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Goodell talks about rotating the Pro Bowl
By Ralph Gora February 7, 2008 |
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HONOLULU--NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has been mulling over the idea of what to do with the Pro Bowl, which is held every year here in Honolulu after every Super Bowl and a light bulb came on above the first man of football's head and he would rotate the site of the Pro Bowl every year. The way it would work he would create a "Super Sunday" package that would showcase both the Super Bowl and then the Pro Bowl each year in the same city. So if your enjoying the start of the Super Bowl in Miami for example why not stay one week in Miami when you can spend two waiting for the Pro Bowl to kick off the following Sunday. The problem with that is who really wants to spend two weeks back to back in the same city in the same four walls hotel? It's enough covering one event in one city for one week. Sure it could be entertaining for some but Hawaii you can bet your bottom weak dollar is the only place that fits for the Pro Bowl. There is no other drawing card that will pull fans into the fray of the NFL All-Star game like going to Honolulu. Further the Players Union has a problem with the Commissioner's proposal saying that the players may not participate in a rotating Pro Bowl format each year, the game is an exhibition game first of all, second it has enough problems getting players to participate as it is so far three days before game day the 2008 Pro Bowl has seen 17 players already decline the offer of coming which the Goodell is using as the excuse to move the game. No matter where you schedule the Pro Bowl Honolulu or not players are going to back out but if you think 17 is a high number of back outs you ain't seen nothing yet until the NFL starts moving the sites around, attendance will drop off, TV revenue will not be there, the coverage of the game will be no where it is today, and moving it out of Hawaii chances are slim players will want to come and they will not sell the amount of tickets like they do in Aloha Stadium. After every Super Bowl football fans are really looking forward to one thing in the Pro Bowl and that's the warm weather take that away that's another incentive down the drain. The selling point for example of even getting New York Giant Osi Umenyiora the lone Giants representative to come play in the Pro Bowl beside representing his team in New York who just won the Super Bowl is coming to Hawaii otherwise was he would not be here. Goodell has said things must change and the contract between the state of Hawaii and the NFL ends in 2009 which could be the last Pro Bowl in Hawaii, "We've had a lot of discussions, we have great friends and partners here in the state and we want to continue to have a presence here in Hawaii. We want to try to do that in a reasonable way. We also want to do what we can to make sure this game turns into the kind of platform it should turn into. We want to make sure we do everything possible to make sure it's a great promotion for our players," said Goodell. Goodell also mentioned during yesterday's AFC practice at Kapolei High School that the game could even just go away. Some retailers responded saying that the Pro Bowl is the biggest week in Honolulu and taking it away would impact business but still with tourism still strong here in Honolulu. Honolulu would survive but ask any retailer if they'd miss the only show in town in the only time of the year it comes here. "I'm not comfortable about keeping anything as is really. I always think we can do things better, differently, and we're looking at how we can do that. We have 17 players (chosen for the Pro Bowl) that aren't here this week," said Goodell. But still wherever Goodell moves the Pro Bowl it'll never draw anywhere the crowds and players and media that it does now in Honolulu and next year February 2009 could be the last one. Ralph A Gora is covering the 2008 Pro Bowl his 2nd, and Scary Barry contributed the quotes he's in his fourth year covering the NFL All-Star game. |
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