Monday, December 01, 2008

Goodell's “International Series” aides Patriots


Let's say you're the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and you glance ahead to your schedule opponents for next season. You know you're playing the AFC and NFC East in addition to the regular brutal slate of divisional games in the NFC South. Tough sledding. At least one of your toughest games, against the New England Patriots, is at home – right?
Wrong. Because greedy, money-hungry commissioner Roger Goodell needs extra pocket cash so once a year, a team gets shafted out of a home game and gets to “host” an opponent overseas. Unfortunately for football and the Buccaneers' fans, their toughest opponent will no longer have to face the Bucs on their home turf, but rather at a “neutral” site. And let's face it, with the Patriots and their never-ending horde of bandwagoners, there's never such thing as a “neutral” site.
So to sum up, the Patriots don't have to play one of their toughest road games so the commissioner can make a few extra bucks he doesn't need. Conveniently when selected two teams, he miraculously picked this matchup, instead of, say, the Detroit Lions, who could probably play on the Moon while their opponents have no oxygen masks and still not have an advantage.
My opinion of it, Patriots-biased or not, is that this idea royally sucks. Not only does one team have to forfeit a home date, but their opponent gets one of their road games played at a neutral site. The Dolphins, they of 1-15 infamy in 2007, and the Saints, they of missing out on the playoffs yet again, have been victimized by it. Now it's the Buccaneers turn. Advantage, as usual, Patriots.

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