By Paul Yeager, author of Literally, the Best Language Book Ever
The NFL season opens tomorrow with a special Thursday edition of Sunday night football on NBC. Or, is it a special Thursday edition of Monday night football on ESPN? Or, is it a special preview of the upcoming Thursday night football telecasts, which kicks off (nothing begins in football–it always kicks off) on week 10 on the NFL Network (meaning that most people won’t be able to watch)?
I’m not sure, but since we here at Everything Language and Grammar enjoy football, we’re glad it’s here.
Unfortunately, it’s not always a joy to listen to the announcers because of their tendency to use cliches or make grammatical mistakes. I mean, seriously, if you want a good drinking game, then take a drink every time Troy Aikman says “what” (or “watt” as he says it) when it doesn’t belong in a sentence, such as “That’s a longer pass than what he normally throws” instead of simply “That’s a longer pass than he normally throws.”
You’ll be more tipsy than Joe Namath during a Suzi Kolber interview by the middle of the second quarter.
Speaking of football cliches, here are a few of the worst 20, according to the Bleacher Report:
- The other team just wanted it more.
- He’s deceptively quick.
- We have to play a full 60 minutes.
- They have to take care of the football.
- That guy’s a throwback.
