Football and My Crisis of Faith.

[Rain Man]

I have been a football fan for more than forty years, and it has been one of the foundational interests of my life. I’ve played the sport since childhood, I’ve traveled to games, I’ve purchased jerseys, and I’ve been an unceasing student of statistics and strategies.

I’m now experiencing a crisis of faith, though, and I fear that football’s time is coming to an end for me. The catalyst was something really stupid, but it opened the door to a greater awareness that is quite disturbing and disillusioning.

The initial catalyst was the NFL’s “Together We Make Football” contest. I read about it and thought, “Wow, a nice celebration of football, and Super Bowl tickets would be a great prize”. So I wrote an essay and felt pretty good about it, and sent it in. I loved football.

The entries were posted on the site, and I read a few of them, and frankly, most of the essays and videos were pretty weak. People didn’t follow the rules or think about why a judge would pick them to win. Many of them were just pictures of people in jerseys saying, “We like football. Send us to the Super Bowl!”

But I saw another pattern, too, and it got me to thinking. There seemed to be a lot of people using disabilities or illness as an argument, particularly among their kids. “I had a lung infection. Send me to the Super Bowl!” “My son has spina bifida. Send us to the Super Bowl!” For the most part, they were not well-written or well-produced. They were requests for pity, and frankly I found them kind of off-putting. They seemed almost more like panhandling than an essay about why those people love football.

As I skimmed through, them, though, I found myself getting agitated. I’m a market research guy, and I found myself starting to read them from a marketing standpoint. I would find myself thinking that some NFL public-relations person would probably like this angle or that angle. “Hey, a disabled kid. Wouldn’t that be a great winner to use for marketing?” (Sorry if that’s insensitive, but it’s how p.r. people think.)

I looked through some more entries, and thought, “If I was a callous, cynical s.o.b., I’d bet that the five winners of this contest will be a disabled kid, an attractive woman, an inner-city African American, a veteran or active duty soldier, and then whoever writes the best essay." And then I immediately felt bad for being a callous, cynical s.o.b. and I submitted my essay.

The NFL announced the ten finalists recently. Three of the ten stories are interesting and speak to football. Three. The other seven are incredibly lame and contrived, and I think one is actually insulting to any longtime football fan. My cynical side picked wrong on the military guy, but if you look at the videos it’s pretty clear that this contest was not about celebrating football. We are not hearing the ten best essays about how football shapes and impacts people’s lives, and how they love football. We are hearing manufactured stories that are nothing more than a cynical marketing ploy to reach pre-defined target markets and serve as a p.r. tool.

Now, I mean no offense against the people in those videos when I say that. I have no doubt that nearly all of them like football, and that most of them love football. It’s not about them, or the fact that I wrote an epic, soul-shattering, thought-inspiring essay that was not selected since I don’t fit the any of the NFL’s market expansion segments.

What it really drove home was that the NFL is a business these days, and nothing more. I wanted a contest where I could write about football and how it has shaped my life, and where I could read about what it has done for others. That was what I was sold. Instead, I was used as a pawn so the NFL could sell its business.

Now, that thing is just a contest. I lose contests all the time. My years of playing and watching football have taught me to lose with grace, and I hope the winners of that contest have a great time. But it really made me think about who’s running the NFL now. I wanted the judges of that contest to be people who love football themselves, people who got into the business because they grew up passing and catching and tackling. I wanted the judges to be people who know who Otto Graham is. Who know Johnny Robinson and Doug Buffone and even John Jefferson, and who can tell you about the Sneaker Game or Christmas Day of 1971. I wanted the judges to be football people who understand what the story of football is about.

The judges of this contest were not football people. It is clear and obvious that they were p.r. people who said, “Okay, give me a person in this market segment and a person in that market segment and two more from that one, and let’s build stories around them." Those people probably don’t know Lawrence Taylor from Opie Taylor.

The NFL is run by businesspeople now. Lamar Hunt is gone. Bud Adams is gone. George Halas is gone. The league is run by lawyers and marketing people and advertisers. You could take them out of the NFL and exchange them with the industry leaders of soft drinks or smart phones, and it wouldn’t make a darn bit of difference. They’re selling a product, and I don’t think they really care what that product is.

And then I look at the games I am watching these days. I see rules changes that are designed for marketing value rather than sport. They’ve done the marketing analysis. If there’s more scoring, more casual fans will watch. If there are more passes, quarterbacks will become bigger celebrities. The games are cartoonish now, unbalanced scoring orgies because scoring lets casual fans know when to cheer. Defenses are being made irrelevant and quarterbacks are merely playing catch on their way to another 400 or 500 yards of showmanship. P.T. Barnum loves the aerial circus even as students of the game cringe.

And I am finally seeing the more sinister side of the business plan. I see blatant phantom penalties against the opponents of quarterbacks like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, two of the highest-visibility products that the league sells, penalties that are critical in letting their teams win and continue playing as the TV audiences surge in January. If you’re running a business, you act to maximize your revenues, and Peyton Manning holding a Super Bowl trophy will do that a lot more than Alex Smith or Nick Foles doing so.

I don’t think the players rig games. It’s realistically impossible to do that in a high-level sport on a leaguewide basis. But Tom Brady is good. If Tom Brady gets four extra downs to win a game because of a pass interference call, he’s probably going to win. You can’t rig games, but you can tilt odds with just a few critical officiating decisions.

Maybe I’m waxing nostalgic, but I don’t think the NFL always had this attitude. Back when Hunt and Adams and Halas were around, the league was a competitive sport. Those owners loved the game and they wanted to win. The money was big, but it wasn’t insane. Look at the ownership and league management today. Are they football fans who want to win, or are they businesspeople who want to maximize profit? The cash flows are enormous.

I have been a Chiefs fan my whole life. In the modern world, that is naïve and Quixotic. The Chiefs are a small-market team and none of the players do national commercials. From a marketing perspective they support a middle-class fan base that is much smaller than most other markets. There’s not much marketing value in Alex Smith holding aloft a Lombardi trophy, and in fact there’s a huge opportunity cost if it’s him and not Peyton Manning. The league’s management team does not want Alex Smith or Jay Cutler or Jake Locker to win. Maybe they’ll do it, because a football field remains a chaotic place, but if so it will be against the wishes of the marketing braintrust of the NFL, and therefore against odds that have become more steep than one team in 32.

Sometime in the past twenty or thirty years, football evolved, and not in a good way. Any given game is still fun to watch. The players still try hard to win. On a tactical basis I enjoy the show and the athletes. But on a higher level I have reluctantly concluded that professional football has ceased to be a competitive sport. It’s an entertainment conglomerate, and just like the tables in Vegas the odds are stacked in the house’s favor. The house exists to make money.

I’ll probably continue to watch football. It’s a tradition. The games are fun. But at this point I’m reluctantly going to go into it knowing that it’s not what it appears. It’s a TV show. I’m not going to buy merchandise to support a TV show, and I’m not going to pay hundreds of dollars to watch a TV show live. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll go out and live life a little more on Sunday afternoons.

There’s a semi-famous internet clip of an audience member at a professional wrestling show. He’s given the microphone and thanks the wrestlers for the “all they’ve done to their bodies”, and then tearfully says, “It’s still real to me, dammit!” Well, I’d like to thank NFL players like Johnny Robinson and Doug Buffone and John Jefferson for all they’ve done to their bodies to entertain me. I have loved football and it’s been a great run. But it’s not real to me any more.

[BryanBusby]

This is an interesting take sir

['Hamas' Jenkins]

I agree with you. It's bothered me for some time as well. The NFL is a product for people who don't like football. In my opinion, that's the purpose behind the rule changes, the elimination of defense, and the crawl of it onto three nights a week of programming. In some ways you could say they're trying to grow the game, but they're really not. They're doing whatever possible to garner as many viewers as possible in order to boost ratings and TV deals, and that's discrete from growing it, because the game itself is secondary to the bright lights and production value, and what happens to the game is of ancillary concern. If more people will watch if DBs are never allowed to touch the WRs, then that's the change that will happen.

[big nasty kcnut]

Rain so what if it ran by business you shouldn't think about it. It's fun to watch and interact with people online. Also that what make watching football fun to see the little guy beat the bigger city teams. If Green Bay can win why can't we. Don't lose faith rain man. Remember the saints were the worst team in the world and now they won a Super Bowl. If the saints can win with a not very big fan base so can we.

[Rain Man]

Rain so what if it ran by business you shouldn't think about it. It's fun to watch and interact with people online. Also that what make watching football fun to see the little guy beat the bigger city teams. If Green Bay can win why can't we. Don't lose faith rain man. Remember the saints were the worst team in the world and now they won a Super Bowl. If the saints can win with a not very big fan base so can we.

You mean, the year after Katrina when a Saints Super Bowl victory would be a huge marketing story?

[Rain Man]

I agree with you. It's bothered me for some time as well. The NFL is a product for people who don't like football. In my opinion, that's the purpose behind the rule changes, the elimination of defense, and the crawl of it onto three nights a week of programming. In some ways you could say they're trying to grow the game, but they're really not. They're doing whatever possible to garner as many viewers as possible in order to boost ratings and TV deals, and that's discrete from growing it, because the game itself is secondary to the bright lights and production value, and what happens to the game is of ancillary concern. If more people will watch if DBs are never allowed to touch the WRs, then that's the change that will happen.

I am sad. I feel as if I have lost a lifelong friend.

[Rausch]

I am sad. I feel as if I have lost a lifelong friend.

The modern NFL wants "drama" and "great stories."

They've forgotten that these things happen when there's great football...

[BossChief]

The worst is when the refs are openly swinging games one way or another.

Sure was a great story to have "The Patriots" winning the superbowl after 9-11.

There was a clip during Bill Billicheats show where he walks up to the refs and they are like "don't worry, we'll protect your guy" or something of the sort.

The purity of the sport has most definitely been compromised.

[cosmo20002]

The worst is when the refs are openly swinging games one way or another.

Sure was a great story to have "The Patriots" winning the superbowl after 9-11.

There was a clip during Bill Billicheats show where he walks up to the refs and they are like "don't worry, we'll protect your guy" or something of the sort.

The purity of the sport has most definitely been compromised.

Silly

[Mr Luzcious]

I am sad. I feel as if I have lost a lifelong friend.

I didn't realize you'd known that Hamas guy for so long.

[teedubya]

So in this thread... Rain Man writes an essay about an essay.

[Easy 6]

Peyton Manning

[Earthling]

Seems like most everything has been commercialized, analyzed, dissected, and colorized, all with the idea of getting your buck. Still, it is the individual players that make the games meaningful. I believe that most individual players have little interest in the hows and whys of marketing by the head offices of the NFL and are more concerned with achieving greatness among their peers on the field.

[cdcox]

While I agree that the game isn't what it once was, I think the game on the field is what matters. Of the points you allude to, there are a couple that do give me pause.

1. Is there more than one way to build a winning team? I've beat the drum loudly that a franchise QB is the only way to build a team that can consistently compete for a SB year in and year out. I still mostly believe that, but with the way thigh paid QBs have impacted their team's salary caps, I'm beginning to think there may be another way. I don't have all the numbers in front of me, but it seems like the Ravens, Patriots, Cowboys, Packers, Giants, and Steelers are having trouble putting sufficient talent around their big $ QBs. SB championships over the last 10 years seem to be linked to being well rounded more than having a very top QB. I wish there was more balance between offense and defense and between passing and running, but air circuses haven't achieved a lock hold on winning the SB. There still seems to be some kind of balance.

2. The other key is that the game is called fairly. There is a perception that it isn't. That maybe teams lead by stars get a few more calls that go their way than non-sexy teams, especially when the game is on the line. That would be totally unacceptable if it were true. It seems that this is a testable hypothesis. If a well designed study were able to show favoritism, I think it could be publicized effectively, and would pretty much put an end to the practice.

3. The troubling trend that I'm most concerned with is the player safety issue. Player lawsuits could really damage the financial viability of the game. I think the league will continue to modify the rules to protect player safety. I also think fewer kids will play football due to safety concerns by their parents. Over time, I think that player safety issues will do more to undermine the game we love(d) than any other influence.

[cosmo20002]

You mean, the year after Katrina when a Saints Super Bowl victory would be a huge marketing story?

Wait a sec---Katrina hit right before the 2005 season. The Saints won the Superbowl following the 2009 season. That's five seasons later.

[mikey23545]

I can only say this, Rainman...Your OP should have been your contest entry.

[Redcoats58]

Well its absolutely entertainment and not sport. If you tried to sue the NFL for rigging a game you wouldn't have a leg to stand on because the NFL is deemed entertainment and can produce whatever outcome they want for any given game. Does that mean the players rig games? No, although I'm sure it's happened but not as likely as the refs fixing games. And you're right, Saints going to the big game after Katrina, fixed, Pats after 911, fixed. There are plenty more I'm sure.

Interesting article, if it has already been posted then I apologize. http://spaces.covers.com/blog/MaximumWins/NFL/03042012-Reasons-Why-The-NFL-Is-Fixed-For-Profit.html

[Phobia]

Hey, I presume this is a cleverly designed ruse to to make the NFL booger-pickers who spy on message boards select the Chiefs as the next SuperBowl winner due to your reverse psychological warfare! That's pure genious. You're like Hank Fan. Keep matriculating your words out into the interwebs, boys. Ah crap. Now they know we know.

[cosmo20002]

Well its absolutely entertainment and not sport. If you tried to sue the NFL for rigging a game you wouldn't have a leg to stand on because the NFL is deemed entertainment and can produce whatever outcome they want for any given game. Does that mean the players rig games? No, although I'm sure it's happened but not as likely as the refs fixing games. And you're right, Saints going to the big game after Katrina, fixed, Pats after 911, fixed. There are plenty more I'm sure.

Interesting article, if it has already been posted then I apologize. http://spaces.covers.com/blog/MaximumWins/NFL/03042012-Reasons-Why-The-NFL-Is-Fixed-For-Profit.html

Where exactly did you pick up that nonsense?

Also, the Saints got the Super Bowl 5 seasons after Katrina.

The Patriots did win the next SB after 9/11, but they also had a damn good team that went on to dominate most of the next 10 years. Anyway, wouldn't it have made more sense to fix the game for a New York team since they were the city attacked?

[Rausch]

Anyway, wouldn't it have made more sense to fix the game for a New York team since they were the city attacked?

Exactly...

[cosmo20002]

I truly don't understand how someone could truly believe that NFL games are fixed yet still be a fan that follows the sport. If I really thought that the league would not allow KC to beat Denver/Manning or allow KC to make it to the SB, I would have no interest in following it.

[cosmo20002]

And again--where is the Saints/Katrina thing coming from?

August 2005 - Katrina hits
2005 season
2006 season
2007 season
2008 season
2009 season - Saints make the SB, win in Feb 2010

[Chiefspants]

The Patriots "win" today may cause me to reexamine my love for the game. I have never seen the officials to blatantly give a team the victory as the refs did for the Pats today. Sure, there have been questionable calls in the past, (i.e. "the tuck rule", phantom holds, etc). But each I had seen contained acceptable amounts of grey area for me to believe that the destiny of the game was still in the hands of the players.

The referees gave the Patriot players and fans the win today, and unfortunately, I do not imagine these occurrences will cease anytime soon. When I was five years old, I fell in love with the gritty, ugly, and unpredictability of the game. The meaning of "Any Given Sunday" kept me occupied as a fan for the past fifteen seasons. However, it now feels as though the NFL has subverted its unpredictability for the benefit of its celebrities, marketability and narratives that allow it to create "must-see-TV".

Today the fans of Cleveland were robbed by a league that has turned its back on "Any Given Sunday" for the sake of the bottom line (though I imagine that Browns fans are already quite accustomed to this feeling).

[Redcoats58]

I truly don't understand how someone could truly believe that NFL games are fixed yet still be a fan that follows the sport. If I really thought that the league would not allow KC to beat Denver/Manning or allow KC to make it to the SB, I would have no interest in following it.

I didn't say I believed every game was rigged but I do believe there are rigged games that are swung by the officials. There is too much money involved for it not to happen. I follow the Chiefs because they have been my team since I was a kid but if there was 100% proof tomorrow that the league has been fixing games I would stop watching.

[threebag]

Why is it that as a CHIEFS fan I always feel like I am holding Aces and Eights?

[ChiefRocka]

The Patriots "win" today may cause me to reexamine my love for the game. I have never seen the officials to blatantly give a team the victory as the refs did for the Pats today. Sure, there have been questionable calls in the past, (i.e. "the tuck rule", phantom holds, etc). But each I had seen contained acceptable amounts of grey area for me to believe that the destiny of the game was still in the hands of the players.

The referees gave the Patriot players and fans the win today, and unfortunately, I do not imagine these occurrences will cease anytime soon. When I was five years old, I fell in love with the gritty, ugly, and unpredictability of the game. The meaning of "Any Given Sunday" kept me occupied as a fan for the past fifteen seasons. However, it now feels as though the NFL has subverted its unpredictability for the benefit of its celebrities, marketability and narratives that allow it to create "must-see-TV".

Today the fans of Cleveland were robbed by a league that has turned its back on "Any Given Sunday" for the sake of the bottom line (though I imagine that Browns fans are already quite accustomed to this feeling).


That was a single bad PI call at the end of the game. Has happened before.

[-King-]

Wait a sec---Katrina hit right before the 2005 season. The Saints won the Superbowl following the 2009 season. That's five seasons later.

For some reason, people always bring this up without really researching the year the Saints won.
Posted via Mobile Device

[loochy]

Rain man,

please send this essay to your local newspaper as well as the KC Star.

[Bob Dole]

And again--where is the Saints/Katrina thing coming from?

August 2005 - Katrina hits
2005 season
2006 season
2007 season
2008 season
2009 season - Saints make the SB, win in Feb 2010

So you slept through all 492 versions of "New Orleans 5 Years Later"?

[-King-]

The ironic thing about this whole thing is that the league is way more competitive now that it ever was in the eras Rain Man is nostalgic about.
Posted via Mobile Device

[KCUnited]

The worst are those emo pieces about some sick kid during the pre-games. I know you got to throw in something for all the wives out there, but just give me my fantasy projections.

[Mosbonian]

Simply put....you are over thinking this Rain Man.

[Aries Walker]

Have you tried getting interested in local, semi-pro teams? I worked for a while with a guy who played for the Carroll County (Maryland) Cannons, and those guys really played for the love of the game. It's like the movie Slap Shot, just with football.

And, you're in luck. there's a league (http://www.cpflfootball.com/index.php) in the KC area.

[notorious]

Tuck Rule was as blatant as it gets.

[-King-]

Tuck Rule was as blatant as it gets.

Yeah but at the time, why would the league want to help the Patriots? Tom Brady was just another QB at that time and the Raider. were probably a bigger team marketwise than the Patriots at that point.
Posted via Mobile Device

[notorious]

I am not making a statement about any agenda, I just can not look at that play and see anything that resembles an incomplete pass.

It was against the Raiders, too.

[ChiliConCarnage]

Of course the NFL is a business ran by business people. If anything the NFL seems like the league least concerned with market size.

The only NFL game of import that looked possibly crooked to me was the Seahawks vs Steelers super bowl game. I can't really remember the specifics but I just remember the feeling that it seemed tainted to a guy who had no rooting interest either way.

[Imon Yourside]

Ya the game is rigged, the main reason I started working Sundays. I will never get that pissed off about a BS loss again.

[Ace Gunner]

fully where you are OP

*I am disgusted with all the ref face time & reviews

*no more contact, this game looks more like basketball & soccer

*Jamaal looks like a nostalgia clip inserted into today's game


I don't watch as much football these days. I travel for my work, often making travel schedules match games I wanted to attend. I used to attend 12 or more games per season and the past couple years that number has dwindled -- this season I have attended four games.

I don't make SB plans anymore. I didn't even watch SB45 two years ago, decided to work a project instead.

I like football because it is a high contact game mixed with strategy similar to chess & checkers. but now that contact is illegal, I have lost interest.

almost time to let go. I'll probably stop following after Jamaal retires.

[ChiefRocka]

What if we just enslave the gladiators and have them play each Sunday for their lives?

[Imon Yourside]

What if we just enslave the gladiators and have them play each Sunday for their lives?

Bring them in for a look?

[InChiefsHeaven]

So you slept through all 492 versions of "New Orleans 5 Years Later"?

I actually think that was more of an opportunistic thing rather than a fix. Here are the Saints, looking like they might win the Superbowl...what can we market here...AH! Katrina!

As Cosmo stated, it's too long after the actual event to link it to a fix. Rather, it was a chance for the NFL to exploit a story. They do that shit all the time.

[Sannyasi]

Which team do you guys think should have won in 2009 that had their Super Bowl stolen from them? I recall the Saints being pretty good that year.

[htismaqe]

The ironic thing about this whole thing is that the league is way more competitive now that it ever was in the eras Rain Man is nostalgic about.
Posted via Mobile Device

It has parity. It's not competitive.

Yes, the individual games are closer. But the same teams, by and large, win most of those close contests, year after year.

[htismaqe]

1. Is there more than one way to build a winning team? I've beat the drum loudly that a franchise QB is the only way to build a team that can consistently compete for a SB year in and year out. I still mostly believe that, but with the way thigh paid QBs have impacted their team's salary caps, I'm beginning to think there may be another way. I don't have all the numbers in front of me, but it seems like the Ravens, Patriots, Cowboys, Packers, Giants, and Steelers are having trouble putting sufficient talent around their big $ QBs. SB championships over the last 10 years seem to be linked to being well rounded more than having a very top QB. I wish there was more balance between offense and defense and between passing and running, but air circuses haven't achieved a lock hold on winning the SB. There still seems to be some kind of balance.

SB championships over the last 10 years are ultimately linked to teams FINDING the very top QB. Once everybody KNOWS they're a top QB, they get paid, and like you said, that contract becomes a noose around that team's salary cap.

It's why a team should draft a QB in the first few rounds every single year.

[-King-]

It has parity. It's not competitive.

Yes, the individual games are closer. But the same teams, by and large, win most of those close contests, year after year.

Well of course. That's going to be the case no matter what era you're talking about. But the number of teams that have a chance at the Superbowl is bigger now more than in any other era also.
Posted via Mobile Device

[htismaqe]

Honestly, my enjoyment of the game changed dramatically this past offseason while I contemplated everything that had happened and whether or not I still wanted to be a fan of the Chiefs.

I had to get the "it's all about the Super Bowl" idea out of my head. Primarily because I came to the realization that the Chiefs will likely never win one. The cards are stacked heavily against them.

[htismaqe]

Well of course. That's going to be the case no matter what era you're talking about.
Posted via Mobile Device

So then, why are people Detroit fans? Or Cleveland fans? Or dare I say it, Chiefs fans?

[Hog's Gone Fishin]

You mean, the year after Katrina when a Saints Super Bowl victory would be a huge marketing story?

Or the year that 911 occurred and the PATRIOTS won

[notorious]

You can see so-called conspiracies everywhere. I don't believe it goes that deep.


I see bias for stars and their teams, which happens in every sport. We need to be the team that has the star that gets the token calls every game.

"B b b but that team had a chance to win after the bad call!"

:facepalm:

This is the NFL, a game can, and has been nudged toward the darling team by a biased call many, many times.

[htismaqe]

We need to be the team that has the star that gets the token calls every game.

Never gonna happen.

We're the "feel good" story. Where guys like Joe Montana go to die. And where guys that weren't all that good in the 1st place go to "resurrect" their careers.

We're not ever going to be the lead actor in this play. We're part of the supporting cast.

[Dayze]

Rain Man essay > 90% of sports 'writers'

[notorious]

Never gonna happen.

We're the "feel good" story. Where guys like Joe Montana go to die. And where guys that weren't all that good in the 1st place go to "resurrect" their careers.

We're not ever going to be the lead actor in this play. We're part of the supporting cast.

Indy did it, so we have that 1:11tybillion chance of getting lucky.

Drafting RT's isn't going to do it, though.

[Hog's Gone Fishin]

I have two comments, actually 3.

1) I can understand this feeling in general and my subconscience feels exactly what Rainman expresses.

2) This feeling I have found can be altered by drinking heavily on
Sundays.

3) If I were GM of a football team I would draft Defense heavily every year to keep my D young and fast. I would build my Offense around that Franchise QB that would have to be paid and plug in the rest through FA. It is a formula I've developed in theory during my long days at the farm when I have not too much to think about.

4) Oh yeah, I must add a 4th thought , sorry, but ,Peyton Manning.

[cosmo20002]

Honestly, my enjoyment of the game changed dramatically this past offseason while I contemplated everything that had happened and whether or not I still wanted to be a fan of the Chiefs.

I had to get the "it's all about the Super Bowl" idea out of my head. Primarily because I came to the realization that the Chiefs will likely never win one. The cards are stacked heavily against them.

What is stacked against them, other than choices the team itself made (signings, trades, draft picks)?

[htismaqe]

What is stacked against them, other than choices the team itself made (signings, trades, draft picks)?

The general attitude of the fans, aka what they are usually satisfied with vs what they are not.

The size of the market they're in.

The location of the market they're in.

Off the top of my head.

[cosmo20002]

Or the year that 911 occurred and the PATRIOTS won

Yeah, it was rigged that a shitty team would win just because it's team name is Patriots.

Never mind that the team was great and basically dominated the next decade, or that having a New York team win would have been the more obvious storyline.

[OrtonsPiercedTaint]

There is a network where people spend hours watching people cook. I thought golf was bad

[cosmo20002]

The general attitude of the fans, aka what they are usually satisfied with vs what they are not.

The size of the market they're in.

The location of the market they're in.

Off the top of my head.

And so those things make it less likely to win the Super Bowl? How?

[Rausch]

There is a network where people spend hours watching people cook. I thought golf was bad

Attractive women and food.

Everything golf is not...

[htismaqe]

Attractive women and food.

Everything golf is not...

There's like 15 minutes of attractive women for every 24 hours of programming.

EEEWWWWWW.

[Hog's Gone Fishin]

Yeah, it was rigged that a shitty team would win just because it's team name is Patriots.

Never mind that the team was great and basically dominated the next decade, or that having a New York team win would have been the more obvious storyline.

Dude, They were going to be put on a pedestal as long as Bin Laden was alive. Now they claim he was buried at sea so no one really knows for sure. Which translates to keeping the Patriots on the top until we're done in Afghanistan.

[htismaqe]

And so those things make it less likely to win the Super Bowl? How?

I'm just going to assume you're being obtuse.

[ILChief]

The general attitude of the fans, aka what they are usually satisfied with vs what they are not.

The size of the market they're in.

The location of the market they're in.

Off the top of my head.

Green Bay, pittsburgh, and Indianapolis are similar size and in the middle of the country. Our fan base is fine. Save our chiefs proved we won't stand for a consistently crappy product. We are probably closer to a Super Bowl now than in a long time. Our core is fairly young, built through the draft and we aren't completely one sided like in the past

[MahiMike]

You should send this in as your essay.

[htismaqe]

Green Bay, pittsburgh, and Indianapolis are similar size and in the middle of the country. Our fan base is fine. Save our chiefs proved we won't stand for a consistently crappy product. We are probably closer to a Super Bowl now than in a long time. Our core is fairly young, built through the draft and we aren't completely one sided like in the past

Green Bay is THE original NFL franchise. Pittsburgh and Indy also have history on their side. None of the 3 are original AFL teams, FWIW.

[MahiMike]

I hope this means you still believe in Storage Wars and Duck Dynasty. Those shows aren't fabricated at all!

[cosmo20002]

For anyone who thinks the games are rigged or at least intentionally "biased," you're really talking about the game officials literally taking direct orders from the NFL to make calls against one team and go easy on the other. And not once has an official ever come forward to say this was happening? Is the entire game crew in on it, or does the NFL just plant 1 guy per crew to slip in a few holding or PI calls?

[Rausch]

Green Bay is THE original NFL franchise. Pittsburgh and Indy also have history on their side. None of the 3 are original AFL teams, FWIW.

Every now and again there's a team that fights the odds.

Tampa, Baltimore (1st SB win,) Cardinals (literal red-headed stepchildren,) Rams, etc...

[cosmo20002]

Dude, They were going to be put on a pedestal as long as Bin Laden was alive. Now they claim he was buried at sea so no one really knows for sure. Which translates to keeping the Patriots on the top until we're done in Afghanistan.

Ok, I'm going to assume you're kidding.

[Ace Gunner]

Or the year that 911 occurred and the PATRIOTS won

even my wife said that game was rigged early on.


oh, and Marshall Faulk;

"I understand Bill [Belichick] is a great coach," Faulk told Curran. "But No. 13 [Kurt Warner] will tell you ... Mike Martz will tell you ... We had some plays in the red zone that we hadn't ran. I think we got to fourth down -- we ran three plays that we hadn't ran, that Mike drew up for that game. Bill's a helluva coach … we hadn't ran them the whole year [and the Patriots were ready for them]." And the only time that Rams practiced those plays? At the walkthrough.


nice lil article/video link here;

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/21623681/marshall-faulk-says-rams-cheated-out-of-super-bowl-in-loss-to-patriots

[htismaqe]

FWIW, I'm not suggesting that the NFL is rigged or blatantly biased (I do think it's inherently biased in some cases).

I think the combination of city, fans, ownership, NFL structure, and several other factors are going to make it nearly impossible for the Chiefs to win a Super Bowl.

[Rausch]

For anyone who thinks the games are rigged or at least intentionally "biased," you're really talking about the game officials literally taking direct orders from the NFL to make calls against one team and go easy on the other. And not once has an official ever come forward to say this was happening? Is the entire game crew in on it, or does the NFL just plant 1 guy per crew to slip in a few holding or PI calls?

I don't think he takes orders from the NFL but that roided out freak Ed Hochuli takes advantage of every opportunity to make game changing calls that often are impossible to defend.

There is no other ref I'd fear having more in a meaningful game...

[htismaqe]

Every now and again there's a team that fights the odds.

Tampa, Baltimore (1st SB win,) Cardinals (literal red-headed stepchildren,) Rams, etc...

So basically, it's down to "we need a miracle".

[cosmo20002]

I'm just going to assume you're being obtuse.

I'm going to assume you're avoiding answering the question. How does playing in the Midwest in a smaller market make it less likely for the Chiefs to make the Super Bowl? If this was baseball and we were talking about the Royals, I'd agree. But football has revenue sharing and salary caps. Everyone has a chance. The teams that have a long run of success are largely the ones who drafted a great QB.

[Bearcat]

Great post, and completely agree. You should submit this to them as a follow up.

I'm not sure if it's always been this way, or maybe I was just too young to see it when I really enjoyed the NFL. In the past 5-7 years I've noticed the same thing, but I've also completed college (so I view everything from a different perspective) and the Chiefs have done plenty on the field to make me uninterested (note: it's no coincidence Herm was hired around the time this all started). So, I guess in some ways I'd have to rely on people who are older than me to help determine if it's always been this way, but my guess is that it hasn't... when products are starting out, the focus is in the right place, then money takes over.

As far as the game itself, it's a quarterback league that's all about the excitement of big offense... works really well for marketing and the casual fan, but games can be pretty ridiculous when there's no defense. Almost to the point of college shootouts.

It's a watered down league... over the top parity with too many teams, but every team has a chance, which is good for business. There's a lot of shitty football being played, but hey, your Tebow-led team or your 7-9 team still has a chance to make the playoffs, so you should buy season tickets! Just look at a lot of Chiefs fans... it's all about making the playoffs and having a chance from there. That kind of hope puts butts in seats.

As far as the business side of things, it's all about making more money than last year. Hey, if we made eleventy billion dollars two years in a row, we're stagnant! I've worked for a company that was all about the stock holder, and it couldn't have been more obvious in the way they treated everyone but the stock holder.

Ticket prices, wanting more games or even teams in London, the eleventy billion dollar TV deals that include 50% commercials.... it's all about squeezing every last penny out of existing sources of revenue and finding new sources, and a lot of it hurts the game or the fans.

When the focus isn't on the product and customer, those two things will suffer.

[htismaqe]

I don't think he takes orders from the NFL but that roided out freak Ed Hochuli takes advantage of every opportunity to make game changing calls that often are impossible to defend.

There is no other ref I'd fear having more in a meaningful game...

Jeff Triplett.

[htismaqe]

I'm going to assume you're avoiding answering the question. How does playing in the Midwest in a smaller market make it less likely for the Chiefs to make the Super Bowl? If this was baseball and we were talking about the Royals, I'd agree. But football has revenue sharing and salary caps. Everyone has a chance. The teams that have a long run of success are largely the ones who drafted a great QB.

There's a reason we haven't drafted a great QB.

[cosmo20002]

even my wife said that game was rigged early on.

oh, and Marshall Faulk;

"I understand Bill [Belichick] is a great coach," Faulk told Curran. "But No. 13 [Kurt Warner] will tell you ... Mike Martz will tell you ... We had some plays in the red zone that we hadn't ran. I think we got to fourth down -- we ran three plays that we hadn't ran, that Mike drew up for that game. Bill's a helluva coach … we hadn't ran them the whole year [and the Patriots were ready for them]." And the only time that Rams practiced those plays? At the walkthrough.


nice lil article/video link here;

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/21623681/marshall-faulk-says-rams-cheated-out-of-super-bowl-in-loss-to-patriots

Did you actually just quote your wife as evidence that the NFL is rigged?

[Rausch]

FWIW, I'm not suggesting that the NFL is rigged or blatantly biased (I do think it's inherently biased in some cases).

I think the combination of city, fans, ownership, NFL structure, and several other factors are going to make it nearly impossible for the Chiefs to win a Super Bowl.

"Why ain't there no Chiefs on that wall, Goodell? Huh?"

http://www.gettogethablog.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/DoTheRightThingSalBuggin.jpg

[Rausch]

So basically, it's down to "we need a miracle".

When did that not appear to be the case?...

[cosmo20002]

There's a reason we haven't drafted a great QB.

and that is...

What, the NFL wouldn't allow it?

[htismaqe]

When did that not appear to be the case?...

That's the wrong question.

It's "when did I finally open my eyes and realize that was the case?"

[htismaqe]

and that is...

What, the NFL wouldn't allow it?

I already told you.

[Bearcat]

and that is...

What, the NFL wouldn't allow it?

Enough Chiefs fans are satisfied with mediocrity, so there's no point in "wasting" 2-3 years to develop a QB when you can sign a retread/stop gap and get butts in seats.

Buy season tickets.

[cosmo20002]

I already told you.

I didn't see a reason given as to why the Chiefs haven't drafted a great QB.

But instead of being an ass and typing "I already told you," you could have just said it.

[T-post Tom]

Welcome to a brave not-so-new world. This is a microcosm of modern society. Only one thing can revive you...

http://acidcow.com/pics/20131017/gifs_01.gif

[htismaqe]

I didn't see a reason given as to why the Chiefs haven't drafted a great QB.

But instead of being an ass and typing "I already told you," you could have just said it.

It's a small market. The margin for error, when it comes to filling the stadium, is razor thing.

And yes, you did see a reason. I posted it, ITEMIZED, in post #56.

Even better, you QUOTED post #56.

Why should I have to repeat myself over and over just to satisfy you're utterly stupid line of questioning?

Go back to DC dipshit. You don't belong in a football discussion.

[cosmo20002]

Enough Chiefs fans are satisfied with mediocrity, so there's no point in "wasting" 2-3 years to develop a QB when you can sign a retread/stop gap and get butts in seats.

Buy season tickets.

That makes absolutely no sense. You're under the impression that there have been a lot of butts in the seats the last few seasons?

[htismaqe]

That makes absolutely no sense. You're under the impression that there have been a lot of butts in the seats the last few seasons?

Of course there haven't. They have been 8-8/9-7 the past few seasons either.

:facepalm:

[cosmo20002]

It's a small market. The margin for error, when it comes to filling the stadium, is razor thing.

And yes, you did see a reason. I posted it, ITEMIZED, in post #56.

Even better, you QUOTED post #56.

Why should I have to repeat myself over and over just to satisfy you're utterly stupid line of questioning?

Go back to DC dipshit. You don't belong in a football discussion.

So, they haven't drafted a great QB because they are a Midwest team in a smaller market? Because the fans don't care about winning?

This isn't a football discussion. This is a discussion about losers and conspiracy theories and how they follow a team and a sport despite thinking the whole thing is rigged with winners and losers pre-determined.

[htismaqe]

So, they haven't drafted a great QB because they are a Midwest team in a smaller market? Because the fans don't care about winning?

This isn't a football discussion. This is a discussion about losers and conspiracy theories and how they follow a team and a sport despite thinking the whole thing is rigged with winners and losers pre-determined.

I never said any of those things. Those are all things you inferred based on things other people said.

I said the cards are stacked against them. And they are.

[cosmo20002]

I never said any of those things. Those are all things you inferred based on things other people said.

I said the cards are stacked against them. And they are.

:banghead:

So what is the reason the Chiefs haven't drafted a good QB? Because the cards are stacked against them? What does that mean in regards to drafting a good QB?

[htismaqe]

:banghead:

So what is the reason the Chiefs haven't drafted a good QB? Because the cards are stacked against them? What does that mean in regards to drafting a good QB?

Because EVERY decision the Chiefs make, personnel-wise and otherwise, is weighted against those factors. Financials, fan base, etc. It tends over time to produce low risk, low reward behavior.

[ILChief]

Man if we'd have only drafted Christian Ponder we'd be a dynasty

[htismaqe]

Man if we'd have only drafted Christian Ponder we'd be a dynasty

The best straw man ever.

[cosmo20002]

Because EVERY decision the Chiefs make, personnel-wise and otherwise, is weighted against those factors. Financials, fan base, etc. It tends over time to produce low risk, low reward behavior.

It's generally too early to be drunk, so you have to just be dumb.
I asked why the Chiefs haven't drafted a good QB. Your answer is a bunch of gibberish.

[htismaqe]

It's generally too early to be drunk, so you have to just be dumb.
I asked why the Chiefs haven't drafted a good QB. Your answer is a bunch of gibberish.

ROFL

You're a bigger fucking moron than I originally thought.

[-King-]

ROFL

You're a bigger fucking moron than I originally thought.

No you're just not making any sense right now.
Posted via Mobile Device

[Bearcat]

That makes absolutely no sense. You're under the impression that there have been a lot of butts in the seats the last few seasons?

They obviously had much bigger issues, and there were still ~63,000 seats accounted for in the last home game of the season last season, even if some of those were paid for by KCTV.

Outside of those other issues, going into each season, you can start a rookie QB with the expectation of being terrible for at least one year, if not 2-3 years.... or you can sign a retread QB with the expectation of being mediocre and at least being able to compete for a playoff spot.

Sure, there are a lot of variables, but because teams can spend years trying to find a franchise QB, why waste that kind of time when you can take the low risk option and be competitive much sooner?

It's only been a trend for ~40 years, so I'm not sure how anyone couldn't spot it... sign retread QB, be competitive until the ship sinks and fans get angry, sign another retread as a quick fix watch season ticket sales increase, be competitive and watch ticket sales sky rocket until the ship sinks and fans get angry, sign another retread....

[Nzoner]

Anyway, wouldn't it have made more sense to fix the game for a New York team since they were the city attacked?

Exactly...

No,because if you recall the Patriots were introduced before that Superbowl as a team instead of individual players.So here's a team called the Patriots in red,white and blue being introduced as one because "united they stand,divided they fall." What greater story for a nation that had just experienced the worst terrorism attack in its history.

[cosmo20002]

No,because if you recall the Patriots were introduced before that Superbowl as a team instead of individual players.So here's a team called the Patriots in red,white and blue being introduced as one because "united they stand,divided they fall." What greater story for a nation that had just experienced the worst terrorism attack in its history.

A greater story might have been a team from the city that was attacked.

Bottom line is that a very good team won the Super Bowl that year and that team went on to be the best team of that decade.

[Nzoner]

A greater story might have been a team from the city that was attacked.

Bottom line is that a very good team won the Super Bowl that year and that team went on to be the best team of that decade.

So which team do you choose?The Patriots were the perfect team for a "feel good story".

[ILChief]

The best straw man ever.

How? You say we can't win because we won't draft a first round qb. There's a qb we could have had. Maybe ej Manuel, geno smith, Brandon weeden, jake locker? I guess those guys would have us headed to the super bowl

[Bearcat]

How? You say we can't win because we won't draft a first round qb. There's a qb we could have had. Maybe ej Manuel, geno smith, Brandon weeden, jake locker? I guess those guys would have us headed to the super bowl

Everyone knows there aren't any guarantees... that's why they won't draft one. Teams try for years to find the right QB, but at least those teams are trying. It's high risk / high reward.... and the reward is much higher than drafting even a guaranteed 15 year Pro Bowl OT. It's also pretty much guaranteed that the team will go through a shitty season or two, so there's no point in taking that risk if you can be competitive with a retread much sooner.

[The Franchise]

It's getting harder and harder to watch football with other "fans". I'm not a "know it all"....but when people tell me that he couldn't have caught it because the WR was "double blocked" or complain every time the offense runs the ball because "the run never works!". .....I want to kill someone.

[Amnorix]

The worst is when the refs are openly swinging games one way or another.

Sure was a great story to have "The Patriots" winning the superbowl after 9-11.

There was a clip during Bill Billicheats show where he walks up to the refs and they are like "don't worry, we'll protect your guy" or something of the sort.

The purity of the sport has most definitely been compromised.


Not more than having a New York team win it.

As a Patriots fan, I hear this crap all the time, but believe me, you see PLENTY of terrible calls go against you. I think people who are highly attuned or suspicious of it tend to remember every little thing that supports their premise, and forget everything that doesn't.

These calls tend to even out over time, so I try not to get too agitated. The non-call against Gronk was, in my view, at least very, very close, and if there's a "get the Pats to the SB" conspiracy, that's an easy one for the refs to call. Instead they pick up the flag.

Yesterday there was, in my view, a pretty chintzy PI call against the Browns that was very helpful in giving the Pats the win. I wonder more about pandering to the HOME team (the Carolina non-call was in Carolina, the PI call yesterday in Foxborough) than "let's figure out how to give the Pats a win."

[Amnorix]

So which team do you choose?The Patriots were the perfect team for a "feel good story".

Why not the Jets or Giants?

It's all crap. A conspiracy on that level would've come out by now.

[Ace Gunner]

Welcome to a brave not-so-new world. This is a microcosm of modern society. Only one thing can revive you...

http://acidcow.com/pics/20131017/gifs_01.gif

such an infectious smile

[Amnorix]

No,because if you recall the Patriots were introduced before that Superbowl as a team instead of individual players.So here's a team called the Patriots in red,white and blue being introduced as one because "united they stand,divided they fall." What greater story for a nation that had just experienced the worst terrorism attack in its history.


That was Belichick's idea, and if you think some marketing guru told him how to have his team introduced at the SB, you're completely out of your mind.

[Buehler445]

It's getting harder and harder to watch football with other "fans". I'm not a "know it all"....but when people tell me that he couldn't have caught it because the WR was "double blocked" or complain every time the offense runs the ball because "the run never works!". .....I want to kill someone.

What? Who are you watching with?

On a hilarious (perhaps only to me) side note I went to the bar with my buddies in Sidney. I believe the NU game was on PPV. Anyway, they went to watch the game I went to drink. Well they got beat down and some old crusty bastard piped up and informed the bar that they should get a coach that runs the triple option and get some of those Nebraska farm kids on the line.

I laughed. Hard.

[cosmo20002]

Not more than having a New York team win it.

As a Patriots fan, I hear this crap all the time, but believe me, you see PLENTY of terrible calls go against you. I think people who are highly attuned or suspicious of it tend to remember every little thing that supports their premise, and forget everything that doesn't.



I hate to go against my fellow Chiefs fans, but I usually spend a little time on the game thread during the game. When there's a questionable call or non-call against the Chiefs, people go nuts. When there's one of those in the Chiefs favor, nothing.

[The Franchise]

What? Who are you watching with?

On a hilarious (perhaps only to me) side note I went to the bar with my buddies in Sidney. I believe the NU game was on PPV. Anyway, they went to watch the game I went to drink. Well they got beat down and some old crusty bastard piped up and informed the bar that they should get a coach that runs the triple option and get some of those Nebraska farm kids on the line.

I laughed. Hard.

The double blocked comment came from my wife. :facepalm: I had to stop watching football with her.

[Direckshun]

You want to get really depressed?

The Kansas City Chiefs are not a grassroots team that is supported by the community and runs to represent it. It's a corporation built to make money off the community and is supported by a conglomerate of corporations who are all doing the same thing.

And that's what you're rooting for every Sunday.

Kind of takes the magic away from it, does it not?

[Bearcat]

Why not the Jets or Giants?

It's all crap. A conspiracy on that level would've come out by now.

I don't really believe it, but if there was a conspiracy, I don't think they would need to influence it that much. The Giants didn't make the playoffs that year. The Jets did as a wildcard, so you could have the NYC team or a team named the Patriots win it all. And it's not like it's the end of the world if one of them doesn't make it, but a small influence (maybe a big call in the conference championship game :shrug: ) could go a long way.

Far too much stuff has to happen to really rig seasons, but stressing certain things (hey refs, in this Manning vs shittyQB match up, we really need to concentrate on protecting the QB) can definitely influence the outcome. And just because the NFL wants it to happen, doesn't mean it will or that it's the end of the world if it doesn't... but there are definitely outcomes that favor the NFL as a business (which is indisputable), it's just whether they act on the urge to push their agenda.

[Bearcat]

I hate to go against my fellow Chiefs fans, but I usually spend a little time on the game thread during the game. When there's a questionable call or non-call against the Chiefs, people go nuts. When there's one of those in the Chiefs favor, nothing.

Yeah, I think it's like that for a lot of fan bases... it's really hard for people to be objective in that regard.

[Rain Man]

A few responses that I would add to the discussion:

First, teams are welcome to make their own mistakes, and are independently managed. The Chiefs can make the bonehead decision to not draft a quarterback for 30 years, and that's their call. The league doesn't care about that stuff, and it's an independent issue.

Second, I don't think that refs are explicitly told to rig games for one team or another, though it wouldn't surprise me at this point. But I have no doubt that they're told to "keep things close" within the context of the game, and if you "keep things close" then that's going to favor the teams with the big quarterback stars since they're more likely to get a bolt of lightning score. Then, voila! Instant drama! And atop that of course you have rules that are tilted toward the attributes that make stars. We want star quarterbacks in this league, so you can't touch a receiver. If you touch a receiver, the quarterback gets four more chances.

Having said that, take a look at the Patriots call yesterday, or the personal foul call on Bernard Pollard in the Broncos game. Do you really want to watch a football game where Bernard Pollard's shoulder bump on Eric Decker warrants four more downs for Peyton Manning? I don't. It's not a sport any more if that's the way things work. Like I said, I don't think that the refs are explicitly told to rig games, but some of these calls that always seem to favor the stars really make me wonder when they produce more short-term revenue for the league.

Third, bearcat's earlier post hit it right on the spot. The league is a business, and the management team is being given orders to increase revenues and profits by XX percent per year. They're going to do that. If the sport of football gets in the way, then that's too bad. They're going to make the changes and do the things that will keep the multi-billion dollar business growing, per their orders. That's what really bothered me about their writing contest. It was a contest about people's love of football, and there was clearly no one in the judging room who loved football and protected the integrity of the game.

Fourth, I stand by my casino example. The league doesn't know in Week 1 who's going to win the Super Bowl. There's too much chaos on the field for that. But they know who they want to position for it from a revenue perspective, and they're going to tweak the odds here and there as they're able. Can the Chiefs win a Super Bowl? Yeah, if a whole bunch of stuff falls right and they can stop Manning and Brady on eight or nine downs when it should be three or four. Or maybe in the long run they can win if they blunder into drafting a media star. But the latter's not going to happen in flyover country.

Fifth, maybe this is just destiny. The league started small and it was a sport. It blew up into a national phenomenon and the dollars exploded and all of a sudden it was a multi-billion dollar business. At that point you have to start treating it like a multi-billion dollar business, and that's when the lawyers and the marketers and the p.r. people come in and the football people leave. But at this point they're just companies, not teams. I'm not going to buy a Medtronics shirt or a Boeing shirt and cheer loudly and high-five when their earnings reports come out. Why should I do that when an NFL company has success?

[lazepoo]

I completely understand how you feel. The notion of everything being a calculated production has extended itself past football for me though. I think that most major products are designed to appeal to the broadest market of groups even when that is at the expense of the groups that originally popularized whatever that product was. It's a slow creep towards ensuring that everything mainstream is completely accessible for casual enjoyment regardless of what that does to the integrity of the original product as the rough edges are sanded smooth and all the corners are padded.

The same thing has happened to mainstream music and literature. Most music is slickly produced and easily consumable without a substantive message, most books are written with a focus on accessibility to reading groups and casual readers (and familiar, formulaic plots) without regard for the literary characteristics of classic works. Look at movies: to paraphrase your original post, blockbusters today are an orgy of special effects. It's all in pursuit of the almighty dollar rather than the pursuit of a goal or artistic ideal.

Our world has been sapped of authenticity by commerce, and I would argue that this extends to our jobs as well. Businesses exist to make money first and provide a service second, and their focus is on doing what's right for them right now, not on the long term or the greater good.

So, what's happening in the NFL is just a reflection of what's happening in the world at large, we just didn't notice until it seeped into football, an area we'd believed was shielded from that sort of insidious effect by virtue of it being a game rather than a business, a fact that is no longer true.

[Rain Man]

Not more than having a New York team win it.

As a Patriots fan, I hear this crap all the time, but believe me, you see PLENTY of terrible calls go against you. I think people who are highly attuned or suspicious of it tend to remember every little thing that supports their premise, and forget everything that doesn't.

These calls tend to even out over time, so I try not to get too agitated. The non-call against Gronk was, in my view, at least very, very close, and if there's a "get the Pats to the SB" conspiracy, that's an easy one for the refs to call. Instead they pick up the flag.

Yesterday there was, in my view, a pretty chintzy PI call against the Browns that was very helpful in giving the Pats the win. I wonder more about pandering to the HOME team (the Carolina non-call was in Carolina, the PI call yesterday in Foxborough) than "let's figure out how to give the Pats a win."

I should note that my comments are not intended to disrespect the Patriots or even the Broncos. As an older fan, I know that the Patriots were an unsuccessful franchise for decades. It's not like the league particularly wants the Patriots or the Broncos to win because they're the Patriots or Broncos. They're just the teams that have the stars and thus the most revenue potential at this point in time. If fortunes shift and another team gets the stars (and hopefully a team in a big market), the Patriots may sink back into the pack. However, given that they represent a big market, they'll do it slower than a Carolina team or a Cincinnati team. The modern NFL industry doesn't want revenues to shrink in bigger markets.

That said, I've long hated the Broncos for a variety of reasons. The Elway thing started it, and then the salary cap violations, the foreign substances, and so on. But they've got it figured out. They're going to win, and they're going to win because they understand the business of the NFL. Elway is the prototype and the genesis of using football purely as a vehicle for wealth and fame against the best interest of the sport, because he was the first one who did it. He understands that you don't earn championships in the modern NFL, you arrange them. You buy a quarterback who fits the fame model, or if you are a quarterback you don't go to a weak team and you use your power to force your way onto a playoff-caliber team. That's the way the industry works now, and the Broncos will thrive despite their small market because they embrace that.

[The Franchise]

Don't forget fantasy football. That shit is a multi-million dollar business. I'm not going to talk shit about it because I play it.

[Rain Man]

Don't forget fantasy football. That shit is a multi-million dollar business. I'm not going to talk shit about it because I play it.

Despite my loss of faith in the league, I still highly recommend Sandbox Football as a game of skill.

[Sannyasi]

I don't see why it would make more sense for the NFL to rig games. Why would you risk the integrity of a multi-billion dollar industry to make things slightly easier for the marketing guys?

Strictly from a risk vs. reward standpoint, I don't see how anyone could come to the conclusion that fixing games would be in the best interest of the NFL.

[GordonGekko]

Welcome to a brave not-so-new world. This is a microcosm of modern society. Only one thing can revive you...

http://acidcow.com/pics/20131017/gifs_01.gif

Thanks for brightening my day a bit here! :thumb::thumb:

[Rausch]

I don't see why it would make more sense for the NFL to rig games. Why would you risk the integrity of a multi-billion dollar industry to make things slightly easier for the marketing guys?

Strictly from a risk vs. reward standpoint, I don't see how anyone could come to the conclusion that fixing games would be in the best interest of the NFL.

For the same reason the NFL and MLB ignored steroids for so long...

[Rain Man]

I don't see why it would make more sense for the NFL to rig games. Why would you risk the integrity of a multi-billion dollar industry to make things slightly easier for the marketing guys?

Strictly from a risk vs. reward standpoint, I don't see how anyone could come to the conclusion that fixing games would be in the best interest of the NFL.

Because you have orders to increase revenues by 3.5 percent a year, and the easiest way to do that and keep your multi-million dollar salary is to see the league's biggest stars playing in the games with large viewer ratings potential.

Again, I don't think they're fixing games to ensure who'll win. I think they're working to ensure that games are close and exciting and have last-minute scores to pull out victories, preferably by the league's biggest stars. The league isn't sitting down and saying "Listen, the Saints are going to win this year, and they're going to go 13-3 with losses at Green Bay, Houston, and Chicago." They can't do that. But they can say, "We want a passing offense because passes produce more consumer engagement, and we want our biggest stars to be in exciting games, so let's keep 'em close and give those guys every chance to win."

[Sannyasi]

For the same reason the NFL and MLB ignored steroids for so long...

The NFL still ignores steroids because the fans don't care about them. Everyone knows that most of the players on every team are doing it.

[Sannyasi]

Because you have orders to increase revenues by 3.5 percent a year, and the easiest way to do that and keep your multi-million dollar salary is to see the league's biggest stars playing in the games with large viewer ratings potential.

Again, I don't think they're fixing games to ensure who'll win. I think they're working to ensure that games are close and exciting and have last-minute scores to pull out victories, preferably by the league's biggest stars. The league isn't sitting down and saying "Listen, the Saints are going to win this year, and they're going to go 13-3 with losses at Green Bay, Houston, and Chicago." They can't do that. But they can say, "We want a passing offense because passes produce more consumer engagement, and we want our biggest stars to be in exciting games, so let's keep 'em close and give those guys every chance to win."

I can see why the results in recent years would lead some people to those conclusions. After all, the NFL marketing guys get paid millions of dollars to craft storylines out of these results that appeal to the public and spark interest in the sport. If you are a public relations guy after the Saints win the Super Bowl you'd be stupid not to invoke the triumphant spirit of a team giving hope to a city still coming back from a natural disaster. That shit sells, specifically to the more sentimental viewers that the NFL seems keen on attracting. However, the fact that these narratives exist is not evidence that they have been reverse engineered.

As far as the preferential treatment for super star players, no one can pretend to know the individual psychology of each referee, but I don't see it as a policy. Maybe my memories are different, but I don't recall Brady or Manning needing massive intervention from the refs to win their championships. There are so many individual moments in a game that someone could point to in hindsight, but in reality, isn't it much simpler to admit that these players win because they are damn good?

[ClevelandBronco]

When I stopped thinking of football as an essential event, a way of life and a tool to measure character and instead began to see it as nothing more than a passive entertainment that didn't require or even particularly care for my individual participation, my life improved. It was not a smooth transition. I still care a little, but I'm getting better.

Good luck with whichever path you decide to take from here, Mr. Rain Man.

[Brock]

It's just show biz now.

[Bearcat]

I can see why the results in recent years would lead some people to those conclusions. After all, the NFL marketing guys get paid millions of dollars to craft storylines out of these results that appeal to the public and spark interest in the sport. If you are a public relations guy after the Saints win the Super Bowl you'd be stupid not to invoke the triumphant spirit of a team giving hope to a city still coming back from a natural disaster. That shit sells, specifically to the more sentimental viewers that the NFL seems keen on attracting. However, the fact that these narratives exist is not evidence that they have been reverse engineered.

As far as the preferential treatment for super star players, no one can pretend to know the individual psychology of each referee, but I don't see it as a policy. Maybe my memories are different, but I don't recall Brady or Manning needing massive intervention from the refs to win their championships. There are so many individual moments in a game that someone could point to in hindsight, but in reality, isn't it much simpler to admit that these players win because they are damn good?

I don't think anyone is really stating otherwise. The NFL has created a QB league for the high scores and excitement, so of course the best QBs are going to have the best chance of winning. And yes, it's easy to come up with a number of conspiracies in hindsight... you could list reasons why the NFL would want any team in the league to win a SB, but of course some reasons are better than others.

I don't really believe the conspiracies, but there's really no doubt the NFL would benefit from certain outcomes and there's really no doubt the NFL is all about money these days. Like Rain Man said, I don't think it's predetermined at all... if the Saints don't make the playoffs after Katrina, there are always other storylines... but once they're there, if it's all about business and entertainment, it would almost be dumb not to nudge the Saints along IF they need a little push along the way.

I agree with you for the most part... conspiracy nuts will always find a reason the NFL wanted team x to win a SB or spin a certain call or whatever, and those reasons existing doesn't make for a valid conspiracy... but, if the conference championship rolls around and there's a chance a team named the Patriots could make it to the SB right after 9/11, or the SB rolls around and the Saints have a chance to win it after Katrina, I don't think it's a big stretch the NFL would have something tucked away for such occasions.

[Bearcat]

When I stopped thinking of football as an essential event, a way of life and a tool to measure character and instead began to see it as nothing more than a passive entertainment that didn't require or even particularly care for my individual participation, my life improved. It was not a smooth transition. I still care a little, but I'm getting better.

Good luck with whichever path you decide to take from here, Mr. Rain Man.

Yep... I remember being the former in college, even though losses never really impacted my well being beyond a good night's sleep... people here would talk about not taking losses too harshly and I would tell them to STFU, heh... this stuff is important!

It took me a while to get out of the habit of watching every single game and having the desire to spend hundreds to see big games live, and now it's much closer to simply having something on the TV Sunday afternoons. I've missed or turned off a few shitty games this season and barely watched 2011 or 2012... if it's not even entertaining, there's really no point. The NFL is still a decent product, but mostly not until mid-January.

[Otis99]

So I wrote an essay and felt pretty good about it, and sent it in. I loved football.
I'd really like to read it. I suppose that the essay itself runs somewhat counter to the gist of your post, but I think it would make for a good companion piece to this well-written critique of the contest.

[jettio]

I have been a football fan for more than forty years, and it has been one of the foundational interests of my life. I’ve played the sport since childhood, I’ve traveled to games, I’ve purchased jerseys, and I’ve been an unceasing student of statistics and strategies.

I’m now experiencing a crisis of faith, though, and I fear that football’s time is coming to an end for me. The catalyst was something really stupid, but it opened the door to a greater awareness that is quite disturbing and disillusioning.

The initial catalyst was the NFL’s “Together We Make Football” contest. I read about it and thought, “Wow, a nice celebration of football, and Super Bowl tickets would be a great prize”. So I wrote an essay and felt pretty good about it, and sent it in. I loved football.

The entries were posted on the site, and I read a few of them, and frankly, most of the essays and videos were pretty weak. People didn’t follow the rules or think about why a judge would pick them to win. Many of them were just pictures of people in jerseys saying, “We like football. Send us to the Super Bowl!”

But I saw another pattern, too, and it got me to thinking. There seemed to be a lot of people using disabilities or illness as an argument, particularly among their kids. “I had a lung infection. Send me to the Super Bowl!” “My son has spina bifida. Send us to the Super Bowl!” For the most part, they were not well-written or well-produced. They were requests for pity, and frankly I found them kind of off-putting. They seemed almost more like panhandling than an essay about why those people love football.

As I skimmed through, them, though, I found myself getting agitated. I’m a market research guy, and I found myself starting to read them from a marketing standpoint. I would find myself thinking that some NFL public-relations person would probably like this angle or that angle. “Hey, a disabled kid. Wouldn’t that be a great winner to use for marketing?” (Sorry if that’s insensitive, but it’s how p.r. people think.)

I looked through some more entries, and thought, “If I was a callous, cynical s.o.b., I’d bet that the five winners of this contest will be a disabled kid, an attractive woman, an inner-city African American, a veteran or active duty soldier, and then whoever writes the best essay." And then I immediately felt bad for being a callous, cynical s.o.b. and I submitted my essay.

The NFL announced the ten finalists recently. Three of the ten stories are interesting and speak to football. Three. The other seven are incredibly lame and contrived, and I think one is actually insulting to any longtime football fan. My cynical side picked wrong on the military guy, but if you look at the videos it’s pretty clear that this contest was not about celebrating football. We are not hearing the ten best essays about how football shapes and impacts people’s lives, and how they love football. We are hearing manufactured stories that are nothing more than a cynical marketing ploy to reach pre-defined target markets and serve as a p.r. tool.

Now, I mean no offense against the people in those videos when I say that. I have no doubt that nearly all of them like football, and that most of them love football. It’s not about them, or the fact that I wrote an epic, soul-shattering, thought-inspiring essay that was not selected since I don’t fit the any of the NFL’s market expansion segments.

What it really drove home was that the NFL is a business these days, and nothing more. I wanted a contest where I could write about football and how it has shaped my life, and where I could read about what it has done for others. That was what I was sold. Instead, I was used as a pawn so the NFL could sell its business.

Now, that thing is just a contest. I lose contests all the time. My years of playing and watching football have taught me to lose with grace, and I hope the winners of that contest have a great time. But it really made me think about who’s running the NFL now. I wanted the judges of that contest to be people who love football themselves, people who got into the business because they grew up passing and catching and tackling. I wanted the judges to be people who know who Otto Graham is. Who know Johnny Robinson and Doug Buffone and even John Jefferson, and who can tell you about the Sneaker Game or Christmas Day of 1971. I wanted the judges to be football people who understand what the story of football is about.

The judges of this contest were not football people. It is clear and obvious that they were p.r. people who said, “Okay, give me a person in this market segment and a person in that market segment and two more from that one, and let’s build stories around them." Those people probably don’t know Lawrence Taylor from Opie Taylor.

The NFL is run by businesspeople now. Lamar Hunt is gone. Bud Adams is gone. George Halas is gone. The league is run by lawyers and marketing people and advertisers. You could take them out of the NFL and exchange them with the industry leaders of soft drinks or smart phones, and it wouldn’t make a darn bit of difference. They’re selling a product, and I don’t think they really care what that product is.

And then I look at the games I am watching these days. I see rules changes that are designed for marketing value rather than sport. They’ve done the marketing analysis. If there’s more scoring, more casual fans will watch. If there are more passes, quarterbacks will become bigger celebrities. The games are cartoonish now, unbalanced scoring orgies because scoring lets casual fans know when to cheer. Defenses are being made irrelevant and quarterbacks are merely playing catch on their way to another 400 or 500 yards of showmanship. P.T. Barnum loves the aerial circus even as students of the game cringe.

And I am finally seeing the more sinister side of the business plan. I see blatant phantom penalties against the opponents of quarterbacks like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, two of the highest-visibility products that the league sells, penalties that are critical in letting their teams win and continue playing as the TV audiences surge in January. If you’re running a business, you act to maximize your revenues, and Peyton Manning holding a Super Bowl trophy will do that a lot more than Alex Smith or Nick Foles doing so.

I don’t think the players rig games. It’s realistically impossible to do that in a high-level sport on a leaguewide basis. But Tom Brady is good. If Tom Brady gets four extra downs to win a game because of a pass interference call, he’s probably going to win. You can’t rig games, but you can tilt odds with just a few critical officiating decisions.

Maybe I’m waxing nostalgic, but I don’t think the NFL always had this attitude. Back when Hunt and Adams and Halas were around, the league was a competitive sport. Those owners loved the game and they wanted to win. The money was big, but it wasn’t insane. Look at the ownership and league management today. Are they football fans who want to win, or are they businesspeople who want to maximize profit? The cash flows are enormous.

I have been a Chiefs fan my whole life. In the modern world, that is naïve and Quixotic. The Chiefs are a small-market team and none of the players do national commercials. From a marketing perspective they support a middle-class fan base that is much smaller than most other markets. There’s not much marketing value in Alex Smith holding aloft a Lombardi trophy, and in fact there’s a huge opportunity cost if it’s him and not Peyton Manning. The league’s management team does not want Alex Smith or Jay Cutler or Jake Locker to win. Maybe they’ll do it, because a football field remains a chaotic place, but if so it will be against the wishes of the marketing braintrust of the NFL, and therefore against odds that have become more steep than one team in 32.

Sometime in the past twenty or thirty years, football evolved, and not in a good way. Any given game is still fun to watch. The players still try hard to win. On a tactical basis I enjoy the show and the athletes. But on a higher level I have reluctantly concluded that professional football has ceased to be a competitive sport. It’s an entertainment conglomerate, and just like the tables in Vegas the odds are stacked in the house’s favor. The house exists to make money.

I’ll probably continue to watch football. It’s a tradition. The games are fun. But at this point I’m reluctantly going to go into it knowing that it’s not what it appears. It’s a TV show. I’m not going to buy merchandise to support a TV show, and I’m not going to pay hundreds of dollars to watch a TV show live. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll go out and live life a little more on Sunday afternoons.

There’s a semi-famous internet clip of an audience member at a professional wrestling show. He’s given the microphone and thanks the wrestlers for the “all they’ve done to their bodies”, and then tearfully says, “It’s still real to me, dammit!” Well, I’d like to thank NFL players like Johnny Robinson and Doug Buffone and John Jefferson for all they’ve done to their bodies to entertain me. I have loved football and it’s been a great run. But it’s not real to me any more.

Why not post your essay so that we can compare it to the winning entries?

Since this looks like a yearly contest, you should submit the opening post as your essay for next year.

[notorious]

When I stopped thinking of football as an essential event, a way of life and a tool to measure character and instead began to see it as nothing more than a passive entertainment that didn't require or even particularly care for my individual participation, my life improved. It was not a smooth transition. I still care a little, but I'm getting better.

Good luck with whichever path you decide to take from here, Mr. Rain Man.

Bingo.

[Rain Man]

Lemme ponder putting my original essay up. Personally, I liked it, but I also recognize that it probably didn't have the tone to be a winner now that I read what they liked. It also was just about football and not the NFL, which I suspect was a fatal flaw.

[Tombstone RJ]

I have been a football fan for more than forty years, and it has been one of the foundational interests of my life....

And I am finally seeing the more sinister side of the business plan. I see blatant phantom penalties against the opponents of quarterbacks like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, two of the highest-visibility products that the league sells, penalties that are critical in letting their teams win and continue playing as the TV audiences surge in January. If you’re running a business, you act to maximize your revenues, and Peyton Manning holding a Super Bowl trophy will do that a lot more than Alex Smith or Nick Foles doing so..

So how do you explain all the lousy, bad, horrible calls and non calls on the Broncos/Ravens playoff game last year?

You had me right up until you start waxing on about how it's all rigged for Manning and clearly last year's playoff game was very much not the case. If anything, the NFL rigged it so the killer LBer Ray cut-them-up Lewis got is fairwell ring right?

[Rain Man]

So how do you explain all the lousy, bad, horrible calls and non calls on the Broncos/Ravens playoff game last year?

You had me right up until you start waxing on about how it's all rigged for Manning and clearly last year's playoff game was very much not the case. If anything, the NFL rigged it so the killer LBer Ray cut-them-up Lewis got is fairwell ring right?

Ray Lewis practically has his own show on NFL Network, and they knew that Manning would be back for another year. It was their last chance to make Killer Ray into a legend, and they obviously believe that he has marketing value.

As I've mentioned before, I'm not being anti-Bronco on this topic. If it works better to screw you guys over, they will. It's all about return. You guys just have a great hedge fund in Manning, and at some point it will pay off.

[Rain Man]

Okay, here's my essay.

The rules of the contest are apparently not available online any more, but in essence the mission was to write about why you love football, and what it means to you. It was a 1,000 word limit (or you could submit a video), and they basically said something like, "We're looking for essays that present a story that we can tell in a three-minute video" or something like that.

I envisioned it as them reading the essay and producing a video supporting it, and apparently their vision was that they wanted a video that featured the author. So I understand not winning and frankly am glad that I didn't, because I really wouldn't want to be featured in a video. My goal was to write an essay that would describe the typical arc of football in a human life, using myself as an example. But anyway, here's my essay just for grins.

In a quiet corner of my house, displayed on a high shelf, is a football.

It probably doesn’t have much monetary value, though it may be an antique now. It’s a beautiful aged leather, circumscribed by the white stripes of its era, and it’s inscribed with the machine-etched autograph of Gale Sayers. The laces are chewed up by past dogs who tackled it, and it won’t hold air any more, but that doesn’t really matter. It’s the only item from my childhood that I keep on display.

My uncle gave me the football in the Christmas of 1971, when I was eight years old. I was already an avid football fan, and I did all the normal football things that a kid did. I collected football cards, memorized stats, and was a sixty-minute man on the playground. I lived and died by the fortunes of my beloved Kansas City Chiefs. But I did not own an actual football, and I guess he recognized the gap that winter. He gave me his.

It would be nice to say that this gift unlocked an athletic greatness in me, that I found fame or fortune from its roots. It would be a wonderful story to say that it helped me get a college scholarship or date the homecoming queen, or perhaps that I caught the winning touchdown in some game that really, really mattered. Football has certainly been that story for many people.

But in my case, none of that is true. The reality is that I was a skinny kid with glasses, and athletic greatness was never in the cards for me. My greatest football feats, my touchdowns and interceptions and booming punts, came on vacant lots or playgrounds against other skinny kids with glasses. My field goals were scored over a clothesline. No fan ever saw my glories and no scoreboard ever recorded them.

But as important as they were at the time, in the end it wasn’t the touchdowns or the interceptions or the booming punts that really mattered.

You see, my uncle didn’t do this gift halfway. It was a high-quality football that he gave me, not some cheap toy. It had an ideal friction in the leather grain, and it was perfectly formed to produce spirals, even from small hands. If you played football, you loved this ball, and that was the key.

We moved a lot, so I was always the new kid. I went to eight different schools in twelve years. I was always starting over, regularly touching down in a place I’d never been before. But two facts held true no matter where I landed. Everybody played football, and I owned the best football in the neighborhood.

I learned that the best way to start anew was to show up with the football, whether it was at recess or at the park or in some field, and ask to play. I’d find the kid who looked like the leader and toss him the football. He’d look at it, grip it, and say, “Yeah, you can play.” And then he’d tell the other kids, “Let’s use this ball.” It worked when I was eight, and it worked when I was 18, and it even worked at my first company picnic after college.

At that point, the hard part was done. After that, whenever the neighborhood guys played football, my football was unequivocally the ball of choice. And if they wanted to use my football, I came with the deal. An interception here, a punt return there, and pretty soon they forgot I was the new kid. A good football and hustle would earn my way into any group. Football was my passport.

The football itself had an active career of about 20 years, and in that time I suspect that five hundred different people threw it, caught it, carried it, or hit someone who did. Nearly every best friend I’ve ever had has thrown that football to me at some point, along with a lot of people I met once and probably a few people I couldn’t stand, though I tend to forget about those. The friends were the important part, and that football helped them recognize that skinny new kids with glasses could have something to offer. I would be a different person today without that football, and I would be a different person without those games in vacant lots.

The last time I threw or caught the ball in a game was when I was 30 years old. After that, it became harder to get a group together, and the ball started losing air, and eventually it found its way onto the shelf. Neither of us has seen action on the field in twenty years, and we probably never will again. So why is the ball there, still within easy reach? Maybe it’s because it makes me smile whenever I see it, that it takes me back to a golden time of my life where I could run from sunup to sundown and bounce up from a blindside hit. Or maybe I’m secretly hoping for one more game.

I’m fifty years old now. I have no children, and my life has taken me far from those who know my history. Some day I’ll die and someone will clean out my basement and they’ll either throw the football away or they’ll sell it for a few bucks. No one will know its power, or how it helped to mold my life.

Like me, this football will never be famous. It will never be in a museum, or have its story told other than this simple essay. Like me, it will someday be gone and forgotten. But I hope and believe that somewhere on that same day, some other kid will be given a high-quality football that offers a perfect spiral, and the story will start again. It’s not really about the ball.

[Tombstone RJ]

Ray Lewis practically has his own show on NFL Network, and they knew that Manning would be back for another year. It was their last chance to make Killer Ray into a legend, and they obviously believe that he has marketing value.

As I've mentioned before, I'm not being anti-Bronco on this topic. If it works better to screw you guys over, they will. It's all about return. You guys just have a great hedge fund in Manning, and at some point it will pay off.

so the NFL really, really wanted to honor a defensive player in the age of it's-all-about-the-offense!!? And Flacco, let's not forget his kind of wonderful, amirite?

You are 100% correct about this together we make football promo crap. It's totally rigged and the winners are not picked on their stories, nor their love. They are picked based on how much it will sell to the market place of women and minorities. So you are right in that regard!

[Rain Man]

so the NFL really, really wanted to honor a defensive player in the age of it's-all-about-the-offense!!? And Flacco, let's not forget his kind of wonderful, amirite?

You are 100% correct about this together we make football promo crap. It's totally rigged and the winners are not picked on their stories, nor their love. They are picked based on how much it will sell to the market place of women and minorities. So you are right in that regard!

I don't understand it, either, but the NFL promotes the intestines out of Ray Lewis. I don't get it at all, because I find him completely objectionable in every way. But from a marketing perspective he likes mugging for the camera, he gives them showboating and footage before and during the games, and he's got an insatiable appetite for the press. He embodies the three-ring circus that they want to project. Plus, they know they can count on him for exposure and interviews after retirement, so I guess they want to make him a legend for that reason.

Oh, and I should also note that the marketing people may possibly have been aghast when Rahim Moore didn't do what any basic middle-school safety does when protecting against a hail mary pass. Perhaps they wanted the Broncos to win and it didn't work out, so they were forced to ride the murderer's horse.

[Nzoner]

I don't really believe it, but if there was a conspiracy, I don't think they would need to influence it that much. The Giants didn't make the playoffs that year. The Jets did as a wildcard, so you could have the NYC team or a team named the Patriots win it all. And it's not like it's the end of the world if one of them doesn't make it, but a small influence (maybe a big call in the conference championship game :shrug: ) could go a long way.


tuck rule :)

[Hammock Parties]

Rain Man just needs the Chiefs to find their own franchise QB.

Then it will seem "more real."

I have felt like this team has had 0 shot to win a SB since Green left, and it has dampened my enthusiasm for the team significantly. The Chiefs won 45-10 Sunday and I felt like saying "oh, that's nice."

[Hammock Parties]

BTW, I do think we have marketable commodities in Alex Smith and Andy Reid.

The league would love to see either of them win a SB after they were treated harshly in their exodus (exodi?) from Philly and SF.

But they are probably less marketable than Brady, Manning, Brees and Wilson.

[The Franchise]

Okay, here's my essay.

The rules of the contest are apparently not available online any more, but in essence the mission was to write about why you love football, and what it means to you. It was a 1,000 word limit (or you could submit a video), and they basically said something like, "We're looking for essays that present a story that we can tell in a three-minute video" or something like that.

I envisioned it as them reading the essay and producing a video supporting it, and apparently their vision was that they wanted a video that featured the author. So I understand not winning and frankly am glad that I didn't, because I really wouldn't want to be featured in a video. My goal was to write an essay that would describe the typical arc of football in a human life, using myself as an example. But anyway, here's my essay just for grins.

In a quiet corner of my house, displayed on a high shelf, is a football.

It probably doesn’t have much monetary value, though it may be an antique now. It’s a beautiful aged leather, circumscribed by the white stripes of its era, and it’s inscribed with the machine-etched autograph of Gale Sayers. The laces are chewed up by past dogs who tackled it, and it won’t hold air any more, but that doesn’t really matter. It’s the only item from my childhood that I keep on display.

My uncle gave me the football in the Christmas of 1971, when I was eight years old. I was already an avid football fan, and I did all the normal football things that a kid did. I collected football cards, memorized stats, and was a sixty-minute man on the playground. I lived and died by the fortunes of my beloved Kansas City Chiefs. But I did not own an actual football, and I guess he recognized the gap that winter. He gave me his.

It would be nice to say that this gift unlocked an athletic greatness in me, that I found fame or fortune from its roots. It would be a wonderful story to say that it helped me get a college scholarship or date the homecoming queen, or perhaps that I caught the winning touchdown in some game that really, really mattered. Football has certainly been that story for many people.

But in my case, none of that is true. The reality is that I was a skinny kid with glasses, and athletic greatness was never in the cards for me. My greatest football feats, my touchdowns and interceptions and booming punts, came on vacant lots or playgrounds against other skinny kids with glasses. My field goals were scored over a clothesline. No fan ever saw my glories and no scoreboard ever recorded them.

But as important as they were at the time, in the end it wasn’t the touchdowns or the interceptions or the booming punts that really mattered.

You see, my uncle didn’t do this gift halfway. It was a high-quality football that he gave me, not some cheap toy. It had an ideal friction in the leather grain, and it was perfectly formed to produce spirals, even from small hands. If you played football, you loved this ball, and that was the key.

We moved a lot, so I was always the new kid. I went to eight different schools in twelve years. I was always starting over, regularly touching down in a place I’d never been before. But two facts held true no matter where I landed. Everybody played football, and I owned the best football in the neighborhood.

I learned that the best way to start anew was to show up with the football, whether it was at recess or at the park or in some field, and ask to play. I’d find the kid who looked like the leader and toss him the football. He’d look at it, grip it, and say, “Yeah, you can play.” And then he’d tell the other kids, “Let’s use this ball.” It worked when I was eight, and it worked when I was 18, and it even worked at my first company picnic after college.

At that point, the hard part was done. After that, whenever the neighborhood guys played football, my football was unequivocally the ball of choice. And if they wanted to use my football, I came with the deal. An interception here, a punt return there, and pretty soon they forgot I was the new kid. A good football and hustle would earn my way into any group. Football was my passport.

The football itself had an active career of about 20 years, and in that time I suspect that five hundred different people threw it, caught it, carried it, or hit someone who did. Nearly every best friend I’ve ever had has thrown that football to me at some point, along with a lot of people I met once and probably a few people I couldn’t stand, though I tend to forget about those. The friends were the important part, and that football helped them recognize that skinny new kids with glasses could have something to offer. I would be a different person today without that football, and I would be a different person without those games in vacant lots.

The last time I threw or caught the ball in a game was when I was 30 years old. After that, it became harder to get a group together, and the ball started losing air, and eventually it found its way onto the shelf. Neither of us has seen action on the field in twenty years, and we probably never will again. So why is the ball there, still within easy reach? Maybe it’s because it makes me smile whenever I see it, that it takes me back to a golden time of my life where I could run from sunup to sundown and bounce up from a blindside hit. Or maybe I’m secretly hoping for one more game.

I’m fifty years old now. I have no children, and my life has taken me far from those who know my history. Some day I’ll die and someone will clean out my basement and they’ll either throw the football away or they’ll sell it for a few bucks. No one will know its power, or how it helped to mold my life.

Like me, this football will never be famous. It will never be in a museum, or have its story told other than this simple essay. Like me, it will someday be gone and forgotten. But I hope and believe that somewhere on that same day, some other kid will be given a high-quality football that offers a perfect spiral, and the story will start again. It’s not really about the ball.

Awesome essay, man.

[Bearcat]

tuck rule :)

yeah...


... but, if the conference championship rolls around and there's a chance a team named the Patriots could make it to the SB right after 9/11, or the SB rolls around and the Saints have a chance to win it after Katrina, I don't think it's a big stretch the NFL would have something tucked away for such occasions.


...get it, tucked away?! I'm hilarious.

[Hammock Parties]

Great essay, BTW.

You should have embellished it by taking a photo in a wheelchair, claiming that you were paralyzed in a flag football game at age 30. Football took your legs, but it gave you so much more.

Then when you are firmly in your Super Bowl seats (after being wheeled around all day), you could stand up and claim I'M CURED! FOOTBALL MADE ME WALK AGAIN!

[Rain Man]

Rain Man just needs the Chiefs to find their own franchise QB.

Then it will seem "more real."

I have felt like this team has had 0 shot to win a SB since Green left, and it has dampened my enthusiasm for the team significantly. The Chiefs won 45-10 Sunday and I felt like saying "oh, that's nice."

Winning masks a lot of things, so if we were winning with a big media star, I'd probably be just as happy as the next guy.

There's certainly room to criticize the Chiefs for their naivete over the past few decades. While the league was huddling and figuring out how to maximize the business model, and while other teams were recognizing that and adjusting, the Chiefs continued to think blocking and tackling. They sought to play the sport of football while other teams won football championships by better understanding the business of football.

Perhaps the Chiefs were slow to adjust because their ownership was one of the football families. Maybe Clark will be more of a businessman than Lamar was, and the Chiefs will join the 21st century and start playing the business game. Yay, Chiefs. If they do, it'll likely decrease my enjoyment of the game since I actually like football, so either way I think I'm screwed.

[mcaj22]

But Rain Man is kind of right, what if the "business side" of the league gets their way in the next decade

*Teams in London, LA, and Toronto?
*expanded weeks
*TWO Thursday night games
*those bullshit playoff rules

I mean at what point is too much, too much?

[unothadeal]

Whatever you do don't click on Bobby's photo on their website

[MahiMike]

Ray Lewis practically has his own show on NFL Network, and they knew that Manning would be back for another year. It was their last chance to make Killer Ray into a legend, and they obviously believe that he has marketing value.

As I've mentioned before, I'm not being anti-Bronco on this topic. If it works better to screw you guys over, they will. It's all about return. You guys just have a great hedge fund in Manning, and at some point it will pay off.

I agree. Last year was Ray Ray, killer Ray Ray's last chance to go out like Elway. I do believe the refs are paid by the NFL to swing the games for marketing. Just watching yesterday's games shows you that. The Ravens and Pats games were crazy biased.

[HemiEd]

I actually think that was more of an opportunistic thing rather than a fix. Here are the Saints, looking like they might win the Superbowl...what can we market here...AH! Katrina!

As Cosmo stated, it's too long after the actual event to link it to a fix. Rather, it was a chance for the NFL to exploit a story. They do that shit all the time.

You mean like Andy Reid coming back to Philly? The Manning brothers playing each other?

I personally don't think the NFL is fixed, but I have had many doubts about "part time" refs with so much money involved.

[blaise]

Just on a sort of side note - When you write for contests like these you sort of have to know what they want. They want hack. That want kitsch. So, you have to give them what they want.
The person in charge of screening the entries is probably some 32 year old female marketing grad who doesn't know a thing about football.

[HemiEd]

FWIW, I'm not suggesting that the NFL is rigged or blatantly biased (I do think it's inherently biased in some cases).

I think the combination of city, fans, ownership, NFL structure, and several other factors are going to make it nearly impossible for the Chiefs to win a Super Bowl.

I don't blame the NFL for that.

I think the fan base has shown very clearly to ownership how impatient they are and how much they hate losing.

Being in a small market doesn't allow for all of the "extra" demand for the seats that would be available, while that star franchise QB that they draft learns to win.

Consequently ownership is not going to draft a QB and they will keep bringing in the QB rejects that are capable of getting this team to 10 and 6 for the fans to keep the dream alive. It just may work again someday.

I for one, have really enjoyed this season now that I have accepted this.

[HemiEd]

Enough Chiefs fans are satisfied with mediocrity, so there's no point in "wasting" 2-3 years to develop a QB when you can sign a retread/stop gap and get butts in seats.

Buy season tickets.

This, or slightly above mediocrity at 10 and 6 please. Wildcard!

[Amnorix]

The NFL still ignores steroids because the fans don't care about them. Everyone knows that most of the players on every team are doing it.


This is true across all sports, pretty much. The leagues just want enough of a policy/system to avoid being perceived as ignoring it or in the bag allowing it, but ultimately they just hope there's never a scandal...

[Just Passin' By]

Tuck Rule was as blatant as it gets.

They properly applied the tuck rule, so I'm not sure what you think was blatant, other than the officials blatantly making the proper call. That same rule, properly applied, had cost the Patriots a game against the Jets earlier in the season.

[Earthling]

I personally don't think the NFL is fixed, but I have had many doubts about "part time" refs with so much money involved.

Exactly.

[Earthling]

I do believe the refs are paid by the NFL to swing the games for marketing. Just watching yesterday's games shows you that. The Ravens and Pats games were crazy biased.

I'm dubious. How would that decision be made, who would make the proposition to the refs, how would monies be transferred, and who would be keeping the books on that illegal activity? A lot of possibilities for an errant leak and total chaos within not only the NFL but also a huge hit on the Las Vegas betting casinos once trust in the game had been breached. I just don't think the risk would be worth the gain.

[LoneWolf]

They properly applied the tuck rule, so I'm not sure what you think was blatant, other than the officials blatantly making the proper call. That same rule, properly applied, had cost the Patriots a game against the Jets earlier in the season.

Don't let facts get in the way of the conspiracy theorists in this thread.

The league is biased towards Peyton Manning/Brady, but Manning has won one Super Bowl and had a plethora of one and dones in the playoffs and Brady hasn't won a Super Bowl in 8 years. :shrug:

Green Bay, the smallest market in the NFL, has recently won a Super Bowl. Rainman, you wrote a great essay and it sucks that the contest was looking for something more marketable, but stop being an idiot about the rest of the game.

[texaschiefsfan]

Enjoyed the essay and the overall discussions in this thread. I don't think there is a conspiracy. It's just horrible officiating.

[Iowanian]

Were I sitting in the board room discussing this as a corporate marketing concern, I would address the list of several valid points in your opening statement. With grace and tact I would express sentimental understanding and empathy for your essay and the validity of your feelings about your childhood.

Then I would offer some tails to the heads side of the coin you have shown. Manning or Brady going out in a blaze of glory with confetti avalanches over a hoisted Lombardi. Ideally they'll cheer for an AFC championship game between the two. This is true.

A true marketing genius sees the value in the underdog winning from a league perspective from my view. A Chiefs championship, going from 2-14 to MVP, inspires hope in 20 fan bases of mediocre and otherwise feces covered teams. Marketing campaigns abound about next season, possibilities, new hope born in the spring....Hell, I'd throw a clip of a newly born fawn standing for the first time into the power point.

Then, I'd jump on the table shout that I didn't date the homecoming queen but I shagged her sister and spike your football into the condiment platter you've been so kind as to provide for our meeting.

Boom. roasted.

[Bob Dole]

I'm dubious. How would that decision be made, who would make the proposition to the refs, how would monies be transferred, and who would be keeping the books on that illegal activity?

One word: Illuminati.

[Rain Man]

Green Bay, the smallest market in the NFL, has recently won a Super Bowl. Rainman, you wrote a great essay and it sucks that the contest was looking for something more marketable, but stop being an idiot about the rest of the game.

I'll try, but it's hard to stop being an idiot at my age. I've been doing it for far too long.

[Marcellus]

Something tells me Baltimore would never have won a SB if people in the NFL gave a shit about what city the team was from.

[LoneWolf]

I'll try, but it's hard to stop being an idiot at my age. I've been doing it for far too long.

Sorry about the name calling. I've just read several posts over the past couple of days talking about NFL conspiracies and they make this fanbase sound like a bunch of whiners.

There isn't enough reward to warrant the risk of purposely influencing games through league mandates.

[Discuss Thrower]

Great essay, BTW.

You should have embellished it by taking a photo in a wheelchair, claiming that you were paralyzed in a flag football game at age 30. Football took your legs, but it gave you so much more.

Then when you are firmly in your Super Bowl seats (after being wheeled around all day), you could stand up and claim I'M CURED! FOOTBALL MADE ME WALK AGAIN!

Will Vera Lynn be playing in the background for all of this?

[Rain Man]

Sorry about the name calling. I've just read several posts over the past couple of days talking about NFL conspiracies and they make this fanbase sound like a bunch of whiners.

There isn't enough reward to warrant the risk of purposely influencing games through league mandates.

I don't like the conspiracy talk, either, and maybe I shouldn't have included it in the discussion since it tends to dominate. I included it because it's a logical next step as football transitions from sport to entertainment, and it's a little squishy as to how far they've moved toward that step.

My intended main theme is that there are no football people running football any more, and I think the sport is suffering as a result. I don't think the current NFL is acting as a steward of the game, and the league is more interested in profit. I mentioned in an earlier post that this might be a natural destiny, and that anything becomes a business when it hits ten digits in revenues. But for me, that's when I start checking out and finding something else to be my passion.

[LoneWolf]

Here's the rub. Football and all professional sports have always been businesses. Football fans are paying customers and teams exist and have always existed to turn a profit. Lamar Hunt was a businessman. It just seems different because the numbers are bigger, but if these teams never made money the league would no longer exist.

[BlackHelicopters]

Sack up, dude .

[Chief Roundup]

I noticed the differences starting with the Tuck rule and letting the Patriots clear an area for the kicker. Most people had never heard of the Tuck rule before that play. Most teams would have been penalized for clearing the snow for the kicker.
9/11 happens and all the sudden the Patriots win the SB.

[Chief Roundup]

Lets also keep in mind that the NFL is considered Sports Entertainment as well.

[SPATCH]

Ahhhh yes...

I call this the plight of modernity: living without illusions without becoming disillusioned.

No easy task.

[Chief Roundup]

Yeah but at the time, why would the league want to help the Patriots? Tom Brady was just another QB at that time and the Raider. were probably a bigger team marketwise than the Patriots at that point.
Posted via Mobile Device

Their very name and what happened. Patriot...Patriotic....Patriotism....You know those things that this country was built on.

[Brock]

I noticed the differences starting with the Tuck rule and letting the Patriots clear an area for the kicker. Most people had never heard of the Tuck rule before that play. Most teams would have been penalized for clearing the snow for the kicker.
9/11 happens and all the sudden the Patriots win the SB.

The raiders called time out. There isn't any rule against clearing snow.

[cosmo20002]

Lets also keep in mind that the NFL is considered Sports Entertainment as well.

What does that mean and why keep it in mind?

[cosmo20002]

Their very name and what happened. Patriot...Patriotic....Patriotism....You know those things that this country was built on.

The 9/11-Patriots thing is sadly ridiculous. Exactly why does the team name matter? This whole conspiracy revolves around the TEAM NAME.

Did people really tune in because the PATRIOTS were playing? Did people really rally around the PATRIOTS just because of the team name and 9/11?

It's childish nonsense.

[ciaomichael]

Here's the rub. Football and all professional sports have always been businesses. Football fans are paying customers and teams exist and have always existed to turn a profit. Lamar Hunt was a businessman. It just seems different because the numbers are bigger, but if these teams never made money the league would no longer exist.

That's true. In the days of the old AFL those guys were literally fighting for their existence. And when I say "those guys" I mean owners, coaches and players alike. As a result, the marketing was grass roots. The players were real people who genuinely inter-acted with the fans. Every team had its own distinct personality. It was a world of innovative football, especially in the AFL. And the game of football itself really wasn't distinguished from the business/marketing side - it was one and the same. And real, spontaneous things tended to happen back then - who can forget the famous Jets-Raiders Heidi game? Not even the brightest NFL marketing person could ever design such a stunt these days.

Some time around the late 80's/early 90's, the game started to become homogenized and then, later, sterilized. Instead of marketing being what comes naturally to entreprenuers, the so-called professionals took over. Marketing people love a story. But, the stories have to either be generated spontaneously or they're just re-cycled. I suspect that's the source of some of the OP's frustration. Like the re-cycled stories of the infirm/disabled children. The first few make for "feel good" stories, but after that become a bit obnoxious.

That's why I kind of enjoyed that Steelers coach jumping out on the field the other day. It may or may not have been rehearsed in the guy's mind, but it reminded me of something you might have seen in the old days. Of course, the fines and such imposed by the NFL were kind of over the top...should have just thrown an unsportsmanlike flag and called it a day.

[Chief Roundup]

What does that mean and why keep it in mind?

Wrestling is Sports Entertainment. Sports Entertainment focuses on the Entertainment aspect of the business not the Sports part of it.

[Bearcat]

Here's the rub. Football and all professional sports have always been businesses. Football fans are paying customers and teams exist and have always existed to turn a profit. Lamar Hunt was a businessman. It just seems different because the numbers are bigger, but if these teams never made money the league would no longer exist.

Stakeholder vs shareholder... or specifically for the NFL, the product and fans vs money. Yeah, there's always the business side of it and they have to make their money, but it can make a HUGE difference whether your focus is in the right place or solely on the money.

And actually, if the focus had only been about money back then, it probably wouldn't exist today. Like ciaomichael said, they were just fighting for relevance... and when you're fighting for customers, that's where your focus is at. You're just trying to make the product the best it can be and attract fans.

Well, now that they have all the customers they'll ever need and make eleventy billion dollars a year, they could focus on the game and fans, but they choose to focus on making 5% more money next year.

It's nothing new... maybe Lamar dreamed of making millions, but back then his passion had to be football, not money. Just look at the differences between Sporting's ownership and any NFL team, or most any (relatively) small company vs most any huge company.

[cdcox]

You left out the part about the compass in the stock and a thing that tells time. That would have made it better.

[Marcellus]

How exactly does NE winning the SB after 9/11 "help" football?

Yea its a good story that can be exploited to some level, but that's all.

No what happened is they lucked into Tom Brady.

CP is a place that 98% of the time screams you must have a franchise QB to win and then makes excuses for bias when the franchse QB's win.

[Chief Roundup]

The 9/11-Patriots thing is sadly ridiculous. Exactly why does the team name matter? This whole conspiracy revolves around the TEAM NAME.

Did people really tune in because the PATRIOTS were playing? Did people really rally around the PATRIOTS just because of the team name and 9/11?

It's childish nonsense.

Wow really dude. Did you not see and hear the gushing about how poetic it was that the "Patriots" were in the SB after 9/11 happened to our country? All of the stories that tied the SB as Patriotic to this nation. Have you not noticed the influx of people that that brought into football as fans? The average increase of NFL fans spiked post 9/11. In talking to a lot of people, that are not from nor have ever been in the northeast, that are fans of the Patriots and asking them when they became fans of the Patriots they ALL have said after 9/11 when they won the SB and how justifying it felt for the Patriots to win after what our nation had just been through.

[Chief Roundup]

Wrestling is Sports Entertainment. Sports Entertainment focuses on the Entertainment aspect of the business not the Sports part of it.

In baseball when a team is caught cheating they get stripped of their championship. In football when a team is caught cheating to win a championship they just get a minor fine and draft picks taken away but get to keep their championship.

[Chief Roundup]

How exactly does NE winning the SB after 9/11 "help" football?

Yea its a good story that can be exploited to some level, but that's all.

No what happened is they lucked into Tom Brady.

CP is a place that 98% of the time screams you must have a franchise QB to win and then makes excuses for bias when the franchse QB's win.

Tom Brady was a rookie and was not great by any stretch. The defense, and a very sold running game that the Patriots had at that time is what won that SB.
Depends on how you define help.
Brought a lot of new fans to the NFL. Ended up giving the NFL another QB that most people loved like Peyton Manning. Gave the NFL another rivalry to exploit. Wasn't there some mention of how the fans won't get to see another Manning vs Brady game unless it is in the playoffs.

[cosmo20002]

Wrestling is Sports Entertainment. Sports Entertainment focuses on the Entertainment aspect of the business not the Sports part of it.

You're using that term as if it has some sort of official meaning. Professional sports wouldn't even exist if they weren't supposed to be entertainment. Pro wrestling is scripted with a storyline and predetermined outcome. You're saying that's what the NFL is?

Never mind--this really is too stupid to discuss.

[cosmo20002]

In baseball when a team is caught cheating they get stripped of their championship. In football when a team is caught cheating to win a championship they just get a minor fine and draft picks taken away but get to keep their championship.

WTF? There is something wrong with you.

[LoneWolf]

In baseball when a team is caught cheating they get stripped of their championship. In football when a team is caught cheating to win a championship they just get a minor fine and draft picks taken away but get to keep their championship.

Remind me of when a baseball team was stripped of a championship for cheating.

[Just Passin' By]

Tom Brady was a rookie and was not great by any stretch. The defense, and a very sold running game that the Patriots had at that time is what won that SB.
Depends on how you define help.
Brought a lot of new fans to the NFL. Ended up giving the NFL another QB that most people loved like Peyton Manning. Gave the NFL another rivalry to exploit. Wasn't there some mention of how the fans won't get to see another Manning vs Brady game unless it is in the playoffs.

What the **** are you talking about? The Patriots went 11-3 under Brady in 2001, including 7-1 in the second half of the season. The offense and defense both finished 6th in the NFL in points (scored for the offense, allowed for the defense) while being 19th and 24th in yards, respectively. The rushing offense was 24th in the NFL in yards per.

The tuck rule was properly called, and had cost the Patriots a game earlier in the season, when it was called in the Jets game. Clearing snow by the players is legal, and having either the Jets or Giants win the Super Bowl would have been more of a direct connection with 9/11 than having the Patriots win it.

As for rivalry, it it was only a product of the NFL officials, don't you think the Patriots would have fallen back into obscurity by now? Instead, Brady is the only NFL QB to have more than 100 more wins than losses, and Brady has reached the Super Bowl in 5 of the 11 seasons he's been the team's primary starter and has reached the AFCCG in 7 of those 11 seasons, while Manning has repeated shit the bed as a playoff QB, becoming the king of the one-and-done.

You need a better brand of tinfoil.

[GoChargers]

The worst is when the refs are openly swinging games one way or another.

Sure was a great story to have "The Patriots" winning the superbowl after 9-11.

There was a clip during Bill Billicheats show where he walks up to the refs and they are like "don't worry, we'll protect your guy" or something of the sort.
Don't forget the league destroying the Cheatriots' Spygate tapes so that the fans and press could never see the full extent of their cheating.... not to mention slapping Belicheat on the wrist by not giving him a nice long suspension like he deserved.

[tk13]

Brady was definitely a huge part of the Pats first win... but he was far from 2007 Tom Brady at that point. I don't think he even threw for 200 yards in the Super Bowl. He definitely didn't have a lights out game.

People also forget Brady got hurt in the AFC title game, and Drew Bledsoe played QB for most of the game that got them to the Super Bowl. That's completely been lost into history at this point.

[Sorter]

Don't forget the league destroying the Cheatriots' Spygate tapes so that the fans and press could never see the full extent of their cheating.... not to mention slapping Belicheat on the wrist by not giving him a nice long suspension like he deserved.

Personally, I think that's way overblown in regards to being an advantage.

[GoChargers]

Personally, I think that's way overblown in regards to being an advantage.

Disagreed. Clearly they must have gained some major advantage from doing it, because not only were they doing it for seven years under complete secrecy, but Belicheat's assistants have also tried to go back to doing it when they've gotten head coaching jobs (i.e. McDumbass in Denver, Charlie Weis and his laptop at Notre Dame).

[tk13]

I don't like the conspiracy talk, either, and maybe I shouldn't have included it in the discussion since it tends to dominate. I included it because it's a logical next step as football transitions from sport to entertainment, and it's a little squishy as to how far they've moved toward that step.

My intended main theme is that there are no football people running football any more, and I think the sport is suffering as a result. I don't think the current NFL is acting as a steward of the game, and the league is more interested in profit. I mentioned in an earlier post that this might be a natural destiny, and that anything becomes a business when it hits ten digits in revenues. But for me, that's when I start checking out and finding something else to be my passion.

What tipped you off? The fact that the owners locked out the players right after signing a new multi-billion dollar MNF contract?

The reality is the owners have a license to print money, and they know it... and they're going to squeeze for all they can. I don't know where the limit is. The popularity of football is through the roof. Look at the lockout last year... a lot of people defended the owners, they needed to make more money. Others just don't care as long as they get football. They'll do anything, pay anything, there's no limit. So the owners have the diehards in their palms... now they can try to branch out and draw more non-traditional football fans. The lockout should've tipped everyone off, but people really don't care. 18 game seasons, Thursday night games, London, LA, 16 teams in the playoffs. They can do all these things and people will still watch, and profits will get bigger. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but that's where it's heading.

[Just Passin' By]

Brady was definitely a huge part of the Pats first win... but he was far from 2007 Tom Brady at that point. I don't think he even threw for 200 yards in the Super Bowl. He definitely didn't have a lights out game.

People also forget Brady got hurt in the AFC title game, and Drew Bledsoe played QB for most of the game that got them to the Super Bowl. That's completely been lost into history at this point.

The Patriots were on the verge of blowing out the Rams in that SB, when Warner tossed a pick-6. That score would have made it 24-3. The officials, however, called a penalty on the Patriots, getting McGinest for holding Faulk. If there had really been a conspiracy to ensure the Patriots victory, they could have just picked up that flag.

[Sorter]

Disagreed. Clearly they must have gained some major advantage from doing it, because not only were they doing it for seven years under complete secrecy, but Belicheat's assistants have also tried to go back to doing it when they've gotten head coaching jobs (i.e. McDumbass in Denver, Charlie Weis and his laptop at Notre Dame).

There is definitely an advantage. What's more relevant is that the advantage (even being caught) outweighs the punishment.


That being said, the advantage isn't truly that great due to the limited amount of time you have to see the other teams signals and relay back what that means before the snap.

[Just Passin' By]

Disagreed. Clearly they must have gained some major advantage from doing it, because not only were they doing it for seven years under complete secrecy, but Belicheat's assistants have also tried to go back to doing it when they've gotten head coaching jobs (i.e. McDumbass in Denver, Charlie Weis and his laptop at Notre Dame).

Stealing signs was not the problem, and Ditka, among many, made that clear:

"To steal signals from the booth, everybody's done it," Ditka said. "There are a lot of ways to cheat, a lot of ways of stealing signals, and if a team's not smart enough to change their signals, they deserve to be stolen.

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2007-09-16/news/0709150335_1_matt-estrella-signals-stealing

The issue was about camera placement.

[tk13]

The Patriots were on the verge of blowing out the Rams in that SB, when Warner tossed a pick-6. That score would have made it 24-3. The officials, however, called a penalty on the Patriots, getting McGinest for holding Faulk. If there had really been a conspiracy to ensure the Patriots victory, they could have just picked up that flag.

I don't disagree. I'm not into the whole conspiracy thing... sometimes people forget the calls that go against the team the NFL is supposedly "for."

If you were going to get into that though... I think you'd be better off starting with something like the Super Bowl blackout. That was legitimately weird, a very rare event, that certainly appeared to help restore the competitive balance of the game. I think you'd be better off arguing the NFL does things to keep games competitive. I don't think that's the case, but at least it would make sense.

[-King-]

Don't let facts get in the way of the conspiracy theorists in this thread.

The league is biased towards Peyton Manning/Brady, but Manning has won one Super Bowl and had a plethora of one and dones in the playoffs and Brady hasn't won a Super Bowl in 8 years. :shrug:

This alone should shut down the conspiracy
Posted via Mobile Device

[-King-]

In baseball when a team is caught cheating they get stripped of their championship. In football when a team is caught cheating to win a championship they just get a minor fine and draft picks taken away but get to keep their championship.

What the hell?
Posted via Mobile Device

[KCwolf]

I truly don't understand how someone could truly believe that NFL games are fixed yet still be a fan that follows the sport. If I really thought that the league would not allow KC to beat Denver/Manning or allow KC to make it to the SB, I would have no interest in following it.

You nailed it. However, message boards revel in this kind of negativity... it's how they thrive. There is ZERO chance the NFL is rigged, but let the braintrust who post on message boards think otherwise. Crazy.

[Nzoner]

You nailed it. However, message boards revel in this kind of negativity... it's how they thrive. There is ZERO chance the NFL is rigged, but let the braintrust who post on message boards think otherwise. Crazy.

Never,ever,not one single game?

[GoChargers]

There is ZERO chance the NFL is rigged

You are truly naive. An NBA ref has admitted to rigging games, you really think the same shit doesn't happen in other sports?

[-King-]

You are truly naive. An NBA ref has admitted to rigging games, you really think the same shit doesn't happen in other sports?

One individual ref did that. And he wasn't very good at it at all.
Posted via Mobile Device

[lcarus]

I agree with basically everything Mr. Rainman has stated in this thread. This kind of corporate greed extends far beyond just the NFL too. Seems like every little thing in this country is all about the bottom line and making that extra penny - at ANY cost.

[cosmo20002]

Never,ever,not one single game?

You are truly naive. An NBA ref has admitted to rigging games, you really think the same shit doesn't happen in other sports?

Has a player or ref ever done anything? Sure. But on orders from the league itself? I very, very much doubt that.

[htismaqe]

I don't like the conspiracy talk, either, and maybe I shouldn't have included it in the discussion since it tends to dominate. I included it because it's a logical next step as football transitions from sport to entertainment, and it's a little squishy as to how far they've moved toward that step.

Cosmo's "crusade" seems to have started right after his exchange with me and I'm not sure why. I don't think the NFL is rigged.

[cosmo20002]

Cosmo's "crusade" seems to have started right after his exchange with me and I'm not sure why. I don't think the NFL is rigged.

You might of helped inspire it. Probably because you said something like the cards are stacked heavily against the Chiefs ever going to the SB. You also said there is a reason the Chiefs haven't drafted a good QB and implied it was some reason other than simply bad choices by the Chiefs.

Basically, you're one of the "not rigged, but biased" people, although I'm not really sure what that means. Either the league is directly influencing the game outcomes or not.

[htismaqe]

You might of helped inspire it. Probably because you said something like the cards are stacked heavily against the Chiefs ever going to the SB. You also said there is a reason the Chiefs haven't drafted a good QB and implied it was some reason other than simply bad choices by the Chiefs.

Basically, you're one of the "not rigged, but biased" people, although I'm not really sure what that means. Either the league is directly influencing the game outcomes or not.

The league is directing the outcomes of games, not determining them.

They're manipulating the rules to produce certain types of games, namely high-scoring offensive shows. This inherently favors the teams that are built to play that type of game. Hell, a smart team would do everything it can, within the rules (and maybe outside of them too) to build a team that is built to play that type of game.

Of course, that's not at all the same as rigging games to determine which teams win and lose. I don't believe games are "fixed". The league doesn't favor Manning and Brady, nor does it favor the Broncos or Pats. The league favors, for the most part, good QBs and having a great QB just further emphasizes that.

[Iowanian]

Stemming from the epidemic of bullying in schools, low self esteem prevention in youth and to prevent adolescent depression due to experiencing losing season things must change. In response to these growing concerns among the modern, typical transgender-american parents and in light of the suffering of Johnathan Martin, the NFL will implement a rule change starting in 2014 where no points are kept in games.

We cannot have players feeling dejected and sad, as these are causing more emotional damage than concussions. Players will also be issued new equipment, which includes 2 flags to be worn at the level of the hip bones.

To further reflect the state of the nation and make fans feel more welcome, the NFL will now only allow 2 hot cheerleaders, 3 average and 5 heavy to obese cheerleaders to better reflect society.

[Quesadilla Joe]

The Broncos offense is fourth in the league in penalties, their defense is 8th...

[Iowanian]

That's because they're greasy, cheating, chemically altered low blow throwing, leg whipping, ankle breaking shitbricks of such epic proportions that even the Peyton manning funded officials can't overlook the blatant assholishness of the Denver Broncos.

[cosmo20002]

The Broncos offense is fourth in the league in penalties, their defense is 8th...

Yeah...but...those are all when the game is over and the outcome isn't in question. Because that's when most penalties generally occur.

/nut

[Ace Gunner]

The Broncos offense is fourth in the league in penalties, their defense is 8th...

you included four dots at the end -- must mean something...

how many holding/illegal downfield block penalties for that "fair" offense, stud

[htismaqe]

you included four dots at the end -- must mean something...

how many holding/illegal downfield block penalties for that "fair" offense, stud

They get called for those pick plays once in a while. Not enough, though.

[Buehler445]

Never,ever,not one single game?

I know, right? Several years ago there was a Pitt/SD game (IIRC, I at least know Pitt was in there) where Polumalu recovered a fumble and the officials took it off so the score would stay on one side or the other of the spread.

I remember watching it and thinking, "huh. That was a weird ruling." And then I went to work the next day and my buddy was fuming mad throwing shit in his office because he had money on the game and they changed the last play on some obscure ruling to cover or stay under the spread (I can't remember which).

After thinking about it, that's the most plausible explanation.

[ClevelandBronco]

I know, right? Several years ago there was a Pitt/SD game (IIRC, I at least know Pitt was in there) where Polumalu recovered a fumble and the officials took it off so the score would stay on one side or the other of the spread.

In fact, you have no proof whatsoever and your accusation is not evidence.

[cosmo20002]

I know, right? Several years ago there was a Pitt/SD game (IIRC, I at least know Pitt was in there) where Polumalu recovered a fumble and the officials took it off so the score would stay on one side or the other of the spread.

I remember watching it and thinking, "huh. That was a weird ruling." And then I went to work the next day and my buddy was fuming mad throwing shit in his office because he had money on the game and they changed the last play on some obscure ruling to cover or stay under the spread (I can't remember which).

After thinking about it, that's the most plausible explanation.

I just posted this in another thread where someone mentioned this. The Polumalu fumble recovery was from a lateral:
I remember the play. The first "lateral" was actually a (illegal) forward pass.
The refs (incorrectly) ruled the play should be dead at that point and the TD not allowed. That ruling is correct if the illegal pass was incomplete. However, when there is a completed or intercepted illegal forward pass, play should continue and the defense can decide to accept or decline the result.
I doubt the discussion under the hood was about the point spread.

[Buehler445]

I just posted this in another thread where someone mentioned this. The Polumalu fumble recovery was from a lateral:

Could be, but it is pretty damning given proximity to the point spread. We'll probably never know.

[Raiderhater]

The Broncos offense is fourth in the league in penalties, their defense is 8th...

Tamba Hali finds this stat amusing.

[Nzoner]

I know, right? Several years ago there was a Pitt/SD game (IIRC, I at least know Pitt was in there) where Polumalu recovered a fumble and the officials took it off so the score would stay on one side or the other of the spread.

I remember watching it and thinking, "huh. That was a weird ruling." And then I went to work the next day and my buddy was fuming mad throwing shit in his office because he had money on the game and they changed the last play on some obscure ruling to cover or stay under the spread (I can't remember which).

After thinking about it, that's the most plausible explanation.

In fact, you have no proof whatsoever and your accusation is not evidence.


I sure wished there was video of the ref that day,his facial expression was all anyone needed to see,it was basically,"oh shit what just happened."

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cVtlJgt_8FY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[cosmo20002]

I sure wished there was video of the ref that day,his facial expression was all anyone needed to see,it was basically,"oh shit what just happened."



I'm sure your memory is accurate. And they did screw up the call.
I think it happened because it was an odd play and they fucked up. You think it was intentional due because he was on the take from gamblers.

You guys want it both ways--the refs are incompetent idiots and diabolically clever.

[Iowanian]

I think next year I'm going to write an essay too.

I'll tell the story of how much our family loves football and how important it is at gatherings, the kids game in the yard and watching on holidays. I'll relay the story about the time grandma was carrying the turkey to the Thanksgiving table and was tripped when Auntie Em slid her chair back and hooked her apron, dislodging the golden brown bird from her arm. Half way to the ground, grandpa shouted "FUMBLE" and pandemonium ensued in the scrum to recover.

Under the pile my thumb was broken and someone bit deeply into my calf muscle. Imagine my surprise when grandma untangled the pile of players until my mother emerged from the bottom with my thumbnail in her left hand and the golden brown bird tucked high and tight with 5 points of contact. Her side of the table was awarded the bird, so I went on defense on the pie table.

[Katipan]

LMAO

[Nzoner]

I'm sure your memory is accurate. And they did screw up the call.
I think it happened because it was an odd play and they ****ed up. You think it was intentional due because he was on the take from gamblers.


THAT'S THE POINT,they didn't **** up!Watch the video,it was correctly ruled a TD and then taken off the scoreboard.Even the commentator on the highlights says as much.

[cosmo20002]

THAT'S THE POINT,they didn't **** up!Watch the video,it was correctly ruled a TD and then taken off the scoreboard.Even the commentator on the highlights says as much.

The end zone official rules it was a TD. He just signals that a player with the ball has crossed the goal line. He's not making a judgment on laterals that he didn't even have a good view of.

When reviewed they saw the illegal lateral. But they made the wrong call on it. The ball wasn't dead and the resulting play should have been allowed.

Again, I think they screwed up. You think it was intentional and the refs were being bought off by gamblers. That's really quite a conclusion to reaach based on this evidence.

[Rain Man]

Well, they announced the winners of the Super Bowl contest, and I must admit, it took a wild left turn on me.

It's clear that the NFL rigged the finalists to appeal to their market segments. They picked people based on their appearance rather than on the quality of their stories. They put marketing ahead of football, and I really didn't like that.

But then they made a huge mistake. I assumed that they would control the secret public voting to pick the people that they wanted, but I think they actually let it go to a public vote.

America, you voted and it looks kind of like you're racist and sexist. Four of the ten candidates the NFL provided were minorities. Six were white. There were five winners, and all five winners were white. Four of the candidates the NFL provided were women. Only one was selected, and it was the attractive young woman who is clearly a bandwagon fan who had the worst story of them all.

What a clusterf**k this was from a public relations standpoint. It makes me laugh. Someone is going to get fired over this.

http://www.togetherwemakefootball.com/contest.html

[Easy 6]

Its hard to not root for a father of two with a terminal illness...

[Rain Man]

Its hard to not root for a father of two with a terminal illness...

Yeah, I've got no problem with the guy getting a trip to the Super Bowl. Better him than the attractive young Hollywood woman who likes the Patriots and Tom Brady "because she likes the logo". :shake: Oh, wait. She got a trip, too. She is the NFL's preferred fan.

With regard to the guy (and the two kids), I'm not a fan of the fact that their entries weren't really based on a love of football, but were more of a pity ploy. The contest was supposed to be about why you love football.

But whatever. I wouldn't go to this Super Bowl if they paid me.

Well, maybe I'd go if they paid me. But I'd bring a book.

[-King-]

I really think you're blowing this out of proportion Rain Man. Yeah, they chose the best stories, but no one is going to get fired over it. It is what it is.

[Easy 6]

Yeah, I've got no problem with the guy getting a trip to the Super Bowl. Better him than the attractive young Hollywood woman who likes the Patriots and Tom Brady "because she likes the logo". :shake: Oh, wait. She got a trip, too. She is the NFL's preferred fan.

With regard to the guy (and the two kids), I'm not a fan of the fact that their entries weren't really based on a love of football, but were more of a pity ploy. The contest was supposed to be about why you love football.

But whatever. I wouldn't go to this Super Bowl if they paid me.

Well, maybe I'd go if they paid me. But I'd bring a book.

Yeah, some ditz who picks winners based on uniform color or "likes the logo" is way lame... and I'd have to agree that the guy maybe wasnt chosen based on his love of the game.

But this SB should be a doozy, I'm really looking forward to it... top offense vs top defense? thats a storybook matchup... LOVE the part about bringing a book LMAO

[Psyko Tek]

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/I6mpHW3SMcc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

sorry rainman , your feelings are as old as the AFC (close to)

[Rain Man]

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/I6mpHW3SMcc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

sorry rainman , your feelings are as old as the AFC (close to)

The tooz and I are on the same page. It seems like I'm always trailing him in philosophical thought.