Why the NFL is Rigged and I Don’t Really Care

Let’s look straight at the facts. Outside of people who live in the New England area, who wants to see the Patriots go to and win this many Super Bowls? Literally no one. It is boring. To compare it to wrestling, its the same reason the fans turned on John Cena, who always seemed to be in the title picture. John Cena also happens to be from Boston… Wait a second. The NFL is obviously rigged and Boston is paying everyone off big time.

Follow the Money

I never really thought the NFL was rigged. Influenced? For sure. By individual teams? Not exactly. The NFL’s primary source of revenue is television deals and those TV deals are paid for by ad revenue and ad revenue is paid out according to ratings. Despite what you might think about the high-quality athleticism and integrity of the sport of American Football, the NFL first and foremost is a business. Why do businesses exist? To make money. Within the NFL are 32 smaller businesses with individual team owners all of which are privately owned by billionaires with the exception of the Green Bay Packers which is a publicly held non-profit. Don’t ask me how that works because I have no clue. These teams share in all that sweet, sweet TV money equally.

All of that was just to set up how the money flows in the NFL. The reason my Bengals can suck and still exist is because of the revenue share. None of this has really anything to do with the primary topic here other than the fact that I wanted you to know that the NFL is ran like a business.

So, if you were to label the NFL business type, what would it be? They don’t primarily sell a product, although they sell related products. They don’t provide a service. It is clear that the NFL exists as an entertainment and media business. The produce weekly television and have their own network. These are their primary revenue generators.

By this we can deduce that the NFL is no different than your average television show trying to tell you a story. Maybe it is a story of hope or hardship. Maybe it is a story of the young gun trying to overcome the grizzled veteran? Last night that seemed to be the story, anyway, as the young guns of Goff and McVay took on the tried and true Belichick and Brady. But Kevin, you may say, how does any of this indicate that the NFL is rigged? And if so ,why don’t you care?

The Los Angeles rams were in the Super Bowl because LA = ratings. The Patriots were in the Super Bowl because 75% of America hate-watched Tom Brady. Raise your hand if you watched the Super Bowl because you wanted to see the Patriots lose (raises hand). You don’t think the NFL knows this? Of course they do! So when you go back and you see the missed calls in the AFC and NFC championship games now you know why. Does that make you feel better?

Here is why I don’t care if the NFL is rigged or not. I watch all kinds of fictional entertainment. People make fun of me for watching WWE like I should be appalled that wrestling is scripted. Did you know that Cirque Du Soleil is choreographed? Did you know that Walter White was an actor and not an actual drug dealer? I get that we want purity in sport but that will never happen. That’s because there is no purity in humanity, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy it for what it is.

Ok, Let’s Take the Tinfoil Hats Off for a Minute

Do I believe the NFL is WWE level scripted? Absolutely not. Do I believe it is entirely pure? That’s going to be a 100% no from me. If money is involved you better believe there is some sort of outside influence. I don’t believe that a team is ever fully and intentionally taken out of a game. The Saints were up 13-0 in the first quarter and the Rams managed to fight back into range while the Saints offense and defense collapsed around them. As much of a terrible missed call the pass interference was, it wasn’t the only reason the Saints lost.

The Bottom Line

Look, I want pure sport and that’s why I exclusively watch high school sports. Just kidding. I enjoy pro sports and accept the fact that it probably isn’t 100% on the up and up. But that’s ok because nothing is. Either find it entertaining and get over it or stop watching. The NFL is rigged. See you next season.