I got home from the Magic tournament and flipped to ABC to see the end of the Chargers-Jets playoff game, and I was just in time to see Jets lineman Eric Barton make one of the dumbest plays I've ever seen.
When I turned the game on, the Chargers, down 17-10, were facing third-and-goal from about the one-and-a-half yard line. After LaDanian Tomlinson was stopped for no gain, San Diego ran some time off the clock then called a timeout to set up the next play. With 22 seconds left, San Diego's season came down to one last try. They ran a pass play, which New York covered extremely well, and Drew Brees wound up having to toss up a Hail Mary, which the Jets knocked down.
Game over, except that Barton, displaying frostbite of the brain even in the wet, muggy southern California evening, ran into Brees after he threw the ball, then gave Brees a shot to the head with his forearm. He probably could have gotten away with just running over him since he was coming at a dead run, but the shot to the head earned him a personal foul flag for roughing the passer. New set of downs for San Diego at the one, and on the next play, Brees fires a touchdown pass. Their kicker put the extra point right down the pipe, and we're in overtime.
After New York stopped the Chargers on their opening drive of the extra period, San Diego's defense got them the ball back, then drove down the field to about the Jet 22, but the kicker pushed a 40-yard field goal wide right, and so the game's continuing as I write this.
If the Jets lose, Barton's going to go down as the dumbest lineman since Leon Lett, and he probably should even if they end up winning this one. There's just no excuse for that kind of stupidity.
PS—Just as I finished writing this, the Jets won the game, 20-17, on a field goal in overtime. I guess someone really does watch over fools and children.
