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Interesting that Rogers has come out today and had a go at the committment of the NFC players. Personally, I was watching the game and switched off at half time, it was that dull.

I agree with the suggestion that it needs to be moved back to after the Superbowl, at least in the current format. However, if you play it before the Superbowl then get rid of the special rules. The season is over for the players involved so there is no need to protect them

475 days ago

Ismail Uddin,

Pro Bowl has always been a exhibition rather than a competitive event and for a fan watching Aaron Rodgers lightly jogging to hand off the ball to his running back who in turn gingerly connects with opposition players is not what i want to see.

Allowing the players to tweet gives the game a different edge, includes the fan more without them getting bored by the proceedings on the field.

What i would like to see is the Pro Bowl being moved back after the Superbowl so at least there would be the attraction of the Superbowl winners. Might not be any more competitive but at least it wont be in the Superbowl's shadow and tops off the season nicely.

Twitter in the Pro Bowl is a good exercise for the NFL but they have to make sure it doesnt impact the regular game. Tweeting should be prohibited during and after a regular season game because things can be said in the heat of the moment which the player will later regret but it would already be out there in the world.

476 days ago

Chris Campasano,

In my opinion the Pro-Bowl here in the US doesn't have much fan support at all, basically a side show placed between the end of the playoffs and the Super Bowl. A close colleague of mine, who no only is very connected to sports in general is also a huge American Football fan, posted this yesterday morning: "Big, important game today!! Who will reign supreme...NFC or AFC? Kidding, what joke this game has become. ZZZZZZZ." The best players from the best two teams don't play, so its really not a true representation of the all-stars in the league. All in all - its an afterthought for many.

So for me - I believe the NFL has done this on purpose to try and engage the fan a bit more through social media. I am not sure it will do much for the older fans who haven't joined the Twitterverse, but for the younger fan it could get them engaged and keep them engaged year after year. I believe it is a experiment, but think the NFL has to make some more wholesale changes in order to create the same fan connection that the NBA, MLB, and even NHL & MLS has made to its core fans.

476 days ago

Iain Taker,

I think it was a fun experiment to see how it would go, though the NFL have made it plainly clear that there is no intention whatsoever of removing the traditional blackout period during the game and for 90 mins after. A cynic may say that the idea was one to stop the game from being as uninteresting as many NFL fans have found it. Many fans watched the game just to see how whether it would work. The stark reality was that unless one (or a number) of the players decided to send tweets that were controversial or particularly funny that the experiment would be seen as midly interesting without greating an extreme buzz either positive or negative.

Saying that I would not be surprised to see it being replicated in the NBA and MLS All Star games etc.

476 days ago

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