NFL

The NFL keeps calling their Thursday night games “special”, but apparently not that special, as The NFL Network will be broadcasting a Thursday night game for the remainder of the season.

Last night’s game featured the Pittsburgh Steelers v. the Cincinnati Bengals.  The Bengals are horrible this season, so you’d think this game would just be a throw away, but there is a heated rivalry this season between the two teams.  It’s due to the first game they played this season, when Steelers WR laid a vicious block and wound up breaking a Bengals jaw in the process.  Cincinnati felt this was intentional and words have been spit back and forth ever since.  So, last night Hines Ward had to be terrified as they Bengals were out for his blood.

In terms of football, the Steelers dominated the game.  Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger was back to normal form, throwing for 248 yards and a touchdown, and the Bengals offense could do absolutely nothing against an airtight Pittsburgh defense.  They accumulated a pathetic 208 yards total offense.  But the story of the game was that revenge was still carried out, just not against Hines Ward, the intended target.  Ben Roethlisberger hit Santonio Holmes for a short pass, and we was absolutely drilled (extra hard) by the Bengals Chris Crocker.  Holmes had trouble getting up, and Roethlisberger came running up to him and apologized for throwing the ball in such a dangerous spot on the field.  Holmes didn’t stand a chance on that play, and he left the game with a serious concussion.   And the Bengals practically gave up at the end, not even bothering to try and come back.  They seriously need to do some major reorganizing this off-season.  Pittsburgh 27, Cincinnati 10.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

And there was a HUGE upset in college basketball.  Michigan, a team that once reigned dominant on the basketball courts in the late 80s and early 90s (namely because of the Fab 5) has slipped into the ether over the past 12 years.  They’ve been an afterthought in the NCAA ever since getting in trouble for recruiting players with gifts.  However, this season, they jumped out to an exciting 2-0 start, and would get their first true test with UCLA.  It was a back and forth game, but the Bruins didn’t look like themselves, accumulating 17 turnovers in the game.  Michigan, however, kept it together behind forward DeShawn Simms.  He had 18 on the night, and the Michigan Wolverines upset the #4 UCLA Bruins 55-52 to improve to 3-0.  They’ve earned the league’s respect, now the onus is on them to continue winning.

NBA

Some funny news.  The Washington Wizards are in last place in the Eastern Conference, and their star Point-Guard Gilbert Arenas said that this could actually be a good thing for the Wizards.  Not exactly what you want to hear your star player say.  His rationale:  “That’s what happened to San Antonio and that’s how they got Tim Duncan, and look at them now!”.  Unfortunately, the subtext of the whole thing is Arenas, who’s injured until January, has basically given up on the season.  Very disheartening for Wizards fans everywhere.