NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said the league may keep the Pro Bowl in place prior to the Super Bowl next season, even as the game returns to its longtime home in Hawaii.
The Pro Bowl has drawn criticism for its timing this week as Colts president Bill Polian has led a chorus of NFL stakeholders who've said it's unfair to require pariticipants in the Super Bowl to make ceremonial appearances at the league's all-star game. But Goodell said the league may not adjust the date of the game next year.
He told the Miami Herald:
"Here's where I like it: I think you should stop or end your season when you reach the pinnacle. The pinnacle is the Super Bowl. I think it's anticlimactic when you come back with the Pro Bowl the week after the Super Bowl."
The Pro Bowl, held on Sunday in Miami, is taking place on the U.S. mainland for the first time since 1980 and for the first time ever before the Super Bowl.
Polian said last week mandating Colts and Saints players to appear -- a day before their teammates even arrive at the Super Bowl site -- was "stupid." Others, including Eagles QB Donovan McNabb and former Super Bowl-winning coaches Jon Gruden and Brian Billick, agreed with his criticism.
Goodell said the NFL can choose to play next year's Pro Bowl before or after the Super Bowl. The league said it expects to make a decision within about six weeks.
He said the league has been pleased by the reaction to the Pro Bowl in Miami and the attention the game has received:
"We'll talk to our partners, including our players. I do like the idea of building up to the Super Bowl. We're still in season. Watching the reaction of this community and looking at other communities, we've seen a lot more attention than ever on the Pro Bowl. That's a plus."
-- Sean Leahy
source : http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2010/01/roger-goodell-nfl-may-keep-pro-bowl-before-super-bowl-in-hawaii-next-year/1
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