NFL Demonstrates They Know The Rhythm But Not The Blues Of Black Culture
The NFL achieved the dubious distinction of reaching the worst of both worlds. Super Bowl Sunday demonstrated the league could patronize blacks in an almost epic fashion, while also rubbing it in the face of its massive red state fan base.
Black people are not good enough to serve the league as owners, executives or head coaches, but they were chosen yesterday to dominate the pregame entertainment shortly before kickoff. First a pair of black women performed the "black national anthem " Lift Every Voice And Sing", then a black woman sang America The Beautiful and then another black woman sang The National Anthem. And of course the Super Bowl halftime show was headlined by five black rappers (plus Eminem).
This blatant display of cultural pandering had to stick in the craw of others, including the massive following the NFL has in red states, small towns and rural areas where football and the NFL is like a religion. I looked it up - in the past 32 years there has been a country music halftime show TWICE, once in 1994 and again in 2003 when Shania Twain was the headliner. No country music at the Superbowl in almost 20 years.
The redstate fans have to be satisfied with the giant American flags on the field and the military flyovers just before the big game.
The NFL dominates American entertainment in the fall and winter. I read today that 75 of the 100 most watched programs on American television since September have been NFL games. That is a staggering statistic.
The NFL needs to do much better in how it portrays its image. And hire black coaches.
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It would appear they know exactly what they're doing.
Obviously not, given the numbers you've just described. According to your own assertions, they need to keep doing exactly what they're doing now.
I realize it's a difficult concept for politic mongers, but the NFL retains popularity precisely because decisions that matter are made based on merit. If you win, you get to keep your job. If you lose, you don't. That's as true for coaches winning games as it is with players winning individual battles at their position.
If Bryan Flores, Romeo Crennel, Marvin Lewis, Todd Bowles, Anthony Lynn, or Jim Caldwell had won more games, they'd still be NFL head coaches. The same is true of Jason Garrett, Urban Meyer, Joe Judge, and every other white coach that's ever been fired.
If Colin Kaepernick hadn't sucked so badly his last two years, he wouldn't have lost his job.
Players and coaches who don't perform get replaced. That's how it works.
I think that very few knowledgeable observer's believe that coaching decisions in the NFL have been made entirely on merit. If you wanna believe that they have been knock yourself out
I clearly remember each and every attempt at a pressure 'campaign' expressed on this very site trying to 'shame' white liberals with claims of acknowledging "white guilt." The shameless some conservatives want to pretend to not see blacks and people of color merit while they drive every 'train' in the country.
If you define "knowledgeable observers" as "only the people who agree with your race complaining", then maybe.
Actual knowledgeable observers understand the difference between Tony Dungy and Bryan Flores.... without having to Google them.
JR there are an average of 22 position coaches and "coordinators" on an NFL team.
One of my ex son in laws is one of them.
He is black, previously with 3 major college teams, the Eagles, ******* and currently the ********.
If you are looking for parity, black position coaches are over represented in the NFL.
The Eagles are staff heavy with 23 positions, 7 obvious minorities. >30% ?
The Panthers, have 27 with 8 obvious black assistant coaches. < 30% ?
The Steelers, have 15 besides Mike Tomlin, 8 are obviously black < 50% !
The Rams, have 20, 10 are obviously black < 50%
The Cowboys, have 26, 13 are obviously black < 50%
I can't speak for many but I know Raheem Morris is a multi millionaire and the #2 coach of the Super Bowl
winners.
As far as players, black representation is almost 70%
Read more:
History is replete with the shortcomings of white racists and bigotry against people of color. Who cares if you want to delude yourselves into a pretense it has not occurred? Facts are facts. Time and space is recorded. The best you can say or do about is not repeat it. Spin, Repeat, Wash will only spread the 'toxins' of history around again.
Texan, you would like for people of color to forgive and forget as some conservatives conservatize the nation (from their minority status in the country), but let me help you with something: Going back to an18th century political gauge is bad politics for this country. First, it's insulting. Second, it is unworkable. Third, it would be devolution. Fourth, it's fake colorblindness. Substituting "blue states" liberals and policy diversity and slamming said states for it, while pumping and "hoorah-ing" our "red states" under conservative static idealism which fixes patriarchal dominance at the top of every political structure (you know who he is) is racial politics plain as the noses on our faces! We see you. Deny all you want. It simply won't work, because it can't work.
Let's look at the 21st century. This is the 22nd year of the century. If there were some sort of racial quota for NF L head coaches there would be at least 5 black head coaches every single one of those 22 seasons. Has there been?
The NFL is doing better than ever. Thanks to Colin...
...leaving and not finding another job in it.
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It is interesting to see the upturn in viewership once they stopped the political noise.
Here's an embarrassing update: If I hadn't seen your article, I wouldn't have known that yesterday was Superbowl Sunday.
Hanging my head in shame, I am.
I watched the olympics instead and flipped over to the superbowl during a few commercials.
I forgot it was this Sunday. No worries, I don't care about the Super Bowl anyway unless the Steelers are in it
I only watched it to see the Rams lose... The Bengals almost pulled it off... Then their emotions got away from them and they lost it...
You can't give a superbowl caliber team 8 shots at the end zone and not expect them to score....
Maybe next year Bengals fans... You did show that you have the stuff...
Amen!
are you a Steelers fan? Or where I come from we're Stillers fans
Aw, thanks CB. I'll take a hug any old time.
The Winner of the Super Bowl (The Rams won) will not be final until Mike Pence talks to Dan Quayle.
They even had a small insurrection in teh streets of LA last night
Snort!!!
Guess they should do some research. There are two minority owners in the NFL; but they are the wrong color for the woke crowd.
It has three black General Managers.
There are currently 2 black head coaches in the league. Of course that number changes almost yearly. Considering one of the two is Teflon Mike Tomlin in Pittsburgh there will always be at least one for the foreseeable future.
Now consider that there are only 32 teams in the NFL. What percentage should be black owners, head coaches, and GM's? Considering what the woke want, what is parity?
Blacks make up 14.2% of the US population- using basic math we come up with 4.5 for each.
No problem. Some NFL teams have had piss poor owners for a very long time. Just need to come up with 4 to 5 black owners that can come up with the 30% majority investment (and a willing coalition of investors to back them). Considering the average NFL franchise is worth 3.48 billion dollars in 2021- that might take some doing; but I am sure there are more than enough woke billionaires that don't already have major ownership in other professional sports franchises to make that happen./S
Now, as for the black head coaches. Well, that might take some major arm twisting. Byron Leftwich was the top choice for the Jacksonville Jaguars vacancy- except he turned it down. If there is going to be true parity can't have that happening. Not every day that a year removed Super Bowl Champion has their head coach walk away leaving a star studded team just waiting for the next coach to come in and ride them to the Super Bowl. Looking at you again Tomlin. There are only 32 jobs open sometimes you will have to take what you can get.
Same with thing with GM's. Though they only need to hire 1 or 2 more of them to reach quota.
Now, about huge disparity in player representation (Houston we have a major problem):
In 2020 57.5 players in the NFL were black. Wait, what? That can't be! It should be 14.2% based on the population. Asians make up 7% of the US population- but they only make up 1.9% of NFL players. Latinos make up 18.5% of the population- but they only make up .5% of NFL players. 57.8% of the US population is white- but only 24.9% of NFL players are white.
So the NFL will need a major player realignment to achieve equal representation. I am sure that there are athletes that can be persuaded to leave their current sports and join the NFL. This is all for the sake of the woke after all.
Or we could just leave things the way they are and let the woke idiots bitch; because no matter what system they put in place they are going to bitch about something.
The NFL isn't woke enough.
The world is coming to an end.
Although I think a lot of your statistics are disputable I'm not going to dispute them here. I'll just say that white people don't need affirmative action there has not been any shortage of white coaches Executives or owners and for many years neither was there a shortage of white players by percentage. You need to get past the idea that white people have any disadvantages in this Society because that is not the case and yet at times people like you seem to wallow in that perception.
Afraid of math- look it the damn hell up yourself if you don't believe me. The numbers are readily available.
If you are going to use parity of population for blacks- then it applies to all other races as well; including whites. Notice you didn't mention the lack of Asian and Latino players in the NFL. Or are they not minorities any more? Leftist wokeism is so damn confusing. Do you have a slide rule or metric you can direct me to? I am sure there are several others here that would like to make use of it as well.
When it comes to players there are no quotas, if Asian or Hispanic players are the best available they will be drafted. Your arguments about racial representation among players is silly.
Same with coaches and GM's and Owners. Shouldn't be quotas for ANYTHING to do with sports. Period.
Thank you, that is the point!
If they are quota some things, then they damn well better quota everything!
There are no quotas. The rules are very simple..... Win or GTFO.
Good. So why the pretense (and that is what it is) perception that white men are better as leaders? Could it be that white men have been privileged to lead (not ever locked out) while people of color have been locked out (and still are locked out)? To be clear, blacks and other minorities were kept repressed through various hook and crook techniques, strategies, and 'good old boy' (back door) policies. Just saying.
And let's not kid ourselves, the greatest animosities for some whites has been this perpetual 'combat' with the 'blacks' (the former slaves). Call. It. What. It. Is.
The thing is this country would not need affirmative action or quotas if it did the right thing to start; if it does the right thing 'today' - however, this country has people who deploy all sorts of 'strategies' and tactics that keep wealth, power, and influence in the hands of a 'select few.' And we know those select few feel obliged to keep what they have away from those they 'otherize.'
And what happens when one can win and maybe the 'winniest" and still get politicized out of a job and career? What's left over for one then? Happens everyday somewhere on the planet. The time has come to set our house in order on this score!
Who are you thinking of?
I can't think of a time in the NFL.
I'm not sure I follow. What do you suggest?
He is trying to pull the Colin Kaepernick card. Kaepernick was a physical and mental wreck by the time the 49ers released him.
Kaepernick gets lumped with Kordell Stewart (and others) as QB's with all of the physical gifts- but unwilling to work at developing the mental and mechanical aspects of their game.
Kaepernick needed his kneeling gimmick to keep earning money. But don't feel too badly for him- he parlayed it into just under a 10 million dollar settlement along with Reid against the NFL. Not bad for a QB that never learned to read a defense; and refused to correct his throwing mechanics.
He has parlayed the settlement into fleecing woke idiots with his merchandise; and being a Nike (goods made in China) sponsor; like the monster hypocrite he is.
If you want quotas then we will quota every last damn thing. Which means a lot of black professional football players, baseball players, and basketball players will need to find other work. If am sure they can take up auto racing, skiing, golf, tennis, racquet ball, la Crosse, rugby and a host of other sports that white athletes will need to vacate to meet quotas.
I am sure all sports would suffer; and many would even go out of business; but that is the price that must be paid for being woke.
Prove it. Seriously, you made the statement, back it up. The only ones we see stating that are you and those on the left.
Where the hell have you been? Colleges are basing their admissions on race being a major qualifier. There is a whole legal battle in the Supreme Court over it. If white men are so damned privileged they would make up the majority of admissions to major universities. Instead many whites are lying about their race to get in; and get scholarships.
To be clear, prove that this is going on now. Seriously. Come up with the evidence. Especially in the NFL; who has paid out millions in settlements already whenever there is even the perception of racial disparity.
And let us not kid ourselves that the animosity for some blacks is pretending that all whites came from slave owners; and responsible for keeping them oppressed. Call. It. What. It. Is.
Racism is what it is, they have become what they rail against...
Your aggressive stance means nothing to me, because I do not want any quota, per se. I want this nation to always do what is in the best interests of people. So do not 'net' me in with some conservative bull patty! If fairness, correctness, equity RESET the playing fields, plural. So be it. I, we, are not arguing or disputing progress—are you?
You read my comment. I did not stipulate any quotas! It suggest those active participants involved drop all pretenses, dirty tactics, back room antics, strategies and deceptions that wrecklessly stack the deck against citizens of this country.
If you have a problem with fairness, equity, and peace as an outcome-that is a some conservative problem for which no one should work to help you satisfy. Indeed, the struggle against some conservatives working to make second-class citizens of their fellows CONTINUES!
I don't have to prove it. Follow the case in the news right now of the Black Football coach accuses the NFL of racial discrimination. It's an open case. And farther more, because I am on my way out I will drop this here. . . colleges base their ADMISSIONS on a VARIETY OF FACTORS of which race at the proper point can be one. Also, whites are the majority in this country-are you, they not? One could say whites are OVER-REPRESENTED in colleges locking out others with sheer scale alone. (Also, we know there is a lot of legacy college activity still occurring with families and there was also the recent rich families paying for their sons and daughters to get into higher level institutions.
Lastly, this was going on 'then' - you prove it has ended 'now.' Go far it.
Finally, take some responsibility or at least show some consideration for the theft of generational wealth and liberties of your FELLOW CITIZENS who have suffered enough already. Then, stop with the bull patty that is continuing today in politics and other private venues. As men like Trump are telling you all to "fight like hell" to keep 'stuff' from others - otherized.
Got to run.
To be clear on this... the worst QB rating in the NFL this year belonged to rookie Zach Wilson of the Jets @ 69.7.
Kaepernick's rating in his final season was 49.2. The year before that he posted a 43.7....in his 5th season. He didn't suck just a little. He was galactic level awful. He would have needed a 59% improvement just to equal 2021's worst rookie.
A coach who missed the playoffs 3 years in a row and lost more than half his games.
I can't argue that 'value because I do no follow the league regularly. It may or may not invalidate every thing he is 'arguing' - I don't properly know. Admittedly, my knowledge of 'this' is limited.
People who try to mix sports and politics rarely follow sports regularly. That's true about the race issues, but exponentially more true about gender disparity issues and transgender participation issues.
Okay, break that down for me. Because it seems to be saying a lot more than what I admitted. And I do not want to misunderstand what you mean to CONVEY (to me).
It's nothing earth-shattering.
A common assertion among trans activists is that males transitioning to females have no competitive advantage in women's sports. They argue that once a man's testosterone levels are reduced, the playing field is level. The important thing to remember is that no person who makes this assertion has ever played, coached, or even followed competitive sports. The entire idea is astonishingly asinine. It's the scientific equivalent of saying that if we give you big enough feathers you can flap your arms and fly to Mars. It's like saying that since we've had a black president, racism in America has been eliminated. A person cannot have ANY knowledge of sports and still hold this belief.
The gender pay activists are known for claiming that men and women in their respective sports "do the same job", and therefore should be paid similarly. They just don't. Again, most of the people making this argument have never actually seen the sport in question played.
The most high-profile arguments about this in recent years have revolved around the US women's national soccer team, who are the best women's team in the world. They have been beaten soundly by teams of American 14-year-old boys...who are not nearly as good as 14-year-old boys in Italy or Brazil or England.
It's not close. They're literally not in the same league. If you've seen Cristiano Ronaldo play and you've seen Megan Rapinoe play, and you hear someone argue that they "do the same job", you have to wonder what these people are smoking.
With regard to Brian Flores, is it possible the Dolphins owner is a racist? Meh. Maybe. It seems unlikely he would hire a black coach if he were. The fact is the team didn't win, and that's what coaches are paid to do.
1. Systemic racism. 2. Claims without merit. 3. Black coaches not allowed self-realization as producers. Those are the charges in this matter on both sides. Now, courts will be required to make proper assessments of legalities and other corrective practices accordingly.
Merit is not only determined by victories, it is about diversity and inclusion (even among head coaches) and plans for building long-term morale in the ranks of the organization.
That's not how professional sports works.
In the NFL...merit is determined by victories. The championship trophy is named for a man who said "winning isn't everything, it's the only thing."
Nobody is interested in diversity and/or inclusion for the sake of diversity and/or inclusion. Organizations are diverse because it creates more victories.
Victories build morale. Defeats erode it. That's it.
Not so. Clever quotes aside. America is exceptional. But that is not because of its "wins" alone. The U.S.A is exceptional because it is the nation PROJECT that brings a multiplicity of the tribes of Earth together with aspirational goals of: many becoming into one.
Now then that goal can never be achieved if the people of our country never bother to "turn-to" and literally do the laborious work (is it really hard when we want to achieve something-this is not rocket science or even ending the world's viruses) of unifying many racial and ethnicities into a core collaboration-whereas all are 'spinning' around the center axis of stable equality.
Everything else is self-defeating. That is, one dominating group will never be depth, height, or breadth healthy as long as there are unhealthy 'regions' of second-class treatment corrupting our society.
Some can call it 'merit' to say, take us and choose us, and overlook the WEALTH that is raw-kept untapped-by factors and intent of domination and dominators. It will give one the illusion of success, but it is not success.
Success is a well, healthy, 'properly nourished' and mentally fit society build up on inclusion and the diversity it possesses!
Nothing. Nothing. Else. Will. Do. For. The. U.S.A.
The NFL is incrementally in high places coming to the realization that unless it rights its organization; history will record every 'list' of inequality and inequity it sustains. Expediency can not fix this dragging, long-term social problem. Dealing with its root deficiencies once and for all will.
I'm sure you would love for your Sunday morning pulpit philosophy to carry the day.
But come Sunday afternoon, the games begin and nobody gives a shit about any of that. It's about winning. Full stop.
Football is popular in large part because it doesn't include preaching.
Wow. So now I am preacher because I encourage you to look to something more then hot wings and a beer to get your 'kicks' off your fellow citizens who are working and pleading to not have a football CARTEL that caps them based on 'merit' ill-defined? To be clear, the merit point is a strong suit for this type of thing, until one looks to the historical record of misappropriations and unequal treatments of people of color which handicapped, crippled, and 'murdered' the loftiest positions in football from them. Time to fix that don't you think? Or just pretend not to hear unrestful screams and sighs from the fields and paying seats while you chug indulgences?
I think this discussion could get better and more in-depth. The question is this: How deep do you want to go, or with you punt with the 'merit' talking point and leave the challenge on the field?
Not just now, bro. It's a habit.
No, because of the way you word things.
You've admitted you don't follow the game. On what basis do you assert that merit in the NFL is ill-defined?
Not in pro sports, no.
You seem determined to believe that professional sports leagues are willing to put racism ahead of winning, despite your acknowledgment you don't know anything about how they're run.
Not a single professional sports league in the world awards their championship based on "Inclusion, diversity, core-collaboration and mental nourishment". As soon as they start, everybody will stop watching.
I coached for 30 years.
In competitive sports, you are there to WIN. You cannot afford to be racist, even if you wanted to. Stupidity like that is the fastest way to ensure that some other team goes home with the trophy. If the black kid is the best quarterback, he plays. If the white kid is the best running back, he plays. If the Mexican kid is the best linebacker, he plays. If the tallest kid on the team is the best catcher, he folds his ass in half and gets behind that plate. Worrying about who is what color is a luxury reserved for the fans.
In competitive sports, everybody understands that a chance is a privilege that nobody is guaranteed. You may be talented and work hard, but still never get a chance because another guy on your team is better.
If you are lucky enough to get a chance, you have to make it count. There is ALWAYS somebody breathing down your neck who wants your job. Even if you make the most of your chance, you can STILL lose your job if you get injured (Drew Bledsoe) or if the team simply thinks somebody else can do it better (Jared Goff).
Current Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy took his previous team to the playoffs 9 times in 12 years and won the Super Bowl. He was fired 18 months after leading them to the NFC Championship game.
The rules are simple.... win or GTFO. Save your happy thoughts about social justice for the offseason.
Exactly ...... the concept that a businessman (NFL owner) would not pick up the best possible talent to win, simply because of the color of the player/coaches skin, is absolutely ridiculous.
Where did I say I don't know ANYTHING about how the NFL is run? And exactly want do you mean by "run"? By the way, are we to assume you know how the NFL is "run"?
You need to ask the NFL why it says they are diverse and inclusive - if you feel clear the NFL has no interest in being diverse and inclusive. My goal here is not to dispute what the NFL says it is doing in that regard, but to ask them to continue to COMPREHENSIVELY live up to its aspirational goal of greater diversity and inclusive.
Now then, you try to take a "gruff" tact with me on what constitutes a 'winner.' Funny, that you address this in terms of expediency ("immediacy") but the NFL is not around for the short-term, there future planning is long-term and limitless. Therefore, they do have the provisional ability to better their staffs and players through CAPITALIZATION. That is, build the character in this specific discussion of: black coaches who have been 'generationally' impoverished, setback, and 'deficited' through lack and innumerable schemes designed to keep black coaches out of the highest reaches of football: Team ownership - by ne'er providing proper openings or shutting them down with schemes of 'MERIT.'
How did white coaches and owners get capability resulting in 'merit' coaching and team ownership? You imply it was 'in-borne'? Whites are gifted leaders? Blacks and other people of color are not so gifted? Be clear already.
Openings were provided for a white majority to advance itself-without a history of racism in its background locking whites out!
What MERIT is there in setting blacks and other people of color back and stopping them further from progressing up the ladder by throwing around ideas like go earn MERIT AND RETURN TO FOOTBALL —after you do?!"
And there it is! You must take me for some kind of fool. "Social justice" - spoken (against) like a man who has suitable social justice already and is no longer striving for it.
Blacks and other people of color are under-represented in high places so they continue to strive upwards to get there. How about getting "super-macho" out of the way and helping those players who want to see themselves diverse and represented in high places THE WAY YOU SEE YOURSELF THERE?!
It's not enough to just say earn it when you should know there are forces working to keep blacks 'out' of the high places. You can fake colorblindness, but the 'merit' talking point falls short of a long-term plan to see that it is so! (Three years is a 'weak' short-term effort and not sufficient to the scale of the task undertaken for Coach Flores.)
Pull any white head coach out you like and put him or her on display for your purposes, and by definition a white coach has not been dealt the struggles to get to success that a black coach coming out of sub-standard backgrounds and odysseys has to maneuver—not even mentioning the politics on/off the field, in the stands, on the cable channels, or in the boardrooms!
Social justice? Trust me if some conservatives needed it they would demand it. You don't need it when you have the 'high-ground' already!
The NFL is swimming in capital. 'Capitalize' on its diverse and inclusive long-term and 'endless' future with players, coaches, and owners who are 'healthy,' happier, and have a sense that they have done what it takes to make the sport better for all its participants and viewers in the stands.
Finally, as I will continue to state. This is our mutual home. This is not just some 'PLACE' for people to make money! It is our home! Make it work for everybody or nobody will be truly happy. And the government will be unhealthy, unSAT perpetually!
Why not? Some conservatives don't believe in social justice or equity for people of color. How do I know this? Because, even as it is in this case, some conservatives CONFRONT the problem with a DENIAL OF SERVICE statement. Just 'carry-on' and pretend it does not exist and perhaps it will all just disappear or at the least not be spoken about! NOPE, these kind of problem do not just straighten themselves out or I, we, won't be quiet while some CONTINUE to profit off our lives. Besides, we're talking about 'private country club' level behavior at this point. Not 'field hands' status.
Spoken like a true worker drone who has never owned and/or had to run a successful business.
Why not? Because it would be stupid. I know of no NFL coach or owner that wants to lose. Perhaps you know some that do. I don’t.
We're not talking just about a successful business, are we? We are talking about an American institution.
Watch the video (or not):
We Believe | It Takes All Of Us
Who said anything about "wanting to lose' - lose the subtext. Win as best and as often as possible and win in life too! The NFL wants people to reach APEX status and that takes more than this "I GOT MINE!" attitude you are sharing here. Watch the commercial (again).
I don't need to ask them anything. They say they are diverse because they are, in fact, diverse; at least in the sense that you use the word.
They have no interest or willingness to be diverse for the sake of diversity. Teams happen to be diverse because it gives them a better chance at winning.
You mean these same generationally impoverished black coaches who got their education by playing college football and became wealthy by playing pro football, all on the basis of their merit?
Oh dear.
You imagine that these black coaches are somehow "kept out" of team ownership, which is ridiculous. No NFL teams are owned by former coaches.
About 40% of NFL teams are owned by people who inherited them. They tend to get passed down from generation to generation. A few are owned by other billionaire scions, like heirs of Johnson & Johnson, Walmart, General Cinema, etc. The rest are owned by self made billionaires like real estate developers or hedge fund managers or other business tycoons.
There is a career path for coaching. Which I'm not going to explain because pro sports is clearly something you don't care about one iota unless you think you can use it to call people racist.
The only thing stopping a black person from becoming an owner is the $5 billion or so they would need to buy a team.
I've not implied anything. But as you're now accusing me of racism, I'll be clearer.
You have less than zero clue what you're talking about. There. Was that straighforward enough?
Further, your accusation a born from your lack of either the ability or willingness to read my comments at face value without pretending I have some hidden meaning.
The only place that is happening is your imagination.
I am trying not to, despite the increasing difficulty of the task.
Spoken like a man who believes he is striving for something when in fact absolutely nothing he does moves him any closer to his goal, which is why no observable progress has been made in 50 years.
This is the point where I ask you what your concrete plan is and you reply with a long round of pulpit philosophy.
You do presume, don't you? And so often incorrectly. Why on earth would you imagine I "see myself" represented in "high places"?
You are again attempting to speak authoritatively about something you both admit and demonstrate that you do not understand.
Riiiight. Are there unicorns and pixie dust in this fantasy of yours?
Healthy??? Have you ever actually played tackle football? Have you ever even seen it played?
Pro football players knowingly and willingly sacrifice any hope of future health in exchange for a fat paycheck and a chance at glory. They will spend the rest of their lives in varying levels of pain. Many of them will die young, and many who don't will not be able to tie their own shoes, either because their joints won't allow them to reach or their brains won't remember how.
They KNOW all of that. They KNOW they are literally caving their own heads in for the sake of winning. And they do it anyway.
And you think they give a solitary shit about your fluffy-bunny feel-good "make the world a better place, this is our home, let's go have mandatory diversity and inclusion training" nonsense?
Do you really imagine for one minute that ANY of the black players on the LA Rams want Sean McVeigh replaces with a black coach? I promise you, they do not.
Lol .... every NFL team is a business. A fact that even the most creative progressive can’t escape.
Do you think people go into business to be unsuccessful?
I had two thoughts running through my mind at that point, but good catch on your part! I am wanting to convey "upward mobility" not being capped ("Do not pass this point!") Ultimately, ending in diversity ownership of the teams of heavily diverse players.
Your insults are unnecessary and gravely offensive. You said you coached football. Good for you. However, that won't give you license of any kind to write back with spatterings of vulgarity to me. You've crossed a line with me. Watch how that works for you.
It is clear to me that you wish to keep this discussion away from the area of concern I am offering up. I will persist (as time permits I do have a life too) in sharing my points of view on sports. Have I ever played tackle football? Yes. I was a boy once - what the heaven do you think?
Coach, did you play tackle football as a boy 'back in the day'?! And we are talking about more than any one season of games!
I mentioned, capitalization, over the long-term to answer the problems the NFL sees and is attempting to address: diversity and inclusion. The statement that the NFL feels it is addressing diversity and inclusion. And the Brian Flores lawsuit that is pointing out areas where the NFL should wish to do more.
And your 'comeback' is a testosterone-laced 'rampage' at me about "winning" for the sake of winning. I repeat, the NFL is an American Institution. Equity has found a weakness in the NFL and that is what needs strengthening. Let's see what comes of it.
It is all I can do at this moment not to make what would come off as 'snark' so I will stop here for now.
Did you go to the Youtube link and watch the 30 second video? I would like to understand if you did or not before commenting too much. But, I must say this:
Your question is lame. Have you ever known any company to open with a strong unction to not "survive"? That is the point, the NFL wants to shore up its weak areas; to continue as the NFL of the future—not just the NFL we know (and love) today!
I watched it and it changes nothing regarding the point I’m making.
Which is why you will never “get it” when it comes to running a successful business. Don’t worry though, most people don’t really “get it” which is why so many new businesses fail in the first few years ....
The NFL is an American Institution. It is not going anywhere. It is not an "upstart" enterprise. That said, the video points out the NFL is fully 'woke' and aware that it needs to WIN off the field. Of course, you will pretend to not understand what I mean. And I am loathe to keep point it out to you just to read you 'blow it off. Returning to your bull-headed: profit wins. The NFL will listen (dutifully) as much as it can and execute changes that work for (and against) conflicting public viewpoints such as you and I are displaying here.
Your contention that WINNING is everything is misapplied. The NFL is here for the long-term. There policy is and ought to be to listen and not stop up their hears and try to DEMAND the public follow their whim to be 'above it all' and just make profit. Indeed, my understanding is the NFL gets monies from municipalities to (aid?) build their stadiums and need muncipal licensing/s, plural, to operate on the scale of BUSINESS that is this undertaking. You do not get that licensing to continue to operate with an unhappy public!
And again, you try to 'land' something that Jack_Tx is floating. It won't work. Because, I don't know how you intend to prove you have a SUCCESSFUL business without putting your personal information on screen here for consumption.
Note: I am not encouraging you to do that. So don't 'come back' at me with that. But, how else would you do it? (Rhetorical.)
So back to the topic: Let's talk about
Former NFL cheerleaders allege ‘dark toxic culture’ of hush money, misogyny and humiliation
NFL cheerleaders speak out on scandal, abuse | Banfield
At about 14 minutes into this 'interview' it gets real about what the NFL is doing 'off the field' - where winning takes on another of its forms. The NFL , and American Institution will be 'waking' to fix this breach too in coming weeks, months, and years.
But you keep contending that on wins on the field are the 'whole ball game.' (If you bother to listen to their account at all. I am sure the NFL will hear these women loud and clear. Nevertheless.)
BTW, it's the New York Post. You should love this story.
NUGGETT: At the tail-end of this powerful video from Ashley Banfield, there is the telling of how the NFL cheerleaders got 'started.' (It involves a mini-shirt of the 60's.)
Says the man busily making unfounded accusations of racism.
Lol ... now that is some crazy streaming consciousness there ..... suffice it to say that once again, I disagree with virtually everything you’re trying to push here. Everything.
Rock on with your crazy self there brother, rock on.
People who have never owned/run a business are hopelessly outmatched in this conversation.
Hopelessly ......
We need to get the terminology correct brother, it's EQUITABLE REPRESENTATION...
They have equal representation now, that equality is represented in their being the best at what they do in the NFL.... The NFL in their pronouncements was talking about being equitable...
Equality and Equity are two different terms and mean two completely different things... The NFL, as far as players/coaches/GM's go, is entirely merit based... you want to stay in the NFL you need to be the best...
On an equitable basis, using race as the criteria, Blacks have far more equity in the NFL than any other racial group combined....
Yes the NFL isn't woke enough, cause if they were, there would be a lot of great football players looking for work and a lot less qualified football players working for a lot less money...
If there isn't anymore perfect description on how equitable concerns as far as race goes in anything is entirely and thoroughly racist, I'll eat my friggen hat...
Boy! And you started out so well there!
So Nowhere Man you assert there is no privilege "hanky-panky" and "good old boy club" activities taking place in the history of the NFL (and today as well)? How do you suppose white men get to be 'superb' and legendary on a level playing field without an added privilege of being in the majority? Moreover, explain what it means to be the best coach on the field or is it all the politics of football that people of color have not been allowed to be 'best' at?
You can be the best on the green field of play, but if those 'superiors' don't want a specific type of character or group on or near the field in leadership, being best will be quickly navigated to being 'broken.'
Are you really stating that other minorities have to be that much better for consideration, simply because they have to 'overwhelm' perceptions and stereotypes and stigmas thrusted upon them by white culture or white 'culture warriors' (people who call around to get them fired, accused, and dismissed with a pretext or without just cause)? We know it happens. (I hate to go there but one of the most grievous and immediate examples of it: Donald J. Trump calling into the 'back room' of Georgia Sec. of State to 'throw' the state election on his behalf behind the public's back - though it backfired on him he did it.) No need to comment on the example. It is rhetorical for our purposes.
Game was good but what I watched of halftime show was awful and commercials did not make me want to buy their stuff, except the Budweiser one with the horse and dog
I thought the Uber Eats commercial was a pretty good representation of a slice of society.
My fav was the Larry David Ftx crypto one.
Meeeeehhh and I’m never wrong about this stuff
1st. How the hell is having Dre., Snoop, .50, et al, pandering? If a halftime show, performed by some of the biggest names in rap history, is pandering...then there is nothing that won't be pandering. We are stuck in a loop of viewing everything based on the color of a person's skin, and nothing else, and supplying whatever meaning or intent to the situation that fits the narrative we want to push. As an aside, I grew up listening to everyone that performed at halftime. Should I have been offended, since I'm not black, and the halftime show pandered to the black audience?
How does having more black coaches portray an image? What image would be portrayed? Is image the only thing we are concerned with? My gut tells me that hiring black coaches will be viewed as pandering. Hire a black coach...pandering. Fire a black coach...discrimination.
In the context of present day current complaints about the lack of black representation in NFL ownership and front offices and head coaching positions it is hardly a leap of imagination to see an entertainment element of the Superbowl that exclusively features black performers as a pandering .
No, it's a leap. And the fact that a performance by that group of artists is called pandering, is evidence that the people that view the world according to racism are going to see it, no matter what is going on. I wonder if Snoop, Dre, et al are aware that they were pawns in the NFL's grand scheme to pander to the black masses? Years from now, the story is going to be about the little boy who cried racism. As an aside, eminem...still white.
I am compelled to agree with you in part. I am sure the 'rap community' appreciates the opportunity to 'mainstream' the super bowl. I am sure it was a planned and executed "win-win" and I have no issue with that! Rappers made their case for a halftime show and they got heard. And the NFL got served. (I hear high praise for the show.) Truly, I was pleasantly surprised that the presentation moved me. Actually did get me engaged. (I am not then or now a fan of Mary J. Blige but she sang the 'right song' for moment and this woman humbled herself and performed a 'death drop.' Wow. Wow. Wow.) What more can you ask than for these 'legends' to give you their best? Nothing. You can ask for nothing more.
Also, let's be clear. I agree with your assessment. Performers performing at their highest level is not pandering. It's Excellence. We never say whites are panderers when they are perpetually represented in the high(est) percentages across the board in everything in our country.
You assume that those complaints are valid.
With zero evidence otherwise I'd assume yes.
What would you consider to be "evidence otherwise"?
In part? Come on CB!
The great thing about NWA, and eventually Dre, Cube, Snoop...their stuff resonated with a wide range of people. Nobody would say that having Aretha Franklin perform at the half was pandering. (or should I say, nobody in their right mind) Dre? Dude may not be considered the godfather of rap, but his contributions to music as an artist and promoter are out there. Diminishes his work to even think his performance was pandering.
Okay, I agree with you 99.99 percent! how is that? I don't think that race was not an issue, even for Eminem (did you notice or realize that he 'took a knee' at the end of his set)? Some pandering was done, yes, and on the real: It's Eminem's truth! And he did not wish to leave that out!
The conservatives comments on this article represent an almost complete lack of understanding of the role blacks have historically played in American entertainment. NFL players are entertainers, they are not bosses or executives.
Why do you care...or do you care at all?
It did? Why? Specifically because it’s pandering and they disapprove of pandering? Or just because it’s not the music they would choose?
Hold up. People in red states or rural areas can’t like Hip Hop? Stereotype much?
Anyway, the huge amount of money spent on attending these games is the kind of thing I think you might see more from an urban income. A “cheap” ticket to this year’s game would run you over $5,000 and you’d likely spend another $1,000 or so on parking. Plus the games are generally held in a big city. So there’s plenty of urban enthusiasm for football.
I don’t understand. Black entertainers is “pandering,” but the NFL needs to hire more black coaches? Why wouldn’t that be pandering?
Pandering is often used to describe a thing politicians commonly do for votes. They appeal to part of their constituency by doing or saying something dumb, silly, or unnecessary, rather than doing a good or important thing because it’s the right thing, or needs doing. Pandering, in general, appeals to some base desire, not a genuine need.
But when it comes to Super Bowl entertainment, the stakes are not as complex, and the NFL is just trying to give the audience what it wants. In that context, I don’t see a problem. Are you suggesting that the NFL should be giving the audience the entertainers they need (although I have no idea who that might be) and not the entertainers they want?
Older generations might not appreciate this, but Hip Hop/R&B is - by far - the most popular genre of music these days. And the Hip Hop presented yesterday covered a broad range, including what might be thought of as “Classic” Hip Hop, so it appealed to multiple generations.
Billboard Explains: How R&B/Hip-Hop Became the Biggest Genre in the U.S.
I’m mostly a Rock and Roll fan, but I don’t have any illusions that my preferred music is going to please most of a modern sports audience. So I’m not bothered by multiple black artists and a Hip Hop halftime show. It’s not always going to be about what I want to see or hear, and I’m grown up enough to understand that. I don’t considering it pandering that the most popular genre of music showcases the Super Bowl halftime. Honestly, if I did, I’d have to seriously question if that was a racist impulse.
Do you think it was a coincidence that all 3 of the featured musical performances just prior to the kickoff were black people and that the main half time show was all black people ? If you think that was all coincidence someone should sell you the Brooklyn bridge.
Pandering in this context would be the blatant use of black entertainers at a time when the league is under fire for not being fair to black people.
What do you mean by coincidence? What is the opposite? Who cares? I just don’t see the problem. Is there someone you think was more deserving of the job? This is entertainment, not the civil service.
What do you mean by “blatant?” Were they supposed to be hidden? Maybe in camouflage? White face?
Questions of race in the NFL are decades old. They weren’t invented last week. Neither was black entertainment at the Super Bowl.
Black performers have been part of the show for a long time. The halftime show at Super Bowl II (1968) was the marching band from historically black Grambling State University. They were back a few years later. There have been salutes to Duke Ellington, Caribbean music, Motown, and soul.
Mary J Blige was a returning performer yesterday. We’ve also seen shows from Prince, Janet Jackson, Smokey Robinson, P. Diddy. The list goes on.
The national anthem has been sung by Charlie Pride, Diana Ross, Aaron Neville, Natalie Cole, Vanessa Williams, Whitney Houston, and others, who were black, including Jennifer Hudson last year.
But suddenly in 2022, it’s “the blatant use of black entertainers?” Sorry, but WTF?
Hey B
If anyone wants to bitch about the halftime show and the exploitation of black entertainers, direct them to Jay Z .. he the man in charge of the NFLs 'social justice campaign' starting back in 2019 after artists refused to do the halftime show in support of Kaepernick ... etc etc ... poor Maroon 5 took heat for agreeing to perform in 2019 ...
Sorry you dont get it
Not as sorry as I am that you think black entertainers at the Super Bowl must be some kind of political statement.
Maybe, but this was specifically targeted at Millennials, and specifically white Millennials, ....which was thoroughly appropriate and a brilliant strategy given the generation shift this particular game (and season) represented.
I don't really think it was targeted at Millennials it was targeted at people my age
It’s called free enterprise.
NFL teams are free to hire whoever they want as coach. They would have to be complete idiots to not hire the best people for their coaching staffs. Regardless of race, color or creed.
Some here on the left show a complete lack of understanding of how free enterprise works.
A complete lack of understanding.
I think today that’s true. 50 or 70 years ago, they absolutely would have refused to hire a black coach no matter how talented he was and just because he was black. But today? I don’t think so. Today, that barrier has long since been broken down. We have had several black coaches (including Head Coaches) in the NFL. Owners and GMs are hiring the person they think can get them to the Super Bowl.
I agree. It is infinitely better today. That’s not say there isn’t or won’t ever be a racist POS owner and/or organization. But as I alluded ..... you can’t fix stupid.
Exactly...
AND, in 2007, Super Bowl XLI, featured Tony Dungy's Colts and Lovie Smith's Bears. And both were NFL coach of the year at one time or another...
How bout that, an all black head coach superbowl...
The NFL couldn't give a hoot about the color of one's skin, and the teams only want someone who can coach them into a superbowl win...
Must be pandering.
/s
Thread 11 removed for personal comments. Please keep your comments on topic.
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Pepsi wasted their money on the halftime show
Meh, who buys Pepsi anyway?
M&M actually has sold tens of millions of albums
My wife replayed that portion of the half time show with the volume at 100, lol.
During M&M it seemed like every person in the stands turned on the flashlights on their smart phones.
They paid for their tickets and they liked it.
I don't think the committee cares about the non paying audience.
Overall, it was "different" but so was the game,
THAT was one hell of a game.
Emphatically. I was thrilled by the show, surprisingly.
No Coke, Pepsi
was a good game, but half time was not for me
I can honestly say I've at least seen every super bowl and watched it for the football,
skipped most of the half time fiascos, never saw any boob accidents and wasn't interested.
At some point the commercials became a "thing" and we participated in pools for the best and worse
along with scores by the quarter & winner etc.
There have been some godawful forgettable half time productions
and there are guaranteed to be some more duds in the future.
M&M actually has sold tens of millions of albums
Plain or Peanut?
I was wondered if racism played a part in the most successful rappers being white, Eminem, beastie boys, and of course Vanilla Ice the founder of modern hip hop.
I actually liked the show but since I’ve been set straight by my friends here, I liked Eminem the best because I’m racist.
Friends have told me that the half time show was great, but the commercials sucked.
Pepsi quit sponsoring the halftime show after 10 years according to Pro Football Talk