2011 Super Bowl: The Most Watched Television Show Ever

The problem is the CBA needs to work for not just the top teams or even the average team, but for the worst teams as well. While the revenue sharing mechanism is there to offset some of the disparity between teams, in the long run the league as a whole is healthier if the revenue transfers between teams are minimized. Just looking at my other sporting passion, hockey, it’s apparent at how disjointed a league can become when the “haves” and “have-nots” are too far apart.

In the end, the discussion on a local radio program summed up the situation poignantly. Players in the NFL have the shortest average career length in pro sport, while also having the largest pool of comparable replacement talent. That equates to a dramatic urgency to get a deal done, and back playing. No question, the salary structures for the average player are horribly inequitable when compared to some other leagues, but that’s not to say that other leagues are very equitable for the owners. The NFLPA just doesn’t have the ability to hold out very long since their membership have short shelf lives.

In the NFL 40 year old quarterbacks and kickers are the exception, not the norm. In other leagues, players in their mid to late 30’s are becoming more commonplace. Even in hockey which is the closest comparable when it comes to wear & tear and impact, there’s a relatively larger proportion of players playing well into their 30’s.

To me, the guard hasn’t really changed much in the AFC – 8 of the last SB reps from the AFC since 2003 have been exclusively from the Big 3 – Patriots (2-1), Steelers (2-1), Colts (1-1). However, the fact that all of the Big 3 have lost a SB shows me that the QB play in the NFC has been improving recently with Brees and Rodgers knocking on the door for making a case to be very good ones. If Brees and Rodgers play like what they have been doing for another 3 or 4 years, elite status is a matter of time.

So, with the NFC winning 3 out of the last 4 SBs, does that mean the balance of power is shifting towards the NFC or does it just mean that things have balanced out with good QBs emerging on the NFC side as well?

Look at this stat the last 5 years:

2006 – Colts that played the NFC East beat the Bears that played the NFC West to win the SB
2007 – Giants that played the NFC East beat the Patriots that played the NFC East to win the SB
2008 – Steelers that played the NFC East beat the Cardinals that played the NFC East to win the SB
2009 – Saints that played the NFC East beat the Colts that played the NFC West to win the SB
2010 – Packers that played the NFC East beat the Steelers that played the NFC South to win the SB

Next year, the Pats & Jets play the NFC East on the AFC side, the NFC West plays the NFC East on the NFC side, then of course you have the NFC East itself.

Does that mean we could see a SB between the Pats/Jets vs an NFC East team in Indy? Of course, the Packers & Saints might still have a say on the NFC side while the Chargers & Colts might make a comeback on the AFC side.

It is quite a co-incidence happening recently :-).

too much money at stake hopefully next year in Indy the weather will be handled better than it was in Dallas INDY in INDY NEXT FEB!!!!!!! and I think it is the first time in NFL history the same team had the league MVP and the Coach of the Year and choked the first playoff game- that was for my Pat freinds

That said, no owner should be crying poverty when their sport is the #1 thing to see on TV.

You realize that if the game is not played, the TV station (CBS/Fox/ESPN/NBC) all still pay their contracted amount for the rights to air the game, irregardless of whether or not it is played, right? So this has little bearing on their income for the next year. The owners argument also has some merit that it is still a 20-game season, it’s just that you have to try harder in 2 games. And for most players the difference in pay is less than a few hundred k out of their $10mil contract. You’re only really adding about 4 quarters of play to a season considering 3rd preseason game is at least half done by starters. Does that really warrant an extra $250k-$1mil?

I see both arguments, but after all the articles I’ve read and some independent thought, I think I’d side with the owners on this one. You deserve compensated because you made it to the NFL with all your hard work for many years, and you’re getting above and beyond what I believe is warranted. Pony up, save for your own retirement like everyone else, buy your own insurance like everyone else, don’t use it to live beyond your means like too many in America, and actually plan for your life with the oppotunity you have. If you blow it, I lack any sympathy for you. It’s the career you chose and you can be done at 30 and still love comfortably if you were good enough. That’s one hell of an opportunity I’d kill to have. NFLPA needs to suck it up and just accept personal responsibility must be used. If you blow your chance or can’t handle your money, that’s your problem, not everyone else’s. /endrant