The American sporting public loves the NFL. The game is perfectly paced for TV with plenty of time to get up and grab another beer and just enough time to run to the bathroom and make room for more beer. Football combines violence with just enough strategy to let us think that we are smart. Baseball was the "national pastime" in a time long since past. We are living in the NFL's world and there's no pretending otherwise.
Now we can get back to what we love with the official (sort of) end of the The Great Lockout Of 2011.
The NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith addressed the media on Monday to explain the working man's side of the deal. He was followed by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell representing the Great American Capitalist.
"We wanted to let everyone know who loves this game that the executive committee and board of player reps of the National Football League unanimously recommended the approval of the deal.
"Obviously, we have a collective bargaining ratification process that has yet to start. We have a recertification effort that is going to be one of the most intense and significant unionization efforts, certainly one of the most public unionization efforts in our history. Our men believe they should make this decision as players. They'll make the decision of recertification as players. They'll make the decision of ratifying the CBA that addresses health and asfety issues, and benefits, that you know have been important to us.
"To our fans, I know you love this game as much as I do. I know it's been a very long process since the day we stood here on that day in March. But our guys stuck together when no one lese thought we would and football is back because of it. I'm proud of the men that you see behind me, I'm proud of the former players that have stood with us, and most of all, I dig our fans who love our game." -- DeMaurice Smith
"It's been a long time coming and uh -- football's back." - Roger Goodell
Football is back...or at least it will be once a few more hoops are jumped through.