Pete was kind enough to offer us a weekly quiz of three questions that we will have to figure out the answers to by Tuesday morning. This week's questions are on the harder side, so we only need to get two out of three. If we get all the questions, we'll have one credit towards next week's quiz.
1. What is a two-point conversion?
(HINT: this is a new rule that was added several year ago to make the game more exciting)
2. What effect does a Safety have on the scoreboard?
(NOT what does the safety position do)
3. What is the difference between a quarterback and a cornerback?
I have an idea about the two-point conversion. We were tipped off that a touchdown is worth six points, and if you get the field goal after the touchdown, you get one more point. If you decide to go for a second touchdown, instead of going for the easier field goal, you get two points instead of just one, thus, a two-point conversion. I'm not certain where you kick the field goal from after you get the touchdown. 10-yard line? We'll have to watch for that.
Posted by: hadas | September 25, 2004 at 02:49 PM
I don't think the 2 point conversion has to do with religion...but I think you're on the right track with the thing about trying to make more points after the touchdown.
Posted by: Qdog | September 27, 2004 at 08:22 AM
Using the powers of deduction, I'm guessing that the safety is also somehow related to a touchdown. I don't think at any point during any of the three games I watched yesterday I heard the announcers use the word "safety". So I'm going to take a stab at it and say that the field goal that's taken after a touchdown, I believe from the 12-yd line, is called a safety because it's safer than going for the 2-pt conversion.
Posted by: hadas | September 27, 2004 at 05:40 PM
ANSWERS:
1. After a team gets a touchdown, it can go for another touchdown from the 10yd line instead of trying to kick in a field goal. The field goal is only worth 1 pt, but the touchdown is worth 2 points, hence, a 2-point conversion. Yeaoww!!! We rocked that one, where are our cheerleaders??
2. Not a clue. But we have two guesses at what this could be. #1: getting a field goal rather than the 2-pt conversion, since the field goal is "safer", but only worth one point. #2: getting a defensive touchdown instead of an offensive touchdown, which we think is when the defensive team intercepts the ball and runs it to their own end zone, earning themselves two points.
3. Again, not a clue, but we have one guess. The cornerback is the guy to whom the quarterback hands the ball, and who then runs it down the field. The quarterback doesn't run the ball, only passes it.
If you can just give us a wrong or right mark for each question without divulging any actual information, then we'll know if we're actually getting anywhere. Can we carry over any questions that we answered incorrectly to next week's quiz?
Posted by: hadas | September 28, 2004 at 03:30 PM
ladies, nice.
but not nice enough.
question one: check +
question two: x
question three: x-
its very hard to restrain myself from helping you.
Posted by: pete | September 28, 2004 at 04:23 PM
OUCH! Not only did we get #3 wrong, we got further demerits for extra wrongitude. I guess that averages out with the check plus we got on number one, which leaves us with a painful X average. I did like the challenge, but maybe next time the questions should be a notch easier.
Posted by: hadas | September 28, 2004 at 05:02 PM
Stay focused, Hadas. Don't let this quiz get inside your head! Those were hard questions -- how's a girl supposed to define a safety when she hasn't seen one in four games?!
I urge you to keep your eyes on the prize: last night I was by myself watching the game on the edge of my seat excited by the possibility of a Redskins comeback, swearing at the refs for blatently bad calls, and gravely disappointed when the clock ran out because the receiver couldn't get out of bounds after a phenominal catch to stop the clock so they could go for a winning field goal. Do you hear what I'm saying?! I'm a goddamn football fan! Woo hoo!
BRING IT ON, Pete!
Posted by: nancy | September 28, 2004 at 06:29 PM
Weekly Quiz for 10/5/04
from last week:
1. What effect does a Safety have on the scoreboard?
(NOT what does the safety position do)
2. What is the difference between a quarterback and a cornerback?
new question:
3. What does the term "make the chain" mean; for example, "The offense really needs to _____ to make the chain."
Posted by: hadas | October 04, 2004 at 02:39 PM
Since they often pull out that chain with the big orange thing on it to measure whether or not a team has gotten the down, I'll guess that "making the chain" is another way of saying getting the down. I'm not really sure how that fits in with the fill-in-the-blank sentence. I guess one could say, "The offense really needs to hustle to make the chain" or something of that nature.
Posted by: nancy | October 04, 2004 at 03:23 PM
Answers:
1. Even though we still don't have a clue what a safety is, we have some educated guesses. Since we haven't actually witnessed any safeties, we both tried to think outside the box to come up with a possible answer. I think it either has something to do with overtime scoring or is a point deduction. Nancy thinks Pete made this one up.
2. Trick question--there's no such thing as a cornerback!!!
3. As Nancy described earlier, making the chain refers to the marker they use to determine whether the ball made the 10 yards.
Posted by: hadas | October 05, 2004 at 12:37 PM
it would help if you wrote down my questions. i never said "making the chain." its called "moving the chains." and they said it quite often during last night's game. nonetheless, you are right about getting a first down in order to move the chains.
a safety is real and it happens rarely. it is quite exciting when the qb takes a snap and the offensive line is pinned back deep in their own territory. oops. no more clues.
and a cornerback is very real. i would suggest paying attention in the beginning of the game when the starting offensive and defensive players are singled out...this is most often the case on monday night football. anyway, they show a headshot of the player and he says what college he played at. next to his picture is his name and initials for his position. in this case "CB." Find out his number and then watch for him during the game.
next week's questions:
What happens if the punt returner catches a punt in the endzone and takes a knee?
This is a strategic question: When does the offense punt the ball or try for a field goal? Why one or the other? This may be a hard question but it is very critical in figuring out the mindset of the game.
Posted by: pete | October 05, 2004 at 01:02 PM
FUCK! I totally went back nutty and blitzed that first question. Nancy's gonna pound my receiver for that one. Good thing you wrote the questions yourself this time. That way we definitely won't bootleg the pocket next week.
Our strategy has been exactly what you suggested--to keep an eye on the CB's number--but there's so much to keep track of! So many people running around doing crazy things, like pounding their fists on their heads and banging their chests together. We even had closed captioning on last night in case we missed something the announcer said.
I think your first question this week is a sneaky way for you to give us the answer to your safety question. CHEATER! I think we have a good idea about the second question, this is something we've discussed numerous times.
Posted by: hadas | October 05, 2004 at 01:19 PM
You did go back nutty. Get a hold of yourself, for the love of God.
I've seen that knee-touching thing. Having grown up Catholic, I thought he was genuflecting. Really. Football players seem to thank God a lot. One question: is the punt returner on the same team as the punter or the other team? Is he ever called the puntee? I have a hard time figuring out why sometimes the other team catches the ball and runs with it, and sometimes they don't.
The good news is that I think we've got a pretty good handle on the punt v. field goal thing. We just need to refine it.
Posted by: nancy | October 06, 2004 at 01:54 PM
We know that if a player takes a knee, he doesn't get tackled. But what we don't understand is if he's in the endzone, why doesn't he just get a touchdown? Is the punt returner taking a knee in his own endzone or in opposing endzone? Are you just looking for the answer "he doesn't get tackled"?
Posted by: hadas | October 10, 2004 at 12:35 PM
i think the punt returner is on the opposite team than the person that punted. so he's returning the ball to his team. or the endzone. more to come.
Posted by: hadas | October 10, 2004 at 01:04 PM
BIG BIG revelation: the cornerback is on the DEFENSIVE team. the cornerback/quarterback question implies that there is some connection between the two, but what the heck kinda connection could there be if they're not on the field at the same time? we still have a lot of work to do on this one.
Posted by: hadas | October 10, 2004 at 09:12 PM
This week’s questions:
Q. What happens if the punt returner catches a punt in the endzone and takes a knee?
A.We know that he is catching the ball in the opposing team’s endzone and that he takes a knee to end the play so he can’t be tackled. We don’t know why he doesn’t try to run for his own endzone. I’m guessing that the catch puts the ball in a good starting position for them for the next play and that the chances of him getting tackled in a worse position are more likely than not. Or, maybe he’s just a pussy.
Q. This is a strategic question: When does the offense punt the ball or try for a field goal? Why one or the other? This may be a hard question but it is very critical in figuring out the mindset of the game.
A. Both would be done in the 4th down if a TD doesn't look likely. Go for the FG if you're close enough to your own endzone, or if you're not close to your own endzone, then punt (i.e kick the ball) in order to get the ball as far away from the other team's endzone as possible. And hey, ya never know, your receiver might actually catch the ball and get a TD!
Questions carried over from last week:
Q. What is the difference between a quarterback and a cornerback?
A. The QB is an offensive position and the CB is a defensive position. The quarterback is the brains of the offensive team, taking the snap and either passing or running the ball. The cornerback hangs out in no-man’s land and occasionally tackles the receiver.
Q. What effect does a Safety have on the scoreboard? (NOT what does the safety position do)
Hint: a safety is real and it happens rarely. it is quite exciting when the qb takes a snap and the offensive line is pinned back deep in their own territory.
A. Fuck if we know.
Posted by: nancy | October 12, 2004 at 04:24 PM
Weekly Quiz for 10/19/04
Even though we haven't yet been graded on last week's quiz, we have two new questions for this week.
1. What is the primary task of the center position?
2. Why does a ref throw a red flag?
HINT #1: It does not necessarily have to do with a penalty
HINT #2: There is a direct correlation with the number of timeouts.
Posted by: hadas | October 17, 2004 at 09:41 AM
I think Nancy is better with positions than I am. The center is an offensive position, yes? And I'm guessing his primary task is to stay in the center. Perhaps guard the quarterback from a blitz? Why is it called a quarterback anyway? A quarter from where, to where?
As for the second question, I already tried "they used too many timeouts" and "they're close to using too many timeouts" and those are not the right answers. Maybe it has to do with an illegal timeout? Taking too long for a timeout? For this we probably have to figure out the logistics of timeouts--when, where, how long--which is something that's been on our agenda anyway. Right now all we know is that when someone makes a T shape with their arms, they're calling for a timeout, or timesies as nancy likes to say. And we know that timeouts are shorter during the last two minutes than during the rest of the game, and that there is a limited number of timeouts that a team can take.
Posted by: hadas | October 17, 2004 at 09:50 AM
Nancy brilliantly noted that "a red flag is for a challenge. No timeouts left - no challenge." I'll buy that. The center is the offensive dude that wears the yoke and snaps the ball. He then helps the guards block the defensive tackles so that the QB can pass the ball or create a hole to let the guy running the ball get through.
Posted by: hadas | October 17, 2004 at 01:56 PM
This week's first quiz question is brought to us by a very special guest quizzer, Chris R. For the second question, we decided to learn a new position.
1. What does clipping mean? It sometimes incurs a penalty.
2. What is the purpose of the safety position.
Posted by: hadas | October 31, 2004 at 04:51 PM
We're a little behind on this week's questions. We didn't witness any clipping, and I can't even think of a possible guess. As far as the safety, we know it's a defensive position, usually in the back row of the defensive team. There are potentially several safeties on the field at once, and they run way back towards the endzones rather than staying near the line of scrimmage where all the action is. They sometimes catch the ball. Perhaps they try to intercept the receiver on the offense? I think we have a lot to keep track of for this week, so there won't be a quiz this week. Instead, we will continue working on the safety position, the safety play, and clipping.
Posted by: hadas | November 05, 2004 at 03:33 PM
We have a correction to our quiz question from last month. We now know that when a punt returner takes a knee in the endzone, that team starts at the 20-yard line instead of trying to run the ball. This is called a Touchback.
For this week, all we have to do is determine what the role of the Runningback is. I think he's the one the QB hands the ball to when they want to run the ball. That's not my final answer though.
Still on the backburner: safety position, safety play, cornerback, clipping.
Posted by: hadas | November 15, 2004 at 10:10 PM
I have a few intriguing new quiz questions:
1. What does a shotgun mean, in reference to the quarterback catching the snap.
2. Sometimes the QB will kick his foot back when he's waiting for the snap to signal something. This is related to the shotgun. When does he kick his foot, and what does it indicate?
3. Why does a team sometimes spike the ball? HINT: it usually happens in the fourth quarter.
We saw question 3 yesterday when the pats were very close to their endzone and didn't have much time left on the clock. It was definitely in the fourth quarter, and I believe it was their third down. Maybe second.
Posted by: hadas | November 29, 2004 at 12:09 PM
when do we get to see your score on the answers from, like, october?? i'm dying to see how well you did.
Posted by: Randy | December 23, 2004 at 02:17 PM