lay an egg

Jonathan Plissner, a supervisory wildlife biologist at Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, told BBC Radio 4 on Wednesday that “it’s very rare” for a bird of Wisdom’s age to lay an egg, noting that “the average age that birds can survive is probably closer to 30 years.”

One of these is called a "brood ball," where they lay an egg in each ball, after they have buried it.

“I don’t think anybody wants to go out in front of 40,000 people and lay an egg,” he said - an image late New York Daily News cartoonist Bill Gallo would have relished.

“And that’s representative from every aspect of this franchise from top to bottom. And that includes our players, too. They care. They’re fighting. I know it doesn’t look like that, but I would say if you try to put yourself in their position, I don’t think anybody wants to go out in front of 40,000 people and lay an egg, whether it’s individually or collectively as a team, because then what comes with that is pretty horrific.”

Habner and his wife considered selling their Game 4 tickets of the Dallas series, but went and watched them “lay an egg” to the tune of a 6-3 defeat that could cost them dearly this spring.