An Open Letter To The NFL
Dear National Football League,
I would like to be the first to congratulate you on your big day. Your league was on display worldwide, on the biggest stage in North American sports, and you gave a true representation of what your league is. Where do I even start? Let’s start with the field the game was played on. Tahoma 31 grass. How cool is it that you spent 2 years and $800,000 developing a new type of grass just for this game?? That’s awesome. Don’t mind the fact that it was the worst possible surface to play one of the great Super Bowls ever on. Don’t mind that both teams came out after the game and said it was completely unacceptable to play on a playing surface like that. Don’t mind that Haason Reddick, one of the great defensive stars in your league, called it “The worst field I ever played on”. Oh, and definitely don’t mind that every single person watching that game, regardless of rooting interest, watch you create a field so devoid of grip that players with the best footwear on the planet couldn’t complete a kickoff or a touchdown celebration without falling over. Forget all that, congrats on developing new grass.
Now, let’s go to your employees. Or, should I say, your contractors. Congratulations on getting the most out of part time employees. I understand how difficult it can be sometimes to get the best work out of folks who aren’t full time employees. No, I’m not talking about the stadium ushers, the food vendors, or the halftime performers. I’m talking about the NFL referees that are tasked with officiating, and in some cases deciding, one of the most wagered on sporting events on the planet. They might not have been good all year long, but man did they just do their best work in the biggest spot. With two incredible quarterbacks and two outstanding teams in the heat of battle, fighting for the right to hoist your Lombardi Trophy, your referees decided that rather than giving one of your superstars a chance to put together one of the most exciting sequences in your sport – a game winning, last minute drive – they would call a ticky tack penalty that would’ve been suspect in Week 1, much more so in the DAMN SUPER BOWL. What exciting ending did it lead to? Patrick Mahomes slowly walking backwards as time drained off the clock, setting up a nail biting 27 yard field goal. Absolutely electric. If you ever do decide to start holding your officials accountable (I know, you won’t), this Super Bowl’s crew would be a great place to begin.
Finally, congratulations to your commissioner, Roger Goodell. You have a real trifecta with that guy, let me tell you. He’s unlikable, ineffective at his job, and uncaring about the issues facing the sport he gets paid MILLIONS to try and keep the integrity of the game intact. Outstanding work by your boy Roger. Earlier this week, he told the fans of your sport that “When you look at officiating, I don’t think it’s ever been better.” Well either you’ve just had the largest drop off in one week of the quality of a product in recorded human history, or you straight up have no idea what the hell you’re talking about. I’m voting for the latter. On the biggest stage, NFL, you have once again spit in the face of your fans and consumers, to the point where I’m not sure why anybody would ever trust your product again. Bad field. Bad refs. Bad leadership. That’s what you do best. So again, congratulations on your big night. Hope you enjoyed it. God knows your fans didn’t.
Sincerely,
Connor Thomas
