High fives for the NFL Lockout

I have to say I am very surprised that the NFL reached a lockout. I thought they would reach a deal after all of those extensions of the deadline.

But, they didn’t! I love it. Hopefully we all can go an entire year without looking at Bill Belichick while he thinks of new ways to cheat. We don’t need to hear how awesome Tom Brady, Peyton Manning etc. are at quaterback. Buffalonians also can go a year without watching the Bills stumble through the season.

The real reason I am so excited at this prospect is because I have grown sick and tired of the NFL. It screams of scripted games with overpaid prima donnas who probably never went to class, especially if they went to the Ohio State.

Now sports fans can find something else to do for 16 Sundays in the fall – if the lockout lasts that long. When the NFL comes back they won’t have to do the work that the NHL did a few years ago. Casual fans will still come back and watch on TV or even take in a game or two. This is far too huge of an enterprise for much to change.

What does strike me as intriguing is the repercussions this will have on the NHL and NBA. I don’t think baseball will gain much leverage due to the fact that the playoffs already do quite well and the season is pretty much over once football is rolling. However, the NBA and NHL start their seasons amid the hustle and bustle of the NFL regular season. There is a chance that won’t be the case this year. Both of these leagues should be feverishly hammering out marketing strategies and ways to bring in fans if there are people looking to get their sports fix in the fall. I hope to God the NHL leverages this opportunity into something really big for the sport of hockey. I also hope that the owners and NHLPA are already talking about any changes that need to be made to the CBA.

I will stress this though; it is a very long summer. There is a better than good chance that the two sides reach a deal before training camps begin.

Another interesting point here is that without a season the draft order will remain the same for next season. I think this presents an interesting opportunity for the Bills to make some big strides in improving their roster.

At the end of all this I think the Buffalo sports fan should want one thing, an extended lock out. The Bills will have a chance to continue to reload their roster and the Sabres and NHL will have the chance to be thrust into some additional lime light for the 2011-12 season. It is all very exciting to me.