Lions/Seahawks and the Bonehead Files

So many boneheads in the Monday night game. Where to start?

How about Seahawk QB Russell Wilson? Yes, he's won a Super Bowl, been to another, and recently signed a bazillion dollar contract. He's also known for his mobility (as in a running threat), and has a decent arm. But make no mistake. Wilson is a bonehead.

In the contest again the Lions, RW evidently thought he was back on a fifth grade playground. He could use his athletic ability to duck, bob, weave, and make a play out of nothing. It doesn't always work that way in the NFL. Granted, the Lions are bad, but not THAT bad. Despite his occasional sensational play, Wilson still has a penchant for fumbling the football. He would do so a few times against the Lions. With the game all but in the bag, leave it to Russell to cough it up one more time and give the Lions a chance. This, on top of Wilson not seeing wide-open receivers and throwing the ball to them, instead preferring to "scramble" like a 10 year old. And let's not forget, it's was Wilson's ill-advised pass that cost the Seahawks the Super Bowl last year in the waning seconds. A bonehead indeed.

Calvin "Megatron" Johnson of the Detroit Lions has also found his way into the Bonehead Files. After an incredibly lucky twist of fate (see one of the above-mentioned Wilson fumbles) the Lions improbably had a chance to win the game as the fourth quarter was winding down. QB Matthew Stafford (a borderline Bonehead himself) had completed a pass to CJ and he was about to run into the end zone for the go ahead score. But wait a second, an inch before he crossed the goal line, Megatron allowed the ball to be knocked away by a Seattle defender. Only a bonehead could pull such a stunt.

The ball bounded into the end zone, and was deliberately batted out of it by a Seattle defender. Replays would clearly show the back judge was looking right at the play. Batting the ball out of an end zone is an infraction and a flag should have been thrown. Obviously, this back judge didn't know the rules. Bonehead. Worse yet, the entire team of officials briefly huddled, and the play stood as called. By definition, the zebras are paid to know and enforce all the rules of the game. And the whole lot of them were ignorant of the proper call? More boneheads.

In a post-game interview, some "expert" on the rules said the refs blew it. The flag should have been thrown, the team which last possessed the ball (the Lions) would have the ball again and be awarded a 10 yard penalty (or half the distance to the goal line -- in this case maybe an inch) and also awarded an automatic first down. Chances the Lions could score from an inch away on four tries? Very good. At the very least, they were in automatic field goal range to likely send the game into overtime.

Sure, the talking heads zeroed in on the officials, but they missed the point. If Russell Wilson wasn't such a bonehead to fumble the ball away, giving the Lions another undeserved chance, and Calvin Johnson wasn't such a bonehead to also fumble going into the end zone for the winning score, all of the chatter wouldn't be happening. For that matter, the talking heads would never criticize a player for being a bonehead. Their politically correct network bosses would certainly frown on that. They'll come up with stats from hell why this or that guy is "so good". The half-fullers cups continually runneth over with BS. Who's kidding who?

And last time I looked, Johnson and Wilson were amongst the highest paid players in the entire NFL. Both considered superstars. But on this night, they suffered some serious ossification between their ears. Welcome aboard the Bonehead train fellas. You have earned your rightful place. You can make $20 million or $100 million a year, but you can't buy your way out of being boneheads. Now please step to the rear. No doubt, we will have more boneheads coming on board soon. Sports is chock full of them.

An example. Yankee pitcher C. C. Sabathia just checked himself into an alcohol rehab clinic. This, on the very eave of the playoffs starting. Hey, it's not like CC just figured out he has a drinking problem five minutes ago. If he's been a drunk that long, why not hang for another month when his team needs him the most? Bonehead.

Another example. What is it with these guys that know they need off-season surgery to correct various injuries, but put it off for months? It seems many of them time it just right, so after the healing process is complete, they will have missed all the preseason camps, workouts, and practices. Presto. When the real games start, they're magically ready to go again. The true boneheads aren't the offending players, but rather the teams that tolerate this selfish nonsense. If I'm an owner and I know one of my players needs an operation, it doesn't happen when the player decides to get around to it. It happens now. He can be in camp sweating it out with the rest of the team next year.

And the most boneheaded thing of all. Signing players to long-term mega-buck guaranteed contracts. Nobody can possibly know how well even a current superstar player will perform 3-4-5-6 years down the road. Maybe his skills diminish. Maybe he suffers a career ending injury. But the team is still on the hook to pay him. How absolutely boneheaded is that?