The NFL is a joke.  And I’m not laughing.

Richard Seymour perpetrated one of the vilest acts of cowardice in league history on Sunday.   His sucker punch of Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was a criminal act which should have landed him behind bars courtesy of the Pittsburgh police department just like any other common thug.  Menaces such as him should not only face huge fines and lengthy suspensions but permanent banishment from the game.

In short, a cheap-shot artist like Richard Seymour does not belong in the NFL.

The NFL’s response to his reprehensible actions?   A $25,000 fine.  That’s it.   Meal money and a slap on the wrist.  No suspension.

This is the most outrageous decision yet from the corrupt administration of Roger Goodell.  Prior to this, I thought the Ginger Dictator was an arrogant but basically well-intentioned man.   Now I see my mistake.  He is at best an incompetent boob who hands out punishments based on whims and at worst has an obvious vendetta against certain teams and players.

After Sunday’s game, James Harrison made it clear he felt Seymour should be suspended.  James points out, quite correctly, that if guys are going to be suspended for things which happen DURING PLAY, incidents which occur when players moving at incredible speeds are given a mere split-second to react, how could you NOT hold somebody accountable for purposely throwing a vicious right-cross after play is over?  It’s hypocritical.

Seymour knew full well what he was doing.  It was a punk move done by one of the biggest dicks in NFL history.   I guess it’s only natural he plays on a team of punks coached by a moronic punk who beat up his wife when he wasn’t sucker punching assistant coaches.

But they have Roger Goodell in their hip pocket so they have that going for them.  Earlier this season, Harrison was fined an outrageous $75,000 for a clean unpenalized hit on some clumsy receiver who ducked into his shoulder while he was attempting to make a form perfect tackle.  The reason for the huge amount?   Harrison “was a repeat offender.”

Okay, let’s look at what an upstanding citizen Seymour is.  In 2006, he was fined for stepping on a Colts offensive lineman after a play.  In 2009, he was fined for pulling Bronco Ryan Clady’s hair.  Hair pulling?  Seriously?  Way to act like a nine-year-old girl, assclown.  Wait, it gets better.  In December 2009, Seymour was ejected and later fined $10,000 for hitting Browns running back Jerome Harrison after a play was over.

Is that not the very definition of “a repeat offender?”   How many criminal acts does Seymour get to perform before he’s fined $75,000?   Will pulling out a knife and shanking Big Ben in full view of 65,000 people be enough?  Or is it just Steelers who are subject to the stiffest penalties allowed?

I don’t know why I get so worked up over this.  I should have seen it coming.  The NFL has no interest in player safety or enforcing their phony rules concerning helmet-to-helmet hits unless the play in question involves a Steeler.  Austin Collie gets stretchered out after a spear by Eagle Kurt Coleman.  No fine, no suspension.  James Sanders cheap shots Hines Ward with clear and malicious intent.  No fine, no suspension.

But LaMarr Woodley shoves Tommy Bieber with less force than I push my goddaughter on her swing and it’s a $12,500 fine.

The Raiders are a joke.  The NFL is a joke.  The NFL’s rules are a joke.  And Roger Goodell is the biggest joke of all.

And I’m not laughing.

This is why you can’t have nice things…

The Pittsburgh Steelers laid a 35-3 beatdown on the outclassed Oakland Raiders yesterday afternoon.  However, instead of talking about the Black and Gold’s finest effort of the season, we’ll probably spend the week discussing the pathetic events which occurred between plays.  This game was a travesty, a sham, a complete mockery of what we as NFL fans expect.  And I hold Roger Goodell, the NFL, and the Raiders responsible for this utter travashamockery of football.

We should probably begin with Raiders DT and lead thug Richard Seymour, who sucker punched Ben Roethlisberger after a 22 yard touchdown pass to Emmanuel Sanders.  Seymour was ejected for his Rampage Jackson-style right cross but that is not enough.  This was a criminal act the likes of which I have never seen on an NFL field.  The Ginger Dictator loves fining players for legal yet vicious hits in the name of protecting their safety.  How safe is it when you have goons like Seymour physically assaulting defenseless men after a play?

Seymour should not only face the stiffest fine ever levied but suspended for 2 to 3 games for his reprehensible actions.  In fact, I DEMAND IT.

As if the lousy sportsmanship wasn’t bad enough, the officials did everything in their power to ruin the game.  The Steelers set a team record with 14 penalties for 163 yards.  The Raiders as a team only had 182 yards TOTAL.  Ordinarily, I’d lay blame for this fiasco on the players and Mike Tomlin.   But I really have nothing to admonish them for since only about half those calls were legitimate fouls.

There’s a phenomenon known locally as Pittsburgh Paranoia.   It’s a feeling Pittsburgh sports fans have where they constantly feel leagues, networks, and especially the media either ignore or attempt to diminish our teams.  Usually I laugh at these conspiracy nuts even though there is a kernel of truth to their argument.  However, after yesterday, I’m fully on board with anybody who wants to argue the NFL is attempting to sabotage the Steelers.

Even now, some 12 hours later, I can feel myself slipping into a boiling rage over the grossly inept display of officiating.  The Steelers were called for two personal fouls on absolutely clean sacks, one of which negated a pick-six.  James Harrison, after clocking Jason Campbell, was flagged for coming down “with his full weight on the QB.”  So that’s a penalty now?  What about 3/4 body weight?  Or 1/5?  How much weight is permitted to touch a precious QB before a flag is thrown in this increasingly pussified game of football?  It was a form-perfect hit.  What’s he supposed to do?

The Ginger Dictator should just issue a press release saying, “James Harrison is no longer permitted to touch any quarterbacks under penalty of fine and/or personal foul.  Sorry, I just don’t like him or the Steelers.  In fact, if he scowls at the QB in a threatening manner, I may penalize that, too.”  It’s pathetic.

When the Steelers weren’t being called for phantom personal fouls, they were getting flagged for phantom pass interferences.  Ike Taylor, who was the man denied his pick-six, got flagged for PI on a ball that overshot the receiver by about 20 yards.  I could go on and on and on but I don’t know what to say.  This was the most atrociously refereed football game I’ve ever seen.  The league should be embarrassed.

Let’s talk some positives.  Sean Kugler continues to work miracles with the offensive line.  The starting group of Flo-Foster (starting for a benched Trai Essex)-Pouncey-Kemo-Scott was fairly impressive, keeping Ben clean and providing a nice pocket.  Meanwhile, the vaunted run D the mouthbreathers from Oakland who invaded my blog raved about was getting gashed until injuries to our already banged up O-line started piling up.  If this group can get healthy come playoff time, we might have something.  That’s a big IF, though, as Scott and Kemo were both hobbled leading to super-sub Essex entering at various points.  Then there was Pouncey, who was replaced by Legursky after re-injuring his gimpy knee early in the second half.

Big Ben was brilliant.  Of course, a late scratch of Raiders star CB Nnamdi Asomugha helped.  But this was the Ben we expected once he returned from his unfair uncalled for suspension.  Quick, decisive, and pinpoint accurate, the offense was firing on all cylinders after a few rough drives to start the game.  Ben completed 18/29 for 275 with 3 passing TDs and one 16 yard TD scramble.  I particularly enjoyed the 16 yard FU touchdown to Issac Redman with a little over a minute left in the game.

What was most impressive about the passing game was the variety of targets utilized in the attack.  Ben hit eight different receivers, six of whom had multiple catches.  Naturally, Mike Wallace had the big game (3 catches but 116 yards!   52 of which came on his lone TD.) but rookies Antonio Brown and Emmanuel Sanders (whose leaping 22 yard TD catch was sweet) finally made some plays.  Hines and Heath were dependable safety valves, as usual.

On the flip side, the run defense was fantastic.  They held the Raiders to only 61 total yards on the ground, lowering their yearly yards against average yet again.  At the rate they’re going, this may end up being statistically the best rush defense in NFL HISTORY.  Harrison, when he wasn’t being unfairly persecuted, had a monster game, posting five tackles, two sacks, picking off a pass and forcing a fumble.  Ike Taylor also forced a fumble in addition to the pick-six he was denied.

Shaun Suisham made all his extra points so I have nothing to comment on in that regard.  Got a good laugh at the crowd roaring on his first PAT.  Enjoy the love while you can, Suissy.  We’ll be ready to run you out of town as soon as you shank a 35 yarder with the Steelers up by 20 in the fourth quarter.

I’m torn on what to take from this game.   There is the positive of our team playing tremendously on both sides of the ball which is negated by the fact the Raiders are a pathetic team.  I’m sorry, I truly gave them too much credit in my preview as it’s clear they beat up on a bunch of bottom-feeders and in reality aren’t in the same class as the league’s top tier teams.  Then we have the positive of being able to wash the taste from last week’s debacle out of our mouths.  Which is countered by this game being a debacle of a different sort, albeit one which ended well.  I guess at the end of the day that’s all that matters.