Miami OG Richie Incognito likes to mix it up. (Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE)
Miami Dolphins guard Richie Incognito has spent a lot of time trying to explain how he is a different player than he was in St. Louis when frequent post-play penalties got him cut by the Rams.
Incognito insists he’s not a dirty player, but merely a tough and physical competitor. Whatever the semantics, Incognito recently came in second in a poll of NFL players ranking the dirtiest players in the league.
While 103 players is hardly a large sample, and considering those same players had Bill Belichick as the second most overrated coach in the league, there is a legitimate reason to question the credibility of the poll.
Still, the story here is a much about Incognito’s reaction to the results as it is to the actual vote.
After being told of the results, Incognito said, “I play the game the right way; I play a physical brand of football. I get after people, and there’s a fine line between dirty and physical. So it’s a badge of honor for an offensive lineman to be up that high on the list. It definitely plays on defenders’ minds that this guy is going to get after you for four quarters.”
Then, after saying he was surprised to have moved up to second from sixth since last year’s poll, Incognito added, “I’m having fun with it. I threw a thing out on Twitter … just thanking my parents.” That tweet said, “I would like to thank my MOM & DAD for raising an ass kicking machine. #2 Dirtiest.”
Of course, Incognito seemingly felt he had to live up to his reputation. In Sunday’s game against Tennessee he was benched briefly after costing his team 15 yards on a personal-foul penalty.
Fit to Be Tied
When the Rams and 49ers played to a 24-24 tie Sunday, it was the 18th deadlock since the NFL instituted overtime in 1974.
In the event anyone cares, here is some tie trivia you can use to impress someone at your office or next to you at the nearest bar stool:
*The month with the most ties is November with eight. Oddly, since 1989, there have been six ties and each one has been within a two-week period from Nov. 10-Nov. 23. There have been five ties in October, three in September and only two in December.
*There have been 20 franchises involved in tie games, and only eight that have been in the league since 1974 that haven’t: Buffalo, Chicago, Dallas, New England, New Orleans, Oakland, San Diego and Tennessee. Twelve franchises have been involved in more than one tie. Leading the way is Green Bay and Philadelphia with four. The other 10 all have two, including the Rams and 49ers.
*The most popular score for a tie game is 10-10, which has happened six times. The Rams-49ers game was the fourth-highest score of any ties. The top three are 35-35, 34-34 and 28-28. The only other scores with more than one occurrence were 20-20 and 17-17.
*Finally, the longest time between tie games came after Kansas City and Cleveland played to a 10-10 ties in 1989. The next tie was in 1997 on Nov. 16 when Philadelphia and Baltimore also played to a 10-10 tie. That game was followed by the shortest time between ties as Washington and the Giants tied 7-7 the next week. The only other season with two ties was 1986 when San Francisco and Atlanta and the St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia each played 10-10 games.
Defending Megatron
Speaking of extracurricular play, the Lions weren’t happy about two shots to the head experienced by wide receiver Calvin Johnson in Sunday’s game against the Vikings.
Quarterback Matthew Stafford said, “You never like to see anybody get hit in the head. It’s part of the game they are trying to get rid of, which is a good thing. Calvin is a tough guy and he stayed in and made some big plays. But there is no place for that in this league.”
While coach Jim Schwartz acknowledged the league will likely be looking at the plays, he also said, “I don’t think anybody in this league is trying to hurt somebody. He is a 6-5 receiver and when Matt throws it high, people have to go up high to try and get the ball. He got hit twice. We know the league sees that. I don’t think anybody is trying to do it on purpose. They are trying to defend him.”
Not surprising words from a defensive-oriented head coach.
Can Zebras Change Their Stripes?
The Rams sure hope so.
There was still no official word on the transgression that landed Rams cornerback Janoris Jenkins and wide receiver Chris Givens on the inactive list Sunday, and defensive tackle Kellen Heard on the waiver wire.
Numerous reports claimed it was a curfew violation after the Rams arrived in San Francisco Friday night, a day earlier than normal. It was believed to be at a serious level considering the release of Heard and the fact that after the game, coach Jeff Fisher hadn’t decided yet whether Jenkins and Givens would play next Sunday against the Jets.
Fisher said he made the decision on discipline on Saturday and said, “As to whether they play next week or not, I don’t know. We’ll see.” Heard was waived on Saturday.
Jenkins and Givens were seen running the steps in the stands a few hours before the game, and Fisher was quoted on si.com, saying, “They weren’t going to play, so they needed a workout. And I guess you can say it was part punitive. We still have to sort some things out about what happened, but hopefully this helps them get the message.”
Monday afternoon, Fisher said both Givens and Jenkins were at a team meeting Monday and will practice Wednesday.
The off-field red flags in Jenkins’ background were well-known in the run-up to April’s draft. Not so with Givens, who was listed as a potential third-round pick by NFLDraftScout.com. When word spread Sunday of the deactivations, there were reports that NFL player personnel executives had also researched red flags involving Givens with no specifics given.
What is known is that during the 2010 preseason while at Wake Forest, Givens and another player (defensive end Kevin Smith) were suspended for the first two games of the season for violating team rules. The suspension for Givens was subsequently reduced to one game.
‘Redskins Rule’ Loses
OK, so the “Redskins Rule” didn’t come through this year (although I’m waiting to hear from the Elias Sports Bureau’s Steve Hirdt that Redskins Rule 3.0 is now in force, which says the result is flipped if the president is African-American and the quarterback of the opposing team is also African American). As a refresher, in 17 of the previous 18 presidential elections, when the Redskins won their final home game before the election, the incumbent party won. If the Redskins lost, the challenging party won.
Hirdt instituted Redskins Rule 2.0 for the 2004 election saying that the rule is flipped when the incumbent president didn’t win the popular vote in the previous election. On Nov. 4, the Redskins lost to the Carolina Panthers, but the incumbent party still won. However, Redskins watchers point out another coincidence as it relates to the team and the president.
Since 1945, the Redskins have made the playoffs just once in 30 seasons when a Democrat is in the White House. In the 36 seasons when there has been a Republican president, they have made the playoffs 15 times. Unless they have a miraculous turnaround from their current 3-6 record, that first stat will increase to one in 31.
Fantasy Watch
*Keep an eye on Arizona rookie receiver Michael Floyd, who is starting to get more snaps as the team’s No. 3 receiver. Asked about Floyd playing more, coach Ken Whisenhunt said, “I don’t know what those outsiders are saying. I think Michael has worked his way into playing more. We’ve got some receivers who are playing pretty good in front of him. Andre (Roberts) has got what? How many touchdowns? (Five). He’s playing pretty good. So what do you do, play him over Andre? Michael has been playing well. He’s going to be worked into the offense more and deservedly so. I think it sends the right message to your team when that happens.”
*Not as if anyone is worrying about Houston running back Arian Foster, but his play Sunday night against Chicago wasn’t a huge one by fantasy standards, but coach Gary Kubiak was effusive in praise for the 102 yards he grinded out in 29 carries. (He did make fantasy owners happy with a two-yard touchdown catch.) Said Kubiak, “That was about the toughest 102 yards a man could get. If you look at some of the great games he’s had, I don’t think there’s anything bigger than (Sunday night) because we were running against eight- and nine-man fronts.
Everybody and their brother knew who was getting the ball, and he still found a way to keep us on track. I was very proud of him. That play he made in the end zone was exceptional. Arian’s having a huge year and playing with a lot of confidence right now.”
*The stat: The Seahawks are 5-0 at home and in those games, rookie quarterback Russell Wilson has a 122.2 passer rating with 11 touchdown passes and no interceptions.
