Throwback Thursday: When the Games Don't Matter

With the ten year anniversary of 9/11, I'm reminded of the importance of this silly game of football. The NFL is everywhere. So many people watch now. So many people are swayed by the outcomes. The NFL has reached a level in our society that few could have imagined or maybe even desired. In the wake of a tragedy the importance of the games are debated, sometimes hotly. The fact that there is even a debate only confirms the nation's love of the game. Should they be played when the country is hurting?

On Friday November 22, 1963, still new NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle faced the very same question about professional football games. The nation was reeling after President John F Kennedy was assassinated. Rozelle decided to play the games two days later. He regretted the decision the rest of his life. He was also widely criticized the rest of his life. He had some people agree with him but they weren't as loud. AFL Commissioner Joe Foss has always been praised for canceling the newbie league's games. Only problem is that Deputy Commissioner Milt Woodard made the call. Foss couldn't be found. The criticism of Rozelle had to make Paul Tagliabue's decision much easier nearly forty years later. Unfortunately, few understand that Rozelle agonized over his decision. He didn't blindly wield his new power. Rozelle was friendly with the Kennedy family. He was a longtime friend of White House Press Secretary Pierre Salinger. He had the ear of the nation's leaders. He sought advice and listened. He did what he thought was right knowing that it could be very wrong. Many that knew President Kennedy believe that he would have wanted the games to be played. I think that greatly influenced Rozelle. It didn't take long for him to realize that he had made a mistake. Many never let him forget. With or without any one's help Pete Rozelle was haunted by his decision for the rest of his life.

After the horrors of 9/11, I still thought that the NFL games should be played. Mostly because I saw them as a distraction that the nation needed. I was troubled and in a fog like everyone else. I had to somehow function at work. I felt that many could use the release or distraction that the games could bring. I failed to really think about a nation that had just been rocked. Simple entertainment doesn't seem so entertaining at a time like that. I failed to think about football players being human too. Playing a game may not have the same appeal after such a tragedy. I failed to think of the ushers, the concession workers, the ticket takers, everyone involved in televising the game. There will always be a better time for football, or anything else that is simply meant to entertain. In 2001, I hadn't learned from Pete Rozelle's mistake. I'm glad that Paul Tagliabue had. I only hope that the decision on whether to play the games never has to be made again.