"Between the Lies" by Marv Levy

My husband grew up in the Buffalo area, and is a life-long Buffalo Bills fan. He has told me stories about putting baked potatoes wrapped in foil in his shoes to warm them up so they would keep his feet warm during a frigid winter Bills game. We were intrigued to read in Sports Illustrated that former Buffalo Bills head coach Marv Levy had a novel coming out. I ordered it from my local independent book store (the Vero Beach Book Center) and we couldn’t wait to read it.

Between the Lies is Marv Levy’s first work of fiction. It is an entertaining, fast read that tells the tale of two coaches and the philosophy of two teams, set against the backdrop of an expansion team’s football experience. It culminates in a Super Bowl experience and the resulting revelations.

Marv Levy coached the Buffalo Bills during their record-setting four consecutive Super Bowl appearances, and knows his football from both coaching and front office perspectives. Football players’ names reference former greats (Kelly James/Jim Kelly, Elroy Johnathan/John Elway, Lonnie Mott/Ronnie Lott, Dan Beady/Don Beebe), and his description of football plays puts you in the game. It is easy to think his coaching philosophy mirrors that of Coach Bobby Russell.

Football fans (and fanatics) will enjoy the story both for the football and the behind-the-scenes peek of a football expansion team gearing up from scratch.

Non-football fans will enjoy the story for the moral struggle of one coach to hold true to his personal and coaching beliefs, not folding under the pressure to keep his job at the expense of the integrity of the game itself.

Winning with Field Goals

Games played Sunday, September 25:

Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2) 10 at Carolina Panthers (1-2) 16

Houston Texans (2-1) 33 at New Orleans Saints (2-1) 40

San Francisco 49ers (2-1) 13 at Cincinnati Bengals (1-2) 8

Miami Dolphins (0-3) 16 at Cleveland Browns (2-1) 17

New England Patriots (2-1) 31 at Buffalo Bills (3-0) 34

New York Giants (2-1) 29 at Philadelphia Eagles (1-2) 16

Denver Broncos (1-2) 14 at Tennessee Titans (2-1) 17

Detroit Lions (3-0) 26 at Minnesota Vikings (0-3) 23 in OT

New York Jets (2-1) 24 at Oakland Raiders (2-1) 34

Kansas City Chiefs (0-3) 17 at San Diego Chargers (2-1) 20

Baltimore Ravens (2-1) 37 at St. Louis Rams (0-3) 7

Atlanta Falcons (1-2) 13 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-1) 16

Green Bay Packers (3-0) 27 at Chicago Bears (1-2) 17

Arizona Cardinals (1-2) 10 at Seattle Seahawks (1-2) 13

Pittsburgh Steelers (2-1) 23 at Indianapolis Colts (0-3) 20

Game played Monday, September 26:

Washington Redskins (2-1) 16 at Dallas Cowboys (2-1) 18

There were some exciting games played in Week 3, and the two biggest surprises with undefeated records so far: the Detroit Lions and the Buffalo Bills. Neither had a season last year that led fans to expect their excellent play this year. My husband is a Buffalo Bill’s fan, and there have been many happy texts after the games thus far among family members.

The Colts are struggling without Peyton Manning. When coaches and announcers refer to a “franchise player,” Peyton Manning is the type of player they are referring to. He is the heart of the team, a quarterback leading his team in the best sense of the word, and his team is struggling without him.

The Monday night game was between two NFC East teams, the Washington Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys. Touchdowns are exciting and get the fans on their feet, but field goals can win games and Dallas proved it. The lone touchdown came in the third quarter. The score at halftime was tied 9-9, and Washington went up 16-9 after their touchdown. Dallas scored two field goals in the fourth quarter to win the game. I heard something on the radio today that reminded me of winning a game scoring only field goals: “It ain’t flashy, but it gets the job done.”

What will Week 4 bring? Will the Detroit Lions beat the Dallas Cowboys in Dallas, fresh off a win, to go to 4-0? Will the Buffalo Bills beat the Cincinnati Bengals and remain undefeated? Can the Denver Broncos beat the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field and hand them their first defeat?

Stay tuned, football fans.

Scoring with a Safety

There are five (5) ways to score points in the NFL:

6 points – Touchdown. The ball breaks the plane of the goal line when a runner carries the ball over the plane or a pass is caught in the end zone.

3 points – Field Goal. The ball is kicked through the uprights.

2 points – Safety. The quarterback is sacked in the end zone by the opposing team.

2 points – Two Point Conversion. Instead of kicking the ball after a touchdown for 1 point, the ball is caught in the end zone on a pass play for 2 points, or a runner breaks the plane of the goal line for 2 points. The cumulative touchdown score is 8.

1 point – Point After Touchdown. The ball is kicked after a Touchdown to make the cumulative Touchdown score 7.

The San Francisco 49ers played the Cincinnati Bengals in Cincinnati. The final score was 13-8, with San Francisco improving their record to 2-1 and Cincinnati falling to 1-2.

The Cincinnati Bengals scored 8 points, and they could get there two ways. In one scoring scenario, they could score a Touchdown and go for the Two Point Conversion instead of the Point After Touchdown. The 6 points from the Touchdown and the 2 Points from the Two Point Conversion totals 8 points.

In this game, they scored two Field Goals for a total of 6 points, and then had a Safety which gave them another 2 points. This gave them a game total of 8 points.

The most common scores are 3 points for a Field Goal, and 7 points combined for a Touchdown. The 8 points scored by Cincinnati indicated to me that they had a Safety or a Two Point Conversion. The Safety is not a common score because the quarterback is not often in (or close to) the end zone. When the quarterback is that close to the end zone, and a Safety is a possibility, the offensive line needs to be aware of the quarterback’s position in order to protect the quarterback and prevent the other team from scoring.