unclevlad

Titans let the Chargers drive 52 yards in 40 seconds, with no time outs, to kick the game winner. Meanwhile, the Raiders win on a play that simply CANNOT be described. I have NEVER, EVER seen it before. YOU MUST FIND THE HIGHLIGHT. It's the most Raideresque play EVER...it makes the Immaculate Reception look planned. But the Raiders are on the plus side. Wow. Titans and Pats become major losers on the day. And y'know who ELSE is only a game out? Jacksonville!!!!

The Seahawks are still showing ahead of the Lions, but assuming there's no tie, the loser of NY-Wash, Seattle, and Detroit will be separated by half a game with 3 to play, for the last WC slot. The NY-Wash winner will be in very good shape; they'll have the tiebreaker over the loser who'll be a game back, and a game and a half over the 7-7's. And assuming Cincy holds on...and the Bucs have been in torpor on offense in the 2nd half...the NFC South will have 1 game separating 1st and 4th. The division's combined record against opponents outside the division? 12-26. Worst news for Mr. P? The Bronco offense might actually have been...somewhat competent for a change. Box says they ran the heck out of the ball. The problem? This might take some of the heat off Hackett. More craziness. Titans and Raiders both score tying TDs inside a minute left. OTOH, Cincy just slammed the door shut.

YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE HAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Oh, they're trivial to forget. Can you assert a) they were bad calls, or b) the score would've happened without it? And even in b)...fine, stop being stupid. Another one of THOSE WEEKS, tho. Cowboys-Jags and Chiefs-Texans go to OT???? Never woulda thunk those. If the Jags can finish it off...oh, my, that would be SWEET.

I caught the extra time...one of the moronic 'features' that I LOATHE about soccer is its ridiculous policy there...and the extra time, and the PKs mostly...I was getting the coffee brewed. Because, hey, it's a title match. I think the NHL's rule is more amusing: cut down on the players on the ice, to make for a more open game. I'd also say, allow more substitutes. But hey, this is soccer, and the Lords Of Soccer are obstinately conservative.

Yeah, well, this game did nothing to assuage the serious doubts people have about the Vikes. Steve Smith, during the late game, flat out said Saturday should be fired...even as an interim.

Think? Trying? Largest blown lead of ALL TIME. There is no try, there is only do. They did. OK, true, this is the worst single-game performance ever, but there is something to be said for how the Raiders have raised it to a repeatable artform. The initial question of interest for week 18 might not be who gets the last couple playoff spots, but just which coach gets fired first. We gots the Colts, Cards and Broncos at least, who might well can their coach before they get to their postgame interviews. Raiders? The rumors are McDaniel won't get fired, so one has to think he won't get fired that fast. Then again, this is a Davis we're talking about... So far 3 in, and 4 staring at elimination. Indy is eliminated if 2 of the 4 7-6 teams win; Rams and Cards are hanging by a fingertip. Lose, they're out. Saints lose, they can't get a WC, and if Tampa Bay also wins, they can't win the division. Dallas will also clinch a berth with a win, or a loss by Detroit or Washington. <sigh>

From the article: Hypno-Hustler is not considered one of Spider-Man’s top villains — in fact, he regularly shows up on worst supervillains lists — but sources say Glover sparked to the musical aspect of the character and the fact that he has less Marvel canon baggage, freeing him to greater interpretations. So, yeah, sounds like you might be spot on there.

No....no, I can't agree. That's exactly what I would've expected, had I wasted any mental effort on it....

The second half fizzles of the Colts' offense: 4 plays, 14 yards, punt excellent, probably stupid kickoff return gives the ball at the 40; 6 plays, 26 yards, FG 3 plays, 3 yards, punt (1:06) 4 plays, 15 yards, punt 3 plays, 2 yards, punt (less than a minute) 4 plays, 14 yards, fumble 5 plays, 20 yards, punt (24 seconds) The defense started the second half by giving up drives of 88, 75, and 61 yards, in less than 9 minutes total. The tying TD was a swing pass to Dalvin Cook, who took it 64 yards on what was likely a defensive bust...Cook leaked out with NO ONE close and got a major head of steam going before he was challenged. What happened was...the NFL in 2022. Vikes had some terrible decisions and played abysmally in the first half; Colts returned the favor in the second. I figure the Vikes will drop in the power rankings, and their odds of playoff success have to be dropping.

But that's...not normal per se, so let's say common. I think both Cincy and Louisville's coaching staffs were gutted by departures. Florida is missing a BUNCH of players, they've talked about it. Something like 30+ transfers...? In part because of a new coach...Oklahoma had something similar.

OK, this has officially become the most absolutely disgusting game in HISTORY. Because the freaking Colts just one-upped the Vikes in the second half. Yeah, OK, Buffalo-Houston was a playoff game but it was only 32. But it's the only game that might rival this one for, IMO, utter ineptitude. EDIT: and IMO the Great Saturday Experiment just flopped. Maybe it's not fair but a team that BLOWS A 33 POINT HALFTIME LEAD...that's on the head coach.

I don't think anyone's been asserting PS: Lawyer would buy you a Bureaucratics or Conversation roll. I can imagine some players *maybe* trying to argue for it, but bloody darn few. The connection is there, but it's extremely tenuous. Hugh, to counter your point...6E1 page 84 under Paramedics. But a key point is...if you don't care about the title and the privileges, then don't bother. Heck, in a supers campaign, you arguably don't care about Paramedics. The power can be taken to Just Work. Yeah, fine, you can define a Detect, you can buy Medicine and Paramedic and maybe exotic things like Toxicology...but they're nothing but justifications and explanations. They have no game impact. I *do* take them at times; one of my favorite healer concepts is essentially a shapeshifter where the Healing SFX is "shape shift, UOO." The narrow interpretation would be, he can't deal with poisons, so I give him SS: Toxicology, SS: Pharmacology, and Paramedic, because they round out his power. That's becoming the difference between being used in-game, and actually affecting the game. It's very unlikely the skills will affect the game.

Not true any more. More like 2-4.

Bronco fans are thanking the Vikings, for playing absolutely the WORST!!!!!!!!! half of football of the season. Perhaps of the century.

So I'm looking for the latest line on the game, with Wilson out. From Covers.com: Ouch..... The line has narrowed, it's mostly Denver -1.5, rather than -2.5 to -3. The O/U hasn't really changed, but it was pretty low anyway. Meanwhile, the first game of the day is almost ready to start. Prepare for overload.

The difference tho, is that the background skills can't be used in an encounter, or when a skills contest is going to be involved. The skill Computer Programming includes hacking, as that's an encounter skill. PS: Computer Programming means you can write HD...given time...but doesn't make you a hacker. Background skills typically have longer execution times, as well. If you take PS: speech writer, you aren't going to whip out a 10 minute speech in a turn. Now, with PS: Electronics Tech vs. Electronics...the differences are so slight that I agree with you. Simply don't allow the PS. Note that PS: Electrician is *not* the same. An electrician is a tradesman who installs your home's power system and hooks it up to the power grid, or integrates your solar panels into your home system. PS: Mechanic and Mechanic are also pretty similar, altho you might allow PS: Mechanic to be limited to everyday tasks. Fix a car engine? Yes. Rig it to run with a nitrous booster? No. As long as you can draw clean lines between the PS and the full skill, there's no problem. If you can't, then disallow the PS altogether. It's already explicitly stated that a background skill can't replace a full skill. It might just be another case where a revision for clarity and brevity would be good, but unfortunately, that's rather unlikely.

Homelander's less hypocritical than Trump, too.

This needs to be better targeted. Infinity War and Endgame didn't care. They knew they were gonna blow through those numbers, the audience was a lock. It'd been cultured and built over multiple movies. DC has none of that. They've never had box office momentum last, and their entire franchise has little to no connectivity. So each movie is a separate crapshoot...from a studio with a poor track record. In situations like that, then, yes, expecting major box office returns is wishful thinking. But there are multiple places to trim. Some are smart, others aren't. Actors...again, for kick-off type movies, not the later ones. Michael B. Jordan got $2M for Black Panther. Pretty sure Downey didn't get a lot for the first Iron Man. Did anyone know who Hemsworth was before Thor? Or for that matter, Cavill before Superman? I can actually see NOT retaining him now...because he's getting too expensive for an effort to start a franchise from scratch. You want to find the next Hamill, Ford, Reeve, Craig, and ride them. The risk? You might get the next Hayden Christiansen, altho I wonder how much of *that* was just really bad direction. You can also cut back on SFX, and use them when you need to, instead of overloading the movie with them. DC's bigger problem is just plain tone, tho. You can't create ongoing, building momentum from gritty, grimdark stories.

Oh, those. Yeah, just a few. But those are Twitter. What I was referring to was a lawsuit by the TESLA shareholders. He may well lose control of Tesla, and hey, who knows, SpaceX as well perhaps, before this is all over. The employment issues might depend on contract terms; without knowing the contracts, it's possible they're within bounds for some, but also wrongful for some. Inadequate notice...I do think he's wide open on that, for at least some. Heh. The group of people who love Musk the most is, of course, the late night talk show hosts. Second most tho, might be lawyers who focus on the sorts of cases you mention...they've got to have $$$ in their eyes.

Free agency and salary caps have made talent stockpiling all but impossible. Comment about the 80's Cowboys? Their second team would make the playoffs. Those days are dead. 1st round picks, especially the highest ones, also get some *fat* contracts: 2022 NFL Draft first-round picks contract values 1. Georgia defensive end Travon Walker, Jaguars: $41,465,408 2. Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, Lions: $39,603,429 3. LSU cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., Texans: $38,418,555 4. Cincinnati cornerback Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, Jets: $37,064,375 5. Oregon defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux, Giants: $34,694,577 6. North Carolina State defensive end Ikem Ekwonu, Panthers: $30,462,810 7. Alabama offensive tackle Evan Neal, Giants: $27,077,395 8. Southern Cal wide receiver Drake London, Falcons: $23,691,980 9. Mississippi State offensive tackle Charles Cross, Seahawks: $23,522,517 10. Ohio State wide receiver Garrett Wilson, Jets: $22,591,714 11. Ohio State wide receiver Chris Olave, Saints: $21,152,921 12. Alabama wide receiver Jameson Williams, Lions: $19,121,660 13. Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis, Eagles: $18,613,852 14. Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton, Ravens: $17,767,500 15. Texas A&M guard Kenyon Green, Texans: $17,428,979 Lot of that is signing bonus...Walker's was $24M. Still, it's pressure to get them producing ASAP. Couple that with the fact first-round QBs often are going to teams with severely limited QBs in the first place, and it's viewed as a crisis point anyway. There's no denying that QB is enormous, but fans overvalue it, treating like an instant fix, when it's not.

Or, if you prefer, you can fool some of the people all of the time.

And yes indeed. The Silly Season has started. We have the "who cares about the game, but look where we get to GO!!!" special known as the Bahamas Bowl. Proof? The Bahamas Bowl payout's tiny. It's showing as I write...kickoff was 11:30 AM Eastern, on a Friday that's still a workday for most...and a shopping day for many others. So, ratings will be non-existent. But... ESPN still gave Steve Levy and Joey Galloway the vacation trip. That's one of their top-level college football broadcast teams. Kickoff temp in the Bahamas was 83. Temp in Oxford, Ohio, where Miami (OH) is...upper 30's and damp-ish.

Can't hurt. Another thing they pointed out on the broadcast is, he was a 4-year starter. Granted, it was in a spread, but it still should help. Lots of the hotshots go one or two years, then bail.

There is a very real possibility that Musk is burning down his entire empire. NOT just Twitter. The other shareholders of Tesla can't be happy with him. He sold another $3.5B in Tesla stock, which depresses the price, after saying in April he wouldn't finance the Twitter deal by selling stock. Tesla stock's down 60%. Securities law is intricate, but I think he's leaving himself open for a lawsuit. The EU is also particularly unhappy with this latest stunt of his. And rather clearly, draconian moves like this can't sit will with potential advertisers. They want stability, and Twitter is a rowboat in a hurricane. The Trump cards...<sigh>. I just feel like screaming at anyone who still backs him. THIS is the kind of person you want as *President*? Well. Preaching to the choir. Just more support that the man's a total narcissist who lives in a fantasy world.