By Joe Torosian
Kick it!
I guess the NFL has come out of the “let them play” phase and into the “officials will decide” mode…
Not just Sunday Night Football, but also in Brazil, when Dallas Cowboys and Baltimore Ravens players got tangled in an arm-lock…Did that flag have to be thrown at all?
Did the flag have to be thrown against Josh Wallace on an amazing play—when both receiver and defender were battling?
Did the “touch” by Quentin Lake have to be called when it wasn’t egregious and didn’t affect anything?
If the refs were in flag-throwing mode, why wasn’t a flag thrown when Trent McDuffie was held on Bo Nix’s sprint to the pylon?
Trent McDuffie being held…must be a selective case of “Let them play.”
The Denver Broncos beating the Los Angeles Rams didn’t send me over the top and into rage…Yes, the Rams had their shots, but they were also doing it without Myles Garrett, Puka Nacua, Terrance Ferguson, and Jaylen Watson—whose departure made a big difference.
Question for Rams DC Chris Shula: At the start of the final drive…why did you revert to a passive, non-coverage prevent that let Nix move the ball into scoring position on essentially two throws?
Was it because Watson was out?
Emmanuel Forbes giving up a touchdown in the end zone was the result of running into Wallace…stuff happens…the unsportsmanlike on the punt return was foolish…
Note to McVay: You fell back into the bad habit of abandoning the run…
Laziest Postgame Take: “The Rams gave up 30 points in the second half!”
First there was the pick-six, and then you can’t put that final Broncos touchdown on the defense…The officials were hell-bent to give Nix & Friends an infinite number of plays to get that last touchdown…I don’t think it’s a flex to shout that the Rams gave up 30 points.
Lost In The Loss: How good the Rams defense was at the goal line at the end of that game.
Most Ridiculous Take: Mike Tirico—who I’m normally good with—kept harping on Matthew Stafford having thrown the most pick-sixes in NFL history… Did any other pretty-boy Super Bowl-winning quarterback spend 12 years playing for the Detroit Lions?
Fog City needed everything to hold off the Arizona Cardinals at home yesterday…and they lost Trent Williams and Mike Evans in the process…Nick Bosa was already out…I think it has less to do with an adjacent substation and more to do with OLD…
What do John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan expect from these guys?
The 49ers are 3-0, props, they beat the Dolphins and had to hang on against the Cards…and, as we shared a few weeks ago, they spent a lot of capital to get that win in Australia, but look where they are trending.
Nice win for Cleveland. The guy’s creepy, but a great win for Deshaun Watson…but why the heck is TE Harold Fannin Jr. wearing Leroy Kelly’s number 44?
The Buffalo Bills unis yesterday looked like they were fanboying the Detroit Lions…horrific…
Indianapolis Colts uniform looked just as ridiculous…and C.J. Stroud should have taken that contract extension from the Houston Texans.
Speaking of the Lions…they beat the New York Jets 31-24 yesterday, but when Geno Smith completes 31 of 37 for 321 yards and 3 touchdowns…does it really count as a win?
Bear Alexander (Keithian “Bear” Alexander) has played at Georgia, USC, and Oregon.
Georgia (2022): True freshman on the national championship team. Played in 12 games as a reserve, with 9 tackles, 3 TFLs, and 2 sacks (including one in the title game vs. TCU). Entered the portal after the season.
USC (2023–2024): Transferred in spring 2023. Solid 2023 season (48 tackles, 6.5 TFLs, 1.5 sacks). In 2024, he played only the first three games, then redshirted and entered the portal again.
Oregon (2025–present): Joined the Ducks in December 2024. Strong 2025 season (50 tackles, All-Big Ten recognition) and is now a redshirt senior in 2026.
That is three FBS stops in five seasons (he used a redshirt in 2024).NIL (rough estimate only): Public numbers are valuations (On3-style market estimates of current earning power), not confirmed contracts or total cash received.Approximate On3 valuations over time:
~$65k shortly after the 2023 USC transfer
~$228k when he entered the portal in late 2024
~$568k after committing to Oregon
~$976k by late 2025 after a good Ducks season
$1.5 million as of September 2026 (NIL100 rank ~99)
With that said…USC suspended Desman Stephens II, but in this NIL era, can you fine a college football player?
The MLB regular season has come to an end…But I press on…
#117—May the San Francisco Giants rot and lie stinking in the earth…
The Dude abides…
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2 Corinthians 2:15
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