The Commanders put the duality of the doink on full display
This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.
Good morning, Winners! Thanks so much for reading TMW today. We appreciate you giving us a bit of your time this morning. I hope you had an awesome weekend.
When you’re watching a football game and your team has a ball, there’s one sound that you absolutely never want to hear.
DOINK.
UNLESS OF COURSE: You’re the Kansas City Chiefs. Then it’s probably fine.
The kicker lines up the kick and sends the ball toward the uprights. You watch it float in the air for a few seconds before you know where it’s going. Then you hear it and everything just pauses for a second.
As satisfying as the noise is to hear, it’s also one of the most harrowing moments in sports. It represents a complete suspension of control. When you hear that doink, your fate is directly in the hands of the football gods now. And they can be cruel.
So when I heard that doink during the Commanders-Bucs game on Sunday night, my only reaction was to scream “OH NO” at the top of my lungs. This isn’t even my team. I don’t root for the Commanders. But, man, I thought the curse was showing up at the worst possible moment for this team.
They hadn’t won a playoff game in a generation. Having a win snatched away from you by a doink would just be so sick and cruel. But the football gods chose mercy this time. Despite the doink, the kick was good.
LISTEN UP: The radio call of the Commanders’ doinked game-winner was awesome
But the doink is not always so merciful. In fact, it rarely is. Let’s just ask the Denver Broncos, who had a generational doink that sounded more like a GONGGGG.
Denver had a chance to tie the game at 10 heading into halftime against Buffalo. As fate would have it, that doink was a precursor to how the rest of the game would go for them. After being rejected by the post, they didn’t score a single point the rest of the way.
That’s the cruelty of the football gods in full force. They trick you. They’d have you believe that, as the underdog, you can do this. Just make this field goal and you’re in the game. Then it all comes falling apart and, all of a sudden, it’s over. Your field goal is missed and your dreams are crushed. The season is done.
Though we got a number of doinks on Sunday, they surely won’t be the last doinks we hear during these playoffs.
If your team is still in the running, I pray the football gods may have mercy on your team and its kicker.
May the doinks bounce in your favor. Always.
New Victor Wembanyama nickname just dropped
Mandatory Credit: Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images
I don’t know if he knows it, but Victor Wembanyama has a new nickname. Welcome to the Hector Banana-Bread era, folks.
Blake Schuster explains it all here:
“There’s a new NBA star everyone is talking about: Hector Banana-Bread.
Ok, he’s not new. But he definitely is a star and after this blog you’ll never forget his new nickname.
We’re talking about San Antonio Spurs icon Victor Wembanyama. But to explain how he became Hector Banana-Bread, we’ve got to take a trip over to Reddit, where a very confused user asked for help identifying their significant other’s favorite player to secretly buy his jersey.
On r/NBATalk Redditor u/Rafe_Cameron_OBX posted a simple question: “I’m looking to buy an NBA jersey for my boyfriend but I don’t remember who his favorite player is. Can you guys help me out?”
What followed was a set of “clues” that put NBA fans in the middle of a game of Guess Who?”
I’ve never been more thankful to have Reddit in my life. What an amazing corner of the internet.
Jessica Cambpell is an icon
(Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
Seattle Kraken assistant coach Jessica Campbell is the first female coach in NHL history. That’s a huge deal.
She’s carrying a lot of people’s hopes and dreams with her for every game that she coaches. It shouldn’t be that way. She shouldn’t have to do this. It shouldn’t have taken this long for someone like her to get a shot in the NHL.
Nonetheless, she’s embracing her position and what it means for many people. She signed a jersey for a fan and left the sweetest message on it. Meg Hall has more details here.
Take a look:
This is awesome. Shoutout to Coach Campbell and the Kraken. Keep blazing the trail.
Quick hits: Dispelling Josh Allen vs. Lamar Jackson narratives … A.J. Brown book recs … and more
— Robert Zeglinski lays down the ground rules for the epic Lamar Jackson vs. Josh Allen matchup we’re about to be treated to.
— Charles Curtis has some book recommendations for A.J. Brown while he’s reading on the sideline.
— Christian D’Andrea has the next steps for the Buccaneers after their loss to the Commanders.
— Saquon Barkley broke so many bettor’s hearts yesterday. Prince Grimes has more.
— Here’s Christian with a grade for the Patriots on the Mike Vrabel hire.
— Robert makes the case that both Mike Tomlin and the Steelers need a change but won’t accept it.
That’s a wrap, folks. Thanks so much for reading today. Appreciate you. Have a fantastic week. Peace.
-Sykes