The Grammatica Effect

[PatsFanInVa]

back when there were wandering family tribes of kickers, I believe it was Martin Grammatica who celebrated himself right into an injury in a fairly meaningless FG in a fairly meaningless game. Stay with me...

By the end of the SB the Falcons, as is now famous, were gassed.

I just watched a 20 min. YouTube of highlights. In addition to being out-possessed all game, whenever a falcon did something good, he added another half-play worth of celebration. Sometimes 2 or 3 of 'em did.

"Playing w emotion" is great if you know you'll have enough left for 60 minutes (or more). They didn't.

The TOP plan, I think, was deliberate. Even in the 2nd half, the pats continued to run now and then. They didn't intend the results of the runs but they intended the TOP results.

Would Atlanta fall off the cliff less sharply with a less "emotional" reaction to each play?

 

[Foxypats]

Actually that wasn't Martin Grammatica, it was his younger brother Bill if memory serves me well when he played for Arizona.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Actually that wasn't Martin Grammatica, it was his younger brother Bill if memory serves me well when he played for Arizona.

If so, my mistake... I could never keep Grammaticas and Zendejases straight... Del Grecos might have been another tribe but I might be throwing in a painter.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Anyway, some kinda soccer style kicker...

 

[ErniesPinkStripes]

Interesting thought.. How much hype is too much where it starts to work against you?

Personally, I think the celebrating after every play in this league has gotten way out of hand the past 10 years... And I also hate the jump celebrations.. As a former knee injury victim (twice) they make me cringe.

 

[Tony2046]

There were some NFL SB Vets talking during some of the pregame shows stating that if you don't maintain your energy or excitement during the pregame festivities (lights flashing, longer starting periods, longer halftimes etc..) that you will have the energy sucked right out of you leaving you drained by the fourth quarter. A few said, and I paraphrase, " during the first plays of the game you're practically hyperventilating because there is so much energy in the air and you're so amped up'.

I suppose that includes excessive celebrating throughout the game as well.

TOP splits were ridiculous. Pats TOP 40 minutes and ATL TOP 23.5 minutes. Wow.

 

[NormZauchin]

Bill Belichick after a player injures himself by excessive celebration:

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Bill Belichick after a player injures himself by excessive celebration:

On the other hand, Bill Belichick after a player makes game-winning improbable play...

 

[PatsFanInVa]

There were some NFL SB Vets talking during some of the pregame shows stating that if you don't maintain your energy or excitement during the pregame festivities (lights flashing, longer starting periods, longer halftimes etc..) that you will have the energy sucked right out of you leaving you drained by the fourth quarter. A few said, and I paraphrase, " during the first plays of the game you're practically hyperventilating because there is so much energy in the air and you're so amped up'.

I suppose that includes excessive celebrating throughout the game as well.

TOP splits were ridiculous. Pats TOP 40 minutes and ATL TOP 23.5 minutes. Wow.

I should go back and watch the whole thing from this perspective - I didn't see much at all on the Pats side, but they had nothing to celebrate until near the end of the game.

Maybe part of that is having been there, or maybe some of it is the "never too high never too low" philosophy

 

[DaBruinz]

There was a Chicago player that did that against us last year.. Stupidly tried to celebrate after a play and ended hurting himself to the point he ended up on the IR..

 

[Bobsyouruncle]

The Patriots smartly didn't make any plays worth celebrating the first half. 4th dimensional chess.

 

[Patsfanin Philly]

The Falcons conditioning was evident in the NFCCG. There was one play where D-lineman Rasheed Hageman went down to the ground and stayed there (Haynesworth like) after a block... I thought he was injured because the play continued around him and he didn't get up...Nope he was gassed........