Throwback to Thanksgiving 1989: the first ‘bounty bowl’

The Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys have had an intense rivalry for over 50 years, with the Cowboys on the winning end for most of the first 30 years. By the late 1980s, the Cowboys were rebuilding the franchise with new ownership, coaching and front office personnel. The Eagles were

Eagles could not get second life from leverage call

Week 1: Eagles at Falcons (video)In the first game of the Monday night doubleheader, a seesaw battle headed to the end of the fourth quarter with the Eagles attempting a go-ahead 44-yard field goal. The field goal sails wide right as Falcons linebacker Kroy Biermann leaps over the line into

Flopping for flag can flip flag in face of flopper

If you are a fan of basketball, you are well aware of flopping -- the art of exaggerating contact to try to draw a foul on your opponent.  Well, the art of flopping is also alive and well in the NFL, fans just haven't heard a referee call it such.

Week 8 officiating video: crackback blocks, official timeouts

#457964914 / gettyimages.com NFL vice president of officiating Dean Blandino today released the Week 8 media video. Topics this week included interception/touchback rules, crackback blocks, and timing rules (video download). Low blocks and crackback blocks were a topic of discussion during the Cardinals-Eagles game. The rule is that any player that is

Roundtable: Was Chris Baker ejected in error?

The fight in the Week 3 game in Philadelphia has lingering questions, despite our multiple-point breakdown of the play, and it swirls around the illegal hit called on Washington defensive lineman Chris Baker. Troy Vincent, the first-season executive vice president of football operations, addressed the hit earlier this week. "You can

5 observations from Wild Card weekend

After wild card weekend, it always strikes me -- only seven more meaningful football games this year.  In an attempt not to get too maudlin, here are five things that stuck out to me in regard to the officiating this past Wild Card weekend. Jeff Triplette's crew called an awesome game Triplette,