Sometimes, I
really wonder about football fans in the New England area. Yeah, I’m calling you out. Are you real football fans? I have to question it, specifically starting
out with the individuals that run the local television stations. But hey, now that I have everyone’s attention
anyway…
I get it
that your team was entering Sunday’s showdown with the Pittsburgh Steelers with
an unblemished record. I get it that
you are gunning for a perfect season. I
get it that you have interest in watching your beloved team play. I GET IT.
But
shouldn’t it be OK to miss perhaps the opening kickoff and first few minutes of
the game to see the completion of another?
Specifically one that has playoff implications and is about to go into
overtime?
Case in
point, yesterday’s game between the Tennessee Titans and San Diego
Chargers. Let me transport you to the
waning moments of the game. The
Chargers were flat all game, with injuries being sustained to key players such
as Philip Rivers, Antonio Gates, and Shawne Merriman. Gates and Rivers fought through the pain and kept playing. As a team, San Diego kept fighting, eventually
clawing their way back, to the point where it was 17-10 in the final minutes,
with the Chargers driving down the field for a game-tying score. The once raucous Tennessee crowd was
becoming uneasy, quieting from deafening cheers to borderline murmurs. You could almost hear each fan squirming
around in their seats. With the game
clock further ticking towards zero, Rivers lobbed a pass to the corner of the
end zone, where star tight end Antonio Gates waited to try and win a jump ball
situation. As Gates reached up into the
sky and snagged the ball, his feet came down near the sideline. In slow motion, I watched in anticipation,
as a fan of the game, and one who loves last second heroics. The official slowly crept up from the side,
and appeared to be raising his hands towards the sky to signal a touchdown
when…
“… 0% down,
come by and pick out your favorite model today…”
No, that
wasn’t an advertisement geared at getting the attention of Tom Brady. It was a car commercial.
I was now
watching a local car commercial highlighting some cheesy jingle and an end of
the season sale. I kid you not.
The first
thought that popped into my head was… “No, they didn’t… they couldn’t have.”
Giving the
local executives the benefit of the doubt, I thought maybe it was a glitch with
the TV programming, and the game was cut to commercial on accident, or just
prematurely.
They didn’t…
they couldn’t have.
THEY DID.
New England
pulled a “Heidi”.
Heidi, the lovable Swiss girl, also the focal point of a children’s movie that so rudely
interrupted a tight matchup between the Jets and Raiders four decades ago next
year. That game was another matchup of
two of the better teams in the league during that time.
The
commercials finally ended, yet the battle between the Chargers and Titans was
gone and off my television airwaves for good.
Instead, the pre-game for the Steelers and Patriots match replaced it
faster than you can say “Spygate”. I
was officially thrust from the climax of one game with playoff implications,
and into a pre-game chat filled with pointless banter.
Is there a
legal contract here that something like this must happen? Or is it that New England is so
self-centered that no other game matters?
Contractual legality is the only thing I can come up with besides the
fact that the head of the TV station is more of a “homer” than a football
fan. Either way you slice it, I see it
as serving up a plate of “just plain ridiculous”.
Say what you
want about it, but my message to the New England media is that you’re an
absolute joke. There, I said it. What are you going to do about it, cut my
cable line?! You simply can’t block out
the final minutes of an OT thriller (with playoff implications) to present the
pre-game for the local team’s matchup.
That’s against “Football Viewing Code” if you ask me.
This further
tells me that there could be a major event in our world today, good, bad, or
tragic, and the local news stations would not dare report it because the
Patriots or Red Sox were on TV. I wouldn’t
be shocked if it were only presented to me in the form of a ticker at the
bottom of the screen.
And that, my
friends, is my rant for today. New
England pulled a “Heidi” on me yesterday.
I wonder what they will do next.
My guess is something new happens by the final week of the season, when
the locals do whatever it takes to get that Week 17 matchup against the Giants
on local TV. Remember, it’s on the NFL
Network. Attention New England: Since
your beloved Patriots will be 15-0 at that point, why don’t you just put it on
every station, much like the press a Presidential address gets. You should put pre-game shows on during the
1 and 4 o’clock time frames too. And
yes, you can cut my sarcasm with a knife.
Who knows
what will go on with the TV broadcast in upcoming weeks. Stay tuned… literally. With all my frustration, maybe I should just
read a book.
So...just to be clear...are you saying that the Titans/Chargers game had playoff implications? LOL
I hope you recognized my sarcasm coming across your monitor. Sorry that happened to you - that has happened to me before too down here in the deep south and it's truly frustrating.
On another note - nice dancing with you as an elf! That was pretty funny.
I've got a new post playing catch up if you want to check it out.
Last edited by SouthernCheesehead on December 10th at 1:29 PM.
As you know, I did mention legal issues to you and you touched on it. Seeing as I don't live in the New England area, I'm just happy they put the game on here. You know how those Boston fans are. Seeing as New England was already in the playoffs, they probably could've left the other game on. Wasn't too much to see in the first couple of minutes anyways. This was good, it was worth the wait.
CHEESEHEAD,
Ha ha... good one. C'mon now, while they're not the Colts or Pats, the Chargers and Titans are both fighting for playoff spots, and San Diego will have their division.
Thanks... I did see that. I make red and white stockings look good. Just kidding... I'll go check that out. Thanks
HUSKER,
What is... the accent or the contractual obligations?! Ha ha just kidding. Yeah, it was a wicked pissssa. Later
CULTURE WARRIOR,
I think I will... thanks. Maybe I'll borrow some from Southern Cheesehead.
So I take it you don't appreciate tight football games that go to overtime?
BUBBLES,
Yes, we did touch upon the legality of it all some. Honestly, similar things have happened up here with the Big East in College football, and airing pointless games. This area just seems much more strict than what I had to deal with in the last place I lived...
ALSPORTS,
Well, then I think it's official... I'm more confused. What the heck kind of system do we have going on here via our TV markets? I'm actually in New England, and I was taken straight to the game (pre-game time). I'll be honest with you, I was intrigued by the Pats/Steelers matchup, but didn't need to see the fluff in the first, and would have rather seen the OT thriller.
LOL, what wasted space. Yeah, how dare those ignorant television executives pull a close game that nobody in New England or Pittsburgh was watching and put on a game that everyone was salivating for, even at the beginning. I'd watch Heidi before the end of that clash of mediocrity.
I guess in February you'll be watching a scintillating NHL overtime thriller and miss the first half of the Super Bowl.
Last edited by jctilman on December 10th at 2:18 PM.
Look, Ima Die Hard New England fan....but moreso a football fan. I, too was pissed that they switched from the San Diego/ Tennessee game....It was a great game. But that was NOT the fans fault, or the Patriots fault. That IS the contractual obligations of the channels. I truly belive that only happened in the Pittsburgh, and Boston markets though. You didnt specify your location. I would rather have watched the ending of the other game, even though Im a NE fan. Please don't be so shallow that you think all New Englanders are solely interested in thier team...we do have genuine football fans here too. Also, Im kinda surprised you didnt understand it was "contractual obligations"....it specifically said it on the ticker 1 minute before the switch.
KSP, I talked to people in Maine, Vemont and Conn today who did not see the 1st quarter of e NE-Pitts game. I assume that the greater Boston area went to the local game due to the NFL contracting rules with the National and local networks.
Teltek, I'm in New orleans and they swiched here on the locl CS affiliate.
Last edited by alsports101 on December 10th at 2:26 PM.
JCTILMAN,
This year's Super Bowl will likely be over by the end of the first half, so I think I'll be watching that one in the early going.
Honestly, I used to live in FL, where there were three teams, and I never saw anything like that happen... not for the pre-game at least. I think fans complained at times, but overall, most people wanted to watch the OT thrillers.
I live in the Providence market....and because Im familiar with a LOT of video rules.....any broadcaster within 60 miles of Boston was contractually obligated to make the switch. hence Conn, VT, and Maine did NOT switch. Sorry if I seemed a bit mad, but Im just tired of thinking ALL new England fans are bandwagoners. That is so not true.
TELTEK28,
Honestly, I appreciate your comment a great deal. I wanted to hear from a New England fan that was objective about it. My intent was to drag the readers in, but mostly my beef is with the TV markets and TV execs, who pulled the game at the wrong time. I don't need to see the fluff talk, and the warmups, and everything else... they pulled the game off right at the moment SD caught the game tying TD.
HANDY,
Well, let's see... I have been watching football my entire life. I recall all kinds of games being delayed in certain markets for the opening minutes. I guess you just love that early commentary to get you all jazzed up, maybe hoping for a shot of Gisele in the front row, blowing kisses to Tom, or Belichick with that look on his face like he is planning world domination. To each his/her own.
TELTEK,
That's good to know. That is a question I had in the post that I was curious to have answered, so I'm glad you read this.
People would be interested to hear I heard this game was taken off in random markets (non-NE / non-Pit) as well.
I agree KSP.....I was more interested in the SD/TENN game than the hype in the NE game. I was just glad that I DID see the touchdown and the ref raising his arms. I knew it was a TD, but I wasnt sure if it got reviewed, etc. I agree with you though.....switches like that are unnecessary.
Heres the problem though....the stations have to switch in order to appease thier advertisers. The Commercial time bought was for during the NE/Pitt game. If they were showing the SD/Tenn game, the advertisers would seek reimbursement for thier air time.
ALSPORTS,
OK, you are another example, being in New Orleans. I heard of someone who had it pulled in Cali, and I think that is absurd considering the Chargers are a Cali team.
YEEMUM,
OK, someone is with me. I was starting to wonder for a minute, since I got thrashed a little bit earlier. =) It does make you want to throw things. I had nothing invested in either game... I just want to watch good quality football games... you know?
TELTEK,
OK, fair enough on the advertisers and that piece of it. Hmm, so what about a split screen? Can CBS come up with some kind of split screen technology that features a small box on the lower left with the OT game, and the pre-game warmups and what not of the NE/Pit game?
Nice rant...I'm one hour north of San Diego, and was outraged that I missed the Gates call, and instead, had to watch pre-game commercials and the Pats warming up on the sidelines. It could have waited. Bad decision making by CBS.
well, the technology is already there for that. I agree with you....it's morally wrong to take a great game off air in order to show the "fluff" surrounding the local game. It's tough on all of us true football fans.
Anyways, cool post KSP, i gotta get going...have a good one all.
ksp
The real problem here isn't the fans it's a-holes who run CBS Sports. They've the wherewithall of a drunken sailor who doesn't know what port he's in or whether or not he used a condom when he was nailing what he thought was a hooker. It turned out it was a trannsvestite and the fact was nobody told him otherwise. That is the stupidity of many today's sport's network head honcho's. They're imbecillic buffoons.
Check out the two latest posts within this forum titled Save The Cheerleader And You'll Save The World As For The Dumb Quarterback... Why? Then there's also In This Day And Age What's $10m The Price Of A Broken Down Has Been ? As usual let me know what you think as to the merits of the piece ?
Tel...we eventually got to watch it...but there was some serious time taken away.....they must have realized they messed up....but I couldn't believe I was watching the pregame coverage etc...missed who got the coin toss, and some of the plays..what a mess.
OK Kev, impress the hell out of me. Where did the reference to Heidi originate (what year did it take place) and who were the teams involved? No Google aided responses!!
Since I live in Memphis, we ALWAYS get to see the Titans until the end. Turned out you didn't miss much . But I agree that CBS, and the other networks need to use their heads before switching to another game. Had it been 45-7, OK.
Good post.
Last edited by MoonDogLeft on December 10th at 3:48 PM.
TELTEK,
Thanks, glad you could stop by and debate this one a little bit. I appreciated your comments and feedback and do hope you will stop by more often.
Hmm, so the technology is in place... true. I know DirecTV uses it for the NFL in their package.
But yes, I'm hearing from multiple people now that the game was cut off in other places. Maybe there was a blunder involved by CBS. I think locally they could have waited, as I said before.
YEEMUM,
Ha ha, true... true. DirecTV does it... maybe them and the NFL have a handle on that. I wonder if there are easy ways to research and find more info on all this (or if all buried). I'm going to look into it.
TOP,
Well, to some degree, aren't we all fans? Of the game that is, and to some degree some of these execs may be the same way, and let their bias affect them. Probably not though, but who the heck knows. The blockage is there contractually, which I get that aspect of it. As you know, we lived in a similar area down south, and there... I never ran into this. It could come into play the mileage in the contract, explained by "Tel" earlier.
Honestly, when I wrote this, I used some tag lines to bring people in, but tried to gear it towards the execs... and to further just toss out my frustration that while I get the local audience wanting to see the game, I think the game should have switched over later... at least by kickoff or a few minutes in, because you aren't missing much there. It was during the biggest clutch play in the game, and just to show warmups and general banter. Absurd!
LISE,
Thanks...
I have to admit, I think that is pretty ridiculous that the game switched over for a while over in southern California. That further tells me that perhaps there was a blunder involved by CBS and I do have a point here. Man, this is where I could really plug Fox and say... Hey Fox never did this on their football broadcasts this weekend. Ha ha.
MOONDOG,
Well, I will admit off hand, that I used the Heidi reference a post earlier this year, and did some research on it... so to some degree, I had done it before. I thought it was the late 60's... '68 or '69 or something like that, and the game I thought was Jets and Raiders, but I could be wrong.
Thanks, OK so I didn't miss much... but from a Titans fan's perspective. I was indifferent, just was bummed to not see the conclusion.
I'm with you ksp. However this is out of the Patriots control and after several people have pointed that out I realize you totally understand that upon reflection.
ksp(Kev)
We can put a man on the moon but these proverbial a-holes that run the networks see fit to alienate the fans. I'd understand
it if there was some catastrophe going on.
But then again does anyone remember the NBA Finals some years back ? And what supposedly happened then there was a break in the coverage to see OJ and Al Cowlings being chased by the whole of the LAPD and California Highway Patrol down some damn highway in California.
Who can forget that little escapade ? And what did it all lead to in the end ?
That brings back MY memories of the "Heidi" game. The West Coast fans got to see the game in its entirety. The Raiders scored 2 TDs in 9 seconds: a Daryle Lamonica bomb to Warren Wells, then on the ensuing kickoff, the Jets fumbled and the Raiders recovered it in the end zone. The crowd in Oakland went ####.
As for Heidi 2, I was watching the Raiders-Packers. The game had ended already. I missed the opening kickoff of the Pats-Steelers, but that's about it.
Obviously you dont get it! The NFL prefers that you buy the NFL sunday ticket AND the NFL network and you wont miss a minute of the game you want! Also you can pay an EXTA $100 on top of all that to buy the High Def package...for true moneybag fans
THE DAN,
Been a while, hope all is well with you my Canadian friend.
I did realize coming into it that it was out of the control of the Pats themselves... but for a while, I thought maybe it was the local market, because of how they handle things for college as well as others. Things may be more consistent nationally than I realize. Cool, hope all is well...
TOP,
Interesting point there. It led to OJ being let go, only so he could later surprise us with another run-in with the law. Ha ha. I forgot that whole thing went on during the NBA Finals. Did it really, what year was that again?
ED,
Yes! March Madness is probably the biggest offender of all, but that one makes more sense to me considering the fact of all the games going on at one time. Here, I just feel CBS could have handled this one much more appropriately, in local and national markets.
MOONDOG,
No kidding. Honestly, I wasn't alive then... not until the 70's. But yes, I was on target, but again... I admit it, I had done research months ago for another post.
HUSKER,
Ha ha, yes, I took a pretty solid beating in the early going... it has calmed down since. I believe people are watching the Saints give a beatdown to the Falcons right now. Brees is putting on a clinic. I'm surprised with how many Vick jerseys are on in the stands... my guess is not as much support, but more so wanting to be on TV, considering that the verdict was today.
####EGURL,
What's not to get? Hmm... shouldn't you be on tour right now anyway?! =)
JON,
Heidi 2... ha ha... nice form there.
As I mentioned earlier to Moondog, all I know of that game is what I heard about, saw in stories on TV, and read about. I imagine it was tough as a fan though.
NETSTEELER,
Yes, I know that all too well, and you hit the nail on the head right there. It comes down to money, not just with the packages you mention, but the deals, the time slotted for sponsors, and whatever else. I did my own research on those packages (HD and everything else), especially after Comcast had raised their bills, and moved the NFL Network to its sports package. I still get it though, unlike most people in this area. Later...
Good post. Yeah not that I don't want to watch the Browns, (5 minute pre game interrupted end of Chargers vs. Titans game), but that was a better game than pre game.
BTW, the blogs for the blogger competition are starting to be posted.
Of course I like a last minute nail biting finish. That's not what you're talking about. Your taking a long raod around to get to your real gripe. That is, The New England Patriots. You know that the fans, or the team for that matter, have zero to do with networking schedules and contractual obligations of the stations. Zero. Why take a shot at them. The title of your blog is inherently flawed. The "Patriots" didn't pull anything. All they are doing is winning. The Pats fans are enjoying it. That bothers you. Confess to your real demons and don't take such a long road to get there. One could read half your blog and understand what is really bothering you. I'm no expert in human behavior but come on...share with us...what's you're real problem with the Patriots. We're all friends here. Have a share.
Its blatently obvious that you dont like the Pats. Just another excuse for the haters to bash them. As far as a game with playoff implications, what a joke. Neither team is going anywhere but the golf course. Get over it and enjoy watching history being made.
It is contractual, but "the market" seems to be a variable concept. As you mentioned, Vermont and Maine apparently missed part of the game. That's New England isn't it (well technically Maine isn't, but if you want to discuss US History, let's do that elsewhere)? Perhaps only the Boston station is considered "the market."
Absolutely the most brilliant piece you have ever done! The best idea I have heard in a year and it was an accident on your part.
"why don’t you just put it on every station, much like the press a Presidential address gets. You should put pre-game shows on during the 1 and 4 o’clock time frames too. And yes, you can cut my sarcasm with a knife."
What an idea! What you thought was sarcasm turns out to be the foundation for the best move in sports broadcasting in years. The Patriots on every channel! What a concept. It would be just like CSI. Don't like this episode, hit the clicker and find one you like. It reminds me of the line at the end of "Field of Dreams".
I'm a NE fan living in KY. I was watching the Cowboys-Lions game and switched to CBS when that game ended (great ending there). The end of regulation and OT for the SD-Tenn game was on here.
I believe we missed NE's first possession and I think the Steelers had just kicked a FG when that game was joined.
I guess it depends on your market. Our closest local team in Cinci with Indy and Nashville not too far away.
I agree that it would be pretty bad to pull away from the end of a close game just to watch the opeing drives of the game.
KELLY SCOTT,
Yeah, those two guys did date themselves a bit. It was a long time ago, but something that many sports fans of the world have heard of... it sent a shock throughout the sports world from a broadcasting standpoint.
KEITH,
Fair enough... sounds like a similar situation that we went through. Cool, I did notice the post subjects going up there and I'm curious to read everything.
sion airwaves for good.
Instead, the pre-game for the Steelers and Patriots match replaced it
faster than you can say “Spygate”. I
was officially thrust from the climax of one game with playoff implications,
and into a pre-game chat filled with pointless banter.
