Super Bowl fever is here [in Philly] because NFL shares [revenues]

The Eagles' hometown is Philadelphia but loyalties in the National Football League are a patchwork. There are Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys fans in these parts too. Some cheer for the Baltimore Ravens while Cheeseheads remain loyal to the Green Bay Packers even in defeat.

The Eagles' hometown is Philadelphia but loyalties in the National Football League are a patchwork. There are Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys fans in these parts too.

I used to have one of each for neighbors. He was for America's Team, she for the Beltways. But they've moved across the state.

Last weekend, the NFL cliche "on any given day, any team can beat any other team in this league" came true. On Saturday, two underdogs won by big margins. The Atlanta Falcons sent the Packers packing and the New York Jets held the classy Colts scoreless. On Sunday, two teams came from way behind in the fourth quarter to win. The San Francisco 49ers overcame a 24-point deficit to beat the New York Giants, a team on a roll, in the final minutes. The same thing happened in Pittsburgh where the Steelers scored three times in the last quarter to beat the Cleveland Browns.

The sheer joy of the game was evident in all those games. They were as good as they were because of how NFL teams share their revenues. A team like Green Bay can survive in a miniscule television market. And Pittsburgh can be as strong economically as the rival Eagles despite the fact that Philadelphia is the fourth-largest television market in the country. With shared revenues, star players can be found in Kansas City as well as New York.

If major league baseball bought into this approach, its games might be more interesting to more people. Dynasties such as the Yankees make the sport uninteresting to millions who want to cheer for their own teams.

The Eagles are at the top of their game this year. Last year they were almost there. But the winner of last year's Super Bowl, the New England Patriots, didn't make the playoffs. Neither did the team they upset, the St. Louis Rams. The see-saw is exciting.

In the last III Super Bowls, neither team had a winning record the year before.

foreverfree

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