Another night of NFL on NBC. The Dallas Cowboys fenced in the Chicago Bears on their own turf too.
Although, neither team scored until the bottom of the first quarter (the Bears got a field goal). The Cowboys responded quickly in the second quarter with a field goal. Fumbles and incomplete passes pervaded the top of the third quarter for both teams…until Cowboys tight end Jason Witten made a touchdown at about the ten minute mark. The Bears tied the game 10-10 when running back Cedric Benson made a TD a few minutes later. Cowboys running back Marion Barber went to the end zone at the bottom of the third quarter. At that point, the game was essentially over for Chicago. Dallas would get another field goal and make two more touchdowns (thanks to cornerback Anthony Henry’s interception and Barber again). Yes indeed. The Cowboys came out on top 34 to 10. Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens caught the ball eight times. Al Michaels and John Madden also pronounce his name “tair-rull” as opposed to “turr-ell.”
For the game summary, stats, and play by play, click here.
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Still reading John Feinstein’s book Next Man Up, and I am in awe of this man’s writing. He is a truly remarkable storyteller. The transitions between individuals and the chronology of events are so seamless. History is not simply a record of “A happened and then B happened which prompted C to happen” and writing it is no easy task. I wonder if Feinstein would be as good a documentary filmmaker. On the bottom of page 331, after providing information on Jonathan Ogden’s seven-year contract of 50 million dollars, he mentions the 2004 presidential election:
Most professional athletes aren’t even registered to vote. Those who are almost always vote Republican. The most rabid Democrat on the Ravens was backup linebacker Bart Scott, who spent a lot of time in the locker room trying (to no avail) to convince some of his teammates that voting based strictly on who would tax you less was a mistake.
These details seem too random to be important or included in the final draft, but Feinstein’s voice makes it fit. And, I was very happy to read it. He’s incredibly funny too. I couldn’t stop laughing during this part:
The toughest thing about playing in Philadelphia as the road team might be waiting for the endless pregame introductions. First there’s the Eagles fight song. Then, of course, the theme from Rocky has to be played. Then come the fireworks (yes, in the daytime). And finally, the PA announcer stretches the name of each Eagle out for what feels like about a minute (334).
Feinstein has a solid grasp on the art and structure of creative nonfiction. His descriptions of games are as suspenseful as a film noir or a psychological thriller–the moments before the villain leaps out from nowhere. And, like an omniscient camera in a fiction or nonfiction film, his authorial voice doesn’t call attention to itself. He lays out in the introduction the unbelievable degree of access he had to players, coaches, and administrative personnel. On the one hand, I knew that most of what he wrote about consisted of things he had witnessed. On the other hand, though, as I’ve been reading through his book, I forget.
