My4Albany

Please...consider the fact that I spent 4-hours of my weekend yesterday watching the Eagles and Bengals set the NFL back 2-years with their embarrassing play in a 13-13 OT tie...when you read the rest of this. (however, before I get to my main point...Donovan McNabb - DONE WITH YOUR ACT. DONE WITH IT! I done with the smiles following bad pass after bad pass. Done withe ridiculous statements you make at press conferences, including after yesterday's game in which you admitted that you didnt know that there were ties in NFL regular-season games. DONE WITH YOU. McNabb and Reid - GOTTA GO.)

Now...to my main point: what happened to the NFL? It wasn't that long ago that the sport provided entertainment value. There used to be several memorable games a weekend...classic games. Now all we get is crap: Poor play...poor coaching...poor officiating...poor announcing.

I never thought I think this, let alone put it down in writing, but this league is in trouble. It's in trouble of alienating fans due to mediocrity. Name the teams...right now...that you would classify as exciting, worth the price of admission. And I'm not talking about exciting because they're winning. If winning is all that matters then the Giants and Titans would qualify. And if you're a fan of one of those teams god bless you. Enjoy.

But that's not it. I'm talking about a team you're juiced-up to watch. Must-see TV. Do we have any in the league. San Diego used to be one of those teams. Denver. The Eagles. Cowboys. Patriots. Not anymore. The Arizona Cardinals are probably the closest thing we have this season to an exciting team...and they can't play defense or win on the road.

The NFL has become...yes...BORING. Few break-out stars. NO classic games of marquee match-ups. And the problem starts with the quarterback position. When the winningest QB's in the league are guys like Kurt Warner, Brett Favre, Kerry Collins and the vanilla Eli Manning, the league has a problem. Add to the mix inept coaching and the injury factor, which regularly deprives fans from seeing the some of the best players perform every week, and you're left with a lot of unwatchable games.

The hype machine, and the gambling factor, will keep the NFL huge for the near future. But if this league isn't careful it could see a massive decline in popularity...and soon. And a few more Sundays like yesterday...and that fall could come even sooner that you think.