FOOTBALL!!

Are you bored? Tired of sitting through another dull NFL off season? Wish there was some decent football on to watch? Well today is your lucky day my friends!! While randomly wandering the interweb, I came across the entire 1984 NFC Championship game between the Bears @ 49ers on YouTube! More to the point, the guy has even gone to the extent of removing all the adverts and long cut aways. Result. The link to part 1 is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MF27tKhyyrI I found this game interesting for a number of reasons: -- It's football. Nuff said. -- It's the 49ers. Nuff said. -- You get to see the 'West Coast Offense' in action. Playing against Chicago was one of the prime motivations for Walsh to use the 3 step drop extensively. -- Seeing Mike Singletary play. It's not until you watch this game that you realise just how quick he is (was) and how mentally alert he was on the field. Try counting the amount of times you hear his name mentioned as the tackler. At a guess I'd say you'll need more than just your fingers to count. Of particular note was seeing him chase down Dwight Clark, a WR. -- The bizarre circumstance of 49ers kicker Ray Wersching wearing a single bar facemask while everyone else seems to be sporting the complete version. -- Watching Walter Payton in action. He doesn't get to see as much of the ball as I'd thought, but it's still worth watching. A great player. -- The joy of listening to John Madden commentate. Among the true gems were "that's the way Linebackers bump!" (after Singletary flattens Wendell Tyler on his way to make a catch) and "That's the way to get past Bubba Paris, start before the balls snapped...". I also like his insight on how Quarterbacks can get some peace on the sideline by standing next to the kicker "because no one wants to stand with the kicker". I love Madden. -- From a technique stand point, it was odd seeing the receivers again with their hands in the dirt, 3 point stance style. -- More odd was watching Joe Montana chuck balls all over the shop. It's games like this one that raise the questions that are sometimes asked as to whether Montana is up their with the likes of Manning, Brady and Marino as a true passer. But the fact is Montana was a true football player; a runner, a passer, a decision maker and a leader, who helped his team win games. Or in other words, a Quarterback. -- Though the Bears show off Buddy Ryans famous 46 defense, it's actually the 49ers D who are worth watching more. Great examples of hustling to the ball, pursuit and gang tackling. Worth showing to young players. -- The cream of the group has to be Ronnie Lott, as he goes around the field fearlessly hitting anything that moves. He reminds me of some of my favourite modern defenders, such as Troy Polamalu, Ed Reed, Adrian Wilson and Brian Dawkins. -- Oh, and keep an eye out for Freddie Solomon running an option play. It was quite sneaky. Credit should go the guy who posted this video and if you look at his profile he has some others in there as well, all 49ers games if I remember rightly, though I'll be saving watching those for another day. Till next time, tell your friends about me and have a great day everyone.