The NFL Combine

Once the super bowl is over each year NFL teams enter what is called the offseason. In the offseason teams do many things to help their team prepare for the coming season. Their offseason combines of many steps that are taking. First off is they do a “house cleaning”.  A term used by sports analysts when a team gets rid of any players and coaches that either wants out or they team just doesn’t want anymore. Next the fill their coaching roster and get their plan down for workouts, camps, and practice. Finally they go into what is called the combine. The combine is the event, the covers several days, when coaches scout of the players they think they would want on their team. The following is a video of combine workouts. What they do is a series of physical tests such as lifting, running, and agility challenges. Then they go to their specific position workouts and try to have the best “score” in the eyes of scouts and coaches so they can get drafted higher and ultimately make more money. Check this video out.

As the combine goes on players move up and down what is called a mock draft. A mock draft is where NFL analysts put the information they have from taking stats and watching players play and rate them from top to bottom. They are basically making logical guesses about where these players will go in the draft. Here is this year’s mock draft by ESPN analysts Mel Kiper jr. (First round) http://espn.go.com/nfl/draft ( the mock draft is on the left side of the page)

For you NFL and college football fans out there tell me what you think about this draft, do you think Kiper is right? Personally I’ve always like Kipers choices but I think Blaine Gabbertt will go higher than most people think, maybe I’m biased because I’m a Missouri fan. Let me know what you think

-chieffan81



The Power of Replay

In 1986 the NFL adopted something called instant replay. Instant replay was meant to make the game fairer and more competitive but most of all to help the officials call the best game possible. In 1999 the league made a clause about limiting NFL to certain things. For example they cannot review penalties or things of that nature. Instant replay has changed the game so much that championships, perfect seasons, and playoff berths have been changed by some of the calls made by officials.

Ed Hochali

Allot of people have herd of instant replay but don’t actually know what it is. Instant replay is the replaying of video footage of an event or incident very soon after it has occurred. In television broadcasting of sports events, instant replay is often used during live broadcast, to show a passage of play which was important or remarkable, or which was unclear on first sight.

Some sports organizations allow referees or other officials to consult replay footage before making or revising a decision about an unclear or dubious play. This is variously called video referee, video umpire, instant replay official, television match official or third umpire. Other associations allow video evidence only after the end of the contest, for example to penalize a player for misconduct not noticed by the officials during play

NFL offical viewing replay

There are many examples of games and events that have changed because of instant replay. For example, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots where playing the Oakland raiders in the playoffs a few years back. Brady dropped back for a pass but as he was hit the ball slipped out and it was a fumble. Oakland received the ball in great position until the Pat’s challenged the play. The play was changed because of instant replay and the Patriots ended up winning the game.

People debate if instant replay needs to be fixed or if it’s working just fine. In my opinion it makes the game more accurate and really makes teams play to their best ability, where as others think that it is corruptible and puts the game out of the player’s hands. What do you think should be done about this, should we keep it, get rid of it, or change the rules accordingly?

-chieffan81

Salary Cap

The NFL uses a system of keeping teams from making power houses like major league baseball teams do. They put a cap on teams so that they cannot pay all the good players in the league on one team. It’s called a salary cap. Here is how it works.

Despite the NFL's longevity, the league finds itself challenged by the current player free agency and team salary cap system. The salary cap is the result of league revenue sharing between teams and players, which is based on an agreement of defined gross revenues (DGR). The league then defines the share of DGR that will go to each franchise's player roster. The salary cap actually serves as a ceiling placed on spending which is equally applied to all teams. The formula for determining the salary cap is depicted below.⁷

C = (1/n) x s x DGR
n = number of teams
s = share
DGR = defined gross revenue

In comparison to the other professional sports implementing the salary cap system, the NFL has proven to be the most effective at managing player salaries and the vastly expanding cost involved in operating the National Football league.

-chieffan81

NFL Europe

The World League was created in 1991 lasting two seasons in what was the first transatlantic league for American-styled football. In 1995 the World League changed its name to NFL Europe with substantial financial support from media giant Rupert Murdoch and the FOX TV network, estimated at around 50% ownership in the new league. NFL Europe (NFLE) is part of the NFL International Group established in 1996, which has made a significant effort to keep the league alive in a region dominated by soccer, which is referred to as football outside of the United States.

NFL Europe Logo

The FOX TV network ended its 50% ownership in 2000 causing serious concerns for the survivability of the league until the NFL was able to restructure the plan for financing the league. In efforts to assist NFLE, the NFL Players Association contributed by increasing its Defined Gross Revenue (GDR) credits from $5 million from its inception to $15 million in 2001-2002, and to $20 million in 2003.⁸ Presently, NFLE games are broadcast on the NFL Channel.

In 2001 the NFLE cost an estimated $20 million annually, averaging $3.3 million per team.⁹ The NFL contributes $10 million annually to share the cost in supporting the NFLE, with each NFL franchise contributing approximately $2 million annually.

The NFLE was also intended to serve as a marketing tool for the NFL, a developmental league for lower tiered NFL players, as well as an expansion of NFL broadcast abroad. New NFL rules require that each NFL team allocate at least six players to NFL Europe. This program resulted in 185 NFL players participating in NFLE for the 2001 season. The total number of players in NFLE was 230 for the 2001 season.

Attendance of NFLE games has fluctuated overtime. German cities have shown the strongest support of the NFLE teams. The Dusseldorf (Rhein) and Frankfurt teams accounted for nearly 60% of NFLE attendance in 2001.¹⁰ The 2001 season saw average game attendance rise to 18,573, which was up by 28% from 1995 attendance numbers. (sited by www.loc.gov)

-chieffan81

Sport or Business?

The NFL utilizes a number of different types of revenue sharing methods. Retained revenues and shared revenues are the two main types of revenue sources for NFL franchises. Retained revenues, consisting of revenue generated and kept by individual teams, include 60% of stadium (gate) receipts for home games, naming rights, sponsorships, luxury suite revenue, concessions and local broadcast rights. Retained revenue totaled an estimated amount of nearly $2 billion or between $51 to $55 million per team between the 2001-2002 season.
The building of new stadiums and the selling of stadium naming rights has contributed enormously to the revenues of NFL franchises. This trend has continued to grow within the league over the last several years. In addition, the NFL is experiencing an overwhelming wave in new stadium construction and is on pace to replace nearly all of the existing stadiums in the next several years. From 1990 to 2004 19 new stadiums have been built for a total of $6.3 billion for the same period.³ However unlike stadiums constructed in the past, there has been a dramatic shift toward private financing of stadiums costs from 80% public vs. 20% private financing between 1990-2000 to a 54% public vs. 46% private financing ratio.
The primary source for shared revenue in the NFL is through national broadcast rights fees, 40% of away game ticket sales, and licensing. The current media agreement with the NFL is part of an eight year contract that totals $17.6 billion which began in 1998.⁴ The NFL shared revenue totaled an estimate of $2.6 billion for an average of $72 million per team for the 2001-2002 season. The total estimated revenue produced by the NFL overall for the 2004 season was approximately $6 billion, providing an estimated $187 million per team. However, the NFL was valued at over $24 billion, which was based team valuations for 2002.
With regard to the value and the purchasing of NFL teams, Robert McNair, current owner of the latest expansion team, the Houston Texans, made the highest bid for the franchise at $700 million. This increase is astronomical in comparison to the entry for a new NFL franchise in 1976 when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks cost $16 million each.
The NFL's marketing enterprise has also generated substantial revenue for the league. NFL Properties, Inc., founded in 1963, made an estimate of $4 billion in sales for the 2000-2001 season. NFL Properties shares all annual revenue with each of the 32 NFL franchises equally, as well as the league office and NFL Charities.⁵ As a result of sales from NFL Properties, each NFL franchise received an estimate of $4 million in revenue during the 2000 season. However, over the past few years NFL Properties's licensing base has been reduced due to competition and consolidation among commercial vendors and retailers within the sporting industry.
Future trends in generating revenue for the NFL point towards Internet and broadband media rights. The NFL signed an extensive media agreement with Viacom, America Online, and Sportsline.com, Inc., which is reportedly worth $110 million over five years, a 5.6% increase over ESPN's three year $10 million contract.⁶ This agreement increased the NFL's annual earnings from $3.3 million to over $22 million. (sited by www.loc.gov)


The NFL is a business behind the scenes but as a fan all I’m worried about is my chiefs winning a super bowl.
-chieffan81

Social Networking



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In the last 7 years people have found something that can make them feel connected with the people that watch in movies, see on television, and see on the field. Social networking helps fans communicate with their favorite players and teams and it get information to them faster. At first I went the face book rout. I tried becoming friends with people that I wanted to know more about, Missouri football players and my favorite chiefs’ players. Unforchantly so many people wanted to be friends with them that they turned into a fan page more than a personal page. So I was let down.

I wasn’t going to give up their as a few short years later I started hearing more and more about this thing called Twitter. Twitter did everything for me that face book couldn’t. Now I follow my favorite players and celebrities. I am able to read what they’re doing anytime they send a tweet. It’s cool because you can get a more personal take on how they feel after a big game or sometimes even a big play.



Facebook Logo



Social networking as really helped me connect with my players. I am following Tony Gonzalez, my favorite player, and the Kansas City Chiefs, my favorite team. I get all the latest news about what’s going on and I can even talk to my favorite player. I have tweeted @TonyGozalez88 (his twitter name) and he has responded to questions that I have had about him. Social networking has really helped me get connected to my favorite players and teams.

Follow me on Twitter at chieffan81, as I like to send funny tweets and will help you get connected to things that you are interested in. It’s amazing how much information you can get on your topic or things you’re interested in just by being connected.



Football shaping a city

Football affects more than just the fans around the world that like to watch that specific team. NFL football teams seem to be the face of city. People know Foxboro Massachusetts because of the New England Patriots. Because of this team people want to visit the Boston area more and more. Not only that but sports in general generate many different types of stores and restaurants that help the city generate more revenue so that the city is better off. More business more tax dollars for the city.

There are several examples of business that either teams or specific players on the team’s start that people go to just because they are fans of the team or player. For example Big Ben Roethlisberger started a burger joint in Pittsburg call Big Ben’s Burgers. This restaurant is no different than your typical burger joint but because Ben started and owns the restaurant and can be seen there, hundreds of people flow in each day and eat all of his food. You take a simple burger joint and add a pro football player and it turns into a big hit.

Restaurants are just one source that is affected y these players. The colors of teams are becoming seen nationally around the country just because of their sporting event. Not all cities use NFL football but most do. For instance, the Kansas City Chiefs colors are red and yellow. People see them play all the time and they begin to associate the city with the team’s colors. Artists are associating their music with the cities there from by the colors of the city. A lot of young kids have heard the song “Black and Yellow” by Wiz Khalifa. This song is about his home town Pittsburg.

A more popular song around here is a song called Red and Yellow by Irv da Phenom and B Double E. These guys are to Kansas City Boys trying to make a rap career but they use the chiefs t connects with other people because people recognize it. Please look at the video below and it will show how the chiefs impact the city of Kansas City and this man’s rap career.

 -chieffan81