BL: Why Roger Goodell Guessed Wrong. and more.

Roger Goodell
BobLee
October22/ 2017

Roger Goodell REALLY Guessed Wrong. – PLUS MORE!

Did you see Roger Goodell’s press conference on Thursday?  Roger may be the only man in America who would trade places with ECU AD Jeff Compher… or Harvey Wainstein.

Roger looked like a deer in the headlights of an 18-wheeler at point of impact…  It has been a Baaaad Autumn for Roger… a REALLY Bad Autumn.

The NFL’s $40,000,000/year Commissioner “guessed wrong”… and American Sports might never be the same again. In Roger Goodell’s defense… he didn’t (and still doesn’t) have many option, but still…

To “like Roger Goodell” is to like plantar fasciitis or mesothelioma.  NOBODY, regardless of politics, “likes Roger Goodell”.  OK, that congresswoman from Florida (the one in the cowboy hat… you know the one) SHE might “like Roger Goodell”.

Most rabid fans have just enough of a toehold on reality to know they don’t have the God-given ability to be a first-class athlete.  But… In his/her heart of hearts, every sports fan wants to be “a Commissioner”… “an AD”… maybe “a coach”.  You finished 3rd in your water cooler fantasy league two years in a row… how hard can it be? Right?

Pete Rozelle

Most of you are old enough to remember Alvin “Pete” Rozelle. Pete Rozelle may have been the last Commissioner of any pro sports league that the average fan “liked”. Pete was The NFLCommish from 1960-1989. Long before social media, cell phones and The Wonderlic.

Pete “commissioned” The NFL into arguably the most profitable sports passion in American sports history. MLB is, in my humble opinion, still “America’s Pasttime” but The NFL has been the 500 lb Go-rilla Sports Passion of America’s Sundays for most of our adult lives. Is that in danger?

How would Alvin “Pete” Rozelle have handled this current Inglorious Mess? How would Clint Murchison… George Halas… Wellington Mara… Al Davis… Art Rooney… Art Modell… Rankin Smith… Bud Adams… Lamar Hunt… et have handled it? Those are the “legendary” NFL owners I could think of without googling. Pretty good… huh?

Honestly… I’m not sure those tough ol’ “very rich white guys” and Pete could have “gotten it right” either. I’m not sure it is a Right / Wrong issue. It is a “Just The Way It Is” Issue.

“Just tell those arrogant millionaire thug-aletes to respect The Flag or their sorry asses are fired” sounds all harumphy and patriotically testosteronic but it’s a bit more complicated than that.

IMO… this Inglorious Mess was inevitable. Kaepernick is “The Archduke Ferdinand” of this OMG. The assassination of His Arch Dukeness supposedly “started WWI” but WWI was going to happen with / without Ferdinand.

I’ve been following all this because it is exactly the sort of multi-layered cultural labyrinth I love to wander around in. And, maybe, cause you to say “huuummm, I hadn’t thought of that angle.”

In that last incredibly insightful column (NFL … NBA… Me, You) I laid out some of my personal decisions about sports spectatoring. I wasn’t telling you what yours should be, just explaining mine.

As I told “CowDog”… I’ve never considered myself “mainstream”. I’m quite content to be a cultural outlier. I’m not totally alone in my perspective as many of you’ans comments continually confirm.

Most of you who visit here are of the Baby Boomer persuasion. Born sometime twixt 1945-1960 with leeway on both sides of that time span. I hope you have realized that “we” are no longer the Darlings of Madison Avenue.

“Mad Men” no longer ask us what flavor toothpaste we prefer… or if we trust Dinah Shore to tell us to “see the USA in our Chevrolet”. We still consume… but not in the massive %s we use to. We are, alas, an Endangered Species.

I had a high school classmate pass away last week. A not uncommon occurrence these days. As has been the case for a few years, his obit did not contain the clique lament “… but he was so young.” Point taken.

That we aren’t the Dominant Demographic any longer is A Fact. However… we still hold the “I told you so” card. And don’t we loooove to play it. I sure do.

I am going to link you to THE ARTICLE that I believe best explains the How / Why of this NFL situation. It is about The NFL Situation but it is about lots of other similar situations still to come.

WARNING: Some of you will dismiss this article because it does not come via “your media”. Trust me – I GET IT. The 2017 definition of “TRUTH” is “it came from a media source that I agree with”. We all have our list.

If it had come from CNN or The N&O I would have never seen it. But, it didn’t…

This comes from a writer with Breitbart. Not EVIL Steve Bannon but still “from Breitbart”. If you are afraid you will “get Kooties” if you read it… please don’t.

I’m not a Steve Bannon fan; and I don’t normally read Breitbart, but I found this… and it, IMO… NAILS THE NFL MESS.

…THE LINK…

Your opinion? … ALWAYS welcomed.

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Saturday, I watched….

…. maybe 10 minutes of The Blacksburg Massacre. Who knew “The Little Big Horn” was in Lane Stadium?  If only Larry Fedora had that $36,000,000 IPF with those smoothie machines… “if only…”. Good news for TruBlues… Western Carolina does NOT have an IPF either so that Nov 18th game with the Catamounts is still a “pick’em”. The Fedorians “magic number” is now 2018.

I did watch Every Pitch of “GAME 7” – Astros vs Yankees. I watched 95% of “GAME 6”. And I don’t have an “emotional thing” for either team… I just love watching exciting baseball. … Refer Above to: I’m not a mainstream guy.

If the NFL Ratings Disaster was not enough… Fox, which has the World Series, was praying for Yankees / Dodgers. Instead that get Astros / Dodgers. Which I KNOW will get a comment from lifelong Dodger fan Br’er Kennell.

… “leggy” Mary Hart sits on the first row behind home plate in The House That Vin Built. Will this be Mary Hart versus Kate Upton? Kate is new Astro Justin Verlander’s fiancée.

… Will America embrace Jose Altuve?  Don’t hug Jose too hard.  He’s just a little fella.  Jose is the Fred Patek / Albie Pearson of The New Millenium.

… Can three people outside Greater Houston name the Astros’ manager? Can a dozen people in Houston name the Astros manager?

… Will Joe Girardi become the THIRD manager of this season’s eight playoff teams to be fired? Talk about “a tough business”…

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If You Haven’t Read it… AgentPierce’s piece – REVEALED: Who Killed Plotthound… and Why. … sent shock wave across NC Repub circles last week.  AP “gutted” a sacred cow and stomped on his no-account entrails. A very over-due and well-deserved “gutting” I might add.

Blondie

BLONDIE has been very busy.  She is fast becoming the new Darling of the CommonSense Crowd.  Check out So The Blonde Said

And, of course… MORE BOBLEE HERE.

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