorry shape and mediocre talent of their division foes and opponents. It's going to be really interesting to see how their run defense will fare against the likes of Pittsburgh in the playoffs. You can't win against a playoff team if your offense is kept off the field.

Junior Bro 5:26:00 PM

The 49ers certainly aren't getting a soft schedule to close out the season. After facing the division leading Rams, the 49ers have to play both eastern division leading teams, Miami and Philadelphia. Then they close at Dallas and at New Orleans. Dallas would seem to be the only push-over in this group, though they are greatly improved since they sent Ryan Leaf back to the bench.

Since they failed against the Rams, they're going to have to win one of the next two games if they want to be considered to be a legitimate playoff team.

Junior Bro 5:18:00 PM

Just remember Glenn, a nine game deficit with four weeks to play is not insurmountable in the NawFuL! After all, I can't go 13-1 every week! Just don't pick the "A" teams, fool!!!

Junior Bro 5:03:00 PM

Aaaaaarrrgggghhhhhh!


Yes, the Senior Bro is seeing red after Sunday, Bloody Sunday. I guess I've got good company with the Niners. Add to my list of teams not to pick in the future: Arizona and Atlanta. Sheesh, you guys could have at least made it CLOSE.

Yes, Sean, I agree that you could tell early on it wouldn't be a good day in the dome for our friends in red and gold. They're improving, but it will have to be next year. Maybe.

Glenn 8-D 2:30:00 AM

Sunday, December 09, 2001

One last note, it's good to be back online after getting the service cut off last weekend. Excite@home has got to be the Dallas Cowboys of internet service providers. They both have a whole lot of debt.

Junior Bro 1:50:00 PM

9-1 in morning games for this exceptionally difficult week. I'll take that over the 2-13 record I had a few weeks ago.

Junior Bro 1:46:00 PM

The Bills beat the Panthers by a point, but it won't be for the first pick in the draft. The very creatively named Dallas... I mean Houston Texans enter the league as an expansion team to get the first pick.

Junior Bro 1:45:00 PM

THE 49ERS: I knew the team was in trouble this week when Lance Schulters opened his big mouth. I guess he knew he wouldn't be able to do any talking after the game.

THE TURNING POINTS OF THE GAME: The 49ers first offensive play in which Jeff Garcia missed a wide open Terrell Owens on a deep ball set the tone for the whole day. When the Rams intercepted a pass and converted three fourth downs on the way to their first touchdown, you just knew it was going to be their day.

27 to 14 Rams, and it wasn't even that close. Better luck next year Niners.

Junior Bro 1:42:00 PM

THIS IS A TEST. Had this been real, I would have followed with some intelligent and insightful commentary about the NFL, but this is only a test. BEEEEEEEEEP!

Junior Bro 1:36:00 PM

Ben adds these comments on NawFuL great Jim Brown: "It's very funny that Jim Brown is on the Cleveland Browns. Wonder why his career is 126 touchdowns? Here are some guesses for that answer. Maybe because Fran Tarkenton was so good with 47,003 passing yards in his career."

Hey, did Jim and Fran ever play for the same team? (Ben says no. He only played for the Vikings and the Giants.)

Glenn 8-D 10:19:00 AM

For those who have been wondering what happened to Junior Bro, in our weekly conversation he confessed to having discovered NawFuL Notes but is having trouble posting. Our crack technical staff is hard at work on the problem and soon hopes to have the situation rectified. (Actually, we're punching all the buttons and hoping one works.)

Glenn 8-D 10:15:00 AM

Well, the picks have been made. Four splits this week. I hate even numbers. That makes it tough to gain any ground, because you have to win at least three games in order to make any progress. At least we didn't split on Buffalo and I-Don't-Carolina.

Glenn 8-D 10:12:00 AM

Friday, December 07, 2001

Itemette from CNN Headline News:

FOX is apparently having trouble selling its ad spots for the upcoming Stupor Bowl. They want a paltry $2 million for a 30-second spot. A FOX exec says it's still early, as the big bash isn't until Feb. 3. That's plenty of time to wrap up the War on Terrorism and turn around our slumping economy. Bring on the Bud Bowl!

Glenn 8-D 3:50:00 PM

$545 million for the Falcons? Good thing this guy's into home improvement. He should start by moving to another franchise.

-----
{Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank to buy Atlanta Falcons}<
{By GEORGE HENRY}=
{Associated Press Writer}=
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — After 36 years, the Atlanta Falcons could be getting an owner who knows how to build a winner.<
Arthur M. Blank, a co-founder and former chairman of The Home Depot, said Thursday he will pay $545 million for the Falcons.<
The Smith family, which owns 88 percent of the team, has controlled the Falcons since June 30, 1965, when Rankin Smith Sr. paid $8.5 million for the rights to bring an NFL franchise to Atlanta.<

Glenn 8-D 3:42:00 PM

Have you checked this week's schedule? There are some really brutal picks to make. Looks like the football gods have decided to match all the good teams with the good, the mediocre with the mediocre, and the NawFuL with the NawFuL. Panthers and Bills? A collective 2-21? Can we pretend this one doesn't exist? Then we've also got the Niners at the Rams (both 9-2), the Jets (7-4) at the Steelers (9-2) and the Bears (9-2) at the Packers (8-3). This could be a watershed week for the Gehlke Bros.

Glenn 8-D 3:39:00 PM

Wednesday, December 05, 2001

Viva la NawFuL! If the league ever does manage to expand south of the border, using the NawFuL's logic the expansion team will end up in the NFC East.

-----
{National Football League looking for more “fanaticos” in Mexico}<
MEXICO CITY (AP) — The National Football League is looking for a few more “fanaticos” — devoted fans — in Mexico.<
During a news conference Wednesday in Mexico City, the NFL outlined its plan to seek out more football enthusiasts in a market that the NFL's Mexico general director, William Wilson, described as “one of the most important” outside of the United States.<
The plan includes expanding radio and television coverage of American games, increasing overall NFL publicity and advertising, and completing the extension of a flag football league for children and teen-agers to Monterrey and Guadalajara next year.<
By May, the flag football league is expected to have 200,000 participants.<

Glenn 8-D 10:21:00 PM

Tuesday, December 04, 2001

Hey, Bro... where arrrrreeee youuuuu???

Glenn 8-D 5:28:00 PM

From the we-couldn't-make-up-this-stuff-if-we-tried department...
-----
{Coy Coughlin keeps his options open}<
{By EDDIE PELLS}=
{AP Sports Writer}=
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Clearly, Tom Coughlin is a better football coach than an actor.<
“I'm very happy in the job I have!” the Jacksonville Jaguars coach yelled at reporters Tuesday. Nobody really believed him, of course, and another round of the Coughlin-Notre Dame watch was underway.<
His 30-minute news conference was great theater. It began with his less-than-convincing declaration of loyalty to the Jaguars, who fell to 3-8 with their 28-21 loss to the Packers on Monday.<
It ended with him falling down to his knees in jest, after being asked if this was as low as he's felt in his coaching career.<
“It is. It is. Without a doubt it is,” he said, as he kneeled on the floor.<


...Please, just keep him away from the Packers.

Glenn 8-D 5:16:00 PM

0-16 is looking like more of a possibility for the Lyin's...
-----

{Lions sign QB Scott Dreisbach, place CB Bailey on IR}<
DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Lions signed quarterback Scott Dreisbach on Tuesday and placed cornerback Robert Bailey on injured reserve.<
Dreisbach will back up Mike McMahon, who is expected to start against Tampa Bay on Sunday. Starter Charlie Batch is sidelined with a separated shoulder, and Ty Detmer will remain the team's third-string quarterback.<

Glenn 8-D 4:59:00 PM

Monday, December 03, 2001

Eeeeeewwww, what a frustrating finish for us Jaguars fans. I mean, here *our* team was leading Green Bay by 13 points before halftime and then they just let everything fall apart. Granted, Favre is a damned good comeback guy, but why did it have to be tonight?!!! I mean, he could have choked for the sake of the Senior Bro. A win would have put me within 3 games of Junior, so it's not like it was gonna tip the balance of the season or anything (he said with a knowing wink).

Want some good news? NO THURSDAY GAME THIS WEEK!!!! Actually, no Saturday game either. Enjoy it while it lasts.

Glenn 8-D 10:21:00 PM

Sunday, December 02, 2001

Well, the picks have been posted. Three splits today. I'll be somewhere between 3 and 9 back at the end of Monday night. Two wins would be nice.

Glenn 8-D 10:33:00 AM

Ben would like to offer his tip of the day: Raiders over Denver. "If they win this game, they're going to beat Denver," says he. Can't argue with that logic. (Of course, the Raiders are playing the Cardinals today, but we won't even go there...)

Glenn 8-D 9:39:00 AM

Another Sunday has arrived. Looks like some tough picks are in the making. Ben and Glenn are all set. Just waiting on the morning conference with Junior Bro. *Some* of us have the misfortune of being hooked up to the @Home network, which means that it may be a few days before we se a dialogue taking place on this board. We'll keep you posted.

Go Niners! 8-2 entering today's game against the Buffaloed Bills.

Glenn 8-D 9:33:00 AM


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