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The NFL is now saying that players must stand for the national anthem or stay in the locker room.

If they are doing this for PR reasons (and of course they are) I think they're making a colossal mistake. There's no chance the players are going to take this sitting down (or standing up, as it were). Anyone protesting now will be given even more attention because now they'll be breaking a league rule that a large percentage of the country thinks is wrong, in addition to the base protest.

The Jets co-owner is already saying he's willing to pay the associated fines.

While the NFL might recover a few of the fans they lost last year over the kneeling, I think they'll lose just as many (likely more) over this decision.

Roger Goodell is a bit of a dumbass.

The owners too. They're the ones who congregate in their meetings are vote on this crap.

Hawkeye wrote:The owners too. They're the ones who congregate in their meetings are vote on this crap.

True. It sounds like the vote was not unanimous, though.

Some Schmo wrote:

Hawkeye wrote:The owners too. They're the ones who congregate in their meetings are vote on this crap.

True. It sounds like the vote was not unanimous, though.

Of all the hills to die on I guess this as good a one as any. I agree that this probably won't do anything but create more problems.

Let's be real here. Most of the declining viewership for the NFL has more to do with changing attitudes in the public about finding value in media, particular among younger viewers (less pay-for-TV and much higher desire for streaming options) not kneeling players or Trump drain or whatever crazy theory you can create. This isn't unique to football either, broadcast TV ratings are down across the board. Unless the NFL can drastically overhaul their delivery method I think we may have already lived through the heyday of NFL revenue.

I think there is a secondary factor at play too (to a lesser extent) but I don't have any facts to base this off of, just a gut check based upon my years of watching sports. In the NFL's move to a world of parity they lost the big draw. Big players come up short, fewer teams can hold the top for extended periods of time. Personally I just find it hard to get super invested in a league of 8 and 8.

Xenophon wrote:Of all the hills to die on I guess this as good a one as any. I agree that this probably won't do anything but create more problems.

Let's be real here. Most of the declining viewership for the NFL has more to do with changing attitudes in the public about finding value in media, particular among younger viewers (less pay-for-TV and much higher desire for streaming options) not kneeling players or Trump drain or whatever crazy theory you can create. This isn't unique to football either, broadcast TV ratings are down across the board. Unless the NFL can drastically overhaul their delivery method I think we may have already lived through the heyday of NFL revenue.

I think there is a secondary factor at play too (to a lesser extent) but I don't have any facts to base this off of, just a gut check based upon my years of watching sports. In the NFL's move to a world of parity they lost the big draw. Big players come up short, fewer teams can hold the top for extended periods of time. Personally I just find it hard to get super invested in a league of 8 and 8.

I agree that the NFL, and sports in general, needs to figure out a better model for distributing their live events. I would buy NFL Sunday Ticket if it was distributed via a mobile app and/or the standard streaming platforms, like Roku, AppleTV, etc. But it is only available to DirectTV customers. I'm not putting a dish on my roof and paying monthly fees just to get Sunday ticket.

I actually think the NFL does a pretty good job with parity and salary cap. They've struck a nice balance between giving all teams an equal opportunity to compete, while also allowing for dynasties that the fans of every other team can hate. How the Patriots have stayed on top for 17 years boggles the mind. It's ironic that in an era where the league has implemented the most rules to enforce parity we've witnessed the longest lasting dynasty in modern NFL history.

Xenophon wrote:Let's be real here. Most of the declining viewership for the NFL has more to do with changing attitudes in the public about finding value in media, particular among younger viewers (less pay-for-TV and much higher desire for streaming options) not kneeling players or Trump drain or whatever crazy theory you can create. This isn't unique to football either, broadcast TV ratings are down across the board. Unless the NFL can drastically overhaul their delivery method I think we may have already lived through the heyday of NFL revenue.

I agree that this is the main reason the NFL has seen a drop in viewership in the last few years, and I don't think the owners are kidding themselves thinking that this anthem policy is going to correct for that.

I imagine some small measure of the league's popularity decline is due to the kneeling issue (I've talked to a few people who cite that as the reason they've stopped watching - assuming they actually have stopped), but I also suspect it's dwarfed by the much larger issue of the changing entertainment landscape you're talking about.

I also wonder how much of the decline is due to small adjustments in how people see the game's violence and long term physical effects. I know I see the game much differently than I used to, and I can't tell if it's because my attitude toward the violence has changed or if, given the age of my body, I empathically feel the hits more these days.

DarkHelmet wrote:I actually think the NFL does a pretty good job with parity and salary cap. They've struck a nice balance between giving all teams an equal opportunity to compete, while also allowing for dynasties that the fans of every other team can hate.

Agreed. I believe this is the primary reason it's been the most successful league for so long.

DarkHelmet wrote:How the Patriots have stayed on top for 17 years boggles the mind. It's ironic that in an era where the league has implemented the most rules to enforce parity we've witnessed the longest lasting dynasty in modern NFL history.

The Pats are certainly a dynasty, but you've got to factor in how long they've benefited from being in a terrible division.

Good thoughts, DarkHelmet. You may very well be right in that the parity is an overall positive I'm just basing that primarily on a very small polling sample size .

Some Schmo wrote:I also wonder how much of the decline is due to small adjustments in how people see the game's violence and long term physical effects. I know I see the game much differently than I used to, and I can't tell if it's because my attitude toward the violence has changed or if, given the age of my body, I empathically feel the hits more these days.

I agree that this is definitely an issue as well. I'm not sure how much it is directly "I'm worried about the safety of current players" vs that fewer and fewer kids are getting into heavy contact sports(often to do with safety issues) which is slowly creating an environment of less engagement with the sport. I come from a state where football is king and even I'm noticing few and fewer of my friends and their children connected with things like Pop Warner and the likes. I imagine both are factors.

Xenophon wrote:I'm not sure how much it is directly "I'm worried about the safety of current players" vs that fewer and fewer kids are getting into heavy contact sports(often to do with safety issues) which is slowly creating an environment of less engagement with the sport.

Yep, also a good point. The more you hear these stories of long-term health issues, the less inclined you're going to be to subject your kids to the risks.

What's the NBA's policy and why aren't they experiencing the same level of blowback from a primarily African-American playership like the NFL is?

Regardless, I don't really care about the issue beyond supporting an American's right to dissent and an American's right to be pro patria, even if the flag waving allegiance thing makes me uncomfortable.

The upside from all the protesting is more and more municipalities are outfitting their officers with body cams. I like that both the cops and the public have a record that keeps everyone a bit more honest than they've been.

- Doc