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The upcoming 2010 Pro Bowl should find itself in good company, despite all the negative publications you may read on the internet or here on Bleacher Report, which should make some feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside.
Corporate moguls from Bank of America will be chowing down on some cheeseburgers graciously supplied by McDonalds…er, I mean the new McDonalds Snack Wrap (I wouldn’t want to impose on the current marketing theme).
Pepsi, as expected, will be right around the corner with a wonderful blend of retro Pepsi and modern Pepsi for those indecisive types, showing they too can offer the old with the new—take that Coca-Cola!
And in case anyone’s interested, Don Shula will be playing 18 holes on Shula’s Golf Club prior to the evening’s festivities—that’s Shula’s Golf Club in beautiful Miami Lakes, Florida, right off of the Palmetto Expressway, east of I-75.
Despite all the hoopla surrounding the otherwise meaningless television event, we should remember the old saying: Every grey cloud has a silver lining.
Sure, it’s easy for us to discuss the futile nature of the game in regard to the players who aren’t even going to be in the event, but it is even harder for most of us to realize there is some good in the Pro Bowl, even if the game is a sham.
Local outreach programs and the NFL community programs such as Habitat for Humanity, NFL Play60, and Super Kids will be part of the largest community project in the league’s history in three of Florida’s communities: Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach.
These programs will be focused towards children, improvement of various areas of South Florida, and even a big fat donation check courtesy of Bank of America.
Various local hotel and travel companies will be afforded some extra cash from all the occupied rooms and various transportation modes taking people to and fro.
In addition, and technically as a byproduct of filled hotels and patrons with transportation, local restaurants, retail outlets, gas stations, and markets will all be afforded an economical boost thanks to the droves of people flowing into Florida.
In essence, the state of Florida will get a nice economical stimulus of their own thanks to the NFL and its otherwise useless Pro Bowl event.
So while we can—and should as fans—scoff at the Pro Bowl and the realization that as a NFL competition it is totally bogus, we should also keep in mind that any type of event of this magnitude, regardless of who is throwing it, does have some worth.
We all really don’t care whether or not the “Cribbs Cam” will be functional or whether the AFC will beat the NFC again, but when local communities are afforded some extra help and cash and children get to take part in events bigger than anything they have ever been a part of, you have to agree the real important aspect of the Pro Bowl is that obscure silver lining you rarely hear about.
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With the Super Bowl a week away, the NFL is pushing a product on fans that no longer holds the same meaning that it did before. They are trying to tell the world that a Pro Bowl game will be played, yet it is devoid of the very best in the NFL has to offer.
Roger Goodell is the commissioner of the league, and his legacy is forever tarnished by some recent moves that has most calling the fascist commissioner a moron. His moving the Pro Bowl a week ahead of the Super Bowl is certainly near the top of his list of moves that has fans, coaches, and players scratching their heads.
Perhaps Goodell should have this game retitled the Consolation Bowl, because not all the best has to offer will play. There will be several Pro Bowl players from the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts not playing so they can avoid injury and prepare for Super Bowl XLIV on February 7, 2010. The fact that 13 players chosen will be forced to skip the event shows that the NFL commissioner has turned the game into a fraudulent sham whose only real purpose is to steal a few more dollars from their fans to put on a game filled with more mediocre players than ever before.
Though critics like to lament how the players, who participate in the Pro Bowl, give little effort because the game means nothing more than a paycheck, the main reason is that the modern player needs more incentive to find their source to draw pride in the abilities from. Gone are the players who used to give a great effort because they wanted to show they were the best by winning this game. Goodell, who has dropped the ball on many moments in his tenure, continues to spit in the eye of tradition here by thinking he has taken the easy way out once again.
Thinking outside of the box of confined thought is something the league should consider. Major League Baseball added an important incentive that has their upper echelon players give full effort, and the NFL should go this same route. The winning conference can earn home field advantage in the Super Bowl, which is what baseball has done to success so far. It makes for a better game for the fans, players, and even sponsors who pour millions of dollars into these games.
The NFL would most likely never consider this idea because they do not want a Super Bowl played in nine feet of snow with winds at 110 miles per hour if the Buffalo Bills reach the Super Bowl a year when the AFC held home field rights by winning the previous Pro Bowl. But that is where Goodell and the league are missing the point.
Giving players incentive to work and play hard in the Pro Bowl can bring out the very best from their All-Stars. The league may fret the fair weathered fan, who brings a family of four or more to a game where ticket prices skyrocket to obscene proportions, will eschew a cold weathered venue. Yet this is a tax free organization who sells luxury boxes in each stadium, licensed seating, and has never had a problem even filling seats in an exhibition game played by free agents and rookies making their last appearance in a uniform during the preseason. The Super Bowl would be sold out even if it was played on an iceberg in the Antarctic.
The NFL likes to use catchphrases like “giving back” and “community.” These are phrases, since it is the fans who made the league what it is. A Super Bowl in a city like Buffalo would do wonders for that city’s economy. That is the truest way to give back to the community instead of continuing to bite the hands that feed and keep the game alive.
Goodell will choose continue the work of former commissioner Paul Tagliabue by eroding the game and exiling the fans with a “shut up and like it” message. Defense is becoming as extinct as the dodo bird, and exerts about as much flight right now. The only future is the league adopting the moronic college football overtime rule. That’s more of Goodell’s speed, and is the easy way out that he usually takes. That is, of course, the league avoids another players strike.
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To some, the game has never mattered. But to many NFL fans, and especially its players, being selected to the Pro Bowl was not only an honor and a chance to make some money, but it was also a chance to spend a family vacation in paradise.
Ah, but times have changed. Not only do players make much more money these days, but the game being played in Miami this year, and before the Super Bowl, has diminished its impact.
What a stupid decision it was to schedule the game to be held prior to the Super Bowl. Not only did that mean that the two teams playing in the big game were unable to play in the Pro Bowl, but the venue change to Miami has definitely decreased its desirability.
But even when the game is rescheduled and in its proper place after the season, the game has simply lost its luster, and this is mainly due to salary escalation in the NFL.
At one time, the money paid to the winning team actually mattered to the players.
But now it is tip money for most of the guys.
Yes, the selection is still an honor for most of the players, but to play in the game is an afterthought. And that is too bad.
So what should the NFL do? Well, one obvious change is to restore the game to after the Super Bowl and bring it back to Hawaii.
But more changes may be needed.
How about raising the stakes? Either give each player on the winning team more money or tie player bonuses into actually playing in the game. In other words, if you don’t play, you don’t get your bonus.
No matter what happens, it is clear that the Pro Bowl is not what it used to be. And, like dinosaurs and eight-track tapes, it may be obsolete.
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I’ve always been fascinated with Hall of Fames. The concept of them at least. Some may argue about the design of the actual building, but in theory, they’re great. I think their should be Hall of Fames for more things in society. The Reality TV Show HOF, hip-hop HOF, and more. It is a difficult process to make it to the Hall, and truly a wonderful honor upon receiving a personal bust. With this weekend’s dull Pro Bowl approaching, I thought it would be fun to examine the game’s elite players and how they fit into the Hall picture. You will see certain classes of the Hall of Fame, and the truly deserving players.
At the conclusion of the regular season, the Miami Dolphins had one Pro Bowl selection: offensive tackle Jake Long. Now, they have three.
The same week Dolphins strong safety Yeremiah Bell was named as a replacement for Indianapolis Colts safety Antoine Bethea, it was announced that Dan Carpenter will replace the San Diego Chargers’ Nate Kaeding as the AFC squad’s kicker.
It’s no surprise to see Kaeding withdraw from the game, as his three missed field goals in the divisional round of the playoffs greatly hurt his team in an eventual loss to the New York Jets.
A second-year player originally signed as an undrafted free agent out of Montana, Carpenter joins ex-Dolphins Garo Yepremian and Olindo Mare as just the third placekicker in franchise history named to the Pro Bowl.
Although a strong case could have been made for Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski, who missed just one kick all season under 57 yards, Carpenter is certainly not a bad pick either.
After maintaining his hold on the Dolphins’ placekicking job in a preseason kicking competition with Connor Barth, Carpenter went on to convert 25-of-28 field goal attempts and all but one extra point attempt during the 2009 regular season.
With the additions of Bell and Carpenter, the Dolphins will now have two representatives in the 2010 Pro Bowl being played in their home stadium. Jake Long withdrew from the game earlier this month due to injury.
Do you agree with Dan Carpenter being named to the Pro Bowl roster? share your thoughts here !
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