The Tennessee Titans Owe Me $50, and an Internal Investigation

My bookie gave me the Titans as a 3 and a-half point favorite. I was sitting pretty.

The boys in powder blue were all over Buffalo, winning by a convincing 21-9 advantage in the fourth.

Then the Titans put in fourth stringer Mortensen. This guy doesn't last two plays before he lobs up a lame duck to a wide open Bills cornerback, who proceeds to strut his way to the house.

The very next series, Ramsey is back in at QB. Now, this is the first preseason game.  This is the time to let young players work through mistakes.

Conventional wisdom says that they stick with Mortensen. Yet out he comes.

I know why Fisher yanked him. Old Jeff had more money riding on that game than I did and he wasn't going to let some young punk (who may or may not have taken a payoff) ruin it for him.

But the Titans played stout defense and intercepted a pass to seal the deal. Three plays later they were a punt away from paying for my gas this week.

I had my phone in hand ready to press speed dial to see when I could collect my payout.

Then the punter gets the bright idea to run out the clock instead of punting. OK. No big deal. He will run around before kneeling at the five. Game over.

But what does this prick do? He runs to the back of the end zone and stands there. As cameras pan to Jeff Fisher racing down the sideline with veins bulging from his neck mouthing "NO! NO!" out of his beat root red face, the punter calmly steps on the back of the end zone.

Game over. Bet over. 21-18.

Now I'm not insinuating that the game was fixed, but I did see several Italian businessman in leisure suits congratulating the punter after the game. Call me a cynic, but I don't think they were congratulating him for the trick play he pulled off in the first half.

You may say that I have a gambling problem for betting on meaningless preseason games, but I feel that I am shedding light on a growing problem in the NFL today.

If preseason games are being fixed, then it creates doubt about the true motives surrounding the officiating of the Steelers/Seahawks Superbowl. Or the "tuck rule" game. Or the Eagles/Bengals game last year. 

Yeah. Sure McNabb. I really believe that you are dumb enough to not understand NFL overtime rules.

Please look into this matter. The integrity of the game of football is at stake.

In addition to my 50 bucks.