Shana Tova From NFL Teams: Part III

Welcome to my third annual post of NFL teams sharing Happy New Year messages on their social media sites for Rosh Hashanah. Here we go:

While I don't like to give the Ravens any credit, I appreciate that the organization posted a nice new year's message. Same with the Jets, Bears, and Vikings. This is a significant decrease from the 9 teams last year. Four teams posted messages in 2022. The Jets and Ravens are the only two teams that posted greetings all three years.

Shana Tova From NFL Teams Part II

Welcome to my second annual post where I see what National Football League teams use their social media accounts (specifically Twitter) to share a Shana Tova, or Happy New Year, messages for Rosh Hashanah. Last year, 4 NFL teams (the Lions, Jets, Ravens, and Buccaneers) posted a message. With Rosh Hashanah being on a Sunday, I gave the teams a little bit of a pass since the teams' social media departments were probably busy with games. This year, Rosh Hashanah started on Friday evening. Plenty of opportunities for teams to post a message on Friday or Saturday. Let's see the results:

9 this year which is a nice improvement from last year. I really like Chicago having a bear getting honey from a beehive. Well done! I also want to give partial credit to the Carolina Panthers and Buffalo Bills. I mean, if you're celebrating Rosh Hashanah without Bojangles or a wing-eating contest, you're doing it wrong!

L'Shana Tova to those who are celebrating!

Suspect Minnesota Vikings Fans

There are so many topics that I could write about. The 2020 Presidential election would be at the top of this list. The Pittsburgh Steelers are 7-0. Kennywood announced on Tuesday that the amusement park was retiring the Kangaroo, Paratrooper, Bayern Kurve, and Volcano (formerly Enterprise) rides, a quite convenient time for this since everyone was voting or following election coverage. Instead, I'm writing about this NFL Shop commercial.

Specifically, these Minnesota Vikings fans.

I feel like there's a backstory here. Who are these people? They look kind of tough and hard. They have definitely seen some things in their lives, things that most people don't want to know about or think about. They might be running the crime family featured in season 2 of the FX show, Fargo. Sure, they hide in plain sight with their Vikings glasses and cheese board, but they have done some things. Some bad things.

Sean Analyzes Song Lyrics - Summer 2019

The 2019 MTV Video Music Awards took place on Monday night. This isn't a post about how I'm too old for MTV or me complaining about how MTV doesn't play videos anymore. Instead, this is the return of Sean analyzing song lyrics featuring some of the songs from Monday night. Please note that I'm including videos of the songs below. Some of them may not be suitable for work.

Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello - "Señorita"

Land in Miami

Before I talk about the first line of the first verse, let's look at some other Shawn Mendes songs.

Shawn Mendes - "If I Can't Have You"

I'm in Toronto and I got this view

Shawn Mendes - "Lost in Japan"

Do you got plans tonight?
I'm a couple hundred miles from Japan, and I
I was thinking I could fly to your hotel tonight

Okay we get it. Shawn Mendes is a successful 21 year-old pop star who gets to travel the world. I'm happy for you Shawn. Really I am. Now, correct the spelling of your first name.



Lizzo - "Truth Hurts"

New man on the Minnesota Vikings

I actually thought that this line was "No man" which would have been quite a shot at Kirk Cousins, Stefon Diggs, and their teammates. Oprah Magazine has a thorough break-down of this entire song, and while there was some debate about whether or not Lizzo is/was dating someone on the Vikings, it appears that she is/was not. Therefore, let's take a look at some other options about the meaning.

Terence Newman played in the NFL for 15 years most notably for the Dallas Cowboys. Now, he's the nickel/defensive backs coach for the...Minnesota Vikings! So yes, (Terence) Newman on the Minnesota Vikings.

Another possibility is that Lizzo is a Vikings fan and does some PR for the team. After every draft pick or free agent signing, she announces "New man on the Minnesota Vikings."

Lizzo may also be involved in player personnel. Perhaps she's trying to recruit Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Kevin Newman to the Vikings, or, no. She couldn't do this. No way. It's not possible!

Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus - "Old Town Road"

Can't nobody tell me nothin'

A triple negative in a 5-word sentence. This is really impressive!



Taylor Swift featured Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco - "Me"

And you can't spell "awesome" without "me"

I actually originally thought that this was "can't spell us without me" which makes no sense at all. So let's take another line from this song.

Hey kids, spelling is fun.

This reminds me of a post I did, um, several years ago where I looked into the Britney Spears song, "3." In that song, counting was fun. Now, spelling is fun. What a world!



Taylor Swift - "Delicate"

Oh damn, never seen that color blue.

This song is a few years old, but this line really jumps out. Apparently, Swift has never been to the paint section of Home Depot or to Sherwin Williams.



Please click here to see other posts where I look at song lyrics. Some of them go back, um, several years.

Sean's Steelers-Vikings Preview

If you've read my blog long enough, you know that I like to point out absurd and fun (at least to me) information about sporting events. Therefore, if you're looking for the keys to this Sunday's Steelers-Vikings or a breakdown of Steelers rookie Shamarko Thomas' positioning, you'll have to go somewhere else. I'm also sorry if this post doesn't help you with your NFL picks this weekend. Anyway, here are my thoughts on the game:

- The Steelers leave Pittsburgh tonight and arrive in London on Friday morning. Meanwhile, the Vikings landed in London on Tuesday. Doesn't it seem like the Steelers should have left earlier to get acclimated to the time change and new city? For the Olympics, did Usain Bolt arrive in London two days before his race? I think not (though I have no idea when he actually got there).

- Someone needs to make sure Big Ben visits Big Ben and shares pictures of this.

- Do you think the British will know that the Terrible Towel is associated with the Steelers? As I wrote recently, you wouldn't know by this Terrible Towel.

- Serious question: Do people in London care about this game? I'm not talking about Americans living in England or Europe but your regular British citizen. I'm guessing that two 0-3 teams aren't helping walk-up ticket sales.

- Perhaps as a way to get more Londoners excited for the game, Gene Simmons of Kiss and his reality show Family Jewels is performing the National Anthem. Personally, I think the NFL should have gotten performers that represent Minnesota and Pittsburgh. Prince and Christina Aguilera would be fine.

- Remember Giant Jason Taylor from the 2007 NFL game in London? For this year, I hope they have a Giant Christian Ponder that has a matching rib injury like the non-giant Christian Ponder.

- Let's say that you're a rookie free agent in Steelers or Vikings training camp in August. Do the teams require you to get a passport in case you make the team and will travel to London? Who pays for the passport?

- Meanwhile, the Steelers signed center Fernando Velasco just a few weeks ago. Did the team make sure that he had a passport so he could play in London before they signed him?

- I assume that someone from the Associated Press (AP) will cover the game and write about Adrian Peterson (also AP) in the story. I wonder if United Press International wishes that there was a successful football player named Upton Paul Iglesias with the nickname UPI.

- I hope Troy Polamalu has a chance to freak out people at London's Madame Tussauds.



- I feel like Brett Keisel and his beard could become stars in London. Of course, people might think that he's one of the Duck Dynasty family.

Enjoy the game!

Why Is There A Vikings Logo On The Terrible Towel?

The Terrible Towel is a sacred item for a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. It is a symbol of being a Steelers fan, and it is extremely powerful and intimidating seeing tens of thousands of people waving these towels at Heinz Field. More importantly, sales of the Terrible Towel benefit the adults and children with intellectual and developmental disabilities at the Allegheny Valley School. ABC News did a great feature about the Terrible Towel several years ago. (Update: The video is gone, but the article still remains online.)

Over the years, there have been multiple variations of the towel including a pink Terrible Towel for breast cancer awareness and a towel showing logos from the 6 Super Bowl Championships. I've never had an issue with any of these towels because they are often commemorative and sales benefit a good cause. That changed yesterday when I received this e-mail from the Steelers selling a special Terrible Towel for the London game against the Minnesota Vikings.

So why is there a logo of an NFL team other than the Steelers on the Terrible Towel? The towel is about the Steelers and should not include the Vikings logo. If you want to include something to honor the game being played in London, show a picture of Big Ben (not Roethlisberger), Wembley Stadium or even Prince George of Cambridge with or without his parents William and Kate.

Apparently, this is not even the first occurrence of an opposing team's logo appearing on the Terrible Towel this season. From the Steelers store, there was a Titans logo for this past weekend's game. Commemorating a game in London is one thing since the Steelers have never played there, but a towel for the first game of the 2013 season is ridiculous.

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I fully realize that this post is trivial particularly on this day of remembrance. (Most of you probably feel that all my posts are trivial regardless of the day.) Please take some time today to remember the victims of 9/11 and to thank the first responders everywhere.

Vikings Lose Doubleheader (Express Fail)

It's been a rough season for the Minnesota Vikings. At 2-11, they are tied for the second worst record in the NFL. The team has lost five straight games and star running back Adrian Peterson has missed the past three games.

The team hit a new low this past Sunday and made NFL history by losing to Detroit Lions and New Orleans Saints in the same day. Amazing!

Wait, are you doubting that this actually happened? It's true. Just check out the scores from Monday's Express.



Please click here for more Express Fail.

Friday Links & Videos

* Think back to last week. I know it's hard to do, so I'll refresh your memory. I interviewed the one and only Jim Shearer. Take a look at his latest Yinz Luv 'Da Stillers:



* Fascinating interview with Bronson Pinchot [A.V. Club] h/t Gobo

* Is November 1, 2009 the greatest day in sports history? Even though there are games in the NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB for the first time in history, I say no since there are no Pittsburgh teams playing. [Inhistoric] h/t JQ

* You must watch the week seven Vikings Music video. There are no words to describe it, but Green Day should sue. [OFTOT]

* I'm not going to link to the New York Daily News article itself, but I'm going to put a positive spin on the Steve Phillips affair. The woman in the center of the story is a 2008 Ithaca College graduate, and has already interned at ABC, including on the Jimmy Kimmel Show, worked for NBC during the Beijing Olympics and is employed at ESPN. That's an impressive resume; partly due to an Ithaca College education.

* Wegmans is the greatest grocery store of all time, but I've never experienced this while shopping there:



h/t Arjewtino

* Guess the final score of the Pitt-South Florida game and you can win a T-shirt [Pitt Blather]

Would you rather win a T-shirt or a really nice watch? Don't forget to enter the first ever contest at Sean's Ramblings just for predicting Ben Roethlisberger's passing yards.

Have a great weekend!