Well, the Super Bowl is next week and I must admit that I am looking forward to it – simply because I like the idea of a New York team beating a Boston team. But I really have no interest anymore in professional football as several of my blog posts have made clear. Last weeks Giants-49ers game was a case in point why have I lost interest in professional football. At the onset of OT the head referee explained the new the new OT rules to the captains at mid-field. But the rules were so complicated and the referee’s explication so labyrinthine that I don’t think anyone, not the players on the field, nor anyone watching at home understood him. I certainly didn’t understand him. In fact, all I understood was the part at the end where he asked, “heads or tails?” It was a comic performance by the NFL. The days of “Gentlemen, the first team that scores wins the contest” are officially over.

At one point during the OT the FOX camera panned the 49er bench where four linemen were resting during a Giants possession. Each player had tattoos that ran the length of his arms. I could not see any ectodermal tissue that was not covered in ink. It is as if tattoos are now part of the unwritten uniform code in the NFL (and the NBA I would add). And the code says that linemen should have more tattoos than QBs and receivers – for that is the impression I got while watching the game. Nowadays tattoos symbolize toughness. Funny but in my book it is just the opposite. The truly tough guys in the NFL were those who played a generation or two ago and who simply donned a uniform and a few pads. They didn’t need tattoos to prove they were tough. They just showed up, broke their share of bones against other tough guys and collected a paycheck every couple of weeks. Those days are long gone.

Regrettably.

Enjoy the game !