One of the broadcasters for the Ravens-Steelers matchup on Sunday Night Football two weeks ago burst out with this illuminating phrase live on air: "Fair caught!" There was some sort of "at the such-and-such yard line" afterwards, but I have to admit I wasn't really paying attention to anything except that egregious butchering of the English language.
"Fair catch" is a noun phrase. In shorthand broadcaster-speak, "Fair catch at the 20" is perfectly acceptable; the verb, "made", is implied. But the word "catch" in this phrase is never a verb, and saying "fair caught" makes you sound absolutely illiterate. Not all of us who watch football notice this stuff, or care, but some of us actually have a care for the language we speak. Bottom line: the crunch of a helmet-to-helmet tackle may be delightful, but pulling a Jack-the-Ripper on grammar is not.
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