Taking A Knee
Fans of the NFL are still pissed about what happened on Sunday.The Giants played the Buccaneers, and at the end of the game, the Giants just needed to snap the ball one more time, have Eli Manning take a knee, the clock would run out, and the game would be over.
Traditionally, this is a formality. The center snaps the ball and the quarterback kneels, but the offensive and defensive lines basically just stand there.
In this game, though, Tampa Bay's defensive line crashed through, knocking Eli Manning backwards. It was both poor form and entirely legal.
So while everyone debates whether this is kosher or not, I started thinking about the stupid kneeldown play. Why the hell is that legal, anyway? It makes for absolutely terrible television, because there's no drama.
Here's an idea: in the last two minutes of the game, if the team with the ball is ahead, they must gain yardage on a play to keep the clock running. If they don't, the clock stops.
Instead of a bunch of stupid-ass kneeldowns, there's suddenly drama with every play. There are no formalities, because if the offense can't gain yardage, the other team will get the ball back and may have time to score.
That seems much more entertaining, and much truer to how sports should be played.
<< Home