In San Diego, Tom Krasovic wrote the NFL came out "on top once again" with the Super Bowl, as games like the Patriots-Falcons OT finish will "keep folks coming back for more." While it "wasn’t a great year" for the league -- with ratings declining and the playoffs serving up "several duds -- revenues still climbed as the industry expanded its digital reach." Krasovic: "And on Sunday night, the Super Bowl again flexed its muscles" (SANDIEGOUNIONTRIBUNE.com, 2/6).
TIME TO CHANGE THINGS UP? THE MMQB's Andrew Brandt writes Commissioner Roger Goodell was "true to form in his annual State of the League press conference." Goodell is "forever guarded, unrevealing and on-script." But the press conference in this stage of Goodell’s tenure "may have outlived its usefulness." Goodell would "benefit by showing a more endearing human side," but owners, league sponsors and networks "want the stoic Goodell we see, an iron-jawed leader not prone to displays of weakness" (MMQB.SI.com, 2/7).
DOING DUE DILIGENCE: NFL Exec VP/Int'l Mark Waller said that the idea of an NFL game in China is "unique and potentially lucrative, but there isn't yet a definite timeline for bringing an NFL game to Chinese soil." Waller said that league officials are "currently examining the feasibility of playing in China but aren't going to rush the process at the expense of product quality." Waller: "China brings some very unique logistical, scheduling, time zone issues which we've still not been able to work through entirely. When would you play that game? What time of day in China? How do you schedule it from a competitive standpoint?" (ESPN.com, 2/3).
