Dear american football...

[BlazeOrange]

i wish american sports used relegation in the draft. i'd like the worst team in the league to get no pick in the first round. then you can have a lottery or a simple next worst gets first pick and so on. getting relegated from the first round of the draft would give a lot of incentive to win without having to deal with teams coming and going

That would add some interest to those late season games and make tanking an art form.

Maybe keep a 2nd set of standings only between teams not in the playoffs (i.e., only games against each other). You wouldn't know all the teams involved until the very end of the season, but that's a good thing. Then there's a couple options for the top half of the draft rounds (playoff teams would continue to draft at the end of the rounds as usual):

1 - Do as you said except the team with the worst record only between the non-qualifiers forefits their #1 pick and the rest of the non-playoff teams draft in the usual order, either based on the alternate standings or overall records.

2 - The team with the best record among non-playoff teams against each other gets the #1 pick. The rest are drafted from best to worst, based on overall record (prevents teams from resting players against teams that clinched playoff spots).

3 - The team with the best record among non-playoff teams against each other gets the #1 pick. The rest are drafted from worst to best, as usual.

4 - Combine #1 with either #2 or #3. Worst team forefits their first round pick and best non-playoff team gets the top overall choice. Order the subsequent rounds however you want.

I like #2. It would add intrigue to alot of late season games that are currently meaningless. Also, teams fighting for a playoff spot would not get quasi-breaks when they're playing eliminated teams, since those games could end up counting for draft order determination. It also allows teams on the verge to get a difference-making player that could affect the balance of power right away. Too many top players are ending up on teams that are a disaster and waste much of their careers in rebuilding efforts that usually don't succeed.

 

[cuseinchina]

I disagree completely. When fatigue start setting in during a soccer game, the first thing that you notice is first touches going awry, players not completing their runs, poor weights on final passes, basically the skills that are needed to build up to goals are the first to go. Goals are even harder to come by because teams start playing not to lose and drop their midfielders deeper and fullbacks push up less on the flanks and play a more traditional role instead of supporting the attack. Tired legs destroy offensive soccer.

I'm not saying tired legs don't impact defenses, but I think fatigue has a much greater impact on offensive talent than defensive. If you have a tired offense vs. a tired defense, I think the defense would be heavily favored over the course of an extra time.

Eventually everyoen is tired and the team with the superior forwards is going to put the ball in the goal - athletic ability trumps exhaustion, which is better than the randomness of penalty kicks...you could put most college players out there and have similar odds as the German national team. Maybe that is a stretch but not really too much of one - difference is in the goalkeeping ability.

 

[RandygoCuse]

maybe not just the EPL - italy spain germany. i don't know. maybe different markets would prefer to be hooked up with a different league. hook up with teams regularly in the champions league. it's front running but every mls team would have someone good to root for overseas. no one wants to get stuck with i don't know west brom

I like this idea. one thing that frustrates me is when MLS teams try to make it hard for their players to move up to the Euro leagues. I think the biggest mistake the MLS could make is trying to be bigger than they are.

 

[SUMBA]

That Brazil-Germany game would have looked the same without Brazil

 

[billsin01]

Until we have a thread title that says "Wow, did you see that Seattle-Portland MLS game" or "Huge trade in MLS today" soccer is not threat to anything but the fringe sports.

I think this is the nuance to this argument that soccer fans either dismiss or don't believe and don't understand. I'm not necessarily saying threads on the boards, per se, but standing in the consciousness of the general American sports fan. This is no reflection on the quality of the sport, nor the TV contracts or youth participation, but a hard-to-define measure of popularity. For instance, MLB is pretty healthy right now and raking in cash. It's place among the power leagues is pretty secure for a while, but where it's losing the battle to football (a point no one appears to be arguing against) is in the realm of public consciousness. I was in a Panera today -- and I swear I'm not making this up -- and despite the O's/Nats both in the playoff picture and battling on the field and LeBron making the move to Cleveland, the three people behind the counter were talking about how they just want the skins to beat dallas twice this year.

So the analogy I'd draw for soccer is that while it's unquestionably true that it is growing to one degree or another, the water cooler talk is still a ways away. I have no data for it and I"m not saying that there aren't fans discussing it, but the reason the World Cup stands out is because everyone is talking about it. Soccer needs to get closer to that before they start knocking off MLB/NBA/college football and they probably even have a ways to go (though not nearly as far) to surpass the NHL/college hoops. It's doable, but I don't think it happens fast.

 

[DeGrozz]

billsin01

This article seems right down your alley. I was surprised to see MLS makes even 5% of what the NFL does. I thought it'd be closer to 1% or 2%:

http://time.com/money/2973787/why-g...occer-and-the-u-s-is-so-mediocre-in-2-charts/

 

[billsin01]

billsin01

This article seems right down your alley. I was surprised to see MLS makes even 5% of what the NFL does. I thought it'd be closer to 1% or 2%:

http://time.com/money/2973787/why-g...occer-and-the-u-s-is-so-mediocre-in-2-charts/

Pretty interesting article. I'm actually surprised hockey is at 14%. I'd also suggest that while the nfl is *only* at 35%, it actually understates football's cultural status (which generates additional revenue for media outlets and businesses even though it may not flow to the nfl itself) among those leagues. It's a monster. But I could certainly see where soccer could potentially gobble up more of that pie going forward.

 

[orangenirvana]

The World Cup is popular just like Olympic sports are popular. Every four years Americans are all into it. Beyond that...meh.

As long as the best league in the world is not located in the USA I can't see the country getting behind it to the level of the Big Four. MLS is the equivalent of Double A baseball. Fun to go to once in a while but it still is what it is.

 

[jekelish]

Just to put a capper on this, the Germany/Argentina game was the most viewed of the tournament according to reports (including USA games). Overall, TV ratings were up 29% from the 2010 World Cup.

 

[Millhouse]

Just to put a capper on this, the Germany/Argentina game was the most viewed of the tournament according to reports (including USA games). Overall, TV ratings were up 29% from the 2010 World Cup.

another wc final, another scoreless draw needing extra time. (3 of the last 6). sigh

6 of last 7, someone gets shut out.

everyone hoped argentina would score goals and they almost most made it to pks in the final by scoring 1 goal in 4 knockout games and a goal a game overall

finals are always a let down.

 

[Pyle]

another wc final, another scoreless draw needing extra time. (3 of the last 6). sigh

6 of last 7, someone gets shut out.

everyone hoped argentina would score goals and they almost most made it to pks in the final by scoring 1 goal in 4 knockout games and a goal a game overall

finals are always a let down.

Since we like comparing Soccer scoring to American Football, this would be the equivalent of a Superbowl that went into quadruple OT and ended 7-0. If that happened it would be considered one of the worst SB's ever.

 

[cusefan88]

Since we like comparing Soccer scoring to American Football, this would be the equivalent of a Superbowl that went into quadruple OT and ended 7-0. If that happened it would be considered one of the worst SB's ever.

That's overly dramatic. Consider it a 10-7 OT win.

 

[jekelish]

another wc final, another scoreless draw needing extra time. (3 of the last 6). sigh

6 of last 7, someone gets shut out.

everyone hoped argentina would score goals and they almost most made it to pks in the final by scoring 1 goal in 4 knockout games and a goal a game overall

finals are always a let down.

At least it was a spectacular game winner, though. That helps salvage a (mostly) scoreless match.

 

[Scooch]

another wc final, another scoreless draw needing extra time. (3 of the last 6). sigh

6 of last 7, someone gets shut out.

everyone hoped argentina would score goals and they almost most made it to pks in the final by scoring 1 goal in 4 knockout games and a goal a game overall

finals are always a let down.

I really wonder if the magnitude of World Cup finals just swallows up most players?

You could argue that it's the most pressure-packed sporting event to play in, period, given the popularity of the sport, the intensity of the fans, and the stakes involved.

I think most of the players out there are playing not to lose, rather than to win, thus you get the lack of scoring that we often see.

 

[jekelish]

I really wonder if the magnitude of World Cup finals just swallows up most players?

You could argue that it's the most pressure-packed sporting event to play in, period, given the popularity of the sport, the intensity of the fans, and the stakes involved.

I think most of the players out there are playing not to lose, rather than to win, thus you get the lack of scoring that we often see.

I think you're certainly on to something. No one wants to be the goat who screws up and allows the other team to win, so they play much, much more conservatively than you typically see in, say, an EPL match.

This isn't just hollow threats sent toward Bill Buckner they are afraid of, they are afraid of actual physical violence in some of these countries if they lose the game for their home nation.

 

[Pyle]

That's overly dramatic. Consider it a 10-7 OT win.

No. It took 113 minutes for anyone to score. It wasn't 2-1, it was 1-0 and it took 7 american football quarters plus another 8 minutes for someone to score at all. 7-0 quadruple OT.

 

[djcon57]

Just to put a capper on this, the Germany/Argentina game was the most viewed of the tournament according to reports (including USA games). Overall, TV ratings were up 29% from the 2010 World Cup.

Also Seattle v Portland last night out drew some NHL Playoff games this year...but whatever...no reason to get worked up about it. We'll see where it goes from here.

 

[texascpa]

Here's a positive sign for the domestic league: the season just hit its mid-way point, so MLS Live's subscription price was cut in half (MLS Live is the live streaming and digital archive of all the games). Since the price cut/World Cup boost, subscriptions are up 300%.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/mylestanzer/the-world-cup-bump-is-real-mls-streaming-subscriptions-are-u

going from 1 subscriber to 4 is a 300% increase. Sorry, but the percentage increase doesn't tell you much unless you know the numbers that support it. Working in financial data every day, there are time where 300% +/- means nothing, while a 5% +/- means a hell of a lot.

 

[jekelish]

Also Seattle v Portland last night out drew some NHL Playoff games this year...but whatever...no reason to get worked up about it. We'll see where it goes from here.

It did? That's awesome. Probably helps that it was a game that has a great burgeoning rivalry and featured Dempsey and Yedlin. I didn't get to watch, my 3 year old decided he didn't want to fall asleep so I spent way too much time trying to convince him it was a good idea but he just wasn't havin' it.

 

[Millhouse]

At least it was a spectacular game winner, though. That helps salvage a (mostly) scoreless match.

it does help. anything's better than PKs

i just want to see a game where both teams score at least twice that doesn't go to PKs. It's happened once since england won the cup in 1966!

I just can't imagine the NFL sitting idly by as the losing team averages 4 points a game for 12 super bowls straight (.58 goals for the losing team from 1970 on)

 

[rrlbees]

No. It took 113 minutes for anyone to score. It wasn't 2-1, it was 1-0 and it took 7 american football quarters plus another 8 minutes for someone to score at all. 7-0 quadruple OT.

That's not necessarily a negative. It was a very good game and exciting.

An 8-7 baseball game might be a lot of fun and exciting. But if anyone understands baseball, a pitchers dual of 1-0 can be as exciting. We go nuts over no hitters and perfect games.

 

[Millhouse]

I really wonder if the magnitude of World Cup finals just swallows up most players?

You could argue that it's the most pressure-packed sporting event to play in, period, given the popularity of the sport, the intensity of the fans, and the stakes involved.

I think most of the players out there are playing not to lose, rather than to win, thus you get the lack of scoring that we often see.

i think that is part of it but i think soccer is so low scoring there's little room for error

 

[Millhouse]

That's not necessarily a negative. It was a very good game and exciting.

A 8-7 baseball game might be a lot if fun and exciting. But if anyone understands baseball, a pitchers dual of 1-0 can be as exciting. We got nuts over no hitters and perfect games.

because they're rare. when baseball stopped scoring runs in the 1960s they did something about it (lowered the mound, strike zone, eventually let guys take horse pills, ok that last part wasn't so smart)

 

[Millhouse]

that game yesterday had some pretty ugly concussions. and FIFA makes the NFL look ahead of its time in evaluating them. and i think soccer concussions are overstated by some people. but that game didn't help. that wasn't a great advertisement for the safety of soccer

 

[texascpa]

that game yesterday had some pretty ugly concussions. and FIFA makes the NFL look ahead of its time in evaluating them. and i think soccer concussions are overstated by some people. but that game didn't help. that wasn't a great advertisement for the safety of soccer

they should start wearing helmets to protect their heads