This Weekend in NFL Stupid highlights the dumbest moments and decisions in football throughout the season. For Week 2, we start with a Giants rant.
Everything New York Giants
From continually throwing short of the sticks on third and even fourth down in the second half of a game they trailed, to taking an unbelievably bone-headed delay-of-game penalty on a 4th-and-goal from the 2-yard line, to Evan Engram’s dumbass crotch grab that resulted in a killer unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and the ensuing kickoff out of bounds, to baffling play-calling and abysmal drops, the Giants played the stupidest game of the 2017 season on Monday night.
The Detroit Lions were in the right place at the right time.
The Dallas Cowboys’ decision to punt on a 4th-and-3 in the fourth quarter of a game they trailed by three scores
The Cowboys were just shy of 12 minutes remaining on the clock against the Broncos. They were very unlikely to get the ball back three times, score on all three of those drives and allow no more points on defense. They had a better chance gambling on a reasonable fourth-down play, even inside their own 30-yard line.
Ezekiel Elliott thinking he could get away with giving up after a Dak Prescott interception in a game that was still within reach
Our Hall of Fame RB @LT_21 explaining why he said @EzekielElliott quit on the Cowboys vs. Broncos. LT also addresses his own haters. pic.twitter.com/TFi1XqaPcJ
— Dan Hellie (@DanHellie) September 18, 2017
That just can’t happen, especially when the culprit is already dealing with challenges to his reputation.
The officials calling the Green Bay Packers for offensive pass interference on a perfectly legal pick within a yard of the line of scrimmage
They did the same thing to Geronimo Allison in the third quarter, but this one was a real killer. It wiped out a 36-yard gain and led to an Aaron Rodgers interception in order to set up a back-breaking Atlanta Falcons touchdown just before halftime.
Packers head coach Mike McCarthy doesn’t think it was a pick at all.
“I don’t know how you call pass interference on that when [Martellus Bennett] is running a drag route, Cobb runs a shake route, and Marty is looking back at me and gets run into,” Rodgers said after the game. “There are pick routes in the game, but that definitely wasn’t one. It’s an area of emphasis but you can’t see ghosts out there. It probably should have been a no-call.”
The Minnesota Vikings running a fake punt from their 36-yard line while trailing by just 11 points with nearly 30 minutes remaining against the Pittsburgh Steelers
That failed miserably. Then Minnesota was bailed out on the ensuing possession when Chris Boswell missed a 51-yard field goal… but no. An illegal formation penalty gave Boswell a second chance, he was good from 46 and Pittsburgh never looked back.
Can’t make mistakes like those when you don’t have your starting quarterback and you’re facing a Super Bowl contender on the road.
The continued absence of Colin Kaepernick
Quarterback play is hurting right now. Kaepernick would have a chance to be better than DeShone Kizer, Andy Dalton, Eli Manning, Deshaun Watson, Brian Hoyer, Jacoby Brissett, Carson Palmer, Blake Bortles, Josh McCown, Mike Glennon, Cam Newton, Kirk Cousins, Tyrod Taylor and Joe Flacco. That’s nearly half of the league’s starters.
And I’m not even a fan of Kaepernick’s game, but this has become ludicrous.
