Magicgames II » Maybe it’s too late for Jesse James and the Steelers or

ORLANDO Stitched Isaiah Oliver Jersey , Fla. (AP) — Zach Miller and the Bears.No matter, the NFL has a simplified catch rule designed to eliminate confusion — and, the league hopes, controversy — about receptions.Team owners unanimously approved the new language Tuesday, with basically three elements defining a catch:–having control of the ball;–getting two feet down or another body part;–making a football move, such as taking a third step or extending the ball.“We wanted to simplify and provide clarity,” Pittsburgh coach and longtime competition committee member Mike Tomlin said. “It was time to do so after we got caught up in language that didn’t do that. The language was obscure and confusing.”The committee cited overturned receptions by tight ends James and Miller last season among the dozens of plays they reviewed “dozens of times,” according to committee chairman Rick McKay, president of the Atlanta Falcons.The James call was particularly impactful because the Steelers wound up losing to New England in a December game that determined home-field advantage for the playoffs. The Patriots got it and wound up in the Super Bowl. Pittsburgh lost its first postseason game to Jacksonville.Just as infamous were negated catches by Dez Bryant of the Cowboys in a 2015 playoff game at Green Bay, and Calvin Johnson of the Lions in 2010 against the Bears.“I think the third step recommendation was excellent Youth Isaiah Oliver Jersey ,” Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. “It cleans up a majority of the (catches) that were in question. The old rule was so technical. We’re better off today than in the past.”Added Tom Coughlin, the Jaguars‘ top executive:“First of all, simplicity is the key. I think this is a fan-driven concept here because a lot of people have no idea why was this thing called that way and why was the next one not called that way. … I think we’ve cleaned up a lot of that, and that will get the fans more engrossed in the game. It’s going to be much easier for them to understand what is and what isn’t.”Also approved Tuesday was making permanent spotting the ball at the 25-yard line after a touchback on a kickoff; allowing players on injured reserve to be traded; and authorizing a designated member of the officiating department to instruct on-field game officials to eject a player for a flagrant non-football act when a foul for that act is called on the field.Withdrawn by the Jets was a proposal to limit defensive pass interference to 15 yards, the penalty in college, except for egregious incidents. The competition committee was not in favor of such a change, but McKay and football operations chief Troy Vincent said the idea has “some momentum.” It is likely to come up again in future meetings.Tabled was a proposal to allow an assistant coach whose team is still playing in the postseason to sign a contract to become head coach elsewhere. That’s been dubbed the “Josh McDaniels Rule” after the Patriots offensive coordinator agreed to become the Colts coach in January, then reneged and returned to New England soon after the Super Bowl.That suggestion also is expected to come up at future meetings, beginning in May at the Atlanta owners get-together.On-field officials supported having a member of the staff in New York calling for an ejection in certain blatant circumstances. They cited the difficulty of determining the culprits in a fight or other such situations. Benkert is learning American Sign Language to communicate with Ewok, his 13-year-old teammate Stitched Tony Gonzalez Jersey , during the tournament." />Skip to main contentclockmenumore-arrownoyesThe Falcoholic homepageHorizontal - WhiteThe Falcoholican Atlanta Falcons communityFollow The Falcoholic online:Follow The Falcoholic on TwitterFollow The Falcoholic on FacebookLog in or sign upLog InSign UpSite searchSearchSearchThe Falcoholic main menuFanpostsFanshotsLibraryFalconsOddsAboutMastheadCommunity GuidelinesStubHubMoreAll 321 blogs on Horizontal - WhiteFanposts Fanshots Library FalcFans Podcast on The FalcoholicContact The FalcoholicFalcons StoriesScheduleRosterStatsYahoo Falcons NewsYahoo Falcons Team PageYahoo Falcons ReportYahoo Falcons Depth ChartYahoo Falcons TransactionsYahoo Falcons PhotosOdds About Masthead Community Guidelines StubHub ✕Falcons’ Kurt Benkert competing in Fortnite Celebrity Pro-Am, but it’s about more than winningNew,9commentsBenkert is learning American Sign Language to communicate with Ewok, his 13-year-old teammate, during the tournament. EDTFortnite is wildly popular, and you can count Falcons backup quarterback Kurt Benkert among its fans. Benkert is taking his Fortnite skills to another level, and he’s teaming up with Ewok, a well-known Twitch streamer, for the Fortnite Celebrity Pro-Am at E3.Ewok stands out among the competitors because she’s just 13 years old. She’s also deaf. That presents some challenges in competitive gaming, but she and Benkert are finding ways to work through it. For starters Youth Tony Gonzalez Jersey , Benkert’s been working on learning American Sign Language. Ewok’s participation matters on a grander scale than just Fortnite and potentially winning money for charity. Ewok isn’t just making her way in the pro gaming scene as a young woman, which is difficult enough. She’s also providing important representation for the deaf community. A small facet of that impact can be seen in the replies to Benkert’s tweet. Benkert took some time to speak with The Falcoholic about Fortnite, the upcoming Pro-Am, and working with Ewok. He got into the game on the recommendation of friends. “I started playing Fortnite about a year and a half ago, and I had a few friends that told me I should check it out,” Benkert said. “I’ve always played video games but I wasn’t really heavy into anything in particular at that time, and it was a way to stay connected with friends that didn’t live close.”I don’t play Fortnite and know very little about it, and Benkert was gracious enough to break down the details of this upcoming Celebrity Pro-Am for us. “The Celebrity Pro-Am is an event where there are 50 teams of two. Each Duo has one celebrity/athlete and one pro gamer,” Benkert said. “Every team is competing to be the last alive. There are points are awarded for kills in the game and for higher placement in the game. There are four total games that will be played, and the prize money that is awarded to the winners goes to a charity of their choice. These range from $1 million to $20k.”Benkert and Ewok were connected through another streamer about two months ago on the Twitch platform Stitched Deion Sanders Jersey , which gamers use to live stream their gameplay. He said that learning ASL to communicate with Ewok has helped him grow as a person. “Learning ASL to communicate with Ewok has been an extremely rewarding experience,” Benkert said. “It has helped me become aware of different challenges that people face and overcome on a daily basis.”The game does have some features that make it possible for deaf players to enjoy and fully experience gameplay. “Right now the game has few ways that make it accessible to those in the deaf community,” Benkert said. “There is an audio assistance HUD (heads-up display) that shows which direction shots are coming from or where people are walking from. The game doesn’t have a specific way for us to communicate, so that is why we decided to video chat and communicate through basic ASL.”Benkert said that training for a Fortnite tournament is very different from what he’s experienced in the NFL. But his time in the NFL has still helped. “Preparing in the NFL and for this tournament are a lot different, but making sure that I know what to expect when I get there and having a strategy when we play are two things that carry over for it,” Benkert said. The tournament takes place on June 15 and 16 at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. Tickets start at $35 each, and they are available through Ticketmaster, and would give attendees access to the Fortnite Fan Festival, where you can meet characters and enjoy food items inspired by the game. Benkert is not the only celebrity participating by far. Panic! at the Disco’s Brendan Urie and Joel McHale of The Soup and Community fame will be there. Marshawn Lynch Youth Deion Sanders Jersey , Joey Bosa, Taven Bryan, and JuJu Smith-Schuster are also participating. A stream will be available on the official Fortnite Twitch page. Benkert is entering his second year with the Falcons after signing on as an undrafted free agent out of Virginia following the 2018 NFL Draft. This sounds like a fun endeavor to raise money for charity, and learning ASL and growing as a person along the way is a wonderful benefit. Our very best wishes to Benkert and Ewok in this year’s Fortnite Celebrity Pro-Am.