2012 Page 4 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Local News Anchor Has No Idea Who Mo Farah Is, Asks Him If He's Ever Run Before
You remember Mo Farah, right? He's the Somali-born runner who became the darling of the 2012 Summer Olympics after winning gold in the 10,000 meter and 5,000 meter races. How could you forget the man who gave us this image?...
Huge Australian Olympic Swim Scandal May Have Consisted Of Team Members Taking A Sleeping Pill And Going To Bed By 10:30
Swimming-mad Australia needed someone to blame after their disappointing showing at the London games, and it looks like they've found it. A report commissioned to investigate why the Aussies didn't bring home a single individual gold for the first time since 1976 laid it on a "toxic" team culture th...
The Small Decisions That Cost The 49ers The Super Bowl
Super Bowl XLVII turned out to be a close game that hinged on a few critical plays at the end—shocking, given the score when the power went out. But it also hinged on decisions that didn't seem very significant at the time but ended up having an enormous effect on the outcome....
Last Night Was Probably The Closest We'll Ever Get To A Super Bowl Fair-Catch Kick, The Rarest Play In The NFL
When the Ravens intentionally took a safety, to give themselves better field position and run a few seconds off the clock, it brought the 49ers to within three points. It was the smart call, but it also raised the possibility of the rarest of all football plays—the fair-catch kick. It's only been at...
Joe Flacco, The Big-Armed Oaf Who Saved Baltimore
Joe Flacco has played five full seasons in the NFL, and in each one, he has thrown for less than 4,000 yards and completed less than 64 percent of his throws. He has never been sacked fewer than 30 times, and he has never thrown more than 25 touchdowns. Flacco turns 28 tomorrow. He'll be a free agen...
National Radio Announcers Just Couldn't Believe The Ravens Let The Clock Expire At The End Of The First OT Period
With all of the changes made to the NFL's overtime rules in recent years, anyone can be forgiven for not understanding some of the basics. But one detail that didn't change is what happens in a playoff game at the conclusion of the first overtime period: the teams move to the other side of the fie...
Fox Gets Conservative: Did The Denver Coach's Risk-Averse Strategy Cost The Broncos A Playoff Victory?
NFL coaches will often refer to "playing the percentages." But if there's one thing I've learned by studying strategic decisions, it's that coaches don't have a firm grasp of those percentages. And when anyone is uncertain of the odds, he'll fall back on the sure thing. That was the case with Bronco...
<em>Lincoln</em> Hogs: Grierson & Leitch's Rapid Reaction To Today's Oscar Nominations
The Oscar nominations just came out, announced by Seth MacFarlane and Emma Stone. There were surprises and oddities and the usual silliness. Also, now we know that Lincoln is going to win everything. Here are our quickest thoughts....
Chaps Don't Get A Fella What They Used To: We Predict The 2013 Academy Award Nominees
Thursday morning, Seth MacFarlane and Emma Stone will get up about seven hours earlier than they usually do to announce the nominees for the 85th Academy Awards. This will be stupid and pointless and watched by millions of idiots, myself giddily among them. The Oscars are dumb, but as far as awards ...
The Health Of An NFL Player Belongs To Everyone But The Player Himself
"Greatness is not given," Robert Griffin III says in his national Gatorade spot. "Greatness is taken, when the weak and distracted are resting on their reputations."...
In Defense Of Mike Shanahan
Three months ago, the head coach of a professional football team made a terrible, terrible decision. On Sept. 30, up by a point with less than two minutes to go, Carolina's Ron Rivera decided to punt the ball away to the Atlanta Falcons, even though it was fourth-and-1, even though his team was on A...
Robert Griffin III Twisted His Knee On A Dead Patch Of Sports Language
LANDOVER, Md.—After the Redskins' 24-14 playoff loss to the Seahawks, Washington's players and head coach talked about the "difference between being injured and being hurt," the importance of being there for your teammates, and how, in the words of Robert Griffin III, "you have to step up and be a m...
A Season Of Miracles In Washington: The Redskins Reappear, And The Owner Vanishes
Dan Snyder didn't even show up to his team's annual turkey giveaway before Thanksgiving. Somebody clearly told Snyder, the Redskins' unbeloved owner, that he couldn't win until his team won. And dang if he didn't listen. And dang if the team didn't win....
Don't Forget To Vote For The 2012 Deadspin Hall Of Fame
The polls remain open until 11:59 p.m. (EST) Sunday night. All nominees need 75 percent of the "Yes" votes to get inducted. Click here for your list of past inductees. Below is your roster of this year's nominees:...
2012 Deadspin Hall Of Fame Nominee: Oddibe McDowell's Water Bill
Has it really been close to two years since we first said hello, and a full 10 months since we had to say goodbye? We miss our old friend more than we can say....
2012 Deadspin Hall Of Fame Nominee: Lynn Hoppes
His body of work as ESPN's senior Jonas Brothers correspondent had been impressive long before last year. But 2012 was when Lynn Hoppes really set himself apart. He told us how great the party was. He hired Sarah Phillips. He told us about Michael Bolton's hole-in-one. He copied shit verbatim from W...
2012 Deadspin Hall Of Fame Nominee: Virgil, Pro Wrestling's Saddest Retired "Superstar"
It all began when we stumbled upon Lonely Virgil, after which we learned that many of you had your own Virgil story to share. In time, those stories also included run-ins with other has-been ex-pro wrestlers. And soon enough, Virgil learned that the Virgilbag was a thing. But then, just as quickly a...
2012 Deadspin Hall Of Fame Nominee: Lawyerin' Joe Amendola
Let there be no questioning the brilliant legal mind of Jerry Sandusky's lead attorney. "He was both Gallagher and the melon." His go-to legal maneuver was throwing shit against the wall. Gag order? What gag order? Just, you know, give him some more time. You'll see. His client was too busy being a ...
2012 Deadspin Hall Of Fame Nominee: Fat Chipper Jones
He showed up for spring training looking like a fat ass. His fatness touched off a debate about whether he was fat. Eventually, Fat Chipper himself chewed the fat, and soon there was no denying what everyone else could see. He tried masking it. He found himself a Playboy-model girlfriend. He even ar...
Ray Lewis Is A Complicated Problem Who Played Football With Simple Greatness
It’s easy enough to be cynical about Ray Lewis, after the 17-year veteran linebacker announced his impending retirement yesterday. In the foreground, there’s the recent image of Lewis, now that the years have reduced his ability to contribute on-field: the ridiculous, spasmodic dancing; the incessa...