Excessive Celebration

Week 11 Byes:

(7-3) Houston Texans

(0-10) Indianapolis Colts

(7-3) New Orleans Saints

(7-3) Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 11 Games:

Thursday, November 17

(5-5) New York Jets 13 at (5-5) DenverBroncos 17

Sunday, November 20

(2-7) Carolina Panthers at (6-3) Detroit Lions

(4-5) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at (9-0) Green Bay Packers

(5-4) Dallas Cowboys at (3-6) Washington Redskins

(5-4) Buffalo Bills at (2-7) Miami Dolphins

(3-6) Jacksonville Jaguars at (3-6) Cleveland Browns

(5-4) Tennessee Titans at (5-4) Atlanta Falcons

(5-4) Oakland Raiders at (2-7) Minnesota Vikings

(6-3) Cincinnati Bengals at (6-3) Baltimore Ravens

(3-6) Seattle Seahawks at (2-7) St. Louis Rams

(3-6) Arizona Cardinals at (8-1) San Francisco 49ers

(4-5) San Diego Chargers at (6-3) Chicago Bears

(3-6) Philadelphia Eagles at (6-3) New York Giants

Monday, November 21

(4-5) Kansas City Chiefs at (6-3) New England Patriots

Tim Tebow is now 4-1 as a starter; his touchdown run put the Broncos up 16-13 over the Jets in Thursday night’s game. The PAT made the final score 17-13. Both teams are now 5-5.

Tebow is a polarizing player. Arguments go both ways about his football abilities and whether he will have success in the NFL, because he is not a traditional NFL player. His wins give his supporters “I told you so” rights; his loss did the same for his detractors.

Much has been made of Tebow’s dropping down to one knee, giving thanks to God. No one seems to doubt his sincerity in doing so, and he’s not the first college or NFL player to give a prayer in thanks after a good play or score.

Tebowing has become a verb describing the phenomenon of dropping to one knee regardless of where a person is; people are posting photos of themselves Tebowing at http://www.tebowing.com.

When what you do becomes a verb, it’s become excessive.

Players are penalized for excessive celebration if they leave their feet or use a prop, particularly the football, in the course of celebrating a good play or score. Tebow’s habitual and automatic dropping down on one knee in prayer both makes use of God as a prop, and focuses attention on himself. Maybe his team should receive the automatic penalty of 15 yards after he does it.

Other players have knelt down and given a quick prayer, but the media coverage was not giddy as it is now with Tebow. Was it because they did not flaunt their faith as Tebow does?   

Maybe it’s time Tebow took it down a notch and the media coverage did likewise. If God sees and hears all, what is wrong with offering a silent prayer? Is it more effective if a person prays from a knee?

Before you start frothing at the mouth, let me ask you this: if a Muslim player was prostrate in prayer to thank Allah in the end zone or along the sideline, would there be as much congratulation and marveling about their faith? Would the media be as infatuated as they are with Tebow? Or would the hue and cry be of a different nature, such as how there is no place for that at a football game?

What would we look like if everyone started Tebowing at work after something good happened? A toll booth attendant breaks a $20 in record time, and suddenly drops out of sight in their booth. A hair stylist drops to one knee after a customer says how much they like their new haircut. A real estate agent drops down to one knee to give thanks after a spectacular sale.

People at work are expected to be professional. Football is a game, but Tebow is paid to play it. He’s a professional, and it’s time he started acting like one.

Two Minute Drill

Last night’s (8/15) Monday night game, broadcast live on ESPN:

New York Jets (16) at Houston Texans (20)

The score was 16-13, Jets ahead, with 4:46 to go in the fourth quarter. Houston punted the ball and the Jets caught it at their own 18 yard line.

The commentator said the Jets would go into their Four Minute Offense. All the Jets needed to do was three things: 

1.                Keep the ball in bounds, to keep the clock ticking (the clock stops when the ball hits the ground or goes out of bounds);

2.                Make 1^st downs, to keep the ball in their possession;

3.                Take time off the clock. In football time, 4:46 is an eternity of time. If you don’t think so, clock how much time it takes to actually play that amount of time.

The Jets did not achieve those three goals. Houston got the ball back, and went into their Two Minute Drill. This refers to the final two minutes in each half, when the team with the ball, or the team who gets the ball, tries to score in the final two minutes of the half. This does two things (three if it’s a home game):

1.          It scores points;

2.          It gives the scoring team momentum to carry with them into halftime (if they score at the end of the second quarter) or into the next game (if they score at the end of the game);

3.          If they are at home, it gives the home crowd something to cheer about and keep their enthusiasm for their team high.

Sunday night I watched the replay of the Denver Broncos at Dallas Cowboys game (originally played Thursday 8/11). The ending was more exciting to watch than it sounded, and it sounded exciting. Dallas was down 23-16 to Denver; if they had scored a touchdown and gone for the point after kick, they would have tied the game and gone into overtime. Already with the ball in a scoring drive, Dallas used their remaining two minutes wisely; they were able to convert on 4^th down to keep the drive alive, and scored the touchdown. Opting to win the game outright, Dallas quarterback Stephen McGee passed the ball for the Two-Point Conversion and the go ahead score with 15 seconds left on the clock. Total time of the scoring drive: 5:29; 12 plays. Dallas won the game 24-23.

For more information about football, Football Basics - How the American Football Game is Played is available as a Kindle ebook at Amazon. Click the book title to purchase, or visit my website www.FootballBasics.net to read an excerpt of the book.