Midway (PS2, Xbox) Game   •••• Graphics/Sound   ••••

This game evades EA's horsecollar grip on the gridiron with a manic, potty-mouthed, arcade-style testosterone fest hawked and headlined by NFL legend Lawrence Taylor. Blitz is full of fun quirks — eight-per-side gameplay, 30-yard first-down markers — but it hits its stride off the field in illicit subjects à la ESPN’s smart but shortlived Playmakers (whose writers contributed here). Detailed X-ray graphics document each catastrophic injury, but just pump up the victim with painkillers and trot him back out for the second half.