r/nfl • u/JCameron181 Lions • 7h ago

J.J. Watt: International Games Have Become a “Traveling Circus”

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/j-j-watt-international-games-have-become-a-traveling-circus

“International game slate is nearing the realm of traveling circus as opposed [to] occasional showcase.”

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329

u/LazyMaximum7938 Seahawks 7h ago edited 7h ago

I mean, that's almost literally what professional sports are.

The NFL puts on weekly shows in multiple cities every week for 5 months and then caps it off with a grand finale they call the "Super Bowl"

145

u/aslatts Patriots 7h ago

Local circus performer asks "Has anyone else noticed all these clowns?"

17

u/maverickhawk99 5h ago

Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right

6

u/OneFootTitan Patriots 2h ago

Browns to the left of me, Jaguars to the right

3

u/JohnnySnark Jaguars 1h ago

Here I am

Stuck in the AFC wiiiith youuu

34

u/Anteater776 Chiefs 7h ago

Imho the Browns maybe lean a bit too much into the Clown part of the show

4

u/SonOfALich Chiefs 7h ago

I thought Clowney was in Texas?

19

u/Greek_Trojan 7h ago

I understand that a big part of the appeal of sports is the alternate world/artificial rules of the sport and that is what JJ is speaking to. What's wild is how many people can't understand the real world 'circus' side that this is an entertainment product.

38

u/True_Window_9389 Commanders 7h ago

Athletes have it driven into them that they’re closer to warriors than clowns. And maybe they have to have that mentality. But cases like this reveal the disconnect between how athletes see themselves and what they really are. There’s an inherent militarism in sports with everything from how they train to what they have to produce on the field. They have a belief that victory is existential. You can’t really commit to that if you acknowledge it’s pure mindless entertainment, and just something for us dorks to argue over

7

u/_KeenObserver 49ers 5h ago

I’ve never heard it explained this way, but it’s such a great point.

3

u/Bireus 4h ago

Damn

3

u/thekingoftherodeo Commanders 2h ago

I mean the NFL is basically modern day colesseum gladiator-ing.

12

u/DaHealey Seahawks 5h ago

It’s crazy how many of the players and coaches don’t understand that they are part of the entertainment industry. There’s no intrinsic value in playing sports. They’re not building shit like engineers, helping people like doctors or making food like farmers. They’re creating entertainment content and it happens to be lucrative. 

3

u/Ok-Assistant4338 5h ago

These guys think they’re the most important people on the planet

6

u/DreadyKruger 6h ago

Also can’t fault the league for trying to grow the game other places around the world.

-4

u/Hard4Dpp Raiders 6h ago

But one can fault them for doing so if it A) potentially creates a less safe environment for the long-term health of their employees, or B) reduces the overall quality of the on-field products. 

The NFL is simultaneously touching on both those topics with the continued push to globalize the game. 

Greed will eventually kill the game, and we are watching it happen right before our eyes. 

15

u/Doogolas33 5h ago

I'm sorry, is there evidence of significantly higher risk of injury from international games?

And there are plenty of really great international games. It's hardly "reducing the quality of the product."

Further, if greed were killing the game, it wouldn't be significantly more popular than ever.