There was a strange moment in the Giant game. Tiki Barber had broken loose on a long run. The camera had him from the front, in a close-up. As he's running downfield he looks up, like a basketball player checking the time on the clock. While he's running, full speed.

The announcers didn't mention this as it happened, but came back to it shortly thereafter. They said what he was doing was looking at the video screen in the stadium, to see whether there was anybody behind him.

Unless the Colts are playing, I agree that CBS/Fox should stay with whatever late games are finishing up. When you risk missing 3 TD's, though, switch to the other game.

Oh, and I hope everyone wakes up to the "Colts are fun to watch" idea. I'm in Chicago, and I've found it hard to find Colts games on regular TV. For some reason, despite one of the most fun offenses I can remember, the NFL doesn't think even Chicago audiences would like to watch the Colts for the AFC game...much less with places further away than we are. What's up with that? I get stuck watching the Chiefs more than the Colts.

The description of "Short Cuts" (the 23-minute compressed games) reminds me of the coverage of American football I got when I was living in the UK about 10 years ago. That coverage was and is still my favorite football coverage. If I remember it right, they had a 2-hour show where the first hour was extended highlights of every game, and the second hour was a "Short Cuts"-style presentation of one game deemed to have been the best of the week. I'd watch that show here religiously if they'd put it on.

I totally agree with Scot below about the NFL broadcast in England. I used to watch that show religiously when I lived there about ten years ago. Still can't get that Australian (?) announcer's "We rejoin the action in the 3rd quarter..." line out of my head. If a version of it played here in North America I'd be very interested.

As exciting as it was for this Georgia Tech alum to watch the Miami upset unfold, it didn't compare to the USC/Fresno St. fight. Reggie Bush... wow. I just wish I could see that USC offense take a crack at the Jets or 49ers.

Short Cuts sounds like a football version of Turner South's Braves In A Hurry where they cut down the the previous day's game to a half hour right before that day's game broadcast. They show every pitch and every play, but they cut all the dead time. (They still have time for the commentator to do some brief "analysis".)

I can't watch it. It gives me a headache.

Isn't it a sad commentary that it takes 3 hours to play a game and yet there's only 30 minutes worth of action that can be distilled into a half hour show? Man, that's an awful lot of dead time.

The idea does remind me somewhat of the Aussie Rules Football highlights show that they have on Fox Soccer Channel. The match of the round is shown as basically extended highlights for the first hour and then highlights from all the rest of the games in the round.

NFL TV airs a 90 min show called Point After starting at 12:00 am Monday, which shows highlights from every game and also parts of the post game conference which is also a pretty good way to catch up on all games.

It is ok , if you are not "privileged" enough to have Direct TV who have paid NFL an obscene amount of money to keep Sunday Ticket from being offered on cable.

never thought I'd type those words, but I was one of the few who stayed up to watch the USC-FSU battle SAturday night - Reggie was simply incredible. Makes you wonder how good Leinart really is with guys Bush and White to hand off to. We know the Texans don't have a running game anywhere near that good, so it will be interesting to see whether they go with Bush. Love to see Penn St v Trojans in champ game so Midwest and East Coast media can watch SC shred beloved Joe Pa Lions for another title.

We here in Indianapolis realize how good we've got it this year. My prediction is first loss is to SD followed by Seattle in week 15 and 16.

Bengals, show us your cheerleaders!!! what's up with the zipped-up windbreakers in November? that is baaaad karma right there.

My suggestion for football 'highlights' is to emulate Fox Soccer Channel's FanZone show, where they take a knowledgeable, literate, and passionate fan of each team and put them in the booth together for the entire game to do a play-by-play and color reaction. It is of course taped, so they can edit and package it into 60 or 90 minutes, but it is great fun to listen to regular fans trash their own team one second and celebrate the next, like true fans do...

...if King keeps it up. If every week, you write about how "the Colts are going to lose in the next few weeks," isn't that like reverse-jinxing them, and insuring that they'll keep winning?

King, I join in the idea of a fan in the booth, better yet a "spread" announcer to comment on the effect of a particular play or series of downs as it pertains to the wager.

As for red zone, I love it for two reasons.

1)No commercials

2)The guys who comment have a sense of humor and you don't have to listen to cliche driven announcing crews.

Eddie

"A long touchdown play caused by blown coverage is more fun than a pass sailing over the head of an open receiver or a running back running into his own blocker and losing three yards."

Amen to that!

but I do know who they want to play the Colts in the Super Bowl: the Giants. Can you think of all the angles for that? Red vs. Blue, Brother vs. Brother, Colts vs. Giants (history), all just off the top of my head.