Palladino: Satisfying Super Bowl Won't Wash Away NFL's Stains
By Ernie Palladino
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Much to Roger Goodell's dismay, the issues the NFL faces remain the same the day after the Super Bowl as the week leading into the Super Bowl.
Even a good game that saw the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady tandem win its fourth ring with a 28-24 win over Seattle couldn't wash away the stains of 2014.
It tried, for sure. The game had its requisite number of great plays, and certainly a stirring finish as Jermaine Kearse appeared to doom the Patriots like David Tyree did in Feb. '08, with a miracle catch, only to have Malcolm Butler snatch it away at the goal line on Russell Wilson's throw from the one-inch line to Ricardo Lockett.
Perhaps a game-icing interception doesn't compare with a come-from-behind touchdown in the final seconds, but it was certainly good enough for New England fans, and certainly appropriate enough for a tough, physical secondary.
But for all the fireworks -- the Pats coming back from 10 points down after Seattle's third-quarter surge -- and the numbers that saw Brady move past Joe Montana with 13 career Super Bowl touchdowns, the game will prove only a brief respite to the league's troubles of 2014.
It is incumbent on everyone, from league officials down to the casual fan, to remember that much needs doing to turn the NFL from a league of high-bred mercenaries into an organization of caring and compassionate leaders. And only a very small part of the solution has to do with this slower-than-slow investigation into deflated footballs.
Compared to some other issues, Deflate-gate seems downright stupid. At least we can be reasonably sure today that the Pats won their fourth Lombardi Trophy in 14 years fair and square. Unless, that is, some eagle-eyed fan in the opposite club level spied Belichick in back of the bench, on his knees like Sky Masterson in the sewer, ball needle at the ready.
Outside of that, whatever the commissioner's investigation uncovers will be dealt with, and the integrity of the NFL's great product will be restored at least until the next scheme someone cooks up.
Then, perhaps, the commissioner can move on to other things, like spreading a little more of the billions the league makes to causes that actually might help move society at large in to a better place.
The $25 million donation to the domestic violence hotline was a nice start, though anyone with sense knows it doesn't start to make up for the cavalier attitudes the league exhibited toward the Ray Rice punchout or the Adrian Peterson switch discipline of his four-year-old son. Had it not been for the second tape of Rice's punch behind the elevator doors, a two-game suspension would have stuck and Rice would have been back at it with the Ravens. Chances are, the DV hotline wouldn't have received a red cent.
If the league is serious about changing the culture of a sport that breeds situations like that, it must bulk up its contributions many-fold, and perhaps start a confidential counseling program for players who have exhibited signs of spousal violence. Even though only a small percentage of women dump money into the NFL's coffers compared to men, the league appears to have little choice but to take that problem seriously.
Just as serious is their work with concussions. Brain-bonks were down this year, but they haven't been eradicated. Closer examination, better equipment, and stricter rules are still necessary to keep current players from the tragic end 2015 Hall-of-Famer Junior Seau met because of repeated concussions.
At the same time, the league must do something more for its retired players, the ones walking on their heels, suffering blinding headaches and mood swings, or spending their agony-filled waking hours in wheelchairs and walkers. The concussion settlement of last July needs bulking up on the individual payout formula. Remember, this is a league whose current profits were built on the shoulders of those suffering long-term effects of the sport they loved.
None of this gets washed away by a thoroughly enjoyable Super Bowl.
Goodell and the owners need to understand that first.
And then they must deal with it, preferably before the next Super Bowl.
Some things are just more important than soft footballs.
