The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

In my journey to attaining three degrees in psychology, I learned about what is coined the recency effect , which suggests the last (most recent) thing a person sees or hears will be remembered best. Makes sense, right? Well, my education gave me an ah-ha moment yesterday (and today) following the conclusion of the NFC Championship game between the Los Angeles Rams and New Orleans Saints, as this recency effect was on full display by analysts everywhere. With the game tied 20-20 late in the 4th quarter and the Saints down inside the red zone, a Rams defender made contact with a Saints receiver prior to the ball arriving on a 3rd down play. No flag was thrown and the Saints had to settle for a field goal, with plenty of time remaining for the Rams to drive down the field, kick a field goal of their own, and eventually win in overtime. All these analysts and "experts" have been saying post-game is that the Saints got robbed. Pass interference should have been called. This wou...

Many Philadelphia Eagles fans had to shake their heads and chuckle some after seeing Andy Reid's Kansas City Chiefs blow a 38-10 3rd quarter lead against the Indianapolis Colts yesterday, probably saying to themselves, "Well, it looks like nothing's changed there. Same old Reid!" However, after watching the Eagles fall to the New Orleans Saints last night, these same fans also had to realistically say, "We improved this year, but still have a long ways to go." The New Orleans Saints appeared to be the superior team for close to sixty minutes last night, however, penalties and turnovers almost killed them. New Orleans gained 178 more yards than Philly, converted nine more first downs, was much more efficient on third down, held onto the ball for almost ten more minutes than the Eagles, etc. However, the Saints were also -2 in turnovers (two Drew Brees interceptions) and were penalized seven times for 85 yards. The Eagles offense wasn't nearly as explo...