Packers and Cowboys. One of the best games of the year. And, it’s not on TV. There’s no reason other than greed and arrogance that the NFL Network isn’t on basic cable.
Of course, none of that’s news. Just me venting tonight. Say what you want about baseball, it has its problems, no doubt. But, no professional sports league spits on the public more than the NFL.
The NFL Network … forcing its season ticket holders to buy meaningless exhibition games … taking a regular season game to Europe … not to mention its collection of thugs on the field.
And, that’s just off the top of my head.
10 Comments
I like pro football, but if the direction is to PPV or some other added payment method, I’ll stick to my Va Tech and PSU CFB.
Hi John,
I love football, but you’re on to something. I’m a Jets season ticket holder, and forcing your ticket holders to buy exhibition games AND NOT EVEN LOWERING THE PRICE is disgusting. But unfortunately, regarding your statement that “no professional sports league spits on the public more than the NFL”, they do it because they can. If I give up my season tickets because of the exhibition game thing, there are thousands and thousands of folks ready to take my spot.
And I don’t know if you know this, but the Jets have a ticket exchange where you can sell your season tickets to people that wish to buy them. Until this season, I couldn’t sell my tickets over face value, while the Jets (NFL) turn around and sell them for about $25-$30 per ticket. This season, they let the ticket holders get a profit of up to $14 per ticket.
But inexplicably, there’s no way to sell them at a discount. So when the Jets are bad like they are this season (and most seasons), I don’t even have the option to sell them at half price on the exchange to at least get something back…because who wants to buy Jets tickets and go all the way to the Meadowlands to watch games? Season ticket holders still get screwed left and right, and there’s no recourse. It’s a shame.
Why don’t you just sell them on eBay, StubHub, or one of those sites.
I’m a huge Packers fan, and I came to my parents’ house in Staten Island to watch the game because my dad has Directv (I live in Queens now.)
Another thing about the NFL, the officiating has gotten really bad. Now, I am obviously biased, but there were two huge calls that had a huge impact on this game: when an out of position ref blew the play dead when Harris stripped Owens of the ball, and the late interference call that gave Dallas a 10 point lead.
Not to mention that the NFL gets a free pass on their thug players while the NBA gets reamed in the media.
John,
the one thing you forgot to mention is that whole steroids problem. I’m an NFL fan, but it sticks in my craw that the NFL has been teflon-coated on the steroids issue while baseball has taken ALL the heat. Drug policy violations are at least as prevalent in the NFL as in baseball. Any advantages from increased muscle mass might be easily offset by poor hand-eye coordination when trying to hit a baseball. But, increased muscle mass is an inherent advantage in every football activity. Yet there is essentially no residue on the careers or reputations of guys like Shawn Merriman or Rodney Harrison.
No sport spits on its fans more and none have more subservient fans, media and politicians than the NFL. I can understand why people love to watch football..it is a great TV sport with pauses to debate past plays and guess new plays. But I never understand the teflon it has.
I hope you’re not giving the cable comopanies a free pass. They used the game to try to gt sport fans to buy a sports pacakage, but tell Congress they can’t do an a la carte sales program.
And baseball, sending teams to Japan for regular season gsmes… And do you think the fleecing of Mets fans will not happen in the new Wilpon Field? And baseball doesn’t give a crap about the discrepancy between bigs and cheaps (some people calll them small market but when the Tinkies owner has more $$ that Steinbrenner what can you say)
And the BS in the MLV TV package blacking out teams that aren’t on TV or cable in one area.
And the Mets’ ticket exchange. They want 75 bucks just to have the right to buy a ticket from a season ticket holder. Even the NFL (at least the Giants) don’t stoop that low.
Bottom line big conglomerates all are the same. They are all like Billy Wagner. ME ME ME
PS: Is Wagner gonna get booed out of town like Benitez and Looper??? At least those two never panned their team mates while ignoring their own failures.
Speaking of sports other than baseball, how about the team formerly known as the Knicks. They are truly the worst team that money can buy!
Metstradama: At least you have tickets for only 10 games. The way Omar is doing nothing good, Mets season ticket holders have 81 to sell!!
“I don’t follow the NFL, but let me tell you, that Massillon team looks awfully good this year. They’re real fighters.”—Unknown naked man in the locker room of my gym.
WFAN is reporting the Mets have traded Milledge to Washington for Ryan Church and Brian Schneider….
Check the TV listings on the sports pages. Each team/sport now has it’s very own TV channel – at a big cost to the viewer. They are pricing themselves out of our lives.