NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's efforts to rid the league of players like Pacman Jones and Michael Vick have generally been greeted favorably by football fans.
But those efforts may have some
unintended consequences -- they may serve to remind fans that not all of the players they're cheering on Sundays are the types of people they'd want to cheer Monday through Saturday.
That's why, as
Stuart Elliott reports in today's New York Times, the NFL is beginning a new marketing campaign aimed at repairing the league's image. Ads will feature some of the league's good guys talking about their lives off the field, including Browns linebacker Willie McGinest, who discusses how his mother encouraged him to play football to keep him out of trouble.
The ads seem effective, and it's wise for the NFL to spotlight the fact that the players who commit crimes represent a small percentage of the league as a whole. At the same time, though, this campaign could backfire. For one thing, it's easy to see right through something like this: The ads had better be subtle enough that they don't seem like they're blaring the message, "We're not all Pacman."
And, of course, if one of the players featured in these ads gets arrested. the NFL will have a whole new headache.
After Pacman and Michael Vick, NFL Accentuates the Positive in New Ad Campaign - FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog
08-30-2007, 01:45 PM
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