NFL Shop-Things You Can Customize?

In the wake of people trying to customize their own “Harris Smith #17” Giant’s jersey’s, Danks, McLovin and myself were trying to see what jerseys (and other merchandise) can be customized. Michael Vick and Ron Mexico #7 Falcons jerseys are not allowed, Harris Smith #17 jerseys are not allowed, you can’t get “Pacman” on a Cowboys jersey, you cannot get a Lawrence Phillips Rams jersey (OJ Simpson can be had, however) , if you would like to build a Rae Carruth Panthers jersey on the other hand, you CAN do that. If you need a quick history lesson on Carruth, click here. Basically, he is the scummiest person ever to walk the earth. So I can rock the Rae Carruth? A convicted felon who was found guilty of using an instrument to destroy an unborn child, shooting into an occupied vehicle, and conspiracy to commit murder? Say what? Someone needs to make this right. That someone is going to be the Central Maine Sports Blog.

UPDATE(10:22 AM 12/2/08): NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told the Central Maine Sports Blog that the NFL will “look into it and address this properly.” He was very cordial in his response and responded very quickly. We will keep you updated on any other developments.

UPDATE (11:53 AM 12/2/2008): NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy has followed up with the Central Maine Sports Blog in regards to “jersey-gate”.

“There are a number of jerseys that fans may not order online, including the ones you cite below (Michael Vick, Harris Smith, Ron Mexico, Lawrence Phillips). Those names are blocked immediately by a computer program which (unfortunately) is not all inclusive and may miss names from time to time. So a fan could type in names on the screen which would make it appear that he/she could purchase it. However, if a fan followed through with an order and attempted to purchase the jersey of a player like you named, we would catch it manually and would not make the jersey or ship the order. The fan would receive a notice that the order would not be fulfilled. Bottom line, you would not be shipped a jersey with the names you cited (Rae Carruth, Art Schlichter, OJ Simpson).”

So sorry sickos, no Rae Carruth jersey for you!

Is Terrell Owens Touchdown Jesus?

This NFL season has been one of the more entertaining in recent memory. We’ve had the coaching situation in Oakland, the TO situation in Dallas, blown calls, punters get called out by their coaches and a cellar dweller resurrect their season by resurrecting the Wildcat formation. This week was just another chapter in the bizarre.

–Following their win last night, Vikings’ head coach Brad Childress called out punter Chris Kluwe for Reggie Bush’s two punt returns for touchdowns. Childress said in the post game press conference that those kicks were suppose to go out of bounds, and that he would, if needed, find someone else to handle the kicking duties. Some in Minnesota feel as though Childress is not right for the job, and that he could lose the locker room if he calls out players to the media in order to save face. We don’t know if he told Kluwe to kick the ball out of bounds, but it’s interesting that the stability of a team once thought to be among the elites of the NFC could hinge on what a punter was told to do.

Don’t worry Brad, even if your team doesn’t respect you, the kids who watch Sesame Street still love you.

–Terrell Owens has been known to say some dumb things, and Sunday was no different. Owens caught two passes for 67 yards and a touchdown in Dallas’ 31-22 win over the Bengals, and attributed his performance to a higher power when he rattled off this gem, “God used me today for his glory”. What the hell? Is anyone else sick and tired of hearing how, with all the problems in the world, that God is concerned about an over-paid athlete making a crucial catch in the red zone? Are the Cowboys now God’s team? This is not to tread on religious beliefs, just beliefs that are insulting to others who are truly suffering and could use divine intervention. Cheer up Texas, Hurricane Ike was a hell of thing, but at least TO and the Boys are back on track.

And the Lord said on the Sabbath, I will catch many a TD Pass.

–This will shock all the Patriot fans out there. Deion Branch, the man the Pats gave up for a first round pick, is out indefinitely with a bruised heel. Branch has missed 10 games in less than two and a half years in Seattle, putting him in the lead for world’s most fragile receiver. Remember all of those New England who pissed and moaned that management was willing to pay a guy like Moss but not a guy like Branch who could have helped the team in 2006 against Indy? Here is a stat for you: Randy Moss TD catches in 2007–23; Deion Branch career TD catches–22. Not to mention we got Brandon Meriweather out of the deal. We now know that drafting a PAC-10 QB will yield greater returns than acquiring a receiver from New England…….and if anyone has seen this man, please call the number listed below.(Editor’s Note:867-5309)

–Meanwhile, Giants wideout Plaxico Burress stated that he was fine with his suspension. Really? The suspension resulted after Burress missed a team meeting two weeks ago and could not be reached by team personnel. The reasons as to why Burress missed the meeting are still unclear, but this is not the first time Burress has missed a team meeting and said, “Coach said I was suspended because I needed to be more responsible. I was being responsible, I just put my child first.” Burress would not elaborate on this or whether there were any problems between he and his wife. (On two separate occasions police have responded to the Burress home for domestic issues.) While this is not to accuse anyone, particularly Burress, of any wrong doing, it seems odd that Burress would both be okay with the suspension and insinuate that the suspension was not warranted. While airing the family’s dirty laundry is not something you would expect, had the Giants wrongfully suspended him, you would think that someone as vocal as Burress would have no problems saying as much.

–Lions’ head coach Rod Marinelli was adamant that he would not resign his post in Detroit during his post game press conference. The Lions, who sit at the bottom of the NFC North at 0-4, recently dismissed GM Matt Millen (FINALLY) and it would appear that ownership wants to right the ship. The Marinelli statements could taken in one of two ways. Either he feels that his job is in jeopardy, a house-cleaning could be on the horizon and he wants to remind ownership that he did not draft Mike Williams, or he thinks that with Millen gone they have some pieces in place (remember, this was a team that was 6-2 at one point last season) to become a serious contender next year. Immediately after writing this, I will go with the former. The Lions are a mess, and the only head coaching job Marinelli could get at this point would be the head JV position at Windham.

–Finally, did anyone notice that 49 yard field goal in Sunday’s win over the Niners by Stephen Gostkowski? Is there another game from this calender year we could think of where a 49 yard field goal try would have been nice? Maybe so I wouldn’t have nightmares of this…..

Hey wow, Ellis Hobbs getting burned for a touchdown.

You only get to see that every Sunday.