This past weekend has certainly been a strange one for followers of the National Football League and the British Premier League.
No, not because international soccer powerhouse Manchester United were downed by lowly Leicester City on Sunday, and not because the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos fought on well into overtime later in the day. It was strange because the world had the opportunity to witness the impossible. Want to know more? Well I guess you're just going to have to keep on reading.
I'll begin with the one I know most about. Last Sunday was a big day in the BPL as last season's champions Manchester City hosted this year's front-runners for the title Chelsea. It was a game that everyone across the Atlantic had been talking about, but strangely enough it wasn't the actual game the two team's fans, the media and everybody else across the world were focusing on. It was an individual.
For the past 13 years, the name of Frank Lampard has been almost synonymous with Chelsea Football Club. Having signed from nearby rivals West Ham United in June 2001, Lampard went on to score 147 goals in 429 games, winning three Barclay's Premier League medals, four FA Cups medals and one coveted Champions League winners medal across a glittering career with the west London club.
That all came to an end this past summer though as Lampard bid an emotional farewell to the club he called home to embark on an exciting journey with the new MLS expansion team New York City FC. Leaving British shores to test the waters stateside, it was widely accepted that the BPL had seen the last of ‘Mr. Chelsea'
That was until City, who own a controlling state in their MLS namesake, signed Lampard on an initial six-month loan as a way of ensuring the former English international midfielder remained fit to start the 2015 MLS season next spring.
Fast forward to Sunday and Lampard was sat on the bench against his former team. It was expected that City boss Manuel Pellegrini would leave him there so as to avoid any potential awkwardness should Lampard do the unthinkable and come into the game and grab a goal against his former employers. Well, with 10 minutes remaining, and his side trailing by one goal to nil, Pellegrini, perhaps out of desperation more than anything, turned to his elder statesman to come on and make an impact.
Two minutes later and Lampard, as he had done for so many years in the royal blue of Chelsea, arrived late into the box to meet a James Milner cross and drive it beyond Thibault Courtois in the Chelsea goal to tie the game up.
Un-be-lievable.
Hours later a similar incident occurred in Philadelphia, where the NFL's Eagles were hosting the Washington Redskins.
In March the Eagles shocked the football world when they released star wide receiver DeSean Jackson. After six seasons in the Philly green and white, which saw him amass over 6,000 receiving yards and 32 touchdowns, it was over. Suddenly the city of brotherly love wasn't so loving anymore.
Fast forward to Sunday and Jackson was back in Philadelphia as a member of the visiting Redskins. Jackson was considered to be a game time decision all week with a leg injury and some expected him to not have a shot against his old team. Well, Jackson fought off the injury and got in the lineup, not wanting a shot at his former mates to pass him by.
After struggling to connect with quarterback Kirk Cousins throughout the majority of the first three quarters, Jackson finally got in sync late in the game. With just over two minutes remaining in the third quarter Jackson bolted off the line and quickly found himself in behind the Eagles defense. Cousins launched a rocket about 60-yards down field where an open Jackson caught it and trotted another 20-yards into the end zone to tie the game at 27. The 81-yard reception was the biggest play in Jackson's day, in which he had 5 catches for 117 yards and the touchdown.
After supposedly being released for “football reasons,” Jackson showed his old team he could still play ball.
Amazing.
It's moments like these that make me realize why I love sports as much as I do. It's almost impossible not to be romantic about the sporting world when you come across stories like this.
