01-06-2023, 11:21 AM
(01-06-2023, 11:00 AM)BengalYankee Wrote: Nope, I was alive and kicking and as a true fan that wanted the Bengals to beat the 49er's in that Super Bowl more so than any Super Bowl[revenge for 1982], I don't know about you, but I will never let it go.
That Bills/Bengals playoff game in 1989 was bizarre, to say the least. The Bengals had developed a no-huddle offense and it was propelling them to victory after victory, executed excellently by Boomer Esiaison. Then Marv Levy, the Buffalo Bills coach, threatened to have his defense fake injuries each snap so they could substitute personnel. In fact, teams were doing that. A defensive tackle would get a cramp, and go down, and then be replaced, and then the next play that substitute would go down with a cramp, and the original player would come back in.
So what does the the league do? On the very day of the title game, issued a ruling against the Bengals using the quick snap they had perfected all season.
Sam Wyche's response was precious. "You know, in the world outside sports, many times sports teaches you lessons. I think in the case of overcrowding of our jails, this is probably the answer for us. The next time someone robs a restaurant at 6:30 in the evening, the police should let the crook go and tell the restaurant, "you can't stay open until 6:30 because you're vulnerable to robbery."
The Bengals were being penalized by the league because their opponent was threatening to make unsportsmanlike plays.
the next year Marv Levy stole the Bengals method.
Yeah, I've been ticked off by that ever since. It was such an unfair ruling by the league, forcing the Bengals the day of the game to change what they'd been doing all year, because of the Buffalo coach threatening to have his players fake injuries.
The league just topped that bizarre ruling against the Bengals.
