Hall of Fame, preseason marks 'holiday' as NFL kicks off

Finally, it's time for the NFL -- the sport that drives TV viewership more than any other and the sport that broadcasters produce as consistently well as any other.

Football, thanks in large part to those broadcast partners, stirs emotions better than any other sport, too. Following the NFL Films template, every network, local TV affiliate and music video producer can provide access and a connection that draws people closer to the game.

For many fans, this time or the year compares to the excitement of the Whos before Christmas. They had a song (thank you Dr. Seuss), and so do football fans (thank you Kenny Chesney).


Action begins this weekend with Hall of Fame inductions. Both ESPN2 and the NFL Network will provide coverage of the induction ceremonies. Although the league has sterilized the program a bit in recent years -- providing a cookie-cutter approach with taped segments and short introductions before inductee speeches -- the inductees themselves can still usually convey the emotion of the moment well.

On Sunday, the Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins meet in the Hall of Fame Game. It's an exciting time for football fans.

Still, something about this year's start and that opening game leaves me with a confused, Grinchy feeling in terms of the broadcast itself.

With the "Sunday Night Football" tandem of Al Michaels and Chris Collinsworth working the game, one has to wonder how Michaels has escaped the scrutiny of others associated with the NFL in regard to his DUI earlier this year. While the league puts an emphasis on that and all crimes, Michaels has not been caught in the mix. There has been no apology, and relatively little attention paid to his situation other than from entertainment outlets or TMZ.

Are other sports media members ignoring a story about someone associated with the NFL just because he's one of them? Or how does a broadcaster in such a situation get treated so significantly different from players or team officials. (Remember, two Denver Broncos executives were punished for DUIs this year.)

Welcome football, but some consistent work by the media about another media would be a welcome approach as well.