On McNabb, the NFL, and integrity...

[Kelvin Bryant]

A primary appeal of the NFL for many people is the idea that the league is based on merit -- the best player gets the job, and the best team (allowing for injuries and lucky bounces) brings home the Lombardi trophy. If this approach results in most wideouts being black, or a particular division winning several consecutive Super Bowls, few see that as a problem. True, the NFL's search for 'parity' leads it to punish success in various ways, such as giving the weakest teams the first picks in the draft.

But at the corporate level, the NFL practices an extreme form of 'affirmative action' intended to increase the number of black coaches. An owner who wants to hire a coach who happens to be white is mandated to interview black candidates as well or face fines in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Never mind that such sham interviews waste the time of all concerned and insult all NFL owners by suggesting that, left to their own devices, they would prefer to hire an inferior white coach rather than a more effective black coach.

Now, in the wake of Rush Limbaugh's suggestion that Donovan McNabb has been touted by the media in excess of his actual performance, there seems little doubt the NFL would like nothing better than to see McNabb look good this Sunday, by way of 'refuting' Limbaugh's politically incorrect observations. Which raises an interesting question -- might the NFL attempt to extend its social engineering efforts to the playing field?

If so, we could expect a notable absence of holding calls on the Eagles' offensive line. And an early roughing call or two when McNabb is hit as he releases the ball. Lots of invisible penalties on the Redskins to keep the Eagles offense on the field. And, if they choose not to be subtle, look for an interference flag to come out *after* a McNabb interceptions.

Now the work of NFL referees this year has been uneven at best, with the occasional jaw-dropping call where the receiver takes four steps with the ball, leaves it on the ground out of bounds, and discovers that the pass is incomplete. The normal expectation is that a few weak calls will be scattered through the game, with no particular pattern.

Is it possible that the NFL will compromise the integrity of the game to make a political point? We'll find out on Sunday.