NFL VP/Communications Brian McCarthy yesterday said the league has had "absolutely no discussions" about moving the Pro Football HOF Game out of Canton despite Sunday's Colts-Packers game being canceled, according to a front-page piece by Joe Scalzo of the Canton REPOSITORY. McCarthy said, "We are spending time with the Hall, and turf suppliers to determine what happened to make sure what happened in Canton doesn’t occur in other games." HOF VP/Communications & Special Assistant to the President Pete Fierle in an email wrote, "A review is underway to determine what caused the situation." Scalzo notes refunds to fans will be processed by Aug. 31 (Canton REPOSITORY, 8/9). The HOF yesterday announced that the "only refund that fans who bought tickets to Sunday's canceled game will receive is for the ticket itself." It is "not responsible for any tickets sold on resale sites." But ESPN.com's Darren Rovell wrote the "big sites, including StubHub, refunded those who purchased tickets, including all fees, on Sunday night." Some fans "had believed that they might get more" from the HOF, including "reimbursement of hotel or travel expenses." An unnamed exec with QuintEvents, the official travel provider of HOF weekend, said that its response on compensation "would be identical" to that of the HOF (ESPN.com, 8/8). Michael Avenatti, the lawyer who represented ticket holders affected by the seating fiasco at Super Bowl XLV, said he has been hired by fans who traveled to watch Sunday's game. He wrote in an email, "We have already been retained by a number of clients who rightly believe that they should be compensated for expenses incurred. This is yet a further example of the league only paying lip service to the importance of live fans" (Daniel Kaplan, Staff Writer).
FALLING ON THE SWORD? NFL Exec VP/Football Operations Troy Vincent in a memo to team owners and presidents yesterday wrote, "While the HOF field situation underscored the challenges in working with third parties, ultimately I am responsible for ensuring the field is of the highest standard." Vincent noted that the football operations department "will engage field managers to fine-tune best practices for painting, decking and the impact of non-football events on the field" moving forward. He wrote, “These will be particularly helpful as we evaluate stadiums for future international games" (USA TODAY, 8/9). NFL.com's Steve Wyche noted all logos will now "be stitched into the surface" on the artificial turf at Tom Benson HOF Stadium to avoid further issues (NFL.com, 8/8). USA TODAY's Jarrett Bell writes, "Shame on the league ... for allowing the stage for its precious product ... to be passed off to other entities that did not meet NFL standards." Bell notes the field work was "executed by" Cleveland-based Pioneer Manufacturing, which was contracted by the HOF (USA TODAY, 8/9).
SAFETY CHECK: ESPN's Rachel Nichols said player safety was "certainly a factor" in canceling Sunday's game. But it also is "fair to now ask whether that was born from a genuine concern for these guys' health or just not wanting all of today's already embarrassing newspaper headlines also accompanied with pictures of players on stretchers." Nichols: "If safety was such a vital concern, would these two teams even be playing an extra fifth preseason game?" ESPN's Jim Trotter noted NFLPA player reps met "early on and said, 'We are not playing,' and told the league we are not playing on this field." Trotter: "The players had a big hand in this. ... I thought that was big" ("OTL," ESPN, 8/8).
OFF THE HOOK? ESPN's Dan Le Batard said cancelling the game was "embarrassing for the league, but it feels like this league is consequence-proof, so lucrative, so profitable that people don't think of this as a league that's not well-run" ("Highly Questionable," ESPN, 8/8). SNY’s Eamon McAnaney said if something similar to this happened in MLB, the league "would be getting roasted." McAnaney: "But because it’s the NFL and there’s still enough guys who cover that league who are in bed with the NFL, we’re going to talk about player safety" ("Loud Mouths," SNY, 8/8). ESPN's Andrew Brandt noted HOF President & CEO David Baker is "owning this" for the NFL, but the league "needs to own this, it's their issue" ("OTL," ESPN, 8/8). The Boston Globe's Bob Ryan: "They should be embarrassed, of course, but they're very teflon-ish here in this league, nothing deters them" ("Around the Horn," ESPN, 8/8). CSNBAYAREA.com's Ray Ratto noted the more crises the NFL "bollixes up, the sooner people will finally weary of the operation and demand changes by doing the one thing that scares the industry more than anything else." The HOF Game cancellation was a "punch in the stomach to someone wearing a chest protector." Ratto: "We are still at the stage where the NFL cannot actually be embarrassed enough" (CSNBAYAREA.com, 8/8).
