Ray Rice suspension
Quote: GWAEPetro- it is only a lose lose because he put himself into that situation. If she was really about to attack him, I am sure that wouldn't be the first time. If that is the case then he should not be with her.
Ok, Ok, he screwed up. People have to learn. I do not in any way condone hitting women. I have made mistakes though, fortunately none ever cost me millions of dollars. I wish them both good luck.
This could also have unintended consequences. The next roided out athlete might just disappear his irate women knowing if the truth gets out life as they know it is over.
In the heat of the moment people error.
Like someone mentioned Mike Vick. What he did was wrong. He went to prison, for what two years. Two years in friggin prison. What exactly did he do? Dog fighting? Hey that's bad, and morally reprehensible, but two years in prison?? I think you can get out in 7 for murder. Just sayin make the punishment fit the crime.
One odd thing about the punishment is that it's mainly a monetary one and half of that money is hers.
The Michael Vick thing is just crazy to me. We're so goofy when it comes to animals. "Dog fighting is right up there with child molestation... oh yes, I'll have the veal please."
Believe it or not, it's not so much the men that are violent, but rather the women. When they act out, and begin clawing and hitting, if the man doesn't react, then the woman may feel unloved, and unwanted. Even though we may see it as being barbaric, they do not. Twerking and violence is simply part of their culture.
In its attempt to publicly don the robes of Political Correctness, the NFL is walking blindly off the cliff.
What's next: being fired and suspended for unpaid parking tickets?
Where is the line drawn?
I watch football to watch the game; I care next to nothing about the personal lives and peccadillos of the players.
Let The Law handle it: if a player isn't actually in jail, let him play.
To hell with trying to instill a sense of morality in men who excel at controlled ultraviolence.
Quote: MrVSterling, now Rice.
In its attempt to publicly don the robes of Political Correctness, the NFL is walking blindly off the cliff.
What's next: being fired and suspended for unpaid parking tickets?
Where is the line drawn?
I watch football to watch the game; I care next to nothing about the personal lives and peccadillos of the players.
Let The Law handle it: if a player isn't actually in jail, let him play.
To hell with trying to instill a sense of morality in men who excel at controlled ultraviolence.
The NFL could care less about "Political Correctness"
Its all about the money. All decisions the NFL makes is based on protection the billions in renenue.
Thats it.
Quote: terapinedThe NFL could care less about "Political Correctness"
Its all about the money. All decisions the NFL makes is based on protection the billions in renenue.
Thats it.
Right but staying popular and hence profitable in modern society involved forced political correctness.
Nope. The money flows from PC as they see it. All about the "Shield" that lays the golden eggsQuote: terapinedThe NFL could care less about "Political Correctness"
Its all about the money. All decisions the NFL makes is based on protecting the billions in revenue
Thats it.
So, why pander to public opinion?
Do they really think millions of guys will turn off the game on Sunday if Rice wasn't suspended?
Reminds me of the futility of trying to legislate morality.
It's that they don't want the perception that the NFL is the home of a bunch of violent goons who become millionaires as their crimes are swept under the rug. If that becomes the prevailing perception, yes it will hurt them with viewers and advertisers enough for it to matter.
It's funny because it involves a delicate balance of appeasing the "PC" types on one side and the people who aren't too crazy about blacks on the other.
The NFL is going to be moving downhill over the next couple decades anyway, because moms and even dads aren't going to want their kids to play beyond the sandlot. Stuff like this, the stubbornness over the Redskins name and so forth are just going to coincide with that narrative. Now, every time a player breathes on a woman or faces false accusations, never mind the times one really does something wrong, the media will be all over it. "See, another example!" Even if these guys hit women at a lower rate then the general population, which seems possible.
Another problem is that we worship these guys and every time something like this happens, people feel like they were burned. Some of them might slowly start to realize that it's stupid to worship someone for being good at a sport. That's bad for business.
Quote: KeyserThe kind of violence that we saw between Ray Rice and and his girlfriend is simply part of that ethnic group's culture. When you watch the video you can clearly see that she's attacking him in the beginning. This type of behavior is actually relatively common to them. It's simply how they express themselves. For example, look at Chris Brown and Rhianna.
Believe it or not, it's not so much the men that are violent, but rather the women. When they act out, and begin clawing and hitting, if the man doesn't react, then the woman may feel unloved, and unwanted. Even though we may see it as being barbaric, they do not. Twerking and violence is simply part of their culture.
I couldn't disagree more about this being an "ethnic culture" problem. A male/female problem, yes. A personality problem on both their parts, yes. Power, perception, self-worth, insecurity, all part of it. But I volunteer at a Domestic Violence shelter, and I assure you, even though the shelter is located in "that" part of town, it is fully integrated and representative of every socio-economic stratum.
Pigeon-holing it is to remove yourself from thinking it's a problem. It's a problem. 1 in 5 women in this country has been battered at some point in her life. 15% of men have been battered. So virtually all of you know someone, probably many someones, who have been battered.
Ok. Off my high horse. Just had read one too many comments like this in this thread not to speak up.
NFL means "Not For Long", and "No F***** Losers".
Grill the NFL front-office all ya want. No one has evidence that anyone in the upper echelons saw "the 2nd" clip.
Once said clip was shown, reaction was merciful and swift. GFB, period.
That was a Ray Rice dark-side problem that was exposed.
And like any highly-trained, highly motivated person, when that out-facing personality breaks, DO NOT be within 1/2 mile.
Quote: beachbumbabsI couldn't disagree more about this being an "ethnic culture" problem. A male/female problem, yes. A personality problem on both their parts, yes. Power, perception, self-worth, insecurity, all part of it. But I volunteer at a Domestic Violence shelter, and I assure you, even though the shelter is located in "that" part of town, it is fully integrated and representative of every socio-economic stratum.
Pigeon-holing it is to remove yourself from thinking it's a problem. It's a problem. 1 in 5 women in this country has been battered at some point in her life. 15% of men have been battered. So virtually all of you know someone, probably many someones, who have been battered.
Ok. Off my high horse. Just had read one too many comments like this in this thread not to speak up.
It just baffles me. I find it hard to understand why [especially a woman] would stay in a relationship and suffer violence/abuse. I can only assume it is closely related somehow with low self esteem? Barring staying "for the kids", which both genders are known to do.
Parents can raise a daughter from birth being good parents and bring the violence abuse issue up many times at the dinner table and think they have her understanding to not be and there is no reason to be in an abusive relationship.
She can then still run off to some bible college in Florida and marry some terribly abusive ***hole redneck and have a batch of kids and they all get abused.
I don't unnerstand.
I agree completely with your post.
I also don't believe that whatever is in persons head that makes them an abuser is curable, I want to think I'm wrong but havn't seen it.
Can someone remind me how long Jim Browns suspensions were for when he beat his wife numerous times? Mr Brown actually spoke proudly of beating women that sassed him and "putting them in their place". Hey Ty Cobb was a huge racist and frequently voiced his opinion on the subject. Was he banished from Baseball as Donald Sterling was from Basketball? Cobb also beat many women. He also beat up a disabled fan at one of his games? How long were his suspensions?
Of course, this is a different day and era, will be the replies. I don't see it. The NFL is about football. NBA, basketball. MLB, baseball. Who decided you have to be a model citizen to play sports? I don't see the crossover. As a matter of fact, I see just the opposite. Professional football is a violent game. The players that rise to the level to play professionally have been instilled with an over aggressive mentality their whole lives. This IS the NFL. and when this behavior spills out off the field the NFL wants to act like they are shocked.
It's football folks. If the guys hasn't been charged with a crime and sent to prison, he should be clear to play. If his off the field behavior rises to the level of criminal activity, then he should be in jail.
Quote: kewljI haven't weighed in since this new video was released and subsequently Ray Rice released from The Ravens and suspended indefinitely from the NFL. But my opinion has not changed one iota. How is this an NFL issue? If Ray Rice's action are such that he should be in jail, and in my opinion they are, so be it. But that's a criminal matter. If he is not prevented from playing because he is in jail, he should allowed to play. If fans want to boycott or protest, that is fine too. I just don't think the NFL should be in the business of deciding what is right or wrong and issuing any penalties.
How did you decide that the NFL is not doing what it thinks is best for its business model?
Maybe they decided it's easier to can Rice than all other options. Now they're just trying to get this back off the front of the sports page.
Quote: rxwineHow did you decide that the NFL is not doing what it is think is best for its business model?
Maybe they decided it's easier to can Rice than all other options. Now they're just trying to get this back off the front of the sports page.
Goodell is in trouble, he stated he never saw the video till a few days ago.
AP reporting that NFL has been sitting on the video since April.
Is Goodell the type to stick his head in the sand and say don't show it to me. Pretty sad.
Quote: terapinedI wonder if Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) has anything to do with this.
He's a running back. 4 years high school, 3 years college.
Pros 6 years 1430 times he has carried the ball professionally. That's a lot of punishment, some to the head.
What would a normal regular guy do in these types of situations. Control her arms. That's what we all do. She comes in pissed off and close, you 1st reaction is to control her arms grabbing or blocking.
But taking a swing, no way. Really makes me wonder. CTE?
Cop out.
My wreck a few weeks back took my personal concussion count to 29. When they autopsy me some years down the road, it's a guarantee they'll find some on me. Thoughts and desires to stomp a mudhole in someone? Plenty; I am a man. But the last time I laid hands on someone in anger was so long ago it escapes easy memory.
Everyone has a variable chance at striking out. Often this deals with testosterone level. Everyone has further outside influences to influence that decision; some emotional like stress and fear, some chemical like substance usage and loose screws. But all will fall to what is known when the veil of propriety is snatched away and you're left to do what comes natural. His raising has apparently taught him to lash out.
I don't care that it's a woman. Woman, man, 13yr old kid, I'd kick any one of them in the face. Provided, of course, the circumstances call for it. In this case, the most amount of force necessary is a wrap up. She had no weapon, there was no other immediate dangers. Wrap her up and get rid of her.
He didn't. So he pays.
Quote: MrV
Do they really think millions of guys will turn off the game on Sunday if Rice wasn't suspended?
It isn't just because of Rice, it is about a general decline in the league both on and off the field.
Guys kill dogs for fun, shoot themselves, felonies here and there, yet the league says they care about their image.
A bunch of crybabies demand the Redskins change a name instead of just rooting for a different team and get attention right up to the White House as if anyone other than the team ownership should have input on what the name should be.
Rule change after rule change that makes the game the Fantasy Football League and less and less watchable.
Guys kissing their boyfriends on TV.
People do not want to watch the product as much as they used to. So little by little they will watch less and less. If you think it can't happen, think of how baseball was once far, far more popular than the NFL and now it is nowhere near what it used to be.
The decline has already started. At the moment the NFL is in a way where the Detroit automakers were about 1970. They were at the top of the market, but the seeds for decline had already been planted. Within 15 years their dominant position was gone though they still had strength. 10 years after that they were begging the imports for mercy. 10 more years and they were no more, 2 bankrupt and a third clinging for life.
The NFL is already in decline, the masses have just not admitted it yet.
Quote: AZDuffmanshoot themselves,
That was the funniest thing ever to happen in any sport ever.
The fact that that he got jail time for it was baffling. He must have had a terrible lawyer.
Quote: AZDuffman
The NFL is already in decline, the masses have just not admitted it yet.
Yup. And NASCAR is unfortunately falling right behind it.
At least there's hockey. I hear tell the Nordiques are coming back =D
Quote: FaceYup. And NASCAR is unfortunately falling right behind it.
At least there's hockey. I hear tell the Nordiques are coming back =D
I've heard of an NHL team going to Vegas... but then I've even heard that people think the Maple Leafs might win another Stanley Cup.
Quote: AZDuffmanIt isn't just because of Rice, it is about a general decline in the league both on and off the field.
Guys kill dogs for fun, shoot themselves, felonies here and there, yet the league says they care about their image.
A bunch of crybabies demand the Redskins change a name instead of just rooting for a different team and get attention right up to the White House as if anyone other than the team ownership should have input on what the name should be.
Rule change after rule change that makes the game the Fantasy Football League and less and less watchable.
Guys kissing their boyfriends on TV.
People do not want to watch the product as much as they used to. So little by little they will watch less and less. If you think it can't happen, think of how baseball was once far, far more popular than the NFL and now it is nowhere near what it used to be.
The decline has already started. At the moment the NFL is in a way where the Detroit automakers were about 1970. They were at the top of the market, but the seeds for decline had already been planted. Within 15 years their dominant position was gone though they still had strength. 10 years after that they were begging the imports for mercy. 10 more years and they were no more, 2 bankrupt and a third clinging for life.
The NFL is already in decline, the masses have just not admitted it yet.
So, do you have any numbers to show that the NFL is in decline, or are you just making stuff up?
FWIW, I think that the main reason that the NFL overtook baseball was the advent of TV. Baseball is a great radio game but a terrible TV game because absolutely nothing worth seeing ever happens. There is nothing to the game other than a string of numbers that a radio announcer can easily spew off.
Football is the opposite. Terrible radio game; great TV game. The NFL is also smart about how they organize their league -- a small number of games per year. Your team only plays once a week, and every game is huge. In baseball your team plays every day and none of them matter, except for possibly the last few if they are in a close race. There is a huge difference between finishing 8-8 and 9-7, and a huge difference between 9-7 and 10-6. There is basically no difference between finishing 87-75 and 88-74, on the other hand.
Funnily enough, baseball is probably "fairer", because, with the larger number of games, the better teams are more likely to end up with the better record, but "fair" is not going to beat out "exciting".
Quote: thecesspitI've heard of an NHL team going to Vegas...
Mayhap you just solved the mystery of Wiz's new found financial freedom o.O
Quote: thecesspit...but then I've even heard that people think the Maple Leafs might win another Stanley Cup.
This year, baby!
Quote: FaceYup. And NASCAR is unfortunately falling right behind it.
At least there's hockey. I hear tell the Nordiques are coming back =D
I've heard that on NASCAR. Never could sit still for a race for the most part though the local track was fun once or twice a year. A buddy's wife dragged him to a race somewhere and he totally hated it. His auto skills are putting gas in the tank while I could at least appreciate the mechanical work involved. His wife wanted to go again and he was putting up a fight. When she told him I sounded interested he said "TAKE HIM THEN!" I think he stuck to Lancaster Raceway once a year and as much for the french fries, another story.
IMHO, NASCAR killed itself with "car of tomorrow" and making it about drivers driving moving billboards. As a kid at least I could root for the Fords over the GM products. Now you can hardly tell what is what.
Quote: AxiomOfChoiceThat was the funniest thing ever to happen in any sport ever.
The fact that that he got jail time for it was baffling. He must have had a terrible lawyer.
Felony firearm posession is still a felony I guess. He should have signed with the Cardinals. No carry permit needed and still good nightlife if one is into that.
Quote: FaceMayhap you just solved the mystery of Wiz's new found financial freedom o.O
This year, baby!
hate to tell you this Face but it is 2014, not 1967.
Quote: AZDuffmanFelony firearm posession is still a felony I guess. He should have signed with the Cardinals. No carry permit needed and still good nightlife if one is into that.
It was a technicality. From what I remember he had a license but not for that state, or something.
I can guarantee you that most people who break the law far more blatantly than that do not serve time for it, and certainly nowhere near that much time.
Quote: AZDuffman
IMHO, NASCAR killed itself with "car of tomorrow" and making it about drivers driving moving billboards. As a kid at least I could root for the Fords over the GM products. Now you can hardly tell what is what.
Some of the old timers say the same thing. I think it's bigger. I think it's simply capitalism.
Back in the day, football was consumed by football fans. The die hard, the hard core. The guys buying the tickets for the -10*F home game. All was well, all was good.
But everything needs to be bigger, always gotta out-do last year. You need consumers to fund that, so you need to branch out and snag the outliers.
Now every game needs to be an event. You need complicated dance routines, barn burning half time shows, fireworks. You need to create excitement to hype up the next week's game. You need behind the scenes, you need to create drama to fuel the hype. Forget the die hard who enjoyed the strategic, defensive battles of yester-cade. Bring in the droves who only know that bringing the hand egg into the painted area means you scream and get another beer.
NASCAR is no different. Forget the fact that they've steered from "stock cars" and "driver's races" and made it all homogenous. They did the same thing in search of mass appeal that the NFL has done. Who cares about the hard core that made NASCAR, who would enjoy the back story on Goodyear's tire compound woes. Let's drop that and instead just run non stop coverage of what Danica Patrick is doing today. It has nothing to do with racing, but the masses would rather watch her weekly routine than to further understand a race.
In a way, it's sort of a microcosm of our country. We've reached a point were the simple wants have eclipsed the deep meaning. What made a thing great has been trumped by surface idiocy, and so the core of what that thing is changes to accommodate that need.
Quote: AxiomOfChoiceIt was a technicality. From what I remember he had a license but not for that state, or something.
I can guarantee you that most people who break the law far more blatantly than that do not serve time for it, and certainly nowhere near that much time.
IIRC it was in NYC which is a place where it is next to impossible to get a carry permit exercise your constitutional right to poses a firearm. I could be wrong, but it is possible they came down hard so it did not look like they went easy.
So, in the last 8 years, NFL annual revenues have risen from $6.5 billion to $9.2 billion. That's a funny-looking decline.
Quote: AxiomOfChoicehttp://www.forbes.com/sites/monteburke/2013/08/14/think-the-nfl-is-in-decline-because-of-head-trauma-issues-think-again/
So, in the last 8 years, NFL annual revenues have risen from $6.5 billion to $9.2 billion. That's a funny-looking decline.
Re-read what I said. Things still seem strong but they are actually starting to weaken. GM had a record year in 1978, 8 years later they were clearly on the run. Currently it is on the edges, just a few MAWGs like myself saying, "screw this, if they do not want my business they shall not have it." But more and more are going to follow.
Quote: AZDuffmanRe-read what I said. Things still seem strong but they are actually starting to weaken. GM had a record year in 1978, 8 years later they were clearly on the run. Currently it is on the edges, just a few MAWGs like myself saying, "screw this, if they do not want my business they shall not have it." But more and more are going to follow.
8 years later they were on the run due to serious competition.
Are you predicting that some other sport will swoop in and become more popular than the NFL? It's certainly possible, but, outside of that, the NFL is not going anywhere.
Personally, I don't see it. The NFL is the most popular sport now because it is the best product.
They are kind of botching the decline of subscription-based TV service (cable, dish, whatever) a little bit, but, once they adjust, they will be fine.
Quote: rxwineI would expect if NFL declines, there is a predicted rise of something. There wouldn't just be a vacuum. I'm failing to see what is coming instead?
Quote: AxiomOfChoice8 years later they were on the run due to serious competition.
Are you predicting that some other sport will swoop in and become more popular than the NFL? It's certainly possible, but, outside of that, the NFL is not going anywhere.
Might be a sport, or might be some other kind of entertainment. People could use Sundays to binge-watch. Or end up on some other kind of web-based entertainment. It probably will not be just one thing. It will be people each finding their own thing and doing it. Just as one cable network didn't kill the broadcast networks.
And I still predict in 10 years or so you will be seeing lots of High Schools dropping football as a program.
Quote:Personally, I don't see it. The NFL is the most popular sport now because it is the best product.
They are kind of botching the decline of subscription-based TV service (cable, dish, whatever) a little bit, but, once they adjust, they will be fine.
It was the best product. They are taking away what people liked about it. Live attendance is already peaked and starting to fall. The TV product is saturated and nothing is near as special as it was even in the 1990s.
You can say "what it is now" all you like. What you need to look at is where it is going, and that is not good.
Quote: AZDuffmanYou can say "what it is now" all you like. What you need to look at is where it is going, and that is not good.
But you have absolutely no evidence to back up that claim. You are just giving your opinion, with nothing to back it up.
The sport continues to get more and more popular. It is not just that it is now the most popular, it is that the trend is upwards. That is the exact opposite of "in decline". What you are claiming is not even that it is "in decline", it is that a decline will happen at some unspecified point in the future.
Quote: AxiomOfChoiceS
Football is the opposite. Terrible radio game; great TV game. The NFL is also smart about how they organize their league -- a small number of games per year. Your team only plays once a week, and every game is huge. In baseball your team plays every day and none of them matter, except for possibly the last few if they are in a close race. There is a huge difference between finishing 8-8 and 9-7, and a huge difference between 9-7 and 10-6. There is basically no difference between finishing 87-75 and 88-74, on the other hand.
I've followed the Lions through the last 4 seasons mostly by listening to Detroit Radio feeds from one source or another. I'd get the highlights for all the game off NFL.com later
Then again, after that 0-16 season, who'd want to see that ugly mess. The NFL doesn't earn much through me directly. I do see a price crash sometime in the next two decades.
Quote: AxiomOfChoiceBut you have absolutely no evidence to back up that claim. You are just giving your opinion, with nothing to back it up.
The sport continues to get more and more popular. It is not just that it is now the most popular, it is that the trend is upwards. That is the exact opposite of "in decline". What you are claiming is not even that it is "in decline", it is that a decline will happen at some unspecified point in the future.
I actually agree with AZ. Right now football is huge. Its peaked.
Knowing what we now know about Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), would you let your youngster play football.
Its been found in players as young as high school.
Junior Seau committed suicide.
Brett Farve cant remember jack.
Many parents of young children are already saying no. This trend will continue to grow.
10 years from now, some high schools in affluent areas will be dropping football and it will start a trend.
Many cultures around the world are amazed that parents in the US allow their children to play contact sports such as football.
Quote: thecesspitI've followed the Lions through the last 4 seasons mostly by listening to Detroit Radio feeds from one source or another. I'd get the highlights for all the game off NFL.com later
Then again, after that 0-16 season, who'd want to see that ugly mess. The NFL doesn't earn much through me directly. I do see a price crash sometime in the next two decades.
The NFL makes most of its money from TV deals, which mean, indirectly, they make most of their money from advertising. Admittedly the radio station does not pay much to broadcast that.
You don't watch games on TV? Not even nationally broadcast ones? The Lions looked pretty good on Monday night.
A price crash on what? Tickets are relatively cheap; you can get good seats for $100 at most stadiums. Jerseys, etc are pricy, but on par with other professional sports. You can watch local games for free on TV. You can stream NFL Sunday Ticket for $200. That's something like $12 per week, and it allows you to watch any game you want. It's tough to beat $12 for a day of entertainment.
I order NFL Sunday ticket every year, I might buy a jersey and a hat every few years, and I will go to a game if my team is playing locally (maybe once every 3 years or so). Overall I might spend $300 per year on football, total. I watch 5 games per week. (Thursday, 3x Sunday, Monday) Plus I watch all 11 postseason games. Add that to thanksgiving, etc, and I watch 100 games per year. So I might be spending an average of $3 a game to watch football. $1 per hour is about the cheapest form of entertainment that I can think of. I'm not sure where you want the price to crash to, exactly.
Many years ago (around 20 yrs ago) I used to hang around Windsor Raceway a lot.... my buddy and his dad owned about 40-50 horses over the years. I had gotten a call at work from the Windsor Police about picking up a summons for court. I was working my job at Hiram Walkers distillery a few miles away from the police station so my boss said just take the truck and go down and get it...it was a work related case. I walk into the police station and head into the traffic office where they hand them out , see a big sign on the wall saying WINDSOR RACEWAY with a huge arrow under in pointing the direction. With nobody around the counter or to be seen I said out loud this must be SGT SKINNERS area.... and who pops out around the corner but SGT SKINNER. He had seen me before many of times at the track but never in uniform now he knew my name and the job I worked he became my buddy.
A few months later I am at the track and he walks in, sees me walks over and says hey you can bet Bobs horse in the 7th tonight...he owned the farm one of the top trainers in North America trains on. I looked at him and said well maybe for second as I was there to bet somebody else in the race ( Ken Hardy driven horse) He looks at the program and says you like that one in here? Sure do and he will be 30-40 to one. He said he wasn't planning on using him on any of his gimmicks
Away SGT SKINNER goes to bet away on that race( he would be upwards of a grand on horses he knew were ready to win) race goes off and sure enough the one he told me to bet wins....BUT the one I told him I really liked finished a close second at 30+ to 1 odds making for a tri that paid around $3500 for a $2 ticket. When the prices went up he starts looking around sees me across the clubhouse and comes marching over and punches me in the chest ( you know like football players do to each other after a big play) says thanks for that horse I hit the tri for $6 and the exactor for $50 ... made like $15000 on the race.... and beats me up for helping him hit it.... I tell you I was sore for a week after that one hit and back then I was in pretty good shape.
Oh you need to know a bit more about SGT LEN SKINNER........
http://www.canada.com/windsorstar/news/sports/story.html?id=a6c33c53-c83b-43c8-9602-dccfc52e00f2
had he hit me in the head it would have been lights out... and this was just a little tap to him no effort to hurt me
Quote: AZDuffmanIMHO, NASCAR killed itself with "car of tomorrow" and making it about drivers driving moving billboards. As a kid at least I could root for the Fords over the GM products. Now you can hardly tell what is what.
Amen brother.
Quote: AxiomOfChoiceBut you have absolutely no evidence to back up that claim. You are just giving your opinion, with nothing to back it up.
The sport continues to get more and more popular. It is not just that it is now the most popular, it is that the trend is upwards. That is the exact opposite of "in decline". What you are claiming is not even that it is "in decline", it is that a decline will happen at some unspecified point in the future.
Quote: terapinedI actually agree with AZ. Right now football is huge. Its peaked.
Knowing what we now know about Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), would you let your youngster play football.
Its been found in players as young as high school.
Junior Seau committed suicide.
Brett Farve cant remember jack.
Many parents of young children are already saying no. This trend will continue to grow.
10 years from now, some high schools in affluent areas will be dropping football and it will start a trend.
Many cultures around the world are amazed that parents in the US allow their children to play contact sports such as football.
Good addition to and re-wording, this is my point exactly. Many times things are still in an uptrend, but a careful look around and one can see the party is ending. IBM ruled the world in the early 1980s, Microsoft in the late 1990s, "Happy Days" was killing it when the Fonz put on those water skis, Atlantic City was at record heights in the mid-2000s. But look back in each case and you can see the forces that brought them down forming even as they had record customers and revenue.
The NFL is at this phase now. Lots of viewers, but anecdotally I know lots of people who are tuning in less and less as I am. Then look at the parents keeping their kids from playing. Sooner or later those kids and their friends will do other things, and as they do they are less apt to watch the big boys play on Sunday after they played on Friday.
And just watch as liberal women's groups make it Un-PC to watch the game because all the guys must be beating their women. It will happen, you can see it happening as we speak.
The NFL will not disappear in our lifetimes IMHO, but the decline will be great.
There is a serious movement bordering on very greedy to establish one or more teams in other countries, coupled with the stated desire to add up to two more games bringing the season to as many as 18 games with an additional two playoff teams in each conference. The players want to shorten pre-season to even talk about these proposals.
But additional games will necessarily increase the overall injury rate (not to mention the long-term consequences of head injuries) and water down the game by moving up lesser skilled players from the lower tiers to fill in.
At some point, every market, be it gambling, pro sports, whatever has a ceiling to the total amount of money that can be generated. And the NFL experience can get very pricey: prior to the opener of this season, StubHub tix for Santa Clara at Dallas were nearly $3,000 at the low 30-yard line, similar seats for Oakland at New Jersey $750 and $200 for the Rams tilt. Certainly there are well-to-do fans in the big markets, but add in parking, $15 beers, memorabilia etc. and it starts to really strain the average Joe.
"Because the streets is a short stop
Either you're slinging crack rock or you got a wicked jump shot"
Quote: chickenman
There is a serious movement bordering on very greedy to establish one or more teams in other countries, coupled with the stated desire to add up to two more games bringing the season to as many as 18 games with an additional two playoff teams in each conference. The players want to shorten pre-season to even talk about these proposals.
The overseas thing is Goddell's baby so if he goes not sure if it dies or not. The owners are going to ram 18 games the first chance they get. Even if they ax 2 pre-season exhibition games they have an interesting calendar problem. They can either start earlier when it is too hot to play or go 2 weeks longer when it gets too cold to play. Yes, there are fans that love their team but there are also fans who are not going to sit in 20 degree weather to see a 7-10 team play one more meaningless game. Adding a playoff game without adding teams means more losing teams will be in the playoffs, making what will be their problems worse.
Thinking more about this, a force that will hurt them is cable cord cutting. I see cable losing 20% of its base within 10 years and being forced to have cheaper options, easiest of which is to drop ESPN from the basic package or else tell them to get in line with their subscriber fees. The broadcast networks will at the same time keep losing viewers. At some point those TV contracts will flatten out. This could be the kind of unseen thing that goes with the aforesaid predictions to really harm the league.
Quote: AZDuffmanThe overseas thing is Goddell's baby so if he goes not sure if it dies or not. The owners are going to ram 18 games the first chance they get. Even if they ax 2 pre-season exhibition games they have an interesting calendar problem. They can either start earlier when it is too hot to play or go 2 weeks longer when it gets too cold to play. Yes, there are fans that love their team but there are also fans who are not going to sit in 20 degree weather to see a 7-10 team play one more meaningless game. Adding a playoff game without adding teams means more losing teams will be in the playoffs, making what will be their problems worse.
Thinking more about this, a force that will hurt them is cable cord cutting. I see cable losing 20% of its base within 10 years and being forced to have cheaper options, easiest of which is to drop ESPN from the basic package or else tell them to get in line with their subscriber fees. The broadcast networks will at the same time keep losing viewers. At some point those TV contracts will flatten out. This could be the kind of unseen thing that goes with the aforesaid predictions to really harm the league.
Good points. Regardless of near-to-intermediate future I think they really need a seeded playoff format to prevent a 10-6 team sitting on the couch while a 7-9 hosts the wildcard. Senseless situation.
Quote: MrVDo they really think millions of guys will turn off the game on Sunday if Rice wasn't suspended?
They probably wouldn't, but I think punishment for off-field bad behavior probably is a good idea for the NFL in the long run, even if not for every case.
Consider some different circumstances -- NFL player kills someone's kid while drunk driving.
NFL doesn't want someone's poor old mother on TV complaining about why NFL player is playing that night while under investigation for fatal drunk driving accident. They don't want all-American wholesome apple pie family complaining why a player is continuing to play if there are some people who were affected by player's actions/
And advertisers definitely don't want to be part of such a scene.
When NFL has these suspensions (and does them consistently) it can avoid those kind of situations.
BUT, they screwed up the PR machine on this one.
