Tara Sullivan's Boston Globe story on the state of the NFL in July 2018 is a misery index, a litany of missteps by a league that can't get out of its own way. Conservatives and progressives can agree on several items on Sullivan's list, but other entries demonstrate the media bias one would expect from the intersection of progressive bias and the Globe.
First, the NFL storylines few would disagree on, Sullivan's recapping of "ugly incidents and PR blunders" reading "like a laundry list of incompetence.":
"This is not to ignore the great acts of charity, kindness, philanthropy, and generosity also done this offseason by players across the country, but for every step forward, the NFL itself manages takes two more back, a perpetual cycle that understandably leaves fans weary of the roller coaster."
There was the recent DUI arrest of Arizona Cardinals General Manager Steve Keim and arrests for violent offenses of former players Kellen Winslow Jr. and Brandon Browner.
Several players have been suspended for using performance enhancing drugs, including the four-game benching of Patriots receiver Julian Edelman. NFL sponsor Papa John’s founder and former CEO John Schnatter made headlines for racist remarks.
Buffalo Bills' running back LeSean McCoy stands accused of brutally attacking his ex-girlfriend, invoking memories of Ray Rice knocking out his wife and Commissioner Roger Goodell's pathetic handling of the situation. Also, Tampa Bay quarterback Jameis Winston (seen in photo above) got only a three-game suspension for groping an Uber driver.
"Shame on the players who are the real perpetrators," Sullivan writes. "But shame on the bosses who promise to hold them accountable but don’t, who can’t seem to avoid perpetual bad decisions."
Agreed. Now the "but monkey."
Sullivan calls the new NFL policy requiring proper respect for Old Glory and the Star-Spangled Banner "ill-advised." The policy drew a grievance by the NFL Players Association, "angered that it was not involved in discussions to craft it."
The Globe writer criticized Cardinals' owner Bill Bidwill for supporting the new anthem policy "because it allows for the focus to stay on sports, but his son and team president Michael Bidwill using his in-house Twitter feed to voice his political support for a Supreme Court justice nominee." Player-activists can express themselves, owners can't.
Sullivan harps about former 49er Colin Kaepernick" remaining locked out by all 32 owners, unable to secure even a tryout after his kneeling in protest started a movement." No cookie-cutter, group thinking liberal media outlet can write about the NFL without including the obligatory salute to America's most notorious former athlete.
There are some glaring omissions by Sullivan. For one, the NFL's total surrender to social justice warriors and rewarding them with $89 million to engage in prison reform and other endeavors. Two: no less than 18 NFL players have been arrested or indicted this calendar year, for DUI's, drugs, a bomb threat, domestic violence and more. And third: the disgusting on-field Super Bowl entrance of the Philadelphia Eagles to the obscene and race-laden trash of rapper Meek Mill.
Basically, almost no one on the Right or the Left is happy with the National Football League, which, along with many players, is doing everything it can to destroy its fan base.
