Football
June 19, 2017 — Paul Mirengoff
The Supreme Court ruled this morning that the government cannot deny full trademark protection to allegedly racially offensive trademarks. The opinions are here. The case involved an Asian-American band called “The Slants.” It sought federal registration of that mark. The Patent and Trademark Office denied the application under a Lanham Act provision prohibiting trademarks that may “disparage. . .or bring. . .into contemp[t] or disrepute” any “persons, living or dead.”
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March 20, 2017 — Steven Hayward
News out of the sports world is that no NFL teams want to sign free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick, not merely because he may be washed up, but because of his political stunts. An unnamed NFL insider told Bleacher Report: “[Many teams] genuinely hate him and can’t stand what he did (kneeling for the national anthem). They want nothing to do with him. They won’t move on. They think showing
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February 6, 2017 — John Hinderaker
It wasn’t the Atlanta Falcons, or Matt Ryan, or Dan Quinn, or even the bettor who put down $1 million on the Falcons not long before game time. No, the Super Bowl’s biggest loser was Touré. If, like most people, you haven’t heard of Touré, he is a far-left commentator on MSNBC. Here, for your entertainment, are some of Touré’s tweets during the Super Bowl, in chronological order: Trump is
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February 6, 2017 — John Hinderaker
Scott and Paul have already written about last night’s classic, and Steve has added a picture gallery. I just want to comment on a couple of aspects of the evening. First, the ads. I didn’t pay attention to most of them. Half the time, I can’t figure out what is being advertised, at least not until the end. And there are quite a few ads that I can tell feature
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January 1, 2017 — Steven Hayward
Anyone who watched either of yesterday’s BCS “playoff” games has to come away with disgust for whoever came up with the scheme to have a faux college football championship. Washington played creditably against Alabama for much of the game though the result never seemed much in doubt, but Ohio State didn’t even belong on the same field with Clemson. The Buckeyes took more black eyes than Rhonda Rousey in a
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December 30, 2016 — Steven Hayward
As has been widely remarked, TV ratings for the NFL are down sharply this year. I don’t have an opinion about whether it is partly to to Colin Kaepernick’s capers, or other defects of the game today, but at least we still have NFL cheerleaders to cheer us up. Unless you’re a Cleveland Browns fan. There, apparently, even the cheerleaders can’t cheer up anyone. That’s the subject of our Video
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October 16, 2016 — Paul Mirengoff
I wrote here about the absurd personal foul that was called a few weeks ago against Josh Norman of the Washington Redskins for celebrating a big play by pretending to shoot a bow and arrow. This week, Vernon Davis, also of the Redskins, was assessed a personal foul for something at least as innocuous — shooting a jump shot with the football. Davis is a native Washingtonian who played his
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October 10, 2016 — Paul Mirengoff
I wrote here about the decline in the television ratings of the National Football League so far this season. The decline is relative, though. NFL ratings are still excellent. The appeal of the NFL’s product was evident yesterday in the Washington, D.C. metro area when the following sports events were competing for viewers: (1) a regular season football game between the Washington Redskins and the Baltimore Ravens and (2) a
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October 8, 2016 — Paul Mirengoff
The National Football League’s television ratings have declined significantly this season. After four weeks, the NFL’s ratings are down 11 percent across FOX, CBS, NBC and ESPN. And the Thursday night game that kicked off Week Five experienced a 17 percent drop in viewership compared to the corresponding game last season. The biggest hit is on prime time. On Sunday afternoon’s, the traditional NFL slot, the decline is only around
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October 3, 2016 — Paul Mirengoff
These are words I never imagined I’d hear from an NFL referee. But that was the call against Washington Redskins corner back Josh Norman yesterday. Don’t get me wrong. Shooting a bow and arrow on a football field should, at a minimum, be a personal foul. Sure, the players have plenty of padding and protection, but not enough to guarantee their safety if shot by an arrow. The problem is
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September 25, 2016 — Paul Mirengoff
It will be a cold day in hell before I root for the New York Giants to beat the Washington Redskins (or any other team not named the Cowboys). But after today’s game between New York and Washington (won, somehow, by the Redskins), I have a strange new respect for the football Giants. Why? Because every member of the team stood with respect during the playing of our National Anthem.
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September 25, 2016 — Steven Hayward
I’m a certified New England Patriots hater. Don’t even get me started. But you do have to tip your hat to them when they deserve it. Their 3 – 0 start without pretty boy quarterback Tom Brady is a remarkable feat of coaching by the worst-dressed coach in all of pro sports, Bill Belichick. But something else Belichick is doing is a terrific example of the law of unintended consequences
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February 9, 2016 — Paul Mirengoff
The NFL announced its latest Hall of Fame class last week. The new members are Brett Favre, Kenny Stabler, Marvin Harrison, Kevin Greene, Orlando Pace, Dick Stanfel, Eddie DeBartolo Jr, and Tony Dungy. The first five seem obviously to belong. Favre retired as the NFL’s all-time leader in completions, yards, and touchdowns. He’s a three-time MVP. Stabler led his Raiders to the AFC title game each season from 1973-77 and
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February 8, 2016 — Paul Mirengoff
I’m no football historian, but I have seen nearly all L of the Super Bowls. I don’t recall ever witnessing defense being played as well by two competing Super Bowl teams as it was yesterday. Denver’s defense must be among the best of all time. A few weeks ago it made Tom Brady, surely one of the best five quarterbacks ever in my opinion, look ordinary at best. Yesterday, they
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