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NFL Report:
The Commissioner's View -- Summer, 2002 If you, like me, have been counting the days until the next NFL game kicks off, the good news is that the wait gets shorter every day. Until then, you may want to sate your appetite with several special events we have planned. Six days in particular, from July 31-August 5, are worth marking on you calendar. They will provide an interesting sample of some of the wide-ranging priorities on the league’s plate these days. On the evening of July 31, HBO and NFL Films kick off a second season of Hard Knocks, the novel sports-based reality television series that was so well received in its debut last year. The 2001 edition delivered an up-close, all-access look at the defending world chamion Baltimore Ravens’ training camp. This year, Hard Knocks will take fans inside the training camp of the new-look Dallas Cowboys every Wednesday night for six weeks. NFL training camps, increasingly fan-friendly in recent years, are a unique opportunity for fans to see their teams at work up close. Hard Knocks takes the relationship a step further with its behind-the-scenes look at the daily lives of players and coaches preparing for the rigors of an NFL season. The show reflects the ability of current communications technology, including the Internet, to further broaden access to NFL teams for the media and fans. Also on July 31, about 150 high school and youth football coaches—at least one representative from every state—will arrive in Canton, Ohio, for our second annual “NFL Youth & High School Football Summit.” This conference, which is part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction weekend, brings together youth football leaders from across the nation to discuss topical issues and expand their expertise and leadership ability. On August 1-2, attendees at the youth football summit will learn about and discuss issues relating to sports medicine, college football, life skills, and coaching practices of some top high school programs. Speakers will include Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Bill Walsh. The summit is one element in a comprehensive NFL initiative to invest in the future of football at the youth and high school level. Our $150 million Youth Football Fund, formed jointly with the NFL Players Association, supports a variety of programs that create opportunities to play and coach football. NFL Flag, Gatorade Punt, Pass & Kick, the NFL High School Football Internet site, and the NFL High School Coach of the Year recognition program are among other league investments in youth football. NFL clubs also serve as champions of youth football in their communities, hosting coaching clinics and flag football tournaments, honoring youth coaches, funding youth leagues, and helping to build and restore fields. Following the two-day conference in Canton, the youth coaches will attend the August 3 Hall of Fame induction of the Class of 2002—George Allen, Dave Casper, Dan Hampton, Jim Kelly, and John Stallworth. This is the NFL’s annual celebration of history and tradition in the birthplace of pro football. Preserving and honoring the past in the NFL goes beyond this grand weekend, however. It also includes assisting former players and their families financially. A recent example is the significantly improved pension payments for pre-1977 players negotiated by NFL owners and the players’ association into the latest extension of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Later on August 3, halfway around the world, the San Francisco 49ers and Washington Redskins will bring NFL action to Osaka, Japan, for the first time. The NFL’s American Bowl series is part of the NFL’s wide-ranging response to international interest in our game, which also includes NFL games on television throughout the world, the NFL Europe League, and programs to support the game in other countries on the youth level. The Osaka game is the thirty-eighth American Bowl. It will be broadcast live on ESPN. On August 5, it’s back to Canton for the annual Hall of Fame Game and the debut of our thirty-second franchise, the Houston Texans, in a special Monday night game against the New York Giants. It’s also the ABC debut of John Madden on NFL Monday Night Football. Madden’s shift to NFL Monday Night Football comes in the same year that the NFL does some shifting of its own. Thanks to realignment, the league will unveil eight four-team divisions—East, North, South, and West in both the NFC and AFC—and an assortment of new rivalries in 2002. That’s a lot to digest, even before the first game, and a healthy sample of some of the things we have planned to better serve our fans and our game in 2002.
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