Remember when games were supposed to be fun? The NFL doesn’t.
This year, the league has been flagging celebrations left and right, giving unsportsmanlike penalties to guys who simply danced after scoring a TD.
Antonio Brown has been flagged for shaking his butt, twice. Josh Norman was flagged for shooting a bow and arrow while on the sideline. Terrelle Pyror was flagged for putting the ball down!
It has gotten out of hand. This rule came in when celebrations were getting a bit out of hand in the days of Chad Ochocinco, but now the NFL has gone too far.
Even worse, Brown was told to change his cleats or be ejected last week. What was wrong with his shoes? They had a picture of one of Brown’s inspirations on them, Muhammad Ali. The week before he wore black and yellow cleats with Arnold Palmer’s likeness on them and was told to take them off.
Are Arnie and Ali’s faces going to offend somebody?!
The NFL needs to lighten up and concentrate on the games. It’s OK to penalize a guy he has advertising on his shoe, or if he pulls a cellphone or a sharpie out during a celebration, but really, just let the guys dance and have some fun. These aren’t robots, they’re human.
The lines are from Vegas and the home teams are in CAPs.
Denver -3 over SAN DIEGO
Perhaps it wasn’t a good idea to put the special teams coordinator in charge with Gary Kubiak out with health issues?
Cincinnati +9 over NEW ENGLAND
The tax for taking the Patriots is getting higher than ever. Sure, they’re one of the top three teams in the league, but this is a must-win for the Bengals and they can’t back down. At the very least, a garbage-time TD is always in the offing to cover.
NEW YORK GIANTS -3 over Baltimore
The Ravens shook up their coaching staff, but will it be enough to right the ship? Probably not on the road against a Giants team that could either explode or implode.
Carolina -3 over NEW ORLEANS
Cam’s back and the Panthers’ season is going down the drain. Whoever loses out of the playoff hunt for good and we think Carolina is too good to be bounced this early.
Pittsburgh -7.5 over MIAMI
The Dolphins are floundering right now and need to move on from Ryan Tannehill. The Steelers are going into full overdrive with LeVeon Bell back and Sammie Coates emerging as a playmaker.
CHICAGO -2.5 over Jacksonville
I can’t believe we all bit so hard on the Jaguars hype this off-season. It’s clear that this team still has many problems and it likely begins with the coaching.
San Francisco +7.5 over BUFFALO
It would be perfect for Colin Kaepernick to come in and reinvigorate these 49ers. Things are going a bit too well for the Bills right now, and that’s when things usually go wrong.
Los Angeles +3 over DETROIT
The Lions bounced back and surprised the Eagles thanks to a terrible fumble call that should’ve been reversed. This smells like a letdown game for Detroit.
Cleveland +7 over TENNESSEE
The Titans’ running game has been excellent so far and they could certainly pound the Browns. But should Tennessee really be favoured by seven?
Philadelphia -2.5 over WASHINGTON
This is where the real test is for Carson Wentz: Can he bounce back after his first loss. Washington won its Beltway rivalry game, but didn’t look great doing so.
Kansas City -1.5 over OAKLAND
Jamaal Charles is back to 100%, which should spell doom for a Raiders team that is still working on coming together.
Atlanta +6 over SEATTLE
The Falcons’ tour of wonderment continues after upsetting the Broncos last week. This seems like the exact same situation this week: On the road against a team with a really tough defence, that loves to run and has a shaky offensive line.
GREEN BAY -4 over Dallas
All the talk about Dak Prescott potentially keeping Tony Romo on the sidelines could end this week against a very tough Packers defence.
HOUSTON -3 over Indianapolis
The Colts are basically Andrew Luck, T.Y. Hilton and a bunch of scrubs. There’s going to be lots of changes in Indy this off-season, I see.
ARIZONA -7.5 over New York Jets
Carson Palmer is back, but is that a good thing? With Eric Decker shelved the Jets’ attack really lacks bite.
Last week: 7-6
This season: 41-33