NFL Magazine

The NFL has had their own television network for a while. Now, they have their own magazine. Big surprise. I was skeptical of this little endeavor as the magazine bares a striking resemblance to ESPN the Magazine. That rag is a train wreck. I bought one issue back in 1998 just for an article on a Minnesota Vikings rookie wide receiver named Randy Moss. It was all presentation and no substance. I was never able to handle another issue. The NFL's attempt at print looked too much like ESPN's. Big, glossy cover with big-lettered "NFL" in the banner with little-lettered "Magazine" just below gave me the familiar chills. After ignoring three issues, I took a chance on issue four. I've read about a third and skimmed the rest. I have to admit that I was very wrong to judge a magazine by it's cover. It's the draft preview issue and it takes a far different stab at it than the usual, annual redundancy. I was pleased to see guest articles by the likes of Greg Cosell. His analytical work is tremendous. Former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Boomer Essiason had an interesting piece on his own draft experience. A.G. Britton presented a different take on draft day by describing that of her son, Jacksonville Jaguars tackle Eben Britton. ESPN's Andrea Kremer wrote about spending the day with Deion Sanders back in 1989 when he was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons. It was one of her first assignments with ESPN. Very interesting articles that aren't your typical draft fare. The NFL people are presenting things in their new magazine that you can't find anywhere else. Any idiot can do a mock draft. I've done three already and probably have a couple more in the can. You can find player evaluations everywhere. Most of which are guesses at best. Sure, all of the draft stuff is fun. The mocks, the evaluations. But, everyone's doing it. You can find the NFL's own stab at it on their website. They took a different route in their magazine and it's refreshing. The NFL Magazine is taking advantage of their connections to real experiences. I'm looking forward to the rest of this magazine. I may even fill out that little subscription card tucked neatly in the pages of the magazine.