NFL: What Happened to the Holy Roller Rule?

For those of you who don’t know me, football is the only sport where I have two favorite teams.
As a New Yorker, I’ve been a Giants fan since the days of Norm Snead and games at Yale Bowl in Connecticut.
But, when my cousin was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in 1971, I became a Raiders fan.
The Raiders played a game several years ago against the San Diego Chargers. The Raiders ended up winning the game on a pass to their tight end, Dave Casper, that he fumbled into the end zone, and it was recovered by Oakland for the winning touchdown.
That play was dubbed the “Holy Roller,” and it spawned a new rule in the NFL, which came to be known as the “Dave Casper” rule, or the “Holy Roller” rule. The rule stated that a fumble could not be advanced by the fumbling team except for the player that fumbled it. If the fumble progressed forward and was recovered by the fumbling team, the ball was placed at the spot of the fumble.
It became a well-known rule that was common knowledge to fans.
Usually, the NFL does a pretty good job of announcing rule changes and new rules. Announcers will talk about new rules during games early in the season, in case we hadn’t heard of the changes.
Being in the sports journalism business, we’re pretty well informed of rule changes.
Somehow, the “Holy Roller” rule was somewhere along the line, abolished.
I don’t know when it happened, or how the rule change evaded me, but apparently it did.
I have seen several games lately where the Holy Roller rule was not enforced.
Most recently, it happened during the Colts-Patriots game in the AFC championship game.
In the first quarter, Tom Brady fumbled a ball that eventually wound up in the Indy end zone, was recovered by the Pats, and they were awarded a touchdown. As far as I know the rule to be, the ball should have been placed at the spot where Brady fumbled. But it wasn’t, and New England was on top, 7-0.
In the fourth quarter, Indianapolis running back Dominic Rhodes fumbled the ball, and it was recovered by the Colts Jeff Saturday in the end zone for a touchdown. When I saw the play live and on replay, I knew that the ball was recovered by Indy, but I thought that the ball should have been returned to the spot of the fumble, but it wasn’t.
Don’t get me wrong, I was rooting for Indy and was glad to see the TD, but I thought that the wrong call was made…again.
I’m looking for some help here…CAN SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED TO THE HOLY ROLLER RULE???

NHL: Congrats to Perreault

After toiling for 13 seasons in the NHL, one of the league's quiet performers, Yannic Perreault, was finally rewarded with his first trip to the NHL All-Star game.
Perreault was a phenominal scorer in junior hockey, scoring 127 points in his first season in 1987-88, when he was just 16 years old.
Perreault would go on to score at least 100 points in his next three seasons, topping it off with 185 points in 1990-91.
He was drafted in the 3rd round of the 1991 NHL entry draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs, and he debuted in the NHL in the 1993-94 season with Toronto.
Perreault has never been able to transfer the scoring prowess he posessed in junior hockey in the NHL, but he has been a quiet, solid player for years.
He's the kind of player that has spent his career just going out and doing his job every night.
This season, his first with the Phoenix Coyotes, he is enjoying one of his finest ever in the scoring column, and he's on a pace to put up the best offensive numbers of his career.
When he was interviewed about going to his first All-Star game, he was humble and gracious.
It was fitting to see Perreault score not just one goal, but two that he can treasure for the rest of his life, should he never be voted to go to the All-Star game again.
He earned those two goals with all of the hard work that he has put in over the last 13 seasons, and I couldn't have beeen happier to see him score in a game that has eluded him for so long.
So, here's a hats off to one of the league's classy guys, who has given so much, both on and off the ice, and was finally recognized for a lifetime of achievements.

Robitaille: Three Decades of Class

Last season, Luc Robitaille retired unceremoniusly after his second year of his third stint with the Los Angeles Kings.
Robitaille played for 19 seasons in the NHL, and for 19 seasons he was one of the rare good guys that we don't see enough of in today's sports world.
He played in parts of three decades - coming up with the Kings after being passed up for eventual Hall of Fame pitcher, Tom Glavine, in the 1980's, and played into the 21st century.
He quickly showed L.A. management that it was a mistake to pass on him - and that they were lucky to still get him in the ninth round with the 171st pick in the 1984 NHL draft.
Robitaille was named Rookie of the Year after the 1986-87 season, when he scored 45 goals.
He leaves the game with 668 goals and 1,394 points, first among left wingers in NHL history.
Robitaille lit the lamp at a ferocious pace in his first eight years in the league, all with the Kings. In those eight seasons he averaged 44 goals and 67 points per season.
After the Kings added Wayne Gretzky to their roster, Robitaille helped the Great One take Los Angeles to their first Stanley Cup final ever.
Although they lost the series, Robitaille and Gretzky had turned a sunny, warm town that everyone said would never accept a winter sport, into huge hockey fans.
In 1994, Luc left L.A. for Pittsburgh, which lasted a season. Then, two frustrating years with the New York Rangers.
The Rangers had just won the Cup in 1994 and after several players left, New York fans were looking for Luc to help them defend their first title in 54 years.
Those were the first two seasons in Robitaille's career that he failed to score at least 40 goals. New York fans were upset, and after the 1996-97 season, it was back to L.A. for his second go-round.
After four seasons with the Kings, which saw his numbers improve, he would move on again, to Detroit.
Luc spent two seasons in the Motor City, playing for the Red Wings. It was there that he had the biggest moment in his career, hoisting up Lord Stanley's Cup for what would be the only time in his career.
Being the class man that he was, he returned with the Cup to the city where it all began for him as a pro, Los Angeles, to share the Cup with the city that he loved and that loved him, a city that he desperately wanted to win the Cup for, but only came close.
Robitaille called it a career after his final two years with the Kings. At the time, he wasn't getting along with Head Coach Andy Murray. Murray was fired towards the end of the season and interim coach John Torchetti kept him in the doghouse for the remainder of the year.
Robitaille didn't deserve to go out like that. And the Los Angeles Kings franchise realized that, and they will be doing the right thing when they retire Robitaille's No. 20 this coming Saturday night.
Next for Robitaille will no doubt be the NHL Hall of Fame. Robitaille deserves that honor for retiring as the highest-scoring left winger in league history.
Congratulations Luc Robitaille, for all that you have done, for all that you have accomplished, and for being one of the classiest and most underrated player in the National Hockey League in the last generation. We'll see you in Toronto.

Saints now staring "Destiny" in the eyes

So the Saints beat the Eagles in tonight's NFC divisional playoff game in the Superdome.
Don't get me wrong. it's tough to root against New Orleans. If you have any heart at all, you had to feel what this team was put through last year, with Hurricane Katrina, the fact that their first "home" game was played at Giants Stadium, and all the shuffling that this team endured last year, you had to feel for them.
Now we fast forward to this year. They open the season with the Superdome back in tact, and major restoration work has been done to the city of New Orleans.
The fans needed hope, something to help get life in perspective. Then, there was their beloved Saints. A love affair between fans and a city, something akin to Boston fans and the Red Sox, Chicago fans and the Cubs, or New York fans and the Knicks.
It's the life-long glimmer of hope, the wait-till-next-year syndrome, the belief that when the team lost, that it hurt the players as much as it did the fans.
It's a connection between fans and team that is recognized only in few pro circles.
Not only is this a connection that Saints' fans have had with their perrenial losers, but that the new regime reinforced.
After a dismal season that ended in a 3-13 record, New Orleans made some changes. Out went the head coach, Jim Haslett, and in came first-time head coach Sean Payton. They were also given a top draft pick, and with that they took one of the most electrifying players in college, Reggie Bush from USC.
They then signed quarterback Drew Brees, who took the San Diego Chargers to the playoffs.
The team had a new outlook this season, and so did their fans. They needed something to believe in, and their team delivered with a 10-6 record and first place in the NFC South.
Today, as you saw the television crowd shots of the fans, there was a thread
in the crowd. The thread was a "destiny" that they believe in. They believe that this is their year, a year that they have never known. Through the Archie Manning years, when one of the best quarterbacks in football played for one of the worst teams, through the Sam Mills era, when he led one of the toughest defenses in the league, but came up empty, this city has supported their team.
And now they think that this is their year. And in the year of a mediocre NFC, to say the least, they may be right.
One game stands in their way between just another season and a Super Bowl appearance. That game is the NFC Championship game.
From the beginning of the season, I thought that the Chicago Bears were the class of the NFC.
Most others did, as well. But, then, the last few games of the season rolled around and the Bears were not quite so impressive. Some people fear their quarterback, Rex Grossman. But the fear isn't about how good he is, but the inconsistancy in his play.
Even in the last game of the season, when the Bears got waxed by the Green Bay Packers, with the Bears resting key players, Grossman was questioned about his decision making.
But the Bears have a ferociuos defense that is reminiscent of the '85 team.
They gave up 23 points or less in 12 of their games this season.
They have had a week off, and Lovie Smith and his coaching staff have had two weeks to work with Rex and teach him to protect the ball so that they don't lose the game.
The Saints have had the benefit of schedule, a soft NFC, especially in their own division, and a little luck and solid play, to be in this position, playing for the NFC championship.
So, will "destiny," as the Saints' fans believe, live on in the Bayou in a home game against Seattle, or will reality set in on a frozen field in Chicago?
We'll see next week.

MLB: This isn't Russia, is it?

Earlier this week, we had one of the moments that make Major League Baseball special: the announcement of the voting of who would be inducted to this year's Hall of Fame.
Each year, fans and experts alike talk about who will be on the ballot, who was removed, and why certain people should or shouldn't be inducted.
This year was not without controversy, either.
Two men will be inducted to baseball's most hallowed halls this coming July. Those men are Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken, Jr.
The controversy started when a name was mentioned that was to be left off: Mark McGwire.
I was at home that day, and I watched the interviews on ESPN with Gwynn and Ripken, as well as several of the baseball writers who have the privilege to vote for the inductees.
There was a common thread to those who voted against McGwire. Several people said that the feeling among the voters is that they just want to "punish" McGwire for a year or two because of his "alleged," that's right, ALLEGED steroid use.
Before we start getting into right or wrong, lets establish a couple of facts.
FACT: When mark McGwire played major League Baseball, steroids was not on the list of banned substances. The steroid policy was just instituted within the last couple of seasons.
FACT: No one knows for sure if McGwire even DID steroids, except his teammates and whoever his supplier was, if there was one to begin with.
FACT: Take any athlete, especially one who has a frame of 6'5" and weighs around 200 pounds, have him institute a training regimen that includes weight training, and guess what? Over a period of time, he's going to get BIGGER!! That fact can not be disputed. If you think it can be, just ask Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lou Ferrigno, or even Howie Long or Ray Lewis.
FACT: Unlike Barry Bonds, you can not look at McGwire's statistics and pinpoint a point in time when he began using steroids (if he did). McGwire started popping home runs from his very first year of regular play. If you look at the numbers, McGwire's first year with the Oakland A's was in 1986. Big Mac hit just three homers, but he only played 18 games. In 1987, he played 151 games and hit 49 dingers. He followed that season by hitting 32, 33, and 39 over the next three years. So apparently, even what they called a "tall, skinny, kid" had some pop in his bat from the get-go. From that point forward, he hit at least 30 home runs every year that he played more than 47 games except one, in 1991, when he had a dismal season, knocking out 22 and hitting a horrendous .201.
So, with there being no admission, compounded by the fact that if he did do steroids, it wasn't illegal, and that he can not even be suspected of using steroids based solely on his year-to-year performance, how do these pompous, arrogant, self-important writers have the audacity to appoint themselves judge and jury, and decide to "punish" a man for crimes that there is no proof that he committed, not to mention that they are trying to hold him responsible for doing something that wasn't even against the rules when he played?
This is a situation that is so appalling that I want to throw up. That men could be so full of themselves that they will abuse the little power that they have just so that they can make themselves feel important, as if they are doing us all a favor. Like they are going to show us what justice is.
Give us all a break, guys. We all know that steroids are wrong. Now they are even illegal in MLB.
Now, take the man who was the 1987 American League Rookie of the Year, won home run titles in each league TWICE, broke Roger Maris' 40 year-old single-season record, and has 583 career homers, and do the right thing in 2008 - give Mark McGwire what the evidence shows that he TRULY deserves - and vote him into the Hall of Fame.
After all... this isn't Russia, is it?

Colts overcome road, #1 defense

The Inianapolis Colts proved that they're not out yet. The Colts - maybe moreso Peyton Manning than anything else - overcame some of the bugaboos that have plagued them over recent NFL playoff seasons.
The first obstacle that they overcame in their 15-6 victory over the Baltimore Ravens was the building. If you know your NFL history, then you know that Robert Irsay and company moved the Colts out of Baltimore and to Indianapolis via the Mayflower moving company literally in the middle of the night.
The Colts had been in Baltimore since their inception into the league in the 1950's, and the fans were loyal from the days of Johnny U and Lenny Moore right up to the days of Bert Jones and Roger Carr.
So, with that said, it's fair to say that when the Colts come to town, Ravens' fans give their guests perhaps the nastiest welcome that they can come up with, and they keep it up throughout the game. Rightfully so.
But the Colts overcame that, and they mustered up enough communication among themselves to get 15 points on the scoreboard.
The second problem that Tony Dungy's team incurs in the post season is the road itself. Historically, the Colts are a dismal road team and their record away from Indy proves it.
Somehow the Colts overcame that, too, and came away with a rare playoff road win.
The third reason that Baltimore was supposed to win this game was the fact that they held the #1 defense in the NFL. They give up the fewest points, and all reports were that statistically speaking, this Ravens' defense was even better than the one that beat the Giants in the Super Bowl. And we all know the old saying that defense wins championships.
If you need a fourth reason why the Colts should have lost, it was their defense. Indianapolis had the worst rushing defense in the league, and if Baltimore would have been able to establish a rushing attack, they could have won. Establishing the run against the Colts is like establishing a disappearing witness at a mob trial. It's usually a pretty easy thing to do.
But not today. After last week, when Indy stuffed the Kansas City Chiefs in the RCA Dome, the skeptics were not convinced.
Even though the Colts D held the Chiefs to 0 first-half first downs and less than 200 yards in total offense for the game, and held Larry Johnson to a mere 32 yards, some questioned whether the Colts would unravel once they were away from home. Today they stuck to the script like pros, and the Ravens, heavily favored in the minds of fans as well as experts, if not on the betting line, were left to watch Peyton Manning beat the odds and knock Baltimore out of the playoffs.
They played tremendous defense, they scored the points that they needed, and they beat the crowd and the road. That is the determination that Peyton Manning has got to have is if he is going to slay the playoff ghosts that haunt him.

NHL: Isles can count on Rangers to ease woes

So, the Islanders were currently in the midst of a six-game losing streak. Fans of the Broadway Blues read the newspaper daily, thrilled to open up to the sports section and see that the Islanders dropped another game...then another...and another (while the Rangers were winning)...after defeating the Rangers on Dec. 26.
When the Islanders lost to Ottawa on the 27th, all of the conspiracy theorists thought that they had it figured out.
"It's the curse of the Rangers," they cried. Indeed, the Islanders do have a habit of going through an emotional letdown after they play the Rangers, but no one expected the drought to last for six games.
So, with that said, what do the Rangers fans have to say when they seemingly have all the momentum going into last night's game at "The World's Most Famous Arena," and the Islanders get healthy and hand a streaking Rangers team a loss?
It didn't seem likely. After all, the Rangers were riding a four-game winning streak, and the Isles were losers of six straight.
But, as often happens in this rivalry, the unusual happened and the improbable became probable.
So, both streaks come to an end. The Rangers see their winning streak end, and the Islanders snap their six-game losing streak.
Islanders fans may want to start a hex of their own. After all, the Isles have not lost to the Rangers yet this season - that's four games played this year - and apparently there's no pattern to it - the Islanders have beaten the Rangers whether they're hot, the Rangers are hot, they lost their last game, or the Rangers won theirs.
There is no rhyme or reason to this season's dominance for the boys from Nassau over the Broadway boys. Some seasons just turn out that way between these two clubs.
Normally (I'm sorry to say), it's the Rangers who come up with these little streaks. For a while, they had dominated the Islanders so badly - in either team's building - that when the two clubs played in Nassau Coliseum, it appeared that there were more fans at the game from the City than from the Island.
The Rangers even had an unbeaten streak in Long Island that lasted more than a season.
But now, at least for this season, the shoe is on the other foot. The teams have played four games, and the Islanders have won them all.
The Islanders have to feel confident as well as comfortable when they look on the schedule and they see the Rangers on tap. Now, if only they can take that confidence and level of play and use it against the other 29 teams in the NHL. Then, maybe they'll have something that will transcend to the bigger picture - like another NHL championship in Long Island.

NFL: Expectations high for Jets, low for Giants

As we head into the first week of playoffs in the NFL, both New York City football teams are in the playoffs, something that doesn't happen very often. However, there is a huge difference in attitude, as well as expectations, from the two sides.
For Jets fans, coming into this season without one of the best running backs in NFL history, Curtis Martin, and with rookie Head Coach Eric Mangini, brought a lot of unanswered questions. Mangini did his part in answering at least a few of them.
Witha game plan that got many players involved -- and at the same time kept his quarterback, Chad Pennington, who hasn't been healthy in years, healthy, Mangini employed a system and produced results that Jets fans have been waiting for since Parcells took them to within one game of the big dance.
At one point, mired in a 2-3 record and without much light at the end of the tunnel, the J-E-T-S rolled off wins in three of their next four games -- and fresh off of a win in New England -- had new hope with a 5-4 record. With other teams in the same position, the Jets and their fans were thinking of a post season.
With the help of their schedule, New York went on to win five of their last seven games, including an impressive win in Green Bay.
The Jets are going into the post season playing with house money, and as long as they don't embarrass themselves, their fans should have nothing to complain about if (when) they get knocked out of the playoffs.
The Giants, however, are a completely different story. In fact, I don't think that you could have a season where two teams went to the NFL playoffs by taking such contrastingly different routes.
The Giants started the season sluggish, albeit with a tough schedule, and at their week-three bye found themselves at just 1-2. Then they ran off five straight wins, and after week nine they were at 6-2, had a division record of 3-0, and were considered one of the top teams in the NFL.
Then Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, and "Mr. Nickles," LaVar Arrington, all got hurt. That led to holes in the defense, which somehow carried over to holes in the offense.
Offensively, wide receiver Amani Toomer and left tackle Luke Petitgout went down with season-ending injuries, and the Giants simply were not the same ball club that was at 6-2.
They lost four straight and six out of seven. Their saving grace was a week-17 win at Washington so that they could escape with an 8-8 record and qualify for the playoffs in a very mediocre NFC.
The Giants' season went on a downward spiral on Nov. 12 with a horriffic 38-20 loss at home to Chicago on national television. The pinnacle of the misery was when the Bears took a missed-Jay Feely field goal attempt and ran it all the way back for a touchdown, capping a dismal night for New York.
Then they went to Jacksonville and lost by 16 points, and followed that with a trip to Tennessee which saw another Giants' implosion that led to Vince Young's coming out party.
They lost a close one in Dallas before stopping the bleeding with a win at Carolina, but that didn't last long, as they once again imploded against the Eagles, allowing late turnovers come back to bite them. They got stomped on by the Saints in their own house, and then came back to somewhat salvage their season by beating the Redskins to make the playoffs.
The way the Giants have played since November, there is absolutely no reason in the world why Giants fans should expect anything positive to happen this weekend in Philadelphia. Philly has been riding a high for the second half of the season, ironically enough when they lost their starting quarterback, Donovan McNabb. Jeff Garcia took over and ignited this team with a confidience they had not shown to this point all season. Their offense is scoring, and Philadelphia's defense is playing their best football of the season.
Should the Giants accomplish anything this Sunday? Not if they play the way they have played for most of the last six weeks, and there isn't much reason to think that they won't.
As for the Jets, no matter what the scoreboard says, they come out winners. If they win the game, they beat one of their bitter rivals, the New England Patriots, and move on to the second round of the AFC playoffs, an amazing accomplishment for a team that was still looking for an identity midway through the season. If they lose the game, so what, they would have lost to a team that has won a few Super Bowls recently, and just making it to the post season was more than Jets fans could have asked for out of their first-year, rookie head coach, who just may win Coach of the Year.

NHL: Islanders slump no help in division

The recent play of the New York Islanders had been disturbing, to say the least.
After battling the Rangers and the Devils for the Atlantic Division lead, the recent five-game losing streak has suddenly taken them out of the running and could find them in fourth place if Pittsburgh wins their game against Buffalo tonight.
With the Atlantic being a tight division as it is, the losing streak -- especially against division opponents -- is NOT what the Islanders need if they want to contend for the division lead or a playoff spot.
In the last five games -- which, by the way, presents an argument for anyone who believes in the "Ranger's curse," the boys from Nassau have scored a meager six goals, while they have given up 14.
The power play has been non-existent, though the penalty killing has been ok.
In last night's game against New Jersey, the Islanders were trailing 4-2 before they scored a goal late in the third, when there was little or no chance at tying the game.
New York started the season well, and I thought they they were going to sruggle when Alexei Yashin got hurt, but the team played well through the injury.
Jason Blake began the season on fire, scoring goals at a rapid pace, but has tailed off as of late.
Miro Satan has not been producing in the scoring column like he should, either.
Ted Nolan has to figure something out to get this team on track while there's still time, because in a tight division it will be very difficult to jump three or four teams to make the playoffs.
If the Islanders want to not to just make the playoffs, but have an impact, then either Garth Snow is going to have to bring in another scorer, or the men that are already wearing the orange and blue are going to have to step things up. Because 1.2 goals per game is simply not going to get it done.

NHL: Two months later, not many changes

After a two-month hiatus, it seems that not much has changed in the National Hockey League.
When I last wrote, I entertained the question of the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals being played by the Anaheim Ducks and the Buffalo Sabres.
Obviously, that was back in November, when the season had barely begun and most teams had played about a dozen games. Buffalo and Anaheim had gotten off to quick starts, and both were tops in their respective divisions.
Fast forward two months later, to Jan. 5. Oddly enough, as we take a look at the top two teams in both the Eastern and the Western Conferences, the Ducks and Sabres are still standing above the rest.
What is (are) the reason(s)? Well, for Buffalo, scoring a ton of goals makes life easy. The Sabres are the top-scoring team in the league right now, as their 158 goals scored puts them ahead of the second-best team -- you guessed it -- the Anaheim Ducks -- by more than a dozen goals -- 14 to be exact.
Second-year star Thomas Vanek is 10th in goals in the NHL with 22; veteran Chris Drury has 20 and is on a pace to smash his season-high best in goals scored; Maxim Afinogenov continues to be one of the league's top scorers with 19; and Jason Pominville has 19. On top of that, Daniel Briere leads the club with 46 points.
But although they're scoring goals, the Buffalo Sabres are getting the converse -- excellent work on defense as well as between the pipes.
Goalie Ryan Miller is having a tremendous season, posting a 2.66 goals against average and a .915 save percentage.
Combine that with a league-leading 3.80 goals per game, the Sabres score about 1/2 a goal per game more than the next best team -- again, you guessed it -- the Anaheim Ducks.
Offensively, the Duck are operating on all cylinders as well, and they're led by Teemu Selanne.
Selanne ranks fifth in the NHL with 23 goals, eighth with 50 points, and is ranked 21st with 27 assists.
Defensman Chris Pronger, revived after going to Anaheim from Edmonton, is off to one of the best starts in his career, and his 33 assists is good for sixth in the league. Scott Niedermayer's 29 assists is tied for 12th, and Andy McDonald had helped with 26 assists.
Defensively, Jean-Sebastian Giguere, one of the most underrated goaltenders in the league, is off to another tremendeous start. Giguere's 23 wins has him tied for first with Martin Brodeur, he ranks third with a miniscule 2.17 goals against, fourth with a .924 save percentage, and third with four shutouts.
After seeing stats like that, it's no wonder that these two clubs rank as the best in the league.
If they can continue to avoid the injury bug, like they both have, my prediction of two months ago may not seem like such like a bold statement after all.