Johnson's act was funny - for a while
Stevie Johnson acted out one of the most novel cabarets seen in an NFL end zone in years on Sunday, but he wound up looking like the goat when he helped cost the Buffalo Bills a game against the New York Jets.
Stevie Johnson acted out one of the most novel cabarets seen in an NFL end zone in years on Sunday, but he wound up looking like the goat when he helped cost the Buffalo Bills a game against the New York Jets.
The wide receiver caught a touchdown pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick late in the first half. Johnson jumped up - and mocked being shot in the thigh, clearly making fun of the Jets' Plaxico Burress, who served 20 months in prison for shooting himself in the leg in a nightclub in 2008 while he was with the Giants.
Not satisfied, Johnson then ran to the left side of the end zone mocking the "flight" celebration the Jets often use after scoring and fell to the ground, getting flagged 15 yards for excessive celebration on the play that gave Buffalo a 14-7 lead.
That penalty was enforced on the kickoff and helped the Jets score the tying touchdown.
"I was just having fun, and part of having fun ended up being a penalty and a touchdown for the Jets," Johnson said later. "It was a stupid decision by myself."
Jets fans had the last laugh in the game's closing seconds. With Buffalo driving for a winning score, a wide-open Johnson dropped a pass that would have gone for a long gain. Fitzpatrick then added to Buffalo's embarrassment by throwing behind Johnson in the end zone with 8 seconds left - a pass that might have been a touchdown.
Oh yeah - the Bills are 5-6 and have lost four straight. Bet the flight home was a real chucklefest.
You gotta be kidding?
And in a story no sports writer could invent, the annual alumni lunch that preceeds Canada's Grey Cup game was marred by a fistfight - between 73-year-old Joe Kapp and 74-year-old Angelo Mosca.
The two septuagenarians - both CFL icons - traded punches and swipes with their canes.
In Sunday night's game, former Montana State star Travis Lulay overcame a slow start to throw for 320 yards and two touchdowns to lead the British Columbia Lions past the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, 34-23, and claim the outstanding player award.
Fleet feet
Arizona's Patrick Peterson, the fifth pick in the draft from LSU, became the fourth player with four punt returns for touchdowns in a season and the first in NFL history with four returns of 80-plus yards.
The other players with four punt returns for TDs are Chicago's Devin Hester (2007), Denver's Rick Upchurch (1978), and Detroit's Jack Christiansen (1951).
Noteworthy
Former wide receiver Marvin Harrison (Roman Catholic High) was inducted into the Colts' Ring of Honor. . . . Former Bills first-rounder Aaron Maybin (Penn State) had two of the Jets' three sacks. He had none in two unproductive seasons in Buffalo. . . . Fitzpatrick became the fifth quarterback in Buffalo history with 50 TD passes, joining Jim Kelly, Joe Ferguson, Jack Kemp, and Drew Bledsoe. . . . Tampa Bay's Maurice Jones-Drew has 1,040 yards rushing, his third consecutive 1,000-yard season.