NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell Hopes Football Will Help Unite A Divided Nation

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was asked by CNBC’s Julia Boorstin during a recent interview about players potentially speaking out about the upcoming 2024 presidential election. Although the nation is politically divided, Goodell hopes that the upcoming football season will help bring fans together.

Commissioner Roger Goodell supports NFL Votes, a program for players, teams, and partners to encourage fans to vote

“It’s always a difficult period in the country when you go through an election, and I think it’s important to hear voices,” Goodell told Boorstin.

“We support a program called NFL Votes. We ask our players, our teams, our partners to stand up and say to our fans, ‘Go vote. That’s a democratic way.’ That’s what we all support.

“We understand our platform. We understand, frankly, that we unite people, and that’s what we like to focus on. So, hopefully, we’re that harbor where people can come together and get away from politics or anything else and enjoy football for a day.”

Fans could probably say in good faith that “we’re way past” being divided. Football is not about football anymore. It’s now about X voting for Y, penalty flags galore, unvaccinated this or unvaccinated that, Taylor Swift, etc.

NFL faced scrutiny for allowing its players to kneel during the national anthem

The NFL dived into politics in 2016 when it allowed then-San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick to kneel during the national anthem. Kaepernick, 36, did this to protest racial injustice and police brutality.

However, fans were skeptical of the motive behind his protest. Kaepernick didn’t start kneeling during the national anthem or publicly protesting police brutality until he was benched in favor of Blaine Gabbert.

It seemed as if it was division for the sake of division.

The point is, both the NFL and NBA could have nipped this in the bud years ago by enforcing rules for all players, coaches, and team personnel to stand during the national anthem.

Social justice initiatives were added to sidelines, jerseys, and helmets in 2020

Then came the George Floyd protests and riots throughout 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic. The league had already divided its fanbase by allowing players to kneel during the national anthem.

That same year, the NFL permitted its players to wear social justice messages on their helmets. Messages included “It Takes All of Us” and “End Racism.” This was part of the league’s Inspire Change platform.

In 2021, the league also brought back the “Say Their Stories” initiative. For the first time, each team also highlighted its social justice work during a regular-season home game in Weeks 17 and 18.

“We are committed to Inspire Change and the social justice work that inspires change for the long term,” Anna Isaacson, NFL SVP of Social Responsibility, told The Associated Press.

“The six messages players can choose from as part of the helmet decal program are: ‘End Racism,’ ‘Stop Hate,’ ‘It Takes All of Us,’ ‘Black Lives Matter,’ ‘Inspire Change,’ and ‘Say Their Stories.'”

Washington Redskins were rebranded to Washington Football Team and then Washington Commanders

Nonetheless, the NFL doubled down on its political stance when it retired the Washington Redskins’ name and logo. This led to the adoption of the temporary placeholder name Washington Football Team.

That was until the team’s official name was changed to Washington Commanders for the 2022 season.

There was a time in the 2000s and early 2010s when the No. 1 topic in football was about bad calls, penalty flags, or the Tom Brady-Peyton Manning rivalry. Those days are long gone.

Fast forward to 2024, football has now devolved into politics, gambling, social media battles, famous singers, vaccine mandates, and the usual complaints about bad officiating.

While fans could argue that football was already in decline by the 21st century, the NFL got itself deeper into politics as the years went on. This only worsened the product.

Military flyovers, national anthem are both political?

Democrats would argue that supporting the military with flyovers and having the national anthem played are both political. It’s a fine point. But even during the Olympics or at international ceremonies, athletes are still protesting instead of showing respect for their country.

If religion and the anthem are to be kept out of sports, shouldn’t activist movements and organizations as well? There’s a time and place for everything, but that doesn’t seem to apply anymore. Up is down and east is west.

Simply put, it seems impossible at this point for the NFL to unite its fanbase. The damage was already done years ago. Not only are fans wondering if the games are fixed, but they’re also tired of all the extra noise.

Fans not knowing who their favorite player or celebrity is voting for was how it used to be. NFL games were a joy to watch when fans only had to worry about a fumble or interception. Not to mention, an occasional bad call.

In the minds of many, college football at its worst is still a better product than the modern-day NFL.