The NFL has a tough job. They have to juggle things like competitive balance, league integrity, entertainment aspects, league growth, advertiser happiness, and fan satisfaction. It can be hard to do all that at once. It's why they make the rules they do. Sometimes that means listening to fans, other times it means not. Yet, the NFL does try and do right by their fandom.
If not for them, they wouldn't have the money they do. Yet, every so often, the NFL does something that fans just hate. It happens more than we'd like it to, and when it does it baffles everyone. That is once again the case as it was announced recently that the NFL will force coaches to give interviews during the broadcast of their games.
That means that instead of focusing on doing their jobs, head coaches will be forced by the NFL to help the media do theirs. It's not just the head coaches that will be forced to do so, either. Offensive, defensive, and special teams coordinators will also be forced to do so if requested.
Peter Schrager with some more insight on the NFL requiring in-game interviews for coaches.
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 29, 2024
"It's not just head coaches. They also have the opportunity to [interview] defensive coordinator, offensive coordinator or special teams. The team gets to pick. I think there are rules… https://t.co/lXop6VosJw pic.twitter.com/BDJFbpJioo
It's a rule change that is absolutely mind-boggling. As a member of the media, we like to be involved to some extent. Getting access is always a good thing for our bylines, yet, even most of us agree there is a limit. Sometimes we just don't need a soundbite, a quote, or anything else to help us tell the story of the game.
It should be ok for someone who had a bad game and doesn't want to talk about it while floating in their emotions, to just go home. Guys like DeMeco Ryans of the Houston Texans shouldn't have to talk to reporters mid-game. It's bad enough that the NFL forces guys to talk after a game, but during?
This is a sport and so these athletes truly owe no one anything. They're not elected officials, yet we demand more from them than we do our politicians. It's not right. Shoving a microphone in someone's face and asking them intrusive questions, sometimes to just get a reaction out of them, isn't something fans need to hear on game day.
Ask them on a Tuesday, when everyone has had a chance to relax, digest, and find their center. Not in the heat of the moment. With how intense and emotional a game can be, demanding people talk to the media seems borderline unethical.