In hockey they have a tradition of the emergency goalie being a fan

[exboyfil]

In football we just saw the equivalent.

Blake Hance was on the practice squad as a guard for the New York Jets.
The Cleveland Browns signed him for last night's playoff game. Because of Covid he never physically met his team before going in for another injured player. He blocked a very good Steelers player all night and never missed a block.

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/baker-mayfield-says-he-met-one-of-his-linemen-for-the-first-time-in-the-locker-room-before-the-game-174229245.html

Blake Hance makes a difference in NFL debut
The Blake that Mayfield mentioned is Blake Hance. Just over a week ago, Hance was signed off the New York Jets’ practice squad and drove from New Jersey to Cleveland to join the team. With the COVID protocols, he couldn’t meet many of his teammates until game day, and that included the quarterback he’d be protecting.

That didn’t stop Hance from doing his job and doing it well. He came into the game in the fourth quarter after Dunn exited with an injury and spent 14 snaps blocking Cam Heyward, the Steelers’ talented defensive tackle. No one got near Mayfield, who wasn’t sacked once all night.

If all that seemed unreal, this might blow your mind: those 14 snaps were the first Hance ever played in an NFL game. In his NFL debut, Hance helped the Browns win their first playoff game in over two decades. On top of that, Monday is Hance’s 25th birthday. He’s younger than the Browns’ playoff win drought, which he helped end.

There’s still one person Hance hasn’t met yet: the head coach.

[brewens]

1. If you watched the game again, you'd probably see the tackle or center talking to him as

they break the huddle. No way he could know all the playbook and assignments. Once the play starts though, he's gonna know what to do and must have done it pretty well.

[Roland99]

2. That first quarter was absolute insanity!

[exboyfil]

3. You know its not your day when the first snap

goes over your head.

Of course everybody was expecting, no matter what the lead, that the Browns would find a way to lose.

Maybe whatever curse the Browns are under has been lifted. They have built a pretty good team, and Mayfield has gotten a lot better.

[Roland99]

4. Pittsburgh certainly made an effort

but their offense has struggled of late.

Can't help but wonder how much longer Big Ben has in the league.

[Yeehah]

5. I'm a Steelers fan but I love the upgraded competition

I really like the three young QBs in the AFC North and the upgraded competition. Mayfield, Burrows and Jackson all seem like they're going to have a lot of success. It made me sick when Burrows got hurt.

Steelers need to re-tool completely, IMO. The game last night was the worst I've seen in maybe 30 years.

[exboyfil]

6. Putting Burrow on that team is like painting over the Mona Lisa

and I used to be a Bengals fan.

So are the Steelers going to get into the Deshaun Watson sweepstakes? You put him on a half way competent team, and you go at least to the Conference Final.

[Yeehah]

7. I'm not a cap expert but I don't think they can afford Watson

but that would be really OK with me!

[exboyfil]

8. His signing bonus stays with the Texans

so he is a great deal for a trade. He wants to go to the Dolphins. Tua, their 2 first rounders, and a 2022 2nd rounder?

The Dolphins have a high 2nd rounder they got from the Texans that is probably better than the 1st because of the lower salary. Tua is probably two years away from being a playoff QB, and the Dolphins are in win now.