Why Evildell is still smiling regardless

[Tunescribe]

Think about it: this Super Bowl brings together the league's two highest-scoring teams under their respective quarterbacks. For the last 16 years (and accelerated since Evildell assumed office), the steady drumbeat of "more offense/less defense" has systematically legislated the NFL game out of balance toward basketball in cleats and ever-flashier marketability.

Even though Deflategate backfired for the owners and their Frankenstein's Monster omissioner in a pissed-off Tom Brady leading New England to Houston, they still win the consolation prize of furthering their sad grand vision. The Vegas oddsmakers' over/under of 58 points is highest ever for a Super Bowl.

We just might have witnessed the death this year of that reliable old axiom, "defense wins championships." NOTHING would make me happier than seeing a low-scoring game Sunday, or at least see BB and Patricia miraculously pull one out of their hats limiting Atlanta to three scores. If it's a track meet, the NFL wins regardless of who takes home the Lombardi.

 

[DarrylS]

F..ck Goodell, just another roadside turd.. what goes around, comes around.

 

[PittPatriot]

F..ck Goodell, just another roadside turd.. what goes around, comes around.

Sometimes it comes in the next life or afterlife...but it does come around.

 

[DarrylS]

Sometimes it comes in the next life or afterlife...but it does come around.

Payback is always a bytch..

 

[TennisBallHead]

I remember the Falcons game a few years ago. Both teams had like 5 possessions the whole game. I feel like that's how the Pats will play. Slow the game down and make them anxious.

 

[PatsBoy12]

All true. So be it, as far as I'm concerned. Brady getting #5 is far more important to me than whatever consolation prize exists for that stooge and the owners. The NFL is a machine. The rules, and hence, the officiating will continue to bent to the will of offense. And these two teams being in the big one, as the OP has pointed out, was the best scenario. Brady will win the battle (hopefully), but I'm afraid to admit that Goodell wins the war. Brady served the suspension in the end, but the Pats still made it to a SB that I wouldn't be surprised turns out to be the most watched ever because of a QB going for #5 and one that many are beginning to speculate could walk away if he wins (however unlikely we all believe that to be). I'd go so far as to say Goodell is probably hoping NE wins it all.

 

[Nehalem]

We just might have witnessed the death this year of that reliable old axiom, "defense wins championships."

Pats had the #1 PPG defense in the league.

Falcons, while not very good over the season, went up 31-0 over the Packers before garbage time in the NFCCG.

 

[archstanton543]

I'm just glad you didn't used the non-word "irregardless".

 

[Wordsmyth]

Why is Goodell*smiling?

I'll take 'constipation' for $500, Alex!

 

[Mike the Brit]

$40 million to head a league that has a licence to print money? Wouldn't you be smiling?

No sports league in the world has what the NFL has: no competition, salary cap, no need to pay for feeder leagues, anti-trust exemption. How could you not succeed?

And yet ...

It's not just Deflategate, but that hasn't helped. Yes, the fans hate the Patriots, but there's pretty much no one left out there who still says confidently "Brady was caught red-handed and he got what he deserved". So Goodell is hated -- as are we.

Beyond that, the product has been screwed up. They've messed around with the rules and refs guidelines so that no one knows anything any more. Even people who know a fair amount about the game don't see whether it will be a penalty or not. You can't enjoy a sports contest when the first thing you do after a play is look around for a flag. Add that to the excessive time-outs and you've done a great job turning off the casual fan.

Thursday Night Football. 'nuff said.

Franchise relocation. What a cl*sterf*ck!

The Pro Bowl. Stumbling from one embarrassment to the next.

International expansion. Seriously?

So, amazing though it is, this guy has screwed up again and again and again, something that you'd have thought was pretty much impossible. I think by now the owners who aren't brain-dead are realizing that. But there aren't that many of them and they know they'd lose a lot of face in dumping him.

Well, God rot you, NFL owners. He's your problem.

 

[Tunescribe]

Pats had the #1 PPG defense in the league.

Falcons, while not very good over the season, went up 31-0 over the Packers before garbage time in the NFCCG.

You think either team's pass defense is going to play shutdown ball in this game? We'll see if the Pats' red zone magic continues. The Patriots were eighth in total defense this season, Atlanta 25th.

Another telling fact: six of the league's top-10 offenses made the playoffs, only four top-10 defenses made the tournament.

 

[Pats1989]

He's got 40 million reasons yearly to be happy. The man could get anything he wanted to.

 

[Kontradiction]

You think either team's pass defense is going to play shutdown ball in this game? We'll see if the Pats' red zone magic continues. The Patriots were eighth in total defense this season, Atlanta 25th.

Another telling fact: six of the league's top-10 offenses made the playoffs, only four top-10 defenses made the tournament.

Absolutely not. The Falcons RBs will exploit the Pats LBs in the passing game and the Pats WRs should be able to get off the LOS quickly and create some YAC opportunities.

 

[captain stone]

...For the last 16 years (and accelerated since Evildell assumed office), the steady drumbeat of "more offense/less defense" has systematically legislated the NFL game out of balance toward basketball in cleats and ever-flashier marketability...

In other words, ever since long-time Competition Committee member Bill Polian drafted Peyton Manning?
What a shocking - shocking, I tell you - coincidence .

 

[WinstonSmith]

I thought that his perma-smile was from falling into a volatile vat of pure Integritine.

 

[Jlaff]

I was hoping after @Joker changed his avatar to an actor in prison garb, he was preparing to enforce some justice on Goodell for the good people of New England, and after serving that Justice, Goodell would never smile again. Unfortunately the avatar has since been changed, so I'm thinking he changed his mind.

 

[rochrist]

Think about it: this Super Bowl brings together the league's two highest-scoring teams under their respective quarterbacks. For the last 16 years (and accelerated since Evildell assumed office), the steady drumbeat of "more offense/less defense" has systematically legislated the NFL game out of balance toward basketball in cleats and ever-flashier marketability.

Even though Deflategate backfired for the owners and their Frankenstein's Monster omissioner in a pissed-off Tom Brady leading New England to Houston, they still win the consolation prize of furthering their sad grand vision. The Vegas oddsmakers' over/under of 58 points is highest ever for a Super Bowl.

We just might have witnessed the death this year of that reliable old axiom, "defense wins championships." NOTHING would make me happier than seeing a low-scoring game Sunday, or at least see BB and Patricia miraculously pull one out of their hats limiting Atlanta to three scores. If it's a track meet, the NFL wins regardless of who takes home the Lombardi.

I don't know. Tickets aren't selling very well. Apparently no one wants to see Atlanta and everyone is sick of NE.

 

[Tunescribe]

I don't know. Tickets aren't selling very well. Apparently no one wants to see Atlanta and everyone is sick of NE.

You're joking, right? That's not what this is about. The league doesn't care about secondary-market ticket sales for the Super Bowl. What it cares about is TV and marketing revenue.

 

[rochrist]

You're joking, right? That's not what this is about. The league doesn't care about secondary-market ticket sales for the Super Bowl. What it cares about is TV and marketing revenue.

I would expect that slumping ticket sales would be an indicator of lower than normal nationwide tv ratings.

 

[The Brandon Five]

I don't know. Tickets aren't selling very well. Apparently no one wants to see Atlanta and everyone is sick of NE.

Tickets have gone up during the week. Right now the cheapest seats on SeatGeek are a hair under $2,700. There are less seats for the teams this year (more tickets go to NFL Experience now) so that might be playing into it at the moment,

The Best Deals on Super Bowl 2017 Tickets | A Guide to SB 51

Here’s how the National Football League breaks down ticket distribution:

1. Super Bowl teams share 35% – 17.5% each, majority given to season ticket holders & players.
2. Host team gets 6.2% – majority distributed to season ticket holders.
3. Remaining 28 teams share 33.6% – 1.2% for each team distributed to players, media, partners etc.
4. NFL retains 25.2% – tickets are typically sold to partners, media and sponsors.

However, the NFL is changing the allocation of Super Bowl tickets in 2017. This year they announced that they are going to allocate 6,000 tickets away from the teams playing in the Super Bowl, to the NFL On Location Experience company

. NFL On Location is a fancy name for a concierge service which will be selling Super Bowl packages for above face value (and potentially above market value as well).

#integrity #the32