The “No Fun League.” It’s a clever cliché, an easy moniker for dissenting fans to use at the National Football League’s expense. When you’re on top of the mountain you’re always going to be the easiest target for critics. Sometimes, though, the NFL makes it far too easy.
Take for example the NFL’s decision to further limit end-zone celebrations by adding goal-post dunking to the long list of banned actions. NFL VP of officiating Dean Blandino stated, “We grandfathered in some—the Lambeau Leap and things like that. But dunking will come out. Using the ball as a prop or any object as a prop—whether that’s the goal post, the crossbar—that will come out and that will be a foul next season.”
Grandfathered in?! This sounds like a decision made by grandfathers totally out of touch with what will resonate with any fan not alive during the Carter administration.
One of the conscientious objectors is Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. Cuban has punctuated his hypothesis that the NFL “is 10 years away from an implosion” with a 1,585-word Facebook post. Cuban’s main premise is that the oversaturation of the NFL’s ever-expanding TV deal would eventually bore fans.
In a content-crazy world I tend to disagree with him, however the principle behind his argument is sound. “There is a big difference between optimizing the relationship you have with your customers and maximizing short-term revenue,” Cuban wrote. “Building customers for life is about building relationships and anticipating customer wants and needs.”
What Cuban is saying is far from groundbreaking and it could be lifted from any university economics textbook in the chapter about “brand loyalty.” Cuban believes your relationship with the customer has to be based on things other than just financial transactions. And make no mistake: Systematically doing away with the fun elements of football strips away that relationship with the fan.
The other element to this is that it’s not helping to build the league’s relationship with its players, who often feel disenfranchised by the way Roger Goodell and the NFL’s ownership group rule with an iron fist. Take for example the following player tweets.
Yes, Jimmy Graham dunked once and moved the goal post causing a delay during last season. Some would argue that the delay made the game slower, which impacted the rigid broadcast start times of 1:00 and 4:00 p.m. EST—times set in stone based on peak advertising and audience numbers.
That might be a plausible argument except that Graham’s questionable dunk happened during a Thursday night game, with no other scheduled game after it. Of all the times Graham, Tony Gonzalez, Antonio Gates, Terrell Owens and others dunked the ball over the goalposts, we’ve had exactly one delay. Is that an epidemic worth reform? If anything, ban two-handed dunks, which was the finish of choice when Graham moved the post. Or make the policy that players dunk at their own risk, with a shifted post equaling a 15-yard penalty.
To squash your players’ freedom of expression in a sport where they are already hidden from your viewing audience by masks is in no way “protecting the shield,” the mandate Goodell continues to reinforce. Protecting said shield should include highlighting the individuality and athletic ability of your players. Celebrate the fact that you have players like Graham who are strong enough to block defensive linemen when asked but athletic enough to dunk a football over a crossbar with ease.
Many factors make the NFL great. At the top of that long list is the raw human emotion of the players, and just as important is the emotion of the fans who feed off the players’ theatrics. The NFL needs to remind itself it’s not just in the business of earning revenue—it’s in the business of entertainment.
