Something the NFL and the Rest of US Should Consider Over Veterans Day Weekend

Usually at the beginning of many of the articles I’ve written over the years, I often give a lyrical stanza for deeper reflection. 

Today is Veterans Day, and today’s meaning has special meaning for love of country and remembrance of the ultimate price paid by so many. 

Today’s song selection has no lyrics. But it’s a somber reminder of the price we pay as a society for the freedom the founding fathers of the United States of America first fought for in leading the rest of the free world.

Taps

{Take time out to reflect personally throughout the days and weeks to come.}

The Ultimate Price Paid in Full

The ultimate price to pay for any person is to lose their life. 

It’s sad whenever it happens, and it does on a daily basis. Yet when it’s for a greater cause, there is a deeper remorse and reflection that seems due. 

In the personal sense, it’s to think about an ocean of humanity that sacrificed life styles, financial gain, futures, family and their own lives for a greater good found in the love of country. 

The price is real for military families. Currently, if families are fortunate to have their soldiers return home safe, there is still a tremendous fallout and shortfall that impacts those that sacrifice the most. 

Having come from a military family that has seen action abroad, I can speak to this. The shortfalls impact future job opportunities, education for soldiers and their families and easier integration back into society. 

There is certain disconnect of our soldiers in society that happens everyday in the government, education and business sectors. 

The irony is that they are the ones who benefit the most from the sacrifice of the military. There should be less bureaucracy in tandem with a more flexible and understanding society. 

The point here is not to agree or disagree over political points of view. The point is to acknowledge the impact of those sacrifices on a personal level.

Whether you agree with the foreign policies of the United States of America or not, isn't the point at all. The point is people have sacrificed everything imaginable under the sun for the future of mankind in our country to have meaningful hope and purpose. 

In America, we live in the age of “bling,” smart phones, Internet communities, big banks, fraud and Ponzi schemes, massive construction, big ideas and big money. For good or bad, all of those things exist, if for no other reason than the sacrifices of previous generations, and current ones as well. 

Certainly the negative exist out of ignorance and a lack of acknowledgement. Yet the sacrifices of life and limb were made for them just the same as they were made for everyone else.

The most generic and practical example to consider is a military man who comes home, becomes a displaced worker who maybe can’t even get unemployment or funding for higher education. 

How is his family impacted? How can he be back on track to becoming a productive member of society?

The deeper thought is what can you personally do to help solve that equation and others like it? 

So the full understanding is that there is a physical, emotional, fiscal, family and spiritual sacrifice made by others for this generation’s personal gain. The price is already paid in full, and it can’t be recalled; only built upon.

Solving Complex Issues Starts at the Heart of the Matter

Our society has exponentially created more problems for itself the more it has strayed from the principles and understanding previous generations had firmly rooted in our country. 

Certainly, there are more issues than could ever possibly be addressed here. However, this is where the readers should challenge themselves to look deeper at how they can make their own personal sacrifice(s) to making our society better.  

In making that statement, you have to look beyond the fun runs, fund raisers and charitable contributions, because those all have their place. However, more specifically, if you’re a judge, a lawyer or a politician, you should look at repealing every law that does not benefit every social class in our country.  

If you’re a police officer, an administrator or a county clerk, ask yourself if you abuse the power of your position? It’s a well-known fact that those abuses do exist, but what are you doing to change the way things work? 

Do you place excessive fines and burdens on members of society at large. Or do you focus on making the system better for everyone, not just those that receive the financial benefits of fines, taxes and the like?

Currently, we live in a place where teachers, police and fire personnel are underpaid while a segment of the population is overpaid and spoiled, to be frank about the matter. A spoiled generation is certainly on the fringe of being a lost generation, but more in line with being out of touch on a daily basis. 

History is filled with examples of societies that were out of touch. Most have fallen by the wayside.

That’s why this is an appeal that should reach the personal level, for that is the only place real change can forge a meaningful future. This is about building a future just as previous generations did for this generation.

The NFL, NFLPA, and Agents Must Forge a Brighter Future

Having given a brief overview of deeper reflective thought, this is where it matters as applied to sports in a practical manner. 

Certainly, things implemented here should be implemented elsewhere in society as well. But it’s paramount to understand that it has no impact until it’s fully-implemented. 

As things apply to the NFL, it is all about the money.

That, itself, is not bad. After all, this is the USA, the leader of the free world and capitalism. 

However, isn’t it a crime for the game that has become America’s game to face the possibility of a lockout over absolute greed and indifference? 

The fact that this is a distinct possibility facing fans of the game is certainly a disappointment. But on a deeper level, it is a grievous wrong that impacts not just the teams, but local communities financially as well. 

Therein lies the heart of the matter and the crux of the issue.

It’s been said that we are all part of the problem and we are all part of the solution.

That applies to any issue in society at large.

So why can’t we be friends, so to speak? 

The bottom-line issue is greed. But it’s a greed that could be easily managed; it just isn’t. 

The thing that needs to be understood is that the NFL did not reach its level of popularity overnight. The fact is it was the professional sports league that had the most humble of beginnings. 

In large part, professional was a laughable league and profession at that from the outset in the early 1920’s. The pro game had credibility issues in a world where college football was the ultimate, eclipsed only by professional baseball. 

The thing that threatens the NFL right now is a credibility issue moving forward into the future. The issue here will be much more severe, should any work stoppage take place. 

This is not just some run-of-the-mill lockout or strike. This is a prospect that has the possibility of permanently damaging a professional sports empire that literally took decades to shape and mould into the viable product it is right now. 

That is not to say it’s a perfect product, because it’s not. Philosophies of football range far and wide, as does the angle on what is acceptable and what is not in terms of hitting, tackling and rules that favor offenses far more than they did as recently as 30 years ago. 

In that regard, those debates will always be a part of the game—that is, if there is a professional game to fall back upon.

American football is a game of fiber and fortitude that speaks to a larger audience all the time. It’s evident in recent regular season games played overseas as much as it is a part of the fabric of American apparel sales. 

Football is prevalent and dominant in North America because of where it came from as much as where it’s taken the viewing public in recent decades. In a nutshell, professional football is a phenomenon that reigns supreme in professional sports. 

Now it finds itself on the brink.

Professional football is searching for answers to a multitude of problems that American society, on the whole, is seeking out as well. For the athletes who make the sacrifices in practice and on the field of play, their careers are always hanging in the balance. 

They make physical sacrifices everyday that impact the end result. The injustice here is paying these athletes is an inexact science. 

Guys are overpaid and underpaid all the time. Some guys outperform their contract value while others take plays off and are Pro Bowlers by title only.

Moving forward, the NFL players face a mild increase in risk, playing an 18-game regular season. Owners would reap the real benefit; however, the viewing public, and fans at large, are sick of four meaningless preseason games that get tied into the regular season ticket packages. 

Additionally, there are former players who have had their personal medical need neglected under the umbrella of a successful league that has essentially cast them out, much in the way society cast out military veterans. 

There are a myriad of deeper issues involved here that range from overpaying players to overpaying for tickets and cable football packages without the caveat of true freedom of choice for the fans. There are issues from players taking plays off to owners and franchises taking seasons and even decades off from fielding viable contenders. 

It’s a competitive sport, but teams that care about the accounting bottomline more than the end results on the field are, ironically, not held accountable.

So these are complex issues that should be addressed one at time. But it should be done in a constructive way that aides progress and infuses a greater focus on building a lasting product for the future. 

The reality is that it won’t be solved overnight. The reality should be a focus placed on building something greater now that will last even longer and be even better for future generations.

This is why players currently face a lockout from the owners, and the league faces a lockout from its loyal fanbase. Anyone who thinks it won’t work out that way is a fool. 

That is why cooler and calmer heads should prevail in advance, to avoid what appears to be an impending and irreparable mark left upon the game. The NFL revolves around funny money and is not exactly living in the real world the rest of us live in. 

So how does all this tie together?

Remembering the sacrifices that went before is what should forge the future of the NFL. It should have it’s impact on the way the NFL does business, the way the players value playing the game, and the agents value what is in the best interest of the game, and not themselves or the players they serve.

So this article isn’t about to solve these complex issues. But it does offer up one thought that could tie a lot of loose ends together. 

How About Veterans Day Becomes Veterans Week in the NFL

Essentially, this thought is about promoting the game and conceding and sacrifice. 

The NFL should move to 18 regular season games. Part of that move should encompass Veterans Day out to a full week of NFL action (most likely Wednesday or Thursday night through Monday Night Football) as a symbolic way to salute our troops and their constant sacrifice. 

Moreover, tickets should be made directly available to local military families to be paid for in part by the players, their agents, owners and supporting communities.

On the fans' side, think about the Army and Navy and Air Force and they way their apparel at the college level has been a success. The San Diego Padres have their own camouflage jerseys as well in Major League Baseball. 

Fans would support alternate merchandise that helps support our troops, their families and their causes.

Essentially, it’s about giving back to society. This is not a utopian ideal; it’s realistic and doable. 

All it takes is a little sacrifice. If the lack of vision exists, all it takes is this one thought.

Take a moment to think about the military veterans and their families’ constant sacrifice.

Suddenly, things crystallize and are much easier to understand and problems become solvable.

Take timeout to salute our troops!