NFL Layoffs – Calling For a Replay Challenge!

Yesterday the National Football League announced it was eliminating 150 jobs to help reduce league expenses, blaming the reduction on the recession our Nation is facing.

The average player in the NFL made $770,000 in 2007. That is the average player. There are 32 teams, with each team carrying 53 players on the roster.

The average NFL franchise is worth north of $1 billion. The average price of a ticket to an NFL game is $72.20.

The point of this is not to hammer anyone for making too much money — far from it.

The point is that, once again, National Football League, everything you do sends a message.

We are going through one of the toughest economic crisis’ since the inception of the National Football League. Thousands of people are losing their jobs daily. Many will have to tell sons and daughters that the much desired jersey or ticket won’t be coming this year due to financial constraints.

The NFL has done an admirable job of competing to become the “new” National past time. People live and die for their teams. Teams are often not viewed as corporations but rather fabric of the community.

Eliminating jobs, blaming financial constraints, sends a conflicting message when the average player makes more in a year than many people will make in a lifetime. The league’s estimated gross income is projected to be $7 billion, off $50 million from earlier projections.

The estimated savings to the league through the reductions – $50 million.

The Commissioner made a good move earlier in the week by lowering the cost of playoff tickets by 10% — a positive message. In this economic climate, people need something to cheer for, and often that something is a team or player on Sunday afternoon.

The NFL broadcasts on Fox Network. The President of Fox Network is Roger Ailes, an expert on public speaking and messaging. Roger Ailes coined the phrase “You are the message.”

The NFL should review the message they are sending through this announcement.