I despise the NFL ...

The last time a market as small as Pittsburgh won the World Series, well, Eric Davis was lacerating a kidney and not getting his flight back from Oakland paid for by the team... 16 years ago.

The last time a WS had teams of a combined market size that averages 18th (as Pittsburgh and Seattle do with 2.9 million TV homes) was also 1990.

Please enlighten me.

 

I don't mind the replays of Cadillac running for four yards; I hate the replays of Cadillac fumbling in the playoffs and the Redskins running it back for a touchdown.

That I hate.

 

So, Columbo, does this mean you don't want to be my friend?

 

Not really. People wanting to see the Cubs and Red Sox win might galvanize the country.

People care about the storylines. Steelers had one with the Bus. Peyton has one in January with the losses. McNabb had one for years with the NFC title game. It's not about seeing people fail, it's about seeing something you actually care about.

 

Weird way of avoiding the question.

 

By January, I just meant that you can have all the hope in the world for your team in September with parity, but there's still a damn good chance they won't still be playing then. So at least if the Patriots or whoever are always winning, people whose teams are out of it might stay interested by rooting against them. That's all.

 

I don't despise it, but I've worked NFL Sundays for a lot of years now (I guess it's like 11 straight since I last didn't work them), and I must admit, there's a certainly wearing on me that's going on in terms of diminished excitement level as another season approaches.

That said, I love where I work, and I'm not digging ditches, so whatever.

 

What you're saying has ZERO to do with parity and all to do with math.

32 teams are alive now. 2 are on January 31.

Nothing parity can do about the math of elimination playoff games.

 

Funny thing ... when I worked more desk and got to watch a lot of games, I didn't care much for the NFL. Wanted to get away from football on a Sunday. Now, since I rarely get to watch games on Saturday, I enjoy the kickback factor of just enjoying games on a Sunday afternoon.

 

Why the NFL is lame (in no particular order):

10. Baseball's opening day has the president throwing out the first pitch. The NFL's opening day has Britney Spears lip-synching.
9. The Michigan Marching Band and USC's Song Girls are college football's sideline entertainment. The NFL's version includes strippers..errr..cheerleaders...giving the song "She blinded me with science" a whole new meaning. And then Paul Tagliabue acts all holier-than-thou during the Justin-and-Janet fiasco.
8. Arena Football League uniforms were better when they were just that...in the Arena Football League. The Bengals, Cardinals, Seahawks, Jaguars (the black-on-black), Falcons and Vikings have had their own "wardrobe malfunctions" recently. Even the Kansas City Royals know better to fix their horrible uniform changes.
7. The candor of Ozzie Guillen and Avery Johnson has no place in today's button-up, tight-lipped, self-important role that an NFL head coach must fill. Someone explain to Mike Martz, Bill Belichick, etc. that they lead football players, not soliders headed into the caves of Tora Bora. Loosen up!
6. The NFL on FOX. I'd watch the game -- but I can't see it. There's too much crap on the screen. Just because it's the "red zone" doesn't mean the ENTIRE SCREEN from the 20 to the goal line needs to be filled with red FOX graphics.
5. Today's wide receivers. What was once original -- the Fun Bunch high fiving, Ernest Givens flipping -- is now boorish. Making a first down is an excuse to woof and prance around.
4. The Oakland Coliseum for an A's game: Barry Zito's curveball. The Oakland Coliseum for a Raider game: Face-painted goons hopped up on speedballs.
3. The NBA on TNT's studio show actually offers insight. Monday Night Football's halftime last year actually had Tim McGraw.
2. Joe THEES-man
1. The Sunday Night SportsCenter's "...and twiiiiins" highlight montage.

Feel free to add any more. The moral of the story: Football's better when it's played on Friday Nights or Saturdays.

 

Everything between the first sentence and the last is correct.

 

Dude, you hit on my worst complaint. The new-style unis with the extra stripes and do-dads look like complete shit. The Bills, Titans and Cardinals are among the worst offenders.